Frequently Asked Questions

General

Biotic means living - we consider brands to be living organisms as they exist only in the perception and interaction with people. If you want to grow your brand, its impact, its commercial success then you need to understand the process that governs the growth of all living organisms. Hence BIOTIC Brand Cultivation®.

Why are you always talking about a process?

Every brand aspires to grow - it is what drives all our endeavors and probably yours too. This is usually expressed as a goal: > by this time next year - have achieved 10% more sales > be recognized as market leader > gained an additional 10.000 subscribers > beaten the competition to first place in market share > etc. All of these are valid goals. However, they are just the wished-for end results. The key question is: how do I get there? What do I need to do to realize my goal? This is where the process comes into play. To achieve growth as a result, you need to understand growth as a process. Only when you understand the process can you identify those actions that will help you attain your goal. Imagine backing a cake. You know what your goal is: a delicious apple pie. Unless you know what the necessary ingredients are, what to do with them in what order and in which proportions, you will not achieve your goal. You waste a lot of time and resources without having any measurable result. Once you look at it as a process, get all the necessary information and act accordingly, you will achieve your goal. The same is true for the growth of your brand. Unless you understand the process that governs the growth of your brand you risk wasting a lot of time and resources without having any measurable results.

Can you create my next advertising campaign?

To guarantee our independent advice, we focus on determining what your brand needs, developing the most effective strategy, briefing your advertising agency and following up their campaign implementation to make sure that it meets all the criteria defined in the recommendations and strategy. This means that YES, we will be glad to develop your most effective and comprehensive strategy ever. And NO, we will not be the ones who create and implement your campaign. However, we'll be glad to recommend trusted agencies that can do the creative work based on our strategy or accompany your present agency in the implementation of our strategy.

If brands are unique, how can you use a standard 'one-size-fits-all' approach?

Every brand is unique and needs a unique strategy to unlock its growth potential. Biotic Brand Cultivation® analyses every brand from a growth process point of view. And though each brand is unique, the laws that govern its growth process are the same for all brands. These laws are universal - they do not change. Download here a free copy of the report explaining the 3 laws of growth and how they will help you grow your brand. Understanding the process of growth allows us to use standard audits and tools to identify the specific needs of your brand. This means that our methodology is standardised in order to deliver unique and reproducible strategies and recommendations for your brand.

How long will it take to develop our growth strategy?

Our process approach allows us to develop your growth strategy in less time than you would normally expect. Our approach is entirely modular with pre-defined time frames that facilitate your (and our) planning. In function of what your most pressing needs are, you will benefit from the following modules: > DNA diagnosis - making your brand stand out by defining it in a strong, attractive and unique way (time frame: 2 weeks - your time implication: 2 meetings of 4 hours each) > DNA audit - researching where your brand has immediate growth potential (time frame: 2 weeks - your time implication: none) > Brand Relationship Scan - researching how to turn your clients into fans and ambassadors (time frame: 2 weeks - your time implication: none) > Growth Strategy - detailing the most effective and cost efficient ways to stimulate your growth (time frame: 2 weeks - your time implication: 1 meeting of 2 hours) > StratoPlanner - your interactive platform, giving you full control over any MarCom choices in function of Sales results (time frame: 2 weeks - your time implication: 1 meeting of 2 hours) As some modules can run simultaneously, it only takes 6 - 8 weeks to complete all 5 modules.

How can I 'sell' your services to my boss?

Our methodology offers you unprecedented control over how to get the best immediate and long term growth results with your available resources. Independent research indicates that usually more than 50% of MarCom spending is not contributing to your Sales and Brand Equity growth. Our tools enable you to allocate your resources where they will have the biggest effect on your short term (Sales) and long term (Brand Equity) results - exclusively based on measurements and audits. In our experience, this rational, quantifiable approach ALWAYS interests senior management.

Do you work for Non-Profit organisations?

Yes - our methodology is perfectly suited to help you grow your organisation. Please contact us directly (via Contact Us page) to check how you can qualify for the special Non-Profit rates we offer.

I'm a Sales Manager - how can you help me?

The StratoPlanner lets your Marketing Manager identify which MarCom actions will be most effective to help you increase sales performance. That way his and your efforts will be bundled to support your sales team.

What definition of 'Branding' do you use?

For us, Branding is the result of all the ways your stakeholders interact with and experience you and your organisation. Branding should always be from the inside out and should primarily be driven by the answer to the question 'Why?'. Branding generates experiences on all levels that make your clients, personnel, suppliers, investors, etc. choose for you - over and over again. It is the driving force behind your commercial success (or failure!).

Is there any proof that your approach works?

The succes of our approach is of course demonstrated by the results our clients achieve thanks to it. As we are process and principles driven (vs sector specialists) our clients are active in a variety of sectors and come from all over Europe. We will be glad to arrange for a personal contact with any of our clients if you would like to have their direct feedback. In addition, we are in constant dialogue with leading academics both in Europe and the USA to challenge and refine our methodology. Research papers regarding our approach can be obtained on simple request.

We don't have resources to waste on branding - we need short term results. Can you help us?

We can help you generate short term results. But our strategies to generate short term results will also built your brand equity (your brand value). This in order for you to benefit next year from the investments you made previously to generate short term results. It is no longer a question of short term results or branding. You want to achieve both to capitalise your expenditures. This way your MarCom spending becomes an investment rather than a cost. This means that you don't have to start from scratch each year. Instead, your previous spending has built brand equity that helps you get better sales results with your available resources.