BAsic concepts in the first module of Branding

1. BRAND
MANAGEMENT
O P E N C O U R S E
B B A
M O D U L E - 1

2. PRODUCT
• Definition: A product is the item offered for sale. A product can be a service or an item.
It can be physical or in virtual or cyber form. Every product is made at a cost and each
is sold at a price. The price that can be charged depends on the market, the quality,
the marketing and the segment that is targeted. Each product has a useful life after
which it needs replacement, and a life cycle after which it has to be re-invented.

3. • Differences between Goods and Services
• Goods are tangible. You can see them, feel them, touch them etc.Services are intangible. The
result of human or mechanical efforts to people or objects.
• Major distinguishing characteristics of Services:
• Intangibility-major component of a service is intangible
• Pershibality-many cannot be stored for future sales Airline/Amusement ride
Number of hair cut hours in one week: i.e., if Christies employs 3 people, who work forty hours
per week, they have potentially 120 hair cut hours to offer. If they do not have any customers at
a particular period during the day, they will lose the opportunity to cut hair at that time and
therefore the opportunity to generate revenue...the opportunity has perished...they no longer
have the ability to earn revenue from 120 hair cut hours that week!!
• Inseparability-customer contact is often the integral part of the service...Legal services/hair
dresser, therefore often a direct channel of distribution.
• Variability-in service quality, lack of standardization, because services are labor intensive.

4. •Levels of Product
• There are 3 levels of products
• Core Product- Marketers must first define what the core BENEFITS the product will
provide the customer.
• Actual Product-Marketer must then build the actual product around the core product. May
have as many as five characteristics:
• Quality level
• Features
• Brand name
• Packaging
• all combined to carefully deliver the core benefit(s).
• Augmented Product-offer additional consumer benefits and services.
• Warranty
• Customer training

5. CHARACTERISTICS OF A PRODUCT
1. It can be a single commodity or a service; a group of commodities or a group of services; a
product service combination, or even a combination of several products and services.
2. Its meaning is determined by the needs and desires of the consumer. The purpose of a
product is to satisfy some need of the consumers. The buyers purchase problem-solving and
time for creativity when they purchase a computer system.
3. It may be durable such as those that are expected to deliver a stream of satisfaction over a
period of time,
4. Products may be luxuries which might be needed as a symbol of prestige and status such as
car, a well- furnished bungalow in a posh colony or necessities which are needed to keep the
body and soul together, such as bread, milk, sugar, etc.
5. It may be an agricultural, mineral, forest or semi-manufactured or manufactured product.

6. TYPES OF PRODUCTS CAN BE CLASSIFIED INTO TWO GROUPS,
1. CONSUMER PRODUCT, AND
2. INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTS
• 1. Consumer Products:
• Consumer products are those items which are used by ultimate consumers or households and they can be used without
further commercial and engineering processes.
• Consumer products can be divided into four types as under:
• i. Convenient Products:
• Such products improve or enhance users’ convenience. They are used in a day-to-day life. They are frequently required and
can be easily purchased. For example, soaps, biscuits, toothpaste, razors and shaving creams, newspapers, etc. They are
purchased spontaneously, without much consideration, from nearby shops or retail malls.
• ii. Shopping Products:
• These products require special time and shopping efforts. They are purchased purposefully from special shops or markets.
Quality, price, brand, fashion, style, getup, colour, etc., are important criteria to be considered. They are to be chosen among
various alternatives or varieties. Gold and jewelleries, footwear, clothes, and other durables (including refrigerator,
television, wrist washes, etc.).
• iii. Durable Products:
• Durable products can last for a longer period and can be repeatedly used by one or more persons. Television, computer,
refrigerator, fans, electric irons, vehicles, etc., are examples of durable products. Brand, company image, price, qualities
(including safety, ease, economy, convenience, durability, etc.), features (including size, colour, shape, weight, etc.), and
after-sales services (including free installation, home delivery, repairing, guarantee and warrantee, etc.) are important
aspects the customers consider while buying these products.

7. iv. Non-durable Products:
As against durable products, the non-durable products have short life. They must be consumed within short
time after they are manufactured. Fruits, vegetables, flowers, cheese, milk, and other provisions are non-
durable in nature. They are used for once. They are also known as consumables. Mostly, many of them are
non-branded.
v. Services:
Services are different than tangible objects. Intangibility, variability, inseparability, perishability, etc., are
main features of services. Services make our life safe and comfortable. Trust, reliability, costs, regularity,
and timing are important issues.
The police, the post office, the hospital, the banks and insurance companies, the cinema, the utility services
by local body, the transportation facilities, and other helpers (like barber, cobbler, doctor, mechanic, etc.,)
can be included in services..
2. Industrial Products:
Industrial products are used as the inputs by manufacturing firms for further processes on the products, or
manufacturing other products. Some products are both industrial as well as consumer products. Machinery,
components, certain chemicals, supplies and services, etc., are some industrial products.
Again, strict classification in term of industrial consumer and consumer products is also not possible, For
example, electricity, petroleum products, sugar, cloth, wheat, computer, vehicles, etc., are used by industry
as the inputs while the same products are used by consumers for their daily use as well.
Some companies, for example, electricity, cements, petrol and coals, etc.,
Industrial products include:
1. Machines and components 2. Raw-materials and supplies 3. Services and consultancies 4. Electricity and
Fuels, etc

8. BRAND
 A Brand is a name, term, sign, symbol or design or a combination of them, which is
intended to identify the goals or services of one seller or another seller and
differentiate them from other manufacturers
 The American Marketing Association defines ‘brand’ as “a name, term, design,
symbol, or any other feature that identifies one seller's good or service as distinct
from those of other sellers…A brand may identify one item, a family of items, or all
items of that seller.”

10. IMPORTANCE OF BRANDING
• Branding Gets Recognition
• The most important reason branding is important to a business is because it is how a company
gets recognition and becomes known to the consumers. The logo is the most important element
of branding, especially where this factor is concerned, as it is essentially the face of the
company.
• Branding Increases Business Value
• Branding is important when trying to generate future business, and a strongly established brand
can increase a business’ value by giving the company more leverage in the industry. This makes
it a more appealing investment opportunity because of its firmly established place in the
marketplace.

11. • Branding Generates New Customers
A good brand will have no trouble drumming up referral business. Strong branding generally means there is a positive
impression of the company amongst consumers, and they are likely to do business with you because of the familiarity and
assumed dependability of using a name they can trust. Once a brand has been well-established, word of mouth will be the
company’s best and most effective advertising technique.
• Improves Employee Pride And Satisfaction
When an employee works for a strongly branded company and truly stands behind the brand, they will be more satisfied with
their job and have a higher degree of pride in the work that they do. Working for a brand that is reputable and help in high
regard amongst the public makes working for that company more enjoyable and fulfilling. Having a branded office, which can
often help employees feel more satisfied and have a sense of belonging to the company, can be achieved through using
promotional merchandise for your desktop.
• Creates Trust Within The Marketplace
A professional appearance and well-strategised branding will help the company build trust with consumers, potential clients
and customers. People are more likely to do business with a company that has a polished and professional portrayal.
• Branding Supports Advertising
Advertising is another component to branding, and advertising strategies will directly reflect the brand and its desired
portrayal. Advertising techniques such as the use of promotional products from trusted companies such as Outstanding
Branding make it easy to create a cohesive and appealing advertising strategy that plays well into your branding goals.

12. THE BRANDING PROCESS
• Phase 1. Brand Strategy
• Behind every successful brand is a thoughtful strategy. Getting this phase right is critical to
the overall success of your brand,
• Phase 2. Brand Identity
• In this phase, you turn your brand into something tangible. Your brand identity includes
many of the most visible elements of a brand, including:
• Your name ,Your logo,Tagline,Colo,r Writing style (voice)
As part of a branding process, you are likely to develop (or in the case of a rebranding
program, refresh) some or all of these elements. Your brand identity is an opportunity to
take the spirit of your positioning and turn it into something that people can see and
experience — including a distinctive personality and voice.

13. • Phase 3. Brand Tools
• These are the tools you will need to promote your new brand. Building on your brand
strategy, these tools equip you to increase the visibility of your brand and expertise. Exactly
which tools you need will depend on how you plan to promote the visibility of your brand
tools example :company website and other platforms
• Phase 4. Brand Launch
• How you introduce your new brand can affect the overall success of your branding initiative
— and that’s especially true in the professional services. Actually, you should think of it as
two introductions: one for your internal team and another for the outside world. They are
two very different audiences that require different treatments.
• Phase 5. Brand Building
• Your new brand is only the beginning. You still have to convert that brand into market
value. Many firms make the mistake of putting all their effort into an elaborate brand launch
when that money would be better spent on a long-term brand building program. But this
takes a strategy all its own.
• The core objective of this strategy should be to make your firm’s expertise more visible. For
the most part, this can be accomplished through a combination of public speaking, writing
and networking.

14. TYPES OF BRANDS
• Individual Brands
• The most common type of brand is a tangible, individual product, such as a car or drink.
This can be very specific, such as the Kleenex brand of tissues, or it can encompass a
wide range of products. Product brands can also be associated with a range of offerings,
such as the Mercedes S-class cars or all varieties of Colgate toothpaste.
• Service Brands
• A service brand develops as companies move from manufacturing products to delivering
complete solutions and intangible services. Service brands are characterized by the need
to maintain a consistently high level of service delivery.
• Organization Brands
• Organization brands are companies and other entities that deliver products and services.
Mercedes and the U.S. Senate each possess strong organization brands, and each has
associated qualities that make up their brand. Organizations can also be linked closely with
the brand of an individual. For example, the U.S. Democratic party is closely linked with Bill
and Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.

15. Personal Brands
A person can be considered a brand. It can be comprised of one individual, as in the cases of Oprah Winfrey or Mick
Jagger. Or it may be composed of a few individuals, where the branding is associated with different personalities. With
the advent of the Internet and social media, the phenomenon of personal branding offers tools and techniques for
virtually anyone to create a brand around themselves.
Group Brands
Group branding happens when there is a small group of branded entities that have overlapping, interconnected brand
equity. For example, the OWN group brand of the Oprah Winfrey Network and the brand of its known members
(Oprah and her team) are strongly connected.
Event Brands
Events can become brands when they strive to deliver a consistent experience that attracts consumer loyalty.
Examples include conferences the TED series; music festivals like Coachella or SXSW; sporting events like the
Olympics or NASCAR; and touring Broadway musicals like Wicked. The strength of these brands depends on the
experience of people attending the event. Savvy brand managers from product, service, and other types of brands
realize the power of event brands and seek to have their brands associated with the event brands through
sponsorships. Event sponsorship is now a thriving big business.
Geographic Place Brands
Many places or areas of the world seek to brand themselves to build awareness of the essential qualities they offer.
Branded places can range from countries and states to cities, streets, and even buildings. Those who govern or
represent these geographies work hard to develop the brand. Geographic branding is used frequently to attract
commerce and economic investment, tourism, new residents, and so on.
Private-Label Brands
Private-label brands, also called own brands, or store brands, exist among retailers that possess a particularly strong
identity (such as Save-A-Lot). Private labels may denote superior, “select” quality, or lower cost for a quality product.