"The concept behind the Brand Equity Model is simple: in order to build a strong brand, you must shape how customers think and feel about your product. You have to build the right type of experiences around your brand, so that customers have specific, positive thoughts, feelings, beliefs, opinions, and perceptions about it.
When you have strong brand equity, your customers will buy more from you, they'll recommend you to other people, they're more loyal, and you're less likely to lose them to competitors."
From the image above it can be seen that there are multiple things to consider when building a brand. Relationships, Response, Meaning and Identity.
1. Relationships
"In this first step, your goal is to create "brand salience," or awareness – in other words, you need to make sure that your brand stands out, and that customers recognize it and are aware of it"
2. Response
"Your goal in step two is to identify and communicate what your brand means, and what it stands for. The two building blocks in this step are: "performance" and "imagery.""Performance" defines how well your product meets your customers' needs. According to the model, performance consists of five categories: primary characteristics and features; product reliability, durability, and serviceability; service effectiveness, efficiency, and empathy; style and design; and price.
"Imagery" refers to how well your brand meets your customers' needs on a social and psychological level. Your brand can meet these needs directly, from a customer's own experiences with a product; or indirectly, with targeted marketing, or with word of mouth."
In relation to these two initial stages of creating a powerful brand, as Olins suggests in terms of branding, brands "need to create a consistent, clear idea of who they are and how they do things” (Olins, 2003, P 64). Therefore, this correlates with Keller's model, as it describes the method of establishing a clear identity for the brand, to keep it standing out amongst other similar brands. The brand should have a specific rhetoric and image that engages an audience and allows them to be recognisable. Think Coca Cola, you know who they are from the name and even the colour red which is their primary colour. This idea would come under the title 'imagery' on the diagram, as it considers what imagery the brand will have to make an impression upon the consumer, depending on the target audience, purpose and tone of voice. It also considers the relationship between the consumer and the brand, what decision making process they will have when choosing the brand, and why. Klein puts forth the idea that “the more advertising there is out there…the more aggressively brands must market to stand out” (Klein, 2009, P 09)
3. Brand Response
Your customers' responses to your brand fall into two categories: "judgments" and "feelings." These are the two building blocks in this step.
Your customers constantly make judgments about your brand and these fall into four key categories:
- Quality: Customers judge a product or brand based on its actual and perceived quality.
- Credibility: Customers judge credibility using three dimensions – expertise (which includes innovation), trustworthiness, and likability.
- Consideration: Customers judge how relevant your product is to their unique needs.
- Superiority: Customers assess how superior your brand is, compared with your competitors' brands.
As Olins proposes, “if all the competitors are good, the one with the best reputation wins” (Olins, 2003, P 08), which means that brands must strive to achieve the categories Keller lists, in addition, this places most of the power on the consumer, reinforced by Olins - “customers have ultimate power” (Olins, 2003, P 09). Since they are the ones purchasing the products from the companies, the consumers have the power to supply the profit to the businesses. It is the brand's responsibility to ensure they stand out and provide quality to the consumer to gain their business.
Niomi Klein however suggests that “too often, however, the expansive nature of the branding process ends up causing the event to be usurped,
creating the quintessential lose-lose situation. Mot only do fans begin to feel a sense of alienation from (if not outright resentment toward) once-cherished cultural events, but the sponsors lose what they need most: a feeling of authenticity with which to associate their brands.” (Klein, 2009, P 36)
4. Resonance
Keller breaks resonance down into four categories:
- Behavioral loyalty: This includes regular, repeat purchases.
- Attitudinal attachment: Your customers love your brand or your product, and they see it as a special purchase.
- Sense of community: Your customers feel a sense of community with people associated with the brand, including other consumers and company representatives.
- Active engagement: This is the strongest example of brand loyalty. Customers are actively engaged with your brand, even when they are not purchasing it or consuming it. This could include joining a club related to the brand; participating in online chats, marketing rallies, or events; following your brand on social media; or taking part in other, outside activities.
If a brand is to achieve the list above, it is clear to say that the brand will be successful. As Pierre Martineau explains, “you want the customer to fall in love with your product and have a profound brand loyalty when actually content may be very similar to hundreds of competing brands.” “the first task is one of creating some differentiation in the mind—some individualization for the product which has a long list of competitors very close to it in content." (Packard, 1980, P 65)
Analysis / Religion
In terms of religion, this hierarchy model can apply. Speaking in terms of Christianity for the ease of this analysis, it all begins with who they are and what they stand for. Christianity stands for the teachings of Jesus Christ/God, usually involving love and acceptance of your neighbour, the avoidance of sin (10 Commandments) and following the path to eventual heaven. This is all stated within the religious teachings, The Bible. Straight away a connection is made with the 'audience' of what the religion is. Secondly, the relationship between the religion and the individual is established, the individual is a devotee to a practice, a belief. They believe that these particular teachings are the correct way to live, and so they form a relationship between the religion and the icon of the religion which is Jesus Christ.
The image is formulated by the historical religious art surrounding Christianity, there is an image of how we imagine Jesus and the Devil, in addition there is the official logo within the cross. The cross is so iconic that it is globally recognised as the symbol of Christianity.
The third stage which is brand response, is related to religion in terms of how it makes the audience feel and how they judge the religion. Religion supplies needs to the consumer, and they will then make judgements on how well this adheres to their personal needs as an individual. Religion offers comfort in hardships, a meta narrative and establishes the means to an end giving a semantic element to our lives, and it helps the audience learn lessons and values which can then be transmitted through generations. As Freud suggests, “only religion has an answer to the question of the purpose of life” (Freud, 2004, P 16) As a critique of religion and its function, Marx proposes that “religion disillusions man to make him think and act and shape his reality like a man who has been disillusioned and has come to reason, so that he will revolve round himself and therefore round his true sun. Religion is only the illusory sun which revolves round man as long as he does not revolve round himself.” (Marx, P 37-8)
As for the fourth section, it is important to Christianity that the audience is loyal to the teachings and keeps up with their beliefs in order to achieve eternal life in Heaven. Audience members also may have a special connection with their faith and God. There is a sense of community supplied to the audience through the congregation of the Church which a mass of individuals convene for worship, special events and ceremonies. Engagement is up to the audience however usually christianity encourages regular worship and involvement.
References
KLEIN, N. (2009) No logo: No space, no choice, no jobs. 10th edn. London: HarperCollins Publishers.
MARX, K., Translated, A.J., O’Malley, J., Edited and O’Malley, J. (1970) Critique of Hegel’s ‘Philosophy Of Right’. Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press.
OLINS, W. (2003) Wally Olins on B(r)and. London: Thames & Hudson.
PACKARD, V. (1980) The hidden persuaders. Pocket.
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