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Definition Brand
Brands are born as symbols, names and designs, which identify goods or services, anchoring
them in consumer minds. They live in the mind of the consumer and tell the consumers WHO
the product is.

Brand Elements
The key to creating a brand is to be able to choose a name, logo, symbol, package design, or
other characteristics that identifies a product and distinguishes it from others. These
different components of a brand that identify and differentiate it are brand elements.

From products to brands - How do we differentiate a brand and a product?

A product is anything we can offer to a market for attention, acquisition, use, or consumption
that might satisfy a need or want. Thus, a product may be a physical good or a service. We
can define three levels of meaning for a product:
1. The core benefit level is the fundamental need or want that consumers satisfy by
consuming the product or service.
2. The generic product level is a basic version of the product containing only those attributes
or characteristics absolutely necessary for its functioning but with no distinguishing features.
3. The augmented product level includes additional product attributes, benefits, or related
services that distinguish the product from competitors.

In many markets most competition takes place at the product augmentation level, because
most firms can successfully build satisfactory products at the expected product level.
Harvard’s Ted Levitt argued that “the new competition is not between what companies
produce in their factories but between what they add to their factory output in the form of
packaging, services, advertising and other things that people value.”
A brand is therefore more than a product, because it can have dimensions that
differentiate it in some way from other products designed to satisfy the same need. These
differences may be rational and tangible—related to product performance of the brand—or
more symbolic, emotional, and intangible—related to what the brand represents.
Benefits of strong Brands – Buyer (Consumers)
o Risk reducer
o Search cost reducer
o Promise, bond, or pact with maker of product
o Symbolic device
o Signal of quality

Benefits of strong Brands – Seller (Manufacturer)

o Means of identification to simplify handling or tracing
o Means of legally protecting unique features
o Signal of quality level to satisfied customers
o Means of endowing products with unique associations
o Source of competitive advantage
o Source of financial returns

Branding Challenges and Opportunities

Although brands may be as important as ever to consumers, in reality brand management may
be more difficult than ever.
o Savvy Customers  Increasing consumer information sources
o Friends/Peers, Fashion Magazines, Ads, Company Websites, Consumer
Reviews, Celebrities, Parents/adults, Bloggers (Youtuber)
o Economic downturns  economic crisis in 2007/2008
o Proliferation of brands  proliferation of new brands and products, in part spurred by
the rise in line and brand extensions.
o Media Transformation  decrease of traditional advertising media and increase of
interactive and non-traditional media

How brands generate value?

The key to branding is that consumers perceive differences among brands in a product
category
This differential effect affects consumers’ responses to a brand (Types of response)
o Greater loyalty
o Perceptions of a product performance
o Less vulnerability (verletzlichkeit)
 o Purchase intention
o Greater trade cooperation and support
o Higher acceptance for brand extensions

Brand Equity (Markenwert)

Branding is all about creating differences. Most marketing observers also agree with the
following basic principles of branding and brand equity:
o Differences in outcomes arise from the “added value” endowed to a product as a result
of past marketing activity for the brand.
o This value can be created for a brand in many different ways.

Consumer-based brand equity (CBBE)

Is the differential effect that brands imprint in consumer’s responses to a marketing-mix.
CBBE – a result from brand knowledge (brand awareness plus brand image)

• Brand Awareness captures the potential availability of a brand in the mind of the
consumer. It is created through repeated and memorable exposure to brand elements.
• Brand Image is defined as a set of associations attached to the brand in the mind of
the consumer.
•
These associations are organized in the following seven levels of meaning:
• Brand Awareness
• Benefits
• Attributes
• Attitudes
• Values/Culture
• Personality
• User

From brand knowledge to purchase:

Recall the brand  positive association  associated through brand attitude  converted
into preference  conviction  PURCHASE
Two aspects deserve attention:
1. Interaction between awareness and image
2. The challenge of brand building

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Brand Management is a Process

1. Identify and establish brand positioning and values (Brand positioning statement)
2. Plan and implement brand marketing programs (Mixing/Matching of brand elements
and secondary brand associations)
3. Measure and interpret brand performance (Brand calue chain, Brand audit)
4. Grow and sustainable Brand Equity (Brand architecture, expansion strategies)

Identify and establish brand positioning and values

• Definition: Positioning consists on designing the offer and image that you intend to
convey in consumer minds regarding the product
• A good positioning needs to:
o Build on a relevant point of difference
o And be expressed through a unique value proposition

Brand Positioning Statement

• Target
• Competitive Environment
• Consumer Insight
• UVP
• PoD, PoP
• RTB
• Brand Mantra

Target
• It describes the segment who chooses the brand. It can be the user or buyer
• The segment needs to be described in terms of: Demographics, Geographics,
Psychographics and behaviouristic approaches.
• Describe the target as colourful and vivid as possible
 • Example (AXE) Young men, 16-25 who want to feel comfortable in their approach for
girls.

Competitive Environment
• Describes the choices available to the consumer, with which the company competes.
• It’s not a description of the product category
• Clearly describes the value segment (economy, mid-tier, premium)
• Example (AXE) Good smelling grooming mid-tier type of products used by men

Consumer Insight
• The understanding of consumers which provides clues that lead us towards new brand
building oppoerunities.
• Why are consumer insights important? They help to
o Launch a category, brand, brand extension (face-lift)
o Create a new campaign, or face-lift the current campaign
• Tool: Maslow Needs
• Example (AXE) Getting a girl is a major thing for me, looking and smelling good are
key for this game

Unique Value Proposition

• Is the unique differentiating customer value that a company offers
• Types of differentiation according to the UVP (Advertisemts)
Brand Performance:
• Value and Price
• Style and Design
• Brand reliability, durability, serviceability
• Effectiveness, efficiency, empathy
Brand Imaginary
• It is established by depicting who uses the brand and under what circumstances
Consumer Insight
• When a brand is capable to show consumers that it has insights and
understands them well
 • Example(AXE) Axe is a cool brand whose products are explicity designed to help in
the matching game

Benefits (PoD, PoP)

• Benefits combine the PoD’s and PoP’s
• A perceptual map is a helpful tool to choose PoD’s and Pop’s
• Example(AXE)
o PoP: Its performance like a deodorant
o PoD: It is cool and helps the guys to be selfconfident

Reasons to believe (RTB)

• These are the points to justify the PoP’s and PoD’s
• They are coming in many forms:
o Functional design “unique shaving technology”  Gillette
o Key attributes “Unique design”  Apple
o Key Ingredients “sustainable coffee beans”  Starbucks
o Key endorsements “recommended by tripadvisor”  Restaurant
• Example(AXE) The Axe effect

Brand Mantra
• The brand mantra is a short (3-5 words) sentence, that captures the essence or the
spirit of a brand positioning
• Example(AXE) Preparing men to seduce

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Choosing Brand Elements

• Brand Elements = Brand identities are elements that help to identify and differentiate
the brand from others. For example:
o Brand name, URL’s, logos, symbols, characters, spokespersons, slogans,
jingles, packages, signage

• Criteria for choosing brand elements

o Memorable: Easy to recognize and recall  increase of brand awareness
 o Meaningful/Familiar
▪ Descriptive and Persuasive
▪ General information about the function of the product
▪ Specific information about the attributes and benefits of the brand
o Likability: Is the brand fun and interesting? Are the elements aesthetically
appealing?
 The first three criteria—memorability, meaningfulness, and likability—are the marketer’s
offensive strategy and build brand equity. These set of brand elements offers many
advantages because consumers often do not examine much information in making product
decisions
o Transferability: Measures the extent to which the brand element adds to
the brand equity for new products or in new markets for the brand.
o Adaptability: Flexible and updatable over time  change in consumer
preferences
o Protectability: Are the elements protectable according to legals and
competition?

The process for brand naming

o Define objectives (Regarding the complete marketing program)
o Generate names
o Discuss initial candidates
o Evaluate the names
o Research the final candidates
o Select final name

The product descriptor

The product descriptor helps consumers understand what the product is and does and also
helps define the relevant competition in consumers’ minds. In some cases, it may be hard to
describe succinctly what the product is, a new product with unusual functions or even an
existing product that has dramatically changed.

Brand Packaging
Packaging is the activities of designing and producing containers or wrappers for a product
From the perspective the firm and consumers, packaging must achieve these objectives
 o Identify the brand.
o Convey descriptive and persuasive information.
o Facilitate product transportation and protection.
o Assist in at-home storage.
o Aid product consumption.

Leveraging Secondary Brand Associations to build brand equity

Earlier we’ve talked about how we can build brand equity through the choice of brand
elements. Now we want to reach brand equity through the leverage of secondary brand
associations. Brands themselves may be linked to other entities that have their own
knowledge structures in the minds of consumers. In effect, the brand “borrows” some
brand knowledge and, depending on the nature of those associations and responses, perhaps
some brand equity from other entities.

The different means by which we can leverage secondary brand associations by linking the
brand to the following:
1. Companies (through branding strategies)
o Create a new brand
o Adopt or modify an existing brand
o Combine an existing and a new brand
2. Countries or other geographic areas (through identification of product origin)
o BMW – Made in Germany
3. Channels of distribution (through channel strategy)
o H&M in Lafayette Galery
4. Other brands (through co-branding)
o Two existing companies are launching a joint product
o Swatch and Mercedes launching SMart
5. Characters (through licensing)
o Creates a contractual arrangement whereby firms can use the names, logos and
characters of other brands to market their own brands for some fixed fee.
o Disney is very successful in terms of licensing (Harry Potter, Toy Story etc.)
6. Spokespersons (Celebrity Endorsements)
 o Using well-known and admired people to promote products is a widespread
phenomenon with a long marketing history.
o Considerations:
o They are in general NOT exclusive and hard to control (CR7)
o They need to have a good fit (transferability) with the brand, otherwise
consumers get lost
o Need of well discussed contracts
7. Events (through sponsorship)
o Sponsored events can contribute to brand equity by becoming associated to the
brand and improving brand awareness, adding new associations, or improving
the strength, favourability, and uniqueness of existing associations.
o FIFA Worldcup 2014 Brazil presented by NIKE
8. Other third-party sources (through awards or reviews)
o Recommended by tripadvisor or lonely planet

Why should companies borrow brand knowledge or even brand equity from other brands and
entities?
o To create or reinforce points of parity and points of difference
o Creation of new brand associations
o Effects on existing brand knowledge

Needs for selection secondary brand associations

o Awareness and knowledge of the company
o Meaningfulness of the knowledge
o Transferability of the knowledge
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Promotion Mix
Is the specific mix of advertising, sales promotion, public relations, personal selling and
direct-marketing – tools that the company uses to communicate persuasively customer value
and to build a relation to the customers

Decisions related to promotion

Define the target audience  Define the communication objectives  Design the message 
Choose the communication tools

Define the target audience

While defining the target audience one has to focus on the purchase decision process, the key
stakeholders and finally who are the key influencers and the consumers.
o Purchase Decision Process.
o Problem Recognition, Information Search, Evaluation of Alternatives,
Purchase Decision, Post Purchase Behaviour
o Key stakeholders in the decision process
o Initiator, Influencer, Gatekeeper, Decider, Buyer, User (Buying Roles)
o Who is the target audience?
o Initiator and Influencer are the key influencers
o Decider, Buyer and User can be seen as the consumers

Define the communication objectives

What is the main response (consumer) to the offered communication? (Buyer-Readiness)
o Cognitive Stage: Awareness and Knowledge
o Affective Stage: Preference, Conviction
o Behaviour Stage: Purchase

Buyer-Readiness Stage
o In general the cognitive stage is the highest stage and the stages decreases
(Mon-Cherie example) Objective for company  Increase in conversion rate!
The phases of an effective message (AIDA)
o A = Attention
o Will the message capture attention?
o Is the message memorable and enjoyable?
o Example: At a website it might be a banner (size, framework etc.)
o I = Interest
o Generating interest in the benefits of your product/service
o Example: Information like the price or availability of the product
o D = Desire
o Generating desire for product/service through an emotional connection and
explain how the benefits will fulfil the customer needs
Example: Celebrity Endorsement in a campaign
o A = Action
o Does it communicate effectively enough to affect the behaviour?
o Example: Time limit on Sale-price

Design the message

o The Brief:
o Content: What to say?  Positioning Statement
o A good brief must always have a clear purpose, an intention
o Principles of a good brief:
o Be clear about what is needed (one page)
o Provide crucial information to complete the task
o A good brief has to inspire the agency
o The briefing meeting is as important as the brief itself

o Contents of a Brief (Background, The brief itself, implementation process)

o Part 1: Background
o Background  Why is the task important?
o Marketing or sales objectives  Business case for activity
o Brand  Brand identity, brand vision, brand architecture etc.
o Previous Learning  Only used occasionally
o Part 2: The brief itself
o Communication objectives  Challenges
o Target audience  Demo-, Geo-, Psychographics and behaviouristic approaches
o Consumer insights  Linked to the objective
o Key Proposition  Statement we want to say
o Consumer take away
o Tone of voice
o Part 3: Implementation process
o Timings/Milestones  Project timelines
o Budget
o Success criteria
o Guidelines
o Approvals

o The advertising idea

o Brings the UVP to life (basis for a campaign)
o Example: AXE  Seduction: Women can’t control their passion when a man is
wearing AXE (whoever he is)

o The execution
o Format: How to say it symbolically?
o Structure: How to say it logically?
o Source: Who should say it?
o Example: AXE  Jealousy: A girl wearing AXE by mistake and finds herself
attracted from other women

Choose the communication tools

Differentiate personal and non-personal communication
o Non-personal communication:
o Advertising  building awareness through print, banner, radio etc.
▪ Before Purchase: Classical advertising, product-placement
▪ At purchase: PoS advertising
o Sales Promotion  call for action through discounts, coupons etc.
▪ Consumer Promotion
 ▪ Trade Promotion
o Other forms:
▪ Corporate Identity
▪ PR  high credibility through annual reports, publications etc.
▪ Sponsoring
o Personal Communication:
o Personal Selling  Build on the power of one-to-one relationship
▪ Sales-force
▪ Key-account management
o Direct-marketing  Direct approach through e-mail, telephone, social media

How to choose the right communication tool?

1. It always depends on the type of the market (consumer goods or industrial goods?)
o Consumer Goods:
▪ PR  Personal Selling  Sales Promotion  Advertising
o Industrial Goods:
▪ PR  Advertising  Sales promotion  Personal Selling
2. It depends on the type of product
3. It depends on the communication objectives  Buyer-Readiness Stage
o To build awareness/comprehension  Advertising
o To create conviction  Personal Selling
o To call for action  Personal Selling
o To call for re-order  Sales Promotion
4. It depends on the decision for PULL or PUSH Strategy
o PUSH: Producer  Retailer/Wholesaler  Consumer
o PULL: Consumer  Retailer/Wholesaler  Producer

Setting the total promotional budget

4 different methods to set the “right” promotional budget
o Affordable method, percentage of sale method, competitive parity method,
task-method
Factors affecting budget decisions
o Stage in the product life cycle
o Competition
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How to manage CBBE? – How to evaluate consumers brand knowledge?
Key measures for managing CBBE:
o Brand identity  How many consumers know who is my brand?
o Brand meaning  How do they see my brand?
o Brand responses  What do they think/feel about my brand?
o Brand relationships  How much connection do they want to my brand?

Brand resonance pyramid (to evaluate brand knowledge)

Branding objective
Intensive active loyalty

Positive reactions

Pop and PoD

Brand Awareness

o One has to compare the rational and the emotional side

o Performance vs. Imagery
o Judgements vs. Feelings

Brand Salience = two levels of Brand Awareness

o Brand Awareness refers to the ability to recall and recognize the brand under different
conditions (depth=tiefe and breadth=breite) and to link the brand elements to
associations in memory
o In particular: Brand awareness helps the customer to understand the product category
in which the brand competes. It also ensures that customers know which of their
“needs” are fulfilled through the brand
o Depth of brand awareness refers to how easily customers can recall or recognize the
brand
o Breadth of brand awareness refers to the range of purchase and consumption
situations where the brand comes to mind
Brand Performance and Imaginary
o Reflect consumer’s associations regarding brands PoP’s and PoD’s
o These associations can be formed directly through experience or indirectly through
advertising
o Brand Performance: Describes how well the product meets customers more functional
needs (Price, Style and Design, Product reliability, service effectiveness)
o Brand Imaginary: Is the way people think about a brand abstractly. Refers to more
intangible aspects of the brand (Purchase and usage situations, user profiles, values
and personality)
o User profile: Venus razor = women, Gillette razor = men
o Purchase and usage situations: In which situations should consumers use or
buy the brand?  Mon Cherie example: Mainly as a gift
o Values and personalities:
▪ Sincerity (down-to-earth)  GE
▪ Excitement (up-to-date) Apple
▪ Competence (intelligent)  SAP
▪ Sophistication (upper class) Calvin Klein
▪ Ruggedness (tough)  Jack Wolfskin

Brand Judgements
Judgements representing the customers’ personal opinions about attitudes and evaluations of
the brand, by sum up all different brand performance and imaginary associations
o Judgements are important on these stages:
o Quality  product quality, perceived value
o Credibility  Does consumers see the company behind the brand as good
o Consideration  relevance of the brand
o Superiority  uniqueness of the brand

Brand Feelings
Brand feelings are customers’ emotional responses and reactions to the brand
o Types of feelings:
o Warmth, Fun, Excitement
o Security, Social approval, Self-respect
Brand Resonance (synchronization between customer and brand)
Describes the nature of the relationship between the brand and the customer
o Types of synchronization:
o Behavioural loyalty  repeat purchases
o Sense of community  for example Harley Davidson
o Active engagement  for example coCreate