Part II 1.

Chapter

How Brand
Communication Works
 Key Points in This Chapter
1. How do the elements of the basic communication model relate to marketing
communication?
2. What are the six components of communication, and how do they relate to
marketing communication?
3. What are the four types of brand-customer touch points?

Chapter Perspective

Every Touch Point Communicates

The marketplace is a social system in which
customers, companies, and media interact.
Communication involves the sending and
receiving of messages. A company or brand
can communicate with, or "touch," custo-
mers, prospects, and other stakeholders in
many different ways. What many compa-
nies overlook and fail to leverage are oppor-
tunities for dialogue with customers and
prospects.
Companies sometimes believe that if they
don't say anything or don't respond to a cus-
tomer, they have avoided sending a brand
message. Wrong! A company CEO who re-
sponds to a question from the media with
"NO comment," actually communicates a
great deal. What most people "hear" is that
the CEO is scared to give the right answer or
doesn't know the answer, both of which
are bad messages to send. A company that
chooses not to respond to a customer's com-
plaint communicates loudly and clearly that
it doesn't care about its customers and is not
willing to stand behind its products.
Every thing and every person and every
message that touches a customer communi-
cates something positive or negative about
the organization. The appearance of a ser-
vice employee, whether neat or sloppy, says
something about the company's pride in
its work. The design of a product and pack-
age says modern, juvenile, feminine, old-
fashioned, expensive, dull, or something
else. The tone of voice on the phone or the
attitude of a clerk or customer-service repre-
sentative all speak to the personality and
friendliness of the organization.
A company and a brand cannot not com-
municate. The challenge, then, is how to
manage brand communication in order
to accomplish business and marketing
objectives cost-effectively. To answer this
question requires understanding how com-
munication-and marketing communica-
tion-work, which is what this chapter is
about.
 104 Chapter 4 How Brand Communication Works
r-
LOVE AND ICE CREAM: THE HB STORY
McCann-Erickson, Dublin, Ireland
Marketing communication consists of the messages
companies send and receive and the media involved.
It's also about perceptions, how customers interpret
the many messages they receive about a brand. In
the late 1990s, HB Ice Cream, Ireland's number-one
ice-cream brand, decided to change i t s stodgy brand
perception. This i s the story about how that message
was communicated at every possible point of con-
tact with the brand.
With increasing competition facing i t s ice cream,
HB's parent company, Unilever, decided to intro-
duce a new brand identity for HB across Europe.
McCann-Erickson Dublin was asked to develop a
communication program to launch the new HB brand
identity and test it in Ireland. McCannJscommuni-
cation effort was so successful that it not only
achieved high awareness scores in a highly competi-
tive product category but also was a winner in the
Advertising and Marketing Effectiveness (AME) inter-
national award program.
The Marketing Challenge
Traditionally a "poor relation" on the fringe of Eu-
rope, the Republic of Ireland earned the tag "Celtic
EXHIBIT 4-1
- - -- - -- -
- - - - -- - - -
,'
Tiger" through a sustained level of high economic
growth during the 1990s. As unemployment rates,
stubbornly high for many years, eased downward,
larger numbers of lrish young~.people
. (18 to 34 years
old) opted to stay home rather than emigrate,
creating the youngest population profile in western
Europe.
Because of i t s long heritage in the lrish market
(since 1926), HB i s regarded with great affection by
lrish consumers as "our ice cream." It dominates
the market despite being bought in 1973 by global
marketer Unilever. The HB brand name acts as an
umbrella for a wide range of products-three take-
home ice-cream brands and five impulse brands
(bars and cones bought out of a freezer in a store).
The challenge? Because HB already had a leading
share of the lrish ice-cream market, the business ob-
jective was to grow the category by increasing ice-
cream consumption.
Campaign Strategy
HB planned to fight for a share of the market in
the bigger category of refreshment, using i t s impulse
brands. HB's consumer research had determined that
 Chapter 4 How Brand Communication Works
the key target audience for the HB take-home brands
consisted of housewives with children, and that the
target for the impulse was young adults aged 15 to
34. However, McCann decided that the strategy
needed to move beyond these two audiences. Execu-
tives wanted a new brand identity with a more con-
temporary brand perception, especially for the
younger people in the HB market. Given HB's ubiq-
uity and broad acceptance, the identity effort could
be aimed at everyone in the lrish market.
The Brand Message
For 30 years the HB logo, with i t s initials (from the
original founders, the Hughes Brothers) in script
mounted in an oval and printed over four bars, had
been a familiar symbol in the lrish media, on signs
in the streets, and in shops. The brand also had a
high pan-European advertising presence on TV and
on billboards. lrish consumers came in contact with
HB brands everywhere. It was impossible to walk
down an lrish street without seeing HB signage,
point-of-purchase displays, branded litter bins, or
window stickers on the local corner shop. HB
branded freezer cabinets were a prominent feature
in shops.
The original logo was appropriate to a relatively
undeveloped market in both ice-cream consump-
tion and other refreshments. However, competition
had recently become much fiercer as the lines had
started to blur between ice cream, carbonated
soft drinks, confectionery, and yogurt categories.
The time had come to recognize consumers' greater
familiarity with ice cream.
1 OF
The communication effort needed to touch the
emotions of the audience. The new design contin-
ued to use the familiar HB initials (see Exhibit 4-2)
but replaced the oval with a heart shape. The
design sought to communicate the values of natural
togetherness and love. "Natural togetherness"
provided a key emotional benefit by focusing on
people enjoying ice cream in a social, interactive
environment.
The message strategy utilized a major public
event to spearhead the campaign and involve the
audience. The big idea was to capitalize on the
new heart-shaped logo by using St. Valentine's Day
weekend as a launch platform t o create rapid
and widespread awareness, excitement, and recog-
nition of the new HB identity. The event wou1.d be
supported by advertising so that when consumers
saw on-pack and in-store changes, they wou1.d
understand what was happening to the familiar HB
brand.
Delivering the Message
Fitting a brand of HB's stature and ubiquity with a
new identity was clearly a task that needed t o go far
beyond advertising to engage all possible contact
points. Changing all HB's packaging, shop-front sig-
nage, point-of-purchase, and freezer cabinet brand
messages in every supermarket and grocery store in
the country was a logistical challenge.
Rather than relying on a TV commercial t o an-
nounce the logo, the McCann team felt strongly that
the communication should include new media and
contact points where appropriate. The core media
idea was to create Ireland's first-ever themed week-
end on lrish TV. St. Valentine's weekend was dubbed
"The Love Weekend," and themed television pro-
gramming sponsored by HB included movies such as
Sleepless in Seattle, Truly Madly Deeply, and Brief
Encounter; romantic episodes of The Simpsons,
Friends, and Golden Girls; and a special called An
Intimate Evening with Michael Bolton. In addition, a
Local television network created a phone-in music
video request show called Cupid's Corner.
McCann's event-based plan allowed the agency
to put in place a completely integrated communi-
cation strategy. That meant combining the three
elements-the TV spot, a local media launch event,
and on-the-street promotional activity-so that con-
sumers were involved with a 360-degree commu-
nication program for the new brand identity. In
addition to traditional media time and space place-
ments, the campaign also used sponsorship "stings,"
short TV spots that announced HB's sponsorship of
the Love Weekend. The networks also ran tie-in
106 Chapter 4 How Brand Communication Works

promotional teasers for the programs. In news-
papers, the TV listings were printed over color
watermarks of the heart logo.
A key element of HB's strategy to compete
against the major refreshment brands was to estab-
lish a strong street presence in the main urban cen-
ters. To get the new HB logo on the street, McCann
teamed up with a Dublin film-production company
to project video images on large outdoor screens or
walls. The Love Weekend TV reminder ads were also
projected on large walls at city center locations on
St. Valentine's night in Dublin, Cork, and Belfast. If
the event didn't quite cause national gridlock, it did
manage to slow Saturday-night traffic near the light
projections. McCann also had "hit squads" at each
location distributing HB "Passion Test" cards, short
questionnaires that tested the passion in one's life.
In an effort t o further bring the event alive,
McCann placed a color ad leading into the TV listings
that offered people the chance t o win a family holi-
day. This strengthened HB's ownership of the week-
end's N listings while at the same time the contest
generated excitement and enthusiasm.
Evaluation of the HB Campaign
Market research conducted two weeks after the
Love Weekend but prior t o any signage or point-of-
purchase changes found that nearly half of all lrish
recognized the new symbol. Furthermore, 70 per-
cent of the 15 to 24 age group were aware of the
logo, and 75 percent of these immediately associ-
ated the logo with HB Ice Cream.
Ice-cream sales in Ireland are seasonally biased t o
the summer months, so another objective was to
stretch the impulse ice-cream season so that it
starts earlier. Given the success of the Love Week-
end with increasing sales in February, it i s now part
of HB's strategy to launch the new impulse season
each year with a St. Valentine's weekend themed N
event.
Unilever managers were so impressed with the
lrish campaign and the results it achieved that they
decided to replicate the strategy in all their ice-
cream markets. McCann's video of the whole cam-
paign has become the template for similar launch
activity in other markets.
Source: This case was adapted with permission fvom the
Advertising and Marketing Effectiveness ( A M E ) brief for the
HB brand-identity campaign prcpared by McCann-Erickson
Dublin.

! HOW DOES COMMUNICATION WORK?

Conceptually, communication is a fairly simple process: someone-a person or an
organization-creates and sends a message to an individual or organization. In
every commercial communication situation, companies (or their agencies) that
create brand messages do so with certain objectives in mind-to inform, impress,
persuade, and/or generate a response. I f you have taken a psychology or market-
ing course you are probably familiar with the traditional sender-receiver commu-
nication model. This model has been adapted to show how brand communication
works (see Figure 4-11.A good understanding of this model w i l l enable you to un-
derstand all the various aspects of marketing communication that are discussed in
the remainder of this book.
Once a company decides what i t wants to say, i t starts the communication
process, thus becoming the source, or sender-the initiator of a message. The creation
of an organization's brand messages is generally done by one or more MC agencies.
In the basic model of communication, this process of creating a brand message to con-
vey a n intended meaning and elicit a certain type of response is called encoding.
A message is a n idea encoded i n a combination of words, pictures, actions, symbols,
andlor events. The encoding challenge is to use words, pictures, and other cues
whose meanings are shared by members of the intended audience. A n M C mes-
sage is anything that talks about a brand, such as newspaper ads, radio commercials, di-
rect-mail pieces, sales clerks, or ctistomer service (see Exhibit 4-3). A communication
channel, or media vehicle, is the means by which a message is delivered-letter, e-mail,
radio, television, newspaper, telephone, a n event.
 Chapter 4 How Brand Communication Works 107 I
How Brand Communication Works

I
Immediate Response
Delayed Response
No Response

A good understanding of
this model is necessary
in order to understand
The receiver is anyone who is exposed to a message. Once receivers, usually cus-
tomers and prospects, receive a message, they must decode it. Decoding is the
process of interpreting what a message means. After customers decode a message, they
respond in some way, indicating to what extent the message was received, prop-
erly decoded, and persuasive. This response is called feedback, which is a response
that conveys a message back to the source.
The communication process occurs in a context or environment where other
things are going on--competitive brand messages, people walking by, a tele-
phone ringing, as well as thoughts inside customers' heads. These "other things"
are called noise--interferences or distractions that can negatively affect the transmission
and reception of a message. Companies and their MC agencies go to great lengths to
create brand messages that have impact-that are attention getting as well as
memorable.

HOW DOES MARKETING COMMUNICATION WORK? #

Now let's reinterpret the basic communication model as a model of how market-
ing communication works. The numbers 1 through 6 in the subheads refer to
numbers on Figure 4-1.

1. The Source and Encoding

Because companies and other organizations have something they want to sell,
most marketing communication starts with them and their agencies. They are the
source (customers also can be sources, as will be explained later). And it is their
\ 108 Chapter 4 How Brand Communication Works

EXHIBIT 4-3
This Dunkin' Donuts
commercial opens with a
young boy with a box
of Dunkin' Donuts
Mtrnchkins watching an
oldw man feeding ducks in
a park. The boy tosses a
Munchkin to the ground.
It is picked u p not by a
duck but by a man i n
business suit, who eats it
, and walks on.

"Ducks" :30
SFX: Outdoor sounds.
(Open on a young boy w i t h a box of Dunkin' Donuts
Munchkins watching an older man feeding the ducks in
the park. The boy then takes a Munchkin and tosses it
at the ground, hoping for the same result. Instead, we
see a man in a business suit nonchalantly pick up the
Munchkin, eat it, and walk on)
Anncr. (VO): There's just something about Dunkin'
Donuts.
Logo and tagline

corporate or brand name that appears in these messages identifying them as the
sender of the MC messages.
Publicity, of course, is an exception. Although a company or its PR agency often
provides the information and ideas for a publicity story, and these stories include
the company (or brand) name, the perceived source of these MC messages are third
parties-the media. Unless a story is negative, a credible third-party source brings
 Chapter 4 How Brand Communication Works

integrity to the company's message. An important factor in customers decoding a

message and forming attitudes about a brand is the perceived integrity of the
sender. The extent to which a message sender is believable is called source credibility.
Several years ago the scientist and cosmologist Carl Sagan was asked what one
invention he would most like to see created. He answered: "A baloney detection
kit so that every citizen can tell when he or she is being lied to."' Although Sagan
was expressing concern about government sources, many customers feel the same
way about advertising (and other MC) messages-always wondering what parts
of ads are true and what parts are hype. Why d o customers feel this way? They
know that the sources of advertising are companies that are trying to sell them
something. This does not mean customers don't believe anything they see in ads,
but rather that they decode ads with caution.
This natural consumer skepticism is the reason why building brand trust is so
important. The more customers and prospects trust a company and brand, the
more likely are customers and prospects to decode advertising with less skepti-
cism. One way companies can help overcome source skepticism is by providing
multiple "proof" points, or reasons why a brand will deliver on its promise. An-
other way is for companies to be good corporate citizens and refrain from doing fE X H l 0 l T 4-4\
things that negatively affect their reputations. The Transarnerlca
The encoding step is generally the responsibility of MC agencies. Once the Pynunid mkes a strong
brand position and target audiences have been agreed upon, agencies create MC and is
messages. Agencies must have a thorough understanding of the target audiences ,, that it is
to ensure that the words, pictures, and other communication cues used in mes- used as part of the
sages will be decoded with the meanings intended. (Encoding methods are ex- company's logo
plained in Chapters 9 and 10.)

2 . Brand Messages:
Everything Communicates
When most people hear the term brand message, they think of such
things as magazine and TV ads, coupons, publicity releases, and
packaging. Those, however, are only one type of brand message-
namely, MC messages. Remember from Chapter 1 that a brand
message is all the information and experiences that impact how cus-
tomers and other stakeholders perceive a brand. A brand message can
.-----
originate from anywhere inside or outside a company. A company's .--.-
..----
.---
.----
,---.

behavior, the design and maintenance of its physical facilities, its

hiring practices, its stock price, what others say or write about the
company, as well as its MC messages, all say something about a
brand or company.
The corporate headquarters of Transamerica Corporation in San
Francisco was designed to be more than just a structure to house
corporate offices. The insurance company wanted the building to
be a strong brand message by being unique and memorable-a
message in steel and concrete that instantly said "Transamerica."
This objective was achieved, and today the "Pyramid" is part of
Transamerica's logo (see Exhibit 4-4) and, like the Golden Gate
Bridge, is a symbol of the city of San Francisco. \
Although marketing people are not responsible for all brand f
messages sent by a company, they must constantly monitor what
messages customers and prospects are receiving as part of the total
communication program of the organization. When a negative non-
MC message is sent, hundreds of positive MC messages may be
negated. In most cases these negative messages are unintentional;
T~SAMERICA
those responsible for them simply didn't realize what the impact of
 Chapter 4 How Brand Communication Works

Communication Dimensions of the 4 Ps

FIGURE 4-2
The light blue sections
of each of the 4 Ps
boxes represent the
communication of
each "P."
Price Product

1
I Brand Messages

7I Place Promotion

Computer introduced the iMac, the new computer attracted the attention of com-
puter users and shook up the entire computer industry and its approach to prod-
uct design (see Exhibit 4-5). The appearance of the iMac sent a powerful brand
message. The beautiful design of this computer reflected positively on Apple's as-
sociation with creativity.

Price Brand Messages

EXHIBIT 4-5
The price that is charged for a particular brand is a message indicating how the
brand compares with competing brands in quality and status. That is why price is
often used to differentiate brands. Other aspects of pricing also send strong mes-
sages. The frequency and the extent of brand promotions, for example, say some-
thing about a brand. The more a brand is on sale and the more it is Different."
discounted, the more ordinary it is perceived to be. When
McDonald's unveiled its plan to sell Big Macs and Egg McMuffins
for 55 cents (to help commemorate its 55 years of being in busi-
ness), the company soon found it was sending a negative message.
The price cut made some customers perceive the products as cheap
and resulted in the financial community's slicing a big chunk off
the company's share price. One financial analyst commented,
"They have transformed one of the great brands in American busi-
ness into a c~mmodity."~ Pricing messages, like all others, must be
strategically integrated with all other brand messages in order to
send customers and other stakeholders a coherent, meaningful
message. The IMC in Action box discusses the issue of demand
pricing. What kinds of messages does this practice send?

Place (Distribution) Brand Messages

The places where products are distributed can send brand mes-
sages. There's a big perceived difference, for example, between cos-
metics sold at Wal-Mart and those sold at Nordstrom, even when
they are the same product or the same brand. The fact they are
sold in a "discount" store says they must be a "discount" product.
 Chapter 4 How Brand Communication Works

IMC I N A.CTI.0N (7
f
L
The Customer Side of D m id Pricing
,
I
What brand message i s belng sent when prices sud- dill demand pricing make them
M-
denly change? Computers and databases have enabled switch from Coke to another
companies to use variations in price to help manage ca- brand the next time they go to the store and stock up
pacity and inventories. This strategy i s called demand on soft drinks?
pricing. When capacities decrease, prices are raised to
maximize revenue return on products being sold. Oil Think About It
and gas prices are good examples of demand pricing.
Airlines have been using demand pricing for years. What is demand pricing? How might it send negative
As the date of a scheduled flight comes closer, the air- messages to customers? Why i s demand pricing less of
lines' computers automatically raise or lower prices in a problem for airlines than for soft-drink companies?
response to how many seats for that flight remain un-
sold. Using a database of historical sales, the airlines
have good estimates of how many seats should be sold
one week out, two weeks out, and so on. When seats
I
for a particular flight are being sold faster than nor-
mal, the airlines raise the price for the remaining seats
(and vice versa when sales are slower than expected).
This is one reason why, for any given flight, the ticket
prices paid by passengers on board greatly vary.
Using the same strategy, Coca-Cola i s testing venu-
ing machines that raise and lower prices In response to
changes in the outside temperature. Because more
people buy soft drinks on hot days than on cold days,
machines are programmed to charge more for a can of
Coke when temperatures go up. It is also possible to
program vending machines to increase prices when
sales significantly increase in a short period of time
(for example, during a special event), in part to pre-
vent the machine from running out before i t s regularly
scheduled restocking.
Demand pricing may help Coke maximize its profits
on vending machines, but it may also send a negative
brand message to people who regularly use the vend-
ing machine. One day a can of Coke may cost 75 cents,
and the next day, when the temperature goes up, a
can may cost a dollar. Will customers think they are
getting ripped off! Will customers look for a bepsi
machine, where they know the price doesn't change?

Another "place message" is communicated by where products are displayed

within a store. Brands on the bottom shelf are often perceived as being not very
popular.
When the European pen company Mont Blanc decided to reposition itself as an
upscale brand several years ago, one of the first things the company d i d was stop
distributing its products in stationery stores that sold cheap pencils, pens, and
paper along with paperback books and magazines. The company said those stores
 Chapter 4 How Brand Communication Works 113

did not project the type of image with which it

wanted the Mont Blanc brand to be associated.
""'81. .
I

Promotion (Marketing
ec" r-;,r
Communication) Brand Messages
Promotion is about marketing communication mes-
sages. What must be kept in mind, however, is that
how a company communicates sends a message in ad-
dition to the actual words and content. How an MC
message is designed and what media carry the mes-
sage add to or subtract from the intended meaning.
Most of the remainder of this book is about how7 to
create and send MC messages.

3. Media Channels:
Connecting Companies
and Customers b
Media are the channels that connect companies with

k
customers. Most MC messages are carried by TV,
radio, newspapers, magazines, internet, mail, and
outdoor boards. Most of these types of media can be
used to reach not only mass audiences but smaller, n BROADCAS I ING SYSTEM
specialized markets, as Exhibit 4-7 illustrates.
Nontraditional media-including buildings and
sports stadiums that have electronic billboards and
signage, faxes, kiosks, movies and TV shows (which have product placements), X 14 1 1 4 7
packaging, and even sidewalks-are carrying an increasing number of MC mes- fiadifional media are
sages. And buzz, the word of mouth that happens when people talk about a prod- u s u a l l ~thought as
uct, is also the focus of some nontraditional strategies. Some movies, like the The mass media that reach
large audiences.
Hours and Chicago, are released in limited venues in order to heighten the antici-
However,a niche
pation generated by buzz.6 such as Hispnnic
For many years media were considered primarily as vehicles or delivery sys- in the United
tems. However, they should be thought of as channels that link companies and states can be reac]zed
customers psychologically as well as physically. Psychologically, media can add to with media such as the
(or subtract from) the intended meaning of a MC message and campaign. Each Spanish Broadcasting
medium has an image just as every brand has. A message in Forbes has a different System.
significance than a message in Playboy, Cosmopolitan, or Rolling Stone. The more \
positive and relevant the image of a medium is to a brand, the more the medium
can enhance that brand's messages. For example, B2B companies like to advertise
in magazines such as Business Week and Fortune, which are seen as prestigious
business publications and thus provide a prestigious editorial environment for
ads. In a way, media are the stage on which a brand message "performs."

4. Noise: The Clutter That Derails

Communication
In 2003, companies such as Honda and Toyota pulled their TV commercials during
the first days of Operation Iraqi Freedom even though they knew viewership
would be up.7 These companies believed war reports could stir up tremendous
emotional feelings that would make thinking about a new-car purchase seem
irrelevant. From the marketers' point of view, the TV's editorial content was likely
114 Chapter 4 How Brand Communication Works

.. ~
nz.
I " . 4 ... . . .,.
. .> - -7.- .1*- .... ..':'.. .-
i
-Lill
re from outride a Brnnd$
,. .I ?- . .,
I
.
~ ~ r n r u n l c a Y a
m a c a n s sqhts and b

to be noise drowning out the companies' messages intended for customers and
prospects.
All communication, including marketing communication, takes place within an
environment that contains distractions. Noise can be physical or psychological,
and it can come from within or outside the intended communication effort (see
Table 4-1). Although zero-defect communication is impossible to obtain, marketers
must constantly work to minimize noise.
One of the most troublesome sources of psychological noise is inconsistent
brand messages. A past advertising campaign for a popular American beer pro-
vides an example. A content analysis of the TV commercials found three different
selling strategies. Some of the commercials were selling "good taste," others "fun
with friends," and still others "high quality." It was not realistic to expect cus-
tomers to remember all these product claims, but customers who did remember
them probably were confused about what this beer was really all about.
One type of noise of particular concern to marketers is clutter, which is competi-
tion among commercial messages. Clutter is evident when you open a newspaper
and a bunch of ads stares you in the face. Clutter makes it difficult for a particular
EXHIBIT 4-8 brand message to get attention. It is important, therefore, to know what competi-
In this type ofvisual- tors are saying, as well as when and where they are delivering their messages.
heavy environment, Marketers compete not only with brands but also for the attention of customers and
every brand message is
surrounded by a lot of prospects, as well as other stakeholders, as Exhibit 4-8 shows.
visual noise that is TV commercial breaks, for example, often contain up to 10 commercials. Maga-
distracting. zines' and newspapers' content is 50 to 70 percent ads. Primacy and recency theo-
ries say that the first thing and the last thing you see,
hear, or read (in any situation) are more likely to be
remembered than all the messages in the middle.
Knowing this, agencies negotiate for the first or last
place in a print publication or broadcast commercial
break, to improve the odds that their messages will
be remembered.

5. The Receiver and

Decoding
In marketing communication, the intended receiver
is the target audience, which is a group that has
 Chapter 4 How Brand Communication Works

significant potential to respond positively to a brand message. There are two types of re-'
sponses to messages. One is physical. When you look through a magazine or have
the TV on, you physically receive many ads. But even though these ads may regis-
ter on your senses, you probably only really read, watch, or listen to a small per-
centage of them. The other type of response is psychological. In this more
advanced manner of decoding, the receiver selects messages to pay attention to,
understand, and, if the marketer is lucky, remember.
Decoding is basically the reverse of encoding. Symbols sent by the source must
be reconstructed into the original idea or into something close to it. For decoding
to be successful, there needs to be shared meaning between the source and re-
ceiver. Otherwise, the receiver (the customer) will not correctly understand what
the source (the company) is saying about the brand. Shared understanding of sym-
bols is the result of common fields of experience between encoders and the in-
tended audience.
Receivers' fields of experience determined by past activities and observations
EXHIBIT 4-9
\

The Nouell ad wryr fhaf

create the "codebook" used to find meaning in all messages, including brand mes- communi,,tion systems
sages. Fields of experience directly affect how receivers decode messages. They need to work as a team.
can make an audience more (or less) receptive to a brand message. Suppose your ~t says that visually 4
company designs boats and market research indicates that the target market in the showing dogs running
United States for yachts tends to be Republicans. You might not want to sub-brand wild, then showing them
your newest 42-foot sloop The Clintonian. The decoding process is also influenced as part of a dogsled
team. It also says it in

-
by the receiver's immediate needs, wants, and concerns. If you're hungry, you will
likely respond differently to a sign for pizza than you would if you had just eaten. the "Team
Marketers can help ensure that messages are decoded as intended by having a and in the body
thorough understanding of customers, empathizing with them, and speaking their
copy, ". . . they can all be
harnessed as one Nef."
"literal and emotional l a n g ~ a g e . "Even
~ then, the po-
tential for misinterpretation often still exists. For ex- ,
ample, when a brand is advertised as selling for half
price, the message can be decoded as "a good value"
or as "a cheap, low-quality product." To c l a w MC
messages, companies use strategic redundancy,
which means saying the same thing in several different
ways, so that receivers will have several chances to get
the message. One of the big advantages of an IMC
program is that it is designed to build in strategic re-
dundancy by coordinating all the messages delivered
by the various MC functional areas so they reinforce
one another. Look at the ad in Exhibit 4-9. Notice that
the headline, illustration, and body copy all "say"
that communication systems need to work together
as a team. To help ensure that messages are decoded
as intended, companies need to be aware of their tar-
get audience's field of experience^.^
Another technique to help ensure proper decoding
is keeping messages simple. An old rule of thumb in
advertising says, "Be single-minded." This means
that there should be only one main idea in a brand
message. A variation on that principle is KISS-
"Keep it simple, stupidu-which recognizes that the
simpler the message thought and execution, the eas-
ier it is for receivers to get the main point.
IMC helps close the gap between intended and N0Ve-u.
lhe power to chattee
perceived messages and thus minimizes the miscom-
munication, misperception, and misunderstanding
that results from inadequate brand communication. It
116 Chapter 4 How Brand Communication Works

does this by being responsible for the way messages set expectations, and by mon-
itoring what perceptions customers have about the brand. When expectations rise
too high, a company must either work to bring its product performance up to that
level or create MC messages that make more realistic promises.
A company can use two-way communication to give a brand a more positive
perception. One way to do this is to invite customers to ask questions. Caring for
a new baby, for example, may sound like a simple thing, but new parents often en-
counter unexpected difficulties. The baby-food company Gerber has a toll-free
telephone number that parents can call with questions about feeding and raising
a baby. The company does not give medical advice, but its representatives do
answer thousands of questions each month from new parents. Merely knowing
that there is a place where they can call and get answers is a tremendous added
value to these parents and leads them to perceive Gerber as an especially caring
company.
Because a perception is the result of communication, a perception provides a
window on the success of a message strategy. In other words, tracking customer
perceptions is an important source of feedback and the first step in evaluating the
success of brand messages.

6. Feedback and lnteractivity

In an attempt to convince 250,000 potential customers to try its Olay Daily Facials
product, Olay launched a pilot program that used the telephone to get prospective
customers to respond. In exchange for limited personal information, consumers
could obtain a free sample of the new product simply by calling 1-800-TRY-OLAY
and interacting with a speech recognition system. Consumers who called in were
also given the option to join Club Olay, a relationship program that provides con-
sumers with free samples, newsletters, and other benefits. This is an example of
how companies are striving to create interactivity with their customers by build-
ing a promotional program around feedback.1° Feedback indicates that customers,
prospects, and other stakeholders have been "touched by a brand message. There
are three types of feedback: immediate, delayed, and no feedback at all.
Immediate feedback is ordering or buying, asking questions, sampling, or inter-
acting in some other way with a brand soon after a brand message is received. Im-
mediate feedback is especially valuable to those doing direct-response marketing
(direct mail and telemarketing), which is designed to get the audience to respond
immediately with a purchase or some other action. The same is true for most retail
advertising, such as grocery and department store ads that include special prices.
Other types of immediate response include queries and requests for information,
visits to a store, trying a product or using a sample, or repeating the purchase of a
product previously tried. Business-to-business marketing often uses feedback to
generate leads for personal sales.
Delayed feedback is a response given at a later time. The delay doesn't mean that
a message has had no impact. Image advertising, for example, is designed to work
over time, creating and maintaining brand awareness and a positive feeling about
a brand. The message impact of advertising comes at the point when the consumer
is contemplating a purchase and a message impression from the advertising stim-
ulates the selection of the advertised brand. Both B2C and B2B customers remem-
ber numerous advertising messages about a brand; then when a need arises or
they find themselves in a position to take advantage of an opportunity offered by
a brand, they respond by making a purchase, asking for more information, visiting
a store, sampling the product, or taking some other action. When feedback does
occur, it is often in response to multiple brand messages. Brand messages are
also designed to reinforce brand choice-in other words, to keep current cus-
tomers satisfied with their brand choice and confirm the wisdom of their choice.
 Chapter 4 How Brand Communication Works 117 j
-
This is particularly important for major purchases, such as ,
automobiles.
No feedback is rarely a desired response, but it is mean- "The promotional monologue of
ingful and important. When there is no feedback, a com-
pany needs to find out why, because it may indicate a
advertising at the seller's
negative impact. If the message was never received, the convenience is being replaced by
wrong media may have been used or the message may
have been sent to the wrong place or at the wrong time. A dialogue at the customer's
nonresponse could also indicate that there was too much
clutter or other noise, or simply that the message was not convenience. "
relevant or persuasive enough to move the target audience
Anders Gronsaedt, a m of
to respond. It could also mean that the consumer is not in The Curtsmer Ce~ewy
the market for the product or is loyal to some other brand.
If a message is received but misinterpreted, the message
may have been poorly encoded. If a message was received
and properly decoded but there still is no response, the message may not have
been persuasive enough, or receivers may not have been potential customers.
When the latter is found to be the case, the company should not waste money de-
signing and sending further messages to this target audience, or the company
should significantly change the message to appeal to the target audience's needs
or interests.
Occasionally, very useful feedback comes from brand messages that were not ini-
tiated by the brand itself. Some companies, for example, monitor category-related
chat rooms on the Internet to see what people are saying about the company and
brand. And eBay, the giant online auction company, uses customer feedback as its
primary tool in protecting its users from scam artists. Its famous "Feedback
Forum," a rating system that records the reputation of all eBay members, both
buyers and sellers, is designed to create trust for its online transactions."

BRAND-CUSTOMER TOUCH POINTS

A survey by the Pew Charitable Trusts found that 46 percent of customers had
walked out of a store because of bad service.12This type of contact between a cus-
tomer and a company is the contact point where customer frustration is most visible.
Any situation in which a customer comes into contact with a brand or company is a
brand-customer touch point. The touch-point concept suggests that there are
many kinds of brand messages besides MC messages, and that media are not the
only means by which customers come in contact with a brand message. Under-
standing how touch points affect customers is critical to managing the customer
expectations that drive brand relationships. As the HB Ice Cream story in the
opening case illustrates, every touch point contributes to customers' impressions
of a brand.
The concept of touch points was first popularized by Jan Carlson, former chair-
man of Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS). During the time he managed this
world-class company, Carlson realized that certain company-customer interac-
tions (touch points) had a significant impact on whether customers chose SAS the
next time they flew. He called these touch points "moments of truth." They in-
cluded on-time departures and arrivals, careful handling of luggage, and courte-
ous interactions with airline personnel.I3 He also discovered that messages
delivered at these touch points were often more powerful than anything SAS
could say in its marketing communication.
To manage touch points, a company must first idenhfy them. Next, it must pri-
oritize them based on the following criteria: (1)impact on brand loyalty, (2) ability
1 118 Chapter 4 How Brand Communication Works

EXHIBIT 4-10
Touch points are all the different ways customer come in
cantact with a company. Gateway makes sure its "cow"
imagery is used on everything from retail buildings to
pah8ing.

of the company
- - to influ-
ence the touch-point experi-
ence, (3) cost of making each contact a positive experience, (4) extent to which
contacts can be used to gather customer data, and (5) extent to which contacts are
appropriate for carrying additional brand messages. Finally, touch points must be
integrated to ensure message consistency as the Gateway pictures point out (see
Exhibit 4-10). Every touch point, to some extent, strengthens, maintains, or weak-
ens the relationship between a brand and a customer. The four basic categories of
customer touch points are company created, intrinsic, unexpected, and customer
initiated (see Figure 4-31.

Company-Created Touch Points

Company-created touch points are planned MC messages, such as ads, news releases,
brochures, packages, and store decor. When Lexus or its agency, for example, m a t e s
and places an ad in Time magazine, it is creating a contact point with the maga-
zine's readers and using the magazine to connect with its target audiene. T h e
Gateway building and packaging with Gateway's black-and-white cow graphics

IMC Brand Touch Points

How would you rank the

-
importance of these?

Unexpected
 C h a ~ t e4r How Brand Communication Works

IMC I N A C T I O N i

Coffee with Car to Go

The Volvo Conservatory in Manila, the capital city of
the Philippines, is an airy, sparkling-white showroom
for Volvo cars that bears no resemblance to any other
car showroom you have ever seen. It offers a coffee
shop, a bank, music concerts, and art exhibits, as well
?s lectures on values and on the environment.
The Volvo Conservatory has taken the concept of an
entertaining location to an extreme. Except for a dis-
play of three Volvo models and one auto accessory
shop, there is no obvious sign that this is a car dealer's
showroom. The Coffee Beanery, a chic local cafe,
serves customers all day at one end of the showroom;
at the opposite end sits a branch of the Urban Bank.
People come to the Conservatory to use these facili-
ties, so Volvo becomes part of their daily lives. Many
Filipino coffee drinkers become Volvo buyers because
of this subtle marketing approach.
The owner of the dealership, Selene Yu, has created
a unique culture that appeals to Philippine sensitivi-
ties. He explains that the name Conservatory, which
suggests an English greenhouse, i s relevant because he
views the business as a place to nurture the four values
that Volvo wants to impart: safety, protection of the
environment, social values, an6 -
support for the arts. All of these
have broad appeal in the Philippines.
In addition to selling cars, the Volvo Conservatory
holds concerts by local bands to convey the message
that the car i s not only for middle-aged executives but
for young people as well. It sponsors environmentai
films to send the message that the Scandinavian au-
tomaker i s committed to preserving nature. It sends
car experts to colteges to educate students on car
safety and responsible driving. Volvo brochures are
passed around during all these events. The Conserva-
tory works-and sells cars-because it appeals to the
values of i t s Filipino customers.
Think About It
What i s a touch point? Why should MC managers be
concerned with touch points other than traditional
marketing communication? In what ways does the
Volvo Conservatory create unusual and effective cus-
tomer touch points?

are also company-createdbrand statements. Another creative way of touching cus-

tomers is described in the IMC inAction box.
One of the advantages of company-created touch points i s that, for the most
part, they can be highly controlled. The other three touch points-intrinsic, unex-
pected, and customer-initiated-annot be controlled, but marketing communica-
tors can do many things to influence them.

Intrinsic Touch Points

Before investing in company-created touch points (which cost money), a brand
should identify and examine its intrinsic touch points, which are interactions with
a brand required during the process of buying or using that brand. Because these con-
tacts are inherent to the buying or using of a brand, these touch points are always
sending messages, especially to current customers. Here is a list of intrinsic touch
points for most car rental businesses; i t is impossible for a person to rent and use a
car without these interactions:
Company representative who answers toll-free reservation number or clerk
at rental counter.
Driver of van to the car holding area.
Attendant who checks car out of the car holding area.
 120 Chapter 4 How Brand Communication Works

Signage and directions.

Appearance of the car lot and cleanliness of the van and rental officelobby.
The rental car itself-how clean it is, how well it runs, and its brand name.
Attendant at car return area.
For years, renting a car meant standing in line at a rental office and then filling
out a lot of paperwork. Recognizing that this was not a pleasant customer experi-
ence (i.e., an intrinsic, negative brand message), rental car companies introduced a
special service for heavy users. Hertz's Gold Card service, for example, requires
members to provide all their personal information, including credit-card number,
only once. From then on, Gold Car members are taken directly to the car holding
area where a sign displays members' names and the slots in which their cars are
waiting with keys in the ignition and trunks open waiting for luggage. All a Gold
Card customer is required to do is show a valid driver's license and the rental
agreement (which is hanging on the review mirror) when exiting the Hertz lot.
This type of service sends a positive message to Hertz heavy users: "Hertz cares

E' XHI IT 4 1 -
Virgin Atlantic is well
2about you, knows your time is valuable, and will do a little more work on our end
to ensure that your experience is hassle free."
Most intrinsic touch points are connected with customer service. They send
known for the excellent powerful messages because they are generally personal and occur in real time. Be-
service it provides its cause these touch points are so important, companies such as Virgin Atlantic (see
customers. This ad, Exhibit 411) use ads to promote their customer service.
directed lo B2B mstomfls' Although marketing is often not directly responsible for many of the intrinsic
promises the same good
service even when touch points, such as managing service personnel, marketing can make sugges-
handling commercial tions about how to improve these interactions with customers in order to send a
cargo. positive brand message. How quickly does a company reply to customer inquiries
and complaints? A response seems more positive, re-
A gardless of its content, if it is given sooner rather than
later. A timely response "says" that the company is
concerned and has made the customer's problem a
top priority.
in the case of packaged goods, the package itself,
such as a jar of Smuckers jelly, is an intrinsic touch
point. How easy it is to open, to reseal, and to dispose
of all send messages about the brand. Because intrin-
sic touch points are inherent in the buying or using of
a brand, they have the attention of the customer
at least for a brief period of time. Recognizing this,
companies can use these touch points to deliver a
P company-created brand message. For example, on
the Smuckers jar can be printed a dessert recipe that
calls for Smuckers jelly, or the jar can contain a peel-
For a refresl - - - ~dservice off coupon good on the next purchase. In the case of
Hertz, promotional signs can be displayed and
brochures distributed at the checkout and check-in
touch points, as well as in the car. Unfortunately,
aome companies over exploit touch points, as ex-
plained in the Technology in Action box.
As you can see, intrinsic touch points not only
send messages, but often provide the opportunity to
deliver company-created messages. And because in-
trinsic touch points, by definition, involve current
customers, the messages sent at these touch points
are some of the most critical in retaining customers.
 Chapter 4 How Brand Communication Works 121 j

TECHNOLOGY
'

,
r Touch-Point Sore Point
By over exploiting the opportunity to send a company-
initiated message, some companies turn what could
! be a good brand experience into a negative one. Some
intrinsic touch points are emotionally loaded inter-
actions, such as calling a company with a complaint
or trying to figure wt how to do a certain transaction
bank's ATMs? How can they know
whether customers are interested in the products be-
ing advertised when they walk up to the ATM? What
other communication might be offered at this touch
point that would be more positive for the company

1 on an automated teller machine. When a company-

created message i s placed at these touch points, in-
terfering with what the customer is interested in
trying to accomptih, the message can cause an emo-
and less irritating to customers?
Source: "Bank of America Puts Ads on ATMs," by Sally
Beatty. Copyright 2W2 by Dow Jones& Co., lnc. Reprinted
by permissim of Dow Jones& Co., Inc. via the Copyright
tional response that may have an enduring negative Clearance Center.
impact on the brand or company.
Consider what Bank of America did when it sold
" on i t s ATMs. Five- to seven-second
ab run on the ATMs while customers
approach the machines. The commercials stop when
customers key in their requests, then resume while
the transactions are being processed. In response to
customer comptaints, a Bank of America spokesperson
said that research indicated that customers will toler-
ate commercials for products in which the customers

-' Think About It

What is the ftaw in the bank's thinking? If marketers at
the bank know that commercials irritate customers,

Unexpected Touch Points

As their name suggests, unexpected touch points are unanticipated references to a
brand that are beyond the control of the company. They can be either positive or nega-
tive. One of the most powerful types is word-of-mouth brand messages, or per-
sonal communication between customers or other stakeholders about a brand, particularly
when it is from a dissatisfied customer. A face-to-face personal message from
someone you know can be more persuasive than ads and other MC messages, par-
ticularly if the point is supported by solid reasons. This kind of personal word of
mouth has the power of third-party credibility, the believability of people who are
not afiliated with a brand and have nothing to gain or lose from its success or failure.
Third parties are often more believable than company sources because they have
no vested interest in a brand.
Other stakeholders-investors and analysts, employees, suppliers, distributors,
and government officials-can also be sources of unexpected messages. Although
negative comments can be the most damaging messages a brand faces, unexpected
positive word-of-mouth messages from any of these sources can be powerful tes-
timony on behalf of the brand.
I 122 Chapter 4 How Brand Communication Works

The media also produce unexpected touch points by writing about a brand or
company. In almost all product categories today-from cooking to computers-
there are experts who write and talk about products. Publicity releases generate
brand touch points, but companies have no control over what stories these releases
inspire the media to produce. A good example is a major utility company that an-
nounced it was requesting a multimillion-dollar rate increase and later sent out a
press release saying it was going to spend $25 million sponsoring the Olympics.
The Olympic sponsorship release appeared the day after the rate increase an-
nouncement and resulted in dozens of angry letters to the editor from customers.
Because of the timing, many customers thought the rate increase was going to pay
for the sponsorship, which made them very unhappy-a major unexpected touch
point for this company. As will be explained in Chapter 17 on PR and publicity,
although companies cannot control unexpected touch points, there are things they
can do to anticipate and influence them.

Customer-Initiated Touch Points

A communication area that marketing departments often overlook is the customer-
initiated touch point, an interaction that occurs whenever a customer or prospect con-
tacts a company. As the communication model in Figure 4-4 shows, customers and
prospects can be the source of brand messages in the same way as a company and
its MC agencies. In other words, marketing communication can be two-way com-
munication as well as one way. At first glance, the customer-initiated touch-point
model may look similar to the MC model shown in Figure 4-1. A close look, how-
ever, reveals the differences. The major difference is that the source is now the cus-
tomer or stakeholder, rather than the brand, which becomes the receiver. Likewise,
the messages and the channels of communication are different.
Managing the response to customer-initiated touch points is a critical part of
FIGURE 4-4 IMC because these contacts, like intrinsic brand contacts, occur primarily with cur-
rent customers and thus significantly impact customer retention. Most customer-
This is a basic initiated touch points involve complaints or inquiries about product usage.
communication model
Contacts are made by angry or frustrated customers who may stop using the
customer-initiated
brand communication.

Customer-Initiated MC Message

Busy siznal. company delays, incomplete info

I

i
4 Rs
(responsiveness, recourse, recognition, respect)
(Feedback]
 Chapter 4 How Brand Communication Works 123

brand if they aren't satisfied. How a company responds can significantly impact
the repurchase decisions of these customers.
The new communication technologies make it easier for customers to contact a
company. At the same time, to show they are customer focused, more and more
companies are inviting customers and prospects to contact them by advertising
their 800 numbers and e-mail and website addresses on packages and in many of
their other MC messages. Many companies, however, do a poor job of responding
to customer-initiated messages. Studies on e-mail and phone contacts have found
that the majority of company responses are rated only fair or p00r.l~One of the
F
EXHIBIT 4-13
main problems facing companies today is how to cost-effectively interact with, In purposeful
and have a purposeful dialogue with, customers. communication,
companies listen as well
Interactivity as speak to customers.
Think about the last time
To create long-term, profitable relationships, integrated MC programs use interac-you contacted a
tivity, or two-way communication that sends and receives messages from customers and
company. Was the
other stakeholders. IMC interactivity does not mean merely collecting the names and
company a good Iistenw?
addresses of customers and potential cus-
tomers in order to send thLm more and
more brand messages. It does mean learn-
ing about customers in order to have a
purposeful dialogue with them, commu-
nication that is mutually beneficial for the
customer and the company.
Companies talk a great deal about cre-
ating a dialogue with customers. But in
too many cases their brand communica-
tion is intrusive and irritating and thus
perceived as self-serving and providing
no added value for the customer. Mar-
keters obviously want to tell customers
about products and persuade them to
buy. For the communication to be mutu-
ally useful, however, the customer must
want to hear about the products and
must choose to be exposed to this infor-
mation, as the FM Global ad in Exhibit
4-13 demonstrates.
Companies should not stimulate and
facilitate interactivity indiscriminately.
The gathering of feedback should be
done selectively, for not all brand rela-
tionships are equal, and having a dia-
logue with stakeholders always costs IT'6 AMAZING WHAT CIAN HAPPEN
money. One of the early mistakes made WHEN YOU LISTEN TO YOUR CU6TOMEBS.
by companies using the internet was
inviting everyone to talk to them. Many
responders were not customers or poten-
tial customers but merely people surfing
the internet looking for something to do.
Few companies can afford unproductive
interactivity.
An easy and useful thing that a mar-
keter can do to ensure that customers
perceive the dialogue to be purposeful is
Chapter 4 How Brand Communication Works

to ask customers what information they want about a brand, when and where they
want it, and in what form. This is especially true for B2B marketers selling com-
plex goods and services in which there are many product variations. Some cus-
tomers prefer receiving brand information by mail, others electronically; some
wish to meet with sales representatives only on certain days. Unless a marketer
asks for this information and makes it available to everyone in the company who
has contact with these customers, customers will not perceive companies as being
respectful of their time.

The Four Rs of Purposeful Dialogue

To be successful, purposeful dialogue must embody the four Rs of interadivity
that customers are looking for: recourse, recognition, responsiveness, and respect.
Recourse A major concern of most customers is how to avoid risk when
buying a product. What are their options after buying-that is, what re-
course do they have if they don't like the product, if it doesn't work prop-
erly, or if it breaks? Recourse is easy access to someone who can solve a problem.
How companies handle complaints, for example, affects repeat purchases.
This aspect of marketing communication is second only to product quality
in building customer loyalty. The easier it is for customers to get questions
answered and problems dealt with, the more likely they are to develop
good relationships with a company. The Bombay Company, a furniture
manufacturer and retailer, has a no-questions-asked policy. Says President
and CEO Robert Nourse, 'We'll take the thing back with no hassle, no ques-
tions, no guff about Where's the receipt?' The cost of that is peanuts com-
pared with what you gain in customer loyalty."15
Recognition Customers and other stakeholders like to be personally recog-
nized; that is one of the first steps in a relationship. In IMC, customer
recognition means company acknowledgment of purchases and of the customer?
interaction history with the company. You remember conversations you have
had with friends. For a brand relationship to be effective, there must be
some way to nurture that same kind of memory. This applies to product
categories in which customer names are automatically collected in the
course of doing business, such as most services, most B2B categories, and
most major consumer purchases (cars, appliances, insurance, mortgages).
Collecting such information makes it possible to develop a personalized
message strategy, one that is more welcome than the usual anonymous
mass media ad.I6
An even better type of recognition occurs when a company not only
knows a customer's transaction history but incorporates references to it
(when appropriate) into future communications with that customer: cus-
tomers who are frequent buyers receive special recognition, and customers
who had problems with the company receive empathetic attention. Con-
sumers, however, will see through insincere recognition. In direct-mail so-
licitations, for instance, companies often address a potential customer by
name. If the company has had no relationship with the customer, the person
being contacted will recognize this familiarity as a ploy.
Responsiveness Merely providing customers a toll-free number or an
e-mail address so they can easily reach the company is not being respon-
sive. Responsiveness occurs when a company representative listens to a
customer and stays with the customer until the problem is solved or next
steps are agreed to. In other words, responsiveness is a reaction that produces
customer satisfaction after a customer-initiated company contact. The amount of
time elapsing between when a product is ordered and when it is received,
or between when a complaint is made and when a reply is received, sends a
strong message. The shorter the elapsed time, the more responsive a
 Chapter 4 How Brand Communication Works 125

company is seen to be. Texas Instruments receives ap-

proximiteel 200,000 inquiries a year. Over 95 perceit ' \

are answered within 2 hours and nearly all within

24 hours."
TEXAS
Respect Howard Gossage, a partner in a San Francisco
advertising agency in the 1950s and 1960s, has gone
down in advertising history as one of the most insight-
GNSTRUMENTS,
ful and intelligent people to work in advertising.'*
Among his many insights was the idea that a marketer's audience is more EXHIBIT 4-14
important than the product or brand. Gossage preached that, without re- High tech customers
spect for the audience, a company's advertising is sure to be a waste of generally have a good
money Respect means consideration and not hammering customers with ad- feeling when thq see
this logo. One reason is
vertisements and other messages in which they have little interest. because the company is
Focusing on customers does not mean smothering them with brand contacts. \vey
Customers aren't interested in interrupting their lives to receive brand messages,
in idly chatting with marketers, or in continually being offered a product or line
extension that they don't need. Typical B2B customers, for example, receive be-
tween 20 and 60 pieces of mail each business day-the last thing they want is more
"junk" mail. They resent intrusive messages and are creating more and more de-
fense mechanisms against them. They will be more willing to be part of a com-
mercial relationship if it is clear that the company respects
them and their time.
In a focus group of business customers of a major com-
puter company that had recently discovered database
marketing, group members were quick to say how intru-
sive this company's brand messages had become. The Sometimes i t ' s advertising. "
company had been bombarding customers with sales calls,
customer satisfaction surveys, new-product information,
and "courtesy calls." When the company was mentioned,
one of the respondents said he used the firm's software and
hardware but if he received one more disruptive call from the company he would
switch to a different brand, no matter how much the cost. He was tired, he said, of
being bothered by this company.
Fifteen minutes later in this same discussion, group members were asked if they
would attend a half-day seminar sponsored by this computer company. One of the
first people to say "yes" was the person who had threatened to drop the company.
When asked why the change in attitude, he explained that he could schedule the
seminar at his convenience. In other words, he was willing to give the company a
half-day of his time on his schedule but not two minutes on the company's schedule.
Companies that have a purposeful dialogue with their customers listen and re-
spond to customers and do not constantly bombard them with "sales" messages.
Herb Kelleher, CEO of Southwest Airlines, explains in one sentence why South-
west is known for great customer service: "We don't have a Marketing Depart-
ment, we have a Customer Department." Southwest's emphasis on the people part
of its marketing effort has created a 360-degree view of the whole brand, one that
creates a total brand experience based on all brand messages, through all channels,
and at all touch points.lg Southwest understands the importance of company-
customer touch points.

A FINAL NOTE: CREATING STICKY COMMUNICATION

A website is "sticky" if the site keeps the attention of a visitor for a longer-than-
average period of time. Sticky communication gets attention and gets remem-
bered. Communication is also sticky if it contributes to relationship building and
 Chapter 4 How Brand Communication Works

creates customer loyalty over time. How can you know whether your messages
are sticky? The answer is by using real-time feedback to monitor communication.
In the past, feedback that could be used to track the impact of marketing com-
munication was limited to periodic customer-tracking studies and ad hoc market
research surveys. Today, the concept and processes of acquiring feedback include
ongoing responses through dialogue and customer-initiated communication. As
you will learn in Chapter 5, in most buying situations there are numerous steps,
and at each step it is possible to involve customers and get feedback in order to
know what customers are thinking and planning to do. Also, brand relationships
encourage interactions and dialogue, each of which creates a feedback opportunity
for brand messages.
New telecommunication and computer technologies have made it more cost-
effective to listen to customers, record their comments, and facilitate their ques-
tions, complaints, and concerns. They have also made it possible for customers
and other stakeholders to initiate conversations with companies. Because of this
two-way communication, the interaction between companies and their customers
and stakeholders is more important than ever before.

( Key Terms
br'and-customer touch point 117 feedback 107 respect 125
brand message 109 fields of experience 115 respomiveners 124
channel 106 interactivity 123 sender 106
clutter 114 intrinsic touch point 119 source 106
company-created touch MC message 106 source credfbUlty 109
potM 118 media vehicle 106 strategic redundancy 115
custmer-initiated touch message 106 target audience 114
poht 122 noise 107 third-party credibility 121
customer remgnlitbn 124 purposeful dialogue 123 unexpected touch point 121
decoding 107 receiver 107 word-of-mouth brand
encoding 106 recourse 124 messages 121

( ~ e y Point Summary

I1
This chapter explains the basic swrcelmessa~lrnediaIr~etverlfe~back
communication model and how
it changes to accommodate the interactive dimensions of IMC.

Key PcFint 1: The Basic Communication Model

The basic communication model begins with a source (campany/brand, agency), encodh$ IMC ngmcta) a
I
message (ad), which i s transmitted through media (media). Amld noise (physical awl psychdbgjcal dlstor-
tion), a message is received then decoded [percefved and hterpceted), which prornws some type of re-
sponse (feedback).
 E X H I B I T 4 - 1 5>
Target 4utldr ifs touch
points on its stmng bmnd
identity.

- - - - - - -

Key Point 1: The Basic Communication Model

a. LIM the key elements in a basic cammunlcotim mdd and the order in which they occur.
b. What is the difference between encoding and demdhg?
c. Usim the comm~nica~m-4aStd m a ef mameting, arralye the apening case, and explain haw the
various dements in the case fit into the model.

Key Point 2: The Six Components of Marketing Communication

a. Explain the statement "Everything a tornparry does, and sanetimes what It dsesn't do, can send a
powerful brand message."
b. How do product, price, and place brand messages differ?ldenlify your favorite brand, and an ex-
ample of how each type sf mesage Impacts on your perception of that brand.
( 121 Chapter 4 How Brand Cmmunlution Works

c. Develop a l i s t of products for which your perception of value is the most important decision factor In-
fluencing your decision to buy them. Then create a list of products that yw buy M a m e of their price
and another because of perceiwd quality. What are the differences among the three lists?What do
these Hsts say about p w personality and vsllues?
d. H6W are messages ddivered in an IMC prqram?
e. Give an example d a nontraditimal media opportunity that you have experienced. Was it effective in
commanding yow attention?
f. In one of the magaztnes you read, find an advertirement that you think is confusing. Exptain why de-
coding the meaning of this ad gave you probkms,
g. Explain how perception works. What does R man to say that perception Is reality?
h. What role does purposeful dlalopue have In bdldng a brand?What band-customer toud-t polnts offer
the greatest opportunity for purposeful dial-
i. Does intcractivtty strengthen or waken a b m d reladonship? Explain,

Key Point 3: Brand-Customer Touch Points -. -

I

&&..
-
a. Define the term brand-customer touch point. Explain the differences among the four types d touch
points. Analyze the HB Ice Cream case for examples of touch polots. If one or ma(, 4s not discussed ex-
pifcitty in the case, then recommend a way lo introduce thrt dement h t o next Wr's campaign.
b. Warking In a smaU group, develop for yourcdlegk or university a list of touch potnts that a potentiat
student might encounter. Analyze the pessa@ delivered a t those points, and prioritize them in terms
d the* fmportance to prospective students.
c. Explain what happened when yau ot a f r l d called a company to complain about a product. DId the
company make use of this touch point to get additional feedback from you?

(chapter Challenge - E.p~*Fg+J

. A

Writing Assignment
You have been asked to advise a club on how to nunage Its communication program. Develop for the club
its own c m u n i c a t i a n model, and explain hcw the modet un help the club identify its cornmlmkatron
problems W develop better c o m r n ~ n l a t i mprograms and actfvitles.

Presentation Assignment
For a small retail bushes, develop a presemtation that shows how understanding the cornrnmCGatCan mod&
can help the retatter improve comrnmicath MI$ customers and prospects. In an outline, list the key
points you want to preswrt. Give the p r e s x h h n b your class or record it on videotape (audiotape is also
an optfon) to turn In to your instructor, along with the outline.

Internet Assignment
Have you ever had a bad experience wben travdlrrg by alr?Or a good experience? bld you make an effort to
complain to w compliment the company?A number af websltes hande cornplaints on behalf d travelers for
a fee, particularly complaints Phat can result In ticket refunds. The U.5. Depa~tmentof Transportation ha^
an electronic in-basket for complaints about two particular toplcs: airline pricing and overbooking
~www.oig.dot.gov). The Better Business h ~ w wof New York also compiles complaints f m i t s site
Cw.neywk.bbb.urg) and relays them to the Dqartment of Tramportation. The travel a w c y One-
Travel.com has set up a website (www.ltravel.com) with complaint channels and consumer-affairs mate-
rials. Consult two of these websites, and complte their d v k e and your own ideas about how to write a
complaint letter and a comptimcnt letter.