Dora, why should consumer insight enter the brand strategy process earlier?
Dora Harfman Bromée: Because brand strategy is too important to build only from the inside out.
A company can have a clear ambition for what it wants the brand to stand for. But the audience may not see the brand in the same way. Competitors may already own parts of the territory. Or the associations the team wants to build may be attractive, but not credible enough as a starting point.
That is why timing matters. If insight enters after the strategy is finished, the role of research becomes narrower. You are mainly asking: “Does this work?” But if insight enters earlier, you can ask a better question: “Which direction has the strongest potential?”
Brand Touch helps answer that by showing what the brand already owns, how it compares to competitors and which emotional and functional associations can support a stronger position.
Many clients already work with agencies or consultancies on brand strategy. Where does Brand Touch fit in?
Dora Harfman Bromée: Brand Touch should make their work stronger.
A good strategy partner brings structure, creativity, category understanding and strategic judgement. Brand Touch adds a structured audience perspective to that process.
It gives everyone a shared view of the market before decisions are made. What does the brand stand for today? What associations are distinctive? Which ones are motivating? Which spaces are already occupied by competitors? And where is there room to build something both credible and ownable?
That helps CMOs and their partners make better choices. Not because data replaces strategic thinking, but because it reduces the risk of building a strategy around assumptions that only exist inside the organization.
What can go wrong when research comes in too late?
Dora Harfman Bromée: You may discover the problem when it is already expensive to change.
Imagine a brand has spent months developing a new positioning around confidence, progress and boldness. The internal team is aligned. The agency has developed the creative platform. The first campaign routes are already taking shape.
Then the research shows that consumers see the brand very differently. They associate it with care, reliability and expertise — traits that are actually valuable and distinctive in the category. At the same time, “boldness” is already strongly owned by a competitor.
If that insight had come in earlier, the team might have made a different strategic choice. They might have built on the brand’s existing credibility and found a more ownable way to express progress. But after the strategy is approved, the same insight becomes harder to act on.
That is the difference between research as input and research as correction.
How does Brand Touch help CMOs make better brand investment decisions?
Dora Harfman Bromée: It helps connect positioning to what the business actually needs to move.
For a CMO, the question is not only “What should our brand stand for?” It is also: “Where should we invest? What position can help us grow? What will help us build preference, consideration, loyalty or pricing power?”
Brand Touch helps make those choices more concrete. It can show whether the brand needs to strengthen an existing position, stretch into a new space, defend against competitors or sharpen its emotional role in the category.
That matters because brand investment is always a prioritization exercise. You cannot build every association at once. You need to know which associations are attractive, distinctive, credible and commercially relevant.
For more on how to build a position that is both distinctive and commercially relevant, read more about how to position your brand to increase share and distinctiveness.
Does research make brand strategy less creative?
Dora Harfman Bromée: No. Good research should make strategy braver.
When you know what your brand already owns and where the market opportunity is, you can take smarter risks. You can challenge category conventions without becoming irrelevant. You can stretch the brand without breaking trust. And you can give creative teams a sharper territory to work from.
The goal is not to make every decision “safe”. The goal is to make bold choices with a better understanding of what they are likely to build.
For more on this, read Robert’s piece on how to take risks without weakening your brand.
How can Brand Touch support the work after the strategy is set?
Dora Harfman Bromée: Once the position is chosen, the next challenge is consistency.
Brand Touch can help track whether the brand is moving toward the desired position and whether campaigns are reinforcing or weakening the intended identity.
What is your advice to CMOs starting brand strategy work?
Dora Harfman Bromée: Bring the audience in before the key decisions are made.
Before you lock the positioning, understand what your brand already owns. Before you choose a creative direction, understand where competitors are positioned. Before you invest behind a new territory, understand whether it is distinctive, credible and motivating.
Brand Touch can help CMOs and their strategy partners make those decisions with more confidence. It brings consumer-driven evidence into the process while there is still time to shape the strategy.
If you are starting brand strategy work, bring audience insight in before the key positioning decisions are made. Brand Touch can help you understand what your brand already owns, where competitors are positioned and which strategic territories have the strongest potential.
Dora’s tips for CMOs who want to make brand strategy more audience-led
1. Start with the audience, not only the ambition.
Clarify what people already associate with your brand before deciding what you want them to believe next.
2. Pressure-test distinctiveness early.
A position is only valuable if it gives you space to stand apart from competitors. If you want to go deeper into this topic, read more about how to increase share and distinctiveness through stronger positioning.
3. Separate what is attractive from what is ownable.
Some territories may be appealing but already taken. Others may be credible but not motivating enough. You need both.
4. Link positioning to business priorities.
Make sure the chosen direction can support consideration, preference, loyalty, penetration or pricing power.
5. Involve your strategy partners in the insight.
Brand Touch is most valuable when agencies, consultancies and internal stakeholders use the same evidence base.
6. Keep measuring after launch.
Once the strategy is in market, track whether campaigns and brand activity are actually building the intended position.
Further reading
