www.forbesconsulting.com November 2010 • Issue #5 TRENDS · INSIGHTS · METHODS A publication of the forbes consulting group What Does My Brand Stand For? By Brian Sowers UNRAVEL THE MYSTERY Do you know what your brand stands for in the eyes of your customers? How does your current product portfolio support the master brand? Is your brand’s meaning and purpose still relevant in an increasingly competitive marketplace? If the answer to any of these questions elicits an “I don’t know” response, an examination of your brand architecture is in order. Having well-defined brand architecture is a critical component of an effective marketing strategy, as it provides the structure for leveraging strong brands, assimilating acquired products, and successfully launching new products. In developing cohesive brand architecture it is important to follow three steps: 1. Determine what the master brand stands for 2. Assess how well current products fit into and support the master brand Understanding brand architecture 3. Understand how far the master brand can be stretched with new product introductions STEP 1: THE BRAND ESSENCE How is your brand perceived in the marketplace? The master brand serves as the main anchoring point for all underlying products - it provides the credibility, relevance and differentiation for the brand overall, as well as for the portfolio of product offerings. The strength of connection between product equities and the master brand can be assessed by comparing the respective profiles on functional, experiential and symbolic attributes, as well as a variety of multivariate techniques. STEP 2: THE FIT With an understanding of the master brand, the next obvious step is to determine how products in the current portfolio fit in the minds of consumers. Assessing different levels of the brand hierarchy, as well as determining how individual products group together, will identify perceived sub-brand commonalities and unique sub-brands equities. Brand architecture also reveals why individual brands group/don’t group together, measures the degree of fit, and shows the extent to which current brands improve or “drag-down” perceptions of the master brand. For example, Nestlé may be best known for chocolate candy bars like Babe Ruth, and Butterfinger, but they also market stand alone brands such as Taster’s Choice coffee. So how do consumers piece together the Nestlé brand? STEP 3: THE STRETCH Of course, brands are never static and the need for new product introductions is inevitable. Now with an understanding of your brand architecture, your path is clear - identify where new products belong within the current architecture and why. Remember that a new product idea may fit into your current architecture but be considered unappealing to ...continued on page 3 A QUICK REFRESHER Although they can be used together, Brand Architecture and Brand Portfolio are distinct concepts. Brand Architecture is an outward facing tool to help customers navigate the company’s offerings. Brand Portfolio is an inward facing tool for the organization to ensure that the company’s brands are effectively targeting all key segments, working together to maximize sales. presenting forbes . . . Q. Dear Sigmund: Ask Sigmund We make a popular line of hot dog brands and have done so for decades. Our company is doing ok, but we have seen better times. All management levels agree that we need to grow, but there is some debate over how – expand distribution, partner for recipe inclusion, extend beyond hot dogs, etc. Our company board is partial to extending to hot dog buns. How do I determine what is best for the brands? Sincerely, RECENT PRESENTATIONS: PMRG INSTITUTE Dr. Ric Dube and Dr. Jeremy Pincus presented “Thinking Globally While Acting Locally: Increasing the ROI for Your Next Global Research Initiative” at the 2010 Pharmaceutical Market Research Group Institute Conference in Boston. This session addressed some of the persistent challenges and best practices for managing multi-country and multi-market research including tip on avoiding pitfalls when Managing Costs, Comparing Multi-Country Results, Managing Multi-Country Segmentation. MEDIGAP INSURANCE INDUSTRY CONFERENCE Dr. Jeremy Pincus presented “Longevity Risk: The Impact on Americans, Financial & Ins. Products: Issues & Trends in Medicare Supplement Insurance” in Scotsdale, Arizona at the Fourth Medigap Insurance Industry Conference. The Conference was organized by The American Association for Medicare Supplement Insurance. Jeremy shared a special look at how longevity and medical improvements over the next 10-to-20 years will impact government health programs, Medicare, Medicaid and private insurance. Please contact us if you would like more information concerning these presentations. 2 • Forbes 360° Down in the Dogs A. A very tricky situation, indeed. I have faced a similar dilemma when I was at the University of Vienna and asked to work on a rather unfruitful search for proof that was never to be found. Professor Karl Claus asked me to study the life cycle of eels. After four weeks at the zoological research station where I dissected hundreds of eels, and starting seeing many of them swimming in my dreams, I was still not able to prove or disprove the presence of male reproductive organs in eels. Professor Claus was determined - he suggested we look again at only baby eels. I suggested we take a step back. Reader, it is easy to continue in a direction, even though there is no plan. I suggest you gain an understanding of several aspects of the category and the brand before deciding the future… What do hot dog consumers think – Do they have night time visions about hot dogs? What do they dream about having in a hot dog? Are they purchased just for home..just for the kids..just for lunch? What about your brands – Howare they currently perceived? What are the unique equities? Do different hot dogs have different meanings? Remember that the Thuringer Rostbratwurst may look like the Winzerbratwurst, but only the Thuringer could inspire the enormous wurst-and-bun statue in Holzhausen. How about the marketplace fit - How would buns fit with consumers’ understanding of your current brands? What would your brand bring to the bun category? By pausing to take a closer look at how your brands are seen by consumers and the perceived benefits of each product in a line extension, the roadmap will be clear. Eels may still remain a mystery, but what your brand is and what it can stand for does not have to be ambiguous. Regards, THE EFFECTS OF BRAND PHOTOS ON Attitudes & Usage MEASURES BACKGROUND: Including digital images of branded products or brand logos has become a common practice in web-based questionnaires on the implicit theory that these images will improve the accuracy of aided recall measures of awareness and usage. One hypothesis is that these images serve to jog respondent memories of brands seen or used that might otherwise have been forgotten, and thus raise levels of stated awareness and usage. A competing hypothesis is that these images lower levels of stated awareness and usage by deflating the incidence of “phantom awareness” (false positive claims of awareness and usage) by providing crossvalidating information. RESEARCH METHOD: A total of 1,250 surveys (625 with brand pictures, 625 without) were conducted about sports drinks, using a demographically representative online panel, with a standard security screening and a requirement that respondents be partly responsible for household shopping decisions. Each option shown to the respondent was selected at random and chosen to ensure an equal distribution of each option. SURVEY WITHOUT Product IMAGES SURVEY WITH Product IMAGES FINDINGS: The study showed that reported usage for several brands used in past 6 months was significantly higher when NO picture was shown, and significantly lower when a picture was shown. CONCLUSION: Preliminary evidence suggests that the use of brand images helps to reduce the prevalence of “phantom usage,” i.e., overstated usage, presumably because brand images provide additional cues that improve respondent recall. Although further research is needed, it appears that brand images improve the accuracy of usage recall and should be incorporated when possible. 1 bottle = 10 respondents Did you ? ? know ? Understanding brand architecture COntinued ... continued from page 1 ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? 21% prefer their Hot Dogs boiled. http://www.hot dogchicagostyle.com/funfacts.php consumers, or a new offering may be extremely appealing but not fit - in both cases, introduction may not make sense. These techniques will help identify which new product introductions represent core and stretch opportunities, as well as those that might be outside current boundaries of the master brand. With some upfront planning, future concept testing can even become “plug and play”. In an increasingly competitive and complex business world, important (and expensive) strategic decisions have to be made quickly. Having well defined brand architecture can significantly increase your chances of making successful marketing and branding decisions using clarity and synergy. In developing cohesive brand architecture, remember to follow through on the three steps: brand essence, fit, and stretch. Forbes 360° • 3 Source: Mean ranking (5 pt scale) - The Affective Norms for English Words (ANEW) 24 Hartwell Avenue • Third Floor Lexington, MA 02421 781.863.5000 • forbesconsulting.com FEEDBACK: [email protected] beyond research as usual
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