Your brand value lives beyond your spreadsheets

How I learned that brand valuation requires more than financial formulas

I remember sitting in my old office, surrounded by papers covered in numbers. I was trying to figure out what El Mejor Coffee was actually worth as I prepared to sell it. The spreadsheets told one story — inventory, stock values, monthly revenue.

But something felt missing.

That "something" was the brand I'd built. People didn't just come for coffee; they came for the El Mejor experience. How do you put a number on that?

This question sent me down a rabbit hole that changed how I view business valuation forever.

Many of us think brand valuation is just plugging numbers into spreadsheets — some cash flow projections here, some asset calculations there. I certainly did. But modern brand valuation has evolved into something much more meaningful.

Take the Interbrand approach, which looks at three key areas:

  • Financial analysis — tracking the actual money your brand generates

  • Role of brand — measuring how much your brand influences purchase decisions

  • Brand strength — evaluating your brand's ability to create loyalty

There are also three main valuation methods used by experts:

  • Income approach — estimating future earnings from your brand

  • Market approach — comparing your brand to similar ones that have sold

  • Cost approach — calculating what it would take to rebuild your brand from scratch

What fascinated me was how the big players handle this. Apple doesn't see brand valuation as a one-time exercise when selling. They track it continuously, measuring customer loyalty, integrating brand data into planning, and using advanced analytics to monitor brand performance across markets.

This matters because brand value impacts everything. A study by Interbrand found that up to 67% of S&P 500 companies may be incorrectly valued because investors don't fully understand brand value.

When I finally sold El Mejor, I presented more than spreadsheets. I showed customer loyalty metrics, community engagement data, and growth potential based on brand recognition. The final offer was substantially higher than initial valuations based purely on financials. Back then I was so luck to find someone who understood all this and agreed to help me out.

So next time you're valuing your business, or even just thinking about its growth — remember that your brand's worth extends far beyond what a simple spreadsheet can capture.

I'd love to hear your experiences with valuing the intangible aspects of your business. Hit reply and let me know!

Until tomorrow,
— Shashank

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