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ShefaliPatel
ProfessorStrong
FashionBrandingandRetailPromotions
8 September 2015

DiscussionQuestion#2PG.11Hancock

Abrandcanbedefinedas,Anentitywithadistinctiveideaexpressedinasetof
functionalandexperientialfeatureswithapromiseofvaluerewardrelevanttoitsenduser,and
aneconomicreturntoitsproducers(throughthebuildingofbrandequity)(Hameide5,6).A
brandismorethanjustanameoralogo;itisapromiseofvalue.Thispromiseminimizesthe
riskindecisionmakingandhelpsbuildloyalrelationships.Fashionbrandingcanbedefinedas,
The cumulative image of a product or a service that consumers quickly associate with a
particularbrand,itoffersanoverallexperiencethatisunique,different,specialandidentifiable.
Itisalsoacompetitivestrategythattargetsconsumerswithproducts,advertisingandpromotion
organizedaroundacoherentmessageasawaytoencourageandrepurchaseofproductsfromthe
samecompany.(Hameide05,06).
Anyproductrequiresbrandingtoconnectwiththecustomers.Inotherwords,massproducts
can be dull without fashion branding. Luxury brands such as Fossil, Michael Kors, Chanel
largelydependonbrandingapproachknownasstorytelling.Storytellingisthevehiclethat
communicatesbrandvaluesinaprocessthatiseasyforcustomerstounderstand(Hancock07).It
isonlywhenabrandcanemotionallyconnecttothecustomercanitreachtoitsfullconsumption
potential(Hancock07).Whenacustomershopsfromahighendluxurybrand,theyarealso

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payingfortheuniquestoreexperience,thestatusthattheyreceiveandothersuchintangible
benefitsthatareassociatedalongwiththebrand.Luxuryitemscreatinghighprofileadvertising
foraproductleadstoaperceptionofabrandassuperiorinqualityandfashionability.Alsousing
celebritiesasendorsementinadvertisementsoftenheightensthedesiretopurchasetheproduct.
Thus when a customer is purchasing from a luxury brand they are not just paying for the
functionalbenefitsbutalsoemotionalbenefits.Thisgivesanadvantagetotheluxurybrandsto
keepahigherpricepointontheirproductslikesunglasses,tshirts,jeansetc.
Theadvancementintechnologyplaysaveryimportantroleinchangingtheperceptionof
customers.Initiallyitemsliketelevisionandcomputerswereconsideredtobesomething,which
wasneededonlyforitsfunctionalbenefits.Nolonger,dosubstantialmajoritysaythattelevision
isanecessity.Itisconsideredtobealuxury,astatussymbol;muchlikepaintings.Thebrands
likeLG,Panasonic,SamsungandSonyarepowerplayersinthiscategorysellingtelevisionsets
forashighas1.2milliondollarsapproximately(Sammy).Thesebrandsuseemotionalbranding
tocommunicatewithitstargetcustomers.Consumersfeelthatbuyingbiggerandflatterscreen
wouldgivethemahigherstatussymbol.Itisduetothisemotionalconnection,whichinspires
peopletoloyallystandinlineandpayfullretailprice,somethingtheywouldrarelydofora
luxurygood.Anotheritemthatwasnotperceivedasaluxuryproductispen.Thepurchaseofa
penwasalwaysinclinedtowardsitsfunctionalbenefits.CompanieslikeMontBlancwouldthink
otherwise.Thisproduct,withlessthancurrenttechnology,isnowturnedintoaluxuryitem.
MontBlanctransformedthisproductintoastylishandtraditionalaccessory.Itisnowaclassic
status symbol.Whenacustomerpurchases MontBlanc,theyarealsoinheritingthebrands
intangible attributes such as being perceived as rich and famous. Mont Blanc Meisterstck

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No.149isthemostfamousfountainpenintheworld;worth935$(Klara,Robert).Thus,thisis
howstorytellingenablescompaniestosellitemssuchastshirts,jeans,andsunglassesata
higherprice.

DiscussionQuestion#1HAMEIDEPG.34Whydoweneedbrands?

Abrandisanentity,auniqueidentitywithdistinctivefeatures.Itisaproduct,serviceora
conceptthatisdistinguishedfromotherproductsusingitsdistinctmarketingfeatures(Hameide
05).Abrandismorethanjustanameoralogo.Itissomethingthatshoutsas,Icanbethat
whatyouwant.
Brandingisessentialbecauseitdeliversapromiseofvaluetoitscustomers(Hameide08).
Thisinreturn,encouragescustomerstomakepurchasedecisionwithouthesitationorsecond
thoughts (Hameide 08). When a product is branded, it automatically naturally creates a
perceptionofqualityinthemindsoftheconsumer,eventuallyresultingintoapurchasedecision.
Brandsarenecessarybecausetheyarebuiltonpremisesofdifferentiation.Thismeans,bringing
somethingnewanddifferentthatothercompetitorinthemarketcannotprovidetothecustomers.
Ifitissomethingthatisnotuniqueitwillneitherattractnorconvincethecustomerstomakea
purchase.Thushavingastrongbrandidentityiscrucialforsuccessofanybrand.
BrandIdentitycanbedefinedas,Auniquesetofbrandassociationsthatthebrand
strategistaspirestocreateormaintain(Aaker68).Theseassociationshelpestablishastrong
relationshipbetweenabrandandacustomer.BrandIdentityisaspirationalorhowthebrandis
supposedtobeperceived,whereasbrandimageishowthecustomersperceivethebrand(Aaker

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69,70,71).Everybrandpossessessomethingcalledbrandequity,madeupofaseriesofassets
thatcontributetothevalueofthatbrand(Aaker07).Strongbrandsleveragethoseassetsbetter
than weak brands. These include brand awareness, brand loyalty, perceived quality, brand
associations and other proprietary brand assets. Brand awareness refers to the strength of a
brandspresenceinaconsumersmind(Aaker10).Itcontainstwocomponentsnamelyrecalland
recognition.
Brandsalsomanageusabilityandexpectations.Greatbrandsareconsistentinconveying
whatthebrandstandsfor;itsbrandvaluesmustneverchange.Forexample,McDonaldsstands
forvalueoffering,quickservice,cleanlinessandquality(Aaker90).Bystayingconsistent,the
customerscaneasilymanagetheirshoppingneedsbasedontheparameterstheyvaluethemost.
Brandalsocreatesrecognitionandrecall(Aaker10).WhensomeoneisdrivingaVolkswagen
Beetle,carryingaChanelbagorplayingonanewlyreleasedAppletoy,theyareactuallymaking
afashionstatement.Boththesignalsenderandsignalreceiverunderstandsthat.Alotoftimes,
associatingwithabrandisaboutmakingastatementorcreatinganimpression.Recognitiondoes
notmeanrememberingwhereitisoritshistory,itsimplymeansrememberingitandbeingon
topofmindwhenthinkingofanyproductforpurchase(Aaker10).
Whetherweacceptitornot,weneedbrands.Theyhaveastrongexistenceinourlivesand
playaveryimportantroleinthecommunity.Everybrandhasastory,butthestoryisaboutus,
notthebrand.Thebrandssimplycreatereflectionofthestoriesthatwecanrelatetoandthen
represent it using marketing communications and branding strategies. This story includes
expectationsandhistoryandpromisesandemotions.Whenabrandisabletoconnecttothe
customersonanemotionallevel,theylastlongerandgaincustomerloyalty.Brandsrepresent

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emotionsandemotionsdirectlyrepresentaction.Welovehowtheymakeusfeel.Itcanbea
sense of status, authenticity, creativity, originality, craftsmanship and so on. The following
examplewillmakeitcleartounderstandwhyweneedbrands:
Imaginetravelingthroughastrangenationthathasoftenshadypractices.Wegetthirstyand
wanttobuyabottleofwater.WearegivenachoiceofPolandSpring/Aquafinaandanunknown
localbrand.Whichonewouldwebemostlikelytobuy?ItwouldbePolandSpring/Aquafina.
Weneverknowwhatkindofqualityregulationsthatthelocalbottlerhas,butwecanbefairly
sureaboutPolandSpring/Bisleri.Thusthisexplainsthatabrandcreatestrustandquality.
Therehavebeendebatesregardingwhetherornottofavorbranding.Scholarssuchas
NaomiKlienhaveraisedargumentsagainstthebrand,focusingonmalpracticesofmultinational
companies(GAP,Forever21)inthenameofbranddominanceandglobalization.Someofthe
issues that have been highlighted include unpaid overtime; sweat shops, child labor and
unhealthyworkingconditions(Hameide28).Theseissuesseriouslyquestionthebrandsethics
andsocialresponsibilities.Manyscholarsalsosupporttheothersideoftheargument,which
highlightstheroleofbrandingintheseissues.Forexample,factorymalpractices,althoughvalid
cannot solely be blamed on branding or globalization but rather on local country policy
(Hameide30).Statisticsalsoshowthatthesamedevelopingcountrieswherethesemishapshave
takenplacehavedemonstratedadecreaseinpoverty,higherstandardoflivingandalsoprovide
aboveaveragewages.Thisdebateprovestheimportanceofbrandsinourlives(Hameide30).
Toconcludewith,brandingisimportantbecauseitprovidespromiseofvalue.Atpresent,
choosingaproduct,whichisnotabrand,wouldbeariskyinvestment,whichnotmanywouldbe
willingtotake.Brandingmakesiteasiertomakedecisions.Brandsalsocreatebrandloyalty,

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whichismostimportantforanybrand,tohavecontinuousbusiness.Brandscreateawareness,
recognitionandrecall.Theyalsocreateaperceptionofqualityinthemindsofthecustomers.
Havingabrandcanmakebrandextensionseasierasconsumerscouldbeabletorelatetothe
brand.Thus,theseareafewreasonswhybrandingisessential.

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WorksCited
Aaker,DavidA."WhatIsaStrongBrand."BuildingStrongBrands.1sted.NewYork:Free
Press,1996.Print.
Aaker,DavidA."TheBrandIdentitySystem."BuildingStrongBrands.NY:FreePress,1996.
Print.
Hameide,KaledK."TheBrand."FashionBrandingUnraveled.NY:Fairchild,2011.Print.
Hancock,Joseph."WhatIsFashionBranding."Brand/story:Ralph,Vera,Johnny,Billy,and
OtherAdventuresinFashionBranding.NewYork:Fairchild,2009.Print
ImportanceOfBrandImageAndBrandBuildingMarketingEssay."UKEssays.Web.8Sept.
2015.Retreivedfrom:http://www.ukessays.com/essays/marketing/importanceofbrand
imageandbrandbuildingmarketingessay.php
Klara,Robert."Meetthe$935PenThatTurnsaScribbleIntoaStatusSymbol."AdWeek.23
June2015.Web.8Sept.2015.Retreivedfrom:
file://localhost/<http/::www.adweek.com:news:advertisingbranding:meet935penturns
scribblestatussymbol165458>.
Said,Sammy."The10MostExpensiveTelevisionsInTheWorld."The10MostExpensive
TelevisionsInTheWorld.TheRichest,20June2013.Web.8Sept.2015.Retreivedfrom:
<http://www.therichest.com/business/technology/the10mostexpensive
televisionsintheworld/>.

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