Research Paper on Creating a Winning Brand Strategy: Unlocking the Power of Your Brand

Introduction

Brand strategy is a long-term plan used in an organization to establish a successful brand to accomplish specific market goals. An effective brand strategy influences all facets of the business and is closely linked to consumer needs, emotional well-being, and competitive environment. Brand strategies also highlight the organization's mission, vision, beliefs, and goals that can be accomplished as the brand grows. It is important to note that a company's brand is different from the logo, brand name, or the product sold to the consumers (Gabrielsson, 2009). Logo or website is part of the brand identity, which is reflected in the brand strategy. A brand is the perceived idea of what other people say about an organization. Formulating and implementing a brand in an organization requires that the management get the right answers, which comes by asking the right questions. Logo creates an identity in an organization and echoes its personality and values. It forms the foundation for strategy development and should be created to capture the client's imagination. Since brand strategy is such a fundamental component of achieving success in the business, it is imperative for organizations management to invest in the formulation and management of a brand.

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Developing a Brand Strategy

Creating a brand strategy is a challenging task in the product marketing process. It is the component that causes many business entities a challenge but is an essential step in establishing an identity in the business environment. Brand identity is often repeatedly communicated, in different ways with uniformity throughout the business life cycle (Bahadir, Bharadwaj & Srivastava, 2015). For the case of Procter and Gamble Inc., the company used a brand-centered approach which led to decentralized decision making leading to an increase in market share and profit volumes. The company created a segmented marketing approach which helped create a brand personality unique from other brands in the market (Romaniuk & Sharp, 2016). With the brand strategy, the company was able to establish targeting distinguishable consumer goods in the minds of the consumers. At Procter and Gamble Inc., the brand strategy identifies three main facets of the business, which are utilized as a blueprint for the development of the market strategy and sales strategy. These include; purpose, consistency, and emotional impact. Most of the company's products have a functional and intentional purpose which resonates with the customer needs. There is also consistency in the brand strategy. This is linked to the fact that the branding concept was first initiated into the business world by Procter and Gamble Inc. and has maintained its brand perception among consumers. The emotional impact has been fundamental in helping consumers connect with consumers. To begin, the development of a branding strategy must begin with four marketing elements:

Target Customer: understanding the specific needs of the consumers in the market is an important part of brand success. The focus should be narrowed down to a particular customer need segment and make products that align with their needs. This should cover both psychological and economic needs. Consumers are often motivated by what is 'right' than their self-interest (Desai & Keller, 2012). This means that they prefer morals and values over self-interest. This means for marketers trying to create compelling brands and persuasive messages; they need to make and promote products that do not violate the consumer beliefs and value systems.

Competition: In the process of positioning a brand in the minds of the consumer, it is positioning against other brands. Achieving this requires a better understanding, the weaknesses, and strengths of the competing businesses. The knowledge about the competitors is fundamental in uniquely "owning" particular benefit in the minds of the prospective and existing consumers. Ideally, the benefit is one that the competitors have not identified and cannot easily identify. Subsequently, the benefit owed should take advantage of the competitors. At a minimum, the organization stakeholders should understand the competitors' market share, business objectives, brand equity, and key financial measures.

Product and Service Mix: When a product is released in the market, it should be done in a manner which the consumers are aware of it and understands. This should be planned by the sales and marketing department to ensure that there is sufficient brand awareness. In this process, some aspects are put into consideration, such as price, promotional approach, and product design. For Procter & Gamble, they have always utilized the traditional approach of brand management. They manage a large portfolio of product brands and promote them as separate entities. Because the company has sufficient resources at their disposal, they have been able to manage each brand independently and achieved significant success.

Unique Selling Proposition: When creating a unique selling point, there is a need to introduce unique benefits in the minds of the consumer. The concept here is to cut a long marketing message and introduce a message that gets to the point. With this, it reduces the load of decision making and offers the most valuable element of a product to the consumer. In the 1990s, Procter & Gamble sold their nappy (Pampers) as the driest in the market (Romaniuk & Sharp, 2016). This means that there was previous market research that revealed what mothers wanted. This was the selling proposition for this particular brand, and the company made significant sales revenue before other players challenged their market share.

Logo Development

A company or product's logo signifies what the business represents. This includes the promise to the clients, the reliability of the offered product, and all that the company provides different from the rest. It is the initial step towards the development of a brand strategy. It forms a unique identity through which company clients recognize the product or services. A logo should not only be simple and unique, but it should include the brand message in it (Van Grinsven & Das, 2016). A good logo will help clients identify with the brand and company identity. Relevant product or company logo is often easily recognized and raises brand awareness in the organization. Besides the element of brand identity in a logo, it should represent the unique selling proposition (USP) and stand out from a larger crowd.

Market research: This should be the first step of logo development, and this entails a better understanding of the target consumers, existing competition, and logo designs that exist in the market. At this stage, the organization should identify the message to be communicated through the logo.

Logo design research: A winning logo should have lots of creativity. This is because originality and flexibility are an important element for a logo to succeed in the market. Logo research will ensure that an inspirational logo is created that will help establish brand identity and ultimately, the profitability of the business.

Conclusion

An effective logo is the initial step of brand development and product success in the market. With an effective logo, a company can easily create a sustainable branding strategy. Procter and Gamble Inc. is one company that has, over the years, utilized brand strategy to maintain a competitive advantage for its products. The secret is to understand the target market, existing competition in the market, product and service mix, and creating a unique selling proposition. When these are done, a company will be able to create a brand that aligns with the consumer needs and establish a winning proposition for their products.

References

Bahadir, S., Bharadwaj, S., & Srivastava, R. (2015). Marketing mix and brand sales in global markets: Examining the contingent role of country-market characteristics. Journal of International Business Studies, 46(5), 596-619. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/43653869

Desai, K. K., & Keller, K. L. (2012). The effects of ingredient branding strategies on host brand extendibility. Journal of marketing, 66(1), 73-93. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkg.66.1.73.18450

Gabrielsson, M., (2009). Branding strategies of born globals. Journal of International Entrepreneurship, 3(3), 199-222. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10843-005-0401-5

Romaniuk, J., & Sharp, B., (2016). How brands grow part 2: Including emerging markets, services and durables, new brands, and luxury brands. South Melbourne, Vic: Oxford University Press.

Van Grinsven, B., & Das, E. (2016). Logo design in marketing communications: Brand logo complexity moderates exposure effects on brand recognition and brand attitude. Journal of marketing communications, 22(3), 256-270. https://doi.org/10.1080/13527266.2013.866593