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1.ALL ABOUT BRANDING
The term brand means different things to the different roles of buyer and seller, with buyersgenerally associating brand with a product or service, and merchants associating brand withidentity. Brand can also identify the company behind the specific product -- that's not just a biscuit, that's Britannia biscuit. This use of brand puts a "face" behind the name, so to speak,even if the "face" is the result of advertising copy and television commercials. This use of brandalso says nothing of quality, just the buyer's exposure to the brand's PR and media hype. For thetypical merchant, branding is a way of taking everything that is good about the company -- positive shopping experience, professionalism, superior service, product knowledge, whatever the company decides is important for a customer to believe about the company -- and wrappingthese characteristics into a package that can be evoked by the brand as signifier.
1.1 Introduction to Branding
The American Marketing Association defines a brand as “A name, term, sign, symbol or designor a combination of them, intended to identify the goods and services of one seller or group andto differentiate them to those for competitors”. A brand is thus a product or service that’s adds aDimension that differentiates it in some way from other products or services designed to satisfythe same need. These differences may be functional, rational, or tangible- relate to product performance of the brand.Branding has been around for centuries as a means to distinguish the goods of one producer tothose of another. The earliest signs of branding can be traced to Europe where the medievalguilds required that craftsmen put trademarks on their product to protect themselves and producer against inferior quality substitutes. Also in fine arts branding began with artists signingtheir works. Brands today play a number of important roles that improve the consumer’s livesand enhance the financial value of firms.Brands identify the source or maker of the product and allow consumers-either individual or organizations- to assign responsibility to a particular manufacturer or distributor. Consumers may
 
evaluate the identical product differently depending how it is branded. Consumers lean about the brand with its past experience and the marketing program. As consumers lives becomes morecomplicated, time starved the ability of brand to simplify decision making is invaluable. Brandsalso perform valuable functions for the firm. First they simplify the product handling and tracing.Brands help to organize inventory and accounting records. The brand name can be protectedregistered trademarks. The intellectual property rights ensure that the firm can safely invest in the brand and can reap the benefits over a long period of time.Brands can signal a certain level of quality so that satisfied buyers can easily choose the productagain. Brand loyalty provides predictability and security of demand for the firm and creates barriers to entry that makes it difficult for other firms to enter the market. This brand loyalty cantranslate into willingness to pay higher price. In this sense branding can be seen as powerfulmeans to secure a competitive advantage. Brands represent enormously valuable pieces of legal property that can influence consumer’s behavior. Strong brand results in better earnings and profit performance for firms, which in turn, creates greater value for shareholders.How do you “BRAND” a product? Although firms provide the impetus to brand creation throughmarketing programs and other activities, ultimately a brand is something that resides in the mindof the consumers. A brand is a perpetual identity that is rooted in reality but reflects the perceptions and perhaps even the ultimate choice of the consumers. Branding is endowing products and services with the power of brands. To brand a product, it is necessary to teach theconsumers “who” the product-by giving a name. Branding involves creating mental structuresand helping consumers organize their knowledge about products and services in a way thatclarifies their decision making and in process provides value to the firmBranding can be applied virtually anywhere a consumer has a choice. It is possible to brand:
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A physical good (Nestle soup, Pantene shampoo or Maruti Swift),
 
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A service (Kingfisher Airlines, TATA AIG medical insurance),
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A store (Big Bazaar, BATA stores),
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A place (The state of Kerala, Pushkar Mela),
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A person (Shahrukh Khan, Sachin Tendulkar),
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An organization (UNICEF or BCCI),Brand is the proprietary visual, emotional, rational, and cultural image that you associate withthe company or a product. When you think of Volvo, you think of safety. When you think of  Nike, you think of Michael Jordon or ‘Just Do It’. When you think of IBM, you think of ‘BigBlue’. The fact that you remember the brand name and have positive associations with that brandmakes your product selection easier and enhances the value and satisfaction you get from product.While Brand X cola or even Pepsi-Cola may win blind taste tests over Coca-Cola, the fact is thatmore people buy Coke than any other Cola. The fond memories of childhood and refreshmentthat people have when they drink Coke is often more important than a little bit better cola taste.It I this emotional relationship with brands that make them so powerful.
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