Mikael Olsson – Ridgeback Business Development

Mikael Olsson, CEO at Ridgeback Business Development, is a prominent entrepreneur and strategist, renowned for his work in business development, brand- and concept strategy. He joined Ridgeback Business Development nearly two decades ago and has since played a pivotal role in building the company alongside its founder, Ulf Dahlin.

Ridgeback Business Development, a Swedish company established in 2007, excels in holistic business development by partnering with owner-led companies to drive growth. Their approach is based on shared risk and their approach emphasises the critical connection between the business idea, brand platform, concept, product, and sales. In this interview, Mikael shares his insights on the importance of branding, common mistakes in branding, and his top tips for building a strong brand.

Importance of Brand Perception

When talking about brands and branding, a common misconception is that it is only a task for the marketing team to work with. According to Mikael, this should not be the case. The brand should be a management concern and be lived throughout the whole organisation. “A brand is a blueprint for how we should behave in a market to achieve maximum effect, and it should influence the entire company in important decisions. If the brand and culture don’t sync, you only have a leader whose way of leading governs the organisation,” he says.

A strong brand should permeate the entire organisation, influencing all departments and operations. “I believe companies that say they put the customer first can always do that, but if you don’t have guidelines on what you base that on, how can you put them first?” Mikael asks. With AI becoming a frequent tool for scaling up and launching new brands, he thinks mistakes will continue to happen where brands are launched but not “lived”, further emphasising why many of the strongest brands in the world have been around for a long time.

“A brand is a blueprint for how we should behave in a market to achieve maximum effect, and it should influence the entire company in important decisions.”

A common mistake with branding that Mikael often sees is that companies, especially in retail, build volume quickly on other brands, without investing in their own. This strategy is lucrative in the short term because it enables them to compete with price. However, when they become too big, they collapse, because their brand has not been built on organic growth.

Strategies for Brand Growth

So how do brands grow organically? Mikael highlights that it starts with attention. First, you need to introduce yourself to the market and make people aware that you exist. It is first after awareness that an expectation can be built, and it is the expectation that creates attraction; “Awareness builds the foundation for expectations. Knowledge of your brand allows you to build an expectation, and the image of expectation is what creates attraction.”

It is the attraction that can make the product perform better or worse, depending on how well it meets the expectations. If the expectations are met consistently, this leads to repeated purchases. However, if they are not met, or your competitor has a higher expectation that the product and brand together live up to, your customers will choose your competitor instead. “You build brands through everything being connected because the product will never build a brand better than awareness. It needs an expectation.”

“Awareness builds the foundation for expectations. Knowledge of your brand allows you to build an expectation, and the image of expectation is what creates attraction.”

To avoid a mismatch between expectation versus reality, or creating different kinds of brand expectations for consumers, you need to be clear on who you are as a brand.  Mikael brings up football clubs as an example of this, where coaches serve as the “brand builders”. “Coaches are clear on their philosophy, they are hired by clubs because they have that philosophy. When they enter the locker room, they say, “This is how I want us to play.” Not, “How do you want to play?”. They might ask “Do you have suggestions on how we can improve this philosophy?”, but they are the ones setting the direction. “The clubs have a brand, and they must match. If the coach’s brand doesn’t align with the club’s, it won’t work.”

In the same way as football clubs, companies should also hire new employees. “When you hire people to maintain and develop the brand, you don’t get free rein. As a marketing manager or director, you get a mandate to care for the brand, and you also have a mandate to shape the people you hire,” Mikael highlights. This is also the strategy behind Ridgeback Business Development’s strong brand. Mikael explains it this way; “We have built a brand aligned with who we are as individuals. We have a foundation of values that motivate and respect each other. We also have a principle of integrity, saying we don’t take on clients who don’t align with our values.”

“When you hire people to maintain and develop the brand, you don’t get free rein. You get a mandate to care for the brand, and you also have a mandate to shape the people you hire.”