BRAND MANAGEMENT

TO:

MS. MARIAM WAZIRZADA & MS. KOMAL

BY:

KISA ZAIDI MAAHEEN SHUJA MADIHA MOHSIN NAZISH MOHAMMAD

(MBA 2; SECTION A)

[BRANDING BLUNDERS]

Lancia Dedra: this car sold poorly outside Italy, particularly in English-speaking markets, where research showed that people associated it with danger (apparently affected by the name's similarity to the word "dead") Honda : In 2001, Honda intended to release an automobile known as the Fit in Asian markets as the Honda Fitta on the European market. However, in Swedish and Norwegian, fitta is a crude reference to female genitalia, and the vehicle was rebranded Honda Jazz. McDonald's : In January 2005, McDonald's published banners proclaiming Double cheeseburger? I'd Hit It. In this obvious blunder, the copywriters mistook the strictly sexual slang expression for a term of general approval. Kentucky Fried Chicken: An advertising campaign in China attempting to translate the slogan Finger lickin' good! into Chinese failed miserably, proclaiming Eat your fingers off. Drake University: This university based in Des Moines, Iowa launched an undergraduate recruitment platform called the "Drake Advantage" in July 2010. The program utilized a recurring "plus" sign to pair ideas, including "Your passion + our experience," and featured a "D+" graphic to indicate the "Drake Advantage." University officials intended the D+ graphic to be a bold, ironic gesture that called to mind a low academic grade (See: United States grading system) but simultaneously reflected the advantages Drake had to offer. However, the graphic was met with resistance from some faculty, alumni and other members of the community and drew national media attention in September. Within a few days, university officials withdrew the D+ graphic from its undergraduate website, with a message from President David Maxwell acknowledging the university had heard and responded to community concerns. Maxwell and other university officials have cited studies showing the program has been effective as a recruitment tool Urban legends about brand blunders are popular, because they use familiar urban legend motifs such as the incompetent corporation or the ignorant foreigner. Often the reality is far less dramatic, and the stories, which are even retold in marketing textbooks, are rarely backed up by researched data about sales.

Electrolux: Scandinavian vacuum manufacturer Electrolux sold products successfully in the United Kingdom using the slogan "Nothing sucks like an Electrolux". The slang disparagement "sucks" is an example of Americanism, so many Americans think this is an example of such a blunder.[1] The slogan persists among minicomputer geeks as "Nothing sucks like a VAX", punning on the other UK vacuum brand Vax. Pepsi: Pepsi allegedly introduced their slogan into the Chinese market "Come alive with the Pepsi Generation" translated into Chinese it read "Pepsi brings your ancestors back from the grave".[2] Coca-Cola: The name Coca-Cola rendered phonetically in Chinese can sound like the words for "bite the wax tadpole" or "female horse stuffed with wax". Before marketing in China, the company found a close phonetic equivalent, kekou kele (pinyin romanization), which roughly means "let your mouth rejoice". It was never marketed by the company using the other phrases, though individual merchants may have made such signs.[3] In actuality, "bite the wax tadpole" in Mandarin Chinese is "K d u k n l." An urban legend holds that the Chevrolet Nova automobile sold poorly in Latin America, as "no va" means "won't go" in Spanish. In truth, the car sold well.[4] The same has been said of the Vauxhall Nova, which had to be sold as an Opel Corsa in Spain. In fact this too is a myth, with the Spanish market offering being known as a Corsa from the outset. Chances are you've heard about how Chevrolet had problems marketing the Chevy Nova automobile in Latin America. Since no va means "it doesn't go" in Spanish, the oft-repeated story goes, Latin American car buyers shunned the car, forcing Chevrolet to embarrassedly pull the car out of the market. In Israel, Korean car company Kia Motors adjusted their original pronunciation (IPA: [ki.a]) to sound like "Kaya" in promotional material, since a Hebrew slang pronunciation for "vomit" ( the normal pronunciation. ) sounds like the original brand name. This decision was later reversed, and now the company uses

The Honda Fit was originally intended to be named the "Fitta", but the name was shortened and in some markets renamed completely upon discovering that in several Nordic languages, "fitta" is a vulgar word for the female genitalia. The company Bic changed its name from Bich (French pronunciation: [bik]) to prevent it from being mispronounced in English speaking countries as bitch. In 1988, the General Electric Company (GEC) and Plessey combined to create a new telecommunications giant. A brand name was desired that evoked technology and innovation. The winning proposal was GPT for GEC-Plessey Telecommunications. A not very innovative name and not suggestive of technology and a total disaster for European branding. GPT is pronounced in French as Jai pt or I've farted. Gerber, the name of the famous baby food maker, is also the French word for vomiting. It becomes a bit limiting when you go global... Gerber is therefore not in France, and although Gerber has a French Canadian web page, it says "Les aliments pour bbs Gerber ne sont disponibles pour l'instant qu'aux tats-Unis" (French for: The baby food ain't here, try the U.S.) Liebfraumilch Wine: Liebfraumilch. "Lieb" means "dear" or "beloved" sometimes a reference to "God" or "holy". "Frau" is "woman", and "Milch" is "milk". Hence "beloved woman's milk", also translated as "Milk of the Virgin" or "Milk of Our Lady". E-mails also offered translations of "women love milk", and "loves woman milk" The european hardware store chain "Gtzen" opened a mall in Istanbul. "Gt" means "ass" in Turkish. They changed the name to "Tekzen" Traficante Mineral Water: Traficante is an Italian brand of mineral water. In Spanish, it means drug dealer Volkswagen named the sedan version of Golf the Jetta. However, the letter "J" doesn't exist in the Italian alphabet, so Jetta is pronounced "Ietta", which means Misfortune...