The lecture with Jemma was about Branding. We partially discussed about it as did in the previous lecture with Sian, but this time we went more in depth regarding its creative features and more specifically, the ones of the fashion industry.
She started with the definition of branding, which is:
“A name, term, design, symbol, or any other feature that identifies one seller’s good or service as distinct from those of other sellers. The legal term for brand is trademark” (The American Marketing Association)
A Brand is much more than a just a LOGO, it is more than a NAME or the PRODUCT itself. It is actually all these together plus a substantial element, the emotional association that goes with it when we see the logo, the name or the product of that brand. Sometimes it is an irrational or intangible feel that goes with it because of the social environment, the political environment that was born or that led to its foundation. And this or other important factors can lead that brand to take on a symbolic meaning that goes beyond the product or service delivered.
Branding is important for multiple reasons:
- It helps customers differentiate between the various offerings in a market.
- It enables customers to make associations with certain attributes or feelings with a particular brand.
- If this differentiation can be achieved and sustained, then a brand has a competitive advantage.
- Successful brands create strong, positive and lasting impressions through their communications and associated psychological feelings and emotions, not just their functionality through use.
For further reference see Baines, P., Fill, C. and Page, K. (2011)
At the question ‘What do you think are the world’s most valuable brands?’, most of us wrote down almost the same names like Apple (first on the list, it’s worth 184.154 $m), Google, Coca Cola, Amazon etc. This list is updated on an yearly basis including mainly technology related (part of the market that has more revenue and is constantly growing – to consider when setting up a business)
A successful Brand should be:
- Compelling
- Appealing
- Relevant
- and have a lifetime potential
The Concept in its ideation reflects through:
- Name
- Country of origin
- History
- Story
- Visual image
- Logo
- Colours
- Shapes
- Language
As all lectures, I found this one very interesting. You can always get something useful from each. It is also very helpful when going over the same subject from different points of view. Hearing the same elements from different people helps me distinguish the most important characteristics from the less relevant information out there so I can make a better choice of how to prioritise when creating my own brand. Because branding is a process.
Anda Avramescu 