Advertising is just for “unremarkable” products. Or is it?

Technology has become a commodity.

I've always been under the impression that great brands don't need advertising, as their products or technology alone secure a competitive advantage.

Is it still the case?

Jeff Bezos mentioned in 2009 that advertising was just for “unremarkable” products. 10 years later, Amazon is by far the largest advertiser in the world.

Do they offer an “unremarkable” product, then? May be.

Or more likely, Jeff Bezos was wrong.

I was reading the latest presentation by Benedict Evans when a slide about ad spend by Expedia Group and Booking.com caught my attention.

Despite already being leaders in the travel industry, they spend almost 50% of their revenue on advertising and marketing. How come?

Well, the reality is that their strongest asset is their brand, not their technology!

At the end of the day, they just bundle together someone else's products, (same as Amazon, by the way). Anybody could replicate their platform, in theory.

But what nobody could replicate is their name in the market, both in the consumer and in the B2B space.

How to build a name in the market? marketing & advertising, of course!

With the advent of AI, technology has truly become a commodity. Even very complex tasks are now easily solvable for a relatively low cost. With some exceptions, of course.

Also, technology is evolving at an extremely fast pace. The likelihood that your product will become obsolete next year is high.

So…

➡ ➡ You can no longer rely solely on your product or technology as your value proposition.

Now more than ever, you need to keep fostering your brand!