The mass consumption market is inextricably linked with marketing and advertising technologies that allow brands to more effectively promote their products. Nowadays it is difficult to find an urban person who could not name several brands from different areas of the consumer market. Moreover, active buyers will probably also be able to point out the positive qualities of the products of one or another manufacturer. All this is the result of using marketing tools, which are based on branding. This is a whole set of tools and methods that aim to increase demand for a product of a certain brand. As a rule, this process is carried out by large companies operating in the global consumption market, but there are other areas of application of such technologies that are aimed at forming the image of an object outside commercial purposes.
Branding Overview
A brand is usually understood directly as a manufacturer who is engaged in the production of a particular product. But this is not entirely true. Such an association is more likely to fit the concept of a brand. In turn, branding is a process during which a specific image of an object is formed in the target audience . Often, one goal is set - to introduce precisely a set of positive properties and product characteristics, which allows companies to come forward against the backdrop of competitors.
For example, when it comes to automobiles, marketers in creating a brand rely on qualities such as reliability, safety, comfort and ease of use. These characteristics should be associated with the buyer with a particular brand. It should also be understood that in the eyes of the consumer, branding is a way of recognizing products. Obviously, in the process of choosing a product from a wide range of products, the buyer should be guided by information about the offer. As a result, emotions and associations formed by branding come first.
Goals and objectives of branding
In most cases, branding aims to increase sales. This is achieved by increasing interest in products and, most importantly, a favorable image of the brand. Today more and more often under one brand several products are produced. For example, the American company CAT, specializing in the production of construction equipment, transferred the rights to use its brand to a little-known British manufacturer of mobile devices. As a result, the CAT phone appeared on the market, associated with high performance and reliability. But, as already noted, it is not always this method of promotion that the goal is precisely commercial success. In particular, branding of territories can be aimed at creating a favorable image among the local population. For this, the same marketing tools can be used as in the consumer market.
Brand Stages
Work begins with analytical operations aimed at studying the market and target audience. If you plan to develop an existing brand, then study its current position in the segment. The following is planning, during which the essential characteristics of the brand are formulated, and a management strategy is developed. Then, experts form a system of verbal and visual identification, as well as image.
So, if branding of territories in the resort area is being developed, then characteristics such as environmental friendliness, developed infrastructure, comfortable living, etc. will come first. In order to convey the formulated package of quality properties to the target audience, promotion tools are used. At this stage, marketing communications channels are used , on the basis of which strong relations are built between the consumer and the brand.
Branding technology
Different branding technologies may be used depending on the market segment and sales conditions. Universal can include communication and information tools, which are the basis for promoting the product to the masses. There are more specialized approaches used by marketers. Thus, branding technologies for consumer goods usually involve various types of comparisons and positioning. In the first case, the products are compared with outdated products of the past generation or with generalized offers of competitors.
Of course, such a comparison should leave an advantage for the promoted brand. As for positioning, it can affect a variety of qualities. For example, positions in terms of price determine whether the product belongs to the budget segment, medium, premium, etc. This facilitates the consumer’s tasks in the selection process, since he can easily identify the product and correlate it with his requirements.
Branding Principles
Specialists identify two basic principles by which the work of marketers in this direction is built. First of all, it is the correspondence of the market needs to the offer, which is provided by its participants. The second principle assumes that the qualitative characteristics of the products meet the expectations and requirements of the mass consumer. Actually, branding technologies are developed with an orientation to these principles. There are also many opinions according to which the set of initial settings for promotion should not only rely on the needs of the buyer, but also meet the expectations of society as a whole.
Features of Russian branding
The situation on the domestic market demonstrates a noticeable lag in marketing activity from foreign companies. On the one hand, this determined practically empty niches in which there are no large Russian brands, but on the other, new participants should face quite serious competition in the form of more well-known and publicized foreign brands. In general, branding in Russia is due to poor communication with the consumer. But this situation is changing, and, despite the dominance of world giants in the market, the domestic manufacturer has its advantages. Firstly, the very fact of the Russian origin of the goods is attractive. Secondly, such products are cheaper.
Modern branding
For the first time, branding technologies in the modern sense were applied back in the 1930s. In the following decades, the concept of creating images about the product did not change, but the tools for achieving such tasks were improved. Nowadays, branding involves more radical changes. For example, there is a clear segmentation of products, multi-branding, as well as the use of more stringent advertising technologies. According to many experts, in the near future, goods in each segment will become almost unique, that is, the consumer will not be able to choose between products of similar quality, but will be able to immediately purchase something that fully meets their requirements.
Conclusion
Branding can be considered as a combination of marketing tools or a set of advertising tools, but this will not be enough to explain its nature. Nevertheless, branding is a process of developing mental perception. You can use its result for any purpose. Indeed, it is not for nothing that branding is closely related to such properties as image and reputation. Another thing is that it is in the sphere of commercial interests that he brings the greatest dividends, and therefore arose in the conditions of market competition. The essential methods and principles of creating consumer images are unlikely to change in the near future, but technological approaches in this direction will inevitably develop.