Branding

What is a Brand? Name, term, design, symbol, or combination of these elements that identifies a product or services and distinguishes it from its competitors http://www.businessweek.com/interactive_reports/top_brands.html

What is Branding? Describes a company’s or event’s efforts to develop a personality and make its products or services different from the competition Events are often branded to aide in marketing efforts

When is a Brand Used? Identify one product, a family of related products, or all products of a company Each brand is different Some may want to portray a brand that is known for quality and reliability Another may want to portray fun and excitement

Elements of Branding Brand Name Trade Name Brand Mark Trade Character Trademark

Brand Name Also called a product brand An effective brand name: A word, group of words, letters, or numbers Represent a product or service An effective brand name: Easily pronounced Distinctive Recognizable Examples PT Cruiser, Pepsi, Barbie, Pop-Tarts, Big Mac

Trade Name Also called corporate brand Identifies and promotes a company or a division of a particular corporation The legal name that a company uses when it does business Trade names support brand names Examples: Procter & Gamble, Dell, Disney, Kellogg’s, Nike, Yahoo!

Brand Mark Unique symbol, coloring, lettering, or other design elements Recognizable visually Does not need to be pronounced Examples

Trade Character Specific type of brand mark Has human form or characteristics Icons/mascots

Trademark Word, name, symbol, device, or a combination of these elements that is given legal protection by the federal government Used to prevent other companies from using a similar element that might be confused with the trademarked one ® means “Registered Trademark” with United States Patent & Trademark Office 1884

Importance of Brands To build product recognition and customer loyalty To ensure quality and consistency To capitalize on brand exposure Introduce new product lines

Generating Brand Names 75% of all companies introduce a new product name every year 250,000 trademarks are registered per year 60% of all companies conduct market research to test new brand names before they are released to the public Once established, are rarely ever changed

Types of Brands National brands Private distributor brands Generic brands

National Brands Also called producer brands Owned by national manufacturers or companies that provide services Examples Colgate-Palmolive Hershey Whirlpool

Private Distributor Brands Also called private brands or store brands Developed and owned by wholesalers and retailers Examples Radio Shack Kohl’s Wal-Mart

Generic Brands Products that do not carry a company identity Their packages usually feature a description of the product “Pancake Mix” “Paper Towels” Generally sold in grocery stores Often priced 10-15% lower than private distributor brands

Branding Strategies Brand Extension Brand Licensing

Brand Extension Uses existing brand name to promote new or improved product in a product line Ocean Spray drinks Originally just did cranberry juice CranApple CranCherry CranGrape

Brand Licensing When companies allow other organizations to use their brand, brand mark, or trade character This is done to increase revenues and enhance their company image NFL has licensing arrangements with Pepsi and Visa People who like the NFL may use Visa or drink Pepsi