If you were attentive to the episodes of the last season of Game of Thrones, you may have followed the controversy surrounding the Starbucks cup left on the table where Jon Snow and Daenerys Targaryen were dining in the fourth episode of the series. Check out the image of the scene:
HBO Max
The incident was so widely discussed by fans of the series on social media that it gained worldwide attention. This small oversight by HBO (the series producer) generated a lot of free publicity for the Starbucks brand. It is estimated that the investment they would have to make to purchase this advertising space would be equivalent to R$9 billion. Furthermore, the brand was mentioned over 17 thousand times and reached more than 53 billion people on social media. Additionally, Starbucks' stocks experienced a sudden increase on May 6, although they later returned to balance. The brand gained all of this for free. And the most important detail is that the coffee cup wasn't even from the Starbucks brand.
What branding lessons can we learn from this?
It's incredible how Starbucks has the power to make a generic coffee cup unmistakably associated with its brand. Why didn't people relate it to any other coffee shop? Because it is the top-of-mind brand in its market segment, on a global scale. It has so much strength in this category that it is relevant even where it doesn't have a physical presence.
Brand Awareness is an important point in the process of building a strong brand, as it is intrinsically related to the purchasing decision-making process. Brands that are more remembered have a greater chance of being chosen. Understand the levels of a memorable brand:
Top of Mind
It is the first brand remembered in the consumer's mind within its market category. These brands have an advantage because they are usually the first purchasing option considered by the consumer.
Brand Recall
This level is composed of all the other brands remembered by the consumer after Top of Mind, which will also compete for preference. The more familiarity people have with your brand, the more likely it is to become a purchasing alternative.
Brand Recognition
These brands are recognized but not spontaneously. In other words, people know they exist but don't instinctively remember them when thinking about the category. The disadvantage of being a brand at this level is that it may not even be considered in the purchasing process.
Building a memorable brand is essential to strengthen your business. The power of the Starbucks brand ensured that it reaped the benefits of HBO's mistake instead of the original coffee brand that appeared in the scene. When a brand reaches this level of notoriety, it gains a solid competitive advantage.