Is it true?
THE ORIGIN OF BRAND PHENOMENON AND ITS EVOLUTION
Traced back to thousands of years ago (2000BC), the term “branding” came from the Old Norse “Brandr” – to burn. Back then, “cattle, slaves, timber and crockery were burnt or branded with the markings or symbols of the owner using a hot iron rod”. Thus, the concept of branding was actually to express the ownership, particularly things with values. The marks implied “This belongs to me, so leave it…” to “This was made by me, so buy it”. This practice started to evolve in the 1800’s, even though sometimes, companies branded for their products with absurd claims. For instance, toothache drops with the ingredient was cocaine, or Philip Morris stated that “the throat tested cigarette”.
…AND ITS EVOLUTION
Over time, together with the development of science and technology, firms have continued their evolution in branding. And as the most visual part of branding, logos depicted prominent changes. In 1876, Bass Ale’s red triangle was the first official trademark. Ford, Nokia, and many other brands also changed their logo as we see today. Until recently, Apple with the latest MAC logo entirely transforms how brands nowadays do logo design (minimal, clean and elegant).
Not only does the logo reform, but also brand thinking and branding practice have undergone salient changes. From 1900s to 1990s, marketing literature suggested that goods-based perspective was the dominant brand modelling. During the period 1900s to mid-1930s, companies used brands merely as identifiers to tell customers about the producers. From mid-1930s onwards, the focus of brand value creation shifted from physical goods to the creation of brand image. At this point, customers were still seen as the target for firms to market their offerings that promised to satisfy either utilitarian or symbolic needs of customers. However, customers’ perception on brands’ functional and symbolic image started to affect customers’ brand choice. Brand scholars viewed brand as functional image until mid-1950s, and symbolic image from then till early 1990s.
Furthermore, 1990s witnessed crucial changes in brand thinking; relationship-focus brand era opened up. In this period, marketing scholars acknowledged that customers enhancing their role as significant actors in the creation process of brand value, but not only passive participation as in previous decades. This era marked the transformation from product-centered thinking to customer-centered thinking, which had an immense influence on firms’ brand management strategies.
“Torch of Freedom” campaign
The evolution process in both research and practices of branding is a very interesting and thought provoking phenomenon. If before 1930s, the only usage of brands was to distinguish producers, then starting from late 1930s, brand value creation shifted to focus on the brand image. The most crucial campaign that marked this change is Torch of Freedom campaign during the Eastern Sunday Parade in 1929.
In the 1920s, women didn’t smoke. Or if they did, they were severely judged for it. It was taboo. Then, in 1928, Edward Bernays was hired by the American Tobacco Company to implement a marketing campaign that could help them boost the sales. Bernays planned it so that these women in the parade, at the appropriate moment, would all stop and light up cigarettes at the same time. Then, Bernays hired photographers to take flattering photos of the women which he then passed out to all of the major national newspapers. Bernays then told the reporters that these ladies were not just lighting cigarettes, but they were lighting “torches of freedom,” demonstrating their ability to assert their own independence and be their own woman. The product – cigarette was no longer a cigarette only, it was associated with the image of freedom for women in late 1930s. Even though at this point, product-focus still prevailed, companies still sold things they had, branding practices began to sell image already, paving the way for the development of branding we see nowadays.
The product – cigarette was no longer a cigarette only, it was associated with the image of freedom for women in late 1930s. Even though, at this point, product-focus still prevailed, companies still sold things they had, branding practices began to sell image already, paving the way for the development of branding we see nowadays.
MARKET ORIENTATION VS BRAND ORIENTATION
At the same period, the concept – “Market Orientation” was first introduced into the academic literature as early as the 1920s. Through the development in research of many authors, till early 1990s, the theory and research of the concept had been completed. It basically stated that customer-focus is essential for organizations. Firms had to make sure that they could maximize customer satisfaction by understanding customer needs as a fundamental of organizational strategies; and the purpose of organization’s existence should primarily for serving customers.
Also, in early 1990s, Urde was the first one to bring to light another brand-new concept – “Brand Orientation”. Specifically, “Brand orientation is an approach in which the process of the organization revolves around the creation, development, and protection of brand identity in an ongoing interaction with target customers with the aim of achieving lasting competitive advantages in the form of brands”. This means that brand-oriented organizations considered brands as a “resource of strategic hub”.
Notes: Brand image is how consumers actually perceive the brand. On the contrary, brand identity is how the business wants its consumers to perceive it. Logo, tagline, typeface, tone, and personality are some of the brand identity’s components .
WHICH WAY TO GO?
From 1900s to early 1990s, it is interesting to see that Market Orientation concept was first introduced and developed at the same time with product-centered brand thinking. Product-centered modeling mainly focused on the physical goods and “brand value in terms of cash flow, revenues, market share, stock price, value in a sale, or similar measures”, Market Orientation also focused on the role of customers’ wants and needs in bringing companies’ profits. The two research about brand modeling were born and progressed paralleled during the same period of time.
Until 1990s, customer-centered era opened a series of changes in the ways firms did branding. This modeling brand value focused on “positive associations, awareness, loyalty, perceived quality of the brand, the differential effect of brand knowledge to the marketing of the firm, or the price premium that customers are willing to pay for the brand”. Together with this era, Brand Orientation was given birth to, which as presented above was identity driven branding (also about brand awareness, loyalty, ect).
Additionally, product-branding or corporate branding is another significant direction in research and practices in this period of time as well (1900s – 1990s). “The concept of brands emerged from the domain of consumer products and was originally considered more or less synonymous with that category” . Until 1958, Gordon Lippincott gave birth to the term ‘corporate identity’, and in 1965, Wally Olins founded Wolff Olins.
Corporate branding goes beyond product branding, instead focuses on “a well-defined set of values. Accordingly, the role of employees – including senior management – is considered as important actors in transmitting the brand values both internally and externally. With this direction, more stakeholders are taken into account, opening a more complicated yet interesting concept in branding – Network perspective. Bringing corporation into branding or not creates a wide range brand relationship spectrum from house of brand to branded house with endorsed brands and sub-brands in between.
From my perspectives, whether a company decides to be market-oriented or brand-oriented, product branding or corporate branding, or even a mix of these strategies largely depends on the company’s direction in brand architecture, how the company wants to build brand values and equity and how they want to communicate it to the customers. There won’t be a common answer for all companies to follow.