Be the first brand that comes to mind
In the fast-paced world of advertising and marketing, the concept of brand “mental availability” has become a bit of a buzzword.
But what does it really mean for your brand, and how can you harness it to drive better results?
At The Behaviours Agency, we’ve developed the CACHE framework, a simple yet effective tool to understand and enhance your brand’s presence in the minds of consumers. Brand mental availability allows you to be the brand that comes to mind first. Who wouldn’t want that!
What is brand mental availability?
Brand mental availability is like how likely it is for a shopper to think about your brand when they’re shopping. When a customer is ready to make a purchase decision, a product or brand’s position in their mind, often referred to as “top of mind,” is crucial.
And even better, a higher level of mental availability directly correlates to a larger market share and increased sales, demonstrating the importance of effective marketing strategies that create and maintain top-of-mind awareness among customers.
You can check out Byron Sharp’s book on How Brands Grow to find out even more.
The CACHE Framework
The CACHE framework breaks down mental availability into four key components:
Category Associations: How easily does your brand come to shoppers’ minds when they enter your category. This means having clear links between your brand and the needs that trigger consumers to act.
Consistency: Are your brand’s messages, assets and experiences consistent across every touchpoint a customer experiences? Consistency reinforces your message, enhances recognition, and builds trust.
Heuristics: Are your core brand assets distinctive enough to stand out when compared with competitors?
Emotions: How does your brand make people feel? Emotions play a significant role in decision-making. Brands whose comms evoke positive emotions are more likely to be remembered and chosen.
Applying CACHE : Practical Strategies
Get to grips with the reasons buyers enter your category. And then use your content to link your brand to them.
Be consistent. Make sure customers see and experience your brand in a consistent way across all touchpoints.
Design memorable brand assets: Invest in creating distinctive logos, taglines, and visual elements that are instantly recognizable and memorable.
Connect with buyers in a way that deepens memory structures. Consider joy, pride, surprise, anger, fear…
Why being top of mind matters for your brand
The CACHE framework isn’t just a theoretical model – it’s meant to be a practical roadmap for building a brand that stays front and centre in the minds of your customers.
By focusing on the four components of Category Associations, Consistency, Heuristics and Emotion, you can create a brand that comes to mind first, is more memorable and ultimately chosen and preferred compared to your competition.
At The Behaviours Agency, we’re committed to helping brands leverage the power of brand metal availability to unlock their full potential. We did this for Hedges Direct, check it out here.
Contact us today to learn how we can help you build a brand that stands out, resonates, and drives results.
The Takeaway
Brand mental availability allows you to be the brand that comes to mind first.
The journey to building strong mental availability is an ongoing one. By consistently investing in how your brand can come to mind first, you can create a sustainable competitive advantage and position yourself for long-term success.
Ready to transform your brand into a customer magnet?
We apply the power of behavioural science to create brand strategies, designs, campaigns, and experiences that captivate and convert.
That means we ignite business alignment, drive healthier brand metrics, boost your margins, and create smiles all around.
Get in touch to start your journey toward unstoppable brand growth.
