CHAPTER 12:

Branding
 Learning outcomes

● Describe the elements of a brand and explain why brands are

important.
● Explain how to create a brand image through tangible and
intangible attributes.
● Understand how brand relationships work to create brand
loyalty.
● Detail how companies build and manage brand equity.
 Introduction

- Originally, a brand was just the name of the product that was being
marketed to a consumer. Later, branding became the action of
identifying and differentiating the product from other similar products in
the marketplace.
- In the 21st century, the concept of the brand has evolved beyond
products and services to include people, causes, concepts and ideas.
Essentially, the brand is everything your mind connects to a company.
- Brand, generally it is a name, term, symbol or design—or a combination
of these elements that is intended to clearly identify and differentiate a
seller’s products from a competitor’s products. In other words, a brand is
the bundle of attributes—the features, functions, benefits and uses—that
set a product apart from its competition.
 Brand Elements

- The role of branding in strategic communication is building and maintaining a positive

reputation.
- All brands have essential elements that create a brand identity. These include the name,
logo, tagline, colors, typeface, market position and message strategy.

Brand Name

- The brand name can be spoken and includes letters (ESPN), words (Little Caesar’s Pizza)
and numbers (7-Eleven).
- The name should suggest the product’s uses and qualities and should avoid negative
connotations.
- Brand names don’t have to be real words—they can be completely made up.. They can be
the founder’s name.
- Other strategies utilized to create brand names include describing what the company does
(Southwest Airlines), describing the experience a consumer has with the product (Jiffy
Lube), combining words to make a new word (FedEx), taking a word out of context and
repurposing it (Apple), or using an acronym (NASA).
 Brand Elements

Logos

- A logo is an element of the brand

that cannot be spoken. It’s the
visual representation of the brand.
- It is a distinctive graphic mark,
emblem, word mark or symbol that
is used to indicate the product’s
source or ownership.
- Think of it as visual shorthand that
people can use to recognize a
business.
 Brand Elements

Trademarking the Brand

- A trademark is the legally protected part of the brand, which can

include the brand name, the brand’s logo (design and colors), tagline
(Just Do It), characters (Flo from Progressive), and other aspects of the
brand.
- Filing for a copyright can become expensive and tedious, so common
law trademark protection allows smaller businesses and organizations to
protect and claim ownership of goods, brands and images
- A service mark can be used for any type of unique service that an
organization can offer.
- Creative commons is used to indicate that work is free to copy,
distribute, adapt and make commercial.
 Brand Elements

Trademarking the Brand

 Creating Brand Image

- A brand’s image is the impression that consumers have about a brand.

Brand image is made up of tangible and intangible attributes.
- Because the brand’s image resides in the minds of consumers, everyone
may have a slightly different image of the brand.
- In our minds, we organize our thoughts about brands in a way so that we
build relationships with brand, much the same way that we build
relationships with other people—through actual experiences.
 Creating Brand Image

Tangible and Intangible Attributes

- Tangible attributes, also known as functional attributes, of a brand include

the design, performance and price. What does the product do? How does it
help you? What color is it? How big is it? These functional attributes are all
the actual, tangible characteristics of the product.
- What does the product do? How does it help you? What color is it? How big
is it? These functional attributes are all the actual, tangible characteristics of
the product. These include recognition of the brand, its reputation and the
trust people have with it, the confidence the consumer has that the brand
can serve their needs, the status that the brand might have in the mind of
the consumer, the type of store where the product is sold, the level of
comfort a consumer has while using the brand and the feelings a consumer
has about a brand.
 Creating Brand Image

Tangible and Intangible Attributes

- The combination of these attributes forms the brand image, or the

impression that consumers hold in their minds about a brand.
- The image of a brand varies from person to person based on the
experience the person has with the brand before and after each use.
- Consumers create schemas in their minds about brands. These brand
schemas are a complex network of ideas and objects related to the
brand.
- Brand contacts are the planned and unplanned interactions between
the consumer and the brand.
 Creating Brand Image

Brand Relationships

- Consumers do not usually distinguish between types of brand contacts.

- They mentally aggregate all the messages, contacts and product
encounters together to create an image of a brand.
- The way a brand communicates with stakeholders helps create brand
relationships
- Having strong relationships allow the brand to maintain its sales and
create brand loyalty. Brand loyalty is the tendency that consumers have
to buy the same brands repeatedly, sometimes despite the actions of
competitor’s brands.
 Managing the Brand

Brands and Consumers

- The relationship between the consumer and the brand is critical. Brands
help buyers in very tangible ways. They help consumers identify what
products they do and don’t like. They can help consumers evaluate the
quality of products and reduce perceived risk of purchase.
- Logos, packaging and where a product can be found in a store can have a
profound effect on purchasing habits. Additionally, brands can provide
psychological rewards for people owning the product. Finally, brands can
help make repeat purchase decisions easier.
- The consumer trusts the brand to provide certain attributes and in return
allows the maker to command a certain price because the brand
consistently delivers on the promise of performance it has with the
customer.
 Managing the Brand

Brand Equity

- Brand equity is the added value that results from having a positive
brand image. If consumers are aware of a brand and have a positive
image of the brand, it becomes more valuable than lesser-known and less
well-liked brands.
- Brand awareness, perceived quality, brand loyalty and brand associations
all build the brand equity and impressions in stakeholders’ minds. It
influences purchase habits and that has an economic impact on a brand.
- Consumers are willing to pay more (up to 30% more) for products that
have strong brand equity.
- Consumers can also reject a product when it diverges from the brand,
damaging the equity in the market.
 Managing the Brand

Top ten most valuable brands in 2018, according to the firm’s

ranking
10. ICBC 9. Walmart 8. Verizon 7. Microsoft 6. AT&T
Brand value: $59.2 Brand value: $61.5 Brand value: $62.8 Brand value: $81.2 Brand value: $82.4
billion billion billion billion billion
Percentage change Percentage change Percentage change Percentage change Percentage change
from last year: +24% from last year: -1% from last year: -5% from last year: +6% from last year: -5%
2017 rank: 10 2017 rank: 8 2017 rank: 7 2017 rank: 5 2017 rank: 4

5. Facebook 4. Samsung 3. Google 2. Apple 1. Amazon

Brand value: $89.7 Brand value: $92.3 Brand value: $120.9 Brand value: $146.3 Brand value: $150.8
billion billion billion billion billion
Percentage change Percentage change Percentage change Percentage change Percentage change
from last year: +45% from last year: +39% from last year: +10% from last year: +37% from last year: +42%
2017 rank: 9 Last year’s rank: 6 2017 rank: 1 2017 rank: 2 2017 year’s rank: 3
Case study
 Managing the Brand

Brand Management

- In order to maintain the value and equity of the brand, companies must
plan and utilize strategic communication initiatives to manage and build
the brand. This is known as brand management.
- When managing a brand, there are various types of branding strategies
that organizations may employ.
- When a company produces a new product that is related to existing
products—such as Frito Lay’s Ranch Doritos—this is an example of a
brand extension. The new product leverages the brand equity of the
original brand and achieves value and awareness almost
instantaneously.
 Managing the Brand

Brand Management

- Co-branding is another unique branding strategy that involves two

companies coming together to brand one product, such as A&W Root
Beer and Long John Silver’s restaurants sharing the same retail space.
- Ingredient branding is another strategy that brands utilize to increase
awareness and brand equity. This is the practice of highlighting an
ingredient in the primary brand that is from another supplier and making
it an important product feature.
 Discussion Questions

1. Pretend that you are opening a new fast-food restaurant that specializes in gourmet hot
dogs. What would your brand be called? What would the logo look like? How do you
develop a brand identity? Why does a company need one?
 Group Project Instruction

Option 1: In group (3-5 members), students develop a strategic

communication campaign for a specific brand/product. Design your
campaign plan as a book (chapter 13). You campaign plan may include:

- Background
- Situation analysis
- Goals and Objectives (in SMART)
- Big idea/ Key message
- Communication plans
- Timeline
- Budget
- Stakeholders
- Evaluation

Option 2: Follow the lecturer's proposal.

 References

Principles of Strategic Communication by Derina Holtzhausen, Jami Fullerton,

Bobbi Kay Lewis, Danny Shipka
Strategic Communication: An Introduction to Theory and Global Practice by
Jesper Falkheimer, Mats Heide
Media Now: Understanding Media, Culture, and Technology by Joseph
Straubhaar, Robert LaRose, Lucinda Davenport