3. HOW BRANDS WORK

1. Contents
Using this guide
Introduction
Checklist
Case studies
3. HOW BRANDS WORK
don’t ‘work’ – surely it’s
“Brands money to make productsjust about
spending
look good?
”
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eGUIDE 1
Defining brands
Contents
> Using this guide
eGUIDE 2
Types of brands
eGUIDE 3
How brands work
eGUIDE 4
Brand strategy
> Introduction
> General ways in which brands work
> Specific ways in which brands work
> Brand positioning, brand image and brand
identity
eGUIDE 5
Managing and
developing brands
> Adding value to brands
> Measuring added value
eGUIDE 6
Brand portfolio and
architecture
> Checklist
> Case studies
eGUIDE 7
Measuring brands and
their performance
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Using this guide
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5. 3.
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Introduction
‘work’ –
“Brands don’tspending surely to
it’s just about
money
make products look good?
”
Brands are pivotal to the
relationship between
companies and their
customers.
A brand is the sum of the tangible and
intangible benefits provided by a product or
service and encompasses the entire customer
experience. Brands are thus pivotal to the
relationship between companies and their
customers. A successful brand has both a
unique point of differentiation from the
competition, and values that the customer
segment really wants. This added value allows
the company to add profit to the bottom line
and, ultimately, increase shareholder value.
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General ways in which brands work
eGuide 1: Defining brands
Influencers of choice
For the purchaser, brands act as influencers of
choice. The process of making a choice is
based on the total sum of the individual’s
beliefs and goes beyond simply the look of a
product on a shelf, or an attractive
advertisement. [Tuck, 1976]
The brand promise
Beliefs about the brand
can affect perceptions of
the physical
characteristics of the
product or the
performance of the
service.
Brands offer consumers a strong promise of
authenticity and replicability. Without these,
consumer decision-making becomes at best a
lottery and at worst a nightmare of choice.
This promise is more than an aid to decisionmaking, however. It actually creates value in
its own right by enhancing the experience of
owning or using the product or service.
There is evidence that beliefs about the brand
can affect perceptions of the physical
characteristics of the product or the
performance of the service. For example, for
many years
Marks & Spencer was said to have an excellent
reputation for service and yet customers often
found it difficult to obtain personal assistance
and there were no changing rooms. The brand,
supported by the store’s refund policy and the
quality of the merchandise, altered the
customer’s perception of the service they
received.
“A brand is fundamentally a promise made
credible by law and experience. At one level
this simply makes the decision making process
easier. At a higher level it can actually add to
consumers’ beneficial experience of a product
or service and thus create a value for which
people may be prepared to pay.” [Feldwick,
2002]
When they evaluate competing brands,
consumers judge to what extent the brands
have added value over and above the
commodity form of the brand. These added
values may be as simple as polite service from
a bank clerk, through to a complex cluster of
lifestyle associations by driving a particular
make of car. [de Chernatony, L., and
McDonald, M., 1998]
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As a marketing tool for the brand
owner
Figure 3.1: The purchase cycle
Think of each customer or potential customer on a purchase cycle.
AWARENESS
EXPERIENCE
CONSIDERATION
SELECT/PURCHASE
Brand role and relationship alters across this cycle.
Brand strategy is about creating ways in which
brands can be sold more effectively and hence
more profitably. This ranges from the
presentational aspects – like the label and
design, and the way the brand is advertised
and promoted – through to more fundamental
areas such as the relationship between the
corporate brand and sub-brands and
comparison with competitor brands.
Successful companies regard their brands as
strategic devices. They analyse the forces that
can influence the profitability of their brand,
identify a position for their brand that majors
on the brand’s unique advantages, and defend
this position against their competitors. By
adopting this perspective, the marketer
doesn’t just emphasise design, or advertising,
but instead coherently employs all the
company’s resources to sustain the brand’s
advantage over competitors. [de Chernatony,
L., and McDonald, M., 1998]
Source: Charlie Robertson, Red Spider (2002)
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“In an increasingly crowded marketplace, fools
will compete on price. Winners will find a way
to create lasting value in the customer’s
mind.” [Tom Peters, quoted in Aaker, 2001]
Specific ways in which brands work
eGuide 1: Defining brands
Brands work as:
As a differentiator
> a bridge between buyers and sellers
[Brands] help
create the
differentiation
companies need to
distance themselves
from the competition
and attract consumer
recognition and
loyalty.
For purchaser and brand owners, brands can
simplify and differentiate the product or
service. Brands are not only about names of
products or services or indeed companies.
They are powerful sources of added value
which, through careful management, skilful
promotion and wide use, come in the minds of
consumers to embrace a particular and
appealing set of values and attributes, both
tangible and intangible.
> influencers of choice
> a marketing tool
> surrogate people
> symbols of quality
> trust-marks
> career enhancers
These qualities have to be analysed,
understood and used as the basis for all brand
marketing and communications. This helps
create the differentiation companies need to
distance themselves from the competition and
attract consumer recognition and loyalty.
> signifiers of discernment
> spawning grounds for developing new
products
> magnets, even attracting vandals
> a source of added value.
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Brands work by:
Brands work to:
> creating an emotional response
> shock
> dividing people into ‘for me’ or ‘not for me’
> command a premium
> reassuring
> reassure
> tapping into values
> lower barriers to resistance
> appealing to the emotions
> generate affinity with users
> confirming beliefs
> promise consistency
> bypassing rational scrutiny
> create belief
> ‘raising the bar’ for competitors
> create markets
> operating differently across the purchase
cycle
> command a mindspace
> create loyalty.
> generating faith.
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Figure 3.2: Brand onion – cross-section showing the layers that underpin
brand positioning
Brand positioning, brand image and
brand identity
eGuide 4: Brand strategy – Positioning
External
eGuide 5: Managing brands
Case study: Gold
Internal
VISION
A snapshot
of the future
VALUES
A belief system.
A way of
working and
communicating
PERSONALITY
Informs all
communications
and consumer
perception
Source: Adapted from Interbrand (2002)
POSITIONING
A summary of
the Brand in
relation to
competition in
the consumer’s
mind
If a brand is essentially a customer perception,
positioning is the process by which a company
offers its brands to the consumer. The objective
of the positioning process is to make the offer
into a brand. If the brand is a simple, unified
personality, then it follows that the variety of
activities which contribute to it must be guided
by the target position. [Arnold, 1992]
Positioning can be defined as a consonance
between vision, values and brand.
Brand position, as defined in the Interbrand
model in Figure 3.2, comprises both internal
and external factors. The internal factors, like
brand vision and values, form a part of the
planned brand identity. External factors, like
perceived brand personality and the perceived
brand positioning in relation to competitors,
are how the brand is seen by consumers – the
brand image.
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Figure 3.3: Brand identity planning model
BRAND IDENTITY SYSTEM
STRATEGIC
BRAND
ANALYSIS
BRAND IDENTITY
IMPLEMENTATION SYSTEM
BRAND IDENTITY
Customer analysis
> trends
> motivation
> unmet needs
> segmentation
Competitor analysis
> brand image/identity
> strengths, strategies
> vulnerabilities
> positioning
Self analysis
> existing brand image
> brand heritage
> strengths/strategies
> organisation values
Brand as person
> personality
(eg, genuine,
energetic, rugged)
> customer/brand
relationships
Brand as product
> product scope
> product attributes
> quality/value
> uses
> users
> country of origin
Brand
essense
Value proposition
> functional benefits
> emotional benefits
> self-expressive
benefits
BRAND IDENTITY ELABORATION
Relationship
Core
BRAND POSITION
The part of the brand identity
and value proposition that is
to be actively communicated
to the target audience
Extended
Brand as organisation
> organisation attributes
(eg, innovation,
consumer concern,
trustworthy)
> local versus global
Brand as symbol
> visual image
and metaphors
> brand heritage
Credibility
> support other
brands
BRAND-BUILDING PROGRAMS
TRACKING
Source: Aaker and Joachimsthaler (2000), p.44
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Brand identity is a set of associations that the
brand aspires to create or maintain. It is the
planned expression of the brand values, the
input perspective. The way brand identity is
perceived by consumers and other
stakeholders constitutes the brand image – the
output perspective. Brand image, then, is the
sum of intended brand identity and any other
signs the brand gives to consumers, including
its relative positioning against competitors.
Brand image is the sum
of intended brand
identity and any other
signs the brand gives to
consumers, including its The development of brand identity relies
relative positioning on a thorough understanding of the firm’s
against competitors. customers (and other stakeholders),
competitors and its own business strategy.
The stakeholder analysis must not only
uncover target market characteristics, but also
their motivations and unmet needs. Studying
competitor’s positioning strategies is a key to
developing a differentiated brand identity. At
the same time, brand identity needs to reflect
the business strategy of the firm, its values
and the ability to deliver them consistently.
Figure 3.4: What brands are not
Products
Products or services are
what the company sells,
not what customers buy.
Convert products
to brands:
Add personality to the
product. Customers buy
brands which offer
benefits over and above
tangible, rational benefits
i.e. quality perception.
Labels
Convert labels to brands:
Labels provide information. Brands have image,
style and tone of voice –
added to the necessary
basic information. Go
beyond labelling, giving
your labels meaning and
emotional attachment.
Trademarks
A trademark is a sign that
identifies a particular brand
with its manufacturer or
owner, and distinguishes
it from other products.
Source: Branding Cannon (2002)
Convert trademarks
to brands:
Brands go beyond a
trademark and engender
trust in marks – the
trademark becomes
owned by the consumer
as well as the company.
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Adding value to brands
Figure 3.5: Sources of Added Value in Branding
1 On a simple level value is added to brands
through superior technology or systems to
give functional values beyond those of
competitors. These, however can be easily
copied by competitors. (eg, Intel computer
chips)
Expressive values 2 So expressive values should be added to
brands, which enable consumers to make
should be added to
statements about themselves that more
brands, which enable
clearly express aspects of their individual
consumers to make
personality. (eg, Apple Mac and being
statements about
creative and personable)
themselves that more
clearly express aspects 3 Central values can also be added and act as
the brand ‘soul’, showing what the brand
of their individual
believes in. (eg, Nike and irreverence)
personality.
Authenticity
Replicability
Reassurance
INNER
DIRECTED
OUTER
DIRECTED
Transformation of
experience
[de Chernatony, L., and McDonal, M., 1998]
Gluing together and harmonising these three
types of values is the brand’s vision. It
represents a view of how consumers can
become closer to the brand.
Differentiation
ADDED VALUE
Source: Feldwick in Cowley (1996) Understanding Brands, p.20
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Measuring added value
Figure 3.6: Brandshape®
A useful tool for measuring the added value of
your brand is the Brandshape® (See Figure
3.6).
KNOWLEDGE
How well recognised is the brand?
1 Spontaneous association with the category
2 Recognition of ID/brand iconography
RELATIONSHIP
How close do
consumers
feel to the brand?
7 Says things about
me that I like
8 Like what the
brand stands for
9 Lack of desired
substitution
1 2
7
8
9
3
4
5
6
AREA
What do
consumers
think the brand
is good at?
3 Focus – competence
4 Depth – stretch to
categories
5 Breadth – stretch
to unrelated
categories
6 Top quartile quality ranking
“How does any tool work? In itself it does
nothing. It is designed to satisfy a need in the
user. What makes it different is in comparison
to other tools in the box, and what it does not
do. To best understand how tools work in
practice, observe what users do with it, where,
and when to satisfy a need.” [Charlie
Robertson, Red Spider]
Compare Guinness and Virgin. Guinness is
associated with black beer almost exclusively.
Virgin, on the other hand, has very strong
values but isn’t necessarily associated with a
particular product/service.
eGuide 7: Measuring brands and their
performance
QUALITY
How well do the consumers think the brand performs?
Source: Charlie Robertson, Red Spider (2002)
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Checklist
> Make sure you have a clear understanding of
how your brands work in terms of the
stakeholders with whom they have a
relationship.
> See your brands as strategic devices.
> Use that vision to determine your marketing
strategy.
> Be specific about what brands are, and what
they are not?
> Specify the objectives of your brand
positioning.
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CASE STUDIES
1. Gold: Creating a new aura
2. Intel: The brand that inspired confidence in computing
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1. Gold : Creating a new aura
[Jane Wentworth, Senior Consultant Wolff
Olins, British Brands, Issue 15, Spring 2002]
Walk down the aisles of any supermarket. Fill
your trolley with Gold Blend instant coffee,
Terry’s All Gold chocolates, Kodak Gold film,
Golden Churn butter or Crispy Golden cod –
and you can pay for it all with a Visa Gold
card. Brand managers have hijacked gold for
their own purposes, creating a world of
‘pseudo gold’ in which products with limited
intrinsic worth are given status by association
with the world’s most ancient and revered
precious metal. No wonder gold is in trouble.
When last year the World Gold Council (the
international body responsible for promoting
and marketing gold world-wide) invited Wolff
Olins to create a new positioning and global
brand for gold, its market price was at a 20year low. In its second largest market, the US,
the top retailer of gold was the supermarket
chain K-Mart, where the average price tag was
just $90. The kind of people the Gold Council
wanted to reach were people who regarded
gold jewellery as old fashioned, ostentatious,
even tacky; people for whom metals like silver
and platinum were seen as more fashionable,
cooler, more desirable.
The task was to create a new look and feel for
gold that would provide a consistent
experience for consumers, wherever they
came into contact with the brand. This brand
had to reawaken consumers’ desire for gold
and act as a focal point for the Council’s
activities. More importantly, a simple, yet
powerful idea for gold was needed. An idea
that would drive every aspect of the brand,
not just the logotype, but the imagery, the
typography and the tone of voice; an idea that
would be both unique to gold and creatively
inspiring for the people who promote it.
The starting point was gold’s incomparably rich
cultural history. Since it was discovered over
7,000 years ago, it has inspired every
civilisation in history, not simply for its rarity
and beauty, but for its spiritual significance.
Gold is unique in its ability to link people to
other cultures as well as other eras. It’s this
idea of connection that made gold so special.
The idea for the Gold brand is about
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connection to the important emotional
moments in life, the profound emotions shared
by everyone: love, lust, joy, despair, passion,
tenderness.
If the Gold brand is to stand out against such
global luxury brands as Gucci or Tiffany, it
needs to be both compelling and distinctive, so
Gold has been adopted as the global name,
and is not translated into local languages. Gold
differs from other global brands by being a
commodity, albeit a rather special one. The
brand is not necessarily associated with
specific jewellery products, but with an idea of
what Gold itself stands for, an idea of
emotional fulfilment rather than mere
adornment. A photographic style was created
that uses images to suggest the idea of Gold
rather than literally focusing on a single piece
of jewellery.
In our search for a symbol for Gold, we turned
once again to its history. In almost all cultures
there is a symbolic relationship between gold
and the sun. In Europe, the alchemists used a
circle as their sign for both the sun and gold.
As the circle is also a universal icon for totality,
wholeness and continuity, it seemed an
appropriate place to start. The symbol
ultimately created for Gold consists of three
concentric circles, signifying past, present and
future and designed so that the relationship
between the three circles creates an optical
illusion of the glow, or aura, of gold.
Words are as important to the Gold brand as
the visual style. In addition to devising a
unique typeface for Gold, a distinctive tone of
voice was also developed, which, like music or
poetry, is capable of articulating big ideas and
deep emotions in a way that resonates across
different cultures. The way the four elements –
the mark, the typography, the visual style and
the language – all work together creates a rich
brand environment which is far more potent
than a simple logotype could ever be.
Apart from developing a new positioning and
brand expression for Gold, the work of
advertising, PR and media agencies also
needed co-ordinating. Creative agencies
naturally want to express their own ideas, but
if the overall message is to be coherently
expressed it is vital that this creativity is
driven by one single, overarching idea. Since
the launch of the Gold brand in May 2001, an
international print media campaign has been
rolled out and plans are under way to follow it
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up with film and TV campaigns. Promotional
events and conferences, PR activity, exhibitions
and trade fairs are all playing a vital role in
expressing the Gold brand consistently worldwide. Only if the brand idea – that gold
connects people to the important emotional
moments in their lives – underpins everything
the World Gold Council does, will perceptions
change and gold reclaim its rightful position as
the most noble of metals.
BACK
2. Intel: The brand that inspired
confidence in computing
The prevalence of the computer during the
1980s led to a wave of processor
manufacturers all vying for the attentions of
the computer manufacturers. Although the
market was clearly one of technical
advancement and fast-paced change, it soon
became clear that to compete in this market,
it would be necessary to differentiate by some
other means. Intel emerged from the race as a
clear winner, with a highly recognisable brand.
But how did Intel become a household name,
and what made consumers prefer to buy Intel,
without even understanding the technology
involved?
Intel found itself up against a major challenge:
ignorance. Most consumers did not understand
what a computer processor was, let alone how
it could help them with their day-to-day
computing needs.
The fear of obscelecence or even that the
personal computer wouldn’t meet their needs
at all made the purchase a risky one for
consumers. Software capabilities were often
used as the sole currency for purchase
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evaluation. The only real benefit to the
consumer of an enhanced processor was the
certainty that it would improve their software
potential. Purchases hinged on this promise.
Intel soon realised that if it was to contend
with competitors, it needed to appeal to the
end customer, the personal computer user who
expected increasingly resource-hungry
software applications. It also knew that most
computer buyers do not possess the necessary
technical expertise to make such highinvolvement purchases on the back of product
specification alone.
Future needs are an important purchase
concern, and Intel needed to overcome
hesitation, indecision and ambiguity, and
reduce the perceived risk from the whole
transaction. The aim was to make the Intel
name a beacon of confidence in an ocean of
uncertainty. The brand had to win trust and
create a preference in the minds of
consumers. Buyers didn’t want to feel that
they were fumbling in the dark without the
necessary information to make a satisfactory
decision. The challenge was to make the
microchip more visible and to make it a key
purchase determinant.
Lack of confidence meant that customers were
often willing to pay over the odds for a name
they could trust. ‘Intel Inside’ was a mark of
reassurance, a symbol that inspired
confidence.
Once it had won consumers trust and
preference, Intel used the newfound demand
to pull its product down the distribution
channels. Manufacturers were soon forced to
build the Intel chip into their systems, to meet
the demand of their customers. A cooperative
advertising approach was taken up with
manufacturers, using the ‘Intel Inside’ logo to
validate the purchase in the mind of the
customer.
The Intel brand has inspired confidence in
computing for millions of consumers
worldwide, and this relationship of
unshakeable trust and assurance is
instrumental in the brand’s continued
competitive advantage.
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