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Understanding the branding process

- The Branding Process has five steps.First, we have to define the brand,and everything that goes into it.A brand is a promise, so we have toclearly define what that promise is,and the core values behind it.Think of the values as the DNA of the brand.At this step, we also define how the brandlinks to your overall business,and other brands that you may have.Brands don't exist in isolation,so we have to give them a home,so to speak, somewhere in your portfolio.We also have to define what are called brand drivers.Brand drivers define how the core values will bemanifested into the marketing mix orkey business processes that support the brand.It's all the things associated with a brandthat help you translate its value into actions.The next step of the branding processis to position the brand.Essentially, we are shaping howcustomers think about the brand.We identify who those customers are,what benefits they seek from your products and services,and what they currently believe aboutthose products and services versus the competition.At this step, we're making the direct link betweenthe product's value proposition and the brand promise.Once you define the brand promise and howit's positioned in the marketplace,you need to express the brand.Imagine the brand as a person.A person needs a name, a personality,and an identity in terms of what they look like.You do the same for brands.At this step, we create brand names and logosto help customers easily recognize the brandand remember the promise that it delivers.At this stage, it's time to build awarenessof the brand and put it to work for you.We do that by communicating it and we do thatboth internally to our own organization,as well as externally to the market.Why internally?Your employees and distributors play acritical role in delivering the promise.They make and deliver products and servicesthat deliver benefits that customers expectgiven the promise the brand has made.Keeping a brand strong means we have tocommunicate continuously and most importantly,consistently, to reinforce the promise in people's minds.If you don't, brands lose their value.And that leads us to the final stepof the brand-building process: measure.You want to measure the value of thebrand, or what we call brand equity.It's what you accrue when you develop,promote and deliver an authentic brand promise.As brand equity increases, company value increases.You also measure the brand's performance.Is it living up to the promise, and is itdoing what you expected it to for your business?The brand-building process takes time and money,but if you do it right, you'll create strong, healthybrands that make your business more successful.

• What is your favorite brand?
• Name and describe five brand touchpoints using one touchpoint for each phase of the consumer buying process.
• Explain why these are important to support the brand in each phase of the buying process.