BRAND MANAGEMENT 1

What makes the winning brands different? The winning brands achieve spectacular growth in sales
and market share. A brand role is to express something that the consumers want to have
expressed. Therefore, brand building and brand management are vital for sustained success of
brand in the market place.
The answer to the question, “How do you build a brand?” is complex. Given the complexity of the
process of brand building, marketer use several strategies. Leventhal (1996) in his research work
on branding strategy categorised the brander into seven typologies. The other two important
frameworks of building and managing brands – one based on type of brands, and other one based on
Mudra’s experience are presented below:
Branding Strategies – Typologies
Leventhal (1996) categorised the branding strategies into seven and suggested that the marketer can
adopt any of these strategies after carefully deliberating on some of the important issues, viz.,
product demand, strategy in a product category, relevance of strategy to target customers and finally
willingness of customers to pay for special services associated with the brand.

BUILDING AND MANAGING BRANDS – INTEGRATED FRAMEWORKS

The building of a brand is guided by a vision of the desired positioning and is implemented by all
the decision related to the marketing mix. The relative importance of different elements of the
marketing mix may vary as a function of the type of brand. (Tybout and Carpenter, 2001). The
other framework termed Brand Concept Management (BCM) is defined formally as the planning,
implementation, and control of a brand concept throughout the life of the brand (Park et. al, 1986).

Brand Type x Strategies Framework (Tybout and Carpenter, 2001)

The authors suggest that the brands can be categorised into three types – functional, image and
experiential and each of them needs to be managed differently.
 Functional Brands
Functional brands are bought by consumers to satisfy functional needs – to wash their clothes, to
relieve pain, to transport one’s family. Beyond serving basic needs, many functional brands

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Prepared by Prof. L.K. Vaswani from various sources for classroom discussion only.

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differentiate from their competitors, which offer much if not all of the same functionality, by
offering superior performance or by providing superior economy.
 Image Brands
Image brands create value principally by projecting an image. While they may be based on an
extraordinary product, these brands are distinguished from competitors because buyers see them as
offering a unique set of associations or image. Image brands are often created in categories where
products are relatively undifferentiated or quality is difficult to evaluate (i.e., medical or consulting
services), or where consumption of the product is highly visible to others (e.g., cars, shoes, clothing,
etc.). Image brands have become increasingly important, as competition in many markets has
eliminated meaningful differences in products.
 Experiential Brands
Experiential brands differ from image brands in terms of their emphasis. Whereas image brands
focus on what the product represents, experiential brands focus on how consumers feel when
interacting with the brand. The brand experience is co-created by the brand and the consumer at the
time of consumption. Indeed, the same individual may experience such a brand differently at
different times.
The type of brands as detailed above have been summarised in Table 1. These brands vary in terms
of their basis for differential and, thus, the emphasis placed on elements of the marketing mix.
Table 1: The Brand Matrix

Brand Type Basis for Marketing Mix Consumer Management

Differentiation Emphasis Needs and Challenges
Involvement

Functional (e.g., Superior Product, price, Physiological and Sustaining the

Tide, Mach III, performance or and/or place safety needs, basis of superiority
McDonald’s Dell superior economy relatively low
Computer) involvement

Image (e.g., Nike, Desirable image Communications Social and esteem Balancing the
Apple, Coke, needs, moderate to brand heritage
Pepsi) high involvement with the need for
relevance in a
dynamic
environment

Experiential (e.g., A unique, Service delivery Self-actualisation Consistency in

Disney, Virgin engaging (place and people) needs, moderate to delivery, risk of
Atlantic Airways) experience high involvement consumer satiation
Source: Tybout and Carpenter (2001), “Kellog on Marketing” ed. Dawn Iacobucci,, pp.97

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As a result, these brands connect with different consumer needs and evoke different levels of
consumer involvement. Moreover, sustaining these brands presents unique challenges to
management

It will be useful to think of these types of brands as lying on a continuum ranging from a focus on
the product to a focus on the consumer. At one extreme are functional brands, which are created at
the factory and may be purchased by consumers for consumption at whatever time they might
desire. At the other extreme are experiential brands, which are created at the time of consumption
with the active participation of those who consume them. Image brands fall in the middle. It is
important to recognise that brands may evolve in ways that shifts their categorisations.

Brand Concept Management (BCM) – Park et al, 1986

A normative framework, termed brand concept management (BCM), consists of a sequential
process of selecting, introducing, elaborating, and fortifying a brand concept. The concept guides
positioning strategies, and hence the brand image, at each of these stages. The method for
maintaining this concept-image linkage depends on whether the brand concept is functional,
symbolic, or experiential. Maintaining this linkage should significantly enhance the brand's market
performance.

Communicating a brand image to a target segment has long been regarded as an important
marketing activity. A well-communicated image should help establish a brand’s position, insulate
the brand from competition and therefore enhance the brand’s market performance. This potential
impact underscores the importance of managing the image over time. The long-term success of a
brand depends on marketers’ abilities to select a brand meaning prior to market entry, operationalise
the meaning in the form of an image, and maintain the image over time. The image is a perception
created by marketers’ management of the brand.

Positioning/repositioning strategies, though incorporating the notion of image (and indirectly sales),
do not typically indicate how the image can be managed over time. Instead, short-term, market-
driven factors such as current consumer needs and competition are used as a basis for managing the
brand’s image/position. Because both positioning the repositioning decisions are based on current
conditions, they are not strategically oriented.

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The BCM Framework
Managing the image over time necessitates the coordination of communication activities with other
sales inducing activities. A normative framework was proposed by Park et. al (1986) that allows for
such coordination.
 Brand Concept
A brand concept is a firm-selected brand meaning derived from basic consumer needs
(functional, symbolic, and experiential). A concept selected prior to market entry sets
boundaries on the scope of positioning strategies, and hence influences the perceived brand
image/position. The concept remains the same over the life of the brand, even though the
brand’s specific position may change with market conditions. A specific positioning strategy
is therefore necessary to differentiate the brand from those with similar concepts.

Some brand strategists have distinguished between symbolic and functional brands, i.e. brands that
basically satisfy consumers’ functional or product‐related needs and brands bought to enhance self ‐ or social
esteem. It has been suggested that brands should be positioned as either functional or symbolic but not both.
Subsequent data analysis suggests that brand symbolism and functionality are separate phenomena and,
further, that symbolism comprises two dimensions, termed prestige and personality expression. Thus,
contrary to current thinking, it seems that brands can be successfully positioned as both symbolic and
functional and, if a symbolic brand concept is desired, prestige or upscaleness is just one of the possible
positioning options available.

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 Management Stages
After the initial concept selection task, the concept is managed over three stages: introduction,
elaboration and fortification. For each of the three management stages, positioning strategies
are specified (implemented by the marketing mix) that enable consumers to understand a brand
image (introduction), perceive its steadily increasing value (elaboration), and generalize it to
other products produced by the firm (fortification). Thus, the identification and management of
a brand concept represent the means for developing, maintaining, and controlling the brand
image .
 Management of Brand Image
In the course of selecting a concept the firm must consider resource capabilities, the firm’s
image, and current product offerings.
At the introductory stage, the firm considers how best to operationalise the concept using
elements of the marketing mix. For brands with functional concepts, mix elements should
emphasise brands’ performance in solving consumption related problems.
In symbolic concepts, mix element can emphasise brand relationship to group membership or
self-identification.
In experiential concepts, positioning strategies should convey the brands effect on sensory
satisfaction or cognitive stimulation, i.e highlighting the experiential and fantasy aspects
associated with the brand.

As markets and needs change, elaborating the brand concept becomes important. Through
positioning strategies at the elaboration stage, management can convey a consistent yet more valued
image, insulate the brand from competition, and directly influence the financial performance of the
brand. Finally, the image can be reinforced at the fortification stage by extending it to new,
complementary products.

Thus, the successful development of an initial brand image can have lasting effects on both the life
of the brand and other products produced by the firm. The images of these other products, in turn,
reinforce the image of the elaborated brand. They also contribute to the formation and
reinforcement of the image of the firm and/or the entire product line. Synergies are thus realized in
the management of brand images.

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PCDL Model: a conceptual model for building brands (Ghodeswar 2008)
Based on the literature review and three case studies of Indian brands (Archies ,Boroline and Dabur
Vatika), the conceptual model for brand building in competitive markets, known as PCDL Model,
has been proposed. The four elements of this model, namely, positioning the brand, communicating
the brand message, delivering the brand performance, and leveraging the brand are described
below.

Ghodeswar (2008) Journal of Product & Brand Management,17/1 pp 4–12

The model suggests the framework for building brand identity in sequential order, namely,
positioning the brand, communicating the brand message, delivering the brand performance, and
leveraging the brand equity. At the same time brand-building effort has to be aligned with
organizational processes that help deliver the promises to customers through all company
departments, intermediaries, suppliers, etc., as all these play an important role in the experience
customers have with the brand.

Relationship between Type of Brand and Branding Strategies

When building a brand the marketer must also determine the optimal branding strategy. He can
focus on three strategies that are commonly employed:
 Corporate branding (using one corporate brand for all products.
 Family branding (using multiple brands in a product category and linking them to a common
family name).
 Product branding (using unrelated brand names for several products in the same product
category).

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The Corporate Branding focuses attention on the company. This strategy may be particularly
attractive for experiential brands because the brand represents a relationship with the company
rather than with the product. In case of image brands, common name may help to define and enrich
the brand image. In case of functional brands companies are attracted to a corporate branding
approach for the efficiency that it provides and expenditures, particularly advertising, can be
concentrated on building a single brand name. However, all products under corporate brand must
be compatible with the associations that the brand evokes:

The alternate approach is to adopt a family branding strategy. Under this approach, a corporate or
umbrella brand name may be combined with more specific product-based names. The corporate
affiliation may impose a constraint on the range of meanings that can be created at the product
level. In general, the family branding approach works best when relatively distinct segments of
users, or use occasions, exist and thus the common affiliation is not likely to increase
cannibalisation markedly. Instead, the familial affiliation provides an assurance of a certain level of
quality.

The third approach to branding is to market multiple product brands without any common
affiliation to the parent company. A product branding strategy can enable a firm to attract distinct
segments of consumers who may not wish to be affiliated with each other. Product branding can be
highly successful. However, it requires deep pockets to build multiple, unrelated brands. In sum,
brands serve as a bridge between a company and its customers – they are symbols of the value that
the company creates. Therefore, brands must build, and this is a time consuming and costly
process.

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No Fear of Failure: Marico Again Sights Health & Wellness

Co plans to roll out a range of foods and beverages under the

Saffola Fittify brand
Sagar.Malviya@timesgroup.com Mumbai: Dec 24,2019

Edible oil and personal care products maker Marico will soon return to the health and wellness
food market by launching more than half a dozen items as part of its wider strategy to expand
its portfolio with premium new age products.

The company will roll out a range of food and beverages products including green tea and
coffee, high protein breakfast cereals, soups and protein shakes under Saffola Fittify brand next
quarter, with their distribution entirely focused on modern trade and online channels, a top
official said.

“This gives us an opportunity to try out new products even if we don’t succeed in every
category,” said Saugata Gupta, managing director at Marico. “These products are no longer
niche and the market is at an inflection point. We have internally created a division which will
continue to experiment with such products without any fear of failure,” he said.

This is Marico’s second attempt to enter the health and wellness food market. Over the past
decade, the maker of Saffola and Parachute brands had entered segments such as salt, snacks,
rice and wheat flour for diabetics, weight and cholesterol management, which were either
completely withdrawn or restricted to few markets.

However, it succeeded in the ₹400-crore oats segment where Saffola Oats has more than 30%
market share now.

Marico’s business team for the new range of health and wellness food products, internally
called Engine 2, runs like a new entrepreneurial company to create and incubate new categories
as it targets a 70% increase in revenue to ₹10,000 crore by 2020, Gupta said.

Marico’s latest bet comes at a time when Hindustan Unilever made its most ambitious foray
into the health and wellness space by acquiring GSK Consumer brands with plans to extend
Horlicks into similar nutritional product segments.

Also, a host of consumer startups have seen their pricier and gourmet products such as Greek
yoghurt brand Epigamia and Raw Pressery juice fly off shelves as consumers switch to healthier
food choices.

“Over the past few years, one of the disappointments investors harboured for Marico was
regarding the subdued performance of its new launches. Except for Saffola Masala oats,
launched over six years ago, none of the new launches have contributed significantly to the
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sales growth,” wrote Krishnan Sambamoorthy and Vishal Punmiya, analysts at Motilal Oswal,
in a recent investors note. “However, over the past 18 months, Marico has pulled up its socks
and now has a strong product pipeline with a few initial successes.”

There has been an evident stepup in the pace of new launches over the past 18 months with
Marico launching one new product every month on an average, mostly in value added personal
care space, in an effort to boost margins.

Marico quit the traders lane on Masjid Bunder in Mumbai more than 45 years ago with an
ambition to make two highly commoditised products — edible and coconut oil — national
brands. Today, Parachute and Saffola are among the biggest oil brands in the country, although
their contribution to Marico’s overall sales is below half now.

“Saffola is a ₹1,000-crore brand, contributing nearly 16% of our sales. However, we need to
move away from being just an edible oil brand,” Gupta said.

Within personal care, too, Marico has been introducing premium products — from basic
coconut oil to value-added ones and now expects innovations such as serum and creambased
hair products to drive the portfolio. A year ago, Marico bought a 45% stake in Zed Lifestyle,
which owned and sold a range of products under Beardo brand.

Marico’s team for the new range of health and wellness food products is targeting a 70% rise
in revenue by 2020

Marico brings green tea & green coffee under Saffola Fittify range

Franchise India Buereau , APRIL 18, 2019 / 2 MIN READ

The move is in line with the company s endeavour to build an

authentic healthy gourmet portfolio

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Marico Limited, one of India’s leading FMCG companies, has unveiled a range of
super beverages, including Superfood Moringa Green Tea and Green Coffee
Instant Beverage Mix, as a part of its Saffola Fittify Gourmet range. The move is in
line with the company’s endeavour to build an authentic healthy gourmet portfolio.

The newly launched range has been carefully crafted by nutritionists and curated
by chef Kunal Kapur for combining the best of taste and health for a slimmer and
fitter life.

While the Superfood Moringa Green Tea brings the antioxidant benefits of green
tea with the superfood moringa together, the Green coffee is on par with green tea
and considered as the next big health elixir.

The new range is available at modern trade outlets like Godrej Nature’s Basket,
Foodhall and Star Bazaar, across the top metros, including Mumbai, Delhi NCR,
Pune, Hyderabad and Bengaluru. It is also available on e-commerce portals like
Amazon, Flipkart and Big Basket.

Superfood Moringa Green Tea is priced at Rs 220 for a 37.5g pack, while Green
Coffee Instant Beverage Mix is available at Rs 260 for a 30g pack.

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V-Guard Industries unveils new brand identity, announces new vision
As part of the brand evolution, the company unveiled a new logo in a sleek black and royal gold
colours cueing modernity and premium values
ETBrandEquity  |  February 08, 2018,
 

 
V-Guard Industries Limited today unveiled its new identity and announced its new vision for the
brand. The new identity that marks the evolution of the 40-year-old company into a new-generation,
technology driven smart organization. V-Guard has embarked on a journey to create thoughtful
products that will impact the lives of its consumers in an intelligent way and the new brand identity
and logo are testimony to the company’s commitment in this endeavor.

As part of the brand evolution, the company unveiled a new logo in a sleek black and royal gold
colours cueing modernity and premium values. It has also transformed its key symbol, the kangaroo
into a more agile, contemporary entity that embodies innovation and progressiveness. The brand
also unveiled the new tag line, ‘Bring Home A Better Tomorrow’ aligning to the promise of
delivering thoughtful products and experiences to its consumers, for a better tomorrow.
Commenting on the new journey, Mithun Chittilappilly, MD, V-Guard Industries Ltd, said, “They
say life begins at 40 and at V-Guard it certainly does. And to live that, we have decided to re-invent
ourselves completely. We are not just thinking up the next innovation. We are constantly seeking to
understand human life and its relationship with tools and appliances. And then to evolve a seamless
experience with thoughtfully engineered products in our quest to enriching consumer lives. We took
a conscious call to go beyond not just being a trustworthy, reliable, honest brand but to also evolve
into a thoughtful, inspiring and dynamic trendsetter. The new identity reinforces the new age values
that we would want to imbibe in our endevour to create thoughtfully smart and technologically
intuitive products for our discerning consumers”
Ramachandran V, Director & COO, V-Guard Industries Ltd, said, “V-Guard today has evolved into
a healthy pan Indian consumer brand and business, emerging as one of the potential leaders in our
space. We are now laying the foundation for the next stage of growth. We will position ourselves to

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competitively benefit from developments in consumer, market and technology space so that we can
thrive another 40 years and well beyond. A beginning in this direction is already made through our
launches in AC stabilizer (design leadership) , Verano (IoT enabled geysers) and our range of Smart
Inverters a market leading digital product that transforms a non-speaking device into a potentially
high engagement product and more that will follow. The scope of what we offer through these
products will demonstrate that we can deliver market leading products with superior and exciting
features to delight the taste palette of our ever expanding consumer base."

Nandagopal Nair, VP, Corporate Communication, V-Guard Industries Ltd, added, ‘‘When we
started this exercise a few years back we decided that the new identity that we create will not be a
cosmetic change but will be built on certain new age values that the brand wanted to imbibe in
alignment with the changing consumer landscape and of course in synch with the vision for the
brand going into the future. Creation of the identity was just the start point. We then worked on the
creation of a new design language system. How it enveloped over packaging, retail, various touch
points internally and our work space environment has been exhilarating to say the least. We will
now be unleashing a 360-degree integrated marketing communications shortly to drive the message
forward “

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