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The Material Brand Fidelity™ Methodology

In an era of AI mediation and fractured consumer behavior, legacy metrics provide point-in-time snapshots that fail to explain why choices are made, predict future revenue or pinpoint where to act.

Material Brand Fidelity fills this gap by unifying brand strategy and customer experience into one validated and decision-ready growth platform. Built on Material’s 50-year foundation in behavioral science, the framework is designed to inform growth investments and clarify the link between customer value and financial performance.

Calculating Brand Fidelity

The Material Brand Fidelity methodology reflects our belief that deep customer bonds lie at the intersection of everyday, in-the-moment interactions and long-term relationship building.

Two dimensions. Six attributes.

In the Moment
(Rational & Functional Execution)
  • Accessible: Is always there when and where the customer needs it.
  • User friendly: Meets customer needs easily, intuitively and without friction.
  • Personal: Demonstrates a deep understanding of the customer’s unique preferences.
Over Time
(Emotional & Relational Attachment)
  • Dependable: Consistently provides a reliable, high-quality experience.
  • Meaningful: Plays a significant, value-aligned role in the consumer’s life.
  • Salient: The definitive choice that comes to a consumer’s mind whenever a category need arises.
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One unified, defensible performance score.

 

We evaluate each brand against the six attributes among a competitive set within its category. A brand’s overall Brand Fidelity Score is calculated on a 0-100 scale from an aggregate of its attribute scores.

 

The Material Brand Fidelity Score provides both a unified brand performance benchmark and granular diagnostics to pinpoint high-opportunity growth investment areas.

The Science of High Brand Fidelity Relationships

The Material Brand Fidelity framework is grounded in behavioral insights and implicit psychological measurement.

 

To measure the Meaningful attribute, Material integrates our proprietary Implicit Identity Mapping® (IIM) framework. Rooted in social psychology’s Inclusion of Other in Self scale, IIM evaluates subconscious Identity Overlap — the degree to which a consumer integrates a brand into their personal self-concept and core values.

 

The overall Material Brand Fidelity framework integrates this concept across dimensions and attributes, providing clear, diagnostic guidance for brands to build enduring, identity-based connections.

Proving the Financial Linkage: The Economic Evaluation Model

Material’s proprietary Economic Evaluation Model empirically demonstrates the link between High Brand Fidelity and business value. Validated across nearly 24,000 consumers and 229 global brands in 30 sectors, we correlated the Brand Fidelity scores with public financial, analyst and investor data.

Our economic model aggregates three core business performance factors:

  1. Money Score (Financial Health): Revenue base, stability and profitability margins.
  2. Momentum Score (Growth Trajectory): Revenue growth velocity and market share expansion.
  3. Market Score (Category Standing): Relative market share and competitive dominance.

2.5X

Profitability & Revenue Growth

High-Fidelity brands are 2.5X more likely than Low-Fidelity brands to outrank category peers on a composite of profitability, growth and market strength.

3X

Market Differentiation

High-Fidelity brands are 3x more likely to occupy a dominant, highly differentiated position in their sector.

2X

Commercial Velocity

Customers are twice as likely to advocate for, try new offerings from and pay a premium price for High-Fidelity brands.

Bringing Brand Fidelity to Life

We use the Material Brand Fidelity framework to design client solutions that unify brand, experience and customer behavior to deliver growth intelligence and sustainable financial outcomes.

We do this across three interconnected phases.

Understanding

Uncover disconnects between brand, experience and growth

  • Assess current state
  • Field Material Brand Fidelity study
  • Audit existing CX & brand data
  • Review market + competitor context
  • Facilitate internal hypothesis workshop
  • Map journeys and surface key opportunity areas

Co-Creation

Design solutions to align experiences with customer expectations

  • Design thinking sessions
  • Ideate against prime gaps
  • Prototype early solutions
  • Run consumer co-creation
  • Iterate, refine and prioritize ideas

Vision, Action + Impact

Roadmap High-Fidelity brand growth initiatives

  • Align teams across People, Process and Tech
  • Create a shared Brand Fidelity Vision
  • Define investment pathways
  • Draft an activation roadmap

Frequently Asked Questions

What makes Material Brand Fidelity different from other brand performance metrics?

Unlike traditional frameworks that focus on isolated areas like brand equity or CX, Material Brand Fidelity unifies brand strategy and customer experience into a single actionable framework. Built on 50 years of behavioral science, it breaks down internal organizational silos and connects relational perception directly to financial results. High-Fidelity brands deliver stronger loyalty, higher advocacy and 2.5x greater revenue growth.

Why the focus on these six attributes specifically?

Our six core attributes — Accessible, Personal, Salient, User friendly, Dependable and Meaningful — are the proven drivers of strong consumer relationships. Together, they measure performance across two critical dimensions: immediate, in-the-moment interactions and long-term relational value. This dual lens helps brands pinpoint friction, prioritize investment opportunities and build enduring competitive advantage.

What sort of testing or validation was performed when developing the framework?

The framework was validated through an extensive study of nearly 24,000 consumers across 229 brands and 30 industries. Using our proprietary Economic Evaluation Model, we correlated these scores with public financial, analyst and investor data. The result is empirical proof linking higher Material Brand Fidelity scores directly to superior profitability, market share and revenue growth.

You describe Material Brand Fidelity as a system for driving growth. What do you mean by that?

Material Brand Fidelity acts as a financial growth engine by removing guesswork from business investments. By aligning brand promise with lived experience, the framework delivers actionable recommendations that directly improve retention, optimize customer acquisition costs and boost pricing power. Tested across 30 major consumer categories, it provides a blueprint for modern, sustainable growth. 

Why create this framework now? Is there a specific challenge or industry gap it is meant to address?

Rapid, AI-driven disruption and cultural shifts have fundamentally changed consumer expectations, creating gaps in legacy measurement systems. Today’s brand leaders face intense pressure to deliver bottom-line results, but lack unified tools to guide their investments. Material Brand Fidelity fills this critical gap with a predictive, behavioral science-backed system tailored for dynamic markets.

From a practical standpoint, how does Material apply the Material Brand Fidelity framework in its work with clients?

Material leverages the framework as a strategic growth engine across marketing, journey mapping, segmentation, loyalty and brand design. We operate through a continuous flywheel approach: diagnosing gaps across brand and experience, co-creating targeted solutions and establishing long-term activation roadmaps. This translates insights into measurable improvements in financial performance over time.

How should I think about Material Brand Fidelity in the context of my current brand tracker?

Brand Fidelity is designed to complement, not replace, your existing brand or CX trackers. It operates as a strategic North Star measuring deep behavioral connection and relationship durability alongside other functional brand metrics. You can easily integrate its six core attributes into your existing tracker — adding a predictive, financially linked growth metric without disrupting your current tracking infrastructure.

Want a live introduction to Material Brand Fidelity?

Reach out today for a personalized overview of the framework, methodology and growth outcomes.