Mapping the situation
The story of the Czech manufacturer of climbing equipment is similar to many other corporate stories – you have a premium product, but only a small portion of business partners and insider customers realize it.
In order to orient ourselves in the situation, we organized several simple activities: a workshop with the owner and key sales representatives, consultations with developers of individual products, and a survey in shops selling the products. We investigated the perception of products among performance climbers and compared it with the competitors' communication. During the initial mapping, we did not focus on "hard data", but tried to collect information as broadly as possible and determine directions for further work.
You are what THEY say you are
First finding: In people's minds, the brand was registered as a lower-priced alternative to the "big brands". A notorious addition to traders' portfolios. It turned out that the market would not perceive the merger of the brands as significant. Rather, with expectations of what innovations the new brand would offer. This message came from both the Czech and German markets. Merging the brands will not be dangerous, and the company will be relieved by maintaining and developing only one brand.
Second finding: The market did not perceive Ocún / Rock Pillars as an innovator, even though a lot of climbing equipment looks the way we know it today thanks to the ideas of owner Pavel Hendrych and his developers. The company holds numerous patents, and competitors gradually adopted its innovations. The products were therefore at a cutting-edge technological level, but this was not reflected in the communication. Apart from a few insiders, nobody knew about their qualities.
