1. BRAND AWARENESS
Brand awareness is the extent to which a brand is recognized by potential customers, and is correctly associated with a particular product.
Brand awareness is related to the functions of brand identities in consumers’ memory and can be reflected by how well the consumers can identify the brand under various conditions.
Expressed usually as a percentage of the target market, brand awareness is the primary goal of advertising in the early months or years of a product's introduction.
Brand awareness is an important way of promoting commodity-related products. This is because for these products, there are very few factors that differentiate one product from its competitors. Therefore, the product that maintains the highest brand awareness compared to its competitors will usually get the most sales.
For example, in the soft drink industry, very little separates a generic soda from a brand-name soda, in terms of taste. However, consumers are very aware of the brands Pepsi and Coca Cola, in terms of their images and names. This higher rate of brand awareness equates to higher sales and also serves as an economic moat that prevents competitors from gaining more market share.
For example, in the soft drink industry, very little separates a generic soda from a brand-name soda, in terms of taste. However, consumers are very aware of the brands Pepsi and Coca Cola, in terms of their images and names. This higher rate of brand awareness equates to higher sales and also serves as an economic moat that prevents competitors from gaining more market share.
STRATEGIES OF BRAND AWARENESS:
1. Brand recognition
It refers to the ability of the consumers to correctly differentiate the brand they previously have been exposed to. This does not necessarily require that the consumers identify the brand name. Instead, it often means that consumers can respond to a certain brand after viewing its visual packaging images.
2.Brand recall
It refers to the ability of the consumers to correctly generate and retrieve the brand in their memory.
A brand name that is well known to the great majority of households is also called a household name.
MEASURES OF BRAND AWARENESS:
1. Aided Awareness-
- This type of awareness is generated in a consumer. When asked about a product category, if the consumer is aided with a list of company names and he recognizes the company from the given set it is categorized as aided awareness.Spontaneous awareness --- When asked about a product category, the consumers are asked to list brands they know without any cues.
2. Top of the mind Awareness-
- When the name of the company is automatically recollected because the consumer very promptly associates the brand with the product category, it is called a top of the mind awareness of the product. It’s the first brand name listed by the consumers when asked to name brands they know without any cues.
CHANNELS OF BRAND AWARENESS:
1. Advertising
- It is the activity or profession of producing information for promoting the sale of commercial products or services.
- Advertising is used through various media to generate brand awareness within consumers.
- They can be aired as radio ads, television commercials, internet etc.
2. Guerrilla Marketing
- Creative campaigns allow every small firm to compete with bigger firms by carving out narrow but profitable niches.
- Nowadays, big firms also use guerrilla marketing to catch consumers’ attention at low cost.
- These tactics include :
(2) Aiming every effort at favourably impressing the customers.
(3) providing service that goes beyond the customers' expectations,
(4) fast response time,
(5) quick turnaround of jobs, and
(6) working hours that match the customer's requirements.
- It is an out of the ordinary way of marketing a product. Low-cost channels can be utilised to generate a high level of interest in the product and create brand awareness.
- Utilisation of personal contacts is the most popular way of guerrilla marketing.
- Product Placement is an advertising technique used by companies to subtly promote their products through a non-traditional advertising technique, usually through appearances in film, television, or other media.
2. BRAND IDENTITY
Aaker defines brand identity, as a structure having two distinctive levels: the core level and the extended one.
The core brand identity is the very essence of the brand, its fundamental that should remain constant no matter what strategies should involve the brand (e.g. entering new markets, launching new products under the same brand).
The extended brand identity consists of elements that provide texture and completeness, adding details in order to help portray better what the brand stands for.
Moreover, in order to ensure brand’s identity texture and deepness, according to Aaker’s model , brand identity should be decomposed into four dimensions: brand as product (including product scope and attributes, quality/value, uses, users and country of origin), brand as organization (organizational attributes, local versus global), brand as person (brand personality, brand-customer relationships) and brand as symbol (visual imagery/metaphors and brand heritage).
Brand Identity is how a business wants a brand's name, communication style, logo and other visual elements to be perceived by consumers.
The components of the brand are created by the business itself, making brand identity the way in which a business wants consumers to perceive its brands, not necessarily how it is actually perceived.
Brand identity is different than brand image, which is what consumers actually think. It is constructed by the business itself.
A negative gap between brand identity and brand image means a company is out of touch with market sentiment, which will make selling its products more difficult.
The brand image held by consumers can reach a point at which a business or product has to rebrand itself or risk not bringing in sales.
Brand Identity Traps represent approaches to creating an identity that are excessively limiting or tactical and that can lead to ineffective, and often dysfunctional, brand strategies.
The 4 Traps are :
1. BRAND IMAGE TRAP
2. BRAND POSITION TRAP
3. THE EXTERNAL PERSPECTIVE TRAP
BRAND IDENTITY TRAPS:
Brand Identity Traps represent approaches to creating an identity that are excessively limiting or tactical and that can lead to ineffective, and often dysfunctional, brand strategies.
The 4 Traps are :
1. BRAND IMAGE TRAP
- Knowledge of the brand image (how customers and others perceive the brand) provides useful and even necessary background information when developing a brand identity.
- In the brand image trap, however, the patience, resources, or expertise to go beyond the brand image is lacking, and the brand image becomes the brand identity rather than just one input to be considered.
- When there are only subtle image inadequacies caused by customers’ past brand experiences or by changes in their needs, however, the use of the brand image as an identity statement often goes unchallenged.
2. BRAND POSITION TRAP
- A brand position is the part of the brand identity and value proposition that is to be actively communicated to the target audience and that demonstrates an advantage over competing brands.
- Thus the brand position guides the current communication programs and is distinct from the more general brand identity construct. Some elements of brand identity (such as cleanliness for a restaurant) may not be actively communicated and other elements (such as a product class association) will recede in visibility as the brand matures.
3. THE EXTERNAL PERSPECTIVE TRAP
- The external perspective trap occurs when firms fail to realize the role that a brand identity can play in helping an organization understand its basic values and purpose.
- Because an effective identity is based in part on a disciplined effort to specify the strengths, values, and vision of the brand, it can provide a vehicle to communicate internally what the brand is about.
4. THE PRODUCT ATTRIBUTE FIXATION TRAP
- The most common trap of all is the product-attribute fixation trap, in which the strategic and tactical management of the brand is focused solely on product attributes.
- Based in part on the erroneous assumption that those attributes are the only relevant bases for customer decisions and competitive dynamics, the product-attribute fixation trap usually leads to less than optimal strategies and sometimes to damaging blunders.
- This trap signifies of the brand been defined by only one product.
- In this case there is a restriction to diversify tangibly and intangibly.
- The attributes are not the relevant bases for customer decisions and competitive dynamics.
- In this case when the product attributes are considered as basis of brand identity are subject to certain limitations, which are as follows: -
- · Can be easily copied
- · They execute a rational customer
- · They lack strategic flexibility
- · The fail to differentiate
KEPFERER BRAND IDENTITY PRIZM
Kapferer has grounded his brand identity prism
starting from the communication theory according to
which, in each communication there is one who
communicates, one that builds representations of who
speaks, of who receives the message and the
relationship that establishes between them.
And the
brand fits in this theory as the brand itself is a source
of communication. Thus, the physique and personality
facets have the role of defining the sender (the brand),
while the reflection and self-image facets that of
defining the recipient (the consumer).
Relationship and
culture fill in the gap between the sender and the
recipient. Nonetheless, the brand identity prism
presents a vertical division, as well.
Hence, the leftside
facets (physique, relationship, reflection)
represent the social expression of the brand, meaning
brand’s visible components, while the right side
(personality, culture, self-image) regards brand’s inner
world, its spirit, being an echo of the other side .
It consists of 2 dimensions:
- Constructed Source vs. Constructed Receiver: How the brand is seen as a person (Physique and Personality) vs. How the brand is seen as its stereotypical user (Reflection and self-image)
- Externalization vs. Internalization: Externalization defines what the brand is to the outside world it interacts with. Externalization parameters (Physique, Relation, Reflection) define how the brand socializes. Internalization parameters (Personality, Culture, Self-image) define the brand internally.
1) Physique –
- Physique is the basis or the physical appearance of the brand. It may include product features, symbols and attributes like packaging , color.
- This element answers the question: What do business do?
-
Many brands have problems with their physical facet because their functional added value is weak.Example: Foster Farms Frozen Cooked Chicken.Capabilities:Chicken – Highest quality , Cooking – Making perfectly cooked chicken , Resource – Helping you make successful dinners.
- Even an image-based brand must deliver material benefits. We focus on capabilities, which are about the brand’s value-added.
- Example -Coca-Cola’s bottle is easily recognized even eyes closed. One legend design with a typical colour: RED.
2) Personality –
- Personality defines what personality will the brand assume if it were a person. Personality includes character and attitude.
- Brand’s personality is actually a result of the brand’s communication and consists of those traits of human personality that could be attributed to the brand.
- Example - Pepsi is always doing things with humour and derision. The part of fun is big.
3) Culture –
- Culture takes a holistic view of the organization, its origins and the values it stands for.
- Links the brand to its origin.
- Cultural values in the brand represents where the brand comes from. In a many cases cultural values in the brand are related to its country of origin:
- Examples - Mercedes-Benz: German auto engineering excellence , Coca Cola: Kindness, gratefulness, happiness , Tantra T-shirts: Indian
4) Relationship –
- The strength of the relationship between the brand and the customer. It may represent beliefs and associations in the human world.
- How a brand treats its consumers.
- Example - Harley Davidson: Red carpet treatment HOG (Harley Owners Group)
- Dixons retail: Every single customer, every single time is the most important person in the world
5) Reflection –
- What does the brand represent in the customers mind or rather the customer mindset as reflected on the brand
6) Self image –
- How does the customer see himself when compared to the brand.
- Who does the consumer of the brand see them as?o Fastrack watches: the ‘in-your-face’ rebel.o Volkswagen Beetle: The affluent fun-lover.o Big Bazar: The value conscious bargain hunter.
- Example – A customer might see himself capable or incapable of buying a BMW car or any other luxury brand.
BRAND IMAGE
- Brand image is the current view of the customers about a brand. It can be defined as a unique bundle of associations within the minds of target customers.
- It signifies what the brand presently stands for. It is a set of beliefs held about a specific brand.
- It is the consumers’ perception about the product. It is the manner in which a specific brand is positioned in the market. Brand image conveys emotional value and not just a mental image and is organization’s character.
- It is an accumulation of contact and observation by people external to an organization.
- It should highlight an organization’s mission and vision to all. The main elements of positive brand image are- unique logo reflecting organization’s image, slogan describing organization’s business in brief and brand identifier supporting the key values.
- Brand image is the overall impression in consumers’ mind that is formed from all sources. Consumers develop various associations with the brand. Based on these associations, they form brand image. An image is formed about the brand on the basis of subjective perceptions of associations bundle that the consumers have about the brand. Volvo is associated with safety. Toyota is associated with reliability.
- The idea behind brand image is that the consumer is not purchasing just the product/service but also the image associated with that product/service.
- Brand images should be positive, unique and instant.
- Brand images can be strengthened using brand communications like advertising, packaging, word of mouth publicity, other promotional tools, etc.
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BRAND IMAGE AND BRAND IDENTITY
BRAND IMAGE BRAND IDENTITY
1. It is passive and looks in past. It is active and looks future.
2. Tactical approach Strategical approach.
3. It is perceived by the receiver It develops from the source or
or the consumer. the company.
4. It is superficial. It is enduring.
5. It signifies "what company It signifies "where a have got." company want to be."
BRAND PERSONALITY
- Brand personality is the way a brand speaks and behaves. It means assigning human personality traits/characteristics to a brand so as to achieve differentiation.
- These characteristics signify brand behaviour through both individuals representing the brand (i.e. it’s employees) as well as through advertising, packaging, etc. When brand image or brand identity is expressed in terms of human traits, it is called brand personality.
- A brand personality is something to which the consumer can relate, and an effective brand will increase its brand equity by having a consistent set of traits.
- This is the added-value that a brand gains, aside from its functional benefits.
- Customers are more likely to purchase a brand if its personality is similar to their own. Examples of traits for the different types of brand personalities:1. Excitement: carefree, spirited, youthful .2. Sincerity: genuine, kind, family-oriented, thoughtful.3. Ruggedness: rough, tough, outdoors, athletic .4. Competence: successful, accomplished, influential, a leader.5. Sophistication: elegant, prestigious, pretentious .
