Inside The Forrester Brand Lifecycle Framework: Activate

During brand activation, an organization brings the brand concept into the market, allowing for the formation of awareness, perception and preference. Brand activation must be consistent with brand intent and aligned to business and marketing goals. Investment in paid media can accelerate brand awareness, but a balanced mix of tactics is required to develop favorable perception and preference.

In the B2B landscape, money can buy brand awareness — but to earn the positive perception and trust of an audience, an organization must do more than just purchase advertising. Favorable brand perception and preference are shaped by many factors, including audience members’ direct interactions with the organization and what they hear from existing customers, influencers and competitors. In this report, we examine the inputs to brand activation and the tactic mix organizations should use to drive awareness, perception and preference in various situations.