Truck Parts and Service | Heavy Duty Trucking, Aftermarket, Service Info
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/553583
18 Cover Story brand] is not an easy thing to do. You spend as much time protecting it as you do trying to change it." Joy says upholding the brand at Phil- lips is especially important because it doesn't just refer to a company and its products — but also the Phillips family. There are people working in the busi- ness that are living embodiments of the brand, and Joy says his team is incredibly cognizant of that. "Our brand represents Bob almost as much as it represents Phillips as a com- pany, and it represents him in a way that is unlike almost every other brand in our industry," says Joy, in reference to CEO Bob Phillips' 52-year career with the company. "Our brand has to represent the company in a way that Bob would want both to be represented." Family-owned distributors should op- erate the same way. When you put your name on the sign you put your reputa- tion on the line. The best way to protect your brand is to follow through on your brand's prom- ise. Provide anyone encountering your business exactly what is expected when coming into contact with your business. "Brand is more than just perception" from customers, says Betts. "Your brand also is how you are perceived in your in- dustry, by your peers, by your own team. Your brand has to work in all of those instances." Maintaining a brand also requires the foresight to steer clear of situations where the brand could be put at risk. "Everyone who works [for Peterbilt] take so much pride in the brand and has so much passion for it," Acker says. "They work as police offi cers for the brand." He mentions one employee in particular who emailed him last month to notify him of a photo of a Peterbilt truck that was being used in a local advertisement. "He wanted us to know because he was afraid it could damage [our brand]," Acker says. A good example of this in the after- market is accepting a new product line without fully vetting its quality and performance. It doesn't take many low- quality sales to torpedo your brand. In unfortunate situations where your brand is perceived negatively or dam- aged, it is vital to aggressively work to amend the situation. As Joy says, "If someone likes what you do they'll tell their friends, but if they don't like what you do they're going to tell everyone." Kruckeberg says that's one of the reasons for Minimizer's lifetime product warranty. "We're customers of somebody, too, and we know that things aren't always going to be perfect," he says. "Heavy-duty trucking is a tough industry, and we want our customers to know if something does happen [to our products] that they can come back to us and we'll make it right." Betts echoes that statement, both as a supplier and distributor. "You have to keep aiming for excel- lence and moving forward," he says. "Once you have that brand you want, you can never stop supporting it." T R U C K P A R T S & S E R V I C E | A u g u s t 2 0 1 5 When Betts Company updated its branding in 2014, it replaced its old diamond logo for a more descriptive new version and three similar logos for its various business units. Minimizer has maintained a consistent message throughout its corporate history, as seen by these advertisements from 1988, 2003 and 2006.