Principles of Marketing| Richa Saxena

SESSION 16

BUILDING BRAND
EQUITY
In these testing times, when even the most prominent brands face disruption, the role of strong brand
equity is more important than ever. According to a report published by OkCredit, market leaders in
FMCG food segments, such as instant noodles and tea, are losing ground to smaller brands in tier-2
and tier-3 towns. The minor loss in market share by these top brands, such as Maggi and Red Label,
has been the gain of challenger brands, including Ching's, Yippie, Top Ramen, and Wagh Bakri.
However, Parle is India's favourite biscuit brand, followed by Britannia and ITC's Sunfeast. Britannia's
strength is in Bihar, Delhi, North East, and Southern states. Red Label is the most popular tea brand,
followed by Tata Tea and Taj Mahal (Sarkar, 2021).

When consumers look for brands with a purpose (ETBrandEquity, 2021), marketers focus on creating
a lateral tangent for their brands.

Close-up, the toothpaste for the youth

(introduced in the '70s) and relevant today had
initially advertised as a mouthwash cum
toothpaste with the relevant aspects of sensory
branding. Over the last several decades, the
typical mouth wash category has not picked up.
Its diffusion can be associated with several
ARTICLE 16.1
barriers associated with India's culture of habits.

Lateral marketing –
Identifying new uses
and needs
Kotler, the marketing guru, does not seem to lose
relevance even in this digital age for the concepts.
Along with Fernando, he underlines the concept
of lateral marketing that deals with new needs
and uses for a product offering concerning
existing consumers or new consumer segments.
The first lesson in marketing and branding is the
presence of culture in any marketing context. The
common man's rusk (made from pieces of bread-
Picture 16. 1 Instant Germ-kill Spray
like particles) was transformed into a leading
brand's teatime snack. Colgate Vedshakthi has Colgate's new spray variant bridges the gap
introduced a mouth spray that can kill germs and between mouth wash and toothpaste and is
can be carried easily on the go. Let us consider the relevant to several segments based on need,
mouthwash market in the domain of oral care. market, and product in the oral care market.
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 Principles of Marketing| Richa Saxena
COVID brings in perceived risk that can speed up improved lateral offerings. One other example is
the offering and trials diffusion. The reputation of a South Indian brand – Ramraj, which has
a leading brand, its advertising and distribution, refreshingly launched traditional Dhotis with
and the value perception (pricing aspects) add to pockets, Dhotis with Velcro, etc., etc., which
the synergy. appeals to a younger target audience. Similarly,
ITC has launched Engage- which has an "On-the-
The nimbleness associated with the brand stands go" perfume range for parties, etc.
for swift action to seize the marketing
opportunity to become a pioneer in lateral
marketing initiatives. Brand recall and brand
recognition can be useful when an established
brand gets into the act. However, a challenger in
the form of a new brand can also effectively
accomplish it using the gaps left by established
brands. Epigamia, the healthy yogurt brand, has
firmly established itself by satisfying a relevant
need associated with a pertinent offering for a
relevant market segment in the category of
snacking rather than selling the concept of yogurt
in a culture that is familiar or steeped in Dahi.
The basics of consumer behaviour for brand
associations, attitude, personality, and reference
groups need to be revisited. These foundations Picture 16. 2 Appealing to Younger Audience
support lateral marketing, even in the digital age.
Bose, a premium brand of music systems, has Understanding consumer behaviour enables the
launched audio sunglasses, a product that is an brand manager or an entrepreneur to have a firm
amalgamation of lifestyle changes consumers are base before developing their product fit and
going through today – "on the move music" and brand offering.
"travel'. They widely use social media and word- As concepts are "rediscovered" in an emerging
of-mouth and reach out to young urban segments context, marketers will need to find the triggers
as appropriate. One can locate several successful from consumer behaviour theory that can be
online shopping portals in various markets useful to practice realities (Kumar &
ranging from homemade snacks to useful digital Swaminathan, 2021)
gadgets reaching out to consumers with new,

Brand Elements
The brand elements' initial choices or identities are brand names, URLs, logos, symbols, characters,
spokespeople, slogans, jingles, packages, and signage. Choosing brand elements or devices is essential
as these elements can be trademarked, identified, and differentiated.

Most strong brands employ multiple brand elements. Nike has the distinctive 'swoosh' logo, the
empowering 'Just do it' slogan, and the 'Nike' name from the Greek winged goddess of victory.
Marketers should choose brand elements to build as much brand equity as possible. The test is what
consumers would think or feel about the product if the brand element were all they knew. Based on
the sign "M" alone on the highway, a consumer might expect McDonald's nearby.

Brand Element choice criteria

The first three—memorable, meaningful, and likeable—are brand building. The latter three—
transferable, adaptable, and protectable—are defensive and help leverage and preserve brand equity
against challenges.

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 Principles of Marketing| Richa Saxena

Memorable Meaningful Likable

Transferable Adaptable Protectable

Picture 16. 3 The Element choice

Developing Brand Elements

Brand elements can play many brand-building roles. If consumers don't
examine much information in product decisions, brand elements should be
easy to recall and inherently descriptive and persuasive.

The less concrete brand benefits are, the more critical that brand elements
capture intangible characteristics. Slogans are an extremely efficient means
to build brand equity like brand names. Life Insurance Corporation of India
uses a symbol of a 'diya' signifying life, protected by two hands. LIC Logo
'Yogakshemam Vahamyaham' in Sanskrit. Lord Krishna said it to Arjun in
Kurukshetra. It means:''Your Security Is My Responsibility'' (Facebook,
Picture 16. 4 A Persuasive 2021)
Brand Element
MRF tires' logo captures the product's strength and therefore describes the
brand.

Q16.1: Design a brand using the brand elements.

Designing Holistic Marketing Activities

Customers come to know a brand through contacts and touchpoints: personal observation and use,
word of mouth, interactions with company personnel, online or telephone experiences, and payment
transactions. Brand contact is any information-bearing experience, whether positive or negative, a
customer or prospect has its brand, product category, or market. Integrated marketing involves mixing
and matching marketing activities to maximize their individual and collective effects.

We can evaluate integrated marketing activities regarding the effectiveness and efficiency they affect
brand awareness and create, maintain, or strengthen brand associations and image. Marketing
programs should be put together so the whole is greater than the sum of the parts.

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 Principles of Marketing| Richa Saxena
stopped to ask if we were the couple from the
Vodafone ad," said an elated Dhananjayan.

ARTICLE 16.2

The Dhananjayans:
the cool elderly
couple from Vodafone
ads
"Are you the Vodafone couple?"
This is the question that veteran Bharatanatyam
dancers and Padma Bhushan awardees Shanta
and Vannadil Pudiyaveettil Dhananjayan have
answered ever since they appeared in the new
Vodafone Supernet 4G ads. In April 2017, during
the Indian Premier League (IPL), the advertising
series that premiered was created by Ogilvy &
Mather and directed by Prakash Varma of
Nirvana Films. The campaign was aired
throughout the IPL season.
Known as the dancing couple of India, the duo
now has a fan following beyond South India or
the dancing circuit which knows them so well.
"Just yesterday, a passerby in our neighbourhood
Picture 16. 5 A still from the Vodafone Ad
Generous compliments usually follow the instant
recognition, "Mostly people come and tell us that
we are very cool and cute in that ad," smiles
Shanta adding that the people from our dance
fraternity are so happy to see them in a different
avatar. "They keep telling us that we are such
good actors," she beams.
In their 70s, 'The Dhananjayans, ' as they are
popularly known, are featured as the uber-cool
elderly couple (Asha and Bala) in the campaign,
chilling in Goa on their second honeymoon after
35-years of marriage. From getting a tattoo to
parasailing, the adorable duo is not just
adventurous. However, it is also keeping pace
with technology (with a little help from the 4G
Vodafone network) using Facebook live, Google
maps, video calling, and photo-sharing features
(Mint, 2017).

Q16.2 Comment on the importance of holistic marketing activities for the Vodafone
Goa Campaign.

Leveraging Secondary Associations

Brand equity can be borrowed by linking the brand to other information in memory that conveys
meaning to consumers. Leveraging secondary associations can be an efficient and effective way to
strengthen the brand. Nevertheless, linking a brand to someone or something else can be risky because
anything wrong with that other entity can also be linked to the brand. When popular crickets Hardik
Pandya and K L Rahul got into trouble, many firms that used them to promote their brands chose to
cut ties.

These "secondary" brand associations can link the brand to sources such as;

• The company itself (through branding strategies)

• Other brands (through ingredient or co-branding)
• Countries or other geographical regions (through the identification of product origin)
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 Principles of Marketing| Richa Saxena
• Channels of distribution (through channel strategy)
• Characters (through licensing)
• Spokespeople (through endorsements)
• Sporting or cultural events (through sponsorship)
• Some other third-party sources (through awards or reviews)

Picture 16. 6 The Secondary Associations

Q14.3: Explain the secondary association for Vivo mobile phones.

Internal Branding
Internal branding consists of activities and processes that help inform and inspire employees about
brands. Brand bonding occurs when customers experience the company delivering on its brand
promise. All the customers' contacts with company employees and communications must be positive.
When employees care about and believe in the brand, they are motivated to work harder and feel
greater loyalty.

Measuring Brand Equity

An indirect approach assesses potential sources of brand equity by identifying and tracking consumer
brand knowledge structures. A direct approach assesses the impact of brand knowledge on consumer
response to different aspects of marketing.

For brand equity to perform a useful strategic function and guide marketing decisions, marketers need
to fully understand the sources of brand equity and how they affect outcomes of interest, and how these
sources and outcomes change, if at all, over time.
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 Principles of Marketing| Richa Saxena
Brand audits are important for the former; brand tracking for the latter.

Five steps to follow to formally estimate the dollar value of the brand (Inter brand)

• Market segmentation
• Financial analysis
• Role of Branding
• Brand strength
• Brand value calculation

Managing Brand Equity

Marketers can reinforce brand equity by consistently conveying the brand's meaning in terms of

(1) what products it represents, what core benefits it supplies, and what needs it satisfies; and

(2) how the brand makes products superior and strong, favourable, and unique brand associations
should exist in consumers' minds.

Reinforcing brand equity requires that the brand always moves forward in the right directin and
with new and compelling offerings and ways to market them.

Revitalizing a brand often starts by trying to understand the sources of brand equity, begin with, and
then decide whether to retain the same positioning or create a new one and, if so, which new one.

Devising a Branding Strategy

Brand Architecture
A firm's branding strategy is often called brand architecture, and it reflects the number and nature of
both common and distinctive brand elements. A firm has four main choices:

Line Extension: When the parent brand covers a new product within a product category, it
currently serves with new flavours, forms, colours, ingredients, and package sizes. It can develop new
brand elements for the new product—for example, Surf Excel and Surf Excel Blue.

Brand Extensions: A firm uses an established brand to introduce a new product—for example,
Disney merchandise and apparel brands. When marketers combine a new brand with an existing brand,
the brand extension can also be called a sub-brand—for example, Honda Accord, Honda City, and Honda
Brio. The parent brand that gives birth to a brand extension or sub-brand is the existing parent brand.
If the parent brand is already associated with multiple products through brand extensions, it can also
be a master brand or family brand.

Multi-brand: This strategy is used when the marketer decides to have different brands' names for
the same category's products. A brand line consists of all products—original and line and category
extensions—sold under a particular brand. For example, HUL has several soap brands.

New Brands emerge when marketers decide to have different brand names for different product
categories. While Reliance keeps its name for all its brands, Tata has a different name for different
markets, Croma, Tanishq and, Westside.

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Picture 16.7 Brand Development

Branding Decisions
Many companies are introducing branded variants. Specific brand lines are supplied to specific
retailers or distribution channels.

Individual or separate family brand names: Companies often use different brand
names for different quality lines within the same product class. A major advantage of separate family
brand names is that if a product fails or appears to be of low quality, the company has not tied its
reputation to it.

Corporate umbrella or company brand name: Development costs are lower with
umbrella names because there is no need to research a name or spend heavily on advertising to create
recognition. Corporate-image associations of innovativeness, expertise, and trustworthiness directly
influence consumer evaluations.

Sub-brand name combines two or more of the corporate brand, family brand, or individual
product brand names. The corporate or company name legitimizes, and the individual name
individualizes the new product.

Picture 16. 8 House of Brands

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 Principles of Marketing| Richa Saxena

House of Brands versus a Branded House: The use of individual or separate family
brand names has been referred to as a "house of brands" strategy. The use of an umbrella corporate or
company brand name is a "branded house" strategy. A sub-brand strategy falls somewhere between,
depending on which component of the sub-brand receives more emphasis. It is often useful to have a
well-defined flagship product with a branded house strategy. A flagship product best represents or
embodies the brand as a whole to consumers. It often is the first product by which the brand gained
fame, a widely accepted best-seller, or a highly admired or award-winning product. Flagship products
play a key role in the brand portfolio in that marketing them can have short-term benefits (increased
sales) and long-term benefits (improved brand equity for a range of products).

Flankers or fighter brands are positioned for competitors' brands. The more important (and more
profitable) flagship brands can retain their desired positioning. Marketers walk a fine line in designing
fighter brands, which must be neither so attractive that they take sales away from their higher-priced
comparison brands nor designed so cheaply that they reflect poorly on them.

Cash Cows may be kept around despite dwindling sales because they maintain their profitability with
virtually no marketing support.

Low-End Entry may attract customers to the brand franchise and act as "traffic builders." High-End
prestige adds prestige and credibility to the entire portfolio (Kotler & Keller, 2012).

References
ETBrandEquity. (2021, Feb). BE Exclusive: Consumers are looking at brands with purpose: Kantar
Report. Retrieved from ET Brand Equity:
https://brandequity.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/marketing/be-exclusive-consumers-
are-looking-at-brands-with-purpose-kantar-report/80642556

Facebook, L. (2021). LIC.

Kotler, P., & Keller, K. (2012). Marketing Management.

Kumar, S. R., & Swaminathan, S. (2021). Resurrecting demand with lateral marketing. ET Brand
Equity.

Mint. (2017). The Dhananjayans: the cool elderly couple from Vodafone ads. Retrieved from The Mint:
https://www.livemint.com/Consumer/TPHag90fQ2lfNFY6pXet6K/The-Dhananjayans-the-cool-
elderly-couple-from-Vodafone-ads.html

Sarkar, J. (2021, Feb). Big brands lose market share to smaller brands in Bharat: Report. Retrieved
from ET Brand Equity: https://brandequity.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/business-of-
brands/big-brands-lose-market-share-to-smaller-brands-in-bharat-report/80688500