Brand Consistency & Communication

• Brand consistency reinforces brand identity, ensures predictable experiences, and builds brand equity
• Brand authenticity maintains consistency, conforms to category norms, and builds connections over time
• Firms communicates core brand identity internally (employees) and externally (customers and stakeholders)
• Brand audits identify key user touchpoints for consistent delivery of brand promises
• Internal branding ensures employee understanding and delivery on brand promises

Key Strategies

• Internal branding aligns operations, culture, and behavior with brand identity
• Internal branding prevents gaps between brand promises and delivery
• Brand audits assess alignment across products, services, interactions, operations, and partnerships
• Communication and storytelling uses narratives for emotional brand connections
• Storytelling supports strategic goals, engagement, and brand authenticity
• Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) integrates multiple channels across customer journey
• IMC balances short-term sales activities with long-term brand-building for brand health
• Firms must manage identity-image, culture-identity, and culture-image gaps for consistency

Tools for Consistency

• Stakeholder analysis aligns incentives with brand values
• Employee training, storytelling, and rewards reinforce brand behaviors
• Consistency delivers the brand's image, promises, and experiences
• Conformity aligns with category norms for brand purpose recognition
• Connection creates meaningful bonds and deeper emotional resonance
• Brand ambidexterity balances stability and updates in products and communications

Three Critical Gaps to Manage

• Identity-Image Gap is when stakeholders perceive the brand differently than intended
• LEGO adapting products to represent diversity shows how to reconcile the Identity-Image Gap
• Culture-Identity Gap is when employees do not share or deliver the intended brand identity
• Lack of COVID-19 employee protection shows the Culture-Identity Gap
• Culture-Image Gap happens when employee perceptions of the brand differ from customer perceptions
• Airline staff referring to passengers as “self-loading freight" highlights the Culture-Image Gap

Brand Audits

• Brand audits evaluate activities, practices, products, and touchpoints against positioning for consistency
• Products and services must align with the core brand identity
• Customer journey mapping identifies key interactions impacting brand perception
• Operational practices ensure ethical, environmental, and governance practices align with brand promises
• Manage user base alignment to brand image

Internal Branding

• Brands launch internally before external communication
• Employee Alignment ensures employee understanding and commitment to the brand promise
• Recruitment and Training hire individuals who align with brand values
• Reward Systems incentivize behaviors that reflect brand identity
• Internal Storytelling uses narratives to reinforce brand identity

External Communication

• External brand communications should reflect the core brand identity consistently
• Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) aligns marketing activities through the consumer-decision journey
• Communications must utilize assets consistently, balancing brand-building with tactical campaigns

Brand Storytelling

• Stories allow users to project into the brand narrative
• Successful stores have intrigue, clarity in brand vision, and consistency

Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC)

• Early communication during IMC creates brand awareness at the "consider" stage
• Later communication in IMC guides evaluation and purchase
• Follow-up activities repeat purchase and advocacy

Experiential Branding

• Brands use experiences to reinforce authenticity using Pine & Gilmore's model and Holbrook's value typology
• Apple's educational spaces and Prada's aesthetic-focused stores design aligned store experiences
• LEGO creates user interactions reinforcing brand values

Authenticity Through Strategic Campaigns

• Aligning brand communications with user expectations will reinforce what is real and genuine
• An example of this is Leica cameras portraying craftsmanship
• Harley Davidson engages authentically through user communities, another example of this concept
• Volvo shows cultural alignment when lobbying for road safety

Leveraging Endorsements and Sponsorship

• Endorsements and sponsorships enhance authenticity by transferring cultural meaning from the sponsored entity
• Nike's selection of celebrity endorsers shows the benefit of this practice

Brand Equity

• Brand equity's definition is the value derived from consumer perceptions, attitudes, and loyalty
• Brand equity is a critical intangible asset, often exceeding physical resources in value
• Historically, brands now dominate market value more than ever
• Brands generate cash flow, allow price premiums and provide competitive advantage

Brand Equity vs Brand Valuation

• Brand equity is consumer-focused value
• Brand valuation assesses financial worth

Stakeholders and Brand Equity Interaction

• Brand equity is influenced by customers, employees, and investors
• Customer interaction impacts brand perception
• Employee influence brand experience and authenticity
• Investor decisions are affected via perceived brand strength
• Regulators and media affect brand's public image
• Consistency delivers brand promises
• Relevance stays connected to demands
• Distinctiveness differentiates competitors
• Emotional resonance creates bonds and attachment
• Authenticity shows truthfulness in actions

Authenticity Creates Brand Equity

• Authenticity builds trust which can enhance loyalty
• Authenticity reduces consumer skepticism
• Passionate brands with integrity show consumer emotional performance

Brands in Market Context

• Brands may face economic downturns
• Competition from store brands
• "Marlboro Friday" highlighted resilience through innovation in branding
• Resilient brands adapt and reinforce during crises

Frameworks for Understanding Brand Equity

• The Customer-Based Brand Equity (CBBE) Framework was developed from Marketing Science Institute's resonse
• CBBE emphasized building consumer relationships, loyalty, and resonance
• CBBE is important to reach not just loyal, but "light" users for growth
• Brands grow by acquiring lighter users
• Focusing on loyal users can limit growth potential

Brand Equity Measurement

• Brand awareness includes recall and recognition
• Customer loyalty includes repeat purchase and advocacy
• Agencies perform Market-based valuations
• It can be difficult to connect brand equity to financial outcomes

Passionbrands

• Purpose-driven brands are popular
• Passionbrands stand for something that has a unique outperform

Kodak´s Brand Renewal

• The Kodak's bankruptcy and subsequent recovery highlights the critical role of brand equity
• Kodak re-engaged employees by emotionally with the brand's identity
• Recovering Identity-Culture-Image gaps help revive brands

Core Takeaways

• Brands should be prepared to discuss brands like Coca-Cola, Apple, Nike
• Equity is consumer based
• Valuation is the financial market estimation

Consumer Insights in Branding

• Brands shaped via perceptions and experienes
• The importance of consumer insight matters
• Understanding consumers allow brands to tailor experinees
• Surveys, focus groups gather consumer insights
• Social listening is social and online conversations
• Analyzing purchase history, and engagement Metrics

Building Brand Trust

• Trust reduces perceived risks in healthcare and technology
• Consistency delivers uniform product expererience
• Reliability ensures service
• Transparency demonstrates good pricing
• Authenticity stays true to heritage values

Authenticity in Branding

• Levi's is a brand that demonstrates history and storytelling
• Dove demonstrates marketing in its messaging
• Ben& Jerrys advocates for social justice
• Brands must consistently demonstrate realness throughout

Branding For B2B

• Building Experise is crucial for B2B success
• Relationships should have a long term value
• Studies and Testimonias are very helpful

Key Exam Takeaways

• Insights drive branding decisions and trust
• Being genuine helps
• "I am Canadian" star helps drive results
• All of this matters, to a sucessfull brand