Why Branding Matters

And just in case you're not yet convinced that branding is something your company should be concerned with, here are some reasons that should get your attention.

For example, a successful brand can benefit you in the following ways.

#   Separate you from your competitors, in a unique way, that is relevant (and     motivating) to your customers, prospects and channels -- it gives you value and     makes you special!

#   Enhance your perceived value, thereby supporting premium pricing, sheltering     you from low price competition and contributing to shareholder value. Companies     like Morgan Stanley look to evidence of brand strength in setting buy ratings.

#   Provide resilience in times of negative press.

#   Enable you to launch new products more quickly and cost effectively.
    Remember: brands happen, with or without you. It is up to you to be pro-active in     shaping the identity and strength of your brand image.

Successful branding

As branding can make or break a product, marketer should handle it with the same concern as the artisans show in their work. All the activities that are taken under the umbrella of a brand add to or subtract from the value. The customer's evaluation of a brand is a result of all the consumer experiences he has had with the brand. Consumer experience includes product, services, personal contacts, advertising, promotions, word of mouth, etc.

This mix of memories which are built up over a long time makes the brand potentially the most powerful giver of the intangible perceived values. After all the first thought that comes to the mind of the customer prior to the purchase of the product is 'who has made it'. If that brand has good reputation, it gives the customer confidence to buy the product.

From an operational point to view, a company should be very careful on when and how a brand is used. If good brand is used for poorly perceived products, the brand will be devalued. If a company repeats that on a number of product launches, the brand will lose much of its power to give a positive intangible value. On the other hand if the products are perceived as good, the value of the brand will increase.
If your interest in branding is more than a curiosity, and you would like some practical tips on how to get started, here's what I would suggest. Listed below are ten major steps to brand management, from initial brand strategy development, to lining up key political and functional support, implementation through marketing programs, to follow-up, feedback and continuous refinement.

1. The company -- by utilizing Executive Interviews, understand your company     history, its products, senior management's objectives, their view of the market     and their commitment to branding. To succeed, your branding program must have     their understanding and support - and must serve company objectives.

2. The competition -- audit the marketing communications of major competitors to     determine the range of "values" that drive the category, how competitors     "position" themselves, and what positions are claimed, how strongly, and which     are not claimed, hence available.

3. The customer -- develop a questionnaire from above two steps and interview key     customers and prospects to gauge awareness, learn what "brand values" are     most important to them and determine how you and your competitors are rated     on these values.

4. Develop brand strategy -- from above steps (the three C's: Company, Competition     and Customer) develop recommended brand positioning that is achievable,     differentiating, compelling, likable and long term.

5. Gain buy-in -- sell brand positioning across company, vertically to top     management and laterally to all departments that have outside public contact.     Avoiding "turf' issues of internal politics is key issue here. Gain allies and     commitment.

6. Develop integrated communications plan -- leverage brand strategy through     integration across all the departments that produce them, along with their outside     agencies. Also, look to extend brand strategy into non-marcom departments     (customer service, tech support), as well as applications on the Internet.

7. Execute creatively -- firm control is needed by the company to assure adherence     to brand. Try not to let your management become the creative director, especially     if you have good talent at your agency. You should also address the frequently     asked question - "do I brand or do I sell product?" Answer: "yes", to both!

8. Build in continuity -- incorporate consistency in media scheduling, adequacy of     spending levels and extend brand messages across products and across     campaigns. Don't just plan a launch campaign for 2-3 months and then "go dark"     for the balance of the year.

9. Measure performance -- obtain feedback by setting up a response analysis     system for individual media, as well as a tracking system to measure     effectiveness of marketing investments where they are best tested -- in the     market.

10. Continuously evaluate and improve -- by learning from measurement systems,     be strong enough to make changes as needed, yet have the faith and courage to     be patient and let your marketing programs build your brand. Along the way,     senior management and certain "vocal" peers may need coaching on patience.     An important tool is to have objective metrics that measure the performance of     your branding program in creating awareness, attitude shift, etc.