BRANDING

Managing Brands and Brand Equity

Managing brands is a major task in marketing. What is a Brand? What is its significance in marketing? The battle in the market takes place not between companies, but between brands. Consumers buy brands; and brands generate income for the firm. It means that developing strong brands is a major responsibility of the firm. The Main Tasks in Managing Brands: In any given product category, only a handful of brands are successful. Years of uninterrupted nurturing with the support of a good marketing programme, is required to develop a winning brand and get established in the market. Such a marketing programme includes a meaningful product differentiation and an apt positioning for the brand, accompanied by the right distribution and promotion support. The entire activity is resource-intensive as well as time-intensive; it also involves meticulous planning as well as careful execution. No wonder, brand building is a very difficult task. In fact, it is the most difficult job in marketing. The character and personality of the brand has to be developed, sustained and protected from a number of conflicting demands. As already mentioned, non-stop rearing for long duration, an expert handling of the brands quality attributes, sustained marketing communication and commitment of financial resources are required to build a brand. A good brand is the direct outcome of a corporations long term category, just a few brands reach level of an enviable existence. And certainly, companies which succeed in developing such brands do acquire major asset.

Branding is a process of finding & fixing the means of identification. Branding is a commonly used trade practice by manufacturers of consumer & industrial goods. Branding means giving an attractive name or symbol to the product by which it will be identified in the market & remembered by traders & consumers. Branding is the management process by which a product is branded. It is a general term covering various activities such as giving a brand name to a product, designing a brand mark & establishing and popularizing it. Brand is a broad term encompassing most ways of identifying a product. A brand is a symbol, a mark, or name that acts as a means of communication to bring about an identity of a given product. Brand is a product image, a quality, a value, a personality. According to AMA, it is a name, term symbol or a design or a combination of them which is intended to identify the goods or services of one seller or a group of sellers and to differentiate them from those of competitors.

To brand is to name or mark a product as a proof of its ownership. It means a sign or a symbol of quality. It is the best way of advertising and promotion (unique selling) in the market. It is the best means to capture and retain the consumer demand in the competitive market. The marketer can create

Brand Equityr Brand Loyalty Brand Image for his products

A brand is more than a graphic, symbol. It is a signature on constantly renewed, creative process. A product is what a company makes. A brand is what a customer buys hopes. Branding is a practice of giving a specified name to a product or a group of products from one seller. Branding on the other hand, is the process of finding & fixing the means of identification, it is nothing but naming the product like naming a child. Products are children of manufacturers. There is a conscious decision to give birth to a product by the manufacturers. A brand name consists of words, letters or numbers which may be vocalized or pronounced. Brand names are now used in the case of thousands of consumer goods. When a brand name or brand mark is registered & legalized, it becomes a trademark. Thus, registered brands are trademarks. Trademark is defined as a brand or a part of brand that is given legal protection because it is capable of exclusive appropriation . Thus trademark is essentially a legal term protecting the manufacturers right to use the brand name & brand mark. Patents are public documents conferring certain rights, privileges, tittles or offices. A patent confers the right to the use of technical invention. When a new invention is made it is registered so that an exclusive right is obtained by the inventor to use it. Copyright is applicable in the case of books & is used in the same meaning that of patents. It is the sole right to reproduce literary, dramatic, musicals or artistic work. Copyright is available for the whole of the authors life time & sixty years after his death. Branding Strategy & Policy:Branding strategy indicates how the firm chooses to use branding as an integral part of its overall marketing strategy. In a sense, branding is simply another dimension of marketing strategy. To a consumer, a brand name is a means of identification of the product as well as means of differentiation of the branded products from its rivals.

The brand name is a centre around which the entire marketing mix is built up. The brand name can incorporate all marketing efforts together either in consumer mind or in the marketing program. It gives necessary promotional and advertising support in order to make product recognisable and to create consumer patronage. Reasons for Branding :In the days gone by, when the demand was greater than supply, branding was not necessary. Earlier, people wanted a product, & because not enough of it was available, they bought it. Now, when the supply is more than demand, companies not only need to create customers, but also keep them; & to keep customers, one needs to create customer loyalty. For that, one needs to project a personality of a brand to which a customer will be loyal. This personality is what is called brand. Branding is the most powerful instrument of sales promotion due to the following reasons:

Ever increasing competition Importance of packaging as a distinct marketing function( as branding & packaging go hand in hand) Need for advertising & publicity (branding alone enables advertising) Development of consumer brand consciousness (as a brand image in his mind)

Functions of Branding :1.

Ensure better quality of goods :-

Branding ensures products of better quality to the buyer. If a firm has one or more lines of branded goods, it can add new items to its product mix more easily than a firm selling unbranded goods.
2.

Leads to consumer protection :-

The prices of unbranded products are fixed by the manufacturers. This protects the interest of consumers because the retailers can not charge more than the fixed prices.
3.

It is an advertisement :-

If a brand name attains goodwill, it will serve as a useful medium of advertisement. A registered brand name & mark is a protection from imitation of the product by other manufacturers. Brand name is highly used for advertising product and maintaining its individuality.

4.

It serves as a bridge b/w seller & buyer :-

Brand/trademark is an effective bridge b/w seller & buyer in the market place, it has become an indispensable tool of any business/corporate strategy.
5.

Leads to product differentiation :-

Branding helps in distinguishing a product from other similar products in the market.
6.

Protection of goods :-

The branded products are packed in suitable containers or wrappers which afford protection to the goods against heat & moisture and facilitate convenient handling. They are assured of the quality of the branded products. Advantages :I. Manufacturers i. ii. iii. iv. II.

It identifies the product & distinguishes it from other competing products. It saves advertisement cost if the brand name is popular. If properly promoted, brand name creates confidence & goodwill for the products. It widens the market for the products.

Consumers
i. ii. iii. iv. v.

vi.

It assures an easy way for identifying. It assures qualities and value: a branded product is a quality product with right value for the money spent on it. It assures fixed prices. It elevates status: the brand is a prestige builder or status evaluator. It saves time and efforts: a good deal of time & energy can be saved in shopping for goods, if they are branded. A branded product renders product identification much easier and convincing. It gives trade and legal protection: consumers are provided with trade and legal protection against the unscrupulous and unfair trade practices.

III.

Distributors
i. ii. iii.

Widely popular brands lead to large scales. It helps in advertising & sales promotion programs. The distributor can easily find out the quick moving products.

iv. v.

It reduces price flexibilities and reduces the risk. Special selling efforts need not be undertaken. It reduces the cost of distribution and the final place.

IV.

Marketers
i. ii. iii. iv. v. vi.

It is a massive asset. It is a promotional tool. It protects market. It is an antidote for survival of middle-men. It is a means of identification. It facilitates product line expansion.

Disadvantages :I. Consumers i.

ii.

iii.

It creates confusion & chaos : when consumers are provided with too many brands of products in a product line, theyll get confused so as to which to select. Consumers are confused when every brand says that it has the highest capacity to satisfy. When there are so many brands in the market, the consumers are confused to choose the best one. The question is if every brand is the best, which one is the best ? . It makes losing sight of better products : it might save time & effort but it also deprives the consumer of other new brands of products which might be really better than the one saluted and accepted. It hikes product prices : popular brands demand high price. It is the premium price that makes this difference because brand is quality, value, status & price.

II. i.

Marketers It involves commitment : branding a product means imposing greater responsibility for retaining the quality standard and other delivery conditions. In case of failures marketers cannot escape identification. Branding means commitment to consumer expectations and any deviations in the product is likely to cause a great shake in the consumer confidence. Possibility of brandlessness : for some products, branding is of no/little use. For some products, branding will not help in any way. Eg. Fish, meat, etc are not having much importance in the brand though the producers and supplies are linked to name & focus through branding. Their wish remains unfulfilled.

ii.

iii.

Branding is expensive : branding creates more of monopoly. However, building up the kingdom of brands is not easy. Creating a brand loyalty takes much time and money which is beyond the reach of small business houses. Therefore small business houses find it unsuitable to brand its products.

Uses of Branding:

A brand name denotes uniform quality. With it, the consumer has the assurance of quality when he buys the products having a particular name. Competition among brands can & does, in due course of time, lead to quality improvement. Branding is a mean of product identification. Brand makes recall easier. The stranger the brand, the stronger its recall among the people. Brand makes shopping easier. The customer as to spend less time & energy in buying as brand names make product identification easier.

Thomas F. Schutte in the Semantics of Branding classifies the brands into two broad categorie s:I. Manufacturers Brands
i. ii. iii. iv. v.

National Brands - the same brand used on a national level. Regional Brands - brand for particular region. Advertising Brands - brands stressing symbols. Blanket/Single/Family Brands - one brand name for all the products of a manufacturer. Eg Godrej Products. Multiple/Individual Brands - brand name given for each Brands variety of product. Eg Various brand soaps of Tata.

II. Distributors Brands Private Brand Store Brand Dealer Brand House Brand Distributors brands stress the identity of the retailer.
i. ii. iii. iv.

Types of Brands :-

i. ii. iii. iv. v. vi. i.

Individual Brand - eg : Wheel, Surf, Rin Family Brand - eg: Amul, Maggie Manufacturer Brand- eg: Sony, Toyota Distributor Brand - eg: Jumbo, Carrefour Regional Brand - eg: S-Ganpathi, R-Camel, E-Kali National - eg: Dalda, Vanasapthi They are those where each product has a special & unique brand name. It is the best tactics of successful marketing. However, it has special promotional problems, as a producer (advertiser is to promote such individual brand separately). Or Umbrella Brand : Family brand names are used in a product line of a company. These family brand names become umbrella brand names for all the product lines of a company. The term Tatas may be prefixed to each product line may be a textile, machinery, cosmetics, salt, tea & foods. This attempt to reduce promotional cost considerably as there is blanketing. However a product failure in any line is sufficient to damage the whole image built up. A brand which is owned by a manufacturer or registered under a manufacturers name is called manufacturers brand name. This is usually the case with big size companies known for equality production with wide network that they sell their products under their own names. All big business houses in India have their own brand. Or Private brand : It is owned by the distributor or registered under the name of the distributor. It is called as because the producer/ manufacturer does not come into the picture at all. The same product is identified with different brand names according to the region. Eg Dalda, Vanaspathi is identified with different names in different regions. Camel brand in Rajasthan, Ganesh in southern state, Kali in Eastern state. Many times, it is geographical coverage i.e., used to classify the brand. The national brand is one which is identified by the people as one throughout the nation. Eg Lipton Tea

ii.

iii.

iv.

v.

vi.

Branding Strategies :1.

Single brand product strategy It is that practice where the marketer uses only brand name for all the products sold by him. Eg Amul products.

Advantages i. It facilitates the acceptance of new products. ii. The cost of branding will be less. iii. Consumer response will be faster. Disadvantages i. Lack of consistency in new product quality will result in consumer satisfaction. ii. The reputation of all the products & the manufacturers image may be negatively affected by a single product failure. iii. It will not be appropriate when the manufacturer is introducing different categories of products.
2.

Multi brand product strategy It signifies that when the manufacturer offers more than 1 brand in a product category. Eg Toyota, Camry, Land Cruiser, etc. Bata shoe company offers different brands Ambassador, Exclusive, North Star, Mocasin

Advantages i. It needs more shelf space occupied by a companys products leaving very little to the competitors. ii. To capture the brand switchers, a multi brand strategy is must. iii. It gives an opportunity to appeal to a different market segment. Disadvantages i. It will get a small market store resulting in reduced profits. ii. More varieties may increase the cost.
3.

Distributors/Private brand strategy Under this strategy the manufacturer prefers to sell his products under dealers name. For the small & medium manufacturers this will help to a greater extent. It is very common in the case of textile industry. Eg Rivoli

Generic Brand A brand name becomes generic when the buyer refers the type of product he wants by the producers name. For example Dala, Jeep, etc. The brand name becoming generic is dangerous for the marketer. The owner of the brand who has spent money & time to popularize the brand has to be cautious enough to educate

buyers to buy only this brand & not the products of other brands sold under his brand name. It is better to have a distinctive brand name to avoid its becoming generic. There is a great controversy and difference of opinion about the purpose, use and effectiveness of each of these brands. The first controversy is between manufacturer and distributor brands. Some authorities argue that the former is stronger and more purposeful. Some others are aware of the view that distributors brand is more popular because it is they who ultimately deal with the consumers. They feel that it is not the manufacturers brand alone which decides a sale. Hence they argue for their individuality also to be brought into the picture. In the USA, this controversy is termed as battle brands . In India, however, this does not have much relevance. The reason is simple: we do not have large distributors like Sears Roebuck of the USA whose quality excels that of the manufacturers. Of late, most of the manufacturers have developed their own distribution systems and hence brand distribution is out of the question. In India, the retailers are not very strong to carve out their own name in the distribution field except for a very few, like Spencers. Furthermore the manufacturers are more powerful in designing a brand name and repeating and stressing it through packages and repeated ads. The next conflict is between the use of family brand and individual brand. It is a management decision to choose a single brand name for all its products or to have individual names for each of its products. Each has its own advantage and disadvantage. Where a manufacturer has established a name, he may prefer to introduce new prods under the same name used for his own previous product. The new product will also enjoy the reputation created by earlier brands without any additional expenditure. At the same time, it may turn out to be disadvantageous in case the product fails. The effect of failure will spread to the other prods also. Using of one brand also reduces the ad expenditure. In contrast to this, the use of individual brand name calls for high advertising expenditure for the establishment. The greatest disadvantage is that the products of the same manufacturer will compete with each other. It is, however, advantageous for clear identification where different quality and variety products are manufactured. Bata Shoe Company manufactures a variety of shoes and individual names are essential here to identify a particular variety. Eg Sandak Chappals The decision of a manufacturer to choose a family brand or individual brand depends on the following factors
1. 2. 3.

name of the prod varieties offered promotional aspects

4. 5.

nature of market for which the product is intended. consumer attitudes and sentiments

Arguments against Branding:

The severe criticism against branding is that it leads to some kind of monopoly known as Brand Monopoly . The brand monopoly is created by gradually creating brand loyalty to the products in the minds of the consumers. When a monopolistic tendency is found, consumers will show a response to it by changing the brand. It is difficult to establish a brand & the expense of advertising initial stage is very high which raises the cost. Brand names do not always assure good quality. Manufacturers sometimes place inferior goods in the market under a glamorous brand name.

In spite of the aforesaid criticism, branding is used to achieve some typical marketing objective:1. 2.

3. 4.

It improves the effectiveness of product advertising and product. Product identity can be created easily which would help easy repeat sales. It helps 2 increase control and share of the market. A brand has a distinct image and character that makes it more acceptable than virtually identical competitor. it makes price comparison more difficult which would help in stabilizing prices. accepted brands makes the introduction of new products easier and thereby helps the expansion of the product mix. this is because a branded item has the major advantage for the consumer that it represents a consistent standardized quality.

Branding & Packaging in India:Branding & packaging in India is important. They are regulated by certain acts. The packaging in India is governed by an act, which is, Packaged Commodities Order, 1975. This act imposes a number of restrictions on packed commodities. In India, brands can be registered as trademarks under Trade & Merchandise Mark Act, 1958. They basically existed in India so as to ensure that it does not hurt

anyones feelings or religious sentiments of any person. This all is protected by the court of law, as they would take necessary action towards the complaints registered by the consumers. Branding & packaging is important in India, as there are various goods which are adulterated for the consumer protection. For this, we need to package the products properly and give it a brand name as well as trademark so as the consumers know about which product they are buying.

Managing Brands
In fact, it is the most difficult job in marketing. The character and personality of the brand has to be developed, sustained and protected from a number of conflicting demands. As already mentioned, ono-stop rearing for long duration, an expert handling of the brands quality attributes, sustained marketing communication and commitment of financial resources are required to build a brand. A good brand is the direct outcome of a good corporations long term corporations in this direction. It takes a heavy toll on an organization, and in any product. Category just a few brands reach the olevel of an enviable existence. And certainly, companies succeeding in developing such brands to acquire a major asset. Brand Success is the ability to retain a reasonable market share despite market redefinitions. These are segment redefinitions, product redefinitions and category redefinitions Segment redefinition means shifting of people from high price segment to low price segment and vice versa. In the past detergent segment market was seen as different from detergent cake market by marketers in India. Powder was priced high and the cake low. The entry of NIRMA changed this. It is a detergent powder but was priced at almost 1/3rd of the leading competitors which change the whole complex of the market. The consumers from high price segment migrated to low priced segment. After Nirma several low priced detergent powders were launched such as Wheel, Ariel super saver. This is a case of Segment Redefinition. The reverse from high price segment Titan watches to low price segment HMT watches Product redefinition stands for presenting the existing product in a changed version maybe its package or its form where some qualities are maintained but product becomes more appealing. Two solid examples can be cited here. Introduction of sachet shampoo and Gel Dental cream. It means product redefinition takes place when the products form, shape, taste, packaging and the like change. Category Redefinition is a case of redefining the category of products. It get redefined into a product that was still now put to different uses becomes a competitor. Take shampoos, face competition from soaps which are used as Hair wash say Shikakai soap. Category redefinition causes a completely different product to become a competitor. It causes use or user to change. Prof David Arnold, gives four criteria for the success of a brand They are :

1. 2. 3. 4.

At the product level it should deliver benefits. It should offer some intangible beside Tangible benefits. The benefits it offers must be consistent with its personality The benefits offered must be relevant to the customer

Mr Hugh Davidson analyzing the reason for Brands failure in England and comes to the conclusion that most brands that fail are Me-Toos. A brand fails if the product displays one or more of the two features A. Insignificant price or performance disadvantage B. Lack of difference from the existing brands C. A pretty old tried idea

Some examples PRODUCTS Shampoo Ponds

SUCCESSFUL BRANDS Clinic Plus, Pantene Sunsilk etc.,

BRAND FAILURES Halo, Lakme, etc., Exotica, Yardley Palmolive, Rexona

Talcum powder Toilet soaps Ponds

Liril, Ponds, Cinthol Cinthol, Hamam Liril, Lux

Tooth paste Signal

Colgate, Pepsodent Miswak

Promise, Vajradanti

(PL NOTE ABOVE ARE INDIAN MARKET RESULT.) Students should have a revision of other products too

MAIN TASTKS IN MANAGING BRANDS 1. Selecting brand name and logo, giving the product an identity and enhancing its visual recognition.
2. Differentiation: investing the brands with the attributes necessary to compete, giving

it a unique image.

3. Positioning the brand: developing the right value proposition for the brand and

lodging it as the best choice for the target customer.

4. Providing the right distribution and promotion support, in tune with the brands

positioning.
5. Keeping the brand live and activebrand rejuvenation, brand relaunches, brand

extensions, packaging innovations.

6. Brand proliferation: adding more brands to a line 7. Strengthening the brand portfolio through acquisition/takeover 8. Monitoring the b4rand through the various stages of its life cycle. Monitoring its

profitablility, competitive positioning, market share, growth needs and investment needs
9. Brand portfolio rationalization/restructure 10. Understanding brand equity and building the equity of brands