CHAPTER: 3

Brand Resonance
and the Brand Value
Chain
Brand vision
• A brand vision is an articulated description of the aspirational image
for a brand – what you want the brand to stand for in the eyes of the
customers , employees and partners
• Brand vision is also called brand values or brand pillars
Brand vision
• Brand vision is based on six to twelve vision elements
• Prioritized into
• 2 to 5 core vision elements – the most compelling and differentiating
vision elements – that which reflect value propositions going forward
and drive the brand building programs and initiatives
• And remaining are extended vision elements – they add texture to
the brand vision ,allowing strategists to make judgments on whether
a program is on brand or not .They are crucial for success but not the
basis for differentiation eg high quality , personality
Brand vision ( contd)
• Brand vision model is not a one size fits all ,fill in the box model eg Innovation may be
important for high tech ,organizational values and programs for B2B
• Brand personality may or may not be part of core vision . It could be in extended vision
• Brand vision dimensions will be function of many factors eg mktplace , competition , customers
, organisation values, strategy and the brand
• Brand vision is aspirational and hence can differ from current positioning or image Brand
vision is captured in Brand book
• Brand essence or brand mantra represents the central theme of the brand vision , meant for
internal communication for employees and hence inspirational thru brand cards
• Brand positioning is based on brand vision elements that appeals to customers and are
currently deliverable and credible
• Brand vision model allows for adaptation eg different countries may dial up to different aspects
of the vision or augment, even though the vision is same
Internal branding
Questions that your company needs to ask itself
• Do employees know what your brand stands for ?
• Do they care ?
• Brand vision needs to be communicated internally . It means internal branding which in turn means employees
have to learn , believe and the live the brand vision
• Learning the brand vision can happen through participation in B2E program through corporate intranet , brand
ambassadors within the organisation , workshops , newsletters , senior managers , influencers ,CEO, brand book ,
Brand card
• Believing the Brand vision involves creating strategic imperatives in terms of proof points eg claims of outstanding
service has to be backed by return policy , empowered staff and also internal systems that support it eg employees
training , compensation , hiring , IT investments etc eg Zappos hiring based on wow /out of box /weird
• Living the brand vision involves inspired action Eg through stories eg Nordstorm employee in Alaska who took
back used tyre , P & G puts execs in front of customers, employee engagement
 External branding and internal branding are
connected
• External branding will be seen by employees
• The internal branding will drive the efforts that influence the external
brand
 Brand Mantra

Designing a Brand Mantra

Implementing a Brand Mantra
Brand Mantra ( contd)
Brand mantra
•Short, three-to five-word phrase that captures the irrefutable essence or spirit of the brand
positioning.
•Its purpose is to ensure that all employees and external mktg partners understand what the
brand most fundamentally has to represent to customers
•A good brand mantra helps brand present a consistent image
•Brand mantra effectively communicates what the brand is and what it is not
•Thus Brand mantra creates a mental filter to screen out inappropriate mktg activities and
actions
•Provides guidance about:
•What products to introduce under the brand.
•What ad campaigns to run.
•Where and how the brand should be sold.
•May even guide mundane decisions like look of reception area , employee dress ,demeanour
Brand Mantra ( contd)
Designing a brand mantra ( see next page )
•A good brand mantra should provide:
•Brand functions: Describes Nature of the product or service or the type of experiences or benefits the
brand provides.
•Descriptive modifier: Combined with brand functions, helps delineate and clarify the brand boundaries.
•Emotional modifier: Determines how a brand provides benefits and in what ways.

Additional points to remember

•Brand mantras derive their power and usefulness from their collective meaning . Other brands may be
strong on one or few dimensions but no brand should singularly excel on all dimensions
•Brand mantras typically capture the POD ie what is unique about the brand
•For brands facing rapid growth, a brand functions term can provide critical guidance on appropriate and
inappropriate categories to extend .
•For brands in stable categories brand mantra may focus more on POD as expressed by functional and
emotional modifiers perhaps not even including the brand function term
Brand Mantra ( contd)
• A good brand mantra should:
• Communicate the category of the business to set the brand
boundaries and clarify what is unique about the brand.
• Be simple, short ,crisp, and vivid.
• Stake out ground that is personally meaningful and relevant to
employees and marketing partners and inspire .

Emotional modifier Descriptive modifier Brand function

Nike Authentic Athletic Performance
Disney Fun Family Entertainment
Brand Mantra ( contd)
Implementing brand mantra
• Should be developed at the same time as the brand positioning.
• Requires more internal examination and involves input from a wider
range of company employees.
• Helps in internal branding
• Based on core brand associations, a brainstorming session can
attempt to identify PODs, POPs, and different brand mantra
candidates.
The brand resonance model
• Looks at building a brand as a sequence of steps ,each of which is contingent on
successfully achieving the objectives of the previous one
Building a strong brand: The four steps of brand building( through branding ladder )
• Ensure identification of the brand with customers and an association of the brand
in customers’ minds with a specific product class, product benefit, or customer
need.
• Firmly establish the totality of brand meaning in the minds of customers by
strategically linking a host of tangible and intangible brand associations.
• Elicit the proper customer responses to the brand.
• Convert brand responses to create brand resonance and an intense, active loyalty
relationship between customers and the brand.
Four steps of brand building involves
questions
• Four steps represent fundamental questions that customers ask about
brands ( at least implicitly)
• 1) Who are you?( brand identity)
• 2) What are you ?( brand meaning )
• 3)What about you? What do I think or feel about you? ( brand responses)
• 4)What about you and me ? What kind of association and how much of a
connection would I like to have with you ? ( Brand relationship)
• These four steps are established through six brand building blocks of
the brand resonance pyramid model
Figure 3.1: Keller Customer-Based Brand Equity Pyramid
Figure 3.2: Subdimensions of Brand Building Blocks
Building A Strong Brand: Brand resonance
Pyramid model by Keller
• The left side of pyramid is rational route to brand building satisfying
utilitarian needs , right side is emotional route satisfying psychological
or emotional needs
• Most strong brands are built by going up both sides of pyramid
Ladder/step one -Brand Identification
through brand salience

• Brand salience is about category identification, needs satisfied

,depth and breadth of brand awareness
• So ,Brand salience measures various aspects of the awareness of the
brand:
• How easily and how often the brand is evoked under various situations and
circumstances
• To what extent is the brand top-of-mind and easily recalled or recognized.
• What types of cues or reminders are necessary?
• How pervasive is this brand awareness?
Brand Salience ( contd)
Breadth and Depth of Awareness-
Breadth - Range of purchase and usage situations in which the brand comes to mind.eg
Dettol
Depth - Ease with which brand elements can be recalled.
Eg Chocolates , soft drinks have more breadth than alcoholic drinks ,milk, juices

Product Category Structure -How brand is organized within the product category hierarchy
in the consumer’s memory. Plays role in brand awareness, consideration and CDM
Also what needs are satisfied by the brand

Strategic Implications-where, when and how often do consumers think of brand very
important
 Ladder/Step 2-Brand meaning
Established through brand associations which are PODs in areas of
• Brand performance
• Brand Imagery
 Brand Performance
• Describes how well the brand:
• Meets customers’ more functional needs.
• Rate on objective assessments of quality.
• Satisfies utilitarian, aesthetic, and economic customer needs
and wants in the product or service category .
Brand performance (contd)
• Attributes and benefits that underlie brand performance:
• Primary ingredients and supplementary features.
• Product reliability, durability, and serviceability.
• Reliability: Measures the consistency of performance over time and from purchase to purchase.
• Durability: Is the expected economic life of the product.
• Serviceability: The ease of repairing the product if needed.
• Service effectiveness, efficiency, and empathy
• Effectiveness: Measures how well the brand satisfies customers’ service requirements.
• Efficiency: Describes the speed and responsiveness of service.
• Empathy: Is the extent to which service providers are seen as trusting, caring, and having the
customer’s interests in mind.
• Style and design
• Price
• Consumers may organize their product category knowledge in terms of the price tiers of different
brands.
Get beyond functional benefits-The product
attribute fixation trap
• They laughed when I sat at the piano – but when I started to play……………….
Written by a copywriter, John Caples in 1926 , one year into job, his
assignment – to entice people to buy piano lessons by correspondence from
US school of music ……
There was nothing about the offer or process of learning to play
Rather the ad told a story in graphic detail about what happened to someone
who took the correspondence course
The ad showed that functional benefits are not the sweet spot of persuasion
Rather what grabs people’s attention is emotional ,self expressive and social
benefits
Why companies have product attribute
fixation trap
• B2B, High tech customers
• Customers say rational decision mkg eg cars .Research shows otherwise
• Also , in reality
• Strategies based on functional benefits are often strategically ineffective
as not compelling enough, easily copied, consumers assume all brands
have it
• Makes sense to move beyond functional and into organizational
associations ,personality or to consider emotional, self expressive and
social benefits
 Non Rational Benefits
• Emotional benefits- The ability of the brand to make the buyer or user feel something during
the purchase process or use experience
When I buy/use this brand I feel……. ( loved , romantic , proud ,safe, nostalgic etc etc )
• Self expressive benefits – people express their own self or idealised self through job choice,
friends, attitudes, opinions , activities, lifestyles and also brands
When I buy /use this brand I am……. Eg Zara, Harley Davidson
• Social benefits-The brand enables a person to be a part of a social group
When I buy or use the brand ,the type of people I relate to are ……….
Eg Starbucks , Apple community , FCC of shoppers stop

These three are often related and a brand can combine the three , however it can be useful to
prioritize them
Brand Imagery
• User profile/imagery

• Purchase and usage situations/imagery

• Brand history, heritage, and experiences

• Brand personality and values

Brand Imagery(contd)
•User profile/imagery
•Type of person or organization who uses the brand.
•Result of customers’ mental image of actual users or more aspirational, idealized users.
•Consumers may base associations of a typical or idealized brand user on descriptive
demographic factors or more abstract psychographic factors.
•Demographic factors: Gender, age, race, income.
•Psychographic factors: Attitudes toward life, careers, possessions, social issues, or political
institutions.
Purchase and usage situations/imagery
•Associations that tell consumers under what conditions or situations they can or should buy
and use the brand.
•Associations to a typical usage situation can relate to the time to use the brand, location,
and type of activity during which to use the brand.
Brand history, heritage and experiences
•Brands association with its past and with certain noteworthy events in the brand’s history.
May be highly personal and individual or shared by many people
Brand Imagery(contd)
Brand personality and values
• Brand personality is defined as the set of human traits associated with the brand.
• Through consumer experience or marketing activities, brands may take on personality traits.
Marketers imbue brand with personality traits through anthropomorphization, product animation
techniques, brand ambassadors
•Brand personality construct can help
-Represent and communicate functional benefits eg Michelin man , Ambuja Khali ,Pillsbury
doughboy, Energizer bunny
-Provide energy by adding interest and involvement eg Vodafone zoo zoo , pug
-Define a brand relationship – caring mother ,family member, boss, stimulating companion, outdoor
companion, weekend fun companion
-Guide brand building programs eg Miss India contest
-Help customers understand
• Not all brands should aspire to have a personality especially as a core vision element
•Some brands may even have conflicting dimensions eg Microsoft is perceived to be both arrogant
as well as competent
 Brand personality
•Five dimensions of brand personality:

•Sincerity (down-to-earth , honest, wholesome, and cheerful)

•Excitement (daring, spirited, imaginative, and up-to-date)
•Competence (reliable, intelligent, successful)
•Sophistication (upper class and charming)
•Ruggedness (outdoorsy and tough)

•Note that user imagery and brand personality may not always be in agreement eg
in performance related attribute, mundane household food products
•However when user and usage imagery important to consumer decisions , then brand
personality and user imagery very likely to be related eg publicly consumed brands
or brands in line with social or ideal self concept
 Ladder/step 3 -Elicit favorable brand
responses
• In the form of
• Brand judgements
• Brand feelings
Brand Judgements

• Brand judgements are customers’ personal opinions about and evaluations of

the brand ,which consumers form by putting together all different brand
performance and imagery associations

• Quality

• Credibility

• Consideration

• Superiority
Brand Judgements (contd)
• Brand quality
• Specific attributes and benefits of the brand that help develop consumer attitudes toward the brand.
• Important consumer attitudes relate to its perceived quality and to customer value and satisfaction.
• Perceived quality measures are inherent in many approaches to brand equity.
Brand credibility
• Extent to which customers see the brand as credible in terms of perceived:
• Expertise - Competence, innovation, and ability to lead.
• Trustworthiness - Dependability and keeping customer interests in mind.
• Likability - Fun, interesting, and worth spending time with.
• Brand consideration
• How personally relevant customers find the brand.
• Crucial filter in terms of building brand equity.
Brand superiority
• Extent to which customers view the brand as unique and better than other brands.
• Critical to building intense and active relationships with customers.
• Depends to a great degree on the number and nature of unique brand associations that make up the brand image.
Brand Feelings

• Customers’ emotional responses and reactions to the

brand.
• Relate to the social currency evoked by the brand.
• How the brand makes customer feel about themselves
and relationship with others
• Feelings can be mild or intense ,positive or negative
• Feelings can be:
• Experiential and immediate, increasing in level of intensity.
• Private and enduring, increasing in level of gravity.
Important brand building feelings
Kevin Roberts of Saatchi and Saatchi argues that brands should create trustmarks and then
ultimately love marks, because mere respect is not enough.
Done through Transformational advertising
• Warmth - Soothing feelings that make consumers feel a sense of calm or peacefulness.
• Fun - Upbeat feelings that make consumers feel amused, light-hearted, joyous, playful, and
cheerful.
• Excitement - Ability of the brand to make consumers feel energized and experience something
special.
• Security - Ability of a brand to produce a feeling of safety, comfort, and self-assurance.
• Social approval - Gives consumers a belief that others look favorably on their appearance and
behavior.
• Self-respect - Brand makes consumers feel better about themselves.
• Note, the first three types of feelings are experiential and immediate, increasing in level of
intensity. Latter three are Private and enduring, increasing in level of gravity
Ladder/step 4 -Brand Resonance
• Brand resonance describes the nature of identification and relationship that customers have
with brand which makes customers feel that they are in sync
• Resonance is characterised in terms of intensity ( depth of psychological bond) as well as
level of activity (extent to which customers seek out brand info , events ,other loyal
customers)

• Behavioral loyalty

• Attitudinal attachment

• Sense of community

• Active engagement
Brand Resonance(contd)
• Behavioral loyalty: Gauged in terms of repeat purchases and the share of category volume
attributed to the brand.Behavioral loyalty is necessary but not sufficient condition for resonance
to occur. As customers may buy out of necessity, only brand available or accessible or
affordable ,low involvement etc . What is important is behaviorial loyalty supported by
attitudinal attachment ( differentiating and important condition)
• Attitudinal attachment - Strong personal attachment with product. Eg Car buyers , Xerox rating of
4 vs 5= six times defection rate
• Sense of community - Sense of kinship/affiliation with other people associated with the
brand.
• Active engagement - The strongest affirmation of brand loyalty occurs when customers
are engaged, or willing to invest time, energy, money, or other resources in the brand
beyond those expended during purchase or consumption of the brand.eg clubs , visit
brand website, participate in contests , discussions ,receive updates , WOM, brand
ambassadors and evangelists, buy merchandise
 Brand Building Implications
• Customers own the brand-while mkters take responsibility for designing and implementing mktg
programs ,success depends on how customers respond

• Do not take shortcuts with brands- brands are not built by accident or not built in a day , but by
logically linked steps

• Brands should have a duality – should appeal to both head and heart eg Mastercard priceless
campaign

• Brands should have richness- breadth and depth

• Brand resonance model provides important focus and priority for decision making
Brand Value Chain
• Is a structured approach to assessing the sources and outcomes of brand
equity and the manner by which mktg activities create brand value
• Value creation begins with the marketing program investment. A
necessary condition for value creation is a well-funded, well-designed,
and well-implemented marketing program.
• Value creation requires more than the initial marketing investment.
• Provides a detailed road map for tracking value creation that can make
marketing research and intelligence efforts easier.
• Allows to estimate shareholder value and the investor sentiment
multiplier through investor analysis and interviews.
Figure 3.5: Brand Value Chain

Program Marketplace Investment

Quality Conditions Sentiment
Multiplier Multiplier
Multiplier
 Brand value chain ( contd)
• Mktg program investment – is necessary but success depends on qualitative
aspects of investments indicated by program quality multiplier
• Program quality multiplier – Acronym DRIVE
• Distinctiveness –how unique ,creative , differentiated is mktg program
• Relevance – how meaningful to consumers
• Integrated – across media and over time
• Value – both short-term and long term. Will it drive sales and build brand
equity
• Excellence – does the mktg program satisfy highest stds and corporate
wisdom
Brand value chain ( contd)

• Customer mindset- (same as Resonance model )

• Marketplace conditions multiplier – the extent to which value created in
customer minds affects mkt performance depends on factors outside of
individual customer
• Competitive reactions -how effective are competitor investment
• Channel and intermediary support
• Customer size and profile – how many and what types of customers are attracted
to brand and are they profitable
• Mastercard has strong competitors Visa and Amex .Nike and McDonalds have
benefited from mktg woes of Reebok and Burger king in past
Brand value chain ( contd)
• Mkt performance
• The first three taken together determine the direct revenue stream
attributable to brand over time .
• The fourth dimension of brand expansion captures brands ability to
add enhancements to revenue stream
• The fifth dimension of cost structure is cost economies due to
increased production ,and reduced mktg expenditures due to
effectiveness of investments
• These five combined together create sixth outcome of brand
profitability
Brand value chain ( contd)
• Investment sentiment multiplier- financial analysts and investors consider a
host of factors in arriving at their brand valuations and investment decisions.
These are
• Market dynamics – eg investor sentiment
• Growth potential – of brand and industry due to facilitating and inhibiting
factors in firm’s economic , social , technological, physical ,legal environment
• Risk profile of brand – how vulnerable is brand to facilitating and inhibiting
factors
• Brand contribution – how important is brand to firm’s brand portfolio
• Shareholder value- research shows that not only do strong brands deliver
great returns to stockholders but also with less risk
Implications of brand value chain
• The brand value chain provides a structured means for managers to understand
where and how value is created and where to look to improve the process
• Brand and category managers will be interested in impact of mktg programs on
customer mindset
• CMOs will be interested in impact of customer mindset on actual mkt behaviors
• CEO or MD will be interested in impact of mkt performance on investment
decisions and shareholder value
• Each of the three multipliers can increase or decrease mkt value creation as it
moves stage to stage
• Many factors are outside mkter’s control
Implications of brand value chain ( contd)
• Modifications to the brand value chain can expand its relevance and
applicability
• First, there are many Feedback loops eg shareholder value affects
employee morale
• Second, in some cases , value creation may not occur sequentially
• Third, some mktg activities may have diffused effects and manifest
over time
• Fourth , both mean and variance of brand value measures matter eg
niche brand may have high marks but very narrow range of customers
Related definitions -Customer equity

• Customer equity is defined in terms of customer lifetime value

• Customer lifetime value (CLV )– the sum of lifetime value of all
customers affected by revenue and cost of customer acquisition,
retention and cross selling.
• Customer equity puts focus on bottomline financial value of
customers and quantifiable measure of financial performance
Brand equity
• Brand equity on the other hand tends to put more emphasis on
strategic issues in managing brands and how mktg programs can be
designed to create brand awareness and image and thus provides
practical guidance
• However brand equity focus is on brands
• Hence rarely develops detailed customer analysis of brand equity
with different customer segments and resultant profitability
 Brand vs customer equity -Reconciling the
two points of view
• Brand equity and customer equity are complementary
• Customers drive the success of brands but brands are the necessary
touch points that firms have to use to connect to customers
• CBBE is an attempt to Bridge the two
Luxury branding
• Maintaining and controlling premium and prestige image is very crucial
• Luxury brands rely on trickle down to broader audience through PR and
WOM
• All elements of mktg program have to be in line eg selective distribution,
premium pricing, few discounts , experiential mktg
• Brand architecture for luxury brand have to be carefully managed with
selective strategic licensing and extensions
• Secondary associations and brand elements must be carefully chosen
• Luxury brands must legally protect all trademarks and aggressively combat
counterfeit