Legendary strategist talks brand differentiation, but leaves audience to put it in interactive context.

Giving the keynote address at Interactive World’s opening day in New York City is no easy task. The audience -- comprising executives from the top interactive companies and advertising spenders in the nation -- had great expectations. So would Jack Trout, the best-selling author and legendary brand marketing strategist meet their expectations? Not quite.

Trout proved his expertise in brand differentiation strategy. To begin, he described how leveraging brand attributes is integral to developing an effective marketing strategy. He pointed specifically to five attributes:

1. Ownership -- He told marketers that once you take ownership of an idea you have to stick with it. For example, Papa John’s is now the third most popular pizza chain, thanks to a smart positioning statement it has maintained: "Better ingredients. Better pizza." And this has led to better results -- sales have grown at twice the industry average rate in the past two years.
   
   
2. Leadership psychology -- Believe it or not, Trout has found that one of the most underused competitive advantages is leadership. He said that it is the most direct way to establish the credentials of your brand. Even if you don’t have it, you can claim it.
   
   
3. Timing -- A successful brand has to be first to market with a good idea, not just any idea.
   
   
4. Heritage -- Demonstrating tradition is a great way to establish a brand’s point of difference. When there’s a trusted line from a brand in the past, customers feel comfortable with its future. For instance, dozens of under-the-radar companies today communicate tradition through photos of their heritage and telling a story.
   
   
5. Expertise -- One of the most powerful advantages is to show how a brand is an expert in its category. GE faces tough competition from smaller companies that have positioned themselves as specialists. Generalists, such as Kraft, have become weak against specialists, like Smuckers.

Four-step process to differentiation

Trout laid out a simple process for brand differentiation that involves only four steps:

• First, your message has to make sense within the context of the category. 
• Second, the differentiating idea must be clear. Find the difference and set up a benefit for your customer.
• Next, identify the credentials. In order to build a logical argument for your brand, you have to demonstrate proof.
• Last, communicate the difference. Truth will not win without communicating it.

Marketing is an exercise in reality

"When you approach a category with a strategy, you have to deal with reality: what you can do and what your competitors will let you do," Trout said.

He used AT&T’s history as the perfect case study. The phone service provider had high reliability ratings in the 1990s, but when MCI and Sprint arrived, AT&T began to lose its differentiation because it ignored the competition. The company was in dire need of a big marketing announcement for its new, stronger network, but it sat around and waited. Not until a few months ago did the behemoth finally position itself as "The Network Company" -- a few years too late.

AT&T handed market share to its competitors.

Ending his keynote, Trout pointed out that the interactive industry is an enormous factor in differentiation primarily because it is a new tool. It delivers information in a brand new way about the points of difference. Trout warned the audience: Just don’t overdo it. Each medium has its own strengths and weaknesses.

Did the audience know this already? Yes, but we can thank him for reminding us.

As Trout exited, some attendees whispered, "That’s it? Aren’t we at an interactive conference?"

Once again, proof that too many traditional marketing experts aren't comfortable speaking interactive marketing's language.