Challenger brands and Lighthouse Identities
Disruptions are the new norm in this day and age. On the one hand, we have startups trying to challenge the status quo, FANG(MANG currently) trying to provide value to its customers across diverse verticals, aggregator services & payments companies pushing to become super apps. In one way or another, any business now is a challenger brand. Hence, there is a need to understand different archetypes within the challenger brand space to position your company strategically & drive compelling narratives. We can achieve this by creating lighthouse identities. The world-renown brand strategist Adam Morgan coined this term and came up with ten archetypes for challenger brands to take on goliaths in the market. In this article, let us understand what these archetypes are & their lighthouse identities.
Lighthouse identity: People notice a lighthouse even when they are not looking for it. That, in essence, is a lighthouse identity. A lighthouse identity is contingent on the following:
- Point of View: They have a clear view of how they see the world.
- Intensity: Consistently communicating the core of their business
- Salience: Intrusive posts that are hard to miss.
Creating a lighthouse identity will ensure a unique standing for any business. The ten rebel archetypes that different challenger brands fall under:
- Missionary: True to its name, this brand is on a mission to civilize (Don Quixote reference), but jokes apart, any company under this category has a deep sense of purpose which in turn becomes its lighthouse identity.
- Real & human: A challenger brand that takes on the industrialization of the market.
- Nextgen: The challenger brand that questions the relevance of the market leader.
- People’s champion: The challenger brand that voices the concerns of exploited people.
- Enlightened Zagger: The challenger that swims against the tide, deliberately for the sake of it.
- Democratizer: This challenger brand makes the value proposition available to new market segments with no access to the same.
- Irreverent Maverick: The challenger brand that uses wit & humour to entertain the masses.
- Feisty Underdog: The old David vs Goliath fight. A binary battle with the incumbent.
- Dramatic Disruptor: This challenger brand has a superior product to the current market leader and uses evocative content to market.
- Local Hero: The friendly neighbourhood brand that champions local flavours.
As you come across and interact with more brands every day in your life, keep slotting them into these ten categories to identify their purpose and positioning.