Mental Availability and Brand Positioning: The Key to Being the Instinctive Choice
Brand positioning is about defining how your brand stands out in the market. But positioning alone won’t get you sales if people don’t remember you when it counts. That’s where mental availability comes in. In this post, we’ll break down what mental availability is, and how you can use it to make your brand the one people think of—and choose—when they’re ready to buy.
Mental availability is the measure of how quickly and easily your brand is recalled in key buying situations.
Think about the last time you needed to grab a quick coffee.
Which brand came to mind first? That’s mental availability in action. It’s not just about being known—it’s about being top of mind when your customer is ready to buy.
If your brand isn’t the first (or at least one of the first) that pops into a customer’s head when they have a need, you risk losing business to a competitor who is.
The good news?
Mental availability isn’t just luck. It’s something you can measure and actively improve.
In this post, we’ll break down what mental availability is, why it matters, and how you can use it to make your brand the one people think of—and choose—when they’re ready to buy.
The Origins of Mental Availability
The concept of mental availability comes from Professor Jenni Romaniuk of the Ehrenberg-Bass Institute of Marketing Science, author of How Brands Grow Part 2. Her research emphasizes that brands don’t just grow by being recognized—they grow by embedding themselves into consumer memory at the exact moment of need.
Why does this matter? Because mental availability helps brands move beyond basic awareness.
It tells you who’s thinking about your brand, in what context, and which competitors are stealing your share of mind.
By tracking mental availability, you can:
Understand how your brand compares to competitors
See which buying situations trigger thoughts of your brand
Identify gaps where you should strengthen your brand’s presence
Mental Availability vs. Brand Awareness
It’s easy to confuse brand awareness with mental availability, but they serve different purposes:
Brand awareness ensures recognition when placed against competitors.
Mental availability ensures your brand is recalled in relevant buying moments.
In other words, awareness helps people know your brand. Mental availability makes them choose your brand when it matters.
You can be everywhere, but are you everywhere for the right reasons? The goal isn’t just to be known—it’s to be the instinctive choice at the moment of need.
Key Metrics of Mental Availability
Unlike traditional brand tracking, mental availability analysis provides four essential metrics:
How to Increase Mental Availability
Want to make sure your brand is the first thing that comes to mind when it matters? Here’s how:
1. Category Entry Points (CEPs)
CEPs are the specific situations, needs, or emotions that trigger a customer to think of a brand. The stronger and more numerous these connections, the more likely a brand is to be remembered in a buying moment.
The Ehrenberg-Bass Institute says that “Category entry points are the building blocks for mental availability–they capture the category buyers have as they transition into making a category purchase.”
Think about how consumers don’t just buy products—they buy solutions to specific problems or experiences tied to certain occasions.
For example, if someone is pulling an all-nighter, they don’t just think, “I need an energy drink.” They think, “I need a Red Bull.” That’s because Red Bull has built strong associations with the “studying late at night” CEP.
If your brand isn’t linked to strong CEPs, consumers won’t think of you when it matters. The key is identifying the right moments for your category and ensuring your brand is consistently associated with those triggers.
2. Strong Visual Assets
Logos, colors, jingles, slogans—these are the things that make your brand instantly recognizable. Think of McDonald’s golden arches, Nike’s swoosh, or Intel’s “chiming chords” sound. These distinctive brand assets make it easier for customers to recall your brand in the right context.
Patagonia’s Mountain Range – A simple silhouette that instantly signals adventure and outdoor durability.
Pringles - The tall, cylindrical can is as iconic as the chips inside.
Cadbury Bunny - A fluffy ambassador that makes Cadbury Eggs synonymous with Easter.
3. Repetitive Messaging
The availability heuristic tells us that we remember what we see and hear most often. Repetition builds familiarity, and familiarity builds trust.
If your brand isn’t showing up consistently at every customer touchpoint, you’re giving your competitors an open lane to take your spot in consumers’ minds.
Politicians use this same strategy to win elections. They stay on message, repeating the same core ideas again and again until they become ingrained in the public’s mind. This repetition builds familiarity, and in turn, trust.
Whether in politics or branding, consistency breeds credibility.
Are you reinforcing your brand promise in every interaction—big or small?
Final Thoughts
Mental availability is what separates forgettable brands from go-to brands.
It ensures that when a customer has a need, your brand is the one that comes to mind first.
By leveraging CEPs, strong brand assets, and repetitive messaging, you can make sure your brand isn’t just known—it’s chosen. And at the end of the day, that’s what drives growth.
If you're working on refining your brand's positioning or need help crafting a strategy that sets you apart, feel free to reach out! Drop me a message on LinkedIn or send an email to ashley@peoplethebrand.com—I’d love to help you get started.
