Talk about drive.
In its ad push for 2012, BMW is trying to accelerate its image beyond the “ultimate” in “ultimate driving machine.” The company wants to sell car buyers (and investors, employees and the public) on the idea that one of the world’s top brands means more than you think, and more than a road experience.
As a loyal Bimmer driver, I’m ready to believe. And as I look around me, I see that Bimmer fanatics are ready to genuflect.
But believe what? What car brand needs to promise—and deliver—more than great engineering, speed, safety, major fun factor—not to mention the status medallion?
As a leadership and strategy consultant, here’s my answer: BMW wants iconic. I haven’t seen them use the word, but I rank “let’s get to iconic”—ambition plus execution—as the single best strategy to survive and thrive right now. And I read iconic when they say: There’s nothing like owning a BMW. Or when Ian Robertson, BMW’s sales and marketing chief, talks about transforming the automotive retail experience or setting new standards for dynamic performance.
We know iconic when we see it: the Beatles, the Oreo, and the U.S. Constitution.
It means creating and keeping a reputation that’s near bulletproof. And it means capturing the market with product after product (or service or invention) that proves it. An iconic company isn’t just “Best in Class.” It defines best in class before others even start looking for it.
If that was never easy, it’s harder now. It’s the rare company—or CEO—that can settle into a Blue Chip slot in the DJ 30 and assume a lifetime membership. The Dow 30 might not even be the club you want to join these days. In this economy, old icons (Kodak) and new (Avon, RIM) can be booted off anybody’s short list in no time.
That’s why my first advice to leaders, even those who are already thinking big and innovative, is to sit down and unpack the idea of iconic, then apply it where it counts, inside the organization and what you and your organization do on the outside with consumers, investors, policy makers, the community and people who have no obvious stake in your business.
Meanwhile, check out this CNBC documentary on BMW.
Let me know, what company now strikes you as iconic?