What Brands means to us

Corporate Brand & Aim

Corporate Brand should:

differentiate the company from its competitors and other entities in favourable way for itself

should create value for the consumer

Aim: To influence people in a desired way so that the image of

the entity, the sender, will develop as is wished by the sender.

Everything can be branded

Branding is more of creating an identity. Anything & everything can be branded including:

Products

Services

Everything can be branded

Countries

Cities Suonenjoki Darjeeling

Individuals (constructing an identity for oneself)

Importance of Brand Consumers View

Brands 2 way approach

Sender Focused (Company)

Consumer Focused

Sender Focused Brand Identity e.g. Facebook, Reality shows Consumer Focused Brand Image

Brands from Customers View

Levy people buy things not only for what they can do, but also for what they mean

Consumer consumption choice = product utilities + Brand symbol

E.g. Nike, Adidas, Puma etc.

Identity Construction Process

Consumer Need for consumption

Brand + Image/Symbol

Product Utilities

Purchase/ Not purchase (if purchase) +ve/-ve memory (if +ve memory) Association with the Brand

Repurchase

No Purchase

Process is dynamic and relational

Earlier memories

Constructed over time

Experiences from multiple sources

Brand Image

Brand relationships live on also after our death

BRAND COMMUNITIES

Meaning

A specialised, non-geographically bound community, based on a structured set of social relationships among the admirers of a brand.

e.g. Harley Owners Group

3 Dimensions of a brand Community

Citroen 2CV-case study
1.

Consciousness of a kind- Group of people feel a collective similarity to another group and feel they are different from others.

2.

Ritual and traditions- The way in which people greet and welcome one another.

3 Dimensions of a brand Community

3. o

Moral obligationThe club members share the clubs history and stories from the earlier and what is expected from its members.
o

The members share appreciation and technical solutions of the brand and the beliefs with the other members of the community

Factors affecting Consumers Brand Image

Culture

Company

Consumers Own Experience

Earlier Images over Time

Other Important Sources

Brands as citizen-artists
o o

McDonaldization of the culture. Efficiency- minimization of time Calculability- objective should be quantifiable (e.g., sales) rather than subjective (e.g., taste).
o
o o

Predictability- Standardized and uniform services

Control Through the Substitution of Nonhuman for Human Technology The Irrationality of Rationality

Moral of the Case

Important to understand brands from consumers perspective Factors affecting Consumers brand image:
o o o o o

Brand Culture Consumers own experience Company/ Sender Earlier images over time Other important sources (friends, relatives etc.)