PRODUCT AND BRAND MANAGEMENT

Module V: Sources of Brand Identity

1. SYMBOLS- Symbols help customers memorize organizations products and services.
They help us correlate positive attributes that bring us closer and make it convenient for
us to purchase those products and services. Symbols emphasize our brand expectations
and shape corporate images. Symbols become a key component of brand equity and help
in differentiating the brand characteristics. Symbols are easier to memorize than the
brand names as they are visual images. These can include logos, people, geometric
shapes, cartoon images, anything. For instance, Marlboro has its famous cowboy,
Pillsbury has its Poppin Fresh doughboy, Duracell has its bunny rabbit, Mc Donald has
Ronald, Fed Ex has an arrow, and Nikes swoosh. All these symbols help us remember
the brands associated with them.
Brand symbols are strong means to attract attention and enhance brand personalities by
making customers like them. It is feasible to learn the relationship between symbol and
brand if the symbol is reflective/representative of the brand. For instance, the symbol of
LG symbolizes the world, future, youth, humanity, and technology. Also, it represents
LGs efforts to keep close relationships with their customers.
2. LOGOS- A logo is a unique graphic or symbol that represents a company, product,
service, or other entity. It represents an organization very well and make the customers
well-acquainted with the company. It is due to logo that customers form an image for the
product/service in mind. Adidass Three Stripes is a famous brand identified by its
corporate logo.
Features of a good logo are:
a. It should be simple.
b. It should be distinguished/unique. It should differentiate itself.
c. It should be functional so that it can be used widely.
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d. It should be effective, i.e., it must have an impact on the intended audience.

e. It should be memorable.
f. It should be easily identifiable in full colours, limited colour palettes, or in black
and white.
g. It should be a perfect reflection/representation of the organization.
h. It should be easy to correlate by the customers and should develop customers trust
in the organization.
i. It should not loose its integrity when transferred on fabric or any other material.
j. It should portray companys values, mission and objectives.
The elements of a logo are:
1. Logotype - It can be a simple or expanded name. Examples of logotypes including
only the name are Kelloggs, Hyatt, etc.
2. Icon - It is a name or visual symbol that communicates a market position. For
example-LIC hands, UTI kalash.
3. Slogan - It is best way of conveying companys message to the consumers. For
instance- Nikes slogan Just Do It.
3. TRADEMARKS- Trademark is a unique symbol, design, or any form of identification
that helps people recognize a brand. A renowned brand has a popular trademark and that
helps consumers purchase quality products. The goodwill of the dealer/maker of the
product also enhances by use of trademark. Trademark totally indicates the commercial
source of product/service. Trademark contribute in brand equity formation of a brand.
Trademark name should be original. A trademark is chosen by the following symbols:
(denotes unregistered trademark, that is, a mark used to promote or brand goods);
SM

(denotes unregistered service mark)

(denotes registered trademark).

Registration of trademark is essential in some countries to give exclusive rights to it.
Without adequate trademark protection, brand names can become legally declared
generic. Generic names are never protectable as was the case with Vaseline, escalator and
thermos.
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Some guidelines for trademark protection are as follows:

a. Go for formal trademark registration.
b. Never use trademark as a noun or verb. Always use it as an adjective.
c. Use correct trademark spelling.
d. Challenge each misuse of trademark, specifically by competitors in market.
e. Capitalize first letter of trademark. If a trademark appears in point, ensure that it
stands out from surrounding text.

Module V: Element of Brand Personality

Five dimensions of brand personality:
For more than four decades, marketers have used sophisticated techniques to segment their
consumer universes into psychographic sets, the progenitors of todays online communities.
These techniques have been able to reveal hidden truths underlying group actions as in the case
of Helicopter Parents or Metro sexuals. As a result, they have allowed marketers to dig deeper
than simple demographics to target messages much closer to the heart of action than general
measures like age or sex. In fact, a case can be made that these older groupings have had far
deeper roots than todays like- and tweet- based communities.
At the core of psychographic segmentation lies the recognition that all human behavior derives
from a small set of fundamentals, the so-called Big Five Personality Traits. All the broad
variation in human action, at heart, comes down to different mixes of these elemental traits. By
isolating these human behavioral fundamentals using analytical techniques, marketers can build
up full profiles of what is driving the behavior of their targets customers and prospects.
The Big Five was originally propounded way back in 1961, but only came into broader use in the
1980s. Since then, it has become a hallmark of marketing and psychology. Everyone who ever
took a personality test at work has experienced an expression of the Big Five. The Big Five
attributes are:

Openness to experience (inventive/curious vs. consistent/cautious). Appreciation for art,

emotion, adventure, unusual ideas, curiosity, and variety of experience. Openness reflects the
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degree of intellectual curiosity, creativity and a preference for novelty and variety. Some
disagreement remains about how to interpret the openness factor, which is sometimes called
intellect rather than openness to experience.

Conscientiousness (efficient/organized vs. easy-going/careless). A tendency to show selfdiscipline, act dutifully, and aim for achievement; planned rather than spontaneous behavior;
organized, and dependable.

Extraversion (outgoing/energetic vs. solitary/reserved). Energy, positive emotions,

surgency, assertiveness, sociability and the tendency to seek stimulation in the company of
others, and talkativeness.

Agreeableness (friendly/compassionate vs. cold/unkind). A tendency to be compassionate

and

cooperative

rather

than

suspicious

and

antagonistic

towards

others.

Neuroticism (sensitive/nervous vs. secure/confident). The tendency to experience

unpleasant emotions easily, such as anger, anxiety, depression, or vulnerability.

Neuroticism also refers to the degree of emotional stability and impulse control, and is
sometimes referred by its low pole emotional stability.

Module VI: Significance of brand equity

Brand Equity Defined
Brand equity is a marketing term used to refer to the marketing impact of a given product in
association with a brand name. It tries to examine how a given product will perform in the
market if it did not have the privilege of that brand name. Therefore, the basis for brand equity
and its impact on a business is based on the knowledge of the customer about that product. And
yet, brand plays a vital role in helping build that knowledge and awareness, as well as the
choices they make based on that knowledge.

Brand equity, then, reinforces the significance of a brands value and produce that positive type
of recall in the mind of consumers. Marketing research has revealed that brand equity is one of
the most important assets to the company.
Three Perspectives of Brand Equity / Significance
As an intangible asset, brand equity only gets its meaning out of the perceived quality and
associations made by a consumer on a given product. Brand equity can be viewed in three
different perspectives:
1. Financial: One-Way to understand the value of brand equity is to compute the premium
that is placed on a product. To further understand, take for example two types of
products: one that is of a recognized brand, and the other is unrecognized brand.
Customers are willing to pay a huge amount for the branded product over those which
they are unfamiliar with.
2. Brand Extensions: When certain products attain a certain level of commercial success,
most companies consider extending their line by introducing newer products under their
brand. Because of the existing brand awareness, these companies will no longer invest on
large advertising expenditures just to make that newly introduced product known.
3. Consumer-based: the associations they make with that brand impact the trust and
attitude exhibited by a customer towards a given product. Oftentimes, these associations
are a product of their own experience with utilizing the brand. Therefore, actual
experience plays a crucial role in the marketing strategy, especially in a developing
brand.
Benefits of a Powerful Brand Equity
Not all brand equity is positive; therefore most companies invest on building strong brand equity.
After all, it provides several benefits to the company. Below are just some of the helpful benefits
that a company can derive of good brand equity:

Establishes a more reliable stream of income.

By increasing brand equity, companies are also able to increase their profits through
increased market share and premium pricing for less promotional costs.

If you have established a good brand, then you can sell that brand name at a given price.

Handling Brand Equity

There are three stages involved in creating, building, and managing your companys brand
equity. They are outlined below:
1.) Your first step involves the introduction of a product of a given brand into the market.
You must establish a certain standard for that brand to be able to launch products in the
future that will sell in the market. Your aim here is to produce a positive response from
the consumer to build trust among consumers.
2.) Try to produce a brand that is unique and yet memorable. The attitude of your brand must
be accessible to consumers and must also provide benefits to satisfy its users.
3.) Consistency is the key. Your message must be synchronized with your companys overall
image and reinforce the value espoused by your organization. This is one of the most
successful ways to make strong brand equity.
High brand equity offers numerous competitive advantages:

It can help buffer the impact of a sagging economy

It can create demand for your wine

It can reduce marketing costs due to increased brand awareness and loyalty

It offers more trade leverage in bargaining with distributors and retailers

Strong brand equity facilitates the launch of (new) brand extensions because your

brand already carries high credibility

Strong brand equity can help stave off price battles

Module VI: Building Brand equity

1. Target your audience. The surest road to product failure is to try to be all things to all
people.

Decide who are the most likely users of your product and develop marketing
materials that speak exclusively to that group.

2. Get the consumers attention. Heres where a sound advertising strategy comes into
play. Your goal is to create public awareness and then build on that brand. You do this by
getting consumers to notice that your product stands out from the rest.

Design an advertisement in the form of a mailer or an e-mailer.

Alternatively, send out samples of a new product to a target group. Whichever

form you choose, make sure youre making a great first impression.

3. Make the public remember your brand. Your objective is to make consumers feel an
emotional attachment to the brand.

Plan your marketing campaign around the most distinctive feature of your
product, such as its authenticity, high cost or reliability.

Design marketing materials that help consumers link to the brand by making them
perceive special benefits in your product that they cannot find in others.

For example, advertisements for costly designer handbags create the impression
that consumers who purchase them will look like Hollywood socialites.
Consumers who view these advertisements accept that the distinctive feature of
the handbags-high cost-creates added value that boosts the image of anyone who
buys them.

4. Build a solid brand image. Once again, consider your products special feature. Add to that
the character of your company. Combine these two factors to reinforce an image of the
product that reflects favorably on its manufacturer or provider.

Pick one or two characteristics of your company and emphasize those in every
advertisement. Distinctive characteristics include excellent customer service,
company executives who are renowned experts in a field or a commitment to
social responsibility.

5. Reinforce the brand image within the company. Make sure employees at every level of
your organization work and behave in a way that reinforces your brand image.

Design orientation programs that introduce new hires to your companys brand
image.

Emphasize your brand image in all employee communications, such as brochures,

employee manuals, a company intranet and corporate newsletters.

Create incentives for employees at all levels who successfully communicate your
brand image to the public.

For example, write an article in the company newsletter that showcases an

employee who went beyond his stated job duties to assist a customer with an
urgent request.

Module VI: Brand Strength

There are 3 broad categories to understanding brand strength:
1. Brand Strength based on observing the brands current performance
Discussions of 'brand strength' or 'brand equity' sometimes suggest that these are abstract values,
somehow quite separate from the brand's actual sales in the marketplace. Certainly we are
assuming there are aspects of the brand's strength that may not be apparent just by looking at its
marketplace performance. But this should not blind us to the fact that the most obvious evidence
of a brand's relationship with its public is normally to be found in its sales. A brand that is
struggling in the marketplace can only be said to be 'strong' in specific and limited ways, if at all.
This is underlined by the fact that most forms of financial brand valuation, whether for sales or
balance sheet purposes, start by looking at the brand's current sales and profit.
In one sense it is always true to say that a big, successful brand is a strong brand. But only in the
tautological sense that we have made size and success our definition of strength. What we are
interested in is interpreting sales data so that it may tell us something extra about the brand's
strength in a way that is not merely tautological.
The main possibility here is to define brand strength as the strength of consumer demand for a
brand, relative to its competitors. 'Demand' and 'sales' will normally march in step, but not
necessarily. In other words, we need to make some allowance for factors that might be
influencing aspects of sales without actually improving consumer demand. The most important
ones are price and distribution.

2. Brand Strength based accessing the relevant beliefs, associations and attitudes of the
consumers' mind:
An obvious place to understand the strength of a brand should be through the consumer's mind.
David Aaker of the University of California, Berkley, visualizes each brand name as a box in the
consumers brain, in which are stored away all the bits of information and associations to do with
that brand. The whole box is then in turn stored with positive or negative feelings. This is as
good an image as any although like all metaphors for how the mind works it is likely to be too
simplistic and therefore runs the risk of sometimes being misleading. It will serve however to
introduce some basic categories of information that we can try to gather about what goes on in
the consumers mind:

Awareness - whether there is a box for our brand there at all, or whether it is easy to find.

Associations and beliefs - what's in the box? This is a big area in itself with many
dimensions to it.

Attitude - how the consumers feel about a brand, positive, negative, indifferent.

Each of these areas can be interpreted to tell us more about an aspect of a brands strength. You
could say a brand is strong because many people have heard of it or spontaneously think of it;
you could certainly say it is strong if many people express great loyalty or affection for it, in
their words and actions. In between, a brand can be called strong if it is strongly associated with
imagery or functional benefits that we interpret as desirable for consumers.
3. Brand Strength based estimating the brand's future performance and profit streams:
There is, perhaps, a thin line between asking someone to rate a brand on quality' and asking
them to express a degree of personal preference for it, but this represents a shift from the
respondent's perception of the brand to one about their relationship with the brand.
Ultimately the bottom-line relevance of all the perceptual material is that it somehow translates
into consumer behavior - it leads to them buying the brand, staying with the brand, perhaps
paying more for the brand. It is possible to observe the results of this behaviour directly in the
form of sales, but this alone still begs a question highly relevant to the original issue of brand
strength; they may be buying our brand today, but how likely are they to go on buying it
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tomorrow? Are they simply buying out of habit and inertia, or so they actively value it and feel
close to it? How easy would it be for a competitor to take away our sales?
What is being asked for here is a measure of the consumer's overall attraction to the brand. This
is also commonly called loyalty', though as we shall see this can be defined in different ways. (It
is worth thinking about what the word loyalty meant, before it was borrowed by marketing
people. A loyal' follower of the King was not just one who fought on his side, but one who
would resist bribes or threats to betray him or run away. A loyal' football supporter goes to
every game, home or away. A loyal' friend stands by you when others find a reason to desert
you.) Or we could describe what we are looking for here as the consumer's attitude' to the brand,
in the original and proper (dictionary) sense of the word:
'A mental and neural state of readiness, organized through experience, exerting a directive or
dynamic influence upon the individual's response to all objects and situations with which it is
related.'

Module VII: Designing and implementation of brand strategy

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Customer based brand equity is created when brand knowledge comprising of brand
awareness and brand image are at highest level in customer mind. Brand awareness level is
raised in customer by first understanding consumer taste, preference and present level of
awareness. This analysis leads to designing of marketing programs and outcomes of those
programs are also recorded. Designing of marketing programs is a complex process as it may
have to encompass wide range of product and brands. Purpose of all marketing program is to
maximize brand equity and also to capture or create long lasting impression in consumer mind.
Branding strategies deal with creating brand names, logos, style etc. for it to be
distinguished from competitors and also whether product brand should be separate from
corporate brand or a separate brand away from other individual brands. Implication of
branding strategies is that it creates brand awareness for consumer to ascertain point of
difference and point of similarity with competitors. Second implication is brand image for
association of brand equity from brand to product.
Brand-product matrix looks to explain brand portfolio and brand extension strategies. In the
matrix all products offered under different brands are represented by a row. This helps marketers
understand the current brand line and explore further opportunity in expanding the product line.
In the matrix all current existing brand are represented in form of column referred to as brand
portfolio. The brand portfolio analysis is essential to design and develop new marketing
strategies to target a given product category.
Product line facilitates marketers to devise strategy with regards to future treatment for a given
brand. This strategy focuses on decision, as to whether product line can be extended or new
variants of existing product should be introduced. When taking brand extension decision
companies needs to carry SWOT (Strength, Weakness, Opportunity, Threat) analysis to fully
understand market conditions, current category structure and environmental( economic, social,
political, regulatory) dynamics. This analysis will give companies product line and categories to
follow active branding strategy.
Active branding strategy with respect to product line involves creating multiple brands;
this provides depth to the branding process. For example- car maker General Motors, it
created multiple brands to expand the product class category from SUV to sports car. This sort of
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strategy is also used by consumer goods giant P & G and Unilever. By creating individual brands
companies can create different marketing strategies. This strategy ensures no market in given
industry remains un-tapped.
Brand product matrix helps in showcasing different brand in any given product category. In that
respect Brand Hierarchy is graphical representation of companys products and its brands.
Hierarchical structure starts with corporate brand and then showcases different product category
and below brands. This sort of presentation helps devise marketing strategy at many levels and
forms. There is no fix way to go about formulating marketing strategy but generally it can fit into
3 categories. First strategy gives more importance to corporate brand and less prominence to
product brand. Second strategy sees importance been given to two or more product brands and
some highlighting to the corporate brand. Third strategy looks at promoting only the product
brand and there is no mention of corporate entity at all.
Another brand building strategy which has gain prominence in recent times is cause marketing
or social responsibility marketing. In cause marketing company contributes some amount of
revenue generate from product sales towards designated cause. For example- American Express
started RED campaign along with U2 singer Bono where in 1 percent of card charges were
dedicated to fight AIDS in Africa. This sort of marketing improves brand awareness as well as
brand image and it can generate sense of pride not only for consumers but also for employees.
There are various ways through which a successful brand build strategy can be created,
maintained and enhanced. But one things which comes out from exploring different strategies is
that companies have to proactive in designing marketing campaign and react accordingly to
challenges of dynamic environment.

Module VII: Evaluating Brand Extension opportunities

Evaluating Brand Extension Opportunities

Define Actual and desired Consumer knowledge about the Brand

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It is critical to fully understand the depth and breadth of awareness of the parent brand and the
strength, favorability, and uniqueness of its associations. Moreover, before any extension
decision are contemplated, it is important that the desired knowledge structures have been fully
articulated.

Identify Possible Extension Candidates

Consumer factors when identifying potential brand extensions, marketers should consider parent
brand association especially as they related to the brand positioning and core benefits and
product categories that might seem to fit with that brand image in the minds of consumers.

Evaluate the Potential of the Extension Candidate

In forecasting the success of the proposed brand extension, it is necessary to assess through
judgment and research the likely hood that the extension would realize the advantages and
avoid the disadvantages of brand extension.

Design Marketing Program to Launch Extension

Too often extension are used as a shortcut means of introducing a new product, and insufficient
attention is paid to developing a branding and marketing strategy that will maximize the equity
of the brand extension as well as enhance the equity of the parent brand.

Evaluate Extension Success and Effects of Parent Brand Equity

The final step in evaluating brand extension opportunities involves assessing the extent to which
an extension is able to achieve its own equity as well as contribute to the equity of the parent
brand. A number of decisions have to be made concerning the introduction of a brand extension,
and a number of factors will affect the brands success.

Module VII: Revitalization and reinforcing the brands

Reinforcing brands involves ensuring innovation in product design, manufacturing and
merchandising and ensuring relevance in user and usage imagery.

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Revitalizing a brand, on the other hand, requires either that lost sources of brand equity are
recaptured or that new sources of brand equity are identified and established.
Shifts in consumer behavior, competitive strategies, government regulations, and other aspects of
the marketing environment can profoundly affect the fortunes of a brand.

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Brand Reinforcement
In a market where products are related, branding can have a large effect on the price that customers will
be able to pay. Therefore Brands add value to a basic product or service by enable the product or service
to rule a higher price, or contribute higher market share than an unbranded equivalent. Brand
Reinforcement is an activity associated with getting consumers who have tried a particular brand to
become repeat purchasers and with attracting new users. Brand reinforcement is a primary objective of
the

development

stage

of

the

product's

life

cycle.

Brand Equity is reinforced by marketing actions that consistently convey the meaning of the brand to
consumers in terms of brand awareness and brand image

Reinforced marketing actions, along with product development, branding strategies etc. also help

in keeping the brand meaning in terms of products, benefits and needs as well as in terms of product
isolation intact.
Reinforcing depends on nature of the brand associations:

Product related performance associations

Product innovations are critical

Change in product may not be drastic, as brand meaning may be associated with the product

characteristics.

Non-product related imagery associations

Relevance in user and usage imagery is critical

Potentially easier to change through major advertising campaigns (no product innovation may be

involved).

Too frequent repositioning can blur the image of the brand and confuse or even alienate the

consumers.
Methods of Reinforcing of brands:
1.

Maintaining brand consistency: Consistency of marketing support is essential for maintaining

strength and favorability of the brand.

2.

Protecting sources of brand equity: While looking at potentially powerful sources of brand equity,

preserve and defend the existing sources. Unless there is some change with either consumers,
competitors or the company that makes the strategic positioning of the brand less powerful, successful
positioning should not be deviated from.
3.

Fortifying or Leveraging :Fortifying means ways of increasing brand equity and furthering the brand

image through continuous marketing and advertising efforts

4.

Fine-tuning the marketing support program.

Brand Reinforcement Online and Offline:

As now audiences continue to fragment, integration is increasingly essential to the success of a
promotional campaign for a brand. So one off promotions and offers have less of an contact on
prospective and existing customers than an integrated message. Consistency is key. When customers

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see an offer or message online that doesnt relate to what they see in the store, it triggers doubt,
skepticism, and confusionthree things that rarely lead to a buying decision or the development of brand
loyalty. If you dont maintain the look and feel of your company brand, you leave customers to make their
own assumptions. With all the user-generated content increasingly available online about small
businesses, it is crucial that you keep your own messages integrated and consistent. Otherwise
customers will not be able to distinguish from competitors, or worse will get frustrated and not bother
trying.
By combining the impact of your online and in-store promotions, you reinforce brand and reach new
customers. At the same time, existing customers can ensured to engage in your current promotions.
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help and assignment support in topics like Brand Management, Brand Equity, Managing Brand Equity
and Brand reinforcement

Building and Reinforcing Brands

Effective

brand

management

requires

deep

analytics

of

marketing

decisions

and

implementation. Establishing successful branding is not enough and requires reinforcing or, if
necessary, revitalizing. Reinforcing involves a number of actions, ensuring innovation in product
design, manufacturing, merchandising and ensuring relevance in user and usage imagery.
Whats more, it is critical to analyze the consistency of the marketing support that the brand
receives, both in terms of the amount and nature. IN revitalizing approach, recapturing of lost
sources of brand equity should be recaptured or new sources identified and established.
At Apercu Global, we use two strategies for reinforcing brands: expanding the depth and
breadth of brand awareness through brand recall and recognition by consumers during
purchase or consumption, as well, as improving the strength, favorability, and uniqueness of
brand associations, adding to brand image.
In building brands, we use storytelling, as a valuable tool in establishing brand image and
positioning. We have tools and capabilities to communicate clearly who you are and what you
stand for and build a brand image that would attract peers, representing authentic values such
as honesty, integrity and persistence.

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Our team of branding consultants is passionate focused industry leaders, who have successfully
and implemented over a 1000 branding strategies, building new and reinforcing existing brands,
raising the bar of trust amongst our numerous clients.
We deliver measurable results creative creating and reinforcing corporate brands of small to
Fortune 500 companies, as well as personal ones. Our approach lies in authentic brand
communications, which brings brands to a different level of consumer perception. Establishing
trustworthy relationships between brands and consumers, we embody the former with purpose,
values, integrity, and passion.

Module IV: Concept of Brand Positioning

Brand Profiling & Positioning
:: WHY BRAND?
A business without customers is no longer a business. Branding is about winning and keeping
customers. It is about influencing choice.
The best brands create a special relationship with customers, based on intangible qualities that
evoke strong emotional responses.
A strong brand makes it clear to both you and your customer what you have to offer and why
that matters to them.
Branding involves a wide range of aspects but most importantly your brand is the cornerstone or
foundation of your business. You start with your brand promise and it leads and drives your
business to ensure an ongoing successful financial return.
A great brand helps you build a powerful and enduring relationship with your customer and
provides a solid basis for a successful business. It ensures that everything you do and say
supports that relationship and encourages choice. It's about being remarkable, talked about,
different, distinctive and memorable to ensure your message is successfully diffused throughout
the market place and ultimately increases profitable sales.

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The key reasons for branding a product or service properly are:

To create memorable distinction, difference and convey value
To create consumer recognition and trust
To build brand loyalty
To increase sales and profitability
Creates sustainable competitive advantage
Reduce margin erosion and commoditization
Leverage new product introductions
Create a valuable IP asset when seeking investment or selling a business
:: SHOULD I BRAND?
Every business has a brand, strong or weak. In developing either a new brand or reassessing an
established brand it's important to develop a thorough understanding of the business presently
and the vision for the business into the future, in order to generate an appropriate brand profile
for that business.
You should tackle your brand whether you have a new business getting established or if you
have difficulty in winning or keeping customers (or even attracting their attention in the first
place).
Some of the typical reasons why clients come to us about their brand design are:
They have a great product or service but struggle to say what makes them different.
being dragged into a price war (where only the one with the deepest pockets can win).

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 Others have a great relationship with their customers and want to keep it that way by carefully
nurturing their brand through its ongoing communications with their customers.
losing business to the competition.
This is where branding really comes into its own. A great brand helps you stand out in your
market and stand up to the competition.
:: WHAT IS A BRAND PROFILE?
A brand is best understood as representing the relationship between a business and its customers,
it's an experience or emotional connection. It's the reason why a person buys one product instead
of another i.e. what makes your brand 1st choice.
People relate with other people (not with systems or organizations) and great businesses typically
enjoy relationships with their clients that are experienced at both personal & professional levels.
It's what their customers remember and say about them. It's what leads to lasting impressions,
preferences and performance.
In short brands are the most effective way of cutting through the noise to reach people's hearts
and minds. The purpose of a brand profile is to describe that narrative space (or story) between a
business and its customers and to outline the role that the brand plays in that connection to make
it real, tangible, measurable and unforgettable.
The objectives for a brand model or profile within a business are to develop the brand road map
which provides:

Strategic direction for the marketing activities

Distinction within the business's market

Inspiration for the creative delivery of the marketing messages

The challenge is to determine a position, role, personality and proposition for the business brand
model that will enable proprietors/management to develop and play to their strengths and make

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that emotive connection with their customers. Their brand then speaks of the relationship
between them and their customers and what they will do and say to build on it.
:: DELIVERABLES
A brand profile or model gives the following:
1) A clear understanding and expression of what the business offers, how the business delivers it
and what it means for their customers, partners & key audiences i.e. the strengths of the brand,
how to play to them and where to position the brand in the territories where the business
operates.
2) Key strategic dos & donts for brand behaviour and communications that will enable the
planning of brand activities, launches and communications congruent with core brand
signature/character as part of the business development strategy.
3) A basis on which to design and develop the brand identity and all the visual communication
and creative requirements, such as brand name, brand identity, advertising, brand packaging,
collateral and website etc.
:: KEY BENEFITS
Typically a client can expect the following benefits from working with us:
1) A clear sense of where they stand in their markets and what works best for their brand,
particularly in terms of how to define, develop and grow their business, and describe what it does
in a way that makes sense for their customers and partners.
2) A distinctive framework to enable them to establish a strategic and defendable positioning in
the market(s) where they operate.
3) A robust and objective basis for planning the management and design of activities required to
achieve brand/business objectives.

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:: WHAT IS BRAND POSITIONING?

Positioning focuses on the perceptions of the prospect not on the reality of the brand. To succeed
in our over-communicated society, a company must create a "position" for their brand, be it
product or service, in the prospect's mind. A position that takes into consideration not only its
own strength and weaknesses, but those of its competitors as well.
Positioning is not what you do to the product; its what you do in the mind of the prospect. In a
rapidly changing world of endless choice positioning is how you clearly differentiate your brand
in the mind of your customer to assist choice. Positioning is used to compensate for the endless
information overload experienced by consumers in their daily lives by using an oversimplified
message to cut through the clutter and get into the mind. In essence, it's the nuts and bolts of the
brand upon which the brand message or story is built. Some of the most powerful brands stand
for simple but extraordinary ideas e.g. FedEx - parcel delivery, Google - internet search, Red
Bull - energy drink, Volvo - safety, Tiffanys - expensive luxury, Wal Mart - cheap, Ballygowan water.
We select our brands based on their position in our minds and whether they match how we feel
about ourselves. Brands help define who we are. Brands that try to attract everyone end up
appealing to no one and when a brand no longer stands for something clearly identifiable, it loses
its power. Therefore positioning must be focused in its objectives, on its target market and what
meets their specific needs to be successful.

Brand positioning refers to target consumers reason to buy your brand in

preference to others. It is ensures that all brand activity has a common aim; is guided, directed
and delivered by the brands benefits/reasons to buy; and it focuses at all points of contact with
the consumer.
Brand positioning must make sure that:

Is it unique / distinctive vs. competitors?

Is it significant and encouraging to the niche market?

Is it appropriate to all major geographic markets and businesses?

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Is the proposition validated with unique, appropriate and original products?

Is it sustainable - can it be delivered constantly across all points of contact with the
consumer?

Is it helpful for organization to achieve its financial goals?

Is it able to support and boost up the organization?

:: WHAT MAKES UP A BRAND?

Branding is made up of tangibles and intangibles. The tangible aspects are the functional
characteristics of a brand, the unique and identifiable symbol, association, name or trademark
which differentiates competing products or services e.g. Persona Design brand logo.
A logo in itself is not and never will be a brand. It is simply an icon that indicates it's existence, a
system used to lend a clear and consistent voice for your product or service. It doesn't change
who you are; it just amplifies how you are perceived by others. Your identity in conjunction with
your brand help people understand who you are and what you offer.
The intangibles aspects, arguably as important or in some cases more important, are the
emotional characteristics of a brand which are the sum of an organisations attributes including
its; name, history, reputation, personality, culture, full sensory customer interaction or
experience, packaging and advertising, in short all forms of communication.
Branding is like a living entity which means all touch points, both physical or the more elusive
sensory or cultural experience must be congruent with core brand values and positioning. Being
a familiar name takes you miles closer to closing a sale. People like to buy from companies
they've heard of. They make decisions, rational and irrational, based on emotional connections.
They are the critical wild card in the transaction process. Do they like somebody or not in order
to do business with them or buy from them, assuming the product meets the basic prerequisites
of functionality, market need, quality and service. These intangibles can never be under
estimated and should be carefully managed and nurtured.
Contradictory as it may seem branding is both an art and a science, and therein lies the challenge.
Branding is a complex process. Its not just a logo, advertising, websites, brochures or
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packaging. Its stories that spread, its editorial content, its high quality content blogs, its
company seminars or trade show presence, it's clever direct mail communications and point of
sale. It's creating movements, using engaging humour or emotion and surprising people, its the
brand ambassadors of your company i.e. your management team and staff and how they dress,
communicate and represent your brand, it even includes vocal intonation, interactions and facial
expressions.
When someone stands up in front of a crowd at a political rally, in a seminar or in a church,
theyre marketing their brand. Politicians and celebrities market their brand offering every time
they speak up at a press conference or in an interview. Clever branding, delivers consistently
across all communication channels, amplifies brand personality, reinforces confidence and
converts clients and customers into loyal advocates while building even stronger emotional
connectivity every day.
Brand Positioning involves identifying and determining points of similarity and difference to
ascertain the right brand identity and to create a proper brand image. Brand Positioning is the key
of marketing strategy. A strong brand positioning directs marketing strategy by explaining the
brand details, the uniqueness of brand and its similarity with the competitive brands, as well as
the reasons for buying and using that specific brand. Positioning is the base for developing and
increasing the required knowledge and perceptions of the customers. It is the single feature that
sets your service apart from your competitors. For instance- Kingfisher stands for youth and
excitement. It represents brand in full flight.
There are various positioning errors, such as1. Under positioning- This is a scenario in which the customers have a blurred and unclear
idea of the brand.
2. Over positioning- This is a scenario in which the customers have too limited a awareness
of the brand.
3. Confused positioning- This is a scenario in which the customers have a confused
opinion of the brand.
4. Double Positioning- This is a scenario in which customers do not accept the claims of a
brand.
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:: BRAND PROFILING & POSITIONING OBJECTIVES

Taking a business's current position as a starting point, we can survey the market-space where
they plan to do business and identify a position and approach to business that will stand out from
the competition now and into the future.
Our role is to guide the proprietor/management team in their choice of position; theirs is to direct
the brand, manage business growth and protect this invaluable asset by taking actions that
carefully match their position and offer with what their customers want and need.
A well-managed and well-protected brand quickly becomes the most valuable intellectual
property asset in a business and can add dramatically to the commercial value of the business
when you sell or seek further investment in it.
There are typically five key initial aspects that should be reviewed;
1) Research the business's current market, competitors, trends and NPD opportunities
2) Develop the brand profile, model and position
3) Develop the communications strategy
4) Develop the brand identity
5) Develop the appropriate brand marketing collateral (packaging, print collateral, website,
online/offline promotional campaigns, advertising etc.)
At the end of the process proprietors/management should have a much clearer sense of where
they stand in their markets and what works best for their brand, particularly in terms of how to
define, develop and grow their market and ultimately generate a profitable return consistently
while sustaining a competitive edge.

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Module IV: Choosing Point of difference and Points of parity

What are points-of-difference (POD)?
When deciding upon a brands/products positioning in the marketplace, the organization must
ensure that end positioning has both sufficient points-of-parity (POP) and points-of-difference
(POD). What this means is that you want the brand/product to be consider equal/similar (on par
with, hence the word parity) with the major offerings in the category for the key attributes
(POP), but the brand/product also needs to have a number of unique or differentiated attributes
(POD).
An appropriate balance is required for market success. Too much reliance on points-of-parity in
the products positioning and it could be perceived as a me-too product offering. And too little
emphasis on points-of-parity and the product might be perceived as not meeting the core needs
for the target market.

Definitions for points-of-difference (POD) and points-of-parity (POP)

Points-of-difference (POD) and points-of-parity (POP) are essentially opposite in nature, with
the first referring to differences in the second referring to similarities. As a result, we can the
following definitions for our purposes as students of marketing:
Points-of-difference (POD)
The aspects of the product offering that are relatively distinct to the offerings of like competitors.
Points-of-parity (POP)
The aspects of the product offering that are largely similar to the offerings of like competitors.
You will note that both definitions referred to the offerings of competitors, so these terms are
relative measures. And to clarify the word aspects; it refers to the various product features,
benefits, brand equity, and other marketing mix elements (including price and place, plus any
associated marketing mix elements of services).
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Understanding PODs and POPs

Typically, a firm decides the positioning of a product when it is either: entering a new target
market for the first time or launching a new product into an existing target market. In either case,
the product will usually need to win market share from established competitors (which is referred
to as selective demand).
For the product to win market share, it requires existing consumers in the marketplace to change
their purchasing behavior. That means that customers who currently buy a competitive product
will need to trial the new offering and/or current non-consumers need to be activated to purchase
in the product category for the first time (which is primary demand).
To achieve this goal of changing established purchasing behavior, the firm has both meet the
core need of product, as well as bring something new to the marketplace. The following diagram
demonstrates this in visual terms. As you can see, the large circle in the middle of the diagram
represents the core needs of the market (points-of-parity) and the smaller circles represent new
features or benefits (points-of-difference).
Therefore, the positioning of any new entrant needs to have many points-of-parity (that is, it
must be seen to offer a relatively similar solution), but it needs to have something unique or
different about it (points-of- difference). (For more information, please refer to the example
section below.)

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The POD POP Trade Off

One of the challenges for a firm launching a new product offering is to the extent that they
differentiate the product. As outlined in the positioning section of this marketing study guide,
one of the purposes of positioning is to simplify the offering in the minds of the consumer.
As we know, marketing communication is a very competitive world and it is difficult to
communicate many messages about a product, particularly low-involvement one. Therefore, as it
is necessary to simplify the message, firms need be careful about overindulging in points of
difference.
As shown in the following diagram, there is a distinct trade-off between the ability of the firm to
communicate points-of-parity and points-of-difference. This is because consumers are likely to
only remember a few elements about the product. .Ideally, an organization would like to
communicate everything about all of their products, but that is just not practical given the
interests of the consumer and the vast array of marketing messages being sent out.

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Therefore, firms need to strike an appropriate balance and to position the product within the
product category as having sufficient points-of-parity, while highlighting one or two points-ofdifference.

Unique Selling Proposition (USP)

The concept of a unique selling proposition (USP) has become quite popular in terminology in
recent years. Essentially what this refers to is points-of-difference and you can use the terms
interchangeably if required. A point-of-difference is basically what is different about the firms
product, as compared to most competitive offers. The same meaning is applied to the term
unique selling proposition; that is, what is unique (that is, different) about the firms offer.

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What to emphasize POD or POP?

Continuing on from the discussion on the previous section, while firms do need to balance their
emphasis between points-of-parity (POP) and points-of-differentiation (POD) there are occasions
when a firm should more heavily emphasize one of these elements. The following table outlines
the circumstances when a greater emphasis is required.
Situation

What to emphasize

When the firm is a me-too

In this case, being a weaker competitor, the goal is to

competitor

piggyback on the success of the market leader by

highlighting many points-of-parity

When the firm as a market

This is the reverse situation from the one above. To

leader

maintain market leadership, the brand/product needs to

be seen in as superior/different in key ways, thus
highlighting the need to focus on relevant points-ofdifference

When the firm enters an

In this case, the likelihood of switching is relatively lower,

established and mature

so points-of-difference are required to break their

market

habitual loyalty

When the firm and is a fast-

Fast-growing markets have primary demand (that is,

growing market

first-time customers to the market), therefore points-ofparity positioning will should be quite successful in
capturing new customers

When there is a diversity of

When there is significant diversity of consumer needs,

needs, even when looking at

a points-of-difference positioning should ensure that

fairly narrow market

reasonable market share is generated

segments

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In a target market where the

To reduce the risk of cannibalization of sales, the firm

firm already offers multiple

would need to have more emphasis on points-of-

products

difference

In a relatively price sensitive

Our goal in this case would be to provide additional

market

benefits, in order to reduce the importance of price in the

decision. Therefore, a points-of-difference positioning
emphasis would be required

Module IV: Positioning Strategies

In todays highly competitive business environment, companies operate in markets
that are fragmented and flooded with offerings. Creating a significant differential
advantage over a competitor is a task that even strong brands face. But how does
one achieve such an advantage? Marketing managers and advertisers aspire to
achieve such an advantage for their brand and do so by implementing a sound
brand positioning strategy.
Brand positioning seeks to make a unique place in the minds of the target market
by appropriately designing the companys offerings and image. In general, rightly
positioning a brand would lead to the creation of a value proposition that would
appeal to the needs of the target market. It motivates consumers to buy the product
or avail the services offered by the brand.
To better understand brand positioning, it is essential to make a distinction between
intended, actual and perceived positioning. As the name suggests, intended
positioning is how a company intends to be perceived by the target market. Actual
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positioning is the positioning information actually presented to the target market. It

refers to how the intended positioning is executed and is done through various
marketing communication tools, but predominantly through advertising. Finally,
consumers may make their own conclusions about the brand based ontheir
perceptions of the actual positioning and this is called perceived positioning.
A company may choose to position its brand based on different positional bases.
These bases can be categorised as concrete brand positioning bases and abstract
brand positioning bases. Concrete brand positioning bases are more related to the
product itself, whereas abstract positioning bases are related to the indirect benefits
to the consumers and their values. Most companys brands fall under one dominant
positional base, however, it is possible for the brand positioning strategy to
comprise of a set of positional bases.
This is your Brand's Bible and go-to path. Fill it with all the dos and donts of your
communication. Mention even the smallest things.

Branding is about creating a message, making sure you audience perceives it the
way you want to and remaining consistent with a voice or tone of communication the brand manual is your guideline for the task ahead of you.

TYPES OF POSITIONING STRATEGIES

Features The product features are emphasised in this strategy. These are
the tangible features of the product and it is a quantitative base for
positioning. It can also be said that the features that are highlighted are often
specific to a product category.

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Abstract These are intangible attributes and can be used in a wide range
of product categories. Examples of abstract positioning bases are quality,
innovativeness, style etc. It doesnt matter what the company is selling. It
could be high-end computers or chocolates, but both products can be based
on the positional base of quality.

Direct The functional benefits of the brand are highlighted. In this

positional strategy, the advantages of the usage of the brand are showcased.
Examples of direct positioning bases are durability, reliability, convenience
etc.

Indirect benefits These are the benefits that arise indirectly due to the use
of the product. Their use is for symbolic means. For example, a luxury car
manufacturer might use expressions Own the Road or Respect
Guaranteed. This positional strategy aims to build around the delivery of a
social-image benefit to the consumer.Onida employed this strategy when
they used the caption Neighbours Envy, Owners Pride

Surrogate positioning This is a strategy that allows the consumer to come

up with their individual conclusions and refers to the intangible aspects of
the brand. Employing a statement like For People who are still Young at
Heart would fit into this positioning strategy.

Consumers preferences are expected to be shaped by brand positioning and itis the
key to building consumer loyalty. Building a great brand requires an immeasurable
amount of work and brand positioning is a very important task for marketers. The
reason being, it has consumers perceptions and choice as its central feature.
However, exercising prudence in its implementation should be the most important
rule, because if it is not done correctly, it also has the potential to be the downfall
of a brand.
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Module IV: Repositioning Strategies

Six Rules of Brand Repositioning
Rule 1: Refocus the organization
Refocusing the organization begins with redefining the brand and business purpose and
goals. The brand purpose should be aspirational.
Rule 2: Restore brand relevance
The brand promise is an articulation of the relevant and differentiating experience that
the brand will deliver to every customer, every time. Brand revitalization means defining
where you want the brand to be and then deciding how to get there.
Rule 3: Reinvent the brand experience
To revitalize a brand, we need to bring the redefined brand promise to life. This is what
the five actions P's are all about. The five action P's are people, product, place, price and
promotion. People come first. Building employee commitment to the new direction,
employee confidence and organizational and employee capabilities are critical factors
that influence future success.
Rule 4: Reinforce a results culture
Measuring and managing performance.
Rule 5: Rebuild brand trust
In this skeptical, demanding, uncertain world, trust is a must. As part of revitalizing a
brand, rebuilding trust is critical. Investment in rebuilding trust is an important,
challenging marketing imperative. There is demand for more openness, more social
responsibility and more integrity.
Rule 6: Realize global alignment
The power of alignment is awesome. During brand revitalization, we often talk about the
need to get everyone on the same page. But we rarely, if ever, define the page we want
everyone to be on. That's the purpose of the one-page Plan to Win, the one-page
document that summarizes the eight P's and the desired outcomes.

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Four Strategies to Repositioning your Brand

1. Dust Off the Cobwebs
When your marketing goes stale, so does your business. The purpose of spring cleaning your
online business is to clear away the cobwebs and stay relevant to consumers. So, what does it
take to be relevant?

Stay up with the times. Take time every few months to read about new marketing tactics
that can apply to your business.

Be better! Look at what your competitors are doing online, and see if you can do it better.

Be social. Dont leave your Facebook Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest accounts

unattended for long periods of time or consumers will view you as stale, resulting in a
loss of fans, followers and connections.

Appeal to the masses. Make sure the content you are posting appeals to the appropriate
audience and remains cognizant of whats trending in your industry.

2. Strategize and Organize

Have you embraced the social media realm yet? Lets face it: Social media engagement is
important for business success. However, you must be mindful of what you are posting and
engaging in on social media. Social activity for the sake of activity is a waste of time. Part of
spring cleaning is eliminating excess that doesnt benefit you.
If its not relevant, appealing, or creating revenue for your company, its not working for you. At
the end of the day, your social interactions should bring a return on investment. There should
always be a payoff, so there must be a sound strategy behind any social initiative. Here is one
strategy you can follow:

Pinpoint the ultimate goal. What do we want from our visitors? What is our call to
action? Once you have a goal in mind, you can commit and act to follow through and
succeed.

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Look at your sites analytics. What are you doing thats working? What is not working?
What could work better? There is always room for improvement find out what can and
should be improved.

Look at the social analytics. What do Facebook or Twitter have to offer your business
that you may not be taking advantage of? Social media continues to grow, so keeping up
to stay relevant is critical.

3. Refine a Familiar Focus: Your Audience

Whether youre sweeping up dust bunnies or brainstorming new business strategies, you can ask
yourself these questions when reviewing your online marketing:

What will people think about these efforts?

How will they make people feel?

What will people do with this information?

Your content should give your audience something to think about, something to feel good about,
and something productive to do. It can appeal to urgency with a limited-time offer or appeal to
kindness with a charitable campaign.
No matter what you choose to do, you must focus on how the campaign and efforts will affect
your audience. Rethinking or refining your marketing plans will give your business a renewed
edge.
4. Refresh Your Brand
If you are an extreme spring cleaner, you wont stop at just the kitchen or attic. Youre going to
fix up the entire house, top to bottom. Consider adopting this mentality for refreshing your brand
as a whole. Remember these tips for improving your online business brand:

Define what your brand currently represents. Apple Apple, Pepsi, and McDonalds have used
a variety of different slogans over the years to tailor their brand messages and stay relevant to
consumers. Its part of what makes them so successful. You can do this, too.

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Be consistent in your presentation. Dont forget what youve defined from the beginning.
Although your look or slogan may change, the heart of your business should remain the
same.

Is willing to grow and evolve based on your vision, your audience, and your image (keeping
consistency in mind).

Rinse and repeat.

Why change is required

Corporations and brands often change their image in order to respond to external
and / or internal issues such as:

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Module VIII: Global Marketing advantages and disadvantages

Global marketing Advantages and Disadvantages

Advantages ;
Economies of scale in production and distribution
Lower marketing costs
Power and scope
Consistency in brand image
Ability to leverage good ideas quickly and efficiently
Uniformity of marketing practices
Helps to establish relationships outside of the "political arena"
Helps to encourage ancillary industries to be set up to cater for
the needs of the global player

Reach
The nature of the internet means businesses now have a truly global reach. While traditional media
costs limit this kind of reach to huge multinationals, eMarketing opens up new avenues for smaller
businesses, on a much smaller budget, to access potential consumers from all over the world.
Scope
Internet marketing allows the marketer to reach consumers in a wide range of ways and enables
them to offer a wide range of products and services. eMarketing includes, among other things,
information management, public relations, customer service and sales. With the range of new
technologies becoming available all the time, this scope can only grow.
Interactivity
Whereas traditional marketing is largely about getting a brands message out there, eMarketing
facilitates conversations between companies and consumers. With a two way communication
channel, companies can feed off of the responses of their consumers, making them more dynamic
and adaptive.
Immediacy
Internet marketing is able to, in ways never before imagined, provide an immediate impact. Imagine
youre reading your favorite magazine. You see a double-page advert for some new product or
service, maybe BMWs latest luxury sedan or Apples latest iPod offering. With this kind of traditional
media, its not that easy for you, the consumer, to take the step from hearing about a product to
actual acquisition. With eMarketing, its easy to make that step as simple as possible, meaning that
within a few short clicks you could have booked a test drive or ordered the iPod. And all of this can
happen regardless of normal office hours. Effectively, Internet marketing makes business hours 24

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hours per day, 7 days per week for every week of the year. By closing the gap between providing
information and eliciting a consumer reaction, the consumers buying cycle is speeded up.
Demographics and targeting
Generally speaking, the demographics of the Internet are a marketers dream. Internet users,
considered as a group, have greater buying power and could perhaps be considered as a population
group skewed towards the middle-classes. Buying power is not all though. The nature of the Internet
is such that its users will tend to organize themselves into far more focused groupings. Savvy
marketers who know where to look can quite easily find access to the niche markets they wish to
target. Marketing messages are most effective when they are presented directly to the audience
most likely to be interested. The Internet creates the perfect environment for niche marketing to
targeted groups.
Cross cultural negotiation
The dimensions of culture, such as power distance, the context of the culture and the local work
ethic is an area of marketing and social science that is closely related to Global marketing. The
ability to discern cultural differences through initial assessment of another market is considered a
critical enabler to progress in Global marketing.
Adaptivity and closed loop marketing
Closed Loop Marketing requires the constant measurement and analysis of the results of marketing
initiatives. By continuously tracking the response and effectiveness of a campaign, the marketer can
be far more dynamic in adapting to consumers wants and needs. With eMarketing, responses can
be analyzed in real-time and campaigns can be tweaked continuously. Combined with the
immediacy of the Internet as a medium, this means that theres minimal advertising spend wasted on
less than effective campaigns. Maximum marketing efficiency from eMarketing creates new
opportunities to seize strategic competitive advantages. The combination of all these factors results
in an improved ROI and ultimately, more customers, happier customers and an improved bottom
line.

Disadvantages ;
Differences in consumer needs, wants, and usage patterns for products
Differences in consumer response to marketing mix elements
Differences in brand and product development and the competitive environment
Differences in the legal environment, some of which may conflict with those of
the home market
Differences in the institutions available, some of which may call for the creation
of entirely new ones (e.g. infrastructure)

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Differences in administrative procedures

Differences in product placement.

Module VIII: Global Brand Strategy

Building a global brand requires more than just launching a web site that's accessible from
almost anywhere in the world.
From language missteps to misunderstanding cultural norms, veteran branding expert Barbara E.
Kahn has seen it all when it comes to the missteps of launching a brand across borders. Here, she
shares five tips to help entrepreneurs avoid the pitfalls.

The Secrets of 7 Successful Brands

1. Understand customer behavior.
Just because consumers have certain buying preferences or habits in one culture,
doesn't mean that such preferences are universal. "It's astonishing how many
retailers haven't made it because they haven't studied how consumers shop," she
says.
In her book, Global Brand Power (Wharton Digital Press, 2013), Kahn cites
Walmart's mistake in choosing locations in China that were near industrial parks
when consumers were used to shopping closer to home instead of near work.
2. Position yourself properly.
Good brand positioning includes truly understanding your competition and then
looking at your competitive advantage. Who are the providers of similar products
and services that you sell in this country? They may not be the same providers as
in the U.S.

46

For example, if you sell athletic clothing, look at where people are buying their
athletic clothing. It could be from specialty stores, online retailers, or sporting
goods stores. If you have a high-end brand and you're going into a market where
the preferred buying location is discount retailers, it may take a different strategy
from the one you use in the U.S. "You need to understand how people shop and
how your brand will fit into that mix," she says.
3. Know how your brand translates.
A clever brand or product name in one language may translate into an
embarrassing misstep in another. For example, the French cheese brand Kiri
changed its name to Kibi in Iran because the former name means rotten or
rank in Farsi -- not exactly the association you want for cheese.
In addition to ensuring that your brand translates well into other languages,
consider which colors are favored in various markets. In the U.S., blues and greens
are favored, while reds and yellows are frequently used in some Latin American
countries and may be appealing and familiar to audience members from those
areas.
4. Think broadly.
Since your company may need to expand into offering new products based on
regional market demands, it's important that your company name be broad enough
to accommodate those changes.
"Boston Chicken changed its name to Boston Market because it had expanded into
other foods," Kahn says. If your company name is Brian's Computers for example,

47

consider whether that will be limiting in other markets if you also sell peripherals
and services, she says.
5. Find good partners.
Work with your attorney to protect your intellectual property overseas, filing the
appropriate trademark and patent protections in the U.S. and elsewhere, if
applicable. Find trade representatives who come recommended from colleagues or
state or federal trade offices, since they're more likely to be reputable.
Implications of the three definitions within global strategy:

International strategy: the organisations objectives relate primarily to the

home market. However, we have some objectives with regard to overseas
activity and therefore need an international strategy. Importantly, the
competitive advantage important in strategy development is developed
mainly for the home market.

Multinational strategy: the organisation is involved in a number of markets

beyond its home country. But it needs distinctive strategies for each of these
markets because customer demand and, perhaps competition, are different in
each country. Importantly, competitive advantage is determined separately
for each country.

Global strategy: the organisation treats the world as largely one market and
one source of supply with little local variation. Importantly, competitive
advantage is developed largely on a global basis.

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Why is global strategy important?

There are at least four answers to this question depending on the context:

From a company perspective, international expansion provides the

opportunity for new sales and profits. In some cases, it may even be the
situation that profitability is so poor in the home market that international
expansion may be the only opportunity for profits.
For example, poor profitability in the Chinese domestic market was one of
the reasons that the Chinese consumer electronics company, TCL decided on
a strategy of international expansion. It has then pursued this with new
overseas offices, new factories and acquisitions to develop its market
position in the two main consumer electronics markets, the USA and the
European Union.
In addition to new sales opportunities, there may be other reasons for
expansion beyond the home market. For example, oil companies expand in
order to secure resources called resource seeking. Clothing companies
expand in order to take advantage of low labor costs in some countries
called efficiency seeking. Some companies acquire foreign companies to
enhance their market position versus competitors called strategic asset
seeking. These issues are identified in the film that you will shortly be able
to see on the page How do you build a global strategy?

From a customer perspective, international trade should in theory at least

lead to lower prices for goods and services because of the economies of
scale and scope that will derive from a larger global base. For example, Nike
sources its sports shoes from low labor cost countries like the Philippines
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and Vietnam. In addition, some customers like to purchase products and

services that have a global image. For example, Disney cartoon characters or
Manchester United branded soccer shirts.

From the perspective of international governmental organisations like

the World Bank - the recent dominant thinking has been to bring down
barriers to world trade while giving some degree of protection to some
countries and industries. Thus global strategy is an important aspect of such
international negotiations.

From the perspective of some international non-governmental

organizations, the global strategies of some but not necessarily all
multinational companies are regarded with some suspicion. Such companies
have been accused of exploiting developing countries for example in terms
of their natural mineral resources in ways that are detrimental to those
countries. This important aspect of global strategy is explored in the separate
web section on Globalization.

Benefits of a global strategy

The business case for achieving a global strategy is based on one or more of the
factors set out below see academic research by Theodore Leavitt, Sumanthra
Ghoshal, Kenichi Ohmae, George Yip and others. For the full, detailed references,
go to the end of Chapter 19 in either of my books, Corporate Strategy or Strategic
Management
1. Economies of scope: the cost savings developed by a group when it shares
activities or transfers capabilities and competencies from one part of the
group to another for example, a biotechnology sales team sells more than
one product from the total range.
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2. Economies of scale: the extra cost savings that occur when higher volume
production allows unit costs to be reduced for example, an Arcelor Mittal
steel mill that delivers lower steel costs per unit as the size of the mill is
increased.
3. Global brand recognition: the benefit that derives from having a brand that
is recognized throughout the world for example, Disney..
4. Global customer satisfaction: multinational customers who demand the
same product, service and quality at various locations around the world for
example, customers of the Sheraton Hotel chain expect and receive the same
level of service at all its hotels around the world.
5. Lowest labor and other input costs: these arise by choosing and switching
manufacturers with low(er) labour costs for example, computer assembly
from imported parts in Thailand and Malaysia where labour wages are lower
than in countries making some sophisticated computer parts (such as highend computer chips) in countries like the USA
6. Recovery of research and development (R&D) costs and other
development costs across the maximum number of countries new
models, new drugs and other forms of research often amounting to billions
of US dollars. The more countries of the world where the goods can be sold
mean the greater number of countries that can contribute to such costs. For
example, the Airbus Jumbo A380 launched in 2008 where development
costs has exceeded US$ 10 billion.
7. Emergence of new markets: means greater sales from essentially the same
products.

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Costs of a global strategy

The costs of operating a global strategy may be greater than the benefits see
academic research from Douglas and Wind, Rugman and Verbaeke, Ghemawat
and others. For the full details, go to the end of my chapter 19 in either Corporate
Strategy or Strategic Management 5th edition.
Set against these benefits, there are at least six economic costs of international and
global strategies:
1. Lack of sensitivity to local demand: Leavitt argued that people would be
prepared to compromise on their individual tastes if the product was cheap
enough deriving from economies of scale and scope. Is this really correct?
Other writers argued that there could be costs in adapting products to match
local tastes, local conditions like the climate and other local factors like
special laws on environmental issues.
2. Transport and logistics costs: if manufacturing takes place in one country,
then it will be necessary to transport the finished products to other
countries. The costs for some heavy products, like steel bars, may be greater
than the economies of scale from centralised production in one country.
3. Economies of scale benefits may be difficult to obtain in practice: plant
takes time to commission, local competitors still using old plant and cheap
labour may still be competitive. For an example, see the Tate & Lyle Case in
Chapter 19 of Lynch.
4. Communications costs will be higher: standardisation of products and
services needs to be communicated to every country. In virtually every case,
it will also be necessary to monitor and control the result. All this is time

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consuming, expensive and at the mercy of local managers who may have
their own agendas and interests.
5. Management coordination costs: in practice, managers and workers in
different countries often need to be consulted, issues need to be explored and
discussed, and local variations in tax and legal issues need to be addressed.
This means that senior managers operating a global strategy need to spend
time visiting countries. It cannot all be done on the telephone and worldwide
web. This takes a tremendous toll of people personally.
6. Barriers to trade: taxes and other restrictions on goods and services set by
national governments as the goods cross their national borders.
7.

Other costs imposed by national governments to protect their home

industries - like special taxes or restrictions on share holdings.

Module VIII: Standardization and Customization

Customized v/s Standardized Marketing Strategy
In recent years, there has been urgency amongst local organizations to diversify their
operations in the international market to enhance their revenues, competitiveness and
global market share.
Globalization has led to an increased integration of economies and trade amongst several
nations across the globe. These factors have made it essential for organizations to adopt
international marketing strategies to guard them against foreign competition. However,
there have been certain controversies regarding which international marketing strategy
should be implemented in order to maximize an organizations goals and objectives. Also,
the design of the international marketing strategies involves evaluation of external
environmental factors, which vary from country to country.

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Customized Strategy
Customized strategy is based on the ideology that 'due to cultural and other difference
amongst countries, marketing strategies should be tailor made for each country.This
strategy is influenced by three distinct differences amongst countries:
a) Buyer behavior characteristics
b) Socioeconomic condition
c) Competitive environment
Standardized Strategy
The Standardized strategy is in complete contrast to the customized strategy. It is argued
that due to globalization, several economies have been integrated and hence leading to
organizations to create homogeneous products. Standardization strategy helps
Multinational corporations increase their competitive advantage by achieving cost
competency and benefits from economies of scale.
Standardized strategy reduces costs for organizations through elimination of Research
and Development in foreign countries. For instance, Gillette Razor uses the same
technology to manufacture the Mach 3 all over the world across various countries. It also
helps reducing costs that are required for product design and packaging in foreign
subsidiaries. For example, Sony uses the same packaging across several countries for its
Play station product. Also, the Standardized strategy helps Multinational corporations to
achieve a common global image for its products across the universe and eventually aid
them in increasing its global sales. For instance, an individual loyal to a product in one
country will buy the same product in another country due to brand loyalty. It has been
proven that products successful in one country will achieve success in another country
with similar market and competitive conditions.
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There have been cases of successful implementation of standardized strategies by

Multinational Corporations. For instance, amongst consumer durable- the strategy used
by Mercedes Benz to sell its cars all across the globe. Amongst non-durable goods, CocaCola has prevailed successful in the global market while for industrial Boeing jets are
sold using common marketing strategies across the globe.

Reasons for modifying the products

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