Every brand can be anthropomorphized to a certain degree. That doesn't mean every brand needs a little mascot character with big eyes and a funny name; it means that at the heart of every brand is a...

The practice of branding is a distillation of activities that were first developed during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries as marketing, advertising, public relations, graphic design (once...

The world changed rather dramatically toward the end of the twentieth century. The end of Soviet communism; the advent of the World Wide Web; an economic boom across Asia; the unification of Europe;...

A logo is not a brand, a name is not a brand, nor is a product design, a package design, a visual identity, an advertising jingle, or a shopping experience. These things are all merely the tangible...

In branding, there are several issues to consider concerning color. First, you need to master the physical aspects of color, which mostly have to do with graphic design: boldness, dynamic tension,...

Culture Color interpretations depend strongly on culture. While it is traditional for brides to wear white in Western cultures, in Asia it is worn at funerals. To some eyes, white conveys elegance,...

Commitment defined Commitment follows trust and is defined as 'an exchange partner believing that an ongoing relationship with another is so important as to warrant maximum efforts at maintaining...

How can trust and commitment be encouraged and nurtured? Avoidance of opportunistic behavior At various stages of the relationship there may be opportunities for either party of short-term gain by...

Social responsibility is a contract with society, while 'ethics relate to carefully thought out rules of moral values that guide individual and group decision making' (Dibb et al, 2001). In...

In the short term, extensions and merchandise make money, build hype, and give customers a way to "live the brand." Longer term, they may be detrimental, leading to overexposure and loss of focus,...

The concept of the customer value chain provides a valuable framework for analyzing the organization. The theory may be applied either to a single organization, or to a group of organizations...

Uses of the value chain The value chain can be used in a number of ways. First, it can form the basis for analyzing a single organization, identifying the systems that support the creation of the...

Customer experience management, service, or care: whatever the name, it's about the human contact between a company and its customers. There is an old business truism: failure to provide...

Satisfaction and value Quality represents the benefits that the customer derives from a transaction, but it must not be forgotten that these benefits come at a cost to that customer. If the costs...

When a great design becomes the icon of an era, the design becomes a brand itself. This has happened with several popular cars. The New Beetle and New Mini are examples of carmakers seeking to...