Brand Personality

What is brand personality?

Brand Personality is a set of human
characteristics associated with a
brand
Personality is how the brand behaves
Gender, age, socio-economic class,
psychographic, emotional
characteristics

Some examples
Marlboro is masculine while Virginia
Slims is feminine
IBM is older while Apple is younger
India Today is old-fashioned while
Outlook is trendier
Coke is conforming while Pepsi is
irreverent

About brand personality

Brand Personality, like human personality, is both
distinctive and enduring
Both are built over a period of time

Refers to the outcome of all the consumers

experiences with the brand
In other words, the brands personality is the
weighted average of previous impressions
In consumers mind, these impressions merge to
form an overall concept of what to expect from
brand

More about it
Brand Personality is eagerly searched by
brand strategists and researchers
Differences in responses by different
consumers provide useful insights
For example, users of a product will
perceive a brand different from non-users

In essence

Personality traits are what

the brand will live and die for

Examples
Axe
Seduction, masculinity, inviduality,
unconventionality

Marlboro
Masculinity, freedom, adventure

Levis
Rebellion, sensuality, being cool

Example: Spinz
Young
Modern
Active
Outdoor
Cheerful
Friendly

Life of the Party

Why use brand personality?

Enriches understanding
Helps gain an in-depth understanding of
consumer perceptions of and attitudes
towards the brand
Can provide more insight than is gained
by asking about attribute perceptions
For ex., Microsoft, IBM etc.,

Why use brand personality?

Contributes to a differentiating identity
Can differentiate brands especially where
brands are similar in product attributes
In fact, it can define not only the brand but
the product class context and experience
Mercedes Vs BMW; Clinic Plus Vs
Pantene

Why use brand personality?

Guides the communication effort
Communicates the brand identity with
richness and texture
If the brand is specified only in terms of
attribute associations, very little
meaningful guidance is provided
Is Nike shoes or sports, performance and
attitude?

Why use brand personality?

Creates brand equity
Builds long-term brand equity
Differentiates the brand and makes it
distinct from other competitive offerings
Serves as a powerful relationship device

How to create brand personality?

Personality of a person is affected by

everything associated with him friends,
neighbourhood, activities, clothes etc.,
So too is a brand personality

Product-related characteristics
Product-related characteristics can be primary
drivers of a brand personality
Even the product class can affect personality

Banks, Insurance etc., tend to be Competent,

Serious, Masculine, Older and Upper-class
Athletic shoes tend to be Young, Lively, Rugged,
Outdoorsy, Adventurous etc.,

Product-related characteristics
Product attributes can often affect brand
personality
A light beer would largely be classy,
sophisticated etc.,
A high-priced brand will be considered
wealthy, stylish and perhaps snobbish!

User imagery
Can be powerful driver of personality
because user is already a person and so
conceptualizing the personality is reduced
User Imagery can be people who use the
brand or those portrayed in advertising

Sponsorships
Activities such as events sponsored by the
brand will influence its personality
Ponds sponsoring Feminas Miss India
contest
Budweiser sponsoring the blimp in
American sporting events

Age
How long a brand has been on the market
can affect its personality
New entrants like Apple, Outlook etc., tend
to have younger brand personalities than
IBM, India Today etc.,

Symbol
A symbol can be a powerful influence on
brand personality since it can be
controlled and can have extremely strong
associations
Some examples
Apples bitten apple
Nikes swoosh
MetLifes Peanuts character

How it creates brand equity?

The ways brand personality can create brand
equity are summarized by 3 models:
1. The Self-Expression Model
2. The Relationship Basis Model
3. The Functional Benefit Representation Model

The self-expression model

The basic premise is that for some customers,
some brands become vehicles to express a part of
their self-identity
This self-identity can be their actual identity or an
ideal self to which they might aspire
Apple is perceived as friendly, unpretentious,
irreverent and willing to go against the grain
This is because Mac is easy-to-use and also due to its
symbol, advertising, user groups etc.,
The use of Apple expresses a personal identity of being
non-corporate and creative

How brand helps express personality?

Feelings engendered by brand personality

There can be a set of feelings and
emotions attached to a brand personality,
just as there are to a person
The use of such brands can cause feelings and emotions to
emerge

Feelings, when using a Harley-Davidson

or Apple would not emerge when using a
Honda or Compaq

How brand helps express personality?

The brand as a badge

A brand could serve as a consumers
personal statement
Cars, cosmetics, apparels lend
themselves to personality expression
because their use occurs in a social
context with relatively high involvement

How brand helps express personality?

The brand becomes part of the self
The ultimate personality expression occurs when
a brand becomes an extension or an integral part
of the self
The executive who wears Allen Solly on a Friday
feels semi-casual and waiting to welcoming the
weekend!
The potential to create this oneness with some
people can represent a significant opportunity for
a brand

The relationship basis model

Some people may never aspire to have a certain
personality trait but would like to have a
relationship with one who has that
A trustworthy, dependable, conservative
personality might be seen boring but sought
nevertheless, from banks or financial products
The concept of a relationship between a brand
and a person provides a different perspective on
how brand personality might work

The Relationship Basis Model

To see how this model works, consider
personality types of people with whom we
have relationships and the nature of those
relationships
Spirited, young, up-to-date, outgoing
Pepsi
On a weekend evening, it might be enjoyable
to have a friend who has these personality
features

The Relationship Basis Model

Two elements affect individuals
relationship with a brand
1. Relationship between the brand-as-person and
the customer
Which is analogous to the relationship between two
people

2. The brand personality

The type of person the brand represents

Functional benefit representation model

The previous two models provide contexts

in which brand personality can be the
basis for a brand strategy and a link to the
customer
A brand personality can also play a more
indirect role by being a vehicle for
representing and cueing functional
benefits and brand attributes

Functional benefit representation model

Marlboros personality of a macho,

freedom-loving, adventurous person
suggests that the product is strong
Harley Davidsons personality of a rugged,
macho, I-am-different-kind suggests that
the product is a powerful, liberating vehicle

Functional benefit representation model

When a visual symbol or image exists that can
create and cue personality
the ability of the personality to reinforce brand
attributes will be greater

The Energizer rabbit is an upbeat, indefatigable

personality who never runs out of energy
Just as the battery it symbolizes runs longer than
others

Functional benefit representation model

A brand personality that represents a

functional benefit or attribute may be
relatively ineffective if it lacks a visual
image established in the customers mind
A country or region of origin can add
credibility to an identity
It can generate a strong personality that
provides a quality cue and a key point of
differentiation

To sum up
A brand personality can help a brand in several
ways:
It can provide a vehicle for customers to express their own
identity
A brand personality metaphor helps suggests the kind of
relationship that customer has with brand
Brand personalities serve to represent and cue functional
benefits and product attributes well

Importantly, brand personality is often a sustainable

point of differentiation
Sustainable because it is very difficult to copy a personality