Module- 4

a) Concept of Brand Association

b) Concept of Brand Identity
c) Methodology of creating Brand identity

Concept of BRAND ASSOCIATION

INTRODUCTION

Invariably all brands come to acquire a meaning in the minds of

customers. Customers associate different dimensions of the product
including its use and use situations to the brands. Brand association,
therefore, is anything linked to the memory of a brand. Thus a jingle like
“Happy days are here again has been associated in the customer’s mind
with Thumbs up. Surf is linked with the economy-minded middle class
housewife “Lalitaji” in the ads. It is important to not only know the
association that exist with a brand, but also know the strength of these
associations. For example, the name Tata is associated with quality. It is
important to know how strong this association is and for the family name
like this, which are the products where this association is the strongest.

Based on these associations (which are also developed as a result

of customer’s experience and exposure with and to the brand), customers
form an image of the brand. This should generally support the positioning
platform which the marketer has taken. A well-positioned brand can help
in creating an appropriate brand image.

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Brand association helps build brand equity by:

1. Helping a customer to process and quickly retrieve product

information.
2. Differentiate the brand from competitors.
3. Provide to the customer a reason to buy.
4. Help in creating positive attitudes or feeling towards the brand.
5. It provides the basis for product line extension.

Among the type of associations, a brand may develop are:

(a) Country or geographical area, i.e. the home of the brand. This is
particularly useful in global marketing.
(b) Product attributes like a herbal beauty cream and tooth paste or tooth
powder associated with the Vicco brand.
(c) Intangibles like image of prompt after sales service or customer
service with international banks like Hongkong Bank.
(d) Customer benefits——this could even be psychological.
(e) Relative price—-Premium price brands in different product groups
reflect customer’s perception of their quality.
(f) Use or application.
(g) User or Customer.
(h) Celebrity or person-“The beauty soap of the film stars.
(i) Life-style or personality.
(j) Product class and
(k) Competitors

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Perceived Quality

One of the desired associations a firm seeks for its brand is

customers’ perception of high quality. For, if the brand is perceived to be
of premium quality, the customer will be willing to pay a premium for it.
The firm will have greater trade leverage and channel members are going
to have greater interest in dealing with such brands. A high quality brand
also provides an adequate reason for the customer to buy it. It is
important to note that perceived quality is not necessarily the same as
manufacturing quality or product based quality. Perceived quality is how
the customers evaluate different brands on quality and hence need not be
as objective as the other two are.

Other Proprietary Assets

Other proprietary assets of a brand include its name, patent,

channel relationship, etc. It’s important to note that a good and cordial
relationship with channel members can always help enhance the brand
equity. That’s because of the interest channel members will have in the
firm’s brands. Developing exclusive relationships, dealer councils and
creating rewards for high performing dealers are some of the ways by
which these relationships can be strengthened.

Finally, a marketer has to consider the issue of extending the brand

name to other products. In deciding to extend or not, the marketer should
consider whether the new product will enhance the core brand’s equity
and whether the brand name aids the extension process. The worst that
can happen is that the new product may create an association or image
that can harm the parent brand. A marketer needs to be careful of such a
crisis developing through his new product decisions.

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b) Concept of Brand Identity
Introduction
The oxford dictionary has defined identity as ‘the fact of being who
or what a person or thing is’, the characteristic determining this’.
The concept of identity has been widely used in the context of humans.
Identity card is particularly employed as a device to establish the identity
of the owner. It describes who the person is. Establishing who/ what a
person is can be done in number of ways- dress, language, code,
mannerism, identity card , palm scanning, and other electronic
mechanism. Here in these instances, the idea is to establish congruence
between who you are and who you perceived as. That is to eliminate the
possible discrepancy which may arise between who the person is-
identity-and who he has been received as- decoded identity.
For instance cinthol once a very powerful brand has been subjected to
severe damages because of typical mistakes that brand managers
commit. It is the absence of understanding, may be, about what the brand
is that has led to the present situation. The soap was initially positioned as
containing a deodoring agent which would boost the confidence of the
user. Later it changed its track and went on to acquire a masculine image
with upmarket hunk user profile. The brand ambasadors hired for the job
were imran khan, vinod khanna and later akshay khanna. As usually
happens, the brand got entangled with HLL’s rival liril. Also the brand
further saw a spate of extensions –cinthol cologne, cinthol lime, cinthol
international. The focus shifted from brand user to brand ingredients and
attributes. It seems, that the brand suffered because of the absence of a
charter guiding brand decision. the actions of the managers have left the
brand weak and vulnerable.

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Brand identity

Few brands have a brand charter defining the brand’s long term identity
and uniqueness. these cannot be found in any graphic guidelines ,as they
often focus on the brand’s outward appearance. Thus to understand what
the brand truly represents is not just a graphic exercise. It is an
investigation of the brand’s inner most substance and of the different
facets of its identity. Brand identity is a recent concept.

Brand identity :- A Necessary Concept

Identity :- the word identity is used in many ways :-
For instance we talk about identity cards-a personal , non
transferable document which tells us in few words who we are, what our
name is? And what distinguishable features we have that can be instantly
recognised.Another word used is ‘identity of opinion’ , meaning identical
point of view.
This suggests brand identity is the common element sending a
single message amid the wide variety of products, actions and slogans.
This is important as the more the brand expands and diversifies the more
the customers are inclined to feel they are dealing with several different
brands rather than a single one. Speaking of identical point of view also
raises the question of permanence and continuity. As civil status and
physical appearance change, identity cards gets updated, yet the finger
print of their folders always remain the same.the identity concept
question how time will affect the unique and permanent quality of sender
, the brand or the retailer.Lastly in studies on social groups or minorities,
we speak of ‘cultural identity’.

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 In seeking an identity , they are in fact seeking a pivotal basis on
which to hinge not only there inherent difference but also their
membership of a specific cultural entity.
Brand identity may be a recent notion,but many researchers have
already delved into the organisational identity of companies.
In other words, corporate identity is what helps an organisation , or a part
of it, feel that it truly exists and that it is a coherent and unique being,
with a history and a place of its own, different from others.
Brand identity may be clearly defined once the following questions are
answered:-
1. what is the brand’s particular vision and aim?
2. what makes it different?
3. what need is the brand fulfilling?
4. what is its permanent feature?
5. what are its value or values?
6. what are the signs which make it recognisible?
These questions could indeed constitute the brand’s charter. this
would help better brand management in the medium term,both in
terms of form and content, and so better address future
communication and extension issues.communication tools such as the
copy strategy are essentially linked to advertising campaigns, so are
only committed to the short term. There must be specific guidelines to
ensure that there is indeed only one brand forming a solid and
coherent entity.

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Brand identity perspective
The brand identity dimension could be organised around four
perspectives. These are:
1. brands as a product
2. brands as a organisation
3. brand as a person, and
4. Brand as a symbol.

Brand identity and graphic identity charters

Formal aspects, outward appearance, and overall looks result from

the brand s core substance and intrinsic identity.

Choosing a symbol requires a clear definition of what the brand

means. However, while graphic manuals are quite easy to find
nowadays, explicit definition of brand identity per se are still very
rare.
The brand’s deepest values must be reflected in the external signs
of recognition, and these must be apparent at first glance. For instance
the family resemblance between the various models of BMW conveys
a strong identity, yet it is not the identity.
This brand’s identity and essence can actually be defined by
addressing the issue of its difference, its permanence, its values and
its personal view on automobiles.
Many firms have constrained their communication because they
formulated a graphic charter before defining their identity. Not
knowing who they really are, they merely perpetuate purely formal
codes by.

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Knowing brand identity paradoxically gives extra freedom of
expression, since it emphasises the pre-eminence of substance over
strictly formal features.
Brand identity defines what must stay and what is free to change.

Identity – a contemporary concept

It is a more refined concept that allows a closer connection with

reality. urgent need to understand brand identity is :-
• we are currently living in a society saturated in communication.
There have been huge increases in advertising budgets, not
only in major media but also in the growing number of
professional magazines. It has become very difficult to survive
in the hurly-burly thus created , let alone to thrive and
successfully convey one’s identity.

• Secondly the pressure constantly put on brands. when a brand

innovates , it creates a new standard. The brands must catch up
in the race. Regulations also cause similarities to spread.
for example:-Bank operations, have become so much alike that
banks are now unable to fully express their individuality and identity.
Market research also generates homogeneity within a sector.as all the
companies base themselves on the same lifestyle studies, the
conclusion they reach are bound to be similar as are the advertising
campaigns they launch, in which sometimes even the same words are
used.

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 • Finally, technology is responsible for growing similarity. For
instance why do cars look alike, in spite of their different
makes?
Because car makers are all equally concerned about fluidity, inner car
space constraints, motorisation and economy, and these problems
cannot be solved in all that many different ways.
Moreover, when two makes of car such as Peugeot and citroen share
many identical parts (eg:-chassis, engine, gearbox), for either
productivity or competitiveness purposes, it is mainly brand identity,
along with , to a lesser extent what’s left of each car,which will
distinguish the two makes from one another.

Brand identity speak in the brand’s name and thus produce meaning,
however disconnected they may actually be from it.

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Six facets of identity
A specific set of concepts and tools is needed for tackling the new
type of markets we are in. when products were rare the USP was the
key concept. as we leave brand image, positioning, and personality
behind , we enter the modern age of brand identity.
Brands must be true to there identity. The notion of brand image is
both volatile and changing, it focuses too much on brand appearance
and not enough on brand essence.
The notion of brand identity shows that communication managers are
now willing to look beyond the surface for the brand’s innermost
substance. The identity concept is crucial for three reasons;
1. a brand needs to be durable .
2. to send out coherent signs.
3. to be realistic.

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The identity prism:

Brand identity can be represented by a hexagonal prism.

1. a brand has physical qualities- its ‘physique’. it is made of
combination of salient features or emerging ones.
Physique is both the brand’s backbone and its tangible added
value.if the brand is flower then its physique is stem.
Physical appearance is important but it is not all.thus the first
step in developing a brand is to define its physical aspect:-
what is it concretely?
What does it do? What does it look like?
2. a brand has a personality of its own. By communicating , it
gradually builds up character. The way in which it speaks of
its products or services shows what kind of person it would be
if it were human. Personality has been the main focus of brand
advertising since 1970. the easiest way of creating instant
personality is to give the brand a spokesperson or a
figurehead,whether real or symbolic. Pepsi-cola often uses this
method , as do all perfume or ready-to-wear brands.
3. a brand has its own culture,from which every product derives.
Culture means the set of values feeding the brands inspiration.
Cultural facets refers to the basic principles governing the
brand in its owtward signs. For instance APPLE was the
product of Californian culture in the sence that this state will
forever symbolise the new frontier.
Major brands are certainly driven by culture, but in turn they
also convey this culture.
E.g. Benetton, Coca-Cola, IBM etc
4. a brand is a relationship. Indeed brands are often at the crux of

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 transactions and exchanges between people. This is
particularly true of brands in the service sector and also of
retailers. For e.g. Nike bears a greek name that relates it to
specific cultural values, to the Olympic games and to the
glorification of the human body. Nike suggests also a peculiar
relationship , based on provocation: it encourages us to let
loose. ( ‘JUST DO IT’ ).
IBM symbolises orderliness, whereas APPLE conveys
friendliness.
5. a brand is a reflection. Reflection and target are often mixed
up. The target describes the brand’s potential purchasers and
users. Reflecting the customer as he/she is not the target ;
rather , the customer should be reflected as he/ she wishes to
be seen as a result of using a brand. It provides a model with
which to identify. Consumers indeed use a given brand to
build their own identity. In the ready- to –wear industry, the
obsession to look younger should concern the brands’
reflection, not necessarily their target. All brands must control
there reflection.
6. a brand speaks to our self- image. If reflection is the target’s
outward
mirror , self image is the target’s own internal mirror. Though
our attitude towards certain brands , we indeed develop a
certain type of inner relationship with ourselves.
For e.g. even if they do not practise any sports, Lacoste clients
inwardly picture themselves as members of sports club- an
open club with no race, sex or age discrimination, but which
endows its members with distinction. This works because
sports is universal.

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Brand identity levels:
The identity decisions begin with understanding the brand’s
fundamentals. We need to know what brand is, what it stands for.
What is the core value proposition it intends to make to strike a
chord with the customers? The most powerful brands on earth can be
charaterised to have well articulated or defined identities while the
brands which do not leave any mark are victims of the lack of it.
Identity is essentially an issue that is in the hand of the brand
steward, creator, or manager.
A brand identity has two levels:

1. Central identity (Inner Core):

The identity is the soft core of the brand which is normally
enveloped with layers of peripheral identity elements. It
represents the essential core of the brand. For a brand to have
sustainable identity, analyses of customers, competitors and
self appraisal of company’s strength and weakness is essential.
The brand identity can be deciphered by knowing what does
the brand stands for
For instance , the first word ,that people behind the mentioned
down may utter are:-
Xerox- it is service, service and service.
Lux – beauty bar for young women
3M- innovation and improvement of life
Dettol- antiseptic, protection.
Johnson and Johnson – trust and quality a baby needs.
Nirma – value for money in daily products.
Pepsi – fun, excitement for the youth.

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A brands central identity or essence can be decoded from the observation
of the brand over time.it remains constant.
For example- HLL’s LUX toilet soap has been around for 4 decades and
it has been able to sustain its dominant position all these years. Though
the brand campaigns have changed in execution and style but it focuses
on ‘beauty’ that film stars have always remain unchaged. Likewise is the
case with lifebuoy which is widely known for washing off germs.it is
basically for health.
The brand’s central identity is the spiritual centre.it contains the reason
for existence, and why a brand is born. For example;- ‘lets make things
better’ signals philip’s identity in order not to make things better but to
make life better. The statement has a very directional force.

outer core of the brand:-

it suggests what the stands for more tangibly in an easy to grasp fashion.it
is somewhat easy operationalisation of the innercore of the
brand.decesions need to be taken regarding picking up the brand elements
in a manner that is cohesive whole. The brands core sometimes maybe
too philosophical or abstract which may pose difficulty in decoding a
brand’s intention. Thus, outer core identity maybe used tactically to
provide direction and meaning to the element selection.
For example:- MC DONALDS outer identity core incorporates product
scope, i.e. what all products could be offered at the restaurants,; the
operations (designed to enhance efficiency so that service is faster.); the
personality (family oriented,middle class, genuine, and cheerful);logo
signage (a typical Mc Donald sign supported by the golden arches);
character Ronald Mc Donald; sub brands ( Mc burger, pizza, Mc duff, Mc
Donald happy meal).some of the outer core elements are adapted to suit
local market conditions.

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