Why “Best Product in the Country” is a Bad Branding Tagline

A branding tagline is a concise, memorable phrase that encapsulates the essence of a brand and is a powerful tool for differentiating a brand and capturing consumers’ attention. 

By effectively communicating a brand’s value proposition and personality, a strong tagline can:

  • Increase Brand Awareness – A memorable branding tagline can help a brand stand out in a crowded marketplace, capturing attention and driving brand recall.
  • Build Brand Identity – It reinforces the brand’s core values, positioning, and unique selling points, shaping its identity.
  • Drive Brand Loyalty – A strong branding tagline can foster emotional connections with customers, building trust and loyalty.
  • Guide Marketing Efforts – It provides a clear direction for all marketing activities, ensuring consistency and coherence across different channels.
Best Product Branding Message is Bad

However, some brands fall into the trap of using generic and overused branding taglines, such as “Best Product in the Country/ State/ City.” This is especially ironic since these brands are far from being the best, most of the time.

This is also similar to another branding tagline trap where disingenious copycats claim to be the originator of a product or product category when they are not. 

A well-known example in Singapore is the multiple “Original Katong Laksa” stalls that populate the entire country. (Laksa is a curry-based soup noodle dish, typically made with a coconut milk-based broth, a blend of aromatic spices, and various toppings.)

Original Katong Laksa as a Branding Tagline
Traditional Curry Laksa Dish

Branding taglines that refer to being the original (when untrue) or the best may seem like a good idea at a very superficial level, but, are in fact a wrong strategic marketing move.

While the intention may be to project a sense of superiority, this approach often backfires, leading to a loss of credibility and customer trust.

This post discusses why using the “Best (Insert Product Name) in the Country” is a bad branding tagline.

Subjectivity of “Best”

The term “best” is inherently subjective. What one person considers the best, another may not. Such a claim can be easily disputed, leading to negative publicity and undermining the brand’s credibility. 

It is better to focus on specific, measurable benefits, such as “Most Durable,” “Most Innovative,” or “Most Eco-Friendly”. If you have won multiple awards or more awards than any other brand, you could call your product the “Most Awarded” or even “Most Trusted”, if you have legitimate recognisable awards to back up this claim.

Lack of Differentiation

Many brands use a “Best Product in the Country” tagline without much thought, leading to a lack of originality and creativity. 

This branding tagline does not differentiate the product from competitors. It fails to highlight the unique selling points or value proposition of the brand. Instead of making a bold claim, it is more effective to focus on the specific qualities that make the product stand out.

Arrogant and Inauthentic

A branding tagline that proclaims a product as the “best” can come across as arrogant and inauthentic. Consumers are more likely to connect with brands that are humble and genuine. It is better to focus on building trust and credibility through honest and transparent communication.

Crafting a Branding Tagline

THE KEY TO A GREAT BRANDING TAGLINE

A branding tagline is a powerful marketing tool to communicate a brand’s unique value proposition and to stand out in the marketplace.

While often viewed as a creative process, writing a branding tagline is very much an exercise in strategic thinking.

The first thing that a marketer must do is craft a positioning strategy.

Positioning deals with creating a ‘position’ for your business in the minds of the consumers. It has got to do with communicating a ‘position’ that comprises of your brand values and perceptions that you want consumers to have about your business.

In a way, positioning can be considered a powerful form of branding, but it is actually the step before branding.

Positioning is the strategy that determines the brand values that form the foundation of brand equity. And branding is the execution and communication of those brand values to the market.

Read our post on positioning for a better understanding on the concept.

Positioning and Branding

Once the positioning strategy is crafted, a branding tagline is developed to communicate the desired position to be owned.

Here are some characteristics of a good branding tagline:

Clear and Focused

A good branding tagline must be clear and concise. It should be easy to understand and avoid jargon and complex language. 

Do not attempt to be everything to everyone.

Communicates the Brand's Positioning

A branding tagline should clearly communicate the brand’s positioning, which essentially means highlighting what makes the brand different from its competitors.

If the tagline does not communicate differentiated value, it must be very memorable and relevant to your target audience so that they will make an instant link with your brand and product.

Believability

The branding tagline should be authentic and believable. It should avoid making exaggerated claims or promises.

The brand must live up to the promises made in the tagline to build trust and brand equity.

Memorable and Catchy (if possible)

After the key messaging is developed, creativity and imagination is needed to transform the message into a simple and easy-to-remember tagline is more likely to stick in people’s minds.

A tagline that evokes strong emotions, such as joy, nostalgia, or inspiration, can be particularly effective.

A catchy rhyme or rhythm can make a tagline more memorable.

Regardless of the creative direction, ensure it does not compromise the strategic marketing thinking behind the message.

DON'T CLAIM TO BE THE BEST. BE DIFFERENT.

This post has discussed why the “Best Product in the Country” tagline is tremendously weak as it do not say anything about the brand’s uniqueness or strengths.

There is also no empirical evidence that can back up the claim of being #1 or the best. There is no standard or reference to what being #1 is or what being the best relates to.

Instead of relying on such generic claims, brands should focus on crafting taglines that are specific, communicate the brand’s position, authentic, and resonate with their target audience. 

By highlighting unique differentiated value and providing genuine value, brands can build lasting relationships with customers and achieve long-term success.

A well-crafted tagline is an invaluable asset for any brand. By understanding its role and following these guidelines, businesses can create taglines that resonate with their target audience and contribute to long-term success.

J C Sum

J C Sum is a certified management consultant (TR 43:2015), an American Marketing Association Professional Certified Marketer (PCM®) in marketing management as well as a certified digital marketing strategist (SSG-WSQ accredited) with 14 years of experience specializing in search engine optimization, content marketing, and analytics. J C holds a Bachelor of Arts from National University of Singapore and is the author of "Evolve, Adapt or Collapse". He has been featured on The Straits Times, Business Times, Channel News Asia, The Edge Singapore, CNA938, and Money FM 89.3.