Marketing Communications and Strong Brands - Assignment Example

How does marketing communications build and maintain strong brands? I. Introduction Marketing involves directly in business activities worldwide. In this context, Kline (2005, 141) noticed that one of the main objectives of marketing is to shape “the relationship between sellers and buyers, generally companies and consumers, in a process that can be both cooperative and competitive”. In the case of brands, marketing participates in all promotion initiatives making sure that the relevant market will be approached on time and through the appropriate techniques. Towards this direction marketing indicates the most effective tools of consumer approach including any potential schemes for the extension of the brand in the foreign markets. In the last case – this is particularly related with branding – marketing focuses on the research of the foreign market, the identification of the preferences of its consumers and the evaluation of its differences from the local market. Current paper refers to the presentation of all parameters of marketing communications in general but also with a reference especially to the brands. Moreover, the particular characteristics of marketing communications and branding are being investigated trying to locate their application in practice. II. Structure and Operation of Marketing Communications In order to examine the role of marketing in modern markets, it is necessary to refer primarily to its definition. In this context, in accordance with a description given by the AMA (American Marketing Association): ”Marketing is an organizational function and a set of processes for creating, communicating, and delivering value to customers and for managing customer relationships in ways that benefit the organization and its stakeholders”. Particularly regarding the marketing communications Griffin et al. (1997, 24) accept that “‘in conducting marketing communication operations, firms have several options for sourcing the various communication activities as it is a make or buy decision: source from within or externally”. In other words, marketing communications are characterized as a necessary business tool which should be used by all firms in order to improve their performance not only in their local market but also in the international one. On the other hand, it should be noticed that marketing communications can take many forms. One of these forms, the verbal, one-way marketing communication, was examined by Dobie et al. (2003, 81) who came to the conclusion that “the only cues that the target customer has are voice related while the competitive and financial considerations dictate that advertisers use the most cost-effective means to accomplish their communication objectives”. However, although marketing communications are important for any business, it should be made effort to avoid using the specific tool in order to manipulate the consumers – a common phenomenon today. Towards this direction Moore (1995, 143) stated that “what is strategic in the communication is not that it is designed to be manipulative, but instead that it is designed to advance particular policies or organizational strategies by making them comprehensible and by enlisting the support and cooperation of those who must work together to produce the intended result”. On the other hand, it seems that it is not very easy for consumers to be manipulated as they have already formulated their own views on a series of products/ services and in this way the intervention of marketing communications can be only indirect and not so decisive as it could be possibly considered. In fact, Hall (2002, 24) mentioned that “consumers "change their minds" about a product, then they change their attitude, and then they act; in other words, the process begins with cognition, which translates to affect, which then translates to behaviour and in this way the purpose of advertising is primarily to drive trial by inserting the brand into the consumers head and keeping it there”. Marketing communications should be considered as a powerful tool for the development of the business performance through the improvement of their position within a specific market. However, its use by the firms in modern markets should follow specific guidelines mostly the principles of transactions and the commercial ethics. A major characteristic of marketing communications is that they are not equal in all firms of a specific market. In this context, the study of Low (2000, 27) led to the conclusion that “firms whose marketing communications programs tend to be integrated are also likely to be small, consumer-focused, service-oriented companies; they are also more common in manufacturing, agriculture, forestry, and mining industries”. This view should be criticized however as of its validity because marketing communications are used by firms of all size regardless their position in the market. Under these terms Gonring (1994, 45) supported that “by keeping its pulse on all internal and external stakeholders, public relations is able to balance public opinion and business strategy however if public relations is to be fully integrated into the organization, it must learn to counsel management and to manage communication in a way that shapes the opinions and behavior of relevant constituents”. In other words, marketing communications can be a proactive business strategy but only if aligned with the firm’s principles and the trends of the particular market. III. Branding – description and operation Branding is closely related with marketing. More specifically, without the intervention of marketing the establishment of brands around the world should be considered as impossible to be completed successfully. For this reason, it has been noticed by Aufreiter et al. (2000, 53) that “when traditional marketers think of organization, they mean structure: distinct product, channel, and customer groups focusing on specific functional tasks, such as brand management, customer segment management, and market research”. The description of the role of branding within the modern market should begin with the presentation of its characteristics. Towards this direction, Henderson et al. (2000, 112) supported that ‘the building of a brand starts with a precise definition of the target customer group and its needs and expectations and proceeds to a realistic assessment of how well the brand currently meets them”. In other words, the definition of the brand can be ‘derived’ by its activities which are related with all aspects of modern market as well as with the consumers’ preferences (these can be favourable for a specific brand because of the intervention of marketing communications). On the other hand, Dennis et al. (2002, 355) noticed that ‘branding is well known for consumer products but power has shifted from manufacturers brands towards retailers while the term image is more common than brand in the context of shopping centres, but branding may become more important’. Although branding is a common practice in modern commercial markets, some of its activities are not clearly presented to the consumers of the market involved. As an example of this phenomenon Dubois (1995) refers to the market of luxury goods which covers a significant part of the international marketplace. Specifically regarding the activities of brands in the luxury market it is noticed by the above researcher that “within the market for luxury goods although brand names and products are highly visible given their strong media coverage, the processes according to which consumers acquire and consume luxury items remain enigmatic; it seems particularly difficult to explain and predict the conditions under which "dreams" of luxury emerge and how such dreams materialize into purchase acts and for this reason the mechanisms underlying consumers, reactions to luxury goods, often described as impulsive, emotional, or "extravagant," seem hidden in an impenetrable black box” (Dubois, 1995, 69). According to the most common view, brands are ‘safe’ (regarding the validity of transactions and the quality of products offered to consumers) for consumers as – usually - they operate in many countries around the world (or in many towns within the same country). This structure of branding activities offer an increased safety to consumers (or at least this is the assumption made by the potential consumers) ensuring the protection of their interests. Moreover, Chung et al. (1997, 361) supported that ‘two concepts have been identified as key variables for the long-term success of brands or firms in global markets: brand popularity and country image; competitive analysis has been complicated as these two factors interact with other marketing variables in influencing brand performance’. As for the brand building process, this is considered as related with the provision of the sense of proximity to consumers. An indicative example of this assumption is the case of two competitors in the area of office supply (US): Staples and Office Depot which began (Henderson et al., 2000, 113) in “putting smaller stores in more locations, expanding the definition of the brand by giving the consumer access to a killer assortment of goods through whatever format or channel best suits a given transaction”. However, the results of the surveys testing the responsiveness of the consumers to the marketing communications plans applied by firms globally prove that the cooperation between marketing communications and marketing has not led to the required results. More specifically, a survey made by the BehaviorScan and published by Labarbera et al. (1995, 33) reported that “profitable sales resulted from advertising in only 40 to 50 percent of tested campaigns for new products and 20 percent for established brands”. In other words, branding should be reconstructed in order to meet the needs of current market and understand the preferences of the consumers as these are expressed mainly through their consumption trends. IV. Marketing communications for building brands of consumer vs. business-to-business products and services The methods used by entrepreneurs in order to extend their customer base can be divided in two major categories. In this context, a firm can choose to use the ‘scheme’ of branding which is going to be developed through the marketing communications, or it can decide to operate in the market through a ‘business to business’ (B2B) scheme. The differences between the above two schemes can be many. At a first level, in the case of branding the effectiveness of marketing communications (using for the promotion of products/ services to the consumers) “can be measured at any stage or level of this communication process or by using indirect indicators of purchase behavior such as attitude toward the brand/ad, brand awareness, and/or brand comprehension” (Cotter et al., 1996, 61). The above evaluation is feasible because of the existence of the phenomenon of ‘carryover’ or ‘duration’ of marketing communications which refers to the “the impact of change in MC expenditures on sales extends beyond the period in which the expenditure is made” (Cotter et al., 1996, 61). On the contrary, in ‘business-to-business’ schemes, this type of consumers’ influence is difficult to be observed mostly because the specific operational scheme is based on the ‘direct’ marketing which influences the consumer instantly. On the other hand, the types/ methods of promotion used in the above two schemes (branding and B2B) differ at a significant level. More specifically, in branding consumer promotions are used extensively by manufacturers in order “to stimulate consumers to try a new product, to switch brands, to increase the usage of the brand, or to reward loyal consumers” (Pelsmacker et al., 2004, 50). The most common tools used in this case are: “sampling, coupons, price-offs, bonus packs, premiums, and contests and sweepstakes”. On the other hand, in B2B marketing the most common tools for the promotion of the products are: the direct mail (letter, sample or catalogue). Regarding specifically the methods used in approaching consumers B2B is considered to be more effective because as it is stated by Pelsmacker et al. (2004, 68) “it is increasingly difficult to reach a mass audience by means of a simple media plan; on the contrary, the fact that more targeted media are used by the public, makes it easier to reach a more involved and interested audience, and to aim for a behavioural response through direct marketing techniques”. However, it should be noticed that currently branding is preferred by entrepreneurs around the world as the most effective operational ‘scheme’. For this reason the study of Chattopadhyay et al. (2005, 9) showed that “the most significant component of marketing communication investments is in brand contacts, i.e., the points at which the consumer and the brand come in contact with each other, e.g., through a sales force, mass media, sponsorships, internet, point of sale, word-of-mouth, and so on; investments in brand contacts account for as much as 90 percent of the marketing budget, in some instances”. Business to business marketing still have its advantages, like the fact that “those involved in purchasing no longer have to be tied to a single location because with the increased use of laptop computers, telephone modems, and fax machines, members of the buying center can communicate with each other from a variety of places” (Sullivan, 1990, 25). The existence of e-commerce has also offered significant advantages to B2B marketing. However, branding is still preferred by most entrepreneurs around the world as a more effective and ‘convenient’ marketing scheme. IV. Conclusion and recommendations The intervention of marketing communications in branding did not lead to the expected results, i.e. the increase of the performance of the brands established around the world. Trying to identify the effectiveness of marketing communication strategies, Treise et al. (1994, 59, 68) examined the ‘consumer perceptions of controversial advertising practices’ and came to the conclusion that ‘consumer opinion that a specific advertising practice is unethical or immoral can lead to a number of unwanted outcomes, ranging from consumer indifference toward the advertised product to more serious actions such as boycotts or demands for government regulation’. It seems though that the application of marketing communication strategies is not effective – at least not at the level expected. Moreover, it has been proved that consumers have developed their buying perceptions and are not longer influenced by the marketing campaigns referring to specific products and services. Regarding this issue, it has been noticed by Applbaum (2004, 257) that “there is little doubt that the awakening of self-consciousness among consumers that they were subjects of manipulative marketing techniques contributed to the decline of marketing idealism and the rise of a new pragmatism in the profession”. In other words, the differentiation of the consumers’ behaviour towards marketing has been the result of the manipulative strategies used by marketing firms in the past. These practices have ‘marked’ the area and the consumer is very careful when proceeding to the purchase of a particular product/ service. In this context, Shrum (2004, 111) mentioned that ‘marketers need to consider the potential danger of a backlash from consumers, especially where highly involved individuals are faced with placements in highly credible media”. The efforts made by the firms around the world regarding the promotion of their activities involve not only in the private but also in the public institutions. The particular issue has been examined by Neumann et al. (2002, 9) who stated that “both public and private sector organizations must support change initiatives and other mission challenges with effective internal and external communications programs while it is critical that organizations directly reach and impact all of their constituents to generate mission results; it is no longer enough to simply broadcast a message and wait for some type of response or action. A plan will help ensure that communications reach the intended audiences and that the audiences notice and act upon the messages they receive”. The promotion of the firms’ activities can take place through a series of techniques but it is necessary in any case for the interested company to collect appropriate information for the part of the population which its products/ services address. Such an initiative is also justified by Hagel et al. (1997, 65) who supported that “companies have good reason to collect information about customers; it enables them to target their most valuable prospects more effectively, tailor their offerings to individual needs, improve customer satisfaction and retention, and identify opportunities for new products or services”. A research made in 1995 using the technique of meta-analysis of 389 ‘real-world split-cable television advertising experiments’ led to the conclusion that “it is unlikely that there is a strong relationship between standard measures of T.V. commercial recall and persuasion of established brands and the sales impact of the copy; clearly, marketers need better pretesting tools to guide the design of product offers and communications that will motivate consumers to respond” (Labarbera et al., 1995, 33). All the above issues need to be considered using the principles of globalization, which is the trend that ‘governs’ market activities in the international community. It is for this reason that Barth et al. (1996, 117) supported that “one of the most problematic trends in todays retail industry is globalization; given the substantial productivity advantages enjoyed by the worlds best retailers, opportunities to move successful and innovative formats abroad would appear to be boundless”. Under these terms the implementation by the firms around the world, of the necessary strategies regarding the promotion of their activities globally, can be proved a successful decision on the long term basis. However, it is necessary that the adoption of any possible marketing communications strategy - in order to be used in branding activities - is based on the principles and the ethics of the market avoiding any potential manipulative strategies. An issue that needs to be taken into consideration when trying to establish a brand in a particular market internationally is the fact that modern markets tend to change rapidly presenting different behaviour towards the foreign investors and different chances for profit. For this reason any relevant initiative should be based on realistic projects checking the performance of the specific market throughout the years in order to avoid any potential damage. 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