By Adam Morgan

First published by John Wiley 1999

Review by Martin Payne

Adam Morgan’s book covers the issue of Challenger Brands. This refers to brands and companies that may not be leaders in terms of market share or sales volume but typically assume thought leadership of the category. Frequently, it is these players that are driving category development and innovation. The small fish have established their own set of rules in order not only to survive but also to thrive in the ocean. Adam Morgan refers to these rules as the Eight Credos of Challenger Brands. These are what comprise the challenger, maybe not all of them but certainly some of them. Each of the eight credos is described in detail and in illustrated with examples from the set of brands included in the study.

Brand leaders have many advantages to help them maintain their position. Three of their key attributes are the following:

• Greater consumer awareness and household penetration.
• More distribution muscle.
• Higher promotional budgets.

Against this, brands in second or third place or new market entrants may be seen to have a distinct disadvantage. For this reason, they have to find other ways to grow their business. This can happen on a number of levels such as being the most innovative. Virgin Atlantic is often viewed as introducing many of the innovations within the airline sector although it remains a comparatively small player. This may be seen be the consumer as an advantage when compared with British Airways and may be leveraged by the company.

However, being a challenger brand is not about being second in the market and there are no reasons why a market leader, in share or sales terms, cannot position itself as a challenger. A strong example of this is Microsoft which looks to assume “thought leadership” of the category. Rather than look at itself as a brand leader, it aims to behave as a small, hungry company and will focus on issues rather than aligning itself against a particular competitor. This can be seen in its attempt to develop for different platforms such as interactive TV and mobile as well as its core software areas. The rapid development of technology means that it can continue to act as a challenger.

The book covers the different areas that comprise a challenger brand, identifying how challengers typically behave and how they sustain their momentum. Frequent examples are used covering primarily UK and US brands but also others such as Absolut. The final section is designed to be used internally within a two-day company workshop to help identify and harness challenger thinking for your own organisation. This makes the book not only an interesting read but also highly practical. It is not only a book for those who see themselves as challengers but for all marketers who wish to develop innovative ideas.

By Adam Morgan

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