When it comes to branding, the first question you should always be thinking is ‘what actually is branding?” For Keller, A brand is a set of mental associations held by a consumer, which adds to the perceived value of a product or service. So basically, the thoughts you have about a certain product and service is down to the thoughts you have about a brand. When someone mentions coke, people think of Pepsi and Coca Cola because of the associations us as consumers have engrained into the mind.
Brands also have assets. These assets held by a brand can be awareness, exclusivity, superiority and/or emotional bonding. Each one can be categorised, sometimes they can be intangible; these are categories such as databases etc. Assets can also be conditional; this is so these assets can deliver benefits, financial value- essentially, they need to work in conjunction with other material assets such as production facilities.
From brands and branding, comes brand management. This starts with creating products, services and/or places that embody the brand you’re building or working for. One of the main things a growing brand should do is get themselves trademarked, this makes the brand some kind of property which is defended against infringements and counterfeiting.
To build a good brand, you need a good name. You’ll be looking for something easily pronounceable around the world- more importantly if you want to be an international brand. You need to make sure your name isn’t offensive internationally even if it is completely find in its ‘home’ country. A good name allows for evoking desirable associations; this seems really simple, but it can actually become rather difficult. A good name is the first step in getting your brand off the ground, and a good name can only help you in the long term.
The name becomes a brand, the associations of saliency, differentiability, intensity and trust attached to the name is what makes up the brand. If you have positive associations, you’re a positive brand, negative connotations equal a negative brand image. In order to influence buyers, relies heavily on the mental associations, the representations and relationships of a brand, especially if you have certain celebrities or famous faces as the face.
The attitudes of consumers can move from a simple liking to advocacy or fanaticism. Its these consumers who become advocates for the brand that really influence the addition of new and advancing consumers.
To gain market share and leadership, the brand must be able to conjure up a big idea, and attractive; experienced by people at contact points; activated by deeds and behaviours; communicated and distributed.
In summary, a brand is a shared desirable and exclusive idea embodied in products, services, places and/or experiences. The more this idea is shared by a larger number of people, the more power the brand has.
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