INTRODUCTION TO BRAND

MANAGEMENT
UNIT -1
BY:
Dr. ANSHU MALA GAUTAM
MEANING OF BRAND
 MEANING OF BRAND
According to the American
Marketing Association (AMA),
‘A brand is a name, term, sign,
symbol or design, or a
combination of them, intended
to identify the goods and
services of one seller or group
of sellers and differentiate them
from those of the competitors.’
KEY FACTORS IN CREATING A
BRAND
 KEY FACTORS IN CREATING A
BRAND
1. Choosing a name, logo,
symbol, etc. for the product.
2. Giving the product an identity.
3. Distinguishing the product
from its competitors.
KEY FACTORS IN CREATING A
BRAND
 BRANDING
What is Branding?
Branding is when an image or an
idea is marketed in such a
way that it is recognisable by
more and more people, and
identified with a certain service
or product when there are
many other companies offering
the same service or product.
 TYPES OF BRANDING
There are 2 types of Branding:
1. Rational Branding
2. Emotional Branding
 TYPES OF BRANDING

Rational Branding Emotional

Branding
1. It aims at selling It aims at
connecting
2. It creates awareness It creates the
about the brand sense of
belongingness
3. Focuses on the Focuses on the
qualities of the product nature of the
 OBJECTIVES OF A BRAND
1. To establish an identity for the
product or a group of products.
2. To protect the product or service legally
for its unique features.
3. To acquire a place for the product in
the consumers’ minds for its high and
consistent quality.
4. To persuade the consumer to buy
the product by promising to serve their
needs in a unique way.
5. To create and send the message of
strong reliable business among the
 BRAND MANAGEMENT
What is Brand Management?
Brand Management is the art of creating a
brand and maintaining it.
 It is the process of maintaining, improving
and upholding a brand so that the name is
associated with positive results.
Brand management is a marketing
technique that focuses on improving the
reputation of a brand or product.
It is the key to improving brand
loyalty.
 DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A
BRAND AND A PRODUCT
BASIS FOR BRAND PRODUCT
COMPARISON
Definition A brand is a name, A product is
term, sign, symbol anything that can be
or design, or a offered to a market
combination of for attention,
them, intended to acquisition, use, or
identify the goods consumption that
and services of one may satisfy a need.
seller or a group of
sellers and
differentiate them
from those of the
competitor.
Focus A brand focuses on A product focuses
the customers’ on the customers’
wants. needs.
Uniqueness A brand has a A product can be
distinct identity. easily copied.
 DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A
BRAND AND A PRODUCT
BASIS FOR BRAND PRODUCT
COMPARISON
Created by Brands are built A product is made
through consumer by a company and
expectations and can be purchased by
experiences. a consumer.
 BRAND V/S PRODUCT
Sr.
No. BASI PRODUCT BRAND
S
1. Meaning A product is an item A brand
which is ready for distinguishes one
sale in the market product from other
products in the
market
2. What is A product is ‘what A brand is ‘what
it?
you need’ you want’
3. Uniquen A product can be A brand has a
ess easily copied distinguished
identity that
cannot be copied
4. Produce Manufacturers By the consumers,
d or in their mind
Created
 BRAND V/S PRODUCT
Sr
. BASIS PRODUCT BRAND
N
o.
6. What they A product performs A brand offers value
do? functions
7. Appearanc Products are Brands are
e- tangible intangible
Tangibility
8. Time A product can Brands remain forever
Horizon become outdated
after sometime
9. Copied Can be copied Cannot be copied
10 Obsolesce Products can Brands are timeless
. nce become old,
outdated and
obsolete
 BENEFITS OF A STRONG
BRAND
1. A strong brand influences the buying decision
of the consumers.
2. A strong brand can command a premium price
and maximise the number of units that can be
sold at that premium.
3. A strong brand creates trust and an
emotional attachment between the consumer
and the company.
4. A strong brand helps to eliminate competitors.
5. A strong brand helps to make the purchasing
decision easy.
6. A strong brand creates customer loyalty.
 3 C’s OF BRANDING
1. Clarity –
 Strong brands are clear about what
they are and what they are not.
 They understand their unique
promise of value.
 This promise of value, sets them apart
from their competitors.
 E.g. Apple, Volkswagen
 3 C’s OF BRANDING
2. Consistency –
The hallmark of strong brands is that
they are always what they say they
are.
E.g. Volkswagen, for instance, has
always been about safety. They don't
change their focus from model to model.
When new editions come out each year,
safety is the number one priority for
Volkswagen.
 3 C’s OF BRANDING
3. Constancy –
A brand is considered strong if it is
constantly under public eye or media
attention.
Strong brands are always constant; they
are always there for their customers.
They don’t go into hiding.
E.g. A specific example of a
Constant brand is Coca-Cola.
 3 C’s OF BRANDING
One would be very hard pressed to go the
entire day without seeing anything relating
to Coca-Cola. Products of Coca-Cola can be
seen almost anywhere and everywhere
from vending machines to regular people
drinking a Coke. In addition, they can be
found most of the time in TV commercials
and billboard signs. Coke has definitely
become the strongest brand by being a
constant in our society.
 BRAND IDENTITY
What is Brand Identity?
Brand identity is the visible elements of a brand,
such as color, design, and logo, that identify
and distinguish the brand in consumers'
minds. A company does the following—all with the
goal of cultivating a certain image in consumers'
minds:
 Chooses its name
 Designs its logo
 Uses colors, shapes, and other visual elements in its
products and promotions
 Crafts the language in its advertisements
 Trains employees to interact with customers
 BRAND ESSENCE
What is Brand Essence?
Brand essence is the most important
quality/feature which defines a brand.
It is an intangible attribute that separates a
brand from its competition’s brand by its
audience.
It is the single line or word that defines how
the brand is differentiated from other
brands.
It could be a brand’s tagline or could be the
1st word that comes to a person’s mind
when he/she hears about the brand.
BRAND ESSENCE
 ELEMENTS OF BRAND
ESSENCE
1. Uniqueness – A brand should be different
from its competitors.
2. Authenticity – A brand should be genuine and
truthful.
3. Consistency – A brand should keep the
promise it makes to its consumers.
4. Durability – A brand should offer good quality
and sustainability.
5. Experience – A brand should be able to
deliver customer satisfaction and joy.
6. Relevance – A brand should be useful and of
importance.
 TYPES OF BRANDS
1. Product Brands
2. Service Brands
3. Business Brands
4. Personal Brands
5. Personality Brands
 TYPES OF BRANDS
1. Product Brands –
 Products (commodities) become branded
products when they win awareness in
the market that the products have
compelling characteristics that make it
different and better than others in the
product category.
 E.g. Apple, Nike, Rolls Royce
 TYPES OF BRANDS
2. Service Brands –
People buy services based purely on their
trust that the person or business they
are buying from, will deliver as
promised.
E.g. DHL, Gati
 TYPES OF BRANDS
3. Organisation/Business Brands –
Organization brands are companies and
other entities that deliver products and
services.
E.g. Godrej, Reliance
 TYPES OF BRANDS
4. Personality Brands –
 A person can be considered a brand.
 It can be comprised of one individual, or it may
be composed of a few individuals.
 E.g. Amitabh Bachchan, Shahrukh Khan
 TYPES OF BRANDS
5. Private-label Brands –
Private-label brands, also called ‘own
brands,’ or ‘store brands,’ exist
among retailers that possess a
particularly strong identity.
E.g. CNN, Versace
 IMPORTANCE OF
BRANDS/BRANDING TO CONSUMERS
1. Identification of the Maker of the
Product:
 On branded products, the name of the
manufacturer of the product is
mentioned.
 It helps the customers to know from
where the product is produced.
 Many customers make the buying
decision on the basis of the name of the
manufacturer.
 E.g. consumers trust any product that is
made by Hindustan Unilever Limited
 IMPORTANCE OF
BRANDS/BRANDING TO CONSUMERS
2. Assignment of Responsibility to the
Maker of the Product:
Brands make it possible to put the
responsibility of the product on the
manufacturer/producer so that the
consumer/customer knows who to get
in touch with, in case of a
problem/issue.
Further, it increases the responsibility of
the manufacturer and reminds them to
keep the consumers’/customers’ interest in
mind.
 IMPORTANCE OF
BRANDS/BRANDING TO CONSUMERS
3. Simplify Product Decisions:
Consumers/customers learn about brands
from various sources.
They are able to make decisions about
which brand to buy, based on their
knowledge of a brand.
Thus, brands simplify buying decisions for
the consumers/customers.
 IMPORTANCE OF
BRANDS/BRANDING TO CONSUMERS
4. Brands Create Relationships with the
Consumers:
Brands share a relationship of trust with its
consumers.
Consumers expect brands to provide
them with consistent product/service.
If the consumers are satisfied with
the brand and the services provided
by the brand, they continue buying it.
 IMPORTANCE OF
BRANDS/BRANDING TO CONSUMERS
5. Brands Act as Status Symbols:
Brands allow people to project their
self-image.
They act as status symbols.
The brands that people use help them to
project their image to the outside world.
E.g. people who use iPhone consider
themselves to be elite.
 IMPORTANCE OF
BRANDS/BRANDING TO CONSUMERS
6. Indicators of Quality:
Brands indicate the quality of the
product the consumers buy.
They guarantee a consistent quality to
the consumers.
7. Reduced Risk:
When consumers buy well-known brands,
especially those with which the consumers
have had a favourable experience, it
reduces the risk of money getting
wasted.
 IMPORTANCE OF
BRANDS/BRANDING TO FIRMS
1. Identification Purpose:
 Brands help firms for the purpose of
identification.
 It becomes easy for the
consumers/customers to identify the
manufacturer with the help of
brands.
2. Legal Protection:
 Brands offer legal protection to the
firms for the unique features of the
product.
 Brand names can be registered and
 IMPORTANCE OF
BRANDS/BRANDING TO FIRMS
3. Level of Quality:
Brands give an indication to the firms
about the level of quality that is
expected or required by the
consumers/customers.
Brands help the firms to ensure that the
consumers/customers get good quality
products.
4. Competitive Advantage:
Brands help firms secure a competitive
advantage, which helps them distinguish
their products from their competitors.
 IMPORTANCE OF
BRANDS/BRANDING TO FIRMS
5. Sources of Financial Returns:
Strong brands create profits for the
firms which in turn create greater value for
the shareholders.
Thus, a strong brand is profitable for an
organisation/ a firm.
 REASONS WHY PEOPLE BUY
BRANDS
1. Brands Provide Peace of Mind:
 Consumers want comfort, happiness,
satisfaction and peace of mind in their
lives and, they get a part of it through the
products they buy.
 If the brands used by the consumers
consistently deliver a positive experience,
consumers form an opinion that the brand
is trustworthy, which gives them peace of
mind.
 REASONS WHY PEOPLE BUY
BRANDS
2. Brands Save Decision-making Time:
Picking a brand, because of its features,
services, quality and value for money
makes it easy for the consumers to buy
them, helping them to save money.
3. Brands Create Difference:
Brands make a difference, compared to
their competitors, based on their features,
services, quality and value for money.
4. Brands Provide Safety:
Buying brands provides safety to the
consumers and reduces the risk of
 REASONS WHY PEOPLE BUY
BRANDS
5. Brands Add Value:
Brands provide better quality, look, feel
and the firm’s status in the society.
It is the combination of each that add value
to the brand.
 SCOPE OF BRANDING
1. Physical Goods:
 Physical good include tangible products.
 Some prominent tangible products are
Pepsi, Maggi, Dettol, etc.
 Product differentiation is important to
distinguish one brand from the other.
 SCOPE OF BRANDING
2. Services:
Service brands have become very
competitive in today’s times.
Some of the well-known service brands are
Airtel, Vodafone, Citibank, etc.
Branding of services is important as it
helps the consumers to distinguish
one service from another.
 SCOPE OF BRANDING
3. Retailers and Distributors:
To the retailers and other members of the
distribution channels, brands provide a
number of functions.
Brands generate consumer interest, loyalty
for the store; expect a level of service and
quality of products from a retailer.
Brands play a pivotal role in creating an
image for the store.
 SCOPE OF BRANDING
4. Online Products and Services:
Online products and services also need to
create brands which are memorable to the
consumers.
With the intensification of competition
online, making the right product
available to the consumer at the right
time becomes the need of the hour.
 SCOPE OF BRANDING
5. People and Organisations:
People and organisations have also become
brands today.
Some organisations which have become
well-known brands today are Sony,
Microsoft, Google, Apple, etc.
Celebrities and sportspersons etc. have
also become brands in their own right as
they are able to influence consumer buying
decision.
 BRANDING CHALLENGES AND
OPPORTUNITIES
1. Knowledgeable
Customers/Consumers:
 Consumers/customers have become
more knowledgeable and well-
informed.
 Customers/consumers have various
platforms like websites, social platforms,
etc. where they can voice their opinion.
 Consumers’ expectations from a
product are also changing constantly.
 To be successful, brands must be able to
establish a connection with the
 BRANDING CHALLENGES AND
OPPORTUNITIES
2. Brand Proliferation:
 To understand brand proliferation, we must first
understand brand extension.
 Brand extension is a strategy used in marketing.
 In brand extension, a company which is already
branded in the market with a pre-defined image
will make use of the same brand name to
market a different product category.
 E.g.Amul cheese, Hidesign handbags, Dyson
products.
 By using the new product category linked with
the existing brand name, the market reach of
the new product can be made easy.
 BRANDING CHALLENGES AND
OPPORTUNITIES
In brand proliferation, more items are brought in
with new brand names.
Brand Proliferation occurs when a large company
acquires or absorbs multiple smaller brands in
similar market areas.
Unilever is a prime example of this phenomenon.
In other words, the firm has several brands in the
same product category.
It means that the list of independent brands goes up.
For instance, HUL offers various soaps in the
Indian market like Dove, Lifebuoy, Lux, Sunsilk
and Pears.
 BRANDING CHALLENGES AND
OPPORTUNITIES
Brand Proliferation can help expand the
market as well as the company’s market
share in the category.
It also paves the way for the company’s
brands to compete among themselves, a
phenomenon known as Brand
Cannibalisation (When two brands in the
same product line, offered by same
player target same market segment and
compete with each other by eating away
the market share without adding any
value to the marketer).
 BRANDING CHALLENGES AND
OPPORTUNITIES
4. Increased Competition:
Promotion schemes are being used
extensively, as the market has become
very competitive.
New competitors are emerging in the
market place due to globalization.
There is also a tremendous increase in low-
price competitors, who are imitating the
market leaders and providing the product
at reasonable prices. (local markets)
 BRANDING CHALLENGES AND
OPPORTUNITIES
5. Increased Cost:
With the rise in competition, the cost of
new products is increasing rapidly.
(competing to give the best quality and
features)
Further, offering free trials and samples to
the consumers to promote the product, also
adds to the cost.
Increased promotion expenses done to
create brand awareness, increases the
budgeted expenses.
 BRANDING CHALLENGES AND
OPPORTUNITIES
6. Accountability:
Marketers have to be more accountable to
the consumers for the products/services
that they offer.
Long-term gains can come to the marketers
only if they offer quality products to the
consumers.
 BRAND EQUITY
Brand equity is the additional value a product
receives from having a well known brand, or high
level of brand awareness.
Brand Equity refers to the additional value that a
consumer attaches with the brand that is
unique from all the other brands available in
the market.
In other words, Brand Equity means the awareness,
perception, loyalty of a customer towards the
brand.
It is the difference in price that a consumer pays
when they purchase a recognized brand’s
product over a lesser known, generic version of
the same product.
 BRAND EQUITY
E.g. the difference in money that a
consumer pays to buy Nike shoes over any
other local shoes.
 CUSTOMER BASED BRAND
EQUITY MODEL (CBBE)
The best-known CBBE model is the Keller
Model, devised by Professor of
Marketing Kevin Lane Keller and
published in his mighty ‘Strategic Brand
Management.’
The Keller model is a pyramid shape
and shows businesses how to build a
strong foundation of brand identity
upwards towards the holy grail of brand
equity ‘resonance’: where customers
are in a sufficiently positive
relationship with a brand to be
advocates for it. (word of mouth
CUSTOMER BASED BRAND
EQUITY MODEL (CBBE)
CUSTOMER BASED BRAND
EQUITY MODEL (CBBE)
 CUSTOMER BASED BRAND
EQUITY MODEL (CBBE)
By dividing CBBE into Keller’s four levels,
marketers can understand what their
customers want and need before
they’ve even bought the product, or maybe
even before they know they want it.
The iPad is a stunning example of this
CBBE: from the robust foundation of
Apple’s brand identity, the iPad was
developed to look great, be easy to use, do
everything its customers wanted, and
more.
Customers loved it and any glitches that
attracted negative responses were quickly
 CUSTOMER BASED BRAND
EQUITY MODEL (CBBE)
Before long, iPad users were extolling
(praise enthusiastically) its virtues and their
loyalty, and the iPad is now ubiquitous in
stores, health centers, schools, offices and
homes. It’s a classic example of something
we didn’t know we needed or wanted until
we saw one.
 CUSTOMER BASED BRAND
EQUITY MODEL (CBBE)
CBBE Model explained:
Level 1: Brand Identity (who are you?)
This is how customers look at your brand
and distinguish it from others.
 It explores the words and images buyers
associate with when they hear a particular
brand name. e.g. (LIC)
It’s the most important level and must
be strong to support the rest of the
pyramid above it.
 Brand identity quantifies the breadth and
depth of customer awareness of a brand.
 CUSTOMER BASED BRAND
EQUITY MODEL (CBBE)
Level 2: Brand Meaning (what are you?)
Once customers become aware of your
brand, they’ll want to know more about
your product.
They’ll question its features, looks and
style, reliability, durability, customer
experience and value for money, to find
its brand meaning.
For the purposes of brand reputation, Level
2 is split into two categories:
 CUSTOMER BASED BRAND
EQUITY MODEL (CBBE)
Brand performance: This covers product
functionality, reliability, durability, and
price as well as customer service and
satisfaction. It’s ‘it does what it says on
the tin’ territory and when it performs well,
customer opinion will be positive.
Brand imagery: Different, but equally
important, imagery meets the customers’
social and psychological needs. What
does the brand appear to be to customers?
E.g.Volvo appears family-oriented, safe and
eco-responsible. This messaging can come
out in targeted marketing and word of
 CUSTOMER BASED BRAND
EQUITY MODEL (CBBE)
Level 3: Brand Response (What are the feelings
for the brand?)
On this level of Keller’s model, judgment and
feelings can be hard to separate and are
intensely personal for each individual
customer.
 One customer may judge the brand irrelevant to
them, whereas another will find it completely
relevant.
Another may make their own value comparison
against another product, harshly or fairly.
Companies need to respond to judgments and build
positive feelings about the brand
 CUSTOMER BASED BRAND
EQUITY MODEL (CBBE)
Level 4: Brand Resonance (a strong
relationship)
The apex of Keller’s CBBE model is
resonance: when a customer is loyal to
a brand, considers it superior, will buy
no other and advocates its merits to
others.
 Many things resonate with customers:
lifetime experience, customer service,
products and value.
 SOURCES OF BRAND
EQUITY
1. Brand Awareness:
 It consists of brand recognition and brand recall.
 Brand Recognition is the extent to which a
consumer can correctly identify a
particular product or service just by
viewing the product or service's logo, tag
line, packaging or advertising campaign.
 Brand Recall is the degree or likelihood of
instantly remembering the name of
the brand if a product/service or any other
kind of brand association comes up. Brand
Recall can be aided or unaided.
SOURCES OF BRAND
EQUITY
Brand
Recog
nition

BRAND
AWARENE
Bran SS
d
Reca
ll
 SOURCES OF BRAND
EQUITY
Advantages of Brand Awareness:
1. Learning Advantages:
 The first step in building brand equity is to
register the brand in the minds of the
consumers.
 If the right brand elements are chosen,
the task becomes easier.
 E.g. Dove beauty bar uses a delicate dove
symbol as its logo. The logo compliments
the brand.
 SOURCES OF BRAND
EQUITY
2. Consideration Advantages:
Consumers must consider the brand whenever
they are making a purchase.
Brand awareness increases the likelihood that
the brand will be a member of the consideration
set, that the consumer considers before making
a decision to buy.
3. Choice Advantages:
Brand awareness can affect choices among
brands in the consideration set.
The brand will only have a chance to be
purchased if it makes it in the consideration set.
 SOURCES OF BRAND
EQUITY
2. Brand Image:
Brand Image is an image or impression
the customers form about a particular
brand in their mind which is developed
over a certain time period.
Brand Image can be defined as how
existing or potential customers view
the brand and associate with it.
 Brand image is something that eventually
forms in the mind of the customer.
 4 STEPS OF BUILDING A
BRAND
1.Identification of the Brand: Ensure
identification of the brand with the
customers/consumers and an association of the
brand in the customers’/consumers’ minds with a
specific product, product class, product benefit, or
customer need.
2. Brand Meaning: Firmly establish the totality of
brand meaning in the minds of the
customers/consumers by strategically linking a
host of tangible and intangible brand associations.
3. Customer Response: Draw proper
customer/consumer responses to the brand.
 4 STEPS OF BUILDING A
BRAND
4. Brand Resonance: Convert brand
responses to create brand resonance and
an intense, active loyal relationship
between the customers/consumers and the
brand.
These 4 steps represent a set of fundamental
questions that customers/consumers
invariably ask about brands. The 4
questions are:
1. Who are you? (Brand Identity)
2. What are you? (Brand Meaning)
3. What about you? What do I think about
 4 STEPS OF BUILDING A
BRAND
4. What about you and me? What kind of
association and how much of a connection
would I like to have with you? (Brand
Relationships)
 4 STEPS OF BUILDING A
BRAND
1. Identity:
 The basis of a brand is figuring out, and
communicating, what your brand is all
about.
 Not only do you need to make sure that people
are aware of your brand, but you need to be sure
that they are getting the right message as well.
 E.g. if you trying to create a brand which is
dedicated to delivering high-end clothing items to
the market, you are not going to compete on cost-
you are going to compete on quality and your
goods will be sold for a high price relative to the
rest of the market.
 4 STEPS OF BUILDING A
BRAND
At this first level of the pyramid, it is your
job to deliver the message that you are a
luxury brand offering high-end clothes for
premium prices.
If your customers/consumers do not get
this message, they are simply going to
wonder why your clothes are so expensive.
They need to see your identity as a
premium luxury brand in order for the rest
of your marketing and pricing to make
sense.
 4 STEPS OF BUILDING A
BRAND
2. Meaning:
 The next step is to carve out a meaning for your
brand that will begin to build loyalty within your
audience.
 Brand meaning is going to go beyond the quality of
products that you offer, or the price point that you use at
the market.
 You could build the meaning of your brand around a
number of different things, including your commitment to
specific social causes (e.g. Being Human), your dedication
to customer service, or just about anything else.
 The meaning of your brand will give people a reason to be
proud of their purchases, and will give them a reason to
come back again and again.
 4 STEPS OF BUILDING A
BRAND
E.g. continuing with the clothing example,
you could attach a social cause to your
brand, along with your luxury reputation.
For instance, you may publicise your offer
of donating a certain percentage of your
sales to important causes like clothing the
homeless or something similar.
In this way, you buyers will not only love
the products you deliver, but they will also
come to respect what you are doing with
some of the proceeds from each sale.
 4 STEPS OF BUILDING A
BRAND
3. Response:
 Once a customer/consumer makes a purchase from
your brand, what is their response to that
purchase?
 This is where your brand has to live up to the
reputation that you have attempted to build earlier in
the pyramid.
 If those luxury clothes that you are selling for a high
price don’t deliver on the quality that is expected, the
response from your customers is not going to be a
positive one.
 However, if you do deliver great quality as expected,
your brand will only be strengthened and you will have
a great opportunity for growth and success.
 4 STEPS OF BUILDING A
BRAND
Keeping in mind the importance of the way
the customers/consumers respond to your
products, you always need to make sure
you are delivering on your promises.
Failing to deliver on expectations is one of
the most damaging things that can happen
to a brand, and you might not be able to
recover from an extended period of losses.
 4 STEPS OF BUILDING A
BRAND
4. Relationships:
At the top of the pyramid we find relationships,
which is concerned with the concept of resonance
(remaining for a long time).
It is difficult to climb all the way to this point in the
pyramid, but the brands that do make it to this
point will be in line for tremendous rewards.
The rare brands that land at this level are able to
actually create a community around the ownership
of their products- in other words, buyers of the
products will feel connected to one another
because they are devoted to the same brand.
 4 STEPS OF BUILDING A
BRAND
Customers/consumers tend to be extremely
loyal at this level, and the will often buy
just about anything that the brand puts out
as long as it continues is the same tradition
as previous models or items.
E.g. a classic example here would be
Google and Sony. Both these brands have
become synonymous with search engine
and entertainment respectively in the
minds of the customers/consumers.
 STRATEGIC BRAND
MANAGEMENT PROCESS
Identifying and Establishing Brand Positioning

Plannning and Implementation of Brand

Marketing Programmes

Measuring and Interpreting Brand

Performance

Growing and Sustaining Brand Equity

 STRATEGIC BRAND
MANAGEMENT PROCESS
1. Identifying and establishing brand
positioning:
 Brand Positioning is defined as the act of
designing the company's offer and image so
that it occupies a distinct and valued place
in the target consumer's mind.
Key Concepts –
 Points of Difference: convinces consumers
about the advantages and differences over the
competitors.
 Mental Map: visual depiction of the various
associations linked to the brand in the minds of
the consumers.
 STRATEGIC BRAND
MANAGEMENT PROCESS
 Core Brand Associations: subset of
associations i.e. both benefits and
attributes which best characterize the
brand.
 E.g. Coca-Cola is classic, Tesla is electric,
Nike is performance
 Brand Mantra: that is the brand essence
or the core brand promise also known as
the Brand DNA.
 E.g. Starbucks – “Rewarding everyday
moments”
BMW – ‘Build the ultimate driving machine”
 STRATEGIC BRAND
MANAGEMENT PROCESS
2. Planning and Implementation of
Brand Marketing Programs:
Key Concepts –
Choosing Brand Elements: Different
brand elements here are logos, images,
packaging, symbols, slogans, etc. Since
different elements have different
advantages, marketers prefer to use
different combinations of these elements.
 STRATEGIC BRAND
MANAGEMENT PROCESS
Integrating the Brand into Marketing
Activities and the Support Marketing
Program: Marketing programs and
activities make the biggest contributions
and can create strong, favorable, and
unique brand associations in a variety of
ways.
Leveraging Secondary Associations:
Brands may be linked to certain source
factors such as countries, characters,
sporting or cultural events, etc. In essence,
the marketer is borrowing or leveraging
some other associations for the brand to
 STRATEGIC BRAND
MANAGEMENT PROCESS
3. Measuring and Interpreting Brand Performance:
Key Concepts:
 Brand Audit: A brand audit is a checkup that
evaluates your brand's position in the marketplace, its
strengths and weaknesses, and how to strengthen it.
 Brand Value Chain: A brand value chain dictates the
process, from start to finish, of how a brand creates
value.
 Brand Equity Measurement System: Is a set of
research procedures that is designed to provide timely,
accurate, and actionable information for marketers for
their brands so that they can make the best possible
tactical decisions in the short-run and strategic
decisions in the long run.
 STRATEGIC BRAND
MANAGEMENT PROCESS
4. Growing and Sustaining Brand Equity:
Key Concepts -
 Defining the Brand Strategy: A brand strategy is
a formal plan used by a business to create a
particular image of itself in the minds of
current and potential customers.
 Brand strategy defines rules and guidelines on how,
what, where, when and to whom you communicate
your brand messages.
 Managing Brand Equity Over Time: Requires
taking a long -term view as well as a short term
view of marketing decisions as they will affect
the success of future marketing programs.
 STRATEGIC BRAND
MANAGEMENT PROCESS
Managing Brand Equity over
Geographic Boundaries, Market
Segments and Cultures: Marketers need
to take into account international factors,
different types of consumers and the
specific knowledge about the experience
and behaviors of the new geographies
or market segments when expanding the
brand overseas or into new market
segments.
 BRAND POSITIONING
Brand positioning has been defined by Kotler as
“the act of designing the company’s offering
and image to occupy a distinctive place in
the mind of the target market”.
 In other words, brand positioning describes how
a brand is different from its competitors and
where, or how, it sits in customers’ minds.
E.g. Starbucks has positioned itself well,
focusing primarily on giving the best
consumer experience. Writing the name of
the client on the glass before serving
became a part of the culture of this brand.
BRAND POSITIONING
PROCESS
 IMPORTANCE OF BRAND
POSITIONING
1. Makes the Product Stand Out
Amongst Competitors:
 A good brand positioning makes a product
unique and attracts the
customer/consumer to use it as it offers a
distinct benefit as compared to the
competitors.
2. Makes the Customer/Consumer
Excited About the Product:
 Effective positioning makes prospects
want to know more about the product.
 In order to achieve this, the marketer
 IMPORTANCE OF BRAND
POSITIONING
the customer well and also know about the offerings of the
competitor.
 The marketer must speak the language of the target
audience and communicate to them that the product can
solve their problems.
 The marketer must sound different from the competitor.
3. Can Face Competition:
 Brand positioning often goes a long way in helping to
measure the real strength of the brand.
 It is a strategy or a plan where one can know where their
product stands in the competition and how long it would take
to reach the top.
 It will also help to know how the consumer feels and judges
the product and it will help to place the product in such a way
that it will not be affected by competition.
 IMPORTANCE OF BRAND
POSITIONING
4. It is Used as an Effective Tool for Business Promotion
and Marketing:
 The strategy how one should ideally position their product
differs for the business and the product. But, one can use
their competitor’s weakness to their advantage.
 One can catch hold of their competitor whose products lack
quality and focus on them so that one can successfully turn
them around.
5. Helps to Identify Competitors’ Weakness:
 The ideal brand positioning strategy will differ for each
business.
 Special attention needs to be paid to that segment of buyers
that are ignored.
 One can track and go after the customers of competitors
whose products lack in quality.
 BASIS FOR BRAND
POSITIONING
1. Behavioural Segmentation
2. Geographic Segmentation
3. Demographic Segmentation
4. Psychographic Segmentation
 BASIS FOR BRAND
POSITIONING
1. Behavioural Segmentation:
 Defining a benefit segment should be an
ideal point of difference or desired benefit
with which to establish the positioning.
 E.g. toothpaste market research study
uncovered four main segments –
1. Sensory Segment – Seeking flavour and
product appearance
2. The Sociable’s – seeking brightness of
teeth
3. The Warriors – seeking decay preventives
4. The Independent Segment – Seeking low
 BASIS FOR BRAND
POSITIONING
2. Demographic Segmentation:
It is defined as the division of a large
market into smaller segments on the
basis of combination of age, gender,
income, education, occupation, marital
status, household formation, and
ethnic background.
Marketers analyse demographic
characteristics and what emerges is a
target-market profile.
 BASIS FOR BRAND
POSITIONING
3. Psychographic Segmentation:
This segmentation considers a variety of factors
that affect a person’s buying behaviour.
It is a segmentation on the basis of perception
(what others may think of him/her if he/she
buys something), interests, opinions (about
a product/brand), and motivation (when a
person has enough money to buy
something he/she wants) of the consumers.
Such information is advantageous to marketers
because it tells them not only who buys, but also
why they buy.
 BASIS FOR BRAND
POSITIONING
4. Geographical Segmentation:
It refers to the division of a large
geographic market into smaller
geographic or regional units.
Geographical regions are subdivided into
urban and rural areas.
Within urban metropolitan areas, the
market can be divided further on the basis
of location : urban downtown, suburban,
and regional municipalities that surround
large cities.