The Concept Of Brand Image Marketing Essay

The concept of brand image appeared in the 1950s and since that time it has become a common topic of research in the consumer behavior field. Numerous studies of brand image have been reported and the phrase has been widely used in a variety of application. Nowadays, practitioners and academics embrace the concept of brand image. In its nature, such a concept embodies an abstract reality in which consumers buy brands for reasons beyond the physical features and functions of the product. (Dobni & Zinkhan, 1990)

Building a strong brand is essential to many companies nowadays because it leads to a number of strategic advantages. Just to mention some, a strong brand name helps the company to build its identity, become less vulnerable to competitors’ actions, increase price mark-ups, provide a close intermediary cooperation and support, as well as create some brand extension opportunities. (Yasin et. al, 2007)

Measuring the overall value of a brand is a complex task and the process of assessing “brand equity” often involves some degree of uncertainty and even subjectivity. This is the case because brand equity is measured by consumers’ perception about a specific brand, which may be affected by various factors. To properly understand what happens in the consumer’s mind and how brand equity is formed several key factors should be taken into consideration. To mention some, researches often focus on advertising, distribution, product price and quality as contributing factors. (Cobb-Walgren et. al, 1995; Yoo et.al, 2000)

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Moreover, in many cases consumers perceive a given brand focusing primarily on the country of origin. Specific stereotypes are formed, such as “Japanese electronics are reliable” or “Swiss watches are excellent”. A brand may be evaluated based entirely on its “Made in…” label. Therefore, the perception of the country is also important and some countries are “superior” compared to other ones in terms of brand perception. (Yasin et. al, 2007)

Some clarifications need to be done when assessing brand image. It is vital to mention that a unified academic approach to the concept of brand image is still missing. Variations exist in the interpretation of five separate, but related, aspects of brand image: the names that have been ascribed to this phenomenon, the formal definitions, the components and the instruments that have been used in measuring brand image, as well as its perspectives in relation to brand image origin, creation, formulation and degree of manipulability. (Dobni & Zinkhan, 1990)

Consequently, the idea of subjectivity inevitably appears when measuring the brand image perception among consumers. Namely, the concept of subjectivity plays the main motivational role in the creation of the dissertation paper. In an attempt to measure brand perception relativity, a case study is going to be undertaken. The main object of interest will be a well-established and well-known brand name- Adidas. The study will focus on the UK and Indian apparel markets and try to identify the differences, if any, in consumers’ brand image perception.

Problem statement

As previously stated, the concept of subjectivity prevails when measuring brand image. The difference in brand perception will be addressed in this dissertation paper. For this purpose, a study of consumers’ preferences will be conducted in the UK and India simultaneously. Moreover, the main choice of brand is placed to Adidas because of the worldwide familiarity and degree of awareness with the brand. The following research question has been formed:

What are the differences in brand image perception among the UK and Indian consumers?

Answering the research questions requires a consistent and detailed scientific approach. Therefore, the paper will be separated in several key sections. The first objective will be to analyze branding and brand image from a theoretical point of view. Second, the proper methodology will be established and the necessary data collected. For this purpose, the paper relies exclusively on the quantitative research methods- namely, a questionnaire. Third, a separate section will be devoted to data analysis and findings. Fourth, based on the findings, a detailed list of suggestions and recommendations will be elaborated. Finally, the dissertation will end with a conclusion section where all main findings will be summed up.

Literature Review

The topic of brand image and the differences in its measurement and perception has attracted a lot of attention in the academia. The idea behind this chapter is to provide a summary of the most important scientific publications and findings about the topic.

Peterson and Jolibert (1995) study the effect of the country-of-origin (COO) on the brand image. They find out that in general consumers tend to generalize their attitudes and opinions across products from a given country. Such generalization is based on two factors. First, it is consumers’ familiarity with the country; and second, their personal experience with the product based on several criteria, including product quality, design, status and esteem, value for money and credibility of COO of a brand. It is worth mentioning that author find the COO factor to be with a predominant influence compared to the other abovementioned factors influencing brand perception. Therefore, favorable/ unfavorable country associations tend to influence the brand perception in a much stronger way, than the product quality itself. (Peterson & Jolibert, 1995)

The process of globalization has led to hybridization of the production process. Therefore, associating brands with their COO is becoming a harder task because often a given product is designed, manufactured and sold in different countries. In this respect Persson (2010) argues that the brand image is less dependent on its COO, but from other factors, such as brand familiarity, product solution and service, distribution and company associations. (Persson, 2010)

Reynolds and Gutman (1984) suggest that brand image cannot be analyzed using rational basis. The authors argue that a product positioning and differentiation should be elaborated on a “feelings” basis. The rational for such a proposal comes from the evidence that consumers tend to be irrational and, therefore, the emotional appeal to a given product is likely to play the most significant role in brand perception. (Reynolds & Gutman, 1984)

Alternatively, the authors claim that brand image can be estimated on the basis of “attitude”. Such conceptualization can substantially improve the ability to measure consumers’ perception of a brand and its characteristics. In applying the attitude approach, the brand image is usually restricted to a set of product characteristics. The main weakness of this approach comes from numerous pieces of empirical evidence where brands with similar product characteristics have different market share and consumers’ perception. Hence, the idea of objectively measurement of brands seems to be impossible for practical application. (Reynolds & Gutman, 1984)

Kathiravana (2010) argues that the most important among all factors in brand image assessment is acceptability. Therefore, the brand with the biggest market share is usually the one that generates the highest level of preference among the consumers. (Kathiravana, 2010)

Hoeffler and Keller (2002) state that the recent society changes to a greater environmental awareness has reflected on brand image, as well, Therefore, products that are environmentally friendly and constitute social benefits tend to benefit from a better consumers’ attitude. Moreover, purchase of such products is often associated with a sense of accomplishment and realization of a moral act. (Hoeffler & Keller, 2002)

Gensch (1978) suggests a quite unconventional approach in brand image evaluation. The author states that the “image” of the product is composed of factors that are extrinsic to the product itself. In his opinion, product perception consists of two components- the measure of the product attributes and the “image” of the products. Therefore, brand image is seen as a purely abstract concept which is primarily built on promotion, reputation and peer evaluation of the product. (Gensch, 1978)

To finish with, Dichter (1984) suggests even a more extreme view point. According to him, the most important characteristics of a brand image are “magic and product’s morality”. (Dichter, 1984)

Descriptive Part

The Indian consumer market

Indian consumer market has a number of specifics that are important to mention in order to accurately assess the retail environment. Therefore, this chapter focuses on the typical features and tendency in the market. A broad range of factors will be analyzed including the recent liberalization policy, retail market structure, branding demand and perception, as well as some specific cultural issues.

To begin with, it is important to evaluate the recent economic liberalization that has taken place in the Indian economy. For a long time, restrictions were placed in front of the foreign companies in order to protect the local producers. Such a hostile environment made the Indian economy to a great extend self-sufficient and isolated from the rest of the world. Recently, however, restrictions have been loosened allowing foreign companies enter the local retail market. Thus, combined with the solid economic growth, has dramatically increased the attractiveness of the country for doing business. (Lee et al., 2010)

Consequently, as a result of the regulatory policy changes and strengthened by the high economic growth, the Indian retail market size and growth has accelerated significantly in the recent years. In 2010 the industry size was estimated to be around $500 billion compared to just $250 billion six years earlier. Such growth dynamics is unprecedented and has no comparison in the Indian retail industry history. (Field, 2005)

Moreover, starting from 1990s and onwards, the Indian retail industry has changed in a way that substantially increased market competition, product availability in terms of quantity and quality, as well as increased level of awareness and propensity to consume. Therefore, it can be stated that nowadays Indian consumers are facing increasing complex variety of choices in many categories of retail products. (Kinra, 2006)

Although the majority of the Indian retail industry consists of low-size, low-quality stores and the branded segment accounts for just 3% of the total retail market, India’s branded retail sector is expected to grow with roughly 30% in the years ahead. Moreover, changes occur in how products are marketed. The appearance of department stores, hypermarkets and Western style malls is a common phenomenon in India nowadays. (Lee et al., 2010)

The biggest segment of the Indian retail industry is the apparel sector which constitutes a market share of around 39%. Traditionally, apparel is offered in small shops that offer low-price unbranded materials. However, consumer taste shows a shift to the ready-made Western style products. It has been acknowledged that Indian consumers are price sensitive and value price before quality, style or brand names. Recently, various research studies show that Indian consumers have shown a higher degree of willingness to pay premium for branded goods with foreign origin. (Lee et al., 2010)

Such a tendency can be explained with the fact that Indian middle class growth rapidly due to the solid economic growth in the recent years. Namely, the middle class represents the largest buyers group of foreign branded apparel. In its nature, this is a recent phenomenon because buying branded apparel was a privilege of a small group of rich people only in the near past. (Kumar et al., 2009)

To finish with the quick overview of the Indian consumer market, it is worth mentioning that using branded products is often perceived as high status identification in Indian society. It is a specific cultural feature and foreigner companies need to understand it accurately in order to successfully penetrate the local retail market. (Lee et al., 2010)

TO BE CONTINUED….

Theoretical Part

The theoretical chapter of the dissertation aims to provide a clear theoretical overview of the brand image characteristics and determinants. Therefore, the aspects of brand image and brand equity will be analyzed accordingly with respect to the topic of the paper.

Brand image

One of the definitions for brand image is”perceptions about a brand as reflected by the brand association held in consumer memory”. It would not be wrong to state that brand image describes consumers’ thoughts and feelings towards a given product. Therefore, brand image is unique mental picture of a brand and it summarizes its uniqueness compared to other existing brands. (Lee, XXX)

A strong brand affects costumers in such a way that they often ignore monetary, social and safety risks when undertaking purchasing. Successful brands often have a big market share, as well. (Management Study Guide, 2011)

The determinants affecting brand image can be divided into two groups. The first group includes all tangible attributes of a given brand. The second group is the intangible characteristics. In many cases, the intangible characteristics are the decisive factors in forming the brand image. In literature, the intangible characteristics of a brand are called “brand equity”.

Tangible characteristics of the brand

The tangible characteristics of the brand often refer to the product characteristics itself. Product characteristics may vary substantially from product to product. Typical positive features can be reliability, functionality, safety, etc. Depending on the brand, the tangible characteristics’ importance can be of different magnitude. In electronics and car manufacturing, for instance, the tangible characteristics of the product might be crucial. (Kyoung-Nan et. al, 2008)

The tangible characteristics of the brand are measurable, as well. They can be accurately assessed based on certain criteria. From a practical viewpoint, however, this is not of high value in measuring the overall brand image. Problems occur from the fact that the intangible characteristics have a bigger weight in forming the brand image. In this respect, it is worth mentioning that tangible characteristics account for averagely of 20% of the overall brand image perception. (Balakrishnan et. al, 2011)

Intangible characteristics of the brand (Brand equity)

As already stated, each brand image has its tangible and intangible attributes. Even if two products are similar, consumer preferences may usually be quite different. Such a phenomenon is related to the intangible attributes of the brand. Brand equity refers to the value hidden in these intangible characteristics. It appears when consumers willingly are ready to pay price premium for the same level of quality due to the attractiveness of the brand name. (Yasin et. al, 2007) Such attractiveness is built on several key characteristics. In short, the intangible characteristics of a brand can be summarized in five distinct groups:

Brand awareness;

Brand associations;

Brand perceived quality;

Brand loyalty;

Other proprietary factors, such as patents and trademarks.

Such division of the brand equity includes consumers’ perceptions and actions into a single theoretical framework. Thus, the simple reliance of attitudes as a leading brand image determinant is ignored and a more thorough approach is undertaken. By combining perceptions and actions in a single place, it is believed that a better predictor of market behavior is constructed. (Myers, 2003)

It is argued that brand equity is essentially a mental perception of the consumer in relation to a specific brand. Therefore, the value of a given brand is entirely determined by what the consumer thinks. A successful brand is likely to provoke certain thoughts, feelings, associations and sensations in one’s mind and, consequently leading to a routine in consumers’ preferences, behavior and purchase decisions. (Yasin et. al, 2007)

The importance of the intangible brand characteristics originates from the idea that customers often seek to satisfy needs beyond the functional aspects of the product only. Needs like self-expression, self-esteem, prestige, approval and some other emotional values are addressed by the intangible product features. These characteristics, however, are often subjective and impossible for measurement. (Balakrishnan et. al, 2011)

Moreover, the intangible characteristics of the brand may address even the higher order needs of the costumers, such as self-concept, lifestyle, intuitive likes and dislikes or simply to convey exclusivity and uniqueness to others. (Balakrishnan et. al, 2011)

Dimensions of brand equity

As already stated, brand equity consists of five key dimensions- brand awareness, brand associations, brand perceived quality and loyalty, as well as other proprietary factors, such as patents and trade marks.

Brand awareness is probably the most important component in building solid brand equity. High brand awareness reflects into a higher degree of dominance of the brand. Such a situation increases the probability of purchase of a given product. Undoubtedly, higher level of awareness leads to higher likelihood that a brand is well-positioned in the consumers’ consideration set which eventually reflects in the buying decisions. (Yasin et. al, 2007)

The results from numerous research papers confirm the crucial role of brand awareness in building brand equity. For instance, consumers tend to prefer familiar products, rather than new ones when undertaking a buying decision. Therefore, brand awareness seems to be the dominant consumers’ purchasing tactic. Moreover, it is important to say that high brand reputation is mainly driven by high product familiarity and awareness, too. (Yasin et. al, 2007)

A brand association is another important component in building brand equity. Brand associations are important because they actually represent the consumers’ images and associations for a given brand. In they nature, brand associations are quite complex because they represent a network of multiple ideas, episodes, facts and examples in the consumer’s mind. The main driving force in building brand associations is consumers’ beliefs. Beliefs are formed from past or present experience with the given brand or as a result of the brand representation, such as advertising. In some other cases, beliefs originate from consumers’ already existing associations. (Yasin et. al, 2007)

Therefore, consumers’ favorable beliefs are likely to substantially influence their buying decisions. In general, this may have a huge impact on brand equity. Brand association may originate from, both, the tangible and intangible characteristics of the brand. For instance, some tangible features may be functionality, efficiency and design of the product, whilst intangible ones can be the sense of prestige, innovativeness and distinctiveness. From the abovementioned, it can be concluded that the identity of a given brand eventually influences its associations and brand equity. (Yasin et. al, 2007)

Brand perceived quality occurs when consumers recognize the superiority of a brand compared to other brands. High perceive quality is influential over consumers’ buying decision and, therefore, leads to an increase of the brand equity. Perhaps, perceived quality is the most important brand equity feature. It justifies the marketers’ actions of charging a higher price for the branded products. (Yasin et. al, 2007)

Brand loyalty plays an important part in building the brand equity. This is the case, since the equity of a brand depends to a large extend on the people who buy it regularly. The regular buyers represent a constant and secure stream of revenue to the company owning the brand. Moreover, if buyers are loyal, they may refuse purchasing an alternative brand no matter of its superior or more attractive characteristics resulting in an increased value of the brand. (Yasin et. al, 2007)

Some other aspects, such as patents and trademarks should be included to the brand equity dimensions, as well. Patents and trademarks are essential in creating brand equity, though they do not directly influence consumers’ purchase behavior like the abovementioned factors. Patents and trademarks should be seen as protective measures of the brand. Their proper implementation enables successful brands to grow in monetary terms without the risk of losing value due to vicious competitors who may directly misuse with the brand ideas and images. (BriefLetter, 2011)

Brand’s country-of-origin (COO) and brand image perception

It is a scientifically proven fact that consumers tend to build beliefs and evaluations of a product over time. Often the perception of the overall brand image depends on the COO of the brand. The COO factor is considered as extrinsic product cue. Consumers are believed to build different stereotypes in respect to the COO factor. Therefore, certain countries are perceived in a better fashion then others. Such stereotypes are directly translated to the brand image of a product. (Yasin et. al, 2007)

Nagashima (1970) is the first researcher who studies the problem in details. His defines the image consumers relate to the COO as:” . . . the picture, the reputation, the stereotype that businessmen and consumers attach to products of a specific country. This image is created by variables such as representative products, national characteristics, economic and political background, history, and traditions.” (Nagashima, 1970).

The COO impact on brand image and perception is studied by Maheswaran (1994), as well. The author confirms the decisive role of the COO to brand perception and states that the COO factor is mainly determined by the country in which the product of interest is manufactured. Moreover, COO is used as a primary cue by consumers in evaluating new products under several conditions and minimum consideration is given to other product related attributes. (Maheswaran, 1994) Furthermore, a strong relationship is found not only between COO and perception of the product, but also between COO and the opinion of the people living in the given country. (Iyer & Kalita, 1997)

Hong and Wyer (1989) observe, however, that the COO factors are significant and predominant only in the cases when consumers are able to elaborate on them before decision making. Baughn and Yaprak (1993) study the same topic and conclude that the COO factor actually is perceived quite subjectively and the main driven in COO estimation is the cultural specifics of the consumers. (Hong & Wyer, 1989; Baughn & Yaprak, 1993)

Papadoupoulos et. al (1993) claim that the product’s COO perception is based on three key components, called “cognitions”. The three components include knowledge about the specific products and brands, consumer “affects” determined from the favorable/unfavorable attitude towards COO and their behavior relation to the actual purchase of the foreign brand. It is found that the “affect” factor is mainly emotional and in the majority of the cases it is the dominants factor and overshadow the rational factor in perceiving a foreign brand. (Papadoupoulos et. al, 1993) Moreover, it is important to mention that the degree of emotional bias varies substantially over countries. For instance, it is estimated that in the Western societies a positive bias towards domestic goods prevails, while in the developing countries foreign brands are perceived as superior. (Bannister & Saunders, 1978)

It can be concluded that COO significantly influences the brand image perception. This influence originates from the existing beliefs and evaluations among consumers toward a given country and its characteristics. By creating certain stereotypes in consumers’ mind, the COO factor directly influences the brand image perception mainly through two separate channels- brand associations and brand perceived quality.

TO BE CONTINUED…

Methodology

The following chapter aims to clarify the research approach adopted in the process of answering our main research question. The chapter is about to follow a well-determined procedure. First of all, a look at the research philosophy that is applied in the dissertation will be set out. Secondly, the decision of applying the case study approach is mentioned and justified. Finally, the applied primary and secondary research methods are explained accordingly.

Philosophical Approaches

Social scientific research is based on the specific beliefs of the researcher which eventually influences the choice of research methodology. The initial and the most influential factor that drives researcher’s choice is usually the question about the nature of reality. In interpreting the reality, however, a consensus does not exist. Two different scientific streams: 1) positivists and 2) interpretivists are suggesting completely opposite view points. (Bryman, 2004)

Positive approach is one of the main scientific approaches nowadays. It is the most widely used one, as well. A set of structured instruments are applied when studying a given phenomenon. In positive approach a theory is tested in attempt to increase predictive understanding of the problem of interest. In general, positive studies are easily recognizable due to several common features. They implement hypothesis testing, quantifiable measures and drawing of inferences about the phenomenon from a sample. (Orlikowski & Baroudi, 1991)

An exception of the abovementioned rules is the category of descriptive studies. In descriptive studies the researchers attempt no theoretical framework or interpretation of the phenomena. On the contrary, they present what is perceived to be a direct relationship between “factual” and “objective”. Even the implementation of descriptive statistics is often ignored in the group of descriptive studies. (Orlikowski & Baroudi, 1991)

Interpretive approach is the counter-response to positivism. In interpretive studies it is assumed that a universal truth does not exist and observers build their own subjective meanings when they interact with the surrounding world. Interpretive studies reject the idea of “factual” and “objective” reality and seek for relativistic and flexible response to reality. (Orlikowski & Baroudi, 1991)

In the interpretive any attempts for generalization are avoided. Instead, the aim is the understanding of the deeper structure of a phenomenon. A key characteristic of the interpretive studies is the presence of non-deterministic perspective. Therefore, the intention of the research is to improve the understanding of a given phenomena within various contextual situations. Moreover, it is important for the researchers not to impose their outsiders’ understanding and interpretation of the situation. (Orlikowski & Baroudi, 1991)

Case Study Approach

The case study approach has become an increasingly applied choice in social research and is the preferred choice for the following dissertation paper, as well.

As described by Stake: “Case study is not a methodological choice but a choice of what is to be studied. By whatever methods, we choose to study the case. We could study it analytically or holistically, entirely by repeated measures or hermeneutically, organically or culturally, and by mixed methods – but we concentrate, at least for the time being, on the case” (Stake, 2003)

Therefore, the case study approach does not limit itself to a specific epistemological framework and allows the research to be flexible when choosing the appropriate manner in which the research is applied. In this study, the chosen case study approach will be guided mainly by the interpretive stance.

There are three types of case study- intrinsic case study, instrumental case study and collective case study. The intrinsic case study approach is concerned with the intricacies of the individual case and there is no particular need for generalization based on the findings though it may be possible. The case is perceived to offer unique insights to a particular phenomenon that are of interest. On the other hand, the instrumental case study is not interested in the specifics of the very case. It primarily focuses how the case can be applied in wider phenomena. Therefore, generalization is widespread and often in the center of attention. In collective case studies the same wisdom is applied but usually more than one case is used when making the generalization. Often, many cases on a particular phenomenon are used in order to build a mixture of insights on the particular phenomenon that is studied. (Stake, 2003)

Research Methods and data collection

The following paper relies on two types of research approach- primary and secondary. The descriptive and theoretical parts of the dissertation are built by using the secondary approach. Information is collected from a number of sources, including books, journal articles, online sources, etc. By applying the secondary research approach, it is possible to gather data in a relatively fast fashion and at low cost. This method, however, has some weaknesses. One of them is inability of the researcher to control the in formation quality and reliability.

However, it is relied entirely on the primary research approach when addressing our main research question. To be more precise, a questionnaire is designed and sent to two quite different places- India and the UK. The questionnaire attempts to adequately address the topic of branding and its effect on consumers’ purchasing decisions. In order to be as objective as possible a relatively huge sample of 303 respondents is chosen in both places, India and the UK. The following pages reveal the structure of the questionnaire itself and the details of its design.