Brand architecture and Brand strategy

I/ Brand Architecture and Brand Strategy

A/ A Brand architecture is used to clarify the relationships within a portfolio of brands. It could stand for a “family tree” of brands. This is the base of a brand strategy, developed to increase customers’ loyalty and to reach new targets.

B/ A Brand strategy highlights what you stand for and the benefits of products/services which are either functional or emotional in order to bring your competitive positioning to life. It is a plan developed to convey the identity of a brand, its personality, its story, its means.

Companies have to differentiate themselves from their competitors, to attract customers by showing the uniqueness of their products/services. A global model will not enable companies to accentuate the positive aspects of their production. To give the feeling to sell a unique product, a company must develop a unique strategy, based on the right architecture.

Trigger 3:

The five cases relate stories. Some explain these stories by using dates, names, famous personalities, music, a voice in the background, different landscapes. They all convey a clear message. Furthermore, the atmosphere is always different.

II/ Brand architecture models

A/ Branded House for mature or small markets. There is one powerful image or name and its divisions with product or service description. The company aim at maximizing marketing efforts. This is the cheapest and simplest (one main logo and style

B/ House of Brands consists of various brands, each sub-brand is independent and obtains separate profits. Targeting different markets enables companies to increase their market share. More expensive (multiple logos, marketing campaigns, managements)

C/ Hybrids also exist: Blended House. They mix Branded House and House of Brands.

D/

1)    A monolithic brand stands for one master brand and its divisions (products or services)

2)    An endorsed brand stands for one presence with its divisions

3)    A pluralistic brand stands for distinct brands under a parent brand. Its goal is to maximize dividends

III/ Pluralistic and House of Brands are the best models for a company proposing different products and services.

Finding the model fitting the company depends on the number of products/services proposed, their similarities and the available budget, the flexibility needed, the clients needs and the values

IV/ Brand architectures

Branded House:

V/ Trigger 3

	Case 1	Case 2	Case 3	Case 4	Case 5
Story	Multiple places, an increasing atmosphere,	Test friends	Static, no real action	Army, prisoners saved by a woman	Story of Johnnie Walker, 6min, little movie
Characters	A child, Friends getting older	Men of different nationalities	Family	Prisoners, a man on a screen, a woman	Piper, storyteller
Dates				01/24/1984	1819 1860 1909 1920
Famous personality	Avicii				Robert Carlyle
Colors	Dark and yellow	Dark	Yellow	Grey	Grey
Music	Multiple noises (plane, firework) before “Feeling good”	Time, monotone Festive	Soft music	Cold, slow	Fast
Important word(s)	“Free”	“Imagine”	“Excellent”	“1984 won’t be like 1984”	“Skill and intelligence”, “art”, “unique product”, “keep walking”
Background voice	A man		A man	The man on the screen
Places	Beach, concert, forest	Poker room	Farm	Grey place, jail?	Mountain
Atmosphere	Night, rain, sunset, fast changes, alone, quiet	Danger: fire, fights, night The curtain falls: applause, feast	Sunset, serious, quiet	Cold, revolution	Vigorous
Brand	Volvo	Carlsberg	Koskenkorva	Apple	Johnny Walker
Message	“A new beginning”	“Standing up for a friend That calls for a Carlsberg”	“Vodka from a village”	“On January 24th, Apple Computer will introduce Macintosh. And you’ll see why 1984 won’t be like 1984”	“The man who walked around the world”

NB: Storytellers are always men, with a deep voice.

VI/ Choosing a wrong architecture brand could have negative effects in the long-run

For instance, a company choosing a Branded house architecture could lose the loyalty of its clients if a new product/service does not match with the identity previously transmitted by the brand.

Moreover, a company choosing a House of brands architecture could have an ineffective management board if it leads several different products/services and the company could not pay for all the costs.

http://www.marketingmo.com/strategic-planning/how-to-develop-your-brand-architecture/

http://ervinandsmith.com/blog/branding/four-brand-architecture-examples/

http://www.ignytebrands.com/brand-architecture-creating-clarity-from-chaos/

https://carlsberggroup.com/who-we-are/about-the-carlsberg-group/our-strategy/