A Brand is Born

A brand is an intangible but a critical component of what a company stands for.

A consumer does not generally have a relationship with a product or a service. However, he or she may have a relationship with a brand. In part, a brand is a set of promises. It implies trust, consistency and a defined set of expectations.

The strongest brand in the world owns a place in the minds of the consumers and when it is mentioned, almost everyone thinks of the same associations. Examples: Herbal Essence helps attain organic pleasure; Head & Shoulders shampoo helps clear dandruff; Fair & Lovely helps enhance beauty and achieve a fairer complexion. Conversely, certain words connect the consumers back to the brand. Example: one-quarter moisturizing cream leads one to think of Dove; aiming a higher name in stardom would make one think of Lux since it is positioned as brining out stars in its consumers.

Birth of the Branding Concept

Branding is a rather new concept: a single, seemingly innocuous idea conceived by the strategists Al Ries and his wife, Laura Al Ries in the mid-1980s. They believed that successful companies produced brands instead of products, that is, brands were intangible and existed only in the minds of the consumers