Products and Brands
A. Difference Between a Product and a Brand
The term ‘product’ and ‘brand’ are two words that are connected or related with each other having almost similar essence but have different purpose when applied to the markets and business world.
(2004) stated that a brand serves to identify and distinguish the products or services of a person from those of his or her competitors. A brand is essentially shorthand for a set of perceived qualities. It may be a logo or a work or even, for instance, a piece of music. A brand is a piece of property which can be very valuable and may be bought and sold, either as part of a business or independently.
A product, on the other hand, is anything that can be offered to a market that might satisfy a want or need. It can be tangible or the pure product and intangible or the pure service spectrum. A product is also similar to goods. Furthermore, it is a commodity produced for sale. (2006)
of the WPP Group in London once described the difference between a ‘product’ and a ‘brand’. He said that a product is something that is made in a factory while a brand is something that is bought by a customer. A product can be copied by a competitor; a brand is unique. A product can be quickly outdated while a successful brand is timeless.” ( 1998-2006)
These differences between the term ‘brand’ and ‘product’ according to King were seconded by , a marketing communication specialist, when he stated that the brand is often the reason why we buy the product.
Furthermore, according to Williams, brands are name given to products and services. It inhabits the minds of the market and resides in the wits of clients and customers. Products, on the other hand, are made in the factory. It can be found on a shelf while brand is chosen by a customer. It can be copy and can be outdated but brand is timeless and unique. ( .)
summarized these differences between a brand and a product. According to him, a brand is the name people use when talking about the product to someone else; thus people think of it rather than the product. It is something which has developed a personality beyond the product. It is something people would pay a premium for under that and no other name.
( .)
A product is a convenient locator in a product range. It is something which could be easily ordered by description. It is a label which could be changed without any loss of loyalty to the customer. It is a tag which customers have to look up and doesn’t realty care about. ( .)
B. Why Do Companies Develop Core Products into Brands
Most companies now recognize that brands are powerful marketing assets. As the world becomes increasingly complex, brands serve as familiar beacons of trust to consumers, and make their buying decisions much simpler.
Branding is the process of creating distinctive and durable perceptions in the minds of consumers. A brand is a persistent, unique business identity intertwined with associations of personality, quality, origin, liking and more. Techniques of branding include association of a company with logos, distinctive colors, slogans, musical sounds or songs, unusual qualities, mascots, packaging, a memorable name, behavioral hallmarks and much more. (1999)
Companies developed their core products into brands because it build a strong corporate or company image that can be extended to future products. A brand name makes it easier to identify and describe the core selling points of a product. It also provides a distinguishing symbol (name and logo) that customers can remember. (Developing a brand (or not), 2006)
Reasons why companies develop their core products into brands:
1. Memorability. A brand serves as a convenient container for a reputation and good will. In addition to an effective company name, it helps when people have material reminders reinforcing the identity of companies they will want to do repeat business with. (1999)
Memorability can come from using and sticking with an unusual color combination, distinctive behavior , or with an individual, even a style of clothing . Develop your own identifiers and nail them to your company name in the minds of your public. (1999)
2. Loyalty. When people have a positive experience with a memorable brand, they’re more likely to buy that product or service again than competing brands. People who closely bond with a brand identity are not only more likely to repurchase what they bought, but also to buy related items of the same brand, to recommend the brand to others and to resist the lure of a competitor’s price cut. The brand identity helps to create and to anchor such loyalty. (1999)
3. Familiarity. Branding has a big effect on non-customers too. Psychologists’ discovery that familiarity induces liking means that people who have never done business with you but have encountered your company identity sufficient times often become willing to recommend you even when they have no personal knowledge of your products or services. (1999)
4. Premium image, premium price. Branding can lift what you sell out of the realm of a commodity, so that instead of dealing with price-shoppers you have buyers eager to pay more for your goods than for those of competitors.
5. Extensions. With a well-established brand, you can spread the respect you’ve earned to a related new product, service or location and more easily win acceptance of the newcomer. (1999)
6. Greater company equity. Making your company into a brand usually means that you can get more money for the company when you decide to sell it.
7. Lower marketing expenses. Although you must invest money to create a brand, once it’s created you can maintain it without having to tell the whole story about the brand every time you market it. (1999)
8. For consumers, less risk. When someone feels under pressure to make a wise decision, he or she tends to choose the brand-name supplier over the no-name one. (1999)
C. The Role Packaging Play in Marketing a Brand
Packaging has been defined as all products made of any materials of any nature to be used for the containment, protection, handling, delivery and presentation of goods, from raw materials to processed goods, from the producer to the user or the consumer. The various types of packaging play a key role in the production, preservation, distribution and marketing of manufactured consumer goods and other products. ( 1997)
Packaging is now generally regarded as an essential component of our modern life style and the way business is organized. It protects the goods we buy from wastage and damage. Without packaging, materials handling would be messy, inefficient and costly. The modern consumer marketing also would be difficult. ( 1997)
Packaging is important in our lifestyle. Convenience foods, individually packed small serves, microwavable meals, “easy opening” packaging, secure packaging for pharmaceuticals and hazardous substances are all examples of packaging playing a role in assisting and promoting our lifestyles. ( 1997)
Traditionally, the primary function of a package was to simply contain and protect the product. However, factors such as increased competition and clutter on the retail store shelf have meant that for most products, packaging must perform many sales tasks, such as attracting attention, describing the product, and helping to make the sale. The often cited ‘four Ps’ of marketing: price, promotion, product, and placement are concepts that summarize the domains of marketing strategy, the packaging. As a crucial part of the both the product and promotion, packaging assists consumers to select among other relatively homogenous products. ( 2000-2006)
Packaging is a major component of a marketing strategy. It plays an increasingly important role in the marketing of new and existing products. A unique cap or closure, a better box or wrapper, or a more convenient container size may give a firm a competitive advantage. The right type of package for a new product can help it gain market recognition very quickly. Marketers view packaging as a major strategic tool for convenience products. (2002)
It plays an important role in differentiating competing products and can be decisive in influencing the purchasing choice of consumers. As packaging is the first thing that one notices about the product, packaging has become as important as the product itself. (2002)
When there is less opportunity to establish brand imagery through traditional methods of advertising, as is increasingly becoming the case as advertising restrictions come into force, packaging plays a more important role in establishing and driving brand image.
The primary job of the package is to create a desire to purchase and try. To do this, it must look new and different enough to attract the attention of the consumer.
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