Chapter 1

Brands & Brand Management

What is a Brand?
 A brand is a name, sign, term, symbol or
design, or a combination of them, intended to
identify the goods and services of one seller
or a group of sellers and to differentiate them
from those of competition.
 These components are also called brand
elements
Brands vs. Products
 Core Product
 Generic Product
 Augmented Product

“New competition is not between what companies

produce in their factories but between what they add
to their factory output in terms of packaging,
services, advertising, financing, delivery and other
things that people value”
Brand Characteristics
 Products are made and owned by companies. Brands, on the other
hand, are made and owned by people … by the public …by consumers.

 A brand image belongs not to a brand – but to those who have

knowledge of that brand.

 The image of a brand is a subjective thing. No two people, however

similar, hold precisely the same view of the same brand.

 People come to conclusions about brands as a result of an uncountable

number of different stimuli: many of which are way outside the control or
even influence of the product’s owner.
 Brands – unlike products – are living, organic entities: they change,
however imperceptibly,
every single day.

 Much of what influences the value of a brand lies in the hands of its
competitors.

 It is universally accepted that brands are a company’s most valuable asset;

yet there is no universally accepted method of measuring that value.

 Effective brand communication …involves processes which are

uncontrolled, disordered, abstract, intuitive … and frequently impossible to
explain other than with the benefit of hindsight”.
Why do brands matter to
consumers
 Types of goods
 Search Goods
 Experience Goods
 Credence Goods
 Types of Risks
 Functional risk
 Physical risk
 Financial risk
 Social risk
 Time risk
Why do brands matter to firms

 Identification
 Simplify product handling and tracing
 Organize Inventory
 Legal procedures
 Creates credibility which can act as a barrier to
entry for other firms
 It’s a valuable intangible asset
What can be branded
 Physical goods
 Services
 Retailers and Distributors
 Online Products and Services
 People and Organizations
 Sports Arts & Entertainment
 Geographic Locations
Branding Challenges
 Savvy Customers
 Economic Downturn
 Brand Proliferation
 Globalization
 Low-priced competitors
 Brand extensions
 Deregulations
 Media Transformation
 Increased Costs
 Greater Accountability