BRAND MANAGEMENT
SIGNIFICANCE OF BRANDING AS MARKETING TOOL AND ITS EMERGENCE AS A BUSINESS PRACTICE 3
MANAGEMENT OF THE BRAND SUCCESSFULLY OVER TIME USING APPROPRIATE THEORIES, MODELS AND CONCEPTS 4
KEY COMPONENTS OF SUCCESSFUL BRAND STRATEGY FOR BUILDING AND MANAGING BRAND EQUITY 5
BRAND PORTFOLIO AND HIERARCHY MANAGEMENT 9
STRATEGIES TO MANAGE BRAND EQUITY WITHIN ORGANISATION’S PORTFOLIO 11
BRAND EXTENSION AND LEVERAGE 13
COLLABORATIVE AND PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENTS 14
BRAND MANAGEMENT COLLABORATIVELY AND IN PARTNERSHIP BOTH AT DOMESTIC AND GLOBAL LEVEL 16
MANAGING AND MEASURING BRAND 17
Effective management of brand can be termed as a process where sustainability needs are managed and accordingly values are attained so that good image among the consumers could be attained. There are various elements which need to be carefully evaluated by the management such as the existence of competition in the market, customer’s satisfaction level, packaging of the product and its presentation etc by which the firm is able to maintain the value of the brand in the market. The assignment here would include a brief about the importance brand would create on the consumers in terms of goods and services along with the application of different strategies that could be implemented in order to gain appropriate management of brand equity at Dyson Group PLC. Along with this, the assignment also includes information related to portfolio management which could be implemented at Dyson keeping in mind the application of various models and theories. Apart from this, for managing and supervising the value of the brand effective use of techniques is also undertaken by the firm.
The brand could be defined as a combination of design, sign, symbol as well as words which are applied effectively by the firm through which they are able to attain positive image in the minds of customers and making them further undergo identification as well as associating the brand with the product. Management of the brand in an effective manner could occur if the equity of the brand is made stronger as well as bringing innovative marketing programs which could further help in creating awareness about the brand’s product in the minds of people. The existence of the brand in the market could also be managed by coming up with innovation in the product in an effective and efficient manner. In addition to this, management of the brand could also take place effectively even at the time of saturation taking place in the market wherein they could focus more towards attaining awareness about the brand in the business environment.
Branding on the other hand can be said as a practice which is undertaken by the firm in order to market the product and gain a competitive advantage in the market. Undergoing effective and powerful branding, the organisation could make easily distinguishable aspects of their product and thus can form a unique and sustainable position in the market. By having an effective as well as powerful branding, products of the firm could be distinguished easily wherein their identity in the market could be formed apart from the existing products available. Following are some points which can explain the significance of branding within the organisation in an effective manner:
Increased brand value: For undergoing future business development, branding is one of the main aspects that should be noted by the firm. The value of the brand increases looking towards the image it has in the market that would further help them in attaining future development and success.
Generate new customers: Having an effective branding, a firm could attain a good image which would further be able to attract and increase the customer base effectively.
Branding attain recognition: By undergoing branding, the organisation, as well as its product, could be made well-known to the customers. The logo is one such factor that attains crucial role within the firm and hence the firm should also ensure that they come up with such logo which could gain the attention of the customers and thus can further increase the overall sale of the firm in the business environment.
With the rapid changes taking place in the market, the firm's operations could differ and so by undergoing constant development taste, technology, product, demand as well as the interest of the consumers can form an effect on the brand significantly. For the successful management of the brand, Dyson Group PLC make sure that they bring some innovation and creativity in their theories, programs as well as techniques through which they could further attain good image among others in the business environment. The management at Dyson has undertaken Keller’s brand equity model with the help of which they were able to attain an appropriate and positive image within the business environment. With the implementation of this model, Dyson was able to attain thinking and perception of the consumers relating it with the product wherein further changes could be implemented.
Following are the levels of Brand equity model:
Level 1: Brand identity
This could be regarded as the thinking consumer's have in their minds relating to the brand. Dyson was able to create great awareness in relation to the product and the services that are being made available in the business environment further helping in building up a strong image in consumer's minds.
Level 2: Brand meaning
This could be defined as the information that could be looked after about the brand among potential customers. In order to convey out the brand, usage of the firm's performance, as well as its image, is made in an effective manner. The products that are brought up by Dyson is of premium quality, long-lasting and easy to use.
Level 3: Brand response
Every consumer in the business environment responds differently towards the situation being faced which in turn allows the organisation to attain knowledge and understanding of consumers, their perception and thinking. Consumers judge having a close look towards the superiority of the product, brands credibility as well as its quality. The positive image of Dyson has been build in the minds of the consumers as the firm mainly believes towards attaining consumer-centric product and make them avail the services that are friendly and comfortable for them to undertake (Vahdat et al., 2020).
Level 4: Brand resonance
This term could relate to the connection that the consumers have within the brand along with associating it with the product. This could also be said the level wherein the consumers become comfortable with the brand, its offerings and the usage. Here, consumers are loyal towards Dyson and are well satisfied with the offerings being made available to them. Making the consumers avail premium quality products make them highly positive towards the brand.
Figure 1 KELLER'S BRAND EQUITY MODEL
SOURCE- Yousaf et al., 2017
For the brand to gain success, effective strategies need to be formulated by Dyson management and here are few of the key components that are noted by the firm for the formulation of brand strategy:
Identity: Dyson is able to build strong brand identity wherein brand’s identity as well as its direction towards progress is well kept in mind in addition to the logo, brand's name, and colour by which Dyson could further build its identity in the business environment.
Mission, vision and values: The main vision of Dyson is to solve the skill gap effectively and attain world’s problem-solvers. They also aim towards tackling out 21st-century challenges in an effective manner such as air pollution. The core mission of Dyson is to further inspire a new generation of engineers and provide them with money, mentorship as well as materials so that further problems arising could be solved easily.
Image: This is regarded as the way product as well as services are being perceived in the minds of the consumers. The perception of the consumer about Dyson is that the firm manufacture good quality products that are long-lasting, available in a wide range and are comfortable.
Personality: This states the characteristics that are within the consumers about the firm’s product. The personality of Dyson is reflected looking towards the advertisements and the communication channel they undertake for making the consumers aware about their products.
Promise: This relates to the dedication of the organisation towards the product and service and its deliverables to the potential consumers. The products that are produced by the firm here are of premium quality and can be used with the help of renewable energy.
BRAND REVITALISATION, REINFORCEMENT AND EXTENSION
Brand revitalisation: This is the plan which is implemented by the firm when the maturity stage is extended to the product and the profits at the same time start declining. Dyson at this point comes up with the concept of discounts and offers so as to remain within the business (Baumgarth, 2018).
Brand reinforcement: This could be regarded as the activity which is applied by Dyson to ensure that equity of the brand is maintained by them and thus innovative and create products are brought up in the market.
Brand extension: Here, the firm that has already been established in the market comes up with a new product to as to attain large market share and thus attain growth. The extended category may or may not relate with the existing brand. By undergoing brand extension, the new product could come up in the market in an easy and effective manner.
Figure 2 BRAND EXTENSION FOR DYSON
SOURCE- Ahn et al., 2018
CONCLUSION
Undergoing branding, a positive image of the firm in the consumer's mind could be created as well as an increase in the awareness of the product in the market could also be made. Following are the points that could proof that branding act as an important tool by which marketing of the product, as well as service, could be well undertaken in the market:
Effective branding lead towards the formation of a good reputation in the minds of the consumers
Using branding within the firm increases the satisfaction level of the employees and of the consumers.
Branding leads to attaining the value of the brand in the business environment
Branding could help in attaining more leverage in the market that would help them in building a strong image of the firm.
The brand portfolio includes different brand lines of the specific company which also act as serving the needs of various segments of the market. In other words, it could be regarded as a firm which has got various brands which cater to different market segments in an effective manner. Following are the different brand portfolio strategies:
House of brands: This includes various categories of the brand that are independent and undertake various marketing methods and techniques. Here, the targeted customers for each category are different based on the needs as well as the demand of the consumers. For instance, Dyson could come up with new clothing organisation under its name.
Advantage: If there is the negative image of the parent company, it would not create an impact on other brands and thus large market share could be gained by the firm.
Disadvantage: The approach undertaken is costly and also managing the brands is difficult.
Branded house: When the sub-brand remains with the parent brand, it is called a branded house. The firm that deals in the market as a branded house ensure to clearly express the value proposition in a single manner and most of the cases shows the common thread that relates with the main parent brand.
Advantage: Less marketing cost that allows the firm to focus more towards main brands.
Disadvantage: The brand's portfolio here depends highly on each other that mainly creates confusion among the customers.
Figure 3 BRANDED HOUSE FOR DYSON
SOURCE- Uggla, 2017
Hybrid brand model: Here, the brand strategy serves both as a branded house and house of brands, it is termed as the hybrid brand. For the application of the hybrid model, the flagship brand is expanded further so that large market share within the business could be gained easily. For instance, Dyson could come up with such products that could serve various needs and requirement of the customers in an effective manner (Paul, 2019). The firm could come up with a completely new product say for clothing with a completely new name in the market.
Endorsed branding: Here this model states that use of association name is made so as to make the product relevant within the business environment. For instance, Dyson first came up with the concept of the vacuum cleaner and then changed its segment towards hair dryer further satisfying the needs and wants of the customers in an effective manner.
In addition to this, branding could further be done in two firms wherein looking towards the width and depth of the brand. This could further be explained as:
Breadth extension: Here the range of product and services is enhanced by the firm. For instance, Dyson deals in home appliances and then shifted to beauty appliances.
Depth extension: Here, relatable product type is launched by the firm in the market looking towards the old product. For instance, Dyson first brought up the normal vacuum cleaner and later came up with a wide variety and range.
BRAND HIERARCHY
Through the help of brand management hierarchy image, logo etc of the brand could be defined easily. Undergoing effective management of the hierarchy would allow the firm in making easy differentiation of the product looking towards the competitor’s product and undergoing certain point of difference and thus defining the elements of the product in the market effectively.
Figure 4 BRAND HIERARCHY
SOURCE- Tabataba'i-Nasab Nasab et al., 2018
Basically, there are two hierarchical levels for Dyson and these are:
The strategic/decision-making level: Here, the leaders, as well as managers operating at Dyson, make an analysis and determination of different aspects such as the preferences, task of the customers, attitude, strategies etc. The plans formulated by the firm are formed looking towards the data attained through the help of statistical tools.
The support level: According to this level, the management operating at Dyson are highly engaged towards the implementation of different branded strategies so that further attainment of success and development could be gained (Misra and Panda, 2017).
Brand equity could be defined as the premium value that the firm attains from the product as well as services that are being offered to them by which brand could attain recognition in the market. Various aspects such as forming the brand recognizable, maintaining the product’s quality, and keeping the reliability in mind could further help in the attainment of the good image in the market.
There are different strategies that can be implemented by the firm by which they could manage brand equity in an effective manner:
Communication: No brand would be able to attain success if effective communication strategy is not implemented by them. Adaptation of strong and effective communication would allow the firm in attaining increased brand equity in the business environment.
Legal and ethical decision-making: The firm must ensure that unfair trade practices are eliminated by them as it would help them further in undertaking proper management of the reputation of the firm. Ethical and legal rules should be well undertaken by the firm by which further trust of the employees could be gained and increase their confidence (Matikiti-Manyevere et al., 2020).
Awareness: For gaining strong competitive advantage as well as meet the required needs of the customers, the firm here need to ensure that they create awareness of the brand in the market by which effective brand equity could be managed.
Brand leverage: This could be termed as a plan which is implemented by the firm wherein the use of an existing brand is done in order to bring out a new category of the product in the market. Through the application of this strategy, it becomes easy for the new product to enter the market and thus maximise profits. Low cost is also attained by the firm since the use of the already well-established brand name is done to further come up in the market.
STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF DYSON
For further gaining competitive advantage among the competitors, there are few strengths the firm has:
Innovative products: There are various household appliances that are being manufactured by Dyson such as hand dryers, vacuum cleaner, hairdryers etc.
High quality: All the Dyson products formed are manufactured keeping in mind the quality of the product. The products here are of high quality and proper care of each product is well undertaken along with undergoing proper quality check.
Great designs: The management at Dyson always ensure to produce great and new designs of the product. Each product manufactured by them are unique wherein they make effective use of bright colours that perfectly match with the design of the product (Koschmann and Sheth, 2018).
Following are some of the weaknesses of Dyson:
High price: The prices of the Dyson products are high in comparison with other of its competitors existing in the market. This is one of the great weakness that may hinder the overall performance of the firm.
Lawsuits and controversies: Dyson has entered various lawsuits with various brands such as Samsung, Amway, Excel dryer etc. Dyson also sued Amway for copying up its designs and these acts can act as a weakness for the firm and can lead a negative image of the firm in the consumer's mind.
Brand collaboration: It could be stated as the strategy that is undertaken by the firm wherein two or more of the brands collaborate for specific product or service in order to attain a competitive advantage in the market. The companies here have got common objective and goals to be attained and so they undergo collaboration.
Partnership agreement: This agreement is formed which includes various terms and conditions that need to be undertaken by two or more parties involved. This agreement discusses properly about the responsibilities, duties, and power. In order to avoid taxation policies and face other legal issues, the agreement is formed by the company. Ways by which brand could be extended further are:
Category extension: This strategy is taken up by the firm wherein use of the same brand is done even for entering a completely different segment of the product.
Geographical extension: This is one among the most expensive way by which the brand could be extended as here the firm would have to attain knowledge from the scratch wherein they have to further make the consumers well aware of the brand and have to undergo various strategies and concepts in an effective manner (Keller and Brexendorf, 2019).
Line extension: This could be termed to be one of the easiest ways that could be undertaken by the firm for entering the market. Here, the new product category enjoys the power and reputation of the existing brand.
Market extension: Here, the different category is launched in a different market, it is termed as a market extension.
TECHNIQUES FOR BRAND LEVERAGING
Fit: In relation to this technique, different categories could be applied by a single brand wherein the preferences of the consumers are also noted while making an evaluation of the technique.
Leverage: This technique is implemented by the firm so as to attain a sustainable position among the customers and thus beat the competition. An extension in the brand is undertaken by the firm in order to come up with a new product category.
Undertaking constant innovation in the product as well as in services would help Dyson is undergoing growth and future success in the market. Bringing up new technology Dyson also collaborated with NHS in order to come up with ventilators meeting the needs of the consumers in the present scenario. Apart from this, various social networking platforms are also used by Dyson in order to further help in the management of the brand at the global level.
Application of different strategies was also made by Dyson so that strong position in the domestic market could be formed by providing franchise with the help of which further consumers could be made well aware of the product available in the business environment. Local communities, social media, shareholders, employees as well as suppliers are kept in mind by management at Dyson before making entry to a new market (Missaghian and Pizarro Milian, 2019).
In addition to this, Dyson also came up with different events by which they could further be able to create its good image among the customers along with making them aware about the brand. Dyson also came up with few changes in its marketing strategies looking towards the perception, thinking and belief of the customers as well as the culture existing of different regions. Different innovative use of technologies was also made by the firm which could further help them in competing in the market among competitors.
BRAND VALUE
This shows the worth of the brand in term of the financial amount. Value of brand can affect the revenue and overall market of the company. Brand value is the cost that the organisation get after selling its brand in the market. It not only enhances the company's sales but also provide competitive gain to the company. Dyson shares high brand value with the employees, consumers and shareholder because the brand name of Dyson is well known in the market. Dyson earns annual revenue of 4.4 billion in 2018 which is increases from 3.5 billion one year before which shows that brand of Dyson is supported and loved by the consumer as a result company generate more revenue (Holst, 2020).
Brand value and equity differ from each other as brand value defines the cost of the brand because it is financial term whereas equity related to the assets and liabilities of the company in term of brand visibility, loyalty and association. Dyson company uses various techniques to measures the value such as qualitative and quantitative technique, profitability, and market share.
Quantitative technique
Dyson can also make use of this technique where numeric, consistent and logical data is collected to measure the growth of the company. This method is effective only when a large sample size is used for collecting data and with clear objectives (Keller and Brexendorf, 2019).
Qualitative technique
Dyson can measure and manages its brand value by using this technique which consists of:
Project technique: in this technique, Dyson can try to understand the perspective and feelings of the customers and ensure that their opinions have listened and necessary improvements are made in the products.
Free associations: market of Dyson can form an association with its product and brand by making use of this technique. Creative and innovative ideas are generated to achieve the success of the firm (Keller and Brexendorf, 2019).
BRAND AWARENESS
It is a marketing term that defines familiarity and recognition of consumer with a particular brand or product. It is a key step in increasing the growth of the company by reviving an older brand and promoting a new product. Effective promotional techniques and product quality are the key factors of Dyson to create its brand awareness in the market. Various activities can be used by Dyson to measures its brand awareness such as:
Social mentions and reviews: the social media comments and tags shows, how many consumers are aware of Dyson. This technique helps in measuring the brand, collecting consumer feedback and also promoting the brand (Bilgin, 2018).
Focus group and survey: Dyson can conduct a survey by asking a list of question from selecting a group to measure brand awareness to know the accurate information of the people who know the brand.
MARKET SHARE
Percentage of market’s total sales earned by a company over a specific period is termed as market share. Market share provides a general idea of the size of the Dyson in relation to its competitor and market. Increase in sales of Dyson by 26% which hits £4.4 billion shows growth in market share of the company. Along with this profit of the company also raised by £51 million to £750 million last year which shows that company is bringing improvement in its services and products (Dennys, 2019).
CONSUMER ATTITUDE
Attitude and satisfaction of the customer also play a significant role in enhancing the brand image of the company because the consumer becomes loyal to the brand only when they get satisfied with its product. Effective market share and increase in sales of Dyson show that consumers are satisfied with its product. Consumer survey, purchasing attitude and feedback of consumers can be collected by the Dyson to measure the attitude and satisfaction of the consumers towards the brand so that necessary improvement can be made (Lim et al., 2017).
PURCHASING INTENT
It is a measurement of probability that a customer will buy a product. It takes many things like behavioural information, content, consumption, channels, and demographics into account to form a picture of the consumer purchase path. Dyson analyses the customers purchasing intent by putting their attitude toward the brand, purchasing behaviour and other related data into consideration to analyse which factor is creating a high impact on the consumer so that Dyson able to determine effective strategies to attract consumer and enhancing their satisfaction by providing the right product as per their need (Lim et al., 2017).
This assignment provided understanding and knowledge of brand management and its theories to develop an effective brand image in the market. Key components, models, theories and concepts of brand management are presented to develop a successful brand of Dyson in the market. Further, the assignment presented the strategies of managing a portfolio, brand equity and brand hierarchy using theories. At last, this report presented the technique that Dyson can use to measure and manage the brand value of the company over time to enhance the brand image, gaining competitive advantage and providing high satisfaction to the consumers.
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