1. Of view
‘point of view’ is my way of helping young
marketers and sales managers.
I am always encouraged to watch young marketers and sales
professionals tapping into perspectives through my articles and
getting some helpful insights ………
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Understanding ‘Brand’ © M Nanda Page 1

2. Understanding ‘Brand’
Around a month back, I got a call from a former team mate
(now a marketing head with a large corporation) seeking help on his
firm’s ‘brand marketing’ problem.
His problem was that he’d blown 4 Million dollars (in a 4 month period)
but his campaign results were far from satisfactory.
I spend a day in his office, meeting up with his entire marketing team, a
few sales managers and some operations / admin personnel.
I have found that the
I also learnt that apart from the marketing team and the HQ sales
‘Aloof Marketing Department’ is a
problem that plagues many people, no one had the idea that a campaign was on its way.
companies.
The marketing department doesn’t The marketing team had been working on their own pumping money
deem necessary to inform others
into the campaigns without involving other stakeholders.
(sales team, service, supply chain,
etc) even with basic information like They ran series of print and electronic advertising cycles, only to realize
timing and the aim of the campaigns. sales was still not picking up.
Such marketing endeavors and
Also, marketing team’s idea on brand building was confused and
campaigns are a waste of money,
interchanged with advertising, packaging design etc.
because here instead of the whole
company, it is just the marketing team This improper ‘definition’ and approach also led to the failure of the
that is trying to shoulder the entire much costly campaign.
brand image.
The ‘brand’ needs to exist and
Notably, everyone in the company was of the opinion that advertising is
necessarily needs to be flowing
what will establish their brand (in their limited marketing knowledge
inside every individual’s vein in the
enterprise. they probably were referring to the false notion that pumping money in
a campaign will lead to people recognizing their logo!)
“ A decade ago, the brand building game was relatively easier.
At that time, if the marketer had the money for a decent print / electronic campaign, he could build a
strong proposition towards building a brand.
Out then the customers had the eyes n ear for an attractive message or value promotion.
Understanding ‘Brand’ © M Nanda Page 2
”

3. Today in the fiercely contested competition and the advent of digital
marketing, the customer is carpet bombed with advertising for various
products and these campaigns are all over him (wherever he goes and
in whatever he does) thru various modes like print, electronic, digital,
signage, one to one etc and even thru his personal devices.
For a marketer it is important to understand how to differentiate the
product / service in an already over communicated society, where the
target consumer is habituated in screening out most of the messages.
The strategy to differentiate the product is to place it in the customer’s
Advertising is one function that should
mind in a convincing way so that whenever he recalls the need, the
never operate on its own. firm’s brand is the first on his list.
It needs to depend on other functions
and all stake-holders to take cue from
Having said that, just doing an independent print / electronic campaign
them.
will not stand a chance today for this over informed, over contacted and
For example, talking of great service
when you don’t have one will leave a very busy customer.
bitter taste and too many unsatisfied
customers, this will eventually
boomerang and hit your future
marketing efforts hard.
The maximum that a marketer can expect, from a print and / or
electronic campaign that can break the clutter through some innovative
Marketing needs to coordinate
advertising with all brand promises communication messaging, is
that are real and tangible.
a) Customer recalls the brand / product while making his purchase
It is time marketers moved from decision
advertising campaigns to brand
campaigns. b) Customer goes ahead and buys the product to test and
experience.
Most marketers live in the dark thinking their job is over when the
campaign starts.
With the commencing of a campaign, they want (and rely on) the sales
team to take over, push sales , get more dealers and have visibility at
retail etc.
With this attitude of the marketing team, the sales team gets a sudden
rude shock and once they see a lull in the marketing activity, post the
campaign, and they quickly brand the campaign as a sheer failure.
Understanding ‘Brand’ © M Nanda Page 3

4. It is worthwhile to remember that in current times ‘sales’ is directly
connected to the brand value.
And the term ‘brand’ is not just the communication but also the service
associated with it.
The service part in a brand implies ‘the promise’ and ‘the value’ that
the brand holds.
So simply put ‘brand’ is the combination of all the elements that make a
business (service, sales team, product, unique lovable features,
packaging, communication, partners, store outlook, etc)
The customer views a ‘brand’ as ‘a promise’ and expects the
delivery of this promise from ‘all points of contact’ in the market
ecosystem.
Also, the brand is much more than a physical symbol.
It is the picture of all collective ‘attributes’ and ‘perceptions’ that a
No matter what your advertising and
customer forms in his mind.
packaging says, the brand’s image
will be formed through
product/service experience through
all the stakeholders behind your
brand. (right from front-ending sales
team to the back office with R&D and
everyone in between)
Brand Values
Product Operations Production R&D Marketing People Sales Channel
Communication & Service
CUSTOMERS
Understanding ‘Brand’ © M Nanda Page 4

5. A marketer needs to remember that a brand it is not just the
‘visual image’ but it’s the ‘overall reputation‘, that is earned only and
only through:
a. Customer experience and/or
b. Positive word of mouth thru customer experience
The marketing team’s endeavor has
to target the ‘mental space’ it needs To explain further, the customer’s experience with the brand has just
to occupy in the target audiences
mind. begun when he buys the product and it is post this buy that he starts to
register and build an impression of the brand.
This can be achieved through
positioning the brand on elements The customer now recalls and evaluates what the campaign said about
and associations which meaningfully
set it apart from the competition and
the product, he experiences quality / features and compares them to
other brands. similar products from other brands.
At such junctures, the marketing team He is also likely to evaluate factors like ‘cost versus benefit’ ratio of
needs to focus on product attributes
and through their repeated
using a particular product, servicing, ease of repeat purchase, etc.
communication needs to set a brand It is after all these experiences that the customer finally
identity and ultimately form a brand
personality. ‘forms an image for the brand’.
Brand today is not just the slogan, not just the logo, nor is it the
This can only happen when products
communication is designed to touch celebrity endorsement (etc), but it is the ‘differentiated image’ that
needs and wants of the target
audience. compels the customers to buy, candidates to look for jobs, suppliers to
contact you, society to respect you, (etc)
It is important for the top management of a company to clearly set out
the brand promise and core brand values.
This then needs to be clearly communicated to the marketing team and
human resources team (for internal branding – which I will not discuss
here) to be portrayed to the internal and external customers.
A marketer must remember that only the customer centric actions
will create a brand and it is extremely important to work and build on
this emotional / lovable attachment with the customer. This can be
achieved if the marketer thinks like the customer, and
self experiences all the stages / cycle that a customer might / would
possibly go through while coming across or using the brand.
Whether it’s the -- ease to buy, or exciting packaging, or a compelling
campaign, communication for exceptional features / ease of usage,
exciting pricing, ease of contacting service, response from service and
so on and so forth, an able marketer would very closely look at all such
aspects.
Understanding ‘Brand’ © M Nanda Page 5

6. And even more importantly communicate all such advantages to sales
team, channel partners, agency, (etc) for a 360 view and understanding
and finally unity of messaging. He should also discuss gaps if any
with relevant stakeholders and top management and try and sort them
out to the benefit of the customer.
It is also important for a marketer is to understand the following factors:
1. product, its features and attributes in detail,(thru the product
marketing team)
2. product usage – every step (that a consumer might put it to),
3. hidden parameters and new usages (thru the product marketing
and feedback from sales etc)
4. all advantages to a consumer,
5. all shortcomings (lack of features, service gaps, pop issues)
Equally important is to understand the available (and possible)
channels of receiving customer feedback. It is the voice of the
Below exhibit highlights various customer that is to be given utmost importance. Benefits that a
channels of communication customer seeks if implemented can give the brand a great fillip.
between a marketer and the
customer.
This exhibit also highlights the
communication with product
marketing and R&D teams,
communication & feedback
Product Marketing
Marketer
Marketer
feedback
Research & Development
Product
Feedback forms attributes &
(thru Print / Electronic / Internet) brand Value
Feedback Interviews communication Sales staff, Retail, Service partners, etc
(Customer experience feedback)
feedback feedback
Customer
Customer
Understanding ‘Brand’ © M Nanda Page 6

7. Customer feedback helps in understanding not only the likeable
product attributes, but also the importance that a customer gives to the
brand.
Unfolding and understanding the image a customer has for the brand
(or is in the process of formation), his association index with the brand,
For brand’s sake, customer and the ‘image’ he and the brand together project
feedback process and evaluation (stylish, cool, hot, fashionable, tech savvy etc) is what a marketer
needs to go beyond technology should build his branding strategy on.
talking and should instead drool
Through this feedback the marketer should try and understand what
upon benefits this technology
provides through features and how makes (or can make) the brand special and lovable for the customer.
exactly they help a customer. This data is what the marketer then needs to exploit together with the
marketing agency, product team and top management.
I have seen technology marketers
And ultimately this information is what should form the basis of all
using so much tech jargon to
communication with the customer.
impress customers. Beyond a point
it goes tangentially futile and doesn’t
help the cause of feedback. Now, talking about communication – any brand communication should
have no more than four messages. These messages should be
The benefits that particular features
repeated and reinforced thru the entire marketing ecosystem
provide are what a marketer needs
to know. consisting of sales team, channel partners, service, all campaigns,
enclosed product usage brochures (etc) and most importantly the
This ‘through the eyes of the website.
customer’ feedback is like the basic
I will point the importance of the website, as I have, in the past come
ingredient of forming the branding
across various campaigns that have not been linked with the company
and brand communication strategy.
website.
A great website will certainly help in reinforcing the brand value through
the marketing messages, and will also solve problems, find answers
and solutions for the customer’s questions and finally help establish his
beliefs in the brand. Today and in the times to come, the company
website should be the epicenter of all marketing activities, especially
for all brand value communications.
Additionally a marketer should try and connect all stakeholders (internal
& external), through the company website and should use it to
communicate all brand attributes in the marketing activity.
Understanding ‘Brand’ © M Nanda Page 7

8. It is important that the entire company (and ideally external
stakeholders, too) needs to rally behind all customer connect points
and influence the customer with the same brand values.
The marketer in his role as the brand manager needs to positive
influence everyone and every entity must help him. It is because of a
satisfied customer that the brand gets highlighted and breaks free from
Some common reasons for a brand
the clutter of being just another brand to being ‘the brand of choice’.
to falter are through
This in turn helps a company on various frontiers like -- easily hiring
a) the product and features good talent, getting new / more suppliers, more service / channel
(existing or missing) partners, more valuable investors (etc)
b) bad experience on servicing,
c) channel partners (not talking
Next step for a marketer is to deeply understand the importance of the
positively)
d) and at times also thru the sales brand symbols – both the logo and brand statement.
team via poor product All brand communications (especially visual) should consistently use
knowledge, skill deficit, the brand symbols. This when done repeatedly, would set a
product communication issues,
connection bond between the customer and the brand. The brand
selection of channel partners,
logo then becomes the tool (for the customer) that encompasses all
meet-greet-assist issues etc.
brand values within it. It is like an abbreviation of all features and
values (and also the quality signals) that a customer sees
(or remembers) in the brand.
Creating an impacting brand image (through communication of core
values and customer benefits) for a company and connecting it to the
brand logo (through the brand statement) is the ultimate dream of any
marketer.
The logo and the brand statement, simply put, are like a graphical
representation of all other parts that make a brand. ( caution – the logo
and brand statement are not the brand, a common mistake that
marketers tend to do).
Connecting every message and communication to the logo and
backing it up with the brand statement (which is nothing but a promise
of brand values) guarantees positive connect with the customer and
helps in aiding his awareness, especially in an over communicated
marketing scenario where the maximum a customer can remember is a
logo.
Understanding ‘Brand’ © M Nanda Page 8

9. Another important branding task for a marketer is to find ways to
increase the interaction between the brand and its target audience.
This assumes even greater significance when a brand operates in
multiple product categories. Combined with crisp communication, the
brand logo (and brand statement) gives the customer the confidence to
….. “a marketer, like a chef, has to make the existing products a regular part of their lives.
choose the best ingredients, and in For new introductions, a known brand logo gives the customers a
stipulated time has to blend the
sense of ‘definite confidence’ in picking them up for a trial (every
ingredients and decorate the platter
with the product in a very attractive marketer understands how important it is for a new product to quickly
style and the final presentation (of the make it to customer trial purchase)
product) needs to end up in a palatable
taste” ……. Lastly to build a successful brand a marketer must constantly try and
understand the set of target audience for his products. This ‘set of
target audience’ can change with time and so the marketer must
constantly keep his understanding on this subject astute and live.
The brand should evolve with this understanding of the target group.
A marketer should periodically collect a sample database of customers
who consume the brand products to have a clear understanding of how
the target group is changing. All marketing and sales support functions
should also evolve and change with it and so should the brand.
For all discussed above, at times, a marketer also needs to convince
the top management on the concept of equating all business
decisions to branding decisions.
To give a clearer understanding, if a
So whether it’s the company’s office location, its factory uniform, the
company employs a bank that has a look of the reception area, the partner selection process, the bank it
lethargic service attitude for its channel uses, the investors it chooses, the people it hires, packaging of
partners, trust me some of these
products, and so on and so forth, all such decisions should be treated
channel associates will soon give up on
as branding decisions.
your brand.
So although it seems choosing a bank Once the management understands the concept of linking ‘all business
is a pure business decision, it actually decisions to the like of branding decisions’ everyone and everything
assumes the form and shape of a brand falls in place to help steer the company on the path to customer
decision.
loyalty.
A strong brand can drive growth for a company when markets are
stable or on the upswing. At the same time this strength can help
the company sail through in tougher market conditions.
Understanding ‘Brand’ © M Nanda Page 9