Table of Contents

Table of Contents.....................................................................................................................1
An Insight into Branding.........................................................................................................2
What is a brand?..................................................................................................................2
History...................................................................................................................................2
Why is Branding Essential?................................................................................................2
What Makes a Brand?.........................................................................................................2
How to Protect your Brand.....................................................................................................2
Brand Name..........................................................................................................................2
Trademark............................................................................................................................3
Brand Communication........................................................................................................3
Why is having a Brand Name Important?.............................................................................3
Recognition...........................................................................................................................3
Perceived Value....................................................................................................................3
Repeat Purchases.................................................................................................................3
Class Symbol.........................................................................................................................3
An Insight into Branding
What is a brand?
A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other distinctive feature that distinguishes a
products from the one sold by other sellers in the market. Brands are creating in order to store
value. The brand name generates equity for the firm for the benefits of its customers,
investors and owners.

History
Branding has been around since a long time. In the early time people use to identify
livestock’s quality depending upon its owner. As some people were very reputed and popular
for treating their animals well and maintaining its quality. Overtime branding was used for
differentiating between similar products.

Why is Branding Essential?

The world is getting more and more competitive day by day. It’s not very easy to develop
new products. Firms and people try to gain market share by using branding as a tool. For
example the products of Nike and Adidas are not anymore questioned about their quality
because the brand has made a name for itself over the past years. The goods sold at bazaars
are sometimes of very good quality. They are cheap because branding hasn’t been done.

What Makes a Brand?

Name: The word or words used to identify a company, product, service, or concept.
Logo: The visual trademark that identifies a brand.
Tagline or Catchphrase: "The Quicker Picker Upper" is associated with Bounty paper
towels.
Graphics: the "dynamic ribbon" is a trademarked part of Coca-Cola's brand.
Shapes: the distinctive shapes of the Coca-Cola bottle and of the Volkswagen Beetle
are trademarked elements of those brands.
Colors: the instant recognition consumers have when they see Tiffany & Co.’s robin's
egg blue (Pantone No. 1837). Tiffany & Co.’s trademarked the color in 1998.
Sounds: a unique tune or set of notes can denote a brand. NBC's chimes provide a
famous example.
Scents: the rose-jasmine-musk scent of Chanel No. 5 is trademarked.
Tastes: Kentucky Fried Chicken has trademarked its special recipe of eleven herbs
and spices for fried chicken.
Movements: Lamborghini has trademarked the upward motion of its car doors.

How to Protect your Brand

Brand Name
This refers to the identification of the brand. A brand name is supposed to include words,
phrases, signs, symbols, designs, or any combination these.
Trademark
A trademark is the name legally protected. If the trademark is not registered anyone is free to
use your name on their own product and affect your reputation and earn huge profits on your
hard work. Brands also patent their new findings and technologies so that their competitors
are not able to copy them. Patents help the company maintain its exclusivity so that they can
earn profits over it.

Brand Communication
It is essential for companies to make their customers remember their brand. Otherwise the
brand equity will eventually become obsolete. For example there is hardly anyone who
doesn’t know the name of Pepsi, however, Pepsi spends huge amount of money each year on
communication to its customers. Integrated marketing communication (IMC) is the
consistency with which a brand communicates with its stakeholders. IMC includes 5 main
key points: advertising, sales promotions, direct marketing, personal selling and public
relations.

Why is having a Brand Name Important?

Recognition
The main aim of branding is to get recognition by the consumers, usually the logo is the most
important feature of branding. it should be as such that the consumers are able to create a
picture in their head and are able to remember it. The logo should make an impression of the
brand in the head of the customers.

Perceived Value
The satisfaction a consumer acquires by using your product depends upon their perceived
value. The more that is, the more amount the customer will be ready to pay for your product.
Companies use lots of tactics in order to increase their perceived value like packaging, after
sales services etc.

Let’s take an example. A $20 unbranded shirt and a $200 branded shirt might not have a lot
of difference Afterall. But the customer will be happy to pay $200 for the latter because of
the branding. In order to compete in today’s market it has become a necessity to do branding.

Repeat Purchases
No matter how good quality product you make if the consumer doesn’t know your brand
name or even if they know if they have to search for it that means you are losing a really big
opportunity which can be cashed upon.

There are some examples of branding with huge success like pampers and fridge. Most
people don’t even know that these 2 words are the brand names and not really what the
product is really called. The products are actually diapers and refrigerator. Due to branding
people have forgotten the name of the product.

Class Symbol
People use a lot of brands because they want other to see them that they belong to a certain
class. For example the user of Rolls Royce spends a fortune not just to enjoy what the car has
to offer but also the image and reputation people will have of them. These days most people
are very conscious about the brands they use. Because the ones we do are attached with our
image and affordability.

The Essential Framework to Branding

Step 1: Discover Your Purpose
Every successful brand has a powerful purpose behind it. As Simon Sinek said, “People don’t
buy what you do; they buy why you do it. The goal is not to do business with everybody that
needs what you have. The goal is to do business with people who believe what you believe.”
Hence, it is essential to answer the following four questions while defining the brand purpose
to ensure the effectiveness of the branding strategy.

1. Why do you exist?

2. What differentiates you?
3. What problem do you solve?
4. Why should people care?
These answers give ideas to form the foundation of the branding strategy.

Step 2: Market Research

Audience: It is very important to know exactly what target audience is being focused. It
should start by targeting only a specific niche audience, first. It is essential to know the
age, gender, location, income and education level etc. of the target audience. It ensures that
the brand message comes across crystal clear to the intended recipient. However, with time,
it tends to expand as brand loyalty grows.

Identifying the target audience for your services or products is an exercise that will affect and
benefit all areas of your brand building process, particularly marketing efforts. It needs to be
made sure that the content reaches the right people at the right time.

Competition: No brand should ever imitate exactly what another big brand is doing in the
industry. However, at the same time, it is important to be aware of what they do well or
where they fail. It is important to differentiate your brand from the competitors’. The
ultimate goal is to convince a customer to purchase from you over them!

SWOT Analysis: Internal strengths and weaknesses and external opportunities and threats
should be taken into consideration to make better use of the available resources.

Step 3: Build a Mission Statement

The mission statement is the purpose for the brand to exist and what value it provides.
Everything from the logo to the tagline, voice, message, and personality should reflect that
mission.

The mission statement should be able to convince your target audience to choose your brand
over another competing brand in the market.

For Example, Nike’s mission statement is “To bring inspiration and innovation to every
athlete in the world.” it further goes on to add; “If you have a body, you are an athlete”. Their
mission can be seen everywhere. They focus on all types of athletes using Nike products. The
company has built up such a reputation and brand following, that it’s able to increase the
target to accommodate every “body”.

Step 4: Build a brand story and messaging

This part of the brand development process defines the key aspects of:

 Who are you?

 What do you offer?
 Why should people care?

A brand story is an opportunity to communicate on a human level, making a direct emotional

connection with your consumers. Connecting with your prospects before going in for the hard
sell builds trust, and helps your prospect have a more positive experience with your
company’s brand.

Moreover, people love stories that move them - emotionally and to action. A strong brand
identity can establish an emotional connection with consumers, which can be a solid
foundation for building a lasting relationship with a brand.

For example, TOMS Shoes clearly defines their message through every touch point a
consumer has with the brand: “Improving lives. With every product you purchase, TOMS
will help a person in need. One for One.”

Step 5: Create a Brand Logo and Tagline

Visuals are very important when it comes to building a brand. The logo will appear on
everything that relates to the business. It will become the identity and the visual recognition
of your promise.

Moreover, the product itself, its packaging, or the way it’s presented - all play a part in your
brand identity. Visually representing your business in everything you do will create
consistency and help create a familiarity with your consumers.

McDonald, the globally leading fast-food chain, has used an interesting form to create the
iconic "M," which is now recognizable all over the world. [ CITATION Son19 \l 1033 ]

Step 6: Integrate the Brand in the Community

Now that the brand has been established within the company, the next step is to integrate the
brand within the community and one of the most successful ways to accomplish this is for
your brand to provide quality content.

Language: Choose a language that matches the personality of the brand. If the brand identity
is high-end, professional language should be used. However, if the brand is laid-back, the
language can be more conversational. The chosen language will be integrated throughout the
entire business; hence, it is important that the tone correctly matches the personality of the
brand.
Advertisements: whether traditional or digital, advertising is the most efficient way of
introducing a brand to the world. It's a way to get the message of the brand seen and heard by
your target audience. However, it may not always be budget friendly.
Social Media: Another way to establish a connection with your consumers is through social
media. It is relatively cheaper and offers up a ton of digital platforms to interact with your
audience and establish the brands identity. It also offers direct, two-way communication with
the audience. [ CITATION Kat20 \l 1033 ]
Making your Brand Work
In order for a customer to remember your brand, the logo is not the only thing that matters. A
brand is everything that represents your company, from the logo, to the managers, to the way
they treat their customers, to the way their salespersons dress, the products and everything
that comes in between. Brand Maintenance is all about being proactive and developing and
maintaining a solid relatable brand that caters to the needs a customer never knew they had.
There are no defined steps a company can take to create a lasting image in the minds of the
people. However, there are still things that a brand should be doing to develop and maintain a
healthy and unbreakable relationship with their customers. Whether the customers remember
you does not only rely on the fact that your logo is really good or your products are over the
top. A customer is more likely to remember that when they chose your brand, they felt good
about it and you created an emotional connection with them by catering to the touch points
strategically. [ CITATION Joh17 \l 1033 ]

In the case where you have an outlet, this is easier to accomplish since you can always treat
your walk-in customers in a way that they feel extremely special and wanted by your brand.
For example, the luxury brand Louis Vuitton really personalizes every purchase their
customer makes for them. They ensure that with every purchase, their customer gets a
personalized note directed to them, thanking them for their purchase. This way, the customer
automatically is likely to feel inclined toward the brand.

However, what can a company do if they do not have a retail outlet, instead are an everyday
grocery item available in grocery stores? How can they ensure their customer remember them
and keep coming back to them?

This usually becomes a challenge for the company because they have to do their branding
without any help other than their advertisements and of course their quality. Taking the
example of the detergent “Surf Excel” in Pakistan. Surf has become the generic word for all
kinds of washing detergents. This could be highly due to the fact that Surf Excel was the first
ever washing powder launched in Pakistan and was able to create an image in the minds of
the market way before any other brand did. It automatically created an emotional connection
with the women by their advertisements that the washing powder will make their life easier
and they will not have to spend hours washing with a soap. It also catered to a need that
customers perhaps did not know they had. Therefore, another step for brand maintenance
could be being the first in the market and gaining first mover’s advantage. [ CITATION
Lar15 \l 1033 ]

Moving on, it is a given fact that customers want to feel like GOD. They want to be felt as if
your whole brand and company relies on them and without them you are nothing – which is
the hard truth. Customer feedback is also an integral part for maintaining your brand because
a customer wants to be listened. They want to be understood. Hence, when they suggest
something and a brand listens to them, they are more likely to remember you.
Furthermore, making your brand relevant to the needs of the customers also contributes a lot
to brand maintenance, because in the mind of the customer you, as a particular brand, were
there for them to fulfill all their needs in a way that they want.
Another way a brand can maintain its existence in the minds of the people is by being honest
with their customers at all times. For example, if they have made a mistake or done
something wrong, the way a brand tackles the situation and caters of the customer’s needs
before their own really tells a lot about them. This way, they will automatically gain goodwill
from the customers. For example, when Johnson & Johnson was hit with the Tylenol
tampering incident, although the company had nothing to do with it and it was proven that the
tampering had been done at the retailer level, they still dealt with the situation in such a way
that even though at first their sales fell drastically, they regained them and instead achieved
even more sales than before. All this by gaining the trust and sympathy of the customers so
that they can maintain their goodwill.

Market Feasibility of Brand Maintenance

Brand management is the science of creating and sustaining a brand. It has to do with both,
the tangible and intangible aspects of a brand. Customers recognize a company, their status,
their product or service, and their quality through the way they have kept their brand. Even
the best brands fall apart if they are not well maintained and managed. [ CITATION
Why19 \l 1033 ]

If a company is able to maintain their brand well, they will not only be able to generate sales
but will create True Friends customers along the way that prefer no other brand but theirs,
increasing customer commitments. Customers are also likely to talk about a particular brand
in their circles, automatically increasing the company’s advertising reach.

Brand management also is about making promises to customers and making sure to
maintaining it. This helps the company to gain trust of the customers, by which they are
likely to rely on the company for anything. It also increases the goodwill of the customers for
the company. Customer trust will be gained not only in the brand itself but in the whole
company.

Moreover, due to the development of brand loyalty, customers are likely to prefer other
brands of the same company over other companies, because their experience with a particular
brand was outstanding. They are also likely to remember and compare a brand even if they
purchase other ones. This way, a company is likely to stick in their minds and increase brand
equity.

Brand maintenance ensures that your brand never falls behind because you have to keep on
updating it as the needs of the customers change with time. This helps in keeping the
company innovative, by increasing their growth period and avoiding the decline period.
[ CITATION San16 \l 1033 ]