What is brand management ?

When you listen to the word ‘brand’ what comes in your mind? A company logo that your liked, a product or service that you remember, an adjective attached to company and many more things that you hear or see. But do you know what brand actually is? According to Wikipedia a ‘brand’ is a name, term, design, symbol, or other feature that distinguishes an organization or product from its rivals in the eyes of the customer. I can understand it’s too heavy and a big word to digest, but we can’t ignore it anymore. Brands are widely used in business, marketing, and advertising. But it is not restricted to that. We all have a brand value. Every individual can create its own brand. And I will definitely recommend you to do so because we all are unique and this world needs such people.

With the understanding of various task, SWOT analysis and your work experience helps to build brand. Once the brand is created, the most crucial part begins-and that is Brand Management. A beautiful quote by the CEO of Amazon- Jeff Bezos is “Your brand is what people say about you when you’re not in the room”. By this you can understand brand management is not that easy. Brand management is a function of marketing that uses techniques to increase the perceived value of a product line or brand over time. Efficient brand management qualifies the price of products to go up and builds loyal customers through substantial awareness of the brand, brand alliance and image. To develop a strategic plan for maintaining brand equity or gain brand value requires a full proof understanding of the brand, its target market, and the vision of the company.

The power house of company

Brands influence is very powerful. It brings customer engagement and competition. It also shapes the management of a company. A strong brand presence makes all the difference. It always stands out from the competitors products and creates closeness with the company’s products or services. You must have heard the phrase- ‘It takes years to build a name’ and that’s true. Establishing brand takes years, but when it’s finally done, it still has to be maintained through newness and creativity. Prominent brands that have established themselves as leaders in their respective industries over the years include Nike, Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, Apple, Infosys, Tata Steel, Birla Cement and Jio. A brand also help people to decide between multiple options like if Anyone need Laptop Repair Service in Ahmedabad and he search for Google and find some options here your brand works to choose the right shop for that.

A company has to manage both its tangible and intangible properties of a brand. The tangible aspects include the logo, packaging, price, product(s), colors scheme and fonts format, etc. Such features are implemented to grab the attention of customers and to set apart one’s brand from another. Some brands include viral jingles, catch phrases, or animals that stick to the minds of consumers. For example, when you see a bull which is red in color, it reminds of the brand Red bull. They use the red bull in their campaigns for marketing. After seeing the bull, you might even go and buy the drink. Such adverting tactics are used to attract customers. If you are 80’s or 90’s kid, you must have definitely watched a lot of cartoons and we cannot forget the lion roaring when our favorite cartoon was about to begin. Back then Metro Goldwyn Mayer (MGM) knew very well how to attract kids. You can go on and on to find amazing videos, animals and gigs associated to brand.

A brand is collectively known for all the products and services of the company. For example, Mercedes have multiple auto models under their brand. Similarly, a brand name can have multiple brands under its roof. Example, Amazon have multiple brands under its roof, like Nike, Channel, Surf excel washing powder etc. One also has to consider the intangible elements of a brand. This includes customer satisfaction and experience with the brand and their emotional connect with the product or service. These elements are very difficult to achieve, but if done correctly, it creates ‘brand equity’. Brand equity is nothing but a price above the products value that consumers are willing to pay, just to acquire the brand. It takes time to build and the value is decided by the consumer’s perception about the brand. It may fall or rise depending upon the consumer behavior and purchase pattern.

Understanding Brand Management

Brand management is not only about creating a brand, but also understanding what fits best under the brand of a company. A company has to keep its target market in mind when bringing new products in the line or analyzing markets to decide which companies to merge or acquire. To summarize, effective brand management help–

• Create brand awareness.
• Brings brand equity and measures the success.
• Drives initiatives to support brand message.
• Identify new market and places new products.
• Raises the positions of the brand in the market.

There are many more reasons why each one us should manage brand effectively. The success and failure of the brand depends on the creativity and innovation of the company. It is a continuous process to find new ways, maintain the quality and retain the loyal consumers rather than just sticking to the age old content. Hope this article helps you to understand the importance of brand management.

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