fashion branding final exam

mass merchants and hyper-stores

The major distinction between these stores and other department stores and other department stores is that in addition to a mix of hard and soft merchandise, they sell groceries as well. They are also oriented with a wide range of inexpensive products, centralized checkout points, and self-service.

Variety or breadth of merchandise

The number of different categories of merchandise that a store offers

mass customization

allows consumers to customize or adapt mass-produced products' features according to their needs. Some of the product's intrinsic/ extrinsic properties are changed. A subset of masscustomization is personalization which is a practice of personalizing a standardized product by adding monograms, initials, or emblems. In personalization, the intrinsic properties are not changed and only extrinsic ones are changed.

price bundling

different items but combined together for a cheaper price- eg: shoe + shoe cleaner

corporate brand

a company creates separate brands and promotes each brand individually, as separate entities. Eg Gap Inc under which there are various brands such as Gap, Old Navy, Athleta, Banana Republic.

how do you identify a brand?

a name, logo, symbol, package design or other characteristic that identify a product and distinguishes it from others.

brand

a name, term, sign, symbol, or design, or a combination of them, intended to identify the goods and services of one seller or group of sellers and to differentiate them from those of its competitors

premium store brands

a type of private label brands that offer superior quality than manufacturer brands but at lower prices with high creativity. Macy's INC and Alfani are examples. These are retailers' way of participating in the premium market segment.

brand knowledge

all the thoughts, feelings, images, experiences, and beliefs associated with the brand. consists of two things: brand awareness and brand image

importance of pricing

-creates identity -helps in positioning -determines income

brand feelings

1. Warmth: The brand evokes soothing types of feelings and makes consumers feel a sense of calm or peacefulness. Consumers may feel sentimental, warmhearted, or affectionate about the brand. Many heritage brands such as Welch's jelly, Quaker oatmeal, and Aunt Jemima pancake mix and syrup tap into feelings of warmth. 2. Fun: Upbeat types of feelings make consumers feel amused, lighthearted, joyous, playful, cheerful, and so on. With its iconic characters, Disney's clothing brands are often associated with fun. 3. Excitement: The brand makes consumers feel energized and that they are experiencing something special. Brands that evoke excitement may generate a sense of elation, of "being alive," or being cool, sexy, etc. MTV is a brand seen by many teens and young adults as exciting. 4. Security: The brand produces a feeling of safety, comfort, and self-assurance. As a result of the brand, consumers do not experience worry or concerns that they might have otherwise felt. LLBean is a brand that many older adults feel secure about since they have lifetime warranty on their products. 5. Social approval: The brand gives consumers a belief that others look favorably on their appearance, behavior, and so on. This approval may be a result of direct acknowledgment of the consumer's use of the brand by others or may be less overt and a result of attribution of product use to consumers. To luxury customers, many luxury apparel brands, such as Louis Vuitton, Valentino, etc., are a sign of social approval. 6. Self-respect: The brand makes consumers feel better about themselves; consumers feel a sense of pride, accomplishment, or fulfillment. A brand like Tide laundry detergent is able to link its brand to "doing the best things for the family" to many homemakers. Brand feelings are customers' emotional responses and reactions to the brand. The emotions evoked by a brand can become so strongly associated that they are accessible during product consumption or use. Researchers have defined transformational advertising as advertising designed to change consumers' perceptions of the actual usage experience with the product. For example, Corona Extra overtook Heineken as the leading imported beer in the United States via its "beach in a bottle" advertising. With a tagline "Miles Away from Ordinary," the campaign was designed to transform drinkers—at least mentally—to sunny, tranquil beaches.

Consumer Purchase Decision Process

1. problem recognition 2. information search 3. alternative evaluation 4. purchase decision 5. post purchase behavior/feedback

market segmentation criteria

A number of criteria have been offered to guide segmentation and target market decisions, such as the following: • Identifiability: Can we easily identify the segment? • Size: Is there adequate sales potential in the segment? • Accessibility: Are specialized distribution outlets and communication media available to reach the segment? • Responsiveness: How favorably will the segment respond to a tailored marketing program?

triple bottom line

According to the Triple Bottom Line theory, a brand is truly sustainable if it is socially, environmentally as well as economically

department stores

As the name suggests, department stores are stores that are divided into distinct departments such as menswear, womenswear, etc. They can vary in their product offerings as well as their price range. For example, Neiman Marcus offered only apparel while Macy's carries apparel as well as home goods. Also their price ranges are different.

attitudinal attachment

Behavioral loyalty is necessary but not sufficient for resonance to occur. Some customers may buy out of necessity—because the brand is the only product stocked or readily accessible, the only one they can afford, or other reasons. Resonance, however, requires a strong personal attachment. Customers should go beyond having a positive attitude to viewing the brand as something special in a broader context. For example, customers with a great deal of attitudinal attachment to a brand may state that they "love" the brand, describe it as one of their favorite possessions, or view it as a "little pleasure" that they look forward to. Creating greater loyalty requires creating deeper attitudinal attachment, through marketing programs and products and services that fully satisfy consumer needs.

brand elements

Brand elements are those trademark-able devices that serve to identify and differentiate the brand. The main ones are brand names, logos, symbols, characters, slogans, typefaces/ fonts/ colors, and, packages. The customer-based brand equity model suggests that marketers should choose brand elements to enhance brand awareness; facilitate the formation of strong, favorable, and unique brand associations; or elicit positive brand judgments and feelings. The test of the brand-building ability of a brand element is what consumers would think or feel about the product if they knew only that particular brand element and not anything else about the product and how else it would be branded or marketed. A brand element that provides a positive contribution to brand equity conveys or implies certain valued associations or responses.

types of brand elements

Brand names: The brand name is the first point of contact between the consumer and the brand and is an important choice to be made by the brand's producers. Names need to be memorable and play a role in evoking all the intended associations that make up the brand. In addition to the six criteria for choosing brand elements as discussed in the previous slide, brand names must be easy to remember and pronounce across all languages. For example, the letters R and L (for Ralph Lauren), are sometimes indistinguishable in Japanese. Names can be a designer name or founder name (Dolce and Gabbana, YSL, DKNY), a fake designer name (Alfani by Macy's, Massimo Dutti by Inditex, Comme Des Garcos by Japanese designer Kawakubo), a descriptive name that is not a person's name or signifies a lifestyle (American apparel, Nautica, Polo, Tommy Bahama), and, a meaningless made up name (XOXO, Boo). Logos and Initials can have international appeal more easily than names. In addition, since brain is said to recognize shapes more easily than letters, logos can be remembered better. Logos include monograms (LV, YSL), Signatures (Salvatore Feragamo), Names/Abbreviations (Dior), and, Symbols/Shapes (Lacoste Crocodile) Logos can evolve from time to time to fit various needs such as the Christion Dior logo to Dior, Burberry's changed to Burberry. Relevant to logos are the typeface and typographic elements of the name. Issues to address here include what font is used, how legible the name is, what feelings they convey, how unique and different they are, if they reflect brand personality and values, and, how well they work in different media. In general, round-edged fonts reflect a relaxed and calm message suitable for a romantic, even feminine brand, while firm fonts convey professionalism, masculinity, and boldness. Color can be a component of logo, name or packaging and is a strong visual attribute with strong connotations. They can help identify brands and the ultimate achievement is when brand manages to own a color- Tiffany Blue, Burberry beige and brown tartan. Slogans are short phrases that communicate descriptive or persuasive information about the brand. They often appear in advertising but can play an important role on packaging and in other aspects of the marketing program. Some slogans help build brand awareness. They can serve as tag lines to summarize the descriptive or persuasive information conveyed in the ads. For example, through the years, Nike has used tag lines specific to ad campaigns for events or sports such as "Prepare for Battle" and "Quick Can't Be Caught" (basketball); "Write the Future," (World Cup); "My Better Is Better" (multisport); and "Here I Am" (women) instead of the well-known brand slogan, "Just Do It." Such substitutions can emphasize that the ad campaign represents a departure of some kind from the message conveyed by the brand slogan, or just a means to give the brand slogan a rest so that it remains fresh. Slogans are more common among mass market brands but rare among luxury brands. This is because luxury customers want to be unique, exclusive trendsetters and thus luxury brands want to leave interpretation of the brand meanings and associations in the hands of its customers. Packaging are extensions of previous attributes and a platform where other symbols are combined to clearly visually identify the product and associate it to the brand. Packing materials such as boxes and shopping bags are great marketing tools. Packing also serves a function by protecting the products. Putting it all together: Each brand element can play a different role in building brand equity, so marketers "mix and match" to maximize brand equity? For example, meaningful brand names that are visually represented through logos are easier to remember with than without such reinforcement. The entire set of brand elements makes up the brand identity, the contribution of all brand elements to awareness and image. The cohesiveness of the brand identity depends on the extent to which the brand elements are consistent. Ideally, marketers choose each element to support the others, and all can be easily incorporated into other aspects of the brand and the marketing program. Some strong brands have a number of valuable brand elements that directly reinforce each other. For example, consider Charmin toilet tissue. Phonetically, the name itself conveys softness.

brand history and heritage/luxury vs mass market

Brands may take on associations to their past and certain noteworthy events in the brand's history. These types of associations may recall distinctly personal experiences and episodes or past behaviors and experiences of friends, family, or others. They can be highly personal and individual, or more wellknown and shared by many people. For example, there may be associations to aspects of the brand's marketing program, the color of the product or look of its package, the company or person that makes the product and the country in which it is made, the type of store in which it is sold, the events for which the brand is a sponsor, and the people who endorse the brand. These types of associations can help create strong points-of-difference. Brands become iconic by combining all these types of associations into what is in effect a myth, tapping into enduring consumer hopes and dreams. Luxury brands, especially European Luxury brands are known for their heritage and history. For example, Fendi is known to be "Made in Rome" while Louis Vuitton is known for its Italian heritage. It is these heritage and history that makes these brands stand out and desirable.

omni channel

Brands now-a-days are not using opting for different channels of distribution such as online, in-store, catalog, etc. but are also combining the different channels to offer customers a seamless brand experience. If the channels are independent of each other, it is not omni-channel but simply multichannel branding. For example, you can now purchase your products from JCP or Macy's website, pick it up in store or even return products to the store. Here the different channels, online and store, are seamlessly connected to each other, hence omni-channel. The next slide shows a case study for you to understand omni-channel distribution

creating brand image

Creating a positive brand image takes marketing programs that link strong, favorable, and unique associations to the brand in memory. Brand associations may be either brand attributes or benefits. Brand attributes are those descriptive features that characterize a product or service. Brand benefits are the personal value and meaning that consumers attach to the product or service attributes. For example, a dress might be well fitting, cheap/expensive, red, designer, etc, which are the brand attributes. However, if the dress makes you feel better or is sophisticated, those are values that the consumer is attaching to the product.

where did the concept of a brand originate?

Greece

distribution

Deciding on the distribution channels of the brand's products and where they will be sold is another important strategy to establish. While luxury brands need to have stores in high-end exclusive neighborhoods, or in expensive locations, mass market brands emphasize more on convenience and accessibility. Imagine the situation: if you want to buy something from H&M and there is not any store near 30 mile of you- would you make the effort to go to a store that far to buy something? Not all the time may be. You will most likely visit a store that provides similar products at similar price range. However, if you want to buy a Louis Vuitton bag and there is a store 30 miles away from you, you probably might make the effort to go there

nature of competition

Deciding to target a certain type of consumer often defines the nature of competition, because other firms have also decided to target that segment in the past or plan to do so in the future, or because consumers in that segment already may look to other brands in their purchase decisions. Competition takes place on other bases, of course, such as channels of distribution. Competitive analysis considers a whole host of factors—including the resources, capabilities, and likely intentions of various other firms—in order for marketers to choose markets where consumers can be profitably served. Competition should not be defined too narrowly. Research on non-comparable alternatives suggests that even if a brand does not face direct competition in its product category, and thus does not share performance-related attributes with other brands, it can still share more abstract associations and face indirect competition in a more broadly defined product category. Unfortunately, many firms narrowly define competition and fail to recognize the most compelling threats and opportunities. For example, sales in the apparel industry often have been stagnant in recent years as consumers have decided to spend on home furnishings, electronics, and other products that better suit their lifestyle. Leading clothing makers may be better off considering the points-of-differences of their offerings not so much against other clothing labels as against other discretionary purchases.

mass distribution

Distribution is available to almost any retailer willing to carry the products. These are usually budget products that generate profit through high sales volume.

brand identity

Ensuring identification of brands with customers and an association of the brand in customers' minds with a specific product class, product benefit or customer need is an important step in building a strong brand equity. For example, you should think of Tropicana when you think of the product category of cold beverage or fruit drink. Moreover, you can also think of freshly squeezed orange juice, which is a product benefit for Tropicana.

active engagement

Finally, perhaps the strongest affirmation of brand loyalty occurs when customers are engaged, or willing to invest time, energy, money, or other resources in the brand beyond those expended during purchase or consumption of the brand. For example, customers may choose to join a club centered on a brand, receive updates, and exchange correspondence with other brand users or formal or informal representatives of the brand itself. Companies are making it increasingly easy for customers to buy a range of branded merchandise so they can literally express their loyalty. Customers may choose to visit brand-related Web sites, participate in chat rooms, or post to discussions. In this case, customers themselves became brand evangelists and ambassadors and help communicate about the brand and strengthen the brand ties of others. Strong attitudinal attachment or social identity or both are typically necessary, however, for active engagement with the brand to occur. In short, brand resonance and the relationships consumers have with brands have two dimensions: intensity and activity. Intensity measures the strength of the attitudinal attachment and sense of community. Activity tells us how frequently the consumer buys and uses the brand, as well as engages in other activities not related to purchase and consumption.

product attributes

For fashion products, product features such as design, color, fabric, etc. are especially important for consumption consideration. Brand performance, another important factor for creating product differentiation, describes how well the product or service meets customers' more functional needs. How well does the brand rate on objective assessments of quality? To what extent does the brand satisfy utilitarian, aesthetic, and economic customer needs and wants in the product or service category? Designing and delivering a product that fully satisfies consumer needs and wants is a prerequisite for successful marketing, regardless of whether the product is a tangible good, service, organization, or person. To create brand loyalty and resonance, marketers must ensure that consumers' experiences with the product at least meet, if not actually surpass their expectations. Product attributes are especially important for luxury brands than mass market brands. In fact, the cheaper the price of the product, the less is the design innovation. Pause for a moment and think- do we know who the creative director is for Gucci or any other luxury brand? Probably yes. But would you know the creative director for GAP or any mass market brand? Probably no. That is because, unlike luxury brands where design and innovation drives differentiation, mass market brands are more driven by lower prices and the concept of getting a better "value" for money.

what do brands offer to firms?

Fundamentally they serve an identification purpose, to simplify product handling and tracing. Operationally, brands help organize inventory and accounting records. A brand also offers the firm legal protection for unique features or aspects of the product. Especially, in the fashion industry, designs are considered too ubiquitous to be able to be copyrighted. Therefore, brands, through use of logos/ symbols or other identifying means, help protect unique features of products since the brand elements can be legally protected. The brand name can be protected through registered trademarks, manufacturing processes can be protected through patents and packaging can be protected through copyrights and designs.

price consciousness in luxury vs mass market

In general, mass market brands (starting from Premium upwards) are more price conscious. They have very tight upper and lower price limits. They have to set a minimum price range to cover their manufacturing costs of products and also have a strict higher price limit to avoid pushing their product up to the next higher price segment. Since mass market customers are extremely price conscious, the first step taken when merchandise does not sell at the store is to offer discounts to lure customers. Luxury brands, on the other hand, appeal to emotional needs of consumers and therefore can charge a high price for their products. They hardly provide discounts because their customers are not price sensitive.

can anything be branded?

Marketers can benefit from branding whenever there is a situation involving consumer choice. The idea of branding is to create a sense of perceived difference among different options available in the market, and help consumers to choose one option over another.

criteria for choosing brand elements

Memorable, Meaningful, Likable, Transferable, Adaptable, and, Protectable The first three criteria—memorability, meaningfulness, and likability—are the marketer's offensive strategy and build brand equity. The latter three, however, play a defensive role for leveraging and maintaining brand equity in the face of different opportunities and constraints. Let's consider each of these general criteria. Memorability: A necessary condition for building brand equity is achieving a high level of brand awareness. Brand elements that promote that goal are inherently memorable and attention-getting and therefore facilitate recall or recognition in purchase or consumption settings. For example, the Playboy Bunny for Playboy brand is instantly memorable and sticks with customers. Meaningfulness: Brand elements may take on all kinds of meaning, with either descriptive or persuasive content. Two particularly important criteria are how well the brand element conveys the following: • General information about the function of the product or service: Does the brand element have descriptive meaning and suggest something about the product category, the needs satisfied or benefits supplied? • Specific information about particular attributes and benefits of the brand: Does the brand element have persuasive meaning and suggest something about the particular kind of product, or its key pointsof-difference attributes or benefits? Likeability: Independent of its memorability and meaningfulness, do customers find the brand element aesthetically appealing, likable? A memorable, meaningful, and likable set of brand elements helps customers choose one brand over other during purchase, thus helping build brand equity. Transferability: First, How useful is the brand element for line or category extensions? In general, the less specific the name, the more easily it can be transferred across categories. For example, Amazon connotes a massive South American river and therefore as a brand can be appropriate for a variety of different types of products. Books "R" Us would not have afforded the same flexibility if Amazon had chosen that name to describe its original line of business. Second, to what extent does the brand element add to brand equity across geographic boundaries and market segments? This depends on the cultural content and linguistic qualities of the brand element. For example, Microsoft was challenged when launching its Vista operating system in Latvia, because the name means "chicken" or "frumpy woman" in the local language. The fifth consideration for brand elements is their adaptability over time. Because of changes in consumer values and opinions, or simply because of a need to remain contemporary, most brand elements must be updated. For example, logos and characters can be given a new look or a new design to make them appear more modern and relevant. Example, Christian Dior became Dior and JCPenney became JCP. The sixth and final general consideration is the extent to which the brand element is protectable both in a legal and a competitive sense. Marketers should (1) choose brand elements that can be legally protected internationally, (2) formally register them with the appropriate legal bodies, and (3) vigorously defend trademarks from unauthorized competitive infringement. This is especially important for fashion brands because designs are often considered too utilitarian to be legally protected and thus brands protect their designs using logos such as CK, Coach, D&G, LV, etc. Another consideration is whether the brand is competitively protectable. If a name, package, or other attribute is too easily copied, much of the uniqueness of the brand may disappear. For example, Burberry tartan was copied losing its exclusivity and thus the brand had to revitalize its image.

user imagery

One set of brand imagery associations is about the type of person or organization who uses the brand. This imagery may result in customers' mental image of actual users or more aspirational, idealized users. Consumers may base associations of a typical or idealized brand user on descriptive demographic factors or more abstract psychographic factors. Demographic factors might include the following: • Gender: Venus razors and Secret deodorant have "feminine" associations, whereas Gillette razors and Axe deodorant have more "masculine" associations. • Age: Pepsi Cola, Powerade energy sports drink, and Under Armor performance clothing, shoes and accessories have positioned themselves as fresher and younger in spirit than Coke, Gatorade, and Nike, respectively. • Race: Goya foods and the Univision television network have a strong identification with the Hispanic market. • Income: Sperry Topsider shoes, Polo shirts, and BMW automobiles became associated with "yuppies"—young, affluent, urban professionals. Psychographic factors might include attitudes toward life, careers, possessions, social issues, or political institutions; for example, a brand user might be seen as iconoclastic or as more traditional and conservative. In a business-to-business setting, user imagery might relate to the size or type of organization. For example, buyers might see Microsoft as an "aggressive" company and L. L. Bean as a "caring" company. User imagery may focus on more than characteristics of just one type of individual and center on broader issues in terms of perceptions of a group as a whole. For example, customers may believe that a brand is used by many people and therefore view the brand as "popular" or a "market leader."

physical risk

Physical risk is if the product poses a threat to the physical well-being or health of the user or others.

price

Price is an important tool in creating brand identity and ultimately positioning the brand. First, the pricing policy for the brand can create associations in consumers' minds about how relatively expensive (or inexpensive) the brand is, and whether it is frequently or substantially discounted. Price is a particularly important performance association because consumers may organize their product category knowledge in terms of the price tiers of different brands. Second, in general, one of the advantages and purposes of branding is demanding a premium price as compared to non-branded products. For mass market brands, where value for most of them is the driving force behind buying the brand, prices are set with a ceiling they cannot surpass. Increasing price might push them to the next higher priced market segment. Thus if products do not sell, lowering costs is usually the main course of action. Luxury brands on the other hand are highly sold on the merits of

brand positioning

Price is an important tool in creating brand identity and ultimately positioning the brand. First, the pricing policy for the brand can create associations in consumers' minds about how relatively expensive (or inexpensive) the brand is, and whether it is frequently or substantially discounted. Price is a particularly important performance association because consumers may organize their product category knowledge in terms of the price tiers of different brands. Second, in general, one of the advantages and purposes of branding is demanding a premium price as compared to non-branded products. For example, when Burberry embarked on revamping and repositioning the brand, the goal was to introduce Burberry as a luxury brand this aspirational but functional and at a lower price range than other lifestyle brands such as Gucci and Prada.

market segmentation bases

Segmentation can be based on descriptive or customer-oriented (related to what kind of person or organization the customer is), or as behavioral or product-oriented (related to how the customer thinks of or uses the brand or product).

location challenges

Selecting the proper location is the key to the success of any retail store. Luxury brands set up their stores in the most exclusive locations- in expensive neighborhoods and on high-end streets around the world. Their flagship stores are at the best lotions possible. On the other hand, mass market brands cannot always afford high end locations. But what they have to emphasize, as we had discussed before, is a convenient location to attract customers. Therefore, they are mostly located in clusters or in shopping malls so that many stores combined can attract customers. When it comes to having an online presence, mass market brands have a stronger presence than luxury brands. Most often one can purchase from mass market brands' websites but not all the time from those of luxury brands. This is because, luxury retailers want to have control over the environment that consumers are purchasing their products in, to deliver the entire luxury experience.

catalogues

Selling through printed catalogs has proven to be a major business. It is estimated that almost 20 billion catalogs were mailed in 2006. Some catalogs are independent (such as L.L.Bean), whereas others belong to retailers (like Sears).

service

Service and Support refers to the auxiliary services offered by the brand before, during, and after the purchase. They include customer service, after-purchase service, alterations, return policies, warranties, loyalty clubs, and so forth. These services are important to customers' perception of the brand and are a part of what one pays for his/her purchase. The level and type of service varies by brand segments. The higher price a customer pays, the higher are expectations of service. Therefore luxury brands are at a much higher level of service than mass-market brands. It is essential that these services continue even after product purchase and consumption since services help build long term relationships with consumers leading to brand loyalty and repeat purchase.

communication through mission (internal) and vision (external) statements

Sources of information can be internal (memory, experience) or external (friends, family, advertisements etc). The Mission statement: targets internal audience and answers why a brand is in business and what kind of business it is in. The whole organization needs to "live" the brand and understand the brand culture. The above example shows a mission statement from Patagonia. Interesting to note is how they try to recruit people who are aligned with the mission of the company. The vision statement targets external audience. It is usually long-term oriented. It also presents a framework for future decisions while maintaining flexibility to respond to future changes.

e-tailing

The biggest growing retail sector, e-tailing or different forms of electronic retailing (internet, mobile, etc) provide convenience to customers to shop at any place and time convenient to them.

sense of community

The brand may also take on broader meaning to the customer by conveying a sense of community. Identification with a brand community may reflect an important social phenomenon in which customers feel a kinship or affiliation with other people associated with the brand, whether fellow brand users or customers, or employees or representatives of the company. A brand community can exist online or offline. A stronger sense of community among loyal users can engender favorable brand attitudes and intentions.

influencers of brand concept: company

The company creates a brand for financial gain by consistently satisfying customer needs. The company remains the sole legal owner of the brand and all its copyrightable elements such as the name, logo, or technology. The company is also the brand's major investor and financial backer (through its owners and shareholders). Accordingly, it is also the major risk taker from a financial, marketing, and social perspective.

brand concept

The concept or idea needs to be fresh and unique enough to convince potential customers of its role and significance in their lives. The concept could be in the form of a different proposal to solving a problem, a new use of fabrics, a new distribution system (flip flops through a vending machine!), a new interpretation or styles, etc

influencers of brand concept: customer

The customer plays an important role in the shaping of the brand throughout the branding process. The brand is meant to address a user's need. Every brand is built with a target customer in mind. Such targeting can be based on various segmentation criteria, such as demographic, geographic, psychographic, lifestyle, etc. Bases of segmentation might differ based on the product type (such as women's wear, children's wear, active-wear) and brand category (luxury vs mass market). In all cases, it is about targeting and satisfying unmet customer needs, whether these needs are functional or emotional (such as status). Customers actually end up determining the brand's true market positioning. Brands propose a position and design a strategy to achieve that position. However, it is up to the consumers to interpret that message.

breadth and depth of brand awareness

The depth of brand awareness measures how likely it is for a brand element to come to mind, and the ease with which it does so. A brand we easily recall has a deeper level of brand awareness than one that we recognize only when we see it. The breadth of brand awareness measures the range of purchase and usage situations in which the brand element comes to mind and depends to a large extent on the organization of brand and product knowledge in memory.

brand resonance

The final step of the brand building model focuses on the ultimate relationship and level of identification that the customer has with the brand. Brand resonance describes the nature of this relationship and the extent to which customers feel that they are "in sync" with the brand. Examples of brands with historically high resonance include Harley-Davidson, Apple, Louis Vuitton and Michael Kors. Resonance is characterized in terms of intensity, or the depth of the psychological bond that customers have with the brand, as well as the level of activity engendered by this loyalty (repeat purchase rates and the extent to which customers seek out brand information, events, and other loyal customers). We can break down these two dimensions of brand resonance into four categories: 1. Behavioral loyalty 2. Attitudinal attachment 3. Sense of community 4. Active engagement

product category structure

The organization of the product category hierarchy that generally prevails in memory will play an important role in brand awareness, brand consideration, and consumer decision making. For example, consumers often make decisions in a top-down fashion, first deciding whether to have water or some type of flavored beverage. If the consumer chooses a flavored drink, the next decision would be whether to have an alcoholic or a nonalcoholic drink, and so on. Finally, consumers might then choose a particular brand within the product category in which they are interested. Typically, marketers assume that products are grouped at varying levels of specificity and can be organized in a hierarchical fashion. Thus, in consumers' minds, a product hierarchy often exists, with product class information at the highest level, product category information at the second-highest level, product type information at the next level, and brand information at the lowest level. The beverage market provides a good setting to examine issues in category structure and the effects of brand awareness on brand equity. The figure illustrates one hierarchy that might exist in consumers' minds.

tv shopping

The power of television shopping is huge. Home shopping networks (such as QVC) and infomercials run all day and provide a good platform for demonstrating products.

influencers of brand concept: culture

The third influencer, social and cultural changes are instrumental in shaping the needs and aspirations of every generation. Cool hunting is a marketing research practice concerned with identifying what is perceived to be currently 'cool' among teenagers. This information is essential for brands to design their product offerings. Moreover the rising interest in internet and social networks have changed the way marketers and consumers interact. People not only buy online or through their mobile devices but the way they search for information has also changed. Consumers are more involved now and also expect brands to actively interact with them in a two-way communication.

where does the word brand come from?

The word 'brand' is derived from the Old Norse word 'brandr', which means 'to burn' as brands were and still are the means by which owners of livestock mark their animals to identify them.

discount stores

These are stores that sell known brands at discounted below-market prices. These nofrills stores offer minimal services and in-store experiences in return for cutting costs and passing these savings to customers. Discount stores come in different forms: - off-price discounters, such as Ross and Marshalls - Factory outlet - Membership clubs such as Sam's and Costco

private labels

These brands are owned by retailers such as Macy's, Kohls, Target and not a manufacturer. These are also exclusively sold at the particular retailer's stores. Price is a major factor in private label brands' success since most consumers prefer national manufacturer brands and consider them to be more trustworthy. Therefore, whenever consumers perceive that the value they are receiving from a private label brand is less than desired, they would be willing to switch to a national manufacturer brand. These brands are equal or of better quality than manufacturer brands but do not necessary are of higher design innovation than manufacturer brands. Due to the perceived higher benefit of manufacturer brand as compared to private label brand, private label brands only make sense when the price gap between private label and manufacturer brand is high, luring customers to select the private label brands.

limited distribution

This approach allows the brand to be sold in one or more stores, chain of stores, or selective department stores that suit its targeted positioning strategy and image. There is still a high level of control and selective distribution, but this approach is more relaxed than the totally exclusive option.

price skimming

This policy involves introducing the product at a premium price. This strategy is common with new, innovative, and exclusive products. Customers known as innovators are always willing to pay the premium price in order to be the first to try something new and exclusive. The demand at that price point should be high enough to cover initial production costs in the short period of time before competitors can enter the market and force prices to fall (e.g.: True Religion jeans)

premium

Top in terms of price, quality and taste borrows elements from luxury (Most RTW designer brands) caters to the new wealthy group of customers that emerged from the middle class looking to live better and adopt a higher-end lifestyle

brand associations

Two factors that strengthen association to any piece of information are its personal relevance and the consistency with which it is presented over time. Direct experiences create the strongest brand attribute and benefit associations and are particularly influential in consumers' decisions when they accurately interpret them. Word-of-mouth is likely to be particularly important for restaurants, entertainment, banking, and personal services. Starbucks, Google, Red Bull, and Amazon are all classic examples of companies that created amazingly rich brand images without the benefit of intensive advertising programs. Marketers create favorable brand associations by convincing consumers that the brand possesses relevant attributes and benefits that satisfy their needs and wants, such that they form positive overall brand judgments. Consumers will not hold all brand associations to be equally important, nor will they view them all favorably or value them all equally across different purchase or consumption situations. Brand associations may be situation-or context-dependent and vary according to what consumers want to achieve in that purchase or consumption decision. An association may thus be valued in one situation but not another. For example, if you are looking for outdoor jacket, you might think of ordering one from Macy's. However, if you want outdoor jacket but also need some expert guidance on it, you might think of driving to an REI store and consult store experts.

establishing brand position

Two key issues in arriving at the optimal competitive brand positioning are (1) defining and communicating the competitive frame of reference and (2) choosing and establishing points-of-parity and points-of-difference. The positioning statement for every brand should therefore include: What: What is the benefit and purpose of the brand? Who: Who is the target, the potential customer? Reason: What are the differentiators that support and can create such a benefit? Against whom: Who is the competition?

behavioral loyalty

We can gauge behavioral loyalty in terms of repeat purchases and the amount or share of category volume attributed to the brand, that is, the "share of category requirements." In other words, how often do customers purchase a brand and how much do they purchase? For bottom-line profit results, the brand must generate sufficient purchase frequencies and volumes. The lifetime value of behaviorally loyal consumers can be enormous. For example, a loyal General Motors customer could be worth $276,000 over his or her lifetime (assuming 11 or more vehicles bought and word-of-mouth endorsement that makes friends and relatives more likely to consider GM products). Or consider new parents. By spending $100 a month on diapers and wipes for 24-30 months, they can create lifetime value of as much as $3,000 for just one baby. Moreover customers of luxury brands are loyal to their products and even during the economic recession of 2009, consumers' purchase of luxury shoes did not reduce even by a single percentage.

premium brands

also known as aspirational or 'new luxe' (new luxury) are at the highest spectrum of the mass market in terms of both price and design/innovation, just below the luxury brands. This sector has seen tremendous growth in the recent years. It includes brands such as Coach, Victoria's Secret and most ready-to-wear labels introduced by luxury brands. Some of the characteristics of premium brands are as follows: 1. Whereas premium brands many not be built on exclusivity, they are based on emotions, and consumers have a much stronger emotional engagement with them than with other goods on the mass-market segment. 2. Premium brands possess better quality, benefits and functionality based on a higher level of innovation and creativity. 3. Premium brands may have elements of craftsmanship but are not completely handmade or artisan in nature. 4. Premium brands are not promoted as elite like luxury brands. Rather they appeal to a set of values that may be shared by people of many income levels. 5. Premium brand customers have more discretionary income due to both parents working. However, they are price and economic sensitive and are willing to trade down if necessary. They are also cross shoppers, that is, have a tendency to mix brands from different segments- carry a coach handbag with a pair of Levis jeans.

private label brands

are manufactured and distributed only through stores that own the brand. Sometimes the store is the brand such as Old Navy, while at other times a major retailer might own their own private label brand such as INC from Macys.

national brand

are owned by a national manufacturer and distributed through multiple national retailers. These brands can also be sold through their own flagship stores, in addition to other stores.

value innovators

balance low-priced value-driven private labels with a high level of innovation and style. Examples are Target with Issac Mizrahi and H&M with Karl Lagerfield.

brand vs products

brand is an idea created to solve a need. products and services are the core of a brand that solves the brand's purpose. a brand might produce multiple products or might even innovate and change their current product offerings, but the brand itself does not change.

building brand equity

brand knowledge is the key to creating brand equity, because it creates the differential effect that drives brand equity. Brand knowledge is the awareness of the brand name and belief about the brand image.

brand equity

consists of marketing effects uniquely attributable to a brand. That is, brand equity explains why different outcomes result from the marketing of a branded product or service than if it were not branded.

price zoning

creates a price floor and ceiling (for example, minimum and maximum price)

points of difference

formally defined as attributes or benefits that consumers strongly associate with a brand, positively evaluate, and believe that they could not find to the same extent with a competitive brand. Although myriad different types of brand associations are possible, we can classify candidates as either functional, performance-related considerations or as abstract, imagery-related considerations

unique selling proposition

gives consumers a compelling reason why they should buy it. Marketers can make this unique difference explicit through direct comparisons with competitors, or they may highlight it implicitly. They may base it on performance-related or nonperformance-related attributes or benefits.

cross shoppers

have a tendency to mix brands from different segments- carry a coach handbag with a pair of Levis jeans.

time risk

if the failure of the product results in an opportunity cost of finding another satisfactory product

psychological risk

if the product affects the mental well-being of the user

financial risk

if the product is not worth the price paid. Social risk is if the product results in embarrassment from others.

copycat

imitate the styles, colors, details of established manufacturer brands and offer alternative at a competitive price. It is common to find such brands in the fashion industry. The Image shows an example from Chloe and a copycat shoe from Topshop. Retailer began to realize that although the copycat branding strategy helps to generate traffic and compete against manufacturer brands, it many not help differentiate the store from other specialty stores. Therefore, premium store brands are a type of private label brands that offer superior quality than manufacturer brands but at lower prices with high creativity. Macy's INC and Alfani are examples. These are retailers' way of participating in the premium market segment.

brand building and management process

involves the design and implementation of marketing programs and activities to build, measure, and manage brand equity. The process consists of the following steps: Identifying branding plan and developing brand positioning strategy, Developing brand identity, Brand communications, Brand audit/ evaluation, and, Brand growth. The process starts with a clear understanding of what the brand is to represent and how it should be positioned with respect to competitors. In the next step, we will build brand equity that requires properly positioning the brand in the minds of customers and achieving as much brand resonance through various brand communications as possible. Next, to manage their brands profitably, managers must successfully design and implement a brand audit system to understand the effectiveness of a brand's positioning strategy. Finally, it is needed to understand how branding strategies should reflect corporate concerns and be adjusted, if at all, over time or over geographical boundaries or multiple market segments.

target market

is a set of all actual and potential buyers who have sufficient interest in, income for, and access to a product. Market segmentation divides the market into distinct groups of homogeneous consumers with similar needs and consumer behavior, and who thus require similar marketing mixes. Identifying the consumer target is important because different consumers may have different brand knowledge structures and thus different perceptions and preferences for the brand. With-out this understanding, it may be difficult for marketers to say which brand associations should be strongly held, favorable, and unique. Let's look at defining and segmenting a market and choosing target market segments.

brand positioning definition

is at the heart of marketing strategy. It is the "act of designing the company's offer and image so that it occupies a distinct and valued place in the target customer's minds." As the name implies, positioning means finding the proper "location" in the minds of a group of consumers or market segment, so that they think about a product or service in the "right" or desired way to maximize potential benefit to the firm. Good brand positioning helps guide marketing strategy by clarifying what a brand is all about, how it is unique and how it is similar to competitive brands, and why consumers should purchase and use it.

brand recognition

is consumers' ability to confirm prior exposure to the brand when given the brand as a cue. In other words, when they go to the store, will they be able to recognize the brand as one to which they have already been exposed?

brand recall

is consumers' ability to retrieve the brand from memory when given the product category, the needs fulfilled by the category, or a purchase or usage situation as a cue. In other words, consumers' recall of Valentino dress will depend on their ability to retrieve the brand when they think of the dress category or of what they should wear for an event, or whether surfing on the internet evaluating alternatives.

brand image

is consumers' perceptions about a brand, as reflected by the brand associations held in consumer memory which make up the meaning of the brand for consumers. Associations come in all forms and may reflect characteristics of the product or aspects independent of the product. For example, if someone asked you what came to mind when you thought of Apple computers, what would you say? You might reply with associations such as "well-designed," "easy to use," "leading-edge technology," and so forth.

independent brand

is one for which the company or the corporation is the brand and the products are an extension of the company's image. Eg. Nike.

brand equity definition

is that the power of a brand lies in what customers have learned, felt, seen and heard about the brand as a result of their experiences over time. Therefore the challenge for marketers in building a strong brand is ensuring that customers have the right type of experience with the brand. Therefore, customer-based brand equity is the differential effect that brand knowledge has on consumer response to the marketing of the brand.

brand awareness

is the ability of a consumer to identify the brand under different conditions. It is a necessary but not a sufficient condition for establishing brand equity. Other considerations, such as the image of the brand, often come into play.

creating brand awareness

means increasing the familiarity of the brand through repeated exposure, although this is generally more effective for brand recognition than for brand recall. That is, the more a consumer "experiences" the brand by seeing it, hearing it, or thinking about it, the more likely he or she is to strongly register the brand in memory. Thus, anything that causes consumers to experience one of a brand's element—its name, symbol, logo, character, packaging, or slogan, including advertising and promotion, sponsorship and event marketing, publicity and public relations, and outdoor advertising—can increase familiarity and awareness of that brand element.

brand salience

measures various aspects of the awareness of the brand and how easily and often the brand is evoked under various situations or circumstances. To what extent is the brand top-of-mind and easily recalledor recognized? What types of cues or reminders are necessary? How pervasive is this brand awareness? We've said that brand awareness refers to customers' ability to recall and recognize the brand under different conditions and to link the brand name, logo, symbol, and so forth to certain associations in memory.

benefits

not just functional but symbolic too, allowing consumers to project their self-image. Certain brands are associated with certain types of people and thus can reflect various traits and values (eg. Luxury brands). Consuming such products is a means by which consumers can communicate to others, or themselves, the type of person they are or aspire to be.

points of parity

not necessarily unique to the brand but may in fact be shared with other brands. There are three types: category, competitive, and correlational. Category points-of-parity represent necessary—but not necessarily sufficient— conditions for brand choice. They exist minimally at the generic product level and are most likely at the expected product level. Thus, consumers might not consider a bank truly a "bank" unless it offered a range of checking and savings plans; provided safety deposit boxes, traveler's checks, and other such services; and had convenient hours and automated teller machines. Competitive points-of-parity are those associations designed to negate competitors' points-of-difference. In other words, if a brand can meet the requirements in those areas where its competitors are trying to find an advantage and can achieve its own advantages in some other areas, the brand should be in a strong—and perhaps unbeatable—competitive position. Correlational points-of-parity are those potentially negative associations that arise from the existence of other, more positive associations for the brand. One challenge for marketers is that many of the attributes or benefits that make up their POPs or PODs are inversely related. In other words, in the minds of consumers, if your brand is good at one thing, it can't be seen as also good on something else. For example, consumers might find it hard to believe a brand is "inexpensive" and at the same time "of the highest quality."

generic

refer to no-name products and are not popular in the fashion industry. These are no-name products sold next to branded products in supermarkets such as soda, shampoo, etc.

multiple pricing

selling more than one unit of the SAME item at a discount- at Costco

SKU

stock keeping unit

value

that additional thing that brands provide and that which satisfies us both rationally and or emotionally. For example, we might like owning a Michael Kors bag just because it is a higher status symbol or we perceive it to be of higher quality, even though we might be paying a higher price. We believe that the brand is the best in delivering that value to us.

functional risk

the risk of products not performing up to expectations.

exclusive distribution

this form of distribution can be either through stores owned by the brand's manufacturers or through an exclusive distribution agreement with a specialty retailer. This approach has a strong impact on the brand's exclusive image as demonstrated by the case of luxury brands. It allows the brand to distance itself from competitors and in case of standalone stores owned by the brand, to display its full range of products and lines exactly in the manner and atmosphere it is envisioned.

exclusive brands

those that are produced as collaboration between national designers/manufacturers with retailers. For example, Simply Vera is a brand solely made for Kohls by Vera Wang. It is a cheaper priced version of Vera Wang and is exclusively available at Kohls.

odd pricing

when the price ends in an odd number ($1.99, $2.95)

price lining

where all items are the same price (eg: Dollar Tree).