Brand Management – an Effective Tool for Successful Business

A brand is not just a name, product, or service. It is the soul of a business! It is the impression of a business that links, interacts, and creates a bond
with customers, employees, suppliers, and stakeholders.

It encompasses everything from the initiation of a normal business to its extension in various dimensions. It carries the reputation and associates it
with various other businesses in the industry. It is also the face of the company that is navigated by the search engines to reach the appropriate
customer and client base. In other words, it is the mark that distinguishes your company from start to end.

When people see a brand, they find it to be a set of visual and verbal cues but, for any organization, it can be referred to as –
 Business, Reputation, Association, Navigation, and Dimension

“A brand for a company is like a reputation for a person. You earn a reputation by trying to do hard things well.”

– Jeff Bezos

Brand Management

Branding is a long-term process that requires high commitment throughout, especially in its initial phase. Nurturing and monitoring it over time to
build a strong image is called Brand Management.

It maintains the voice of the company through all the channels, whether retailer, editorial, or advertising. It creates a clear view of the company on
the traditional as well as a digital platform so that the customer’s purchase process is maintained. It includes two components,

 Tangible, such as product, price, packaging and customer experience

 Intangible, such as the emotional connection of the customer with the product

Benefits of Effective Brand Management

The process of brand management might be challenging but the result is always furthering. Some of the benefits you attain are –

 Increases your brand equity

 Expands your brand identity
 Optimizes your brand value
 Boosts your brand awareness
 Enhances your brand sustenance
 Measures your brand growth
 Build loyal customers

Basic Principles of Brand Management

To evaluate your branding efforts and eventually succeed, you must include some factors. These specialized factors will help you break free of the
ordinary norm and come up with a unique way to promote your brand. The components that build up these ideas are easy to understand and even
easier to implement.

Brand Awareness is the likelihood, with which the customers link a certain brand with a specific product. It is the familiarity that people have with
your brand when they are out for purchase or to acquire any service. It goes hand in hand with brand recognition and brand recall. Sometimes
brand awareness is even improved to grab the attention and make it easy for consumers to spell, like in the case of Coca-Cola, now known as Coke.

Brand Recognition is the identity of your brand that customers recall while making a purchase, like the color, logo, tagline, slogan, packaging, etc. It
plays a very important role in instantly keeping a top place in people’s minds and when they are out to purchase, it signals their minds.
Brand Equity is the differential impact, perception, and impression of the brand on the consumers. It defines the value and strength of any brand
that becomes the consumer choice in the marketplace. Thus, the brand often links their products with the situations to associate with their
customers in the memory and help them make choices whenever they make a purchase. The equity is often measured with the increase in sales
volume, price premium charged, return to shareholders, and several other parameters.

Brand Loyalty is the consistency of the customers that are engaged with you over any competition. It is measured by brand trust, price sensitivity,
commitment, the mouth of the public, and so on. This involves the efforts of customer service more than the marketer, as the satisfaction of the
customers also plays a huge role.

Quick Tip – Brand Loyalty is not Customer Loyalty, it is the loyalty of the brand to provide its customer with the right
kind of product with the right kind of service and be available for them at every point.

Strategies of Brand Management

Simply following the traditional strategies won’t be effective as there is a lot that has changed in the business world in the past few years. With
globalization, the competition has become hardcore and it needs some groundbreaking ideas to set the stage at large.

Unique Selling Proposition

USP is the strategy that makes you different from your competitors. The most opinionated and deliberated USP influences branding, marketing,
messaging, and copywriting, making your business stand out.

Before creating your USP, you should understand your products and see if it fits correctly in your market. You can ask yourself some questions and
check where you belong.

Is my product durable?

Is it cost-effective?

How is it different from my competitors?

Is it innovative?

Will it last long in the market?

Does it focus on what customers value?

When you are clear with your question, you will be able to come out with the USP for your brand. Using the USP to market and promote your
brand will instantly help you show the face of your company to the audience and grab their attention in the marketplace.
 Quick Tip – USP is not the offer, discount, or facility that you give to your customer. It is the message that you wish
to convey to the consumers so that they choose you over your competitors.

Comprehensive Model

Shift your focus to a comprehensive approach rather than just an evaluative approach. Evaluation is not a complete strategy instead, just part of
the strategy. Most businesses concentrate on the link between marketing campaigns and the firm’s brand value, while others investigate the
relationship between the brand and the premium price of the company’s products. Only a few focus on the trilateral relationship i.e. interaction
between marketing campaigns, brands, and sales.

You need to make a basic plan followed by a sustainable plan so that you can evaluate and then re-evaluate the strategy using the trilateral
relationship.

Brand Assets

Brand Assets include all the tangible characteristics of branding that the audience can see, perceive and remember. Crafting the elements and
maintaining their consistency throughout can be a tough task, so it is important to organize your assets and restrict access to maintain the
consistency of your brand. Moreover, a routine check is also necessary to avoid overlooking.

There are many assets but the main ones include Brand Name, Brand Color, Website, Brand Message, and Marketing Channels like Instagram,
Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and others.

Tips to Boost Management

After exploring the principles and the strategies, you must be clear about the amount of effort you need to put in to make your brand promising.
But it is also important to understand that while handling business there are a lot of aspects to be taken care of like production, service, sales, and
shipment because of which brand management becomes a very difficult task.

So, there are a couple of choices that businesses can take to uplift their brand while reducing pressure.

Use Software System

Businesses can internally use software to maintain and organize different brand assets. The most exceptional features of the software may provide
access to style guides for logos, pictures, and font and they can also take care of the copyright and security issues that are of great concern.

Outsource Service

There are many B2B companies that take responsibility for branding your assets. The most specialized ones help you from scratch to meet your
needs so that you are free to handle other issues well.
How can We be a Great Help?

At ANS Commerce, we help companies to expand their brand position with increased sales. We help businesses focus on their core while providing
them with all the other services like performance marketing, marketplace management, warehousing, and fulfillment. We provide e-commerce
consultation via. technology interventions for the brandstore so that they are aware of the current gap and can adopt the best industrial practice to
funnel improvement. We also serve businesses with our integral product, Kartify which lays the base for setting up an online presence. For any
assistance, you can request your DEMO now!

AuthorTanpreet KaurPosted onDecember 9, 2021CategoriesE-commerceTagsecommerce brandstore

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5 WAYS OF SUCCESSFUL BRAND MANAGEMENT

The concept of brand management revolves around building a memorable experience for customers. It's about establishing your brand’s identity
through your company’s logo, website, products, taglines, and colour codes. All these elements of branding help in overall brand management and
enable one to stay on the same page and consequently understand the overall direction the brand is headed. For example, McDonald's is one such
fast food chain that has cultivated a mind-jabbing branding strategy. Whenever you hear the phrase "I'm loving it," you know it's McDonald's.
Whenever we see the yellow and red joker, the word M, the constant thing that comes to mind is McDonalds. In a research done by students of
an MBA institute in Kolkata on brand management, it was found that 77 percent of consumers buy from brands that have established their
identity as they have gained the trust of their target audience. The importance of brand management cannot be emphasized enough. Here are five
ways you can establish a successful brand management process.

1. Lay down a set of brand management rules

The first step towards establishing a branding process is laying down brand management rules. You must lay down the current brand image of your
company and set achievable targets. It entails defining the standards that brand assets must meet as well as the procedures for managing brand
assets, such as use cases, image rights, and the brand's logo and design. Maintaining a record of the established guidelines and maintaining them so
that everyone involved in utilizing and managing brand assets has access to them is equally important.
2. Create a buyer persona for brand management

Your target audience is the foundation of your brand management strategy. When setting a brand management strategy, it is essential for you to
analyse the buyer persona. A buyer persona means who is your target audience: gender, location, buying habits, income level, etc. Any information
you can obtain about your target audience will help you better tailor your message and brand content to appeal to them. Many management
colleges in Kolkata have a distinctive course structure that makes the students aware of how to do research and find out their buyer persona.

3. Build an emotional connection with your target audience

Have you ever seen the TV commercial for Colgate? It says, "Har Maa Ka Bharosa". With this distinctive branding strategy, they were able to build
an emotional connection with their target audience—that is, the mothers, the housewives, and the individuals who take care of the basic
necessities of the household. In addition to carving out a space for themselves in the global food market, many companies are now well-known.
Additionally, their product placement on the big screen supported marketing objectives and helped in building relationships with a diverse
customer base.

4. Focus on the branding elements

One of the most important aspects of the brand management process is the branding elements. The logo, tagline, and color code are the most
important aspects of a brand since they allow customers to recognise a business right away. Think about the Apple logo. Well, it's just a bitten
apple, which is fairly common and unremarkable. However, those who swear by Apple products instantly connect the logo with the company. For
this reason, creating a unique logo that supports the business's theme is crucial for brand positioning.

5. Be consistent with your brand management strategies

Last but not the least, be consistent with your branding efforts. Many firms lack consistency. For a brand to expand and mature, consistency is
necessary. Why should customers choose your company's brand above others? Apart from the services and products you offer, what else makes
your brand distinctive? Simply put, there may be hundreds of brands with comparable offers to yours; but, it's not just the items or services that
draw buyers to a brand. The secret to forging an enduring connection with your audience is consistency. You must demonstrate a degree of trust
and transparency that is more precious than any material value if you want them to select you over a rival. To put it another way, the message you
spread about your brand should be consistent throughout everything you do.

A business's journey from a "company" to a "brand" requires stagnant efforts and great strategies. A recognisable and consistent brand that is
present on both traditional and digital channels is a company's most valuable asset. However, managing a brand strategically and efficiently across
a variety of stakeholders and constantly evolving delivery channels can be quite a difficult task. As a result, organisations must maintain a unified
tone and identity across all channels while also paying attention to brand asset management. The Bengal Institute of Business Studies is one of
the top B-schools in Kolkata that provides you with a masters in business administration. This course gives you access to vital knowledge in the
fields of marketing and brand management.

What Is Brand Management? Requirements, How It Works, and Example

By
MITCHELL GRANT

Updated May 21, 2023

Reviewed by
THOMAS J. CATALANO
Investopedia / Mira Norian

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What Is Brand Management?

Brand management is a function of marketing that uses techniques to increase the perceived value of a product line or brand over time. Effective
brand management enables the price of products to go up and builds loyal customers through positive brand associations and images or a strong
awareness of the brand.

Developing a strategic plan to maintain brand equity or gain brand value requires a comprehensive understanding of the brand, its target market,
and the company's overall vision.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

 Brand management is a function of marketing that uses techniques to increase the perceived value of a product line or brand over time.
 Effective brand management helps a company build a loyal customer base and helps fuel a company's profits.
 A brand manager ensures the innovation of a product or brand, creating brand awareness via the use of price, packaging, logo, associated
colors, and lettering format.
 Brand management is usually centered around fostering the brand recognition, brand equity, and brand loyalty of a product.
 Brand equity refers to the value a company gains from its name recognition, enabling it to be the popular choice among consumers even
when compared to a generic brand with a lower price point.

How Brand Management Works

Brands have a powerful influence on customer engagement, competition in the markets, and the management of a company. A strong brand
presence in the market differentiates a company’s products from its competitors and creates brand affinity for a company’s products or services.

A brand that has been established has to continually maintain its brand image through brand management. Effective brand management
increases brand awareness, measures and manages brand equity, drives initiatives that support a consistent brand message, identifies and
accommodates new brand products, and effectively positions the brand in the market.

It takes years to establish a brand, but when it finally occurs, it has to still be maintained through innovation and creativity. Notable brands that
have established themselves as leaders in their respective industries over the years include Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, Microsoft, IBM, Procter &
Gamble, CNN, Disney, Nike, Ford, Lego, and Starbucks.

Benefits of Brand Management

 Distinguished Products. According to the most recent U.S. Census data, there were over 250,000 full-service restaurants in the United
States as of 2019.1 Strong brand management is necessary if any of these restaurants want to be recognizable apart from their
competitors.
 Strong Employee Engagement. Brand management begins with the internal buy-in of the values, principles, and perception of a product.
By ensuring all people in a company are part of the brand management process, employees may be more likely to buy into the strategic
plan of the brand and company.
 Increased sales quantity. Though never a given, stronger brand management that drives brand loyalty and brand equity may drive
stronger sales quantities. As more consumers are tied to a brand or positively recognize a brand, they are more likely to choose it over an
unfamiliar alternative (all else being equal).
 Increased CLV. Customer lifetime value. In addition to greater sales quantities, brand management drives stronger value over the lifespan
of a customer. Customers are more likely to repeat purchases if they have a positive experience and may be more likely to buy different
products along the same product line if they forge strong brand loyalty with a single brand.
 Leveraged Pricing. If a company has a strong reputation with the market, their brand management may be leveraged to other products.
This means a company can sell products at a premium if their brand invokes a strong enough connection to consumers (i.e. Apple).
  Less Volatile Market Position. Though companies always risk depressed financial results during market downturns, companies with
stronger brand management may be able to weather the storm easier. This is because consumers may find it non-negotiable to deviate
from companies they have strong, positive associations with even during inclement financial times.

Effective Brand Management Techniques

Brand management may seem complex, but there are a number of simple, elegant techniques that make the process manageable. Here are some
of the more effective ways brand management occurs.

Establish Branding Basics

Brand management often begins with the basics, and that means establishing a strong mission statement, logo, target audience, and vision
statement. Though these are often created by the marketing team during a company or product's infancy, it is up to the brand management team
to further refine and drive the branding basics.

Create Compelling Stories

As the product or company begins to be used by consumers, it is critical that the brand management team strengthens the relationship between
the good and user. This means capitalizing on emotional stories by tapping into the human connection to however the company's products are
being used.

Leverage Software

Often guided by social media and a website, brand management must be cohesive across all media platforms. This includes any televised, radioed,
or printed advertising. The more marketing channels a company has, the more important it is for brand management to cohesively link these to
convey a single, consistent message to consumers.

Consider Branding Language

On a related note, the brand management process must be guided by a consistent use of language and tone. This may be easier to convey using
photos or printed advertisements. However, different challenges may arise if different people are managing different marketing channels. As long
as the receiving channels are the same across product lines, the brand management team must ensure the wording and feeling behind
communications are consistent.

Establish Internal Rules

All of the tips above don't matter if the internal branding and marketing teams aren't aligned. Therefore, the brand management team must
effectively implement limits and rules on how certain activities are performed. For example, the brand management team may restrict the use to
certain fonts, images, designs, or color schemes. Any deviations from these rules must be run through the brand management team for special
approval.

Brand Management Elements

There’s three critical elements to brand management: equity, recognition, and loyalty. Though it may be difficult to quantifiably measure the
benefits of each, brand management plays a direct part in developing all three aspects of a brand.

Brand Recognition

Brand management often starts with brand recognition. If a company can’t invoke positive emotions in consumers when they see a brand, that may
be no brand to manage. In addition, brand recognition entails ensuring recognition of a brand invokes a favorable response instead of brand
opposition.
This is especially important for new products being brought to market; a company must decide how to best manage that brand and invest upfront
capital to make the brand more recognizable. On the other hand, more established brands must decide how many resources to allocate to
maintain or strengthen a brand's existing position.

Brand Equity

Brand equity is the commercial value of a product’s image. Though a company doesn’t actually receive the direct dollars of value from its products
having high brand equity, brand equity often translates to greater sales as consumers associate a product or brand with greater value. Brand equity
is built over time through positive experiences, associates, and demonstrated value.

Consider an example of a billboard displaying an advertisement for Powerade. Because of the positive name association of Powerade (via
partnerships with professional sports leagues and massive markets), it may have greater brand equity than a generic brand. Similar to how a
company may become more valuable over time as it becomes worth more, a brand’s value can increase over time in the same way.

Brand Loyalty

A customer may recognize a brand, and a customer may even assess strong positive value with a brand. However, if that customer is easily swayed
to pivot to a competing product, brand management has failed. The objective of brand loyalty is invoke such as strong relationship between the
consumer and the brand that the consumer can't fathom diverting from the brand's products.

Whereas brand recognition occurs on the front-end of brand management, brand loyalty is a long-term achievement that is earned in a variety of
ways. Companies must demonstrate their products meet consumer needs. In addition, companies must ensure strong customer service ensures a
customer has a positive experience along the entire life of the product.

Smaller companies with lower headcount may have one dedicated team to both the creation of (brand management) and implementation of
(marketing) branding strategies.

Brand Management vs. Marketing

Brand management and marketing both appear to do the same thing; after all, both departments influence how external stakeholders perceive the
company's or product's brands. However, there are subtle differences between the two.

Marketing Initially Leads, Brand Management Follows

When companies or products are launched, those companies or divisions may not have a fully dedicated team for brand management. Instead,
they more often have a collection of marketing professionals that guide the initial external management of public perception. That marketing team
may own many initial aspects of brand management, though their role often entails much more than simply honing in on a branding strategy.

Marketing Is Broad, Brand Management Is Specific

As a product line or company matures, the brand in question may receive more resources, especially if the brand has been successful. At this point,
the brand management team documents, defines, and formalizes the brand strategy. This plan is much more detailed than the initial plans laid out
by the marketing team. In addition, the brand management team will be more likely to collect information from other departments to ensure a
broader, company-wide adoption of the brand management implementation plan.

Marketing Is More External, Brand Management Is More Internal

The marketing team of a company is primarily focused on the outside interactions. This includes communications, event presence, public
perception, and public relations. Though these aspects may play a part in crafting the brand, brand management is more internally-focused on
strategically devising the course of action. Brand management is more likely to outline the strategy and internal buy-in, whereas marketing is more
likely to implement the external strategy and external acceptance of the brand.

Examples of Brand Management

For some, seeing a gecko reminds them of GEICO Insurance which uses the reptile in most of its advertising campaigns. Similarly, the Coca-Cola
jingle "It’s the Real Thing," which first aired in 1971 as a TV commercial that featured people of different races and cultures, is still popular and
familiar to generations of Coca-Cola consumers.

A brand does not have to be tied to one product. One brand could cover different products or services. Ford, for example, has multiple auto models
under the Ford brand. Likewise, a brand name can take on multiple brands under its umbrella.

For example, Procter & Gamble has multiple brands under its brand name, such as Ariel laundry detergent, Charmin tissue, Bounty paper towels,
Dawn dishwashing liquid, and Crest toothpaste.

Requirements of a Brand Manager

A brand manager is tasked with managing the tangible and intangible properties of a brand. The tangible aspects of a company’s brand include the
product's price, packaging, logo, associated colors, and lettering format.

A brand manager’s role is to analyze how a brand is perceived in the market by taking the intangible elements of a brand into account. Intangible
factors include the experience that the consumers have had with the brand and their emotional connection with the product or service. The
intangible characteristics of a brand build brand equity.

Brand equity is the price above the product’s value that consumers are willing to pay to acquire the brand. Brand equity is an internally generated
intangible asset in which its value is ultimately decided by consumers’ perception of the brand. If consumers are willing to pay more for a brand
than a generic brand that performs the same functions, the brand equity will increase in value. On the other hand, the value of brand equity falls
when consumers would rather purchase a similar product that costs less than the brand.

A cult brand is an example of a "benign cult" where the customer base for a product or service is extremely loyal, leading to the brand's success as
a growing legion of customers feel a unique emotional connection with the brand.

The Importance of Innovation in Brand Management

Brand management involves not only creating a brand but also understanding what products could fit under the brand of a company. A brand
manager always has to keep its target market in mind when conceiving new products to take on the company’s brand or working with analysts to
decide what companies to merge with or acquire.

The difference between brand management success and failure comes down to ongoing innovation. A brand manager that continuously seeks
innovative ways to maintain the quality of a brand will retain its loyal consumers and gain more brand affinity, compared to one that is content
with the current good name of the company’s brand.

What Is Meant By Brand Management?

Brand management is the creation and enforcement of rules surrounding how a company or product is communicated to markets. This includes
dictating boundaries on advertising, language, tone, and cadence of communication with customers.

Why Is Brand Management Important?

Brand management is important because it dictates how public markets perceive goods. Without brand management, consumers may not become
loyal to a product line or may not choose to repeat purchases with a company after a positive experience. Effective brand management may lead to
not only to greater sales quantities in the short-term but greater long-term financial success due to long-term customers.

What Is the Goal of Brand Management?

The goal of brand management is to form a specific perception about a product or company. By strategically determining the font, language, style
of messaging, and marketing plans, the brand management team hopes to make the public see a product or company in a specific light.
The Bottom Line

Brand management is the vague strategy of guiding public perception of a good, product, service, or company. Brand management is heavily tied to
creating brand equity, loyalty, and recognition. It is also formulated by a dedicated team, most often after the marketing team has built-out an
initial marketing plan. By effectively building out a brand management strategy, a company may experience stronger short-term and long-term
financial success.

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PART OF
Business Basics Guide

Business Development: Definition, Strategies, Steps & Skills
1 of 46


Business Ethics: Definition, Principles, Why They're Important
2 of 46


Business Plan: What It Is, What's Included, and How to Write One
3 of 46


Organizational Structure for Companies With Examples and Benefits
4 of 46


Which Type of Organization Is Best For Your Business?
5 of 46


What Are the Major Types of Businesses in the Private Sector?
6 of 46


Corporate Culture Definition, Characteristics, and Importance
7 of 46

What Is an S Corp? Definition, Taxes, and How to File
8 of 46


LLC vs. Incorporation: Which Should I Choose?
9 of 46


Private Company: What It Is, Types, and Pros and Cons
10 of 46


Sole Proprietorship: What It Is, Pros & Cons, and Differences From an LLC
11 of 46


Bootstrapping Definition, Strategies, and Pros/Cons
12 of 46


Crowdfunding: What It Is, How It Works, and Popular Websites
13 of 46


Seed Capital: What It Is, How It Works, Example
14 of 46


Venture Capital: What Is VC and How Does It Work?
15 of 46


Startup Capital Definition, Types, and Risks
16 of 46


Capital Funding: Definition, How It Works, and 2 Primary Methods
17 of 46


Series Funding: A, B, and C
18 of 46


Small Business Administration (SBA): Definition and What It Does
19 of 46


Upper Management: What it is, How it Works
20 of 46


What is the C Suite?: Meaning and Positions Defined
21 of 46

Chief Executive Officer (CEO): What They Do vs. Other Chief Roles
22 of 46


Operations Management: Understanding and Using It
23 of 46


Human Resource Planning (HRP) Meaning, Process, and Examples
24 of 46


Brand: Types of Brands and How to Create a Successful Brand Identity
25 of 46


What Is Brand Personality? How It Works and Examples
26 of 46


What Is Brand Management? Requirements, How It Works, and Example
27 of 46


What Is Brand Awareness? Definition, How It Works, and Strategies
28 of 46


Brand Loyalty: What It Is, and How to Build It
29 of 46


Brand Extension: Definition, How It Works, Example, and Criticism
30 of 46


What Is Social Networking?
31 of 46


Affiliate Marketer: Definition, Examples, and How to Get Started
32 of 46


What Is Commercialization, Plus the Product Roll-Out Process
33 of 46


Digital Marketing Overview: Types, Challenges & Required Skills
34 of 46


Direct Marketing: What It Is and How It Works
 35 of 46


Marketing in Business: Strategies and Types Explained
36 of 46


What Are Marketing Campaigns? Definition, Types, and Examples
37 of 46


How to Do Market Research, Types, and Example
38 of 46


Micromarketing Explained: Definition, Uses, and Examples
39 of 46


Network Marketing Meaning and How It Works
40 of 46


Product Differentiation: What It Is, How Businesses Do It, and the 3 Main Types
41 of 46


Target Market: Definition, Purpose, Examples, Market Segments
42 of 46


Outside Sales: What They are, How They Work
43 of 46


What Is a Sales Lead? How It Works and Factors Affecting Quality
44 of 46


Indirect Sales: What it is, How it Works
45 of 46


What Is Inside Sales? Definition, How It Works, and Advantages
46 of 46

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Brand equity refers to the value a company gains from a product with a recognizable and admired name when compared to a generic equivalent.
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Brand Equity: Definition, Importance, Effect on Profit Margin, and Examples

By
ADAM HAYES

Updated May 30, 2023

Reviewed by
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Fact checked by
KATRINA MUNICHIELLO

Fact checked by Katrina Munichiello

Full Bio

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What Is Brand Equity?

Brand equity refers to a value premium that a company generates from a product with a recognizable name when compared to a generic
equivalent. Companies can create brand equity for their products by making them memorable, easily recognizable, and superior in quality and
reliability. Mass marketing campaigns also help to create brand equity.

When a company has positive brand equity, customers willingly pay a high price for its products, even though they could get the same thing from
a competitor for less. Customers, in effect, pay a price premium to do business with a firm they know and admire. Because the company with
brand equity does not incur a higher expense than its competitors to produce the product and bring it to market, the difference in price goes to
their margin. The firm's brand equity enables it to make a bigger profit on each sale.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

 Brand equity refers to the value a company gains from its name recognition when compared to a generic equivalent.
 Brand equity has three basic components: consumer perception, negative or positive effects, and the resulting value.
 Brand equity has a direct impact on sales volume and a company's profitability because consumers gravitate toward products and
services with great reputations.
 Often, companies in the same industry or sector compete on brand equity.
Investopedia / Yurle Villegas

Elements and Importance of Brand Equity

Brand equity has a few basic components: consumer perception, negative or positive effects, and the resulting value. Foremost, consumer
perception, which includes both knowledge and experience with a brand and its products, builds brand equity. The perception that a consumer
segment holds about a brand directly results in either positive or negative effects. If the brand equity is positive, the organization, its products,
and its financials can benefit. If the brand equity is negative, the opposite is true.

Finally, these effects can turn into either tangible or intangible value. If the effect is positive, tangible value is realized as increases in revenue or
profits. Intangible value is realized in marketing as awareness or goodwill. If the effects are negative, the tangible or intangible value is also
negative. For example, if consumers are willing to pay more for a generic product than for a branded one, the brand is said to have negative
brand equity. This might happen if a company has a major product recall or causes a widely publicized environmental disaster.

Brand equity is an extension of brand recognition, but more so than recognition, brand equity is the added value in a particular name.

Effect on Profit Margins

When customers attach a level of quality or prestige to a brand, they perceive that brand's products as being worth more than products made by
competitors, so they are willing to pay more. In effect, the market bears higher prices for brands that have high levels of brand equity. The cost of
manufacturing a golf shirt and bringing it to market is not higher, at least to a significant degree, for Lacoste than it is for a less reputable brand.

However, because its customers are willing to pay more, it can charge a higher price for that shirt, with the difference going to profit. Positive
brand equity increases profit margin per customer because it allows a company to charge more for a product than competitors, even though it
was obtained at the same price.

Brand equity has a direct effect on sales volume because consumers gravitate toward products with great reputations. For example, when Apple
releases a new product, customers line up around the block to buy it even though it is usually priced higher than similar products from
competitors. One of the primary reasons why Apple's products sell in such large numbers is that the company has amassed a staggering amount
of positive brand equity. Because a certain percentage of a company's costs to sell products are fixed, higher sales volumes translate to greater
profit margins.

Customer retention is the third area in which brand equity affects profit margins. Returning to the Apple example, most of the company's
customers do not own only one Apple product, they own several. Plus, they eagerly anticipate the next one's release. Apple's customer base is
fiercely loyal, sometimes bordering on evangelical. Apple enjoys high customer retention, another result of its brand equity. Retaining existing
customers increases profit margins by lowering the amount a business has to spend on marketing to achieve the same sales volume. It costs less
to retain an existing customer than to acquire a new one.

The concept of brand equity was first introduced in the 1980s by David Aaker, a marketing professor at the University of California, Berkeley.

Real-World Examples of Brand Equity

A general example of a situation where brand equity is important is when a company wants to expand its product line. If the brand's equity is
positive, the company can increase the likelihood that customers might buy its new product by associating the new product with an existing,
successful brand. For example, if Campbell's releases a new soup, the company is likely to keep it under the same brand name rather than
inventing a new brand.

The positive associations that customers already have with Campbell's make the new product more enticing than if the soup has an unfamiliar
brand name. Below are some other examples of brand equity.

Tylenol
Manufactured since 1955 by McNeil (now a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson), Tylenol is a first-line treatment for mild to moderate
pain.1 EquiTrend studies show that consumers trust Tylenol over generic brands.2 Tylenol has been able to grow its market with the creations of
Tylenol Extra Strength, Tylenol Cold & Flu, Children's Tylenol, and Tylenol Sinus Congestion & Pain.

Kirkland Signature

Started in 1995, the Kirkland Signature brand by Costco has maintained positive growth, representing a growing portion of the company's overall
sales.3 Signature encompasses hundreds of items, including clothing, coffee, laundry detergent, food, and beverages. Costco even provides
members with exclusive access to cheaper gasoline at its private gas stations. Adding to Kirkland's popularity is the fact that its products cost less
than other name brands.

Starbucks

Rated the sixth-most-admired company in the world by Fortune magazine in 2020, Starbucks is held in high regard for its pledge to social
responsibility.4 With more than 31,000 stores around the globe in 2019, Starbucks remains the largest roaster and retailer of Arabica coffee
beans and specialty coffees.5

Coca-Cola

With a profit margins between 25-30%, Coca-Cola is often rated the most valuable soda brand in the world.6 However, the brand itself
represents more than just the products—it's symbolic of positive experiences, a proud history, even the U.S. itself. Also recognized for its unique
marketing campaigns, the Coca-Cola corporation has made a global impact on its consumer engagement.

Porsche

Porsche, a brand with strong equity in the automobile sector, retains its image and reliability through the use of high-quality, unique materials.
Viewed as a luxury brand, Porsche provides owners of its vehicles not only with a product but an experience. In comparison to other vehicle
brands in its class, Porsche was the top luxury brand in 2020, according to U.S. News & World Report.7

Tracking a Company's Success With Brand Equity

Brand equity is a major indicator of company strength and performance, specifically in the public markets. Often, companies in the same industry
or sector compete on brand equity. For example, two top companies—Home Depot and Lowe's Home Improvement—consistently rank as the
top two hardware and home store brands in the Harris Poll EquiTrend's brands of the year list. The 2020 survey found that Lowe's was the top
hardware company in terms of brand equity and Home Depot came in second. However, in 2019, the roles were reversed, with Home Depot
beating out Lowe's for the top spot.8

A large component of brand equity in the hardware environment is consumer perception of the strength of a company's e-commerce business.
Both Lowe's and Home Depot are industry leaders in this category. It was also found that, besides e-commerce, both companies have high
familiarity among consumers, allowing them to further penetrate the industry and increase their brand equity.

Why Is Brand Equity Important?

Brand equity is important for a number of reasons. One reason is increased customer loyalty. A strong brand equity can lead to increased
customer loyalty, as consumers are more likely to choose a brand they know and trust. This can lead to repeat purchases and a more stable
customer base. Another reason is higher perceived value. Brands with strong equity are often able to command higher prices for their products
or services, as consumers perceive them as having greater value. A strong brand can also give a company a competitive advantage in the market,
as consumers are more likely to choose a familiar brand over a lesser-known one. This can help the company gain a greater market share, as
consumers are more likely to choose a trusted brand over competitors. Additionally, brands with strong equity often have a positive reputation
and are able to provide high-quality products or services, which can lead to greater customer satisfaction.

What Are the Elements of Brand Equity?

The elements of brand equity include:

 1. Brand awareness: This refers to the extent to which consumers are familiar with and recognize a brand.
2. Brand loyalty: This refers to the degree to which consumers consistently choose a specific brand over others.
3. Brand image: This refers to the perception that consumers have of a brand and its associated attributes, such as quality, reliability, and
uniqueness.
4. Brand associations: This refers to the emotional or psychological associations that consumers have with a brand, such as feelings of
trust, reliability, or nostalgia.
5. Brand value: This refers to the perceived benefits and overall value that consumers attribute to a brand, which can influence their
purchasing decisions.

What Factors Affect Brand Equity?

There are several factors that can affect brand equity. One factor is the quality of products or services. Consumers are more likely to have a
positive perception of a brand if they consistently provide high-quality products or services. Marketing and branding efforts are also important.
Consistent and effective marketing and branding efforts can help build and maintain a positive brand image. Customer experiences also play a
role in brand equity. Positive customer experiences can lead to increased loyalty and positive brand associations. The brand's reputation is also
important, as consumers are more likely to choose a brand they perceive as trustworthy and reliable. Competition can also impact a brand's
equity, as consumers may have multiple options to choose from. Finally, changes in consumer preferences or trends can affect a brand's equity,
as consumers may shift towards different brands or products.

The Bottom Line

Brand equity refers to the value that a specific brand adds to a product or service. It is the positive perception or emotional attachment that
consumers have towards a brand, which can influence their purchasing decisions and overall loyalty to the brand. It is created through consistent
marketing efforts, positive customer experiences, and the overall reputation of the brand. Companies with strong brand equity often have a
competitive advantage in the market and can command higher prices for their products or services.

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What Is Brand Management? Requirements, How It Works, and Example

By
MITCHELL GRANT

Updated May 21, 2023

Reviewed by
THOMAS J. CATALANO

Reviewed by Thomas J. Catalano

Full Bio

Thomas J Catalano is a CFP and Registered Investment Adviser with the state of South Carolina, where he launched his own financial
advisory firm in 2018. Thomas' experience gives him expertise in a variety of areas including investments, retirement, insurance, and
financial planning.

Learn about our Financial Review Board

Investopedia / Mira Norian

What Is Brand Management?

Brand management is a function of marketing that uses techniques to increase the perceived value of a product line or brand over time. Effective
brand management enables the price of products to go up and builds loyal customers through positive brand associations and images or a strong
awareness of the brand.

Developing a strategic plan to maintain brand equity or gain brand value requires a comprehensive understanding of the brand, its target market,
and the company's overall vision.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

 Brand management is a function of marketing that uses techniques to increase the perceived value of a product line or brand over time.
 Effective brand management helps a company build a loyal customer base and helps fuel a company's profits.
 A brand manager ensures the innovation of a product or brand, creating brand awareness via the use of price, packaging, logo,
associated colors, and lettering format.
 Brand management is usually centered around fostering the brand recognition, brand equity, and brand loyalty of a product.
 Brand equity refers to the value a company gains from its name recognition, enabling it to be the popular choice among consumers
even when compared to a generic brand with a lower price point.

How Brand Management Works

Brands have a powerful influence on customer engagement, competition in the markets, and the management of a company. A strong brand
presence in the market differentiates a company’s products from its competitors and creates brand affinity for a company’s products or services.

A brand that has been established has to continually maintain its brand image through brand management. Effective brand management
increases brand awareness, measures and manages brand equity, drives initiatives that support a consistent brand message, identifies and
accommodates new brand products, and effectively positions the brand in the market.

It takes years to establish a brand, but when it finally occurs, it has to still be maintained through innovation and creativity. Notable brands that
have established themselves as leaders in their respective industries over the years include Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, Microsoft, IBM, Procter &
Gamble, CNN, Disney, Nike, Ford, Lego, and Starbucks.

Benefits of Brand Management

 Distinguished Products. According to the most recent U.S. Census data, there were over 250,000 full-service restaurants in the United
States as of 2019.1 Strong brand management is necessary if any of these restaurants want to be recognizable apart from their
competitors.
 Strong Employee Engagement. Brand management begins with the internal buy-in of the values, principles, and perception of a
product. By ensuring all people in a company are part of the brand management process, employees may be more likely to buy into the
strategic plan of the brand and company.
 Increased sales quantity. Though never a given, stronger brand management that drives brand loyalty and brand equity may drive
stronger sales quantities. As more consumers are tied to a brand or positively recognize a brand, they are more likely to choose it over
an unfamiliar alternative (all else being equal).
 Increased CLV. Customer lifetime value. In addition to greater sales quantities, brand management drives stronger value over the
lifespan of a customer. Customers are more likely to repeat purchases if they have a positive experience and may be more likely to buy
different products along the same product line if they forge strong brand loyalty with a single brand.
 Leveraged Pricing. If a company has a strong reputation with the market, their brand management may be leveraged to other products.
This means a company can sell products at a premium if their brand invokes a strong enough connection to consumers (i.e. Apple).
 Less Volatile Market Position. Though companies always risk depressed financial results during market downturns, companies with
stronger brand management may be able to weather the storm easier. This is because consumers may find it non-negotiable to deviate
from companies they have strong, positive associations with even during inclement financial times.
Effective Brand Management Techniques

Brand management may seem complex, but there are a number of simple, elegant techniques that make the process manageable. Here are some
of the more effective ways brand management occurs.

Establish Branding Basics

Brand management often begins with the basics, and that means establishing a strong mission statement, logo, target audience, and vision
statement. Though these are often created by the marketing team during a company or product's infancy, it is up to the brand management
team to further refine and drive the branding basics.

Create Compelling Stories

As the product or company begins to be used by consumers, it is critical that the brand management team strengthens the relationship between
the good and user. This means capitalizing on emotional stories by tapping into the human connection to however the company's products are
being used.

Leverage Software

Often guided by social media and a website, brand management must be cohesive across all media platforms. This includes any televised,
radioed, or printed advertising. The more marketing channels a company has, the more important it is for brand management to cohesively link
these to convey a single, consistent message to consumers.

Consider Branding Language

On a related note, the brand management process must be guided by a consistent use of language and tone. This may be easier to convey using
photos or printed advertisements. However, different challenges may arise if different people are managing different marketing channels. As
long as the receiving channels are the same across product lines, the brand management team must ensure the wording and feeling behind
communications are consistent.

Establish Internal Rules

All of the tips above don't matter if the internal branding and marketing teams aren't aligned. Therefore, the brand management team must
effectively implement limits and rules on how certain activities are performed. For example, the brand management team may restrict the use to
certain fonts, images, designs, or color schemes. Any deviations from these rules must be run through the brand management team for special
approval.

Brand Management Elements

There’s three critical elements to brand management: equity, recognition, and loyalty. Though it may be difficult to quantifiably measure the
benefits of each, brand management plays a direct part in developing all three aspects of a brand.

Brand Recognition

Brand management often starts with brand recognition. If a company can’t invoke positive emotions in consumers when they see a brand, that
may be no brand to manage. In addition, brand recognition entails ensuring recognition of a brand invokes a favorable response instead of brand
opposition.

This is especially important for new products being brought to market; a company must decide how to best manage that brand and invest
upfront capital to make the brand more recognizable. On the other hand, more established brands must decide how many resources to allocate
to maintain or strengthen a brand's existing position.

Brand Equity
Brand equity is the commercial value of a product’s image . Though a company doesn’t actually receive the direct dollars of value from its
products having high brand equity, brand equity often translates to greater sales as consumers associate a product or brand with greater value.
Brand equity is built over time through positive experiences, associates, and demonstrated value.

Consider an example of a billboard displaying an advertisement for Powerade. Because of the positive name association of Powerade (via
partnerships with professional sports leagues and massive markets), it may have greater brand equity than a generic brand. Similar to how a
company may become more valuable over time as it becomes worth more, a brand’s value can increase over time in the same way.

Brand Loyalty

A customer may recognize a brand, and a customer may even assess strong positive value with a brand. However, if that customer is easily
swayed to pivot to a competing product, brand management has failed. The objective of brand loyalty is invoke such as strong relationship
between the consumer and the brand that the consumer can't fathom diverting from the brand's products.

Whereas brand recognition occurs on the front-end of brand management, brand loyalty is a long-term achievement that is earned in a variety of
ways. Companies must demonstrate their products meet consumer needs. In addition, companies must ensure strong customer service ensures a
customer has a positive experience along the entire life of the product.

Smaller companies with lower headcount may have one dedicated team to both the creation of (brand management) and implementation of
(marketing) branding strategies.

Brand Management vs. Marketing

Brand management and marketing both appear to do the same thing; after all, both departments influence how external stakeholders perceive
the company's or product's brands. However, there are subtle differences between the two.

Marketing Initially Leads, Brand Management Follows

When companies or products are launched, those companies or divisions may not have a fully dedicated team for brand management. Instead,
they more often have a collection of marketing professionals that guide the initial external management of public perception. That marketing
team may own many initial aspects of brand management, though their role often entails much more than simply honing in on a branding
strategy.

Marketing Is Broad, Brand Management Is Specific

As a product line or company matures, the brand in question may receive more resources, especially if the brand has been successful. At this
point, the brand management team documents, defines, and formalizes the brand strategy. This plan is much more detailed than the initial plans
laid out by the marketing team. In addition, the brand management team will be more likely to collect information from other departments to
ensure a broader, company-wide adoption of the brand management implementation plan.

Marketing Is More External, Brand Management Is More Internal

The marketing team of a company is primarily focused on the outside interactions. This includes communications, event presence, public
perception, and public relations. Though these aspects may play a part in crafting the brand, brand management is more internally-focused on
strategically devising the course of action. Brand management is more likely to outline the strategy and internal buy-in, whereas marketing is
more likely to implement the external strategy and external acceptance of the brand.

Examples of Brand Management

For some, seeing a gecko reminds them of GEICO Insurance which uses the reptile in most of its advertising campaigns. Similarly, the Coca-Cola
jingle "It’s the Real Thing," which first aired in 1971 as a TV commercial that featured people of different races and cultures, is still popular and
familiar to generations of Coca-Cola consumers.
A brand does not have to be tied to one product. One brand could cover different products or services. Ford, for example, has multiple auto
models under the Ford brand. Likewise, a brand name can take on multiple brands under its umbrella.

For example, Procter & Gamble has multiple brands under its brand name, such as Ariel laundry detergent, Charmin tissue, Bounty paper towels,
Dawn dishwashing liquid, and Crest toothpaste.

Requirements of a Brand Manager

A brand manager is tasked with managing the tangible and intangible properties of a brand. The tangible aspects of a company’s brand include
the product's price, packaging, logo, associated colors, and lettering format.

A brand manager’s role is to analyze how a brand is perceived in the market by taking the intangible elements of a brand into account. Intangible
factors include the experience that the consumers have had with the brand and their emotional connection with the product or service. The
intangible characteristics of a brand build brand equity.

Brand equity is the price above the product’s value that consumers are willing to pay to acquire the brand. Brand equity is an internally
generated intangible asset in which its value is ultimately decided by consumers’ perception of the brand. If consumers are willing to pay more
for a brand than a generic brand that performs the same functions, the brand equity will increase in value. On the other hand, the value of brand
equity falls when consumers would rather purchase a similar product that costs less than the brand.

A cult brand is an example of a "benign cult" where the customer base for a product or service is extremely loyal, leading to the brand's success
as a growing legion of customers feel a unique emotional connection with the brand.

The Importance of Innovation in Brand Management

Brand management involves not only creating a brand but also understanding what products could fit under the brand of a company. A brand
manager always has to keep its target market in mind when conceiving new products to take on the company’s brand or working with analysts to
decide what companies to merge with or acquire.

The difference between brand management success and failure comes down to ongoing innovation. A brand manager that continuously seeks
innovative ways to maintain the quality of a brand will retain its loyal consumers and gain more brand affinity, compared to one that is content
with the current good name of the company’s brand.

What Is Meant By Brand Management?

Brand management is the creation and enforcement of rules surrounding how a company or product is communicated to markets. This includes
dictating boundaries on advertising, language, tone, and cadence of communication with customers.

Why Is Brand Management Important?

Brand management is important because it dictates how public markets perceive goods. Without brand management, consumers may not
become loyal to a product line or may not choose to repeat purchases with a company after a positive experience. Effective brand management
may lead to not only to greater sales quantities in the short-term but greater long-term financial success due to long-term customers.

What Is the Goal of Brand Management?

The goal of brand management is to form a specific perception about a product or company. By strategically determining the font, language, style
of messaging, and marketing plans, the brand management team hopes to make the public see a product or company in a specific light.

The Bottom Line

Brand management is the vague strategy of guiding public perception of a good, product, service, or company. Brand management is heavily tied
to creating brand equity, loyalty, and recognition. It is also formulated by a dedicated team, most often after the marketing team has built-out an
initial marketing plan. By effectively building out a brand management strategy, a company may experience stronger short-term and long-term
financial success.

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5 Reasons Brand Management Is So Important

Differentiating yourself from competitors and consistency through all communications are important factors in successfully creating and
maintaining brands.

When you think of brands, which ones come to mind? Coca-Cola, Starbucks, McDonald’s, Walmart, Apple, Nike. Millions of brands populate our
world, but the true test of their longevity and resilience is brand management. Without brand management, none of these brands could have
achieved the lasting success they have.

What is brand management? In marketing jargon, brand management is an “umbrella term that describes all the facets of design, placement,
marketing, advertising, and distribution that foster identifying and developing a brand personality.” 1 Brand management encompasses more than
just the aesthetics of a brand. It involves the management of an organization’s brand identity, or “all elements that a company creates to portray
the right image to its consumer.”2 This includes packaging, press releases and public relations, customer service, event management, retail
experience, how executive leadership styles are expressed in the news, or any “touchpoints” with customers throughout a brand experience.
No matter your brand’s industry, age, or size, brand management is instrumental in continued success. Here are five reasons why:

 To manage a brand, you must have a brand to maintain.

Brand management involves two main stages: establishing a brand and maintaining it. While the bulk of brand management is dedicated
to the maintenance portion, without a strong brand, there’s no brand to sustain.

How does one establish a brand? An organization must stand out from its competition in the marketplace. To do so, the company
determines and sells its unique selling proposition, or what differentiates the brand’s product or service in its category. The unique selling
proposition, or USP, should be defined internally and communicated externally in branding messaging. 3
  People must know your brand in order to buy your products or services.

Brand awareness is a key component of brand management. If customers don’t know who you are or think of your brand when it’s time
to make a purchasing decision, they will purchase a competitor’s product or service.

For potential customers to know your brand, it is critical to promote it through your marketing and advertising efforts. All marketing
messages should encourage brand awareness while embracing your USP.3

 To gain and keep customers, you need to know where they are and what they want.

While customers must know your brand in order to buy it, your brand also needs to know its customers to reach them. In effective brand
management, brand managers know their target market and its spending and consumption habits, and tailor the placement of marketing
and advertising accordingly. Your marketing activities should meet your potential customers where they are spending their money or
time.

In addition to smartly placed marketing communications, your brand should also work toward building stronger customer loyalty, which
rewards your brand with recurring purchases. Keeping customers aware of your brand with consistent advertising and marketing
messaging helps. However, one of the most underutilized considerations in building brand loyalty is customer service. When executed
well, customer service enables a brand to stand out from competitors, excites current and future customers, and bolsters brand identity. 4

Great customer service empowers customers and invites the possibility of them becoming brand advocates. Customers also give
feedback during customer service interactions, which can be used throughout brand management and companywide to inform future
business decisions for a brand.

 Consistency throughout a brand is critical.

Brands should convey a consistent tone and feel in every brand touchpoint. Brand managers work to ensure that both aesthetic and
intangible aspects of a brand align. This includes packaging, product or service quality, marketing campaigns, and the customers’
emotional experience of interacting with your brand.5

A well-managed brand externally expresses itself in a voice that reflects the company’s culture and values. This voice is reflected across
its media presence, including its website, blogs, social media, and events. To execute consistent messaging and logo and design
attributes, brand management often creates brand style guidelines. Brand guidelines typically manage the use of a brand’s logo, fonts,
and official colors. These guidelines may also include editorial instructions, such as how to use taglines or specific wording, facts, and
figures in communications.6

Large companies, especially ones with affiliates, must take extra care to ensure consistency throughout a brand. The more complex the
company, the more likely the chance of an affiliate or vendor using out-of-date or inaccurate messaging or brand identity work. 5 Effective
brand management examines the entirety of a brand meticulously to ensure a brand is communicating itself clearly and reliably across
channels and platforms.

 Maintenance never ends in brand management.

Once your brand has been created, the work to maintain it never ceases. Logos, taglines, and editorial messaging should adhere to brand
guidelines. Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram updates should convey a similar brand tone and feel as brochures and mailers. All
interactions with your brand should positively reinforce your brand identity.

Without adequate attention and nurturing, a brand’s image erodes. It’s the responsibility of brand management to continuously refine
and improve it.

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 How You Create a Successful Brand Management Strategy and Process

14 min read

August 31, 2023

Contents

 What Is Brand Management?

 Why Is Brand Management Important and What Are the Benefits for Your Company?
 The Key Elements of Brand Management
 How to Create a Brand Management Strategy
 How You Can Set Up a Process to Manage Your Brand Assets
 5 Best Practice Examples From Brands with a Great Brand Management Strategy
 5 Brand Management Software Solutions to Simplify Your Workflows
 Conclusion

When creating branding and marketing assets on a company-wide scale, there’s an awful lot of juggling to be done.
Balancing efficiency with aesthetics, consistency with imagination, and everyone’s individual contributions with your final judgement is a lot to

manage. Branding is never as straightforward as a logo on a screen.

Successful brand marketing requires staying on top of all of your brand’s channels. That’s where brand management comes in – this technique

helps companies to build and manifest a clear brand image in the minds of customers. And that is why brand management is an essential strategy

for any company that is serious about marketing.

So, in this article, we’ll be revealing all the secrets for a foolproof brand management process.

What Is Brand Management?

Brand management encompasses the strategy and the process of handling all of your branded content. It helps create consistent content that can

be easily connected with your brand and therefore forms a clear brand image in customers’ minds. This also includes monitoring each and every

one of your branded assets.

Brand management also necessitates careful and consistent use of branding to achieve its directives – which are often increasing outreach and

attracting more customers – through each new piece of marketing assets that is created.

It encompasses all manner of branded assets, from email campaigns to posters, ads of your products and services, blog posts, web pages and social

media channels.

Brand management works by ensuring that all of your content is brand consistent in order to best convey your desired company message to your

audience.

Why Is Brand Management Important and What Are the Benefits for Your Company?

Brand management is a complex process to master as it requires a conscious and well-thought-out branding strategy that treats these assets as a

single entity, rather than separate pieces.

Brand management builds a clear brand image that is associated with the products and services of the company, thereby increasing the brand’s

recognition. Marketers manage the company’s branding by boosting brand awareness amongst the target market, maintaining customer loyalty,

and ensuring that the brand continues to be associated with positive perceptions.

This strategy is essential for any company intending to either grow or retain its customer base. A solid brand management strategy ensures that:

 Your brand demonstrates an adherence to your company values.

 Every asset that you create is brand consistent.

 Your customers receive a positive impression of your company through branding which denotes a professional, modern and innovative

business.

 Your team’s time is well-spent and used efficiently.

 The different skill sets of each of your team members are recognised and used advantageously.

 Positive awareness of your brand grows.

 Your existing customers are more likely to remain loyal to your brand.

 New customers are drawn into your brand, and you gain more sales.

 You build a strong brand image and recognition.

The key to achieving this through your brand management strategy lies in two things -– consistency and remaining on-brand. These two elements

are vital; as you create this united design amongst your marketing materials, they ensure that your marketing is seamless and collaborative.

Brand management can dramatically improve the process of marketing teams because it enables the quicker creation of better, more effective

content. By promoting a more organized marketing process, it saves marketing teams considerable time.

Through this strategy, effective and successful pre-made elements (such as color palettes, logos, images, etc.) are re-used. This is advantageous to

the marketer in terms of time and cost, and it also helps achieve consistency in your marketing assets. As a result, your new content will not stray

from your existing branding or your company’s core principles.

The Key Elements of Brand Management

As you can see, brand management is a topic covering a wide variety of different assets, jobs and elements.
Naturally we’ll be covering a lot of different terms, So it would be handy to start out by defining a few key terms. Below, you’ll find some definitions

to the most important terms used in brand management:

Brand equity

Brand equity is the totality of the different elements that shape how valuable customers believe your company to be. This belief is influenced by

factors such as previous experiences with or purchases from your company, and what customers associate the company with in their minds.

For example, customers may perceive a clothing company as luxurious based on the fact that they previously visited the online store, and it was

easy to navigate, provided an enjoyable user experience, stylishly designed, and had a quick load speed.

This metric is important, as stronger brand equity correlates to a high market share as well as high-profit price points for your products.

Brand awareness

Brand awareness measures how recognizable your brand is in the marketplace. This measurement helps marketers to assess the likelihood that a

member of the company’s target market will recognize the company branding.
With strong brand awareness, individuals will be more likely to think of your company when they look to purchase the product or service that you

offer. A high level of brand awareness can be achieved by establishing a popular social media channel for your company, for example.

Brand identity

Brand identity is the overall look and style of your company’s branding that is shaped by a wide range of different elements. The identity can be

made up of everything from your color palette to logo positioning and design, and your style of photography. It is important that a company

achieves a strong brand identity because the stronger the brand identity is, the more likely it is that your assets will be consistent.

Brand name

Your brand name is the key element which distinguishes you from other companies in the same market. It enables you to stand out, and allows

your customers to recognize you against your competitors. The more memorable your brand name is, the more likely your customers are to

remember you.

Brand loyalty

This trend pertains to the likelihood that your customers will repurchase from your company. Brand loyalty indicates how often customers return

to your store and stand by you over a period of time.

This gives marketers an insight into various factors such as the quality of your products, the strength of your website’s user experience, how

engaging your brand marketing efforts are, and how on-trend your branding is.

Brand image

Brand image is the overall impression that current and potential customers have of your brand. It covers your brand’s logo, personality and any

other visual content that falls under your company’s branded assets.

Brand image ties in with the impression that the target market holds of your company – as a result, it is hugely important. A strong brand image

would be supported by a clear, sleek and entertaining online appearance, for example.

Brand recognition
Similar to brand awareness, brand recognition measures how likely members of the general public (particularly those who would constitute your

target market) would be to recognize your logo if they saw it removed from its immediate context.

This concept covers the uniqueness and success of your brand’s personality as a whole. It could also be applied to other branded elements, such as

social media posts, packaging, or even jingles. For example, if you were to hold a session of market research, how often did an individual recognize

your company after seeing your home-delivery packaging?

Brand value

Brand value gives an approximate monetary figure for the worth of your brand in the event that you decided to sell it. By measuring brand value,

marketers can assess how known their company is, how positively it is perceived by customers, and generally how successfully it performs in the

market.

How to Create a Brand Management Strategy

We mentioned previously that brand management involves a huge number of different types of branded assets. It is essential that you are aware of

all the different branded assets that your company creates, and that each of these is included in your strategy. These assets will include everything

that your audience sees of your brand.

As such, a brand management strategy will cover:

 The name of your brand

 The primary version of your company logo

 Secondary versions of your company logo (for example, your design guidelines may state that you use a different color variation of the

logo for Instagram).

 Your branding’s color palette

 The fonts and typography that you use, for each type of asset. For example you may have a different font for your campaigns as opposed

to the one for blog posts.

 Letterheads

 Photography

 Videos

 The tone of voice that you use in your blog posts, email campaigns and social media posts.

 Any packaging or labels that your company uses for its products.

In order to create a strategy that successfully encompasses all of these assets, you will need to ask yourself some key questions.

What message are you attempting to convey?

Firstly, align your brand management with your marketing strategy. In order to do this, use storytelling techniques in your branded ad campaigns.

Consider what message you are attempting to convey to your audience through your branding.

This could be communicating a clear ethos statement (such as environmental sustainability), engaging your customers with fun and dynamic

content, or reinforcing the fact that you are a dependable, tried-and-true, family-run business. No matter what message you choose, you are

attempting to establish an emotional connection to your audience that helps them to engage with your brand.

Your brand management then aligns with your marketing strategy by isolating the priorities inherent within your marketing efforts and then

ensuring that you stick by these principles consistently. Such core company values need to be reinforced in every asset, and brand management

enables you to do this across the board.

What is your brand’s unique selling proposition?

As a result, the best way to undertake brand management is to emphasize what makes your company unique, and allow that unique selling

proposition (USP) to shine at every opportunity. These thoughts regarding your brand positioning should then help you to recognize what draws

your customers to you rather than to one of your competitors. From there, you can create consistently on-brand content that is far more likely to

increase sales.

For example, a typical brand management strategy would specify the usage of key components like a logo and brand name. Then, the process may

identify that the company’s commitment to being environmentally friendly was one of the main factors attracting customers to the brand.

Furthermore, this message of environmental friendliness was selected as a core principle for the company. Accordingly, every piece of content that

the brand created would need to adhere to this principle in order to adhere to the company’s brand identity.

How can you reinforce your brand’s uniqueness in consumers’ minds?

This would involve a wide variety of different elements. For example, the brand management strategy could specify that all materials would adhere

to a green and blue color palette. Furthermore, in order to build branding that continued to attract the target market, the company’s social media

posts could feature high quality natural photographs, partnered alongside written copy demonstrating a clear eco-conscious focus.

In order to put this example into practice and show you how it can apply to your own company, we move on to our guidance for setting up this

process for yourself in the next step.

How You Can Set Up a Process to Manage Your Brand Assets

At this point, you can’t not be convinced that brand management is a solid idea. So, now that you’re on-board with the idea, this is the point in the

article where we’ll show you how to introduce it into your own company, and how a typical brand management strategy operates in practice.
1. Create a clear storage system for your branded assets.

In this step, you will establish a document management system for your marketing materials. This will require a network of folders and files for

your digital assets, and a storage system for your physical branded assets, too. You may wish to invest in a specialist piece of software to assist with

your digital asset management.

2. Organize your branded assets within this new storage system.

Ensure that all folders are clearly labelled and well-organized so that each asset is easy to locate. For example, if you do need to keep any older

versions of your logo, make sure that these are clearly marked as ‘outdated’, and store them well away from the current versions of your logo.

Organization necessitates a clearer process of brand asset management (BAM) for your physical and digital assets. By doing this, you will save

yourself and your team time (and confusion!) in the long-run.

3. Create brand guidelines for your marketing teams.

This could be created in the form of a style guide. This critical document provides exact instructions on how each asset should be used. For

example, if one of your team members was creating an email campaign, the style guide should specify the version of your company logo to be

included in the email and its positioning.

There should also be clear details about the type and size of font, a color palette, and information about the tone of voice for the copy itself. Check

out our article about brand guidelines to learn how you can create your own guide.

4. Regularly update your brand guidelines.

It is imperative that this document is kept up-to-date. Make sure the brand guidelines are applicable to your current marketing strategy so that the

guidelines become the go-to point of referral for any member of your team.

For example, if you decided to incorporate a more casual tone of voice in your website’s written content, then this updated brand personality

would need to be noted in your brand guidelines. Therefore, make re-reading your document and updating it with any new additions or decisions a

part of your regular routine.

5. Establish a clear review and approval process.

Brand management requires managers to review and approve each new asset. This will ensure that assets fit together as a consistent set of

materials. Plus, it will guarantee that every piece of content you publish is of high quality and free of mistakes.

When it comes to the review and approval process, an online proofing software like Filestage can save your team a lot of time and effort. The tool

helps you to set up and establish a clear and standardized review process that every new asset needs to go through before it can be published.
Within this process, managers and invested stakeholders can review the asset, leave comments directly in the file and even discuss this feedback

with each other. After the content editor has adapted the asset based on the suggested changes, the reviewers can have a final look and approve

the file.This process ensures that each new asset is consistently on-brand and of the highest quality.

How does this help you to create a successful brand?

All in all, the process detailed above is the best way to undertake brand management. It will help you to manage your brand assets at all stages –

including previous (now outdated) materials, current versions, and new materials which are being created.
Furthermore, brand management keeps all team members in the loop and provides them with clear, regularly updated information about how they

can keep their content on-brand.

By following these steps, it is easy to incorporate brand management into your processes. The main thing is that you clearly communicate what

you are doing to your entire team.

Update them on what you are doing, why you are doing it, and how they can adhere to these new regulations. This will ensure that the transition

towards a more consistent, structured and strategic brand management process goes as smoothly as possible.

5 Best Practice Examples From Brands with a Great Brand Management Strategy

If you’d like some extra pointers on how to establish your new brand management process, take inspiration from some great international

examples. These business giants have created undeniable brand value for their companies thanks to undeniably effective brand management

strategies.

Apple

It only makes sense to start off with this branding giant. Apple’s brand management strategy has enabled it to carve itself a position in the tech

market as one of the most popular brands in the world. With every new release, Apple proves itself to be a creator of gadgets that remain

incredibly sought after.

Apple’s branding has always spoken of the company’s commitment to modernity. It has cleverly presented Apple at the forefront of technological

developments – an innovator and a game changer. This encompasses everything from its sleek minimalist packaging to the iconic stage-based

launches of new products as originally hosted by Steve Jobs.

Coca-Cola
The bright colors and iconic font of Coca-Cola means that it is immediately recognized by countless people all over the world – there’s a reason why

they have such a vast number of loyal customers. You can see how those core colors of black and white with very specific shades of red and green

have been kept strictly consistent for years and across all marketing channels.

While their layout may have been altered for different products (for example, the original drink has a red background and white text, while the

“Zero” version uses a black background and red text), there is still so much consistency between this range that you are left in no doubt that they

belong to the same brand.

eBay
The strong brand identity of eBay is a success clearly facilitated by the company’s brand management strategy. By its nature, eBay needs to attract

a large number of users as buyers and sellers (or both) on the platform. The quick, snappy headline of “By, Sell, eBay” is indicative of the efficiency

of this process, and it is this user-friendliness which the company showcases at every opportunity.

Another great example of brand management is eBay’s recent TV commercial, where a couple chop and change different elements of their new

house in the form of jigsaw pieces to form their ideal home. These different elements have all been either bought or sold on eBay, and the house

looks completely transformed in a matter of seconds.

EE (network in the UK)

This new giant of the broadband and mobile network scene uses a brand management strategy that brings a fun and youthful approach to

marketing. It is responsive and imaginative (yet still highly consistent) across a variety of different marketing channels.
EE uses modern branding elements such as brand ambassadors (Kevin Bacon’s face is included in a huge proportion of its marketing materials, and

he has become pretty synonymous with the brand) and a high focus on social media marketing. Social media has been a huge investment for EE; as

a result, the brand has over 44,000 Instagram followers, compared to Virgin Media’s 26,000 and Vodafone’s 33,000 (as of February 2021).

Marks and Spencer

Whenever they hear of Marks and Spencer, pretty much everyone in the UK thinks of the brand’s iconic slogan “this is not just food…”.
As a result, the brand has been firmly cemented with its associations with quality, luxury and decadence. That can only be a good thing for the

brand. Interestingly, operating alongside the brand awareness that their commitment to quality has brought them, the brand has also experienced

a surge in recent success in sales of their children’s range of food products and services.

Most notably, this includes their Percy Pig and Colin the Caterpillar product ranges for children. These treats are highly popular amongst children

and adults alike, as they combine a high quality approach (which stands out in the market of overly sugared and cheaply made children’s sweets)

with fun branding and delightfully inventive treats. As a result, they have been a big hit on social media, all while staying true to the core Marks and

Spencer brand identity.

5 Brand Management Software Solutions to Simplify Your Workflows

Establishing an effective brand management process is not something that can be done overnight. Without a doubt, managers can build brand

consistency more confidently and strategically with the assistance of specialist software.

So, to help you get started with your new marketing brand management process, we would recommend that you utilize one of the tools below.

Filestage
Filestage is an online proofing software, which allows teams to set up an efficient review and approval workflow for all file types like PDFs, images,

videos and audio files. Since the approval step is an important part of any solid brand management process, it is essential that your entire team can

easily manage this step.

With Filestage you can share, discuss and approve files with your colleagues and external stakeholders on one centralized platform. Receiving and

collecting the feedback from all reviewers in one place saves you a lot of time since you can easily discuss changes and ask questions without the

need to write multiple emails. Filestage also makes it easy to keep track of your projects and the status of each file.

BrandMaster

BrandMaster is a brand management platform specifically designed for the use of marketing managers. This specialist graphic design project

management tool provides a highly efficient centralized system for the storage and sharing of digital assets. This capability can be used by

marketing teams to share and collaborate on the company’s marketing content and ensure that everything is kept in-line with the brand strategy.

BrandMaster is designed to be scalable so that it can suit the requirements of companies of any size and scope. Furthermore, the tool can be used

as both a cloud-based platform (accessed via computer), or on the go through Android or iOS mobile devices.

Frontify
Frontify is a brand management tool that provides a wide range of functions in one piece of specialist software. It provides branding teams with

everything from a centralized storage location for your digital assets to assistance with the creation of digital brand guidelines and design

templates.

This cloud-based software is ideal for growing brands that are looking to develop their company’s brand and evolve their marketing so that they tap

into their target market more effectively. With Frontify’s intuitive design-orientated software, teams can build brand awareness with consistent,

attractive and united assets.

Bynder

Bynder is a tool designed for brand managers, marketing teams and consultants. It provides a number of different collaboration tools, including a

centralized storage system and online editing functions. This digital asset management software promotes a more organized and professional

brand management process, while facilitating efficient collaboration on marketing materials across different team members and external invested

parties.

Users can engage in collaborative edits in real-time, as well as use auto-formatting for different file types in order to save time and ensure

consistency.
 Brand Management: Top Tips to Ensure Success As You Grow Your Brand

Last Updated:
 February 17, 2022
In the U.S., there are a few companies that you can easily recognize because of their branding; companies like Coca-Cola and Hershey. There are
other brands that we recognize that are subsidiaries of a larger company, like Tide, part of Proctor and Gamble. These brands are household
names, inspire customer loyalty, and their logos and color schemes are familiar to most people in the country.

While your company is likely smaller than Proctor and Gamble, you can use brand management to create and maintain a strong awareness of a
brand that will represent everything your company stands for. Your brand management strategy will provide your company with cohesive brand
guidelines to ensure that all parts of your business adhere to the same brand.
Table of Contents
1. What is a Brand?
2. What is Brand Management?
3. What are the Benefits of Brand Management?
4. How to Improve Brand Management
5. Using SEO to Amplify Brand Management
6. Use Your Sales Funnel to Improve Brand Management
7. Want to Learn How You Can Manage Your Brand?
What Is A Brand?
Before you become a brand manager, we need to define exactly what a brand is. According to Investopedia:

The term brand refers to a business and marketing concept that helps people identify a particular company, product, or individual.

Brands are intangible, which means you can’t actually touch or see them. As such, they help shape people’s perceptions of companies, their
products, or individuals. Brands commonly use identifying markers to help create brand identities within the marketplace. They provide enormous
value to the company or individual, giving them a competitive edge over others in the same industry.
Ultimately, your brand’s perceived value is what customers perceive when they interact with and observe your business.

What Is Brand Management?

Brand management is a marketing technique used to create and maintain the perceived value of a product or service, and through them, a
company. When done correctly, brand management creates positive associations between customers and a product or product line defined by
your brand. Long-term goals for brand management include establishing and improving brand recognition, brand equity, and a good reputation,
increasing revenue, and growing your profit margin for any or all products that are part of your brand.

Note: While a company is often associated with a single brand, it is also possible for a company to oversee several brands, like in the instance of
Proctor & Gamble.
Why Are Recognizable Brands Important?
In our world, customers often make buying decisions rapidly, both in-person and online. Brand marketing allows a company to create a brand
image that has influence over how a particular brand is perceived by the public, and if successful, their brand will flourish.
What Are The Benefits Of Brand Management?
Brand management can offer several benefits if successful. Let’s look at some key benefits.
Brand Recognition
Brand recognition is defined as how quickly people identify your brand without being told the brand name. The way the brand is usually recognized
is through a signature color scheme, packaging, hearing a jingle, or slogan.

Recognizing a brand means that when someone sees your product, they think of the brand automatically. Being familiar with a brand induces more
people to buy the brand. Because they recognize it, your audience feels comfortable with buying it. They trust the brand.

When you hear or see a commercial starting and know the brand without seeing the rest, that’s brand recognition. Any brand that stands out from
the crowd has a leg up on its competitors.
Brand Loyalty
When you’re willing to buy a brand based on your trust in that particular brand, that is brand loyalty. You can also be loyal to a brand without
buying products. For instance, someone loyal to a brand may refer an acquaintance to a brand. At that point, your own trust in the brand is
transferred to the second person. They trust you, so they will trust your referral to the brand.

Another example is when a brand comes out with new products or services that you decide to try because you like that brand.
Brand loyalty doesn’t have anything to do with the quality of the product. Instead, you trust that everything a favorite brand produces is good
because you are loyal to that brand.

However, it’s important to note that loyalty to your brand doesn’t last forever. Circumstances can occur when someone who is loyal to your brand
is introduced to another brand through a price reduction, coupon, or out-of-stock situation, and they learn they like the new brand better. So,
building loyalty is an ongoing process.
Improve Customer Lifetime Value (CLV)
What is CLV? Shopify defines CLV as:

The lifetime value of a customer, or customer lifetime value (CLV), represents the total amount of money a customer is expected to spend in your
business, or on your products, during their lifetime. This is an important figure to know because it helps you make decisions about how much money
to invest in acquiring new customers and retaining existing ones.

How much will a customer spend on your brand in their lifetime? If you buy a Mazda sedan and love it, then continue to return to Mazda to buy
your next car for the rest of your life, your CLV is significant because cars cost about $20,000 and up. You are giving that auto manufacturer profits
every time you buy your next car. Cars wear out and need to be replaced at regular intervals, so the seller knows you will need a new car
eventually.

This concept works on small-dollar items too. Think of something you buy regularly because you have good experiences every time. Repeat
Starbucks customers come back due to satisfaction with the service, product taste, and price of their favorite drink or food. They may only spend
$5 to $10 each time, but every time they return, they spend the same amount. And if you always buy Nestle’s cocoa instead of another brand in the
grocery store, Nestle’s earns a profit with each sale over the span of your lifetime.

There are industries that generally don’t have as much CLV because people don’t continue to come back often. Real estate agents don’t expect
homebuyers to buy more than one or two homes from them. Therefore, the CLV in real estate is less crucial. While it helps agents when they retain
a customer, getting a word-of-mouth referral is more important.
Employee Engagement
Getting employees to engage with your brand is a big plus because they will transfer their excitement in your brand to everyone they deal with,
from vendors to distributors to customers and to their family and friends. Having engaged employees means they’ll work harder, and in effect,
become brand ambassadors for your business. They will also boost the energy at your company, and look forward to the company’s success.
Scale Your Company Faster
Strategic brand management gains your business both tangible and intangible benefits.

Tangible benefits include industry recognition, happier employees, satisfied customers, more word-of-mouth referrals, and higher profits.

All of these benefits lead to growing your business faster, and on a solid foundation. Your company can scale up operations and feel confident in
doing so.
How To Improve Brand Management

Since managing your brand effectively offers several benefits, what is the best way to improve it?
Understand Your Target Market
 No matter what you’re selling, it’s important to know who your ideal customer or prospect is. Defining your buyer persona(s) for your product or
service will help you identify your target market and what they are looking for. You will understand how they live, think, face challenges, and shop
for your products. Then you can manage your brand in a way that will appeal to them.
Actively Seek Customer Feedback
When you have an opportunity to interact with your target audience, ask for their feedback. Learning what real customers perceive will help you
align your brand better with that audience. Ask for feedback related to:

 Surveys
 Webinars
 Podcasts
 Landing Pages
 Videos
 Live Content
 Sales
 Remarketing

Give people an easy way to give feedback after every interaction. You can automate many of these actions. When you show that you’re responsive
to feedback, you will rise above your competition.
Invest In Customer Relationship Management System (CRM)
Investing in a CRM can help integrate effective brand management into your customer relationships. Since your entire team, not just your
marketing team, has access to your CRM, they can see all of your customer interactions throughout the marketing funnel. This includes brand
recognition.

Since one of the goals of brand management is to get your entire company to understand the key elements and visual element of your brand image
and relate it during external interactions, the CRM is the perfect tool to store that information.

Other CRM benefits are:

 Easily access customer basics – contact information, sales opportunities, service issues
 Easy-to-find list of marketing materials requested
 Easy-to-access customer purchases and what they paid
 Dashboard with organized data
 Data-driven approach to customer relationships
 Customer data in one central location
 Focus on monitoring customer interactions
 Continuing to have a personal connection with customers as you scale
 Makes understanding target customers and the market easier as you scale
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Manage Your Message

A comprehensive understanding of your own brand will help guide all interactions with your audiences, including:

 Establishing strict guidelines for content creation for all channels, social media, email, website content, landing page content, etc.
 Producing content that is always on-brand, represents your image
 Managing and communicating your brand media package with brand assets like logos
Process Makes Perfect
Having robust processes in place ensures the consistent quality of your products and services. Maintaining that quality is critical to managing your
brand.

As your business scales up, things can slip through the cracks, but effective brand management and consistent documentation of your processes will
help you avoid this pitfall.
Using SEO To Amplify Brand Management
 Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is a powerful tool for marketing your brand. You can use SEO to target your ideal customer on search engines by
producing high-quality content these searchers want to read, share, and link to.

SEO helps you understand the search intent of keywords for informational topics related to your brand as well as commercial keywords. By
spending more time monitoring and consistently improving your website’s user experience, you will generate more leads, sales, and happier
customers.

Your marketing team can use SEO tools and marketing research to identify what your customer wants, so you can improve your value to the
customer.

Use Your Sales Funnel To Improve Brand Management

Your brand manager can also use your marketing funnel to manage positive associations with your brand with:

 Continuous improvement of email outreach based on your value proposition and customer feedback
 Maintaining the quality of your funnel as you reach out to more people
 Retargeting customers with Pay-Per-Click (PPC) ads to maximize ad spend
 Using templates and document procedures for on-brand, consistent messaging
 Using tracking to help improve your sales process
Want To Learn How You Can Manage Your Brand?
If you would like more information about brand management for your company, contact us.

10 steps to successful brand management

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 Contents [show]

How to manage your brand along its journey.

As the volume of companies competing for customer attention increases, effective brand management has become a clear market

differentiator. Therefore there has never been a more important time to develop a unique identity and value proposition through strategic

branding.

The creation of a successful brand doesn’t happen by chance; instead, it’s a set of actions taken to cultivate a brand, underpinned by a set of

characteristics to steer and reinforce its identity over time. So while building a brand is fundamental to any business that wants to be successful,

maintaining it is too, ensuring it stays relevant as consumer behaviour changes.

For large or small companies alike, branding should be at the centre of all marketing activity. To follow this principle, the development of a strategic

brand management process will help to ensure that your brand is accurately represented and portrayed at all times to your target audience.

When done correctly, branding achieves a powerful combination of design, language, and experience, that manifests itself into a very specific

feeling. These feelings, that are passionately and emotionally driven, can promote high-value loyalty and affinity that branding alone can achieve.

Where are you on your brand journey?

When you align the needle of a compass to the north, your position becomes clear and your direction can be set.

The same principle applies to your brand, and the understanding of where you are going, as well as where you have come from become vitally

important.

This brand management process aims to help individuals, company owners and brand managers to gain a holistic view of brand management,

intended to help them through their brand’s journey, whether that’s:

 Developing a new brand identity

 Repositioning an existing brand

 Ongoing control of an established brand

 Or your personal branding and identity

This brand management process is not a set path that needs to be followed, but rather a logical guide to help you grasp the overall concept of

brand management allowing you to apply your own experience and techniques along the way.

It is explained at a high level that makes it very clear for you to view the whole landscape. A closer look into each subject will enable you to expand

your knowledge and gain a more detailed view of your surroundings.

360 brand management process®

There are 10 steps and 4 phases within the 360 brand management process® designed to support you with your branding requirements.

So whether you are developing a new identity, or have a well-established brand, this guide can be applied at any point along your brand’s journey

and can start at any stage within the branding process.

Discovering the true value of your brand.
The discovery phase is a comprehensive brand audit that will help you to understand the purpose behind your brand, where it has come from, where

it stands currently, and where you want to take it in the future.

The audit will focus; internally within your company, and externally with your customers, target market and your competition.

Internally it will examine your brand’s products, services, and people, it’s business plan and sales and marketing approach.

Externally, it will examine its niche market and how the target audience perceives your brand. Analysis of your brand’s competitors will include

market share and positioning, sales and marketing activity, distribution and pricing.

A more detailed customer review can be done in the next step that focuses on your marketing funnel and customer journey enabling you to fine-

tune your brand positioning.

The discovery phase will provide insight and a baseline view of:

 Your brand’s vision and roadmap for the future

 It’s business plan and marketing strategy

 How your brand is perceived internally and externally

 Insight into your competitors and their market positioning

The audit can be completed in full, or in part, depending on your own business requirements. This information will then become the foundation on

which to set your brands goals, build a strategy and align all areas of the business where required.
Step 1: Knowlege.

Brand vision

Your brand vision is the story of your business that outlines where you come from, and where you want to go. It involves asking the following

questions: What is your business about; how do you help people; what goals are you trying to achieve, and how will you achieve them.

Niche market

Your niche is the market you serve within your specialist field together with what differentiates your business and brand from others. Gaining a

detailed understanding this is very important in order identify, follow, analyse and track your major competitors.

·
Touchpoints

Your customer touchpoints or customer journey are your brand’s points of customer contact, which includes before, during and after they make a

purchase. Understanding each touchpoint is fundamental to managing each interaction, so a detailed list needs to be defined.

Products

Although for many brands this may be straightforward, for others it’s a complex task, required as part of an audit for further analysis and market

positioning. A company can have products that span multiple markets, and for this, defining products by brand is typically the best approach.

Services

As per the requirements for products, services need to be listed, and as they can be less tangible, clear descriptions need to be defined.

Culture

Your company’s culture is defined by practices and beliefs that are usually expressed in a set of values. Understanding these values is important as

they may form an intrinsic element of your brand’s voice or tone as expressed to the market and to your customers

Step 2: Insight.

Business plan

Business strategy and brand strategy need to work hand-in-hand. Gaining an insight and understanding of your business plan is therefore a key part

of the brand management process, necessary to ensure clear alignment between the brand and business strategy. This alignment makes your brand

better positioned for success, helping bring greater clarity and differentiation in order to create a roadmap that is tailored toward your brand’s

short- and long-term growth.

Sales and marketing

It’s important to know the understand the clear differences between sales, marketing and branding. Any form of sales and marketing activity should

remain distinct and complementary aspects to the branding approach. Branding should both precede and underlie any sales and marketing

activities by establishing a strategic foundation for its operation. With this principle in place a brand strategy can be clearly defined.

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GTM strategy

A go-to-market-strategy is focuses on market offerings to reach market penetration, revenue and profitability targets and is focused on the entire

product lifecycle. Your GTM and brand strategy need to be inextricably linked in order to be truly successful in achieving your business goals.

Customers

Your brand is defined by your customers as it’s the experience that sticks in their mind that is associated with your product, service, or organisation

There is a continual need to maintain a clear understanding of the evolving needs of your customers to stay current and relevant.

Competitors

Just as you need to understand and define your own brand, you need to know all the details you can about your competitors in order to position

your brand in preparation for strategic and tactical marketing activities.

A brand is like a flag, conveying everything about its people, culture, beliefs and values.
Defining your brand's unique place.

Brand positioning is the process of placing your brand in the mind of your customers with predetermined values and differentiation. Determining

your current market position will give you valuable insight into where to go next in developing your branding strategy and planning.

Having gathered all the information needed from the discovery phase, further analysis is required in order to assess customer interactions with

your brand. This includes how your brand is attracting customers compared to the competition. At this stage of the process, a closer examination of

the buyer journey, particularly at the top end of the funnel, will help you to gauge the current awareness, familiarity, and consideration given to

your brand.

Understanding this journey and touchpoints will enable better positioning at the moments of maximum influence, therefore increasing the chance of

reaching consumers in the right place at the right time with the right message.

The next step is to develop and understand the true meaning and purpose of your brand. This is achieved through the cumulative knowledge and

insight gained from the discovery phase, with a particular focus on your brand’s vision, its niche, customer profile, and competitors. Here you will
establish your brand’s foundations, its pillars and key differentiators which together will form its uniqueness and enable you to finalise your

positioning statement.

Your brand positioning will drive your marketing strategy and aid in the creation of its overall brand identity and image.

Your brand positioning will drive your marketing strategy and aid in the creation of its overall brand identity and image.
Step 3: Analyse.

Online metrics

For existing and established brands, analysis of the brands performance, past and present, is important to understand for brand management

purposes, including brand development, repositioning and new brand development. It also influences campaign strategies and tactical marketing

initiatives that may be rolled out over time. There are many metrics and KPIs that can be used to measure brand perception, and examples of the

some of the most important ones are highlighted below. Others are covered within the results section under monitoring and can be applied to this

section where more analysis is required.

Awareness

The brand awareness metric tracks name recognition or visibility of your brand, much of which can be done in real time via the internet and various

tools available. There are many KPIs that can be used for this including; search volume that tracks your brand by name, site traffic, which gauges the

level of interest surrounding your brand, social noise analysing social media presence and organic reach that lists the number of unique accounts

that have seen a post or a specific piece of content.

Familiarity

The familiarity metric is a higher standard than awareness as it is a measure of the knowledge and understanding the potential customer has about

your brand. That includes what your brand stands for and its values, or at least the values perceived by the viewer. The higher the brand awareness,

the stronger the brand is on almost every dimension.

Consideration
The consideration metric is based on purchase intent and is an important part of a customer’s journey towards a purchase. The measurement of this

is therefore important to understand why your (potential) customers want to buy your brand, what is stopping them, and how they can be

influenced further in order to make a purchase.

Step 4: Define.

Brand values

For a new brand or startup, its values form the basis of your culture, your service, your product and your communications and need to be defined in

parallel to building your business, product or service. For established organisations, brand values are the uncompromising truths and guiding

principles that articulate what you stand for, and the primary driving force behind your brand, business, behaviours and decisions.

Brand pillars

A solid brand strategy starts with the identification of the core company product and service pillars that make up the foundation of your brand.

These pillars become the non-debatable, non-subjective fundamental truths and remain constant throughout the lifetime of your brand. They will

complement your brand’s visual image, reflecting your brand’s purpose, creating clarity by focusing on core elements that together create

something compelling, distinctive and relevant.

Key differentiators

As branding becomes more competitive, differentiation must be a top priority in your marketing strategy. Simply being better than other brands no

longer creates a sustainable advantage, therefore it’s essential to identify and develop your key differentiators. These differentiators will become a

robust set of unique features and benefits that will become the basis for how you establish and maintain your competitive advantage.

Positioning statement

Your brand positioning statement is like your elevator pitch; it is a short section of text that clearly defines what your company stands for and why it

exits. It should include what you offer, who is your target audience, how you are positioned against your competitors, and your value proposition.

Your positioning statement can be crafted once all the fundamentals of your brand our in place, including the brand essence, core values and key

differentiators and when your brand pillars have been clearly defined.

Creating your brand's individual attributes.

Having established how and where best your brand should be positioned within the market, the next step is to create your brand’s characteristics

that will add context and meaning to its basic structure developed so far in the brand management process.

Your brand’s personality should be derived from keywords that best describe its character as if your brand was a person. To achieve this, attributes

should be listed, which state how you want your brand to be perceived by your target audience, and how you want to make them feel. This

development process will start to build character to your brand, and next, personality traits need to be added to really bring your branding to life.

Now is the optimum point to develop a brand name. If it has already been done, now is the time to validate it and ensure it fits with the brand

personality that has been carefully crafted.

By following all of the steps within the creation phase, you will be able to accomplish:

 A brand name and descriptive identity

 The brand’s personality and its tone of voice

 An understanding of the brand essence

 Your value proposition and key messaging

 A content and communications strategy approach

 Brand name registration and protection

This process may take some time and require significant input and can be beneficial if done in parallel with the design phase.
Step 5: Prepare.

Attributes

Creating your brand attributes will enable you to portray your company’s brand characteristics which must be gathered to help in the development

and creation of your brand identity. These attributes will become a bundle of features that highlight the physical and personality aspects of your

brand that are depicted through images, actions, or presumptions. Attributes can include the need to be; relevant, consistent, credible, inspirational

and appealing.

Brand essence

Your brand essence is the heart and soul that defines your brand. It can be an intangible attribute, a mantra or a few clearly articulated words that

can manifest themselves into a brand’s tagline. Whether you have an established brand or are building a new one, the development of a brand
essence will become a key building block to branding success. It will help you to define your brand, give it meaning and added value, and

differentiate it against the competition.

Personality

The brand personality you develop for your product or service will become the human characteristics you give to your identity, and will become the

driving force behind the overall brand experience. Establishing a brand personality is a key aspect of the brand management process as it is a unique

element that will bring your brand to life, creating meaningful connections and relationships, rather than just transactional activities.

Content strategy

Defining a content strategy early on in the branding process will help guide better decision-making and close-knit communications. The content

strategy should include goals together with what information is necessary to guide your strategic marketing decisions. Clear objectives should be

defined that are aligned with your brand’s target audience, customer journey, channels and messaging.

Step 6: Create.

Brand name

Deciding on a brand name can be a difficult task, and to get it right, it’s helpful to have a clearly defined story. This requires solid preparation, and

the work to achieve this is laid out step-by-step within this brand management process. When you have been through the exercise of discovery and

positioning, including the various elements required to build a new brand, have your brand values and pillars completed, you are ready to start the

naming process. There are a number of steps to follow to ensure you get it right, however in essence, your brand name is your story distilled to its

shortest form. It must stand for something, be able to grab people’s attention, be timeless, tireless, easy to say and remember and facilitate brand

extensions, a tagline and slogans.

Messaging

After defining who you are and what you are as a brand, arguably the most important thing is what you say, and how you say it. Therefore

messaging must be at the centre of everything you do, both in written and verbal form. Your brand’s messaging is the consistent underlying value

proposition that is applied to all your communications, both internally and externally. It’s what makes people relate to your brand – by inspiring,

persuading, and motivating them, attracting and ultimately retaining them as employees and customers.
·

Tone of voice

Your brand’s tone of voice is its attitude, which means how your brand speaks to its audience. Combining personality and tone of voice creates your

brand style in written form, but in the long run, it’s tone that separates the average from the best and needs to be consistent throughout all your

brand communications.

Trademarks

After creating your brand name, protecting your newly created asset is an important step that should be taken early in the branding process.

Developing your brand's visual image.

A brand’s visual image is the most powerful way to capture attention and build brand recognition as it delivers its message in the shortest possible

time.

Your logo design should reflect the essence of your brand and the key elements that were built within the positioning and creation phase. If done

correctly, your brand image will encapsulate everything your brand stands for, and want to convey to your target market.

Connecting a brands visual image and message with human emotions, at the right time, and in the right place, will be the key to its long-term

success.

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When developing your logo design, your aim should be to make it simple, enabling it to be quickly decoded through the human eye, so typography,

shapes, colours, and space must be combined to create a highly effective identity. Certain visual characteristics can be more prominent like its

colour or boldness to reflect its attitude and personality.

Your tagline should be an integral part of the logo as it tells people who you are and what you stand for, rather than what you do.

The application phase includes the production of all the marketing and communication material, promotions, campaigns and slogans, all that must

stay true to your brand image.

To ensure the integrity of your brand identity, guidelines must be in place to protect its application, explaining how your brand should be used both

internally and externally. These guidelines should be comprehensive enough so that everyone in the company can refer to them to know how their

brand should be represented.

Step 7: Design.

Logo and tagline

Your logo design is the core element of your brand identity and when being developed, must stay true to the company’s values and ideas. It should

be simple, unique and create instant recognition within the minds of your target audience. Your tagline is an expression of your brand, it should be

catchy and meaningful and underpin the overall positioning of your brand in a way that conveys life and character. Unlike a brand slogan that

changes with campaigns, your tagline should remain constant, and over time, become synonymous with your brand.

Graphic style

The graphic style of your brand is the way it is portrayed visually and requires careful consideration. Your brand logo and graphic style should be

developed together to achieve the desired look and feel for your brand identity. To develop this style, brand attributes should be reviewed to create

a graphic style that will resonate with in intended audience. This will include key elements like typography, photography, graphic images, icons and

illustrations, which when combined, will visually represent the brand’s essence, values and personality.

Colour Palette

Brand attributes and competitive research are components of the brand management process required to help define your brand’s colour palette.

Creating the right feeling and mood for your brand is important, and while certain colours elicit certain emotions, predicting consumer reaction to

colour appropriateness is actually far more important than the colours themselves. When defined, the colours will reinforce both the brand’s values

and the personality of the products and services it offers.

Guidelines

Guidelines form the standards and specifications of your brand’s visual and descriptive identity with the purpose of ensuring consistency and brand

integrity across all marketing and communications.

Step 8: Produce.
Promotions

Marketing promotion is an important and overarching method of getting your brand and its core values out into the public domain. It focuses on the

broader aspect of promotion covering the four elements of the marketing mix within your business being (product, price, promotion or distribution).

These types of promotional activities are generally aimed at increasing customer awareness and can include advertisements, press releases, web

sites, and personal sales efforts.

Campaigns and slogans

Brand marketing campaigns are planned, strategic and highly targeted efforts to promote a specific goal, such as raising awareness of a new

product or capturing customer feedback. They typically aim to reach consumers in a variety of ways and involve a combination of media including

email, pay-per-click, advertising, and social media. Slogans are applied to the campaign to give it a specific and consistent theme to promote its core

message. As a rule of thumb, a campaign should run for six weeks to create maximum impact and last no longer than eight weeks to ensure it

doesn’t become too familiar with its audience.

Media mix

A combination of promotional channels create the media mix that is used to promote your brand and deliver on its marketing objectives. Deciding

on the right channels, where and when to promote them now requires greater scrutiny as sales channels become more diversified and customer

journeys become more complex. Therefore understanding your customer profile through segmentation and persona is paramount in order to deliver

a highly effective and fully integrated media strategy.

Apps

Mobile is the most targeted, personalised, real-time marketing channel available, and the use of Apps should be integrated promotional element for

your brand as it offers a unique way to engage your consumers.

Tracking results and performance.

Before you start the rollout of any advertising, promotional campaigns or publicity, you should have clearly defined metrics, KPIs and targets in

place to measure its success. They should be aligned with your company’s business plan, sales and marketing strategy, existing brand performance

data and competitive benchmarking.

For tracking brand performance online, like social media or email marketing, there are a plethora of tools available that will help you with the

analysis and measurement. For an offline activity like press advertising, custom landing pages offer the best solution as they will measure web

traffic diverted to the site.

Measuring customer engagement based on experience and association can be a challenge, however, looking at ways to capture this information is

the key to understand how your brand is perceived and rooted in the minds of your customers. A closer look at touchpoints will enable you to best

see where and how this can be measured.

In addition, analysis of the sales funnel targeted towards the lower end of the funnel should be conducted in order to track purchasing habits based

on the push from marketing efforts and the pull from consumers. Customer satisfaction, loyalty, and advocacy should also be measured to fully

understand the final steps of the customer journey.

Selecting between 5 and 10 KPIs would be the most optimal, then fine-tuning your efforts at the earliest opportunity will help bring greater clarity

to your campaign and the behaviour of your target audience.

Step 9: Rollout.

Advertising and publicity

When it comes to creating awareness, brand advertising will encapsulate the essence, values and personality of your brand, and is used to establish

a connection and bonding with its intended audience over time. Direct response advertising is used to initiate an immediate response compelling

prospects to take action. Adding publicity into the mix can be a powerful and cost effective brand building tool, and for smaller companies, this can

be a cost-effective substitute for brand advertising.

Web and e-commerce

Your website is your shop window that says everything about your brand and your values at a glance. And for your brand to be successful online, it

must be highly recognisable, engaging and truly authentic. To achieve this, your website or online e-commerce shop must contain the key

ingredients for success to ensure a unique user experience. This should include, clear calls to action, a refined user interface, highly impactful,

relevant, engaging messages and resources, and underpinned by a fully optimised and integrated SEO structure.

Email marketing
Email marketing can be an effective way to build brand awareness as well as increase sales as it gives you complete control of what, how, when and

the way you communicate with your customers. It will enable you to create direct links with your audience and when set up correctly, can help

leverage the ROI of your marketing campaign.

Social media

A social media presence is becoming a must for all modern-day brands to connect with their customers. To effectively make this connection, quality

content should at the heart of all your communications strategy, born out of your brands core values and personality. Delivering high-value content,

imagery and information across your chosen platforms will give your brand the stage for its messages, creating strong customer engagement.

Step 10: Monitor.

Association

Associations refer to particular thoughts and impressions created by a brand. Gauging the impact of brand association can be done by assessing

brand attitude and differentiation.

Experience

The key to effective brand management is to create a positive and memorable brand experience which is generated via the different touchpoints you

and your brand has with its customers. Measuring its effectiveness includes analysis of social media, subscriptions, database volume and sales.

Purchasing

Your sales funnel is how you attract, convert, close and retain your customers and it’s one of the most important business metrics that requires

careful analysis. However your sales funnel is segmented, the metrics near the end of the buying journey measure conversions rates and costs and

tell you a lot about your customers purchasing behaviours.

Loyalty

Obtaining brand loyalty is a very important aspect of brand marketing as it’s a measurement of how likely consumers are to continue to give you

their business. The most effective way to measure brand loyalty is through surveys with defined metrics where feedback can be collected from your

existing customers.
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Track and adjust

Whether you are launching a new brand, or in the middle of a rollout of a promotional campaign, tracking its performance should be key and

integral part of the brand management process. While lessons can be learnt and adjusted over time on some marketing elements, other web-based

aspects can be analysed and adjusted in real time to increase its effectiveness in response to customer behaviour or market conditions.

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