In many organizations, brand is still viewed as the domain of marketing—something colorful, creative, and occasionally nebulous. But in today’s competitive landscape, that view is dangerously outdated. The truth is this: your brand is a financial asset.
And it’s time the CFO paid closer attention.
A strong brand does far more than differentiate your company in the marketplace. It enhances almost every key business metric that matters to the CFO:
- It lowers customer acquisition costs by creating recognition and trust before a sales conversation even begins.
- It commands pricing power by anchoring value in the minds of customers, often allowing for premium margins.
- It increases customer lifetime value by deepening loyalty and retention.
- It reduces talent acquisition costs by attracting employees who want to be associated with a purpose-driven brand.
- And it protects market share, serving as a moat against newer or cheaper competitors.
In other words, brand strength shows up not just in marketing dashboards, but in the P&L and the balance sheet.
This is especially true in legacy businesses. Consider First American, a company with more than 130 years of history and billions in revenue. Its CMO, Chelsea Sumrow, understands the delicate balance required when managing a brand with such deep roots. In her words:
“Don’t get stuck in old routines.”
“Test, learn, pilot, and fail fast.”
“Effectiveness is about outcomes over outputs.”
It’s a message every CFO should hear: legacy shouldn’t mean inertia. Innovation isn’t a threat to brand value—it’s essential to sustaining it. That’s why the most successful heritage brands are the ones that invest in experimentation while staying true to their core identity.
Too often, CFOs and CMOs speak different languages. One talks in margins and ROIs; the other in emotion and storytelling. But when you look closely, brand investment and financial performance are tightly linked.
In fact, numerous studies—including those from McKinsey and Kantar—show that companies with strong brands outperform their peers in revenue growth, profit margins, and shareholder returns.
So here’s the bottom line:
If your brand vanished tomorrow, would anyone notice? Would your revenue suffer? Would your customers still know who you are—or care?
If the answer is yes, then you have a real asset worth protecting and growing. And that makes brand a matter not just of marketing strategy, but of financial stewardship.
It’s time to bring the CFO into the brand conversation—not as a skeptic, but as a strategic partner. Because in today’s world, a brand is not a cost center. It’s a growth engine.
And those who understand that—at every level of leadership—will be the ones who win.