Global brand strategy

Received (in revised form): 15th June, 2004

SICCO VAN GELDER

runs a Netherlands-based global branding consultancy, Brand Meta (www.brand-meta.com). He is also a
co-founder of Placebrands Ltd, a firm dedicated to helping cities, regions and countries define their purpose and
achieve their full potential. He is the author of ‘Global Brand Strategy — Unlocking Brand Potential Across
Countries, Cultures and Markets’ (Kogan Page, 2003).

Abstract
This paper introduces a unique framework for equivalent and comparable brand analysis across
multiple markets and societies — the Global Brand Proposition Model. The model combines
consideration of the strategic planning cycle and the brand environment into an analysis tool that
can be applied both globally and locally. It allows global and local analyses to be linked together
seamlessly. This in turn enables brand managers to develop global brand strategy that will unlock
their brands’ full potential across countries, cultures and markets.

INTRODUCTION basis needs to provide shared language,

One of the key issues facing the
management of brands is how to
deal with a brand across multiple
societies and geographical areas. This
is not just a question of the scope
of management, but of reaching the
full potential of a brand in diverse
markets. There is often a tension
between finding an optimum ‘fit’ of
the brand with local circumstances
and a desire to obtain brand con-
sistency across markets. More often
than not, decisions are made on the
basis of organisational constructs rather
than on the basis of an understanding
of the brand and the various in-
ternal and external influences on it.
Those responsible for global and local
brand management need to understand
each other’s viewpoints regarding the
brand and the resulting need for adap-
tations, the possibilities for obtain-
ing sustainable competitive advantages,
Sicco van Gelder and the opportunities for standardisa-
Brand Meta,
Copernicusstraat 68-hs, tion. The first thing that global and
Amsterdam 1098 JJ,
The Netherlands. local brand management need is a
Tel: ⫹31 6520 95488; common basis for their brand strategy
E-mail:
sicco.van.gelder@brand.meta.com and planning work. This common
definitions, interpretations, assessments
and, most importantly, a clear under-
standing of the relationships between
the factors that shape a brand in its
global and local contexts.
Each brand has its own specific
potential for standardisation across and
adaptation to culturally and structurally
diverse markets. This paper focuses on
how the unique characteristics of a
brand can best be extended across
societies by understanding that brand’s
sensitivity or vulnerability to particular
factors, both internal and external to
the brand’s organisation. Although
each brand is unique, it is possible to
categorise brands in a manner that
helps to understand which factors
certain types of brands are most
susceptible to. This kind of under-
standing is not only useful to all those
corporate managers eager to make a
success of their brand around the
globe, but also to those who are
responsible for a local brand that is
faced with seemingly better-endowed
global competitors. In fact, this kind
of knowledge can be useful to

䉷 HENRY STEWART PUBLICATIONS 1479-1803 BRAND MANAGEMENT VOL. 12, NO. 1, 39–48 SEPTEMBER 2004 39
VAN GELDER
everyone with a vested interest in
particular brands, such as govern-
ments, non-governmental organisa-
tions, employees, distribution partners,
suppliers, local communities and even
anti-globalisation activists.
In this paper, global brands are
defined rather loosely as brands that are
available across multiple geographies,
without setting any specific lower limit
or any continental requirements. The
revenue these brands generate also does
not matter, nor the manner in which
they present themselves in each society.
The term ‘global’ is used in this paper
as shorthand for brands with varying
degrees of ‘globalness’.
THE GLOBAL BRAND PROPOSITION
MODEL
This paper looks at a unique
framework for equivalent and com-
parable brand analysis across multiple
markets and societies — the Global
Brand Proposition Model (see Figure
1). The model combines consideration
of the strategic planning cycle and the
brand environment into an analysis tool
that can be applied both globally and
locally. It allows global and local
analyses to be linked together
seamlessly. The model consists of two
main parts, namely an internal analysis
and an external analysis.
The internal analysis
The internal analysis is essential for
gaining an understanding of how the
brand’s global and local organisational
constructs shape the brand expres-
sion or multiple brand expressions, as
the case may be. Issues such as
business strategy, corporate culture,
organisational structures, the brand
40 䉷 HENRY STEWART PUBLICATIONS 1479-1803 BRAND MANAGEMENT VOL. 12, NO. 1, 39–48 SEPTEMBER 2004
architecture, the brand’s significance to
the organisation, and the relation-
ships between global and local brand
management teams all play a role in
shaping elements of brand expression.
These individual elements, in turn,
should guide global and local market-
ing activities. The way the brand
defines its advantages over competi-
tion, its legacy and principles and its
character have a specific influence on
issues such as product and service
development, channel choice, advertis-
ing, staff demeanour, delivery and
supply-chain management. Most im-
portant is to gain an understanding of
how well these processes connect in
order to provide consumers with the
required brand experience, and how
this may differ across the globe.
The external analysis
The external analysis focuses on how
local conditions act as lenses through
which consumers, or particular con-
sumer segments, observe the brand,
and how these circumstances affect
consumers’ understanding of the brand
by itself, and in relation to other
brands. Specific situational factors affect
elements of brand perception in a
particular manner, thereby influencing
brands that are perceived as being
especially good in one of the following
brand perception areas: the brand
domain, the brand reputation or the
brand affinity. The resulting brand
recognition relates the perception of
the brand to those in its environs, both
competitive and related brands, either
within the same organisation or outside
that provide enhancement to the
brand.
The findings from the external
analysis provide new input for the
 GLOBAL BRAND STRATEGY

Markets / societies

Organisation

Business Internal Internal

INTERNAL ANALYSIS
strategy legacy conventions

Brand expression

Brand Brand Brand

positioning identity personality

Marketing

Marketing Marketing

mix implementation

Conventions

Category Needs Cultural

EXTERNAL ANALYSIS

conventions conventions conventions

Brand perception

Brand Brand Brand

domain reputation affinity

Brand recognition

Brand Brand

discrimination connections

Figure 1 The Global Brand Proposition Model

internal analysis. The analysis of brand THE INTERNAL ANALYSIS

perception, in particular, provides a
starting point for further strategic The organisation
planning. As brand perception holds Not only is a brand the property of an
the meaning and significance of the organisation, it is also an integral part
brand to consumers, it is the main area of the organisation in the sense that it
that global and local brand manage- impacts on and is impacted by the
ment will want to influence. As a policies, activities, structures, culture,
result, the model functions as a con- history and character of the organisa-
stant and consistent feedback loop. tion. The organisational influences on
Each iteration of the process will help the brand are both direct and indirect.
refine or redefine global and local The business strategy has a direct
brand propositions. bearing on the brand, as the latter seeks

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VAN GELDER
to translate the objectives of the former
into consumer experiences. Other di-
rect and indirect organisational in-
fluences on the brand are internal
conventions and the internal legacy of
the brand. The internal conventions
encompass the organisational status
quo. The brand’s internal legacy is
formed by the stories about the brand’s
inception and its (historic) role for the
organisation.
Currently, organisational structures
largely seem to determine the manner
in which brand management is or-
ganised. If an organisation has a
decentralised, multi-country structure
its brands are managed by numerous
local brand management teams. If an
organisation is highly centralised, brand
management is similarly organised. The
premise of this paper is that each brand
has its own potential for successful
standardisation and successful adapta-
tion. Therefore, the manner in which
brand management is organised should
follow the potential of the brand and
not the other way around.
The brand expression
The brand expression is the brand as
defined and manifested by an or-
ganisation. When management and
employees of an organisation talk of
their brand, they usually mean the
brand expression rather than the brand
perception that has been shaped by the
organisation’s own marketing activities
and the filters and lenses applied by
consumers. This is not unreasonable, as
the brand expression contains those
elements with which an organisation
can hope to mould the brand.
The brand expression is influenced
by the organisational factors discussed
in the previous paragraph. The brand
42 䉷 HENRY STEWART PUBLICATIONS 1479-1803 BRAND MANAGEMENT VOL. 12, NO. 1, 39–48 SEPTEMBER 2004
expression should define a consumer
experience that will induce required
attitudes and behaviour. The internal
conventions and the internal brand
legacy set parameters for the brand
expression, parameters that may or may
not restrict the brand’s development. In
its turn the brand expression provides
the necessary guidance regarding the
marketing mix and implementation
activities in an effort to ensure that
consumers receive the required-be-
haviour-inducing experience.
The brand expression consists of
three elements, namely the brand’s
positioning, its identity and its per-
sonality. Although the same brand
expression instruments are available to
all brand management teams, some
brands are historically better endowed
in one area than the other, and this
may differ between countries. There-
fore, brand strategy is not only depend-
ent on the current perception of the
brand among consumers and how that
perception can realistically be in-
fluenced, but also on the instruments
that are available or that can be
developed for this purpose. Each of the
three brand expression elements con-
tains various aspects that can be
selected to try to influence consumers’
perception of the brand and thus
achieve the brand strategy goal of
delivering a specific consumer ex-
perience.
The role of marketing
The brand expression elements des-
cribed in the previous paragraph
circumscribe the consumer’s brand
experience that is to accomplish the
organisation’s strategic objectives. They
do not, however, deliver this ex-
perience. This important task is part of

marketing’s responsibilities. It is the
role of marketing to define and deliver
the products and services that are sold
under the brand’s banner. The word
‘deliver’ is used here as shorthand for
making sure that the appropriate
products and services are developed,
produced, distributed, communicated
and promoted to consumers.
Two separate areas of responsibility
are involved for marketing, namely the
marketing mix and marketing im-
plementation. The former involves
formulating the policies for new
product and service developments,
distribution channel choice, pricing
strategy, marketing communications
and customer servicing. Marketing
implementation is the final step
towards delivering products and
services to consumers, and involves
such activities as production, supply
chain management, logistics, employee
training and motivation, advertising
and promotions, and sales and
after-sales service. These activities are
crucial to realising the consumer’s
brand experience. Without proper
implementation or execution the brand
will trip up at critical consumer touch
points, and all the careful strategising
and planning that has gone into the
brand will be useless. Implementation
will almost inevitably differ between
countries. The influence this has on the
brand needs to be clearly understood.
THE EXTERNAL ANALYSIS
Local market conventions
Whatever is devised and undertaken by
an organisation in terms of business
strategy, brand expression and market-
ing, to provide a specific consumer
experience, will pass through a number
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GLOBAL BRAND STRATEGY
of filters and lenses that shape the way
consumers perceive the brand. These
filters and lenses can cancel, distort,
amplify and reduce certain elements of
the brand. There are three important
influencing factors that circumscribe
the opportunities for a brand to reach
its full potential in various markets and
societies, namely category conventions,
needs conventions and cultural con-
ventions. In this paper the word ‘con-
vention’ is used to describe unwritten
rules that govern people’s perceptions
of and decisions about a brand. When
a convention is considered to be ‘solid’,
consumers are unwilling to accept an
alternative and there is little that can be
done other than to adapt the particular
aspect of a brand to this convention.
When a convention is ‘flexible’, the
convention is undergoing development
or erosion in consumers’ minds, and
there is an opportunity to challenge
such a convention, to obtain differen-
tiation from competitors and offer dis-
tinct value to consumers.
Often, judging these issues will be a
matter of making a decision on the
basis of competitive analysis and con-
sumer research. The most important
consideration is whether adhering to
or, conversely, challenging a conven-
tion will provide sufficient additional
value to consumers. Brand adaptation
for fear of upsetting consumers is just
as mistaken as challenging a convention
purely for differentiation purposes. A
well-executed challenge can provide
consumers with new and worthwhile
experiences.
Brand perception
The conventions discussed in the
previous paragraph have a profound
impact on how brands are perceived by
43
VAN GELDER
consumers in different societies. The
brand perception is defined as the total
impression that consumers have of a
brand, based on their exposure to the
brand. This consists of both the image
that consumers form of the brand and
their experience with the brand. Ob-
viously, not every person gets the same
exposure to a brand, and some brands
— for example luxury brands — have
a strong mental image among con-
sumers without generating much ex-
perience, while the perception of other
brands — for instance household
cleaners — will be more based on
experience.
The brand perception, rather than
the brand expression, is actually the
starting point for branding strategies.
This is due to the fact that the brand
expression is merely concerned with
manifesting the brand, while the brand
perception consists of consumers’ ex-
perience. It is therefore imperative for
brand management teams to have a
clear understanding of their brand’s
perception among specific groups of
consumers in various societies, as well
as an appreciation of the lenses and
filters that help shape those percep-
tions. When a brand is introduced into
a foreign society, the brand manage-
ment team must define the desired
perception and must try to anticipate
the situational effects on that percep-
tion. There are three broad types of
brand perception, namely specialisa-
tions in the brand’s domain, reputation
and affinity.
Brand typology
Brand domain specialists are experts in
one or more of the following aspects:
products and services, media, distribu-
tion and solutions. A brand domain
44 䉷 HENRY STEWART PUBLICATIONS 1479-1803 BRAND MANAGEMENT VOL. 12, NO. 1, 39–48 SEPTEMBER 2004
specialist tries to pre-empt or even
dictate particular category develop-
ments. The lifeblood of a brand
domain specialist is innovation and
creative use of resources.
Domain specialists generally require
economies of scale in order to sustain
their investment in constant innova-
tion. Brand standardisation is part of
this. Domain specialists often establish
new conventions in the marketplace.
Many ICT companies have had the
opportunity to shape their category.
This is why such companies have been
able to establish highly standardised
global brands, for example, Microsoft,
IBM, Intel and Nokia.
The work of domain specialists is
affected by category conventions,
which govern the way products and
services are designed, represented,
distributed, advertised, and so on.
Renault, which introduced various
innovative car designs during the past
decade, has little or no position outside
Europe. While the brand has success-
fully challenged automotive design
conventions in Europe, it fails to
persuade consumers across the Atlantic
or in Asia.
Cultural conventions, especially
beliefs and customs directly related to
the products or services involved, also
affect domain specialists. For instance,
there is a traditional belief in southern
European countries that cat and dog
food should contain vegetables and
carbohydrates. Whiskas caters to this
belief by offering canned food with
rice, pasta and peas.
Domain specialists’ brand-building
activities consist mainly of introducing
global brand extensions to reinforce the
perception of the brand’s innovative-
ness. Without constant and consistent
extensions, many of these brands

would quickly lose their relevance to
consumers.
Brand reputation specialists use or
develop specific traits of their brands to
support their authenticity, credibility or
reliability. A brand reputation specialist
needs to have a history, legacy or
mythology for the brand, and needs to
be able to narrate these in a convincing
manner, and live up to the result-
ing reputation. Reputation specialists
may leverage their connections to
celebrities, and yet others build on a
promise that they have demonstrably
been able to keep. They are often good
at tweaking their brands to ensure
relevance to consumers in specific
societies.
Reputation specialists are susceptible
to cultural and needs conventions.
There are three types of conventions
(ie unwritten rules that govern the
way consumers look at and experience
brands): category conventions (rules
set by major players in the category),
needs conventions (rules that govern
the way we expect our needs to be
met), and cultural conventions (rules
that govern the way we interact with
other people). Brands that leverage
their country of origin make use of
beliefs (sometimes stereotypes) about
those countries. The significance and
essence of such beliefs can, however,
vary widely across societies. The same
applies to a brand’s values. Virgin’s
reputation as a challenger to estab-
lished brands connects well with the
general British distrust of major com-
panies. Whether the same irreverence
will work for Virgin in places where
consumers put more trust in major
companies and their brands (for ex-
ample Asia) is questionable.
People’s sense of insecurity and their
need to belong is often made use
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GLOBAL BRAND STRATEGY
of by reputation specialists. Percep-
tions can, however, differ significantly
around the world. In the USA, Tiger
Woods is an embodiment of black
emancipation and success; in Asia he
embodies the rise of sports stars with
an Asian heritage; while in Europe
Tiger Woods is simply seen as a great
young athlete who challenges older
incumbents.
Brand affinity specialists bond with
consumers and, therefore, need to have
a distinct appeal to consumers, be able
to communicate with them effectively
and provide an experience that rein-
forces the bonding process.
Some affinity specialists are able to
standardise their brands across societies
by using themes that are common
across societies. For instance, Mercedes
is a brand that many (successful) people
around the world wish to be associated
with. Most affinity specialists need local
brand management in order to be able
to build a worthwhile rapport with
consumers, however.
Affinity specialists are particularly
susceptible to cultural and needs con-
ventions. For example, in western
Europe, Greenpeace is considered a
respectable member of society, due to
common values about conservation and
the environment. In the USA, they are
more often regarded as a bunch of tree
huggers, disconnected from economic
reality. This is due to cherished values
of success and ambition. In much of
the rest of the world, Greenpeace is
considered an antagonist to vested
business interests. This is largely due to
materialistic values, which are common
in many developing and recently
developed countries.
Affinity specialists can make use
of such needs as that for a sense
of self-esteem. Beauty brand L’Oréal
45
VAN GELDER
is famous for its hair and skincare
products, aimed at glorifying female
beauty. The brand’s tagline says it all:
‘Because I’m worth it’.
Due to their general closeness to
consumers, affinity specialists are often
in tune with their consumers and can
sense when conventions are shifting.
The main brand-building activity of
affinity specialists is relationship build-
ing. How this is achieved — for
example, through events, a loyalty
programme, by demonstrating compas-
sion with customers, by extolling
certain principles, by demonstrating
coolness at relevant occasions, and so
on — differs considerably between the
types of affinity brands and according
to local conventions.
Brand recognition
Brand recognition is more than mere
brand awareness. Brand awareness is
the function of communications only,
while brand recognition is the result of
the brand perception. What the brand
means to consumers affects how the
brand is considered in relation to other
brands. Brand recognition relates to
how a brand is distinguished from as
well as related to other brands. These
other brands may be competitors, or
they may be other brands belonging to
the same organisation or to other
non-competitive organisations (for ex-
ample, partners, endorsers or suppliers).
Two brand recognition principles are
of importance, namely brand dis-
crimination and brand connections.
Brand discrimination deals with a
brand’s perceived distinctiveness from
the competition, while brand connec-
tions examine the brand’s perceived
role vis-à-vis ‘friendly’ brands.
The relationship of a brand vis-à-
46 䉷 HENRY STEWART PUBLICATIONS 1479-1803 BRAND MANAGEMENT VOL. 12, NO. 1, 39–48 SEPTEMBER 2004
vis other brands often differs between
countries. This is because there are
often different competitive sets in a
market, and the importance assigned to
related brands can differ significantly.
An example of the latter is Procter &
Gamble, whose name hardly features
on its individual brands in Europe and
the USA, but is more prominent in
Asia. In this region, TV advertising
for the company’s brands often in-
cludes corporate signage at the end.
The Procter & Gamble name functions
as a ‘shadow endorser’.1
APPLYING THE MODEL
The Global Brand Proposition Model
is specifically designed to analyse
brands in their local and global
contexts, to determine the manifold
influences on brands in different
markets, to help resolve local versus
global brand proposition tensions, and
to develop strategic options for the
brand that offer both competitive
advantage and value to stakeholders.
Matters such as taking a brand
global, creating new global brands,
brand harmonisation and global brand
extensions can be considered using the
Global Brand Proposition Model as an
analysis framework that can be applied
across markets, societies and cultures.
The model is not a how-to guide
to global branding, however. The
management team of each brand will
need to use its own skills, business
acumen and creativity to determine the
fitting propositions for its brands.
Case: Iams pet food
Iams is a premium pet food brand. The
brand derives its name from the
company’s founder, Paul Iams, who in

1946 decided that pets needed specifi-
cally formulated food. To this day, the
stated mission of The Iams Company
is: ‘to enhance the well-being of dogs
and cats by providing world-class
quality foods and pet care products’.
The resulting dry food (kibbles) has a
very high animal protein content, as
this is most similar to what these
animals would eat in the wild. The
brand proved particularly successful
among pet lovers in the USA who
were looking to provide their pets with
a long and healthy life.
In Europe, where Iams was intro-
duced as cat food only, the com-
pany encountered markets largely
dominated by wet food (cans) in the
north-west and an emerging market
still largely relying on home-made
food (such as pasta, rice and table
scraps) in the south. These feeding
habits were based upon local beliefs
as to what is healthy and enjoyable
for a cat. This behaviour con-
tradicted Iams’ core notion that
healthy pet food consists of kibbles
with a high animal protein content.
It soon became clear, however, that
the local beliefs and habits were
pretty well entrenched in north-west
Europe, although differing between
countries. In the up-and-coming pet-
food markets of the south, mainly
urban Italy and Spain, the gap
between feeding table scraps and
feeding premium kibbles was very
large. Iams reluctantly introduced wet
food in cans. The canned food can
probably best be described as a rather
amorphous moisturised pâté version of
Iams kibbles. Coupled with a rela-
tively high price, the Iams wet food
did not experience great sales suc-
cess.
As for the Iams kibbles, these are
䉷 HENRY STEWART PUBLICATIONS 1479-1803 BRAND MANAGEMENT VOL. 12, NO. 1, 39–48 SEPTEMBER 2004
GLOBAL BRAND STRATEGY
oval-shaped and a dull uniform brown.
At the time, European consumers were
used to feeding their cats multi-
coloured, sometimes elaborately shaped
kibbles. Many European consumers
also put great stock in providing their
cats with variety in their diet by
feeding them kibbles in a variety of
flavours. Again, this went against one
of the Iams’ core notions, namely that
cats do not need variety, and that
chicken protein is the healthiest for
them. Iams again relented, however, as
it was clear that these notions were
well established and that European
consumers would not be convinced to
change their cat-feeding habits.
Regular Iams kibbles were packaged
in orange paper bags adorned with a
stylised grey silhouette of a cat. The
speciality products’ bags had various
striking colours, such as purple and
aquamarine. The packaging conven-
tions at the time dictated that kibbles
should be sold in cartons bearing
photos of adorable cats. This challenge
by Iams to packaging conventions did
not sit well with European consumers.
The rather stark pack design was not
considered attractive, and the environ-
mental advantages of using paper bags
were, on the whole, not appreciated.
After a number of years, Iams intro-
duced a bag made of resilient plastic
sporting a photo of a handsome cat.
Most of all, Iams was intent on
getting its healthy pet-food message
across to European consumers. For this
purpose, Iams enlisted influencers such
as breeders, vets and pet-shop owners
to promote its brand rather than rely
on traditional advertising. Most Iams
users are introduced to the brand by
these influencers. The endorsement
of the brand by such evidently
knowledgable individuals persuaded
47
VAN GELDER
many pet owners to choose Iams,
despite its high price, and to stick with
the brand for the duration of their pets’
lives. By challenging conventions, Iams
not only avoided head-on confronta-
tions with competitors, but (more
importantly) was able to add consider-
able credibility to its pet health claims.
In addition, Iams chose to distribute its
brand solely through the speciality
channel — mainly pet stores and vets
— in order to support its premium
brand proposition. In Germany, how-
ever, where pet food is commonly sold
at garden centres, Iams chose to
include this channel.
48 䉷 HENRY STEWART PUBLICATIONS 1479-1803 BRAND MANAGEMENT VOL. 12, NO. 1, 39–48 SEPTEMBER 2004
The case of Iams in Europe
demonstrates that a brand may have to
change its specialisation from one
society to the next. In this case, Iams
changed from being a domain
specialist, driven by product innova-
tion, in the USA to being a reputation
specialist — endorsed by vets, breeders
and shopkeepers — in Europe. Even
within Europe, the brand needed to be
tweaked to fit the individual markets.
Reference
(1) Aaker, D. A. and Joachimsthaler, E. (2000)
‘Brand Leadership’, The Free Press, New
York, NY.