Question

Topic: Branding

How To Start Off New Brand Branding Strategy

Posted by Anonymous on 10/26/2004 at 12:52 PM ET 250 Points
We are a electrical household product retailer and wholeseller. I am in charged for the marketing & branding for my company and the product that we are the sole area distributor. My problem is how to start off with the branding as this is a new subsidary in our group of company and this is an important assignment to me and the group. May I have any idea to start off steady .
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RESPONSES

  • Posted by mgoodman on 10/26/2004 at 10:18 PM Member
    You say you are the wholesaler and retailer, right? Then who is the manufacturer? They should have some information about consumer needs, values, beliefs, habits and practices, attitudes, likes/dislikes, etc. in the cagegory. That's the place to start.

    A brand is more than the label on the products. It's the promise you're making to your consumers and customers about the benefits they'll realize when they buy your products. If the products don't have the brand built-in, you can't cover up that fact with slick marketing. Consumers are too smart for that.

    If I were you, I'd go to the manufacturer and get him/her to explain what kind of consumer input they used to design and develop the product. If they can't give you that, I'd really be worried about the products you're representing.

    You could just brand your company -- as a reliable, honest, service oriented supplier of quality products (or whatever). But that kind of misses your point, doesn't it? You can only brand a product when you accept responsibility for delivering an important consumer benefit, time after time, consistently. And then you have to do it, or people will find out your brand is a sham.

    Hope this perspective helps.
  • Posted on 10/26/2004 at 10:59 PM Member
    I'll add to Praf's response that once you've answered those other questions, the way to wrap it up is to ask what makes your product distinct. It doesn't have to be one thing - it can be a set of facts that make up the distinction. Once you're able to articulate that, you have an excellent basis for a brand strategy. And, by the way, the claim has to be deliverable.

    While you need to look out at the market and competition for data, you have to claim a space that is built on what you (or product) are inside. I believe the danger in *only* looking at what the market wants is that the competition does the same thing. You get brand blur. Sameness.

    My two cents.

    Best wishes!

    Nila
  • Posted by Chris Blackman on 10/27/2004 at 3:14 AM Accepted
    Praf, mgoodman and Nila's advice is very good, and you should take notice of it.

    From my perspective, I see that most electrical wholesaler - retailers are dealing with products from a whole range of different manufacturers, some of whom would be pitching at a wholesale/electrical contractor (Electrician) market while others would be expecting the end-user(consumer) to be making the buying decision.

    I think more to the point with the wholesaler/retailer business, is what is special about your business that means a customer will come to buy from you, rather than a competitor.

    You will need to segment your market into at least the two principal groups (wholesale, retail) and maybe further than that.

    And you should segment your product portfolio into key range groups.

    Look for which parts of the portfolio sell into which segments, and then make sure you know WHY that customer buys those things from YOU, not a competitor. Or, if the business is starting up, why they SHOULD buy from you instead of someone else.

    Once you understand your intended position in the customer's mind, you can develop a value proposition for each segment.

    THEN you can develop your branding aligned with your value proposition.

    Hope this helps.

    ChrisB
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