A Premium Brand
Compared with other products in the same category, the price is pitched at a premium. The age group that is identified more than any other with premium brands is that of the 30-65 grouping.
An Economy Brand
This is a brand that is targeted, which means that it is focusing on a specific market rather than following the marketing strategy of mass marketing to a high price elasticity market segment. The price elasticity of demand is a measure of how the quantity demanded is affected by changes in price
A Fighting Brand
It is a brand that is created specifically to act as a challenge against the threat from a competitive product. A typical example is a low-priced manufacturer’s brand sold with the minimum amount of advertising.
Corporate Branding
This refers to a company that uses its own name as the designated name to be used on a product brand. This means that the product and the company name become the brand name. An excellent example is the drink Coca Cola.
Family Branding
It involves selling a number of products, which are related to each other in some way, under one brand name. It differs from individual branding whereby each product is given an individual brand name. Product quality is an important facet. Should one product within the range prove unsatisfactory, it could reduce sales of all the others. This feature figures prominently in Family Branding.
Individual Branding
When all a company's products are given their own individual brand names. Each product has its own image and identity, and it is this that constitutes the added value. A case in point is that of Coca-Cola and Bacardi Mixers. They both have their own brand name, and so can be identified individually, but are owned and marketed by the Coca-Cola Co.
Brand Leveraging
A company can use the brand equity inherent in an existing brand name in order to introduce a new product or product line. Hence, consider the case of an existing range of products. Should another product be added and it was found that this was of better quality than the other products in the range. This would be characterized as trading up or brand leveraging.
Co-Branding
This involves at least two brands working in association with each other in order to market their products. Ingredient co-branding is a particular form of co-branding. Examples include:
The fear of branding[/b][/b]
Facing that challenge takes marketing leaders who are willing to get out of their own way, and view their roles as having more influence than simply communicating a message. Indeed, they can transform a company. To accomplish that, a marketing director must understand not only the difference between branding and marketing, but also embrace a brand that provides direction and focus to everything they and the company do. Brand positions the marketing department as something other than the toy department within a company because it also begins with the transformation of the marketing department itself. The first thing brand does is provide focus. Too many times we have all seen marketing that is "off brand," but even that concept is often misunderstood. Many think it means a marketing message that contradicts the brand. Being "off brand" is more than that, and the consequences are dire. Any marketing that is not about the brand is off-brand, because not being on brand is as damaging as contradicting it. Being off brand makes the brand less believable to target audiences and the brand then feels more like an overly clever marketing tool. Brand is intended to be persuasive, and often presents the only reason for target audiences to choose. Brand is a reflection of your target audience, not you. It's a failure many brands make, yet Apple) and Nike are two of the most successful brands of all time with brand themes that describe the customer, not the product or company. Once that focus has been established, then the hard work begins for both the marketing team and the entire company as well. The direction of the marketing no longer becomes aimless and the creative work becomes strategic, as well motivating the members of your creative team to work within a strategic structure.
Brand, however, is more than marketing, even if marketing takes the lead in empowering your company with it. Brand represents a cultural shift, thereby empowering marketing directors to become stewards of a company's success.
In developing a brand, the highest emotional intensity in the market must be uncovered through research, then competitors are examined to see if any have claimed it. If not, then claim and own it with all your might because it becomes the key to your success.
Fulfilling the brand promise is not easy because it requires change and leadership. Everything from how the company answers the phone to the development of new products begin a metamorphosis, even if there are equities to be leveraged.
By the time training has taken place with employees and sales staff, the company has been defined completely by the brand and audiences see a self-reflection in your brand so completely they crave being a part of it.
As a marketing director, the problems you are solving are the ones that affect the entire company. Your job is to make sure the marketing does more than just present a pretty picture or a humorous spot. It is your job to make sure the marketing is persuasive and, to do that, it must be strategic.
Instead of being threatened by brand, marketing executives should embrace it. It's what makes marketing executives great. It's what separates those that merely toe the line to those that steal market share.