CORPORATE BRANDING

FedEx FedEx-Strong brand awareness

Miller Lite Brand Communication

Best Buy’s In-Store Identity In-Store Branding is well known

Well-Known US Retail Brands

Brand Building Is more than designing logos Is more than a name Is more than great communication about the organisation. It is about a promise It is about reputation management It is about your staff

Corporate Brand defines the firm that will deliver and stand behind the offering that the customer will buy and use. Has access to organizational as well as product associations, e.g., Dell, UPS, SONY, Samsung, IBM. It is the ultimate “Branded House”. It represents the organization that stands behind its products. It is well suited to play an endorser role, e.g., Courtyard (by Marriott), MSN (by Microsoft), Lion King (by Disney). Corporate Branding

1. A Rich Heritage  e.g., L.L. Bean and the Bean family heritage  GE tracing itself back to Thomas Edison  Honda engine development back in the 1940’s and ‘50’s 2. Assets and Capabilities  e.g., Wal-Mart has the technology  Singapore Airlines can deliver outstanding service  Prudential has financial assets behind it 3. People  e.g., Bill Gates at Microsoft  Michael Dell at Dell  Richard Branson at Virgin Elements of Corporate Brand

4. Values and Priorities  What will not be compromised no matter what?  Some firms have a cost-driven culture  Others have Innovation, e.g., 3M and HP  Others a concern for customers, e.g. Southwest Airlines 5. A Local or Global Frame of Reference  Being local strives to connect to local outcomes  Being global means people everywhere respect the brand 6. Citizenship Programs  e.g. Concern for the environment 7. A Performance Record  Is the firm successful?  Do the products and services “click” with the market?

1. It can potentially find differentiation in the organizational associations.  e.g., Wells Fargo is very different from Bank of America in terms of personality, style and heritage. 2. It can draw on organizational programs that provide energy to product brands.  Major sports sponsorships 3. Corporate brands provide credibility.  e.g., A trustworthy organization will be given the benefit of the doubt. An organization will be liked because of its citizenship activities. Why leverage the corporate brand?

4. Corporate branding makes brand management easier and more effective. 5. The translation of the corporate brand internally to employees must be supported by the mission, goals, values, ad culture of the organization. 6. A corporate brand provides a message for the customer relationship that can be very different from that of the product brand.  e.g., it can represent the heritage and allow the product brand to inject energy.

The Corporate Brand: Challenges and Potential Impact Corporate Brand Heritage Assets/Capabilities People Values/Priorities Local/Global Citizenship Performance Challenges Maintaining Relevance Creating Value Positions Avoiding Visible Negatives Managing the Brand across Contexts Making the Brand Identity Emerge Potential Impact Organizationally Based Differentiation Corporate Programs as Branded Energizers Credibility – Liking, Expertise, Trust More Effective Management of the Brand Portfolio Support for Internal Brand Building Provides a Message to Supplement the Product Brand Support for Communication to Audiences such as Investors, Prospective Employees, Political Leaders Provide the Ultimate Branded House

1. Maintaining Relevance  The heritage associated with the brand will affect its effort to adapt.  Xerox and Kodak have struggled to enter the brands world in which digital imaging systems are dominant. 2. Creating Value Propositions  A corporate brand will work best when it delivers a functional benefit.  e.g., Dell with its direct model, generated benefits that included customization and access to the latest technology. 3. Avoiding Visible Negatives  The Exxon Valdez oil spill, Firestone tire crisis and the firms’ responses affect the corporate brands.  Key is to provide a visible fix. 4. Managing the Brand in Different Contexts  There should be consistency across contexts. e.g., GE is in the jet engine, appliances and financial services markets.  Core identity should work everywhere. 5. Making the Corporate Brand Identity Emerge  Brand identity needs to be developed and managed. What is behind the brand? Challenges in Managing the Corporate Brand

1. Corporate brands can reduce costs.  e.g., Nestlé and Unilever are reducing the number of product brands to exploit economies of scale. 2. They give customers a sense of community.  Apple and Virgin provide customers with a distinctive positioning across products. 3. They create common ground.  McDonald’s golden arches appeal to different cultural groups. 4. They provide a seal of approval.  Sony stands for competence, quality and service over a number of products and service groups. What a Corporate Brand Can Do for the Firm

Product brandsCorporate brands ManagementMiddle managerCEO ResponsibilityMiddle managerAll personnel Cognate discipline(s)MarketingStrategy/multidisciplinary Communications mixMarketing communicationsTotal corporate communications FocusMainly customerMultiple internal and external stakeholder groups and networks ValuesMainly contrivedThose of founder(s) + mix of corporate + other sub-cultures A comparison between corporate and product brands