ACADEMY OF EC ONOMIC STUDIES OF MOLDOVA BUSINESS MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATI ON FACULTY INTERNATI ONAL BUSINESS DEPARTAMENT Victor CHIT OROG THE R… [631353]

ACADEMY OF EC ONOMIC STUDIES OF MOLDOVA
BUSINESS MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATI ON FACULTY
INTERNATI ONAL BUSINESS DEPARTAMENT

Victor CHIT OROG

THE R OLE OF BRANDING AND RE -BRANDING IN
THE C OMPETITIVENESS OF FIRMS WITHIN THE
LOCAL AND GL OBAL FRAMEW ORK

FINAL RESEARCH PR OJECT

Speciality: 365.1 W orld Ec onomy and Internati onal Ec onomic Relati ons

Auth or:
student: [anonimizat]. EMREI -154
Admitted t o defence: Full-time studies
Dr.,a ssoc.Prof. Victor CHIT OROG,
Larisa D odu-Gugea _______________
_________________________ (signature)
„___”________ ___________2018
Scientific c oordinat or:
Dr.hab., Univ. Pr of.,
Nicolae ȚÂU
__________________
(signature)

CHIȘINĂU 2018

ACADEMIA DE STUDII ECONOMICE A MOLODVEI
FACULTATEA BUSINESS ȘI ADMINISTRAREA AFACERILOR
DEPARTAMENTUL BUSINESS INTE RNAȚIONAL

Victor CHITOROG

ROLUL BRANDING -ULUI ȘI REBRANDING -ULUI ÎN
COMPETITIVITATEA FIRMELOR PE PLAN LOCAL
ȘI MONDIAL

TEZĂ DE LICENȚĂ

Specialitatea 365.1 Economie Mondială și Relații Economice Internaționale

Autor:
student: [anonimizat]. EMREI 154,
învățământ cu frecven ță la zi
Victor CHITOROG

______________________
(semnătura)
Conducător științific:
Dr.hab., Univ. Prof.
Nicolae ȚÂU

_____________________
(semnătura)

CHIȘINĂU – 2018
ADMIS la susținere
Șef departament:
Dr., conf. univ., Larisa
DODU – GUGEA

________________________
”___”______________20__

Declarația pe pr opria răspundere

Subsemnatul,___________________________________________________________ abs olvent al
Facultății _________________________________________ al Academiei de Studii Ec onomice din
Moldova, specialitatea ____________________________________________,
declar pe pr opria răspundere că teza de licen ță pe tema _______________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________ a fost elab orată de mine
și nu a mai f ost prezentată nici odată la o altă facultate sau instituție de învățământ superi or din țară
sau din străinătate, iar exemplarul prezentat și înregistrat la catedră c orespunde integral cu varianta
electr onică plasată în sistemul Anti -plagiat .
De asemenea, declar că sursele utilizate în teză, inclusiv cele din Internet, sunt indicate cu
respectarea regulil or de evitare a plagiatului :
– fragmentele de text s unt repr oduse înt ocmai și sunt scrise în ghilimele, deținând referința precisă a
sursei;
– redarea/ref ormularea în cuvinte pr oprii a textel or altor autori conține referința precisă;
– rezumarea ideil or altor autori conține referința precisă a originalului.

________________________
Numele Premulele
________________________
Semnătura

CONTENT

STATEMENT ON OWN RESP ONSIBILITY
LIST OF ABBREVIATI ONS
INTR ODUCTI ON………………………………………………………………………………….. ..3

CHAPTER I THE ORETICAL FRAMEW ORK OF BRANDING AN D RE -BRANDING
………………………… ………………………………………… ………………… .…………………5

1.1. Defining branding and its main characteristics………………………………… …………….. ….5
1.2. Significance and strategies of branding and rebranding .………………………………. ….……10
1.3. Brand impact on consumer b ehavi or ………………………………….………………… ….…..15

CHAPTER II THE R OLE OF BRANDING AND RE -BRANDING IN THE C OMPETITIVENESS
OF FIRMS WITHIN THE L OCAL AND GL OBAL FRAMEW ORK …..………………… .….…..22

2.1. Branding and re -branding analysis and their imp ortance f or firms ………… ………… .…….…22
2.2. Influence of branding and re -branding in the c ompetitiveness of firms ………… …… …………2 8
2.3. The r ole branding and re -branding in firm performance ……… …………………… ..………….34

CHAPTER III BRANDING AND RE -BRANDING IN REPUBLIC OF MOLDOVA …..………40

3.1 Overview of branding in the Republic of Moldova ………………… ………. …… ..……………40
3.2 Legal framew ork concerning branding in the Republic of Moldova ……………… ……. ………43
3.3 Branding and re -branding devel opmen t in Republic of Moldova…………………………… ……45

CONCLUSI ONS………………………………………………………………………… .…………53
BIBLI OGRAPHY

List of abbreviati ons

(AGEPI) – State Agency of Intellectual Pr operty
(APPs) – Aplicati ons
(BMW) – Bavarian M otors W orks
(CEO) Chief Executive Officer
(FC) – Football Club
(ICS) – Foreign Invested Enterprise
(PC) – Personal C omputer
(R&D) – Research and Devel opment
(SUV) – Sport Utility Vehicle
(TLT) – Trademark Law Treaty
(USAID) – United States Agency f or Internati onal Devel opment
(WOM) – Wine of Moldova

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INTR ODUCTI ON

Brand is name or logo that plays the r ole in the mind of the cust omer. It is everything that an
organisati on does to create in the minds of cust omers and pr ospects the percepti on that there is n o
product or service on the market like the one their company offer. Brands d o not compete in the
product area but c ompete f or the mind space of the cust omer. A brand once established in the mind
of the cust omer bec omes indelible when cust omer identifies itself with that particular brand.
Branding is an effective marketing strategy t ool that has been used with frequent success in the
past. It can be an effective and p owerful t ool for all types of business organizati ons. If brand owners
use their pr oduct c orrectly, the pay offs can be substantial. H owever, if brand s are mismanaged, the
results can be damaging.
The t opicality of the graduate paper is seen thr ough the fact that the brand of a company still
plays a vital r ole for the success of an organisati on. Possessing a str ong brand is a key success fact or
for companies pursuing gl obal market ing strategy. Many w estern c ompanies have succeeded in
devel oping trusted brand names am ong consumers gl obally. By having this merit, it serves as a
competitive advantage t o the firms especially in penetrating new f oreign market s.
The r ole of the graduate paper c onsists in argumentati on of the r ole and impact of branding and
re-branding in the c ompetitiveness of firms within the l ocal and gl obal framew ork. At present, there
are vari ous challenges faced by l ocal firms that hinder them t o compete with leading gl obal brands
present in the l ocal market. One of these challenges is the increasing c onsumers demands, diversity
of new distributi on channels and huge techn ological changes. These challenges c ould be overcome
if local entrepre neurs react p ositively with the changes in marketing envir onment by devel oping a
sound branding strategy that matched with l ocal envir onments. Brand c ompetitiveness is n ot placed
on the launching of new brand but heavily dependent on the c ompany's strategy and reacti on in facing
the changes in their envir onment.
The aim of the graduate paper is t o analyze the the r ole of branding and re -branding affect the
competitiveness of firms. The objectives of this w ork are realized thr ough:
– Presenting the the oretical framew ork of branding and re -branding;
– Ackn owledgement of branding significance f or firms success;
– Find out the brand impact on consumer behavi or;
– Discover the influence of branding and re -branding on competitiveness of firms;

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– Analysing the branding in the Republic of Moldova;
– To find new ways of devel oping branding in the Republic of Moldova;
An imp ortant aspect of the research pr ocess was based on the experience gathered thr ough the
period of perf orming the internship at "ICS Red -Sky". W here I dic overed the pr ocess of creating a
new brand and h ow the existing brands are being re -branding. A l ot of meth ods of reseach in order
to impr ove the existing brands I disc overed due this intership.
The structure of the undergraduate thesis is divide d int o three main chapters. First chapter
“The oretical framew ork of branding and re -branding” regards the academic and accust omed c oncept
branding and the imp ortance f or firms sucess, having three subchapters that describe the c oncept and
significance of branding and re -branding. Sec ond chapter “The r ole of branding and re -branding in
the competitiveness of firms within the l ocal and gl obal framew ork” describes the main r ole of brands
in competitiveness of firms. It has three subchapters, which reflect h ow brands influence the firm
performance. Third chapter “Branding and re -branding in the Republic of Moldova” f ocuses on
presenting of how branding is imp ortant f or firms in the Republic of Moldova. The last chapter als o
has three subchapters, which sh ow an overview of the branding in the Republic of Moldova, legal
framew ork and branding devel opment of the Republic of Moldova. C onclusi ons presented at the end
of this w ork, summarize the imp ortance of branding and re -branding f or firms c ompetitiveness
globaly a nd localy.

5
CHAPTER I THE ORETICAL FRAMEW ORK OF BRANDING AND REBRANDING

In this chapter, the research will seek t o build an academic f oundati on from which a further
research can be c onducted up on. Its purp ose is t o throw m ore light on the vari ous the ories and
concepts circling brand as well as c onsumer behavi or and its the oretical impact on the purchase
decisi on making pr ocess of consumers.

1.1 Defining branding and its main characteristics

To gain a clear understanding of the t opic under study, firstly there is the need t o explain what
a brand is, as one of the m ost imp ortant aspect of business strategy p oint of view.
A brand is the symb olic emb odiment of all the inf ormati on connected with a pr oduct or
service. It enc ompasses the set of expectati ons ass ociated with a pr oduct or service, which typically
arise in the minds of "pe ople" (c onsumers, buyers, or other target audiences). A brand typically
includes a name ("brand name"), l ogo, and other visual elements such as images, f onts, c olor
schemes, or symb ols. In other c ontexts, the term "brand" may be used where the legal term trademark
is more appr opriate.
1John Stewart, a f ormer CE O of Quaker Oats, f or example once said “If this business were
split up, I w ould give y ou the land and b ricks and m ortar, and I w ould keep the brands and trademarks,
and I w ould fare better than y ou.” (K otler, Thirteenth Editi on Page 259).
This clearly drives h ome the p oint that brands are very valuable t o companies and even much
heavier than assets, hence t he need t o be pr operly managed.
A brand is an acr onym, signal, mark or blueprint, or a combinati on of these, that identifies
the maker or seller of a pr oduct or service.
A brand is a name, symb ol, or any feature that identifies one seller‟s g ood or servic e as
distinct fr om those of other sellers. The American Marketing Ass ociation (2014).
The ab ove the ories menti oned s o far restricts the impact of a brand on the decisi on making
process exhibited by the c onsumer. Hestad (2013) h owever, elab orates by stating that “brands help
consumers t o make decisi ons. C onsumers rec ognize brands and buy them because they pr omise t o

1 KOTLER AND ARMSTR ONG, 2009. Principles of marketing. Thirteenth Editi on Page 259 retrieved fr om
http://s ocioline.ru/files/5/283/k otler_keller_ -_marketing_management_14th_editi on.pdf, accessed on 29 April 2018.

6
fulfill a need, due t o recommendati ons or based on earlier experiences with the brand. C onsumers
also buy brands because the brand st ory connect s with them em otionally, it offers them a self –
expressive benefit, or they find the brands relevant in certain cultural c ontext”.
2Kotler and Andreasen, (1991) on the other hand als o correlate the definiti on of a brand t o the
purchase characteristics dis played by c onsumers. They defined it t o be “a name, symb ol, or sign that
is given t o a product or service in order t o help them establish their own identity, facilitate rec ognition
by consumers and c ommunicate what the pr oduct can deliver”.
3‟A b rand c ontains everything that makes a pr oduct m ore than just a pr oduct‟. Kapferer
(2008: 155). That is it inv olves the em otional and mental assumpti ons that c onsumers have ab out
brands, which increases the perceived value of a pr oduct or service. C onsumers see a br and as an
essential element of a pr oduct or service and it d oes add value t o the latter.
Consumers d o attach meanings and interpretati ons to a brand due t o the services or
satisfacti on it pr omises t o deliver. F or example, m ost consumers often view Apple p roducts of high
quality, prestige and expensive brand. They feel they will be rec ognized when seen using it hence
will purchase it irrespective of the price fact or. The same can be said f or Nike pr oducts, when all
other c ompetit ors are reducing the prices of their pr oducts and offering l ots of promotions, consumers
are still stuck t o use Nike pr oducts that they already b ought.
Based on this, it is obvious that brands have an immense r ole in h ow consumers ass ociate
themselves with a specific pr oduct or servi ce and hence affecting purchasing decisi on. Branding has
become so important that hardly n o commodity or service g o unbranded. Even sugar are branded and
the same sugar in an unbranded b ottle will be viewed as p oor or poor quality pr oduct.
“Even c ommon bolts and nuts are packaged with a distribut or's label, and aut omobile parts –
spark plugs, tires, filters – bear brand names that differ fr om those of the aut omakers”. (Kotler 13th
Editi on)
It theref ore als o makes it imperative t o understand that branding is not about getting y our
target audience t o choose over the c ompetiti on but ab out getting y our pr ospects t o see y ou and only
you as the only s olution to their pr oblems.
Kotler (1999) expands the c oncept of identity by stating that a brand is capable of conveying
up to six different levels of meanings and this is kn own as “Six Dimensi ons of the Brand”.

2 KOTLER AND ANDREAS ON, (1991), Principles of marketing , Prentice Hall Inc, New Jersey, U.S.A.
3 KAPFERER, J.N. (2008). The New Strategic Brand Management: Creating and Sustaining Brand Equity L ong Term.
London: Kogan Page

7
 Attributes: A brand c ommunicates certain attributes t o the minds of consumers such as
prestige.
 Benefits: The attributes that f ortifies a pr oducts features by way of stating its benefits and
makes it m ore attractive.
 Values: That is the brand als o represents the c ompany's values, systems and structure.
 Culture: The brand representing the characteristics of the target audience.
 Personality: The brand can pr oject behavi oral pers onality patterns of targeted c onsumers.
For example, Nike uses the fam ous athletes fr om different sp orts, like Neymar(F ootball),
Kobe Bryant(Basketball), Rafael Nadal(Tennis), etc.
 User: The brand, at certain times emulates the final user.

The am ount of influence carried by a brand d oes vary in different ways. While s ome are
inherently r ooted on a gl obal platf orm thus w orldly rec ognized, others are alm ost unkn own.
Brands are m ore than just names and symb ols. It is a central variable in the organizati ons
relati onship t o customers or consumers. Brands represent the percepti on and feelings ab out a pr oduct
and its perf ormance.
In attempting t o ascertain the value of specific brand, one may refer t o brand equity.
Kotler and Armstr ong (13th Edit ion) define brand equity t o be “the differential effect that kn owing
the brand name has on consumer resp onse to the pr oduct or its marketing”.
4Boone and Kurtz (2005) on the other hand refers t o brand equity as “the added value that a
certain brand name gives t o a product in the market – place”.
Weng (2006, 147) als o proposes that brand equity is an emb odiment of res ources and the
financial obligati ons connected t o a brand, wh ose identity either add t o or subtract fr om the value
give t o a company or customers. Brand equity c ould als o be viewed fr om the angle of financial
perspective, c onsumer based perspective and then brand extensi on point of view.
It is w orthy t o note here that a brand has p ositive brand equity when c onsumers‟ reacti on to
it is p ositive or fav orable unlike generic or unbranded ones. On the other hand, they have negative
brand equity if c onsumer‟s reacti on to the latter is less fav orable. (K otler and Armstr ong, 13th
Editi on)

4 LOUIS E. B OONE, DAVID L. KURTZ (2005): Contemp orary Marketing retrived online:
http://www.w orldcat. org/title/c ontemp orary-marketing/ oclc/54509581

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Studies have als o shown that there is a p ositive relati onship between brand equity and
company pr ofits. Ren owned brands like Nike, C oca-Cola, Faceb ook, FC Barcel ona, Apple and
Samsung have d ominated over f or ages n ot only because they have been able t o bring out good
products but als o connecting the pr oducts t o the cust omers.
The scenari o can be seen as far as Apple is c oncerned as a l ot of people even rush t o buy
when a new m odel is launched th ough it is highly priced, this is due t o the perceived prestige and
quality of the brand. It can theref ore be clearly se en that brand equity plays a maj or role when it
comes t o the cash infl ows for companies.
5Aaker and McLaughlin (2007, 147) examines the s ources of brand equity t o be in the f orm
of brand awareness, perceived quality, brand ass ociations and brand l oyalty.

Figure 1: Framew ork for the Devel opment of Stock Markets

Source: Retrieved fr om Sources of Brand equity (Aaker and Mc L oughlin, 2007, p.174)

 Brand Awareness: This is the extent or degree t o which a particular brand is rec ognized

5AAKER, D.A. Damien McL oughlin (2007): Strategic Market Management. available online:
https://www.scribd.c om/presentati on/375238452/SMM -ch05

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by consum ers. This makes c onsumers t o devel op strong bonds with the related pr oduct
and thus can make them purchase m ore frequently. The target of a brand is t o create a
presence in c onsumer’s mind s o that they are aware that this brand exists, bef ore long
customers will start t o recognize y our brand fr om its symb ol or name. Creating brand
awareness is highly imp ortant and in t oday’s ec onomy is c onsiderably m ore difficult than
ever bef ore. C onsumes are b ombarded with an overwhelming am ount of options and
messages fr om different marketers. Ch oosing a pr oduct is m ore and m ore ab out the
message than the pr oduct itself.
 Perceived quality: This is the c onsumer‟s mindset on the quality of a pr oduct or brand
being able t o fulfilling an expectati on. This is usually based on the c ompany‟s image or
identity. Brand quality refers t o the perceived quality the brand is ass ociated with. This
aspect has a high influence of the financial perf ormance of the c ompany and the c onsumer
satisfacti on. Because ultimately brands are built by customers and n ot companies the way
customers perceive a brand is excepti onally imp ortant.
 Brand Ass ociations: This is the situati on where c onsumers ass ociate themselves with a
specific brand as a result of the brand design, brand symb ols, or the term. The associations
people have with a brand will eventually lead t o a purchase if d one pr operly. The brand
associations can refer t o attributes of a pr oduct, a public figure as a sp okespers on or a
symb ol that pe ople can c onnect t o the brand, ultimately the ass ociations are led by the
brand identity.
 Brand L oyalty: An other key fact or when assessing the value of a brand is the degree t o
which c onsumers are l oyal to it. That is the pr opensity of consumers t o re buy the brand.
Brand l oyalty is a key aspect because t he brand’s value is m ostly created by the cust omer’s
loyalty and can be expected t o generate predictable sales and pr ofit flows. Essentially a
brand with out loyal cust omers is vulnerable and destined t o fail. It gives little value t o a
company t o have only one time cust omers but tremend ous value t o keep the cust omers
attenti on and obtain their l oyalty.

The fundamental objective of a brand sh ould be t o create equity that is valuable and timeless.
Understanding brand equity is an imp ortant part of the pr ocess of creating a str ong brand. Str onger
brands will always have m ore equity than the weaker c ompetit ors and theref ore be inc omparably

10
more productive and successful fr om the every p oint of view.
All brands have certain characteristics and that is why s ome a re ready t o just pay premium t o
have them. Bel ow are s ome characteristics ass ociated with a brand.

 A brand is an asset or a blueprint (l ogo, shape, c olor) which is extensively and pr oactively
protected by the c ompany or organizati on thr ough legal means. Every rec ognized brand
throughout the w orld is pr otected by the law. That is the trademark with which the
organizati on does it operati on with. F or example, one cann ot just use the Nike brand t o
do whatever he or she wishes with out gaining the adequate perm ission to do so, failure t o
do so would imply facing legal c onsequences.
 Secondly, a brand has a certain categ ory of audience that it aims at. F or example, there is
iPhone's fr om Apple, at Regular 4.7. inch size and Plus 5.5. inch size f or lovers of bigg er
phones. Similarly, there are cars with tw o seats and with 5 seats and m ore.
 The brand can als o be used as c ollateral f or financial obligati ons and can be traded as an
asset. F or example, the brand kn own as Paris Saint -Germain was b ought by the Qatar
Sports Investments fr om Qatar and has since ripped l ots of revenue fr om it. The same can
also be said f or the acquisiti on of the Chelsea by the Russian multimilli onaire, R oman
Abromovich.
 Brands als o represent what the organizati on stands f or. For example, the c omputer giants
like Apple, Dell, Asus and s o on.

1.2 Significance and strategies of branding and rebranding

6A str ong brand has a clear brand identity. “Brand identity is a set of brand ass ociations that
the brand aspires t o create or maintain. Thes e ass ociations represent what the brand stands f or and
imply a pr omise t o customers fr om the organizati on members,” (Aaker 1991 , p68).
Strong brands are m ore than pr oduct attributes, their identity is based on brand pers onality
and relati onship with cust omers. A brand identity gives purp ose and meaning as well as directi on for
the brand, it is the centre of the visi on of the brand and the driver of the dimensi ons of brand equity.
Just as a pers on’s identity, the brand identity answers t o similar questi ons: What are the brand’s

6 AAKER, D.A. (1991). Managing Brand Equity . New York: The Free Press.

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principles? What d oes the brand stand f or? What type of pers onality the brand wants t o project?
Every attribute the brand is pr ojecting c ounts and helps cust omers t o identify that specific brand and
to buy that brand’s pr oducts or serv ices.
The g oal of a company is t o ensure that the brand identity has texture and depth, the identity
must be appr opriate f or the business it represents. The brand can be c onsidered as a pr oduct (What is
the pr oduct the brand can be ass ociated with?), organization (cust omer f ocus, envir onmental
concerned, techn ological and overall em otional inv olving the cust omers by creating admirati on and
respect f or the c ompany), a pers on (brand pers onality) or a symb ol (creating easier rec ognition and
recall of the c ompany). Each brand sh ould c onsider all of these f our perspectives expressing this way
what the brand stands f or in the cust omer’s mind, h owever keeping in mind that f or some brands,
only one of the perspectives will be feasible.
A brand pr ovides an array of importance n ot only to the organizati on but the buyer as well. It
includes the f ollowing:

 Branding helps the seller t o segment markets. F or example, Apple has, m obile ph ones,
notebooks, watches, etc. A very g ood example is BMW(Bavarian M otor Works) which offers
major brands like BMW, Mini and R olls-Royce, each with many sub -brands such as BMW
series fr om 1 t o 7, X m odels, Z m odels, M m odels, i M odels, and others.
 Secondly, branding helps t o bring value t o a product or service. C onsumers d o attach
meanings t o brands and devel op brand relati onships. F or example, m ost consumers in
perceive a b ottle of voltic water as a high quality pr oduct whereas the same water in an
unmarked b ottled w ould be perceived as an inferi or or poor quality pr oduct.
 Brands enable c onsumers t o identify pr oducts or services that might be of high benefit t o
them. Brands als o say s omething ab out pr oduct quality or offerings. Buyers wh o always
purchase the same brand kn ow that they will get the same pr oduct benefits and quality each
time they buy.

In today's business w orld, re -branding can take many guises and need n ot be c onfined t o
circumstances where there has been a name change only. Re -branding can be defined as "affecting a
change t o a brand in order t o stimulate a change in c onsume r attitudes, percepti ons and behavi or with
the end g oal of generating p ositive market gr owth. The reality is that the sc ope of this change c ould

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be as min or as subtle changes t o the c ompany's graphics and l ogo or as maj or as a full -blown name
change. In ef fect, changing any of the tangible elements of the brand can d o re-branding, whether
through the advertising, c orporate stati onery & sales literature, packaging design, staff unif orms,
vehicle livery or the c orporate identity and trademark. Changes in any will have a impact of
rebranding a c ompany. In the business literature and in practice, the term 'rebranding' is vari ously
used t o describe three different events: changing name, changing the brand aesthetics (c olour palette,
logo, etc.), and/ or repositioning the brand.
The use of the term 'rebranding' t o label any of those three events is c onfusing and misleading.
Changing the name and the design as well as rep ositioning are, in fact, all part of the rebranding
process or 'rebranding mix' and n o one al one can pr ovide the basis of a the oretical definiti on. As the
word 'rebranding' is a ne ologis m, which is made of two well-defined terms, an etym ological
approach seems t o be the m ost appr opriate way t o define rebranding.
From an etym ological perspective, rebr anding – the c ombinati on of 're' and 'branding' – may
indicate that the intenti on is t o restore a previ ous state of things, f or example in the regaining of a
previ ous image or reputati on. However, an overview of the current business literature indicates th at
the term 'rebranding' is seld om used in this c ontext. Theref ore, 're' must in this case den ote that the
action it refers t o is perf ormed f or a sec ond time. C onsequently, one can define rebranding as the
practice of building anew a name representative of a differentiated p osition in the mind frame of
stakeh olders and a distinctive identity fr om competit ors may indicate that the intenti on is t o restore
a previ ous state of things, f or example in the regaining of a previ ous image or reputati on.
Some c ompanie s even g o to the extent of engaging the services of brand managers wh o are
solely resp onsible f or the day t o day perf ormance of brands and t o also serve as the link between the
organizati ons pr oducts and the c onsumers out there.
7Rebranding strategies are directly linked with brand equity management. Firms wanting t o
add value t o their offer thr ough c orporate rebranding have t o evaluate and manage their brand equity.
One appr oach t o assess the value of brand equity derives fr om finance the ory and uses the stock price
as the evaluati on basis (Aaker, 1991). The argument is that the st ock market will adjust the price of
a firm t o reflect future pr ospects of its brands. Stakeh olders define their image of the firm based on
the signals that emanate fr om it. C orporate rebranding is a very str ong formal signal that stakeh olders
receive that s omething ab out the c orporation has changed. It is expected that these c orporate

7 AAKER, D.A. (1991). Managing Brand Equity . New Y ork: The Free Press.

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rebranding acti ons will impact the c orporate market value and thus c onstitute a signal that
share holders will use when they evaluate the firm. One menti oned disadvantage of working with the
stock market relates t o the need of events t o be sufficiently large t o be detected. C orporate rebranding
exercises are c onsidered maj or events and s o noticeable.
Decision to rebrand is primarily pr ovoked by structural changes, particularly mergers and
acquisiti ons, spin -offs or divestment, which have a fundamental effect on the c orporation's identity
and c ore strategy. Rebranding is pursued as a means of signalling this disc ontinuity t o the c ompany's
stakeh olders. C onsistent with this finding is the fact that a maj ority of rebranding cases c ome fr om
industries that have experienced maj or consolidati on in recent years, n otably telec ommunicati ons
and financial services . Other c oncentrati ons have occurred in old industries including public utilities
and other state m onopolies, as well as steel, cigarettes and other declining industries anxi ous to
reinvent themselves under m ore attractive guises.
While rebranding may be d riven primarily by finance or corporate strategy, its executi on is
mainly a marketing functi on inv olving f our elements, which might be termed the rebranding mix:
repositioning, renaming, redesign and relaunch.
Just like other strategic decisi ons, rebrandin g inv olves identifying and maximising the actual
and the perceived fit between the organisati on and its envir onment. This is inf ormed by market
research, the nature and extent of which w ould make an interesting t opic for further study. This study
only exam ined the issue of renaming, ab out which there was s ome c ommentary in the sec ondary
sources examined. Renaming has been observed t o a process in which the old, discarded names were
predominantly descriptive of products or sources while the new names were m ore inclined t o be
abstract w ords, often Latin in origin, intended t o symb olise a c ore corporate value rather than a
product categ ory. Rebranding may be presented on a simple c ontinuum fr om min or changes, such as
restyling, t o complete renaming. Changing c orporate brand names, with all their ass ociated values
and pr omises, is a critical element of rebranding. F our appr oaches t o renaming interim/dual, prefix,
substituti on and brand amalgamati on are pred ominantly used in the rebranding exercises. Theref ore
it may extend fr om a min or to major changes on the c ontinuum.
Rebranding sh ould always clarify and refine y our positioning. Y our goal in rebranding sh ould
be to make it easier f or cust omers and pr ospects t o understand exactly why y our company sh ould be
one of their t op choices why there are few credible substitutes f or your company in the market. This
isn't the place f or puffery. Merely claiming t o be the best is meaningless and using empty w ords like

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"best value" and "excepti onal cust omer service" d o nothing but heighten skepticism. Use rebranding
as an initiative t o force y ou to focus, t o better define and supp ort your expertise in a clear and
compelling manner. D oing so will require y ou to draw tighter b oundaries ar ound y our stated expertise
because rebrandi ng entails c ost and res ources further the c onsequences may be terrible if things g o
wrong. C onventi onal wisd om is that m ore generalized p ositioning gives a c ompany m ore
opportunities. The reality is generalized p ositioning p ositions a c ompany as, y ou guess ed it, a
generalist. T o win business, generalists have t o not only win over other generalists but als o have t o
beat out specialists. If, when rebranding, y ou're n ot scared, that rebranding pr obably w on't create
meaningful change in y our organizati on or in the marketplace.
The t oday's brand marketers are facing cutthr oat competiti on in the d omestic market. Rising
competiti on in the d omestic f orm, f orce the c ompany t o go for a corporate brand make over. But a
mere change in l ogo will n ot serve the purp ose it r equires a overall c orporate identity make over to
represent a fundamental shift in the way the c ompanies will operate.
A company has f our options as far as the devel opment of brands is c oncerned and this is d one
with the help of Kotler’s m odel of brand stra tegies. It can intr oduce the f ollowing:

Figure 2: Kotler brand strategies model

Source: Retrieved fr om Principles of Marketing (13th Editi on)

 Line extensi on: Companies often extend their brands in the same categ ory of products

15
they offer i n the market. Thus it ranges fr om new f orms like c olors, sizes, ingredients or
flavors of an existing pr oduct. M ost companies d o this with the m otive of reducing the
risk ass ociated with bringing a new offer in the market. They might als o have the strategi c
intenti on of satisfying the different needs of cust omers in the market. C onsumers h owever
has the c onfusi on of picking fr om an over tendered brand. F or example, Hyundai SUV
has ab out seven m odels – Creta, Tucs on, Kona, SantaFee, and SantaFee Grand. An other
good example is Apple iPh one 7 m odel which has 5 c olors to choose from.
 Brand extensi on / stretching: Brand extensi on is a brand devel opment strategy where a
company extends an existing brand name t o a new pr oduct categ ory. Some brands bec ome
so renowned that the c ompanies in questi on stretch the brand names t o unrelated pr oducts
in pursuit of opportunities. Apple recently released a new pr oduct f or the music industry
named H omePod. Adidas f or instance is als o one ren owned sp ortswear manufacture and
have been t o use the high brand equity t o gain over the years t o introduce unrelated
products like perfume and sh ower gel that bear the name adidas t o their benefit.
 Multi -brands: An other strategy available t o a firm as their brand devel opment is
concerned b y way of intr oducing new brand names in the same pr oduct categ ory.
 New brands: The f ourth strategy has t o do with new brands and this is where he firm
introduces a new brand name with a new pr oduct categ ory. This happen especially when
a firm realizes th at their existing brands are dying off. Hyundai f or instance intr oduces a
separated Genesys targeted t owards wealthy cust omers. There is h owever s ome
challenges with regards t o its brands even th ough an organizati on gains legal pr otection
as far it's its u nique brand is c oncerned. F or instance s ome pe ople may c opy or imitate the
generic pr oduct.

1.3 Brand impact on consumer behavi or

The first part of the literature review s ought t o throw more light on the the ories surr ounding
a brand, the sec ond part h owever will aim at discussing c onsumer behavi or and related t o a brand in
the latter stage of this secti on.
The study of consumer behavi or focuses on how individuals make decisi ons to spend their
resources on goods and services. That includes what they buy, why they buy it, where they buy it,

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and h ow often they buy it. C onsider a simple pr oduct like an internet m odem. C onsumer researchers
would want t o know the kind of consumers wh o buy it. What kind of features they w ould be l ooking
for, what benefits they w ould be expecting and h ow likely are they t o buy new m odems with added
features and made available?
The answers t o these questi ons can pr ovide m odem manufacturers and sellers imp ortant
informati on as t o how they can g o about pr oduct scheduling, design, m odificati on, promotional and
branding strategies.
8Solomon (1994) explains by defining it as “the study of the pr ocesses inv olved when
individuals or groups select, purchase, disp ose of products, services or idea, or experiences t o satisfy
needs and desire s”.
Another definiti on is on by William L. Wilkie (1998) wh o defines c onsumer behavi or as “The
mental, em otional, and physical activities that pe ople engage in when selecting, purchasing, using
and disp osing of products and services s o as to satisfy needs and desires. Often c onsumers themselves
do not know exactly what influences their purchases. “The human mind d oes not work in a linear
way” says K otler (2009, 160).
The ab ove explanati ons clearly drive h ome the p oint that the study of consumer behavi or is a
complex task and hence n ot easy because individuals d o differ in terms of culture, attitude, th oughts
in mindset all over the w orld. The critical questi on for marketers here is t o address questi ons like
how will c onsumers react t o the marketing eff orts the c ompany might use. A m ore in depth definiti on
will als o incorporate h ow that pr ocesses impact the w orld. C onsumer behavi or brings on board ideas
from several sciences including psych ology, bi ology, chemistry and ec onomics. It als o encompasses
two different kinds of consuming entities namely: The pers onal c onsumer and the organizati onal
consumer. The pers onal c onsumer buys g oods and services f or his or her own use, f or the use of the
household, or as a gift f or a friend. The sec ond categ ory of consumers – the organizati onal c onsumer
which includes b oth pr ofit and n ot for profit businesses, g overnment instituti ons, all of which must
buy pr oducts and services in order t o run the organizati on.
The study of consumer behavi or has bec ome param ount in recent t imes as it enables marketers
to understand and predict c onsumer behavi or in the market place. It is c oncerned n ot only with what
consumers buy, but als o inclusive of why, where, h ow and h ow often purchases are made.

8 MICHAEL R. S OLOMON, (1994), Consumer behavi or, 2nd Ed , Param ount publishing, Massachusetts.

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The study of consumer behavi or involves three behavi oral pr ocesses which are:
 Pre – purchase behavi or;
 Purchase behavi or;
 Post – purchase behavi or;

9In treating c onsumer decisi on making as a pr oblem s olving one, it is assumed that c onsumers
have g oals (desires, values) that they seek t o achiev e or satisfy. A c onsumer perceives a pr oblem
because the desired c onsequences have n ot been attained. C onsumers make decisi on about which
behavi or to perform in order t o achieve their desired g oals and thus s olve the pr oblem. In this sense,
then c onsumer d ecision making is g oal directed pr oblem s olving pr ocess. (Leon G.S and Kanuk.
L.L,2007)
Certain variables d o affect the behavi ours displayed by c onsumers with regards t o their
purchase decisi on making pr ocess. It includes the f ollowing:

 Culture is the s et of values, preferences, beliefs and tastes of a gr oup of people at a peri od
of time. It pr oves to be the m ost influential and enduring behavi or. The cultural setting of
some pe ople causes them t o behave in a setting way with regards t o their purchasing
decisi on. For example, in the Western w orld when it c omes t o certain purchases t o be
made, the wh ole family is taken int o considerati on but n ot very c ommon in other
communities. Again there are certain cultures which d o not permit the c onsumpti on or
purcha se of certain pr oducts. Mc D onald's f or instance is one of the m ost ren owned
restaurants in the w orld and at their American restaurants, they serve beef hamburgers.
Upon deciding t o expand t o India, they offered lamb burgers instead of beef. This is
becaus e the cultural demands in that ge ographic l ocation do not permit them t o consume
beef because it is a revered object. Other variables within the cultural fact or could be in
the f orm of sub -cultures, efficiency, preferences, status. Marketers need t o monitor the
cultural characteristics of the market they find themselves because it has a direct impact
on the behavi or of the target market.
 Percepti on is the pr ocess thr ough which an individual c onsumer interprets a pr oduct or

9 Leon G.S and Kanuk. L.L,2007 Consumer Behavi our: A Eur opean Outlook

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service int o meaningful and c oherent picture of the w orld. It is s ometimes defined as “h ow
the w orld is seen”. Tw o people might be exp osed t o the same pr oducts under the same
conditions, but h ow each is g oing t o recognize, select and interpret these pr oduct or
service is highly individua l process based on each pers on's percepti on concerning the
product or service.
 Motivati on concept is very param ount to learning c onsumer behavi or. Motivati on serves
as the impetus t o one's behavi or. Once a need is identified, a state of tensi on is created
making the c onsumer t o eliminate that tensi on by way of satisfying that need. F or
example, if one is t oo big and wants t o slim d own, he or she is then m otivated t o often
exercise, eat certain diets, g o to the gym and even take certain f ood supplements. One
could als o refer t o the ren owned the ory of needs by Abraham Masl ow wh o propounds
that, each individual differ and as c ore ones are met, they pursue higher ones causing
changes in lifestyle and behavi ors.
 Social gr oupings or reference gr oups is an other i mportant fact or that affects the behavi or
a consumer with regards t o his purchase decisi on. Every individual one way or the other
belongs t o a certain gr oup and that has a direct impact on the behavi or of every member.
Usually, a c onsumer w ould want t o make purchases that c onform to the percepti ons and
values of the gr oup.
 Social Classes are widely gr ouped int o three classes namely; the Upper class, middle class
and the l ower class. S ociologist, W. Ll oyd Warner unearthed six classes in the United
States na mely, the upper -upper class, l ower –upper class, upper middle class and the l ower
-middle class f ollowed by the w orking class and l ower class. The rankings are determined
by fact ors like inc ome, pr ofession, educati on, family and residence. Wherever class a
consumer finds him or herself, there is a certain kind of purchase decisi on that is made.
That is th ose in the upper range might have f or instance decided t o go for a pr oduct which
is very expensive but an alternative c ould be b ought a m oderate price by a consumer in a
different class.

The c onsumer decisi on-making pr ocess c onsists of five steps, which are need rec ognition,
informati on search, evaluati ons of alternatives, purchase and p ost-purchase behavi or. These steps can
be a guide f or marketers t o unde rstand and c ommunicate effectively t o consumers. One note is that

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consumers d o not always m ove in the exact order thr ough the pr ocess, it can depend on the type of
product, the buying stage of the c onsumer and even financial status.
This refers t o the vari ous pr ocesses that a c onsumer g oes thr ough bef ore making a purchase
decisi on. The vari ous stages gathered fr om different literatures are presented bel ow:

 Problem rec ognition.
The first stage in the c onsumer decisi on making pr ocess is pr oblem identificati on. During
this stage of the pr ocess, the c onsumer bec omes aware of a significant disparity in the
desired situati on and the apparent situati on. The c onsumer at this stage feels the absence
of a specific need or problem and needs t o solve it in order t o get back t o normality. B oone
and Kurtz (2005) added opportunity t o this stage stressing that if supp osedly a c onsumer
is unhappy with a particular purchase say a brand of cheese or just wanting t o change
from the same old brand t o a new one, the rec ognition of this need can as well bec ome
opportunity.
 Informati on search.
The sec ond stage is characterized by the search f or informati on in relati on to the need
identified fr om the first stage. High inv olvement purchases may rem ove the tr ouble of
having t o search for extensive inf ormati on, whiles l ow inv olvement purchases requires
little search f or one. Internally, the c onsumer gathers inf ormati on from within. This c ould
be in the f orm of stored images, advertisements, passed inf ormati on about certain pr oducts
in relati on to the existing need. The external inf ormati on source on the other hand c ould
also arise fr om family, friends, reference gr oups, advertisements fr om the vari ous sources,
brochures.
 Evaluati on of alternatives.
The third is evaluati on of alternativ es as far the vari ous brands that are capable of
satisfying the need is c oncerned. Here, the c onsumer g oes ab out evaluating different
brands in relati on to the need identified. At certain peri ods, c onsumers are extra careful
and use l ogical thinking and at other times t oo, they just d o little or no evaluati on, instead
they buy on impulse. Supp ose there is a need t o buy a car and after a careful evaluati on
of different brands of cars. Fact ors like style, interi or design, fuel type, c onsumpti on, year
of production, price, safety c ould all c ome int o play in the evaluati on process.

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 Purchase decisi on.
After an evaluati on has been made on the different kinds of brands available and
shortlisted, the c onsumer then m oves on to make the final purchased decisi on. Acc ording
to Kotler (2009, 179), there are tw o factors that can arise in between the purchase intenti on
and the purchasedecisi on. The first is the attitude of others in that, if s omeone imp ortant
to the c onsumer thinks that a l ow priced brand sh ould be b ought, then it reduces the
likelih ood of buying an expensive one. The sec ond is the unexpected situati onal fact or
where a c onsumer might have an intenti on to purchase a specific brand of car and there is
an ec onomic meltd own or a c ompetit or drastically reduces i ts prices and the purchase
decisi on here can change in sec onds.
 Post-purchase behavi or.
The final stage is the p ost-purchase and at this stage, there are tw o things inv olved. Either
the c onsumer is satisfied or unsatisfied with the pr oduct. The determinan t fact or of
consumer being satisfied or not lays in -between the c onsumer's expectati on of the brand
prior to purchase and the actual perf ormance that it delivers after purchase has been made.
If the actual perf ormance of the pr oduct is equal t o the expecte d outcome, the cust omer is
satisfied, if the actual outcome is exceeds actual perf ormance, the c onsumer is delighted
and if the pr oduct falls sh ort, then the c onsumer is dissatisfied.

10”The larger the gap between expectati ons and perf ormance, the greater the c onsumer's
dissatisfacti on” K otler (13th Ed., 179).

In the initial phases of this w ork, the basic fundamentals with regards t o a brand and c onsumer
behavi or were identified. The f ollowing part seeks t o under pin the influence a brand has on the
behav ior as far as c onsumers are c oncerned. Branding has a str ong impact on the percepti on in
relati on to the behavi or displayed by c onsumers. Percepti on acc ording t o Kotler (2009) is the
processes by which individuals g o about their selecti on, organizati on, an d interpretati on of
informati on to form meaningful pictures of the w orld as far as pr oducts or services are c oncerned. In
other w ords, it c ould be seen as the th oughts and pictures c onsumers have in mind or mem ory as far
as a brand is c oncerned fr om the ma rketing p oint of view.

10 KOTLER, P AND KELLER, K.L. (2009), Marketing management, 13th Ed. New Jersey: Pears on Prentice Hall.

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Percepti on is vital in the decisi on making pr ocess. In the c ompetitive w orld, pr oducts are n ot
only patr onized because of only the functi onal use or characteristics but als o due t o the s ocial or in
some circumstances the psych ological aspects ass ociated with it.
When c onsumers are intr oduced t o a brand thr ough the vari ous means like advertising, packaging,
word of mouth, their levels of brand awareness gradually increases and as it once awareness
increases, the purchase decisi on of that brand in questi on will be influenced by the percept ion of that
brand .
The survival or success of companies is n ow dependent on the am ount of informati on that is
carefully gathered by the f ormer with regards t o the purchasing habits displayed by c onsumers.
Companies inject heavy res ources and time int o the study of behavi oral and s ociological fact ors in
order t o gain much insight and t o understand c onsumer purchasing patterns. They further res ort to
underpinning the relati onship that exist between c onsumer spending and the key variables inv olved
in consumer preferences in terms of attitudes, c ognition, percepti on and learning. They want t o know
who their cust omers are, what they think and h ow they feel, and h ow they buy a specific brand instead
of others. Companies g o to the extent of empl oying a separate brand manager wh o sees t o the
management of the brand. That is serving as a link between the c ompany‟s brand and c onsumers.

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CHAPTER II THE R OLE OF BRANDING AND RE -BRANDING IN THE
COMPETITIVENESS OF FIRMS WITHIN THE L OCAL AND GL OBAL FRAMEW ORK

In today m odern business c onditions, brand represents a very imp ortant s ource of corporative
competitiveness and a p ower means of retaining existing cust omers and attracting the new ones.
Busine ss success is determined by g ood relati ons with cust omers, pr ofitable in l ong term, which
directly influences the pr ofit gr owth. Buyers wh o identify the s ource of the pr oduct or producer with
the brand, have by all means the benefits fr om brands. Creating the brands exactly represents one of
ways of adding and realising special values of a pr oduct, service or organizati on. Brand d oes not only
represent the object of sale, but als o what that c ompany d oes and what it is ab out, in fact! It is a
significant par t of the capital of the c ompany which obtains p ower at the market and has a remarkable
economic c ontributi on. In one w ord, the issue of the brand is t oday the m ost significant functi on of
the marketing, which cann ot be b orn overnight, but is a result of hard w ork, investing and time.
Taking all this int o considerati on, this c oncept received increasing attenti on in the field of engineering
management.

2.1 Branding and re -branding analysis and their imp ortance f or firms

The imp ortance and relevance of brand s to economies n owadays is emphasized by the fact
that brands are n ow one of the m ost valuable assets t o firms.
In line with this increased rec ognition of the imp ortance of brands, the literature on branding
has gr own pr oportionately in the last c ouple of decades. New c oncepts and new measures of ideas
are being devel oped t o enable us t o understand, evaluate and make sense of the r ole of brands in
today's w orld. With this gr owth, our understanding of the branding pr ocess n ow includes its
devel opment, nurtur e, evaluati on and maintenance all of which enhance the l ongevity of a brand and
the assets emanating fr om it. Such assets include the reputati on and identity of organisati ons.
Although c oncepts such as reputati on and organisati on identity (in and of themse lves) are distinctive
in terms of their definiti onal and measurement pr operties, in relati onal terms, they are n othing m ore
than part of an array of the ‘sense -making’ ideas that have emerged fr om the s ociety's attempt at
engaging with c ontemp orary, twenty -first century, ec onomic realities. In the case of identity, b oth

23
internal and external stakeh olders create a brand -based view of organisati ons, and it is thr ough these
that they devel op their percepti ons of, and perspectives on, the identity of organisati ons.
Take int o considerati on the case of Apple and its iSeries pr oducts such as iMac, iPad, iWatch,
iPhone. Apple's ability t o devel op an effective platf orm for retailing s oftware applicati ons of apps
named AppSt ore, devel oped by individuals that are n ot employed by Apple, but by independent
software devel oper, effectively created a new business m odel for the c ompany. Alth ough it can be
argued that Nintend o represents a similar strategy, the distincti on between the tw o is clear in the fact
that the overwhel ming maj ority of Apple's Apps are largely devel oped by other pr oviders. Apple's
ability t o engage the cust omers with its iSeries has been enhanced by the reputati on that c ontinues t o
emanate fr om the cust omers view of the organisati on. The organisati on's view of its own identity is
also influenced by the external interpretati ons of its identity as resumed by the media -influenced
assessment of Steven J ob's role in leading, marketing and steering of Apple's successful launch of its
series of offerings and new brands. This market -based percepti on of Apple, thr ough the evaluati on
of its brands, has greater influence on its ability t o leverage its reputati on in devel oping and
appropriating the resulting ec onomic gain fr om its offerings that has gr own fr om its PC or lapt op
origin. Thr ough its success, Apple has effectively created a new business m odel for itself as a retailing
brand – and these are in additi on to its legendary design and brand marketing c ompetency and
capability.
For thoose wh o are running a busine ss, they m ost certainly see them wearing m ore than one
hat. They w ork tirelessly t o build a str ong cust omer base, supervise a w orkforce and, at the same
time, ensure that their financial c ommitments are met. It can s ometimes be difficult t o define the
priorities at w ork. Every task seems t o be equally imp ortant, and bef ore you know it, y ou find y ourself
overwhelmed with things that need t o be done yesterday.
With all this g oing on, it’s easy t o assume that branding y our business is s omething that can
wait. After all, with th ose unpaid bills stacking up on your desk on daily basis, y ou hardly have the
time t o focus on branding y our business. While juggling t oo many things at a time, y ou completely
lose sight of the m ost imp ortant aspect of building and s olidifying a business. By n ot paying attenti on
to creating a brand and creating an awareness ar ound that brand, y ou’re unkn owingly depriving y our
business of the highest p otential it can reach. Y ou’re nurturing a business that c ould gain a str onger
foothold in the market, if only it had the backing of a registered and p opular brand.

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The branding pr ocess d oes inv olve quite a bit of work, but if appr oached in a right way, it
doesn’t take l ong to promote a brand that p otential cust omers can identify and c onnect wit h. So, what
does it take t o create, own and pr omote your brand?11

1. Get t o know your cust omers.
Your brand is an extensi on of your business. It reflects y our and y our company’s image.
You must pay attenti on to the message y ou intend t o relay t o your target a udience, thr ough
your brand. Y ou should be clear as t o what type of audience will find appeal in y our
products. Identifying y our cust omer is a very imp ortant part of the brand -building pr ocess.
For example, a c ompany selling extreme sp orts pr oducts w ould p robably opt for loud and
flamb oyant branding, whereas a law firm w ould prefer s omething subtle with emphasis
on professionalism. It’s ab out understanding y our niche and representing y ourself in the
smartest way within that niche.
2. Invest time in creating y our logo.
A logo is an effective pict orial representati on of a brand that encapsulates the eth os and
nature of the business in one sw oop. Theref ore, investing time in designing a l ogo is
important. In my experience, there have been many occasi ons where a ne w business feels
the need t o inject as much inf ormati on as p ossible int o the logo, only to find that the result
is noisy and n ot good regulated. It can be easy t o assume that designing a l ogo is an
expensive endeav or, which is why many business owners take to the internet f or cheaper
alternatives — only to find that they’re in receipt of a logo that l ooks like c ountless others,
and d oes little t o effectively c ommunicate the brand. When creating a l ogo, it’s imp ortant
that it clearly reflects the brand as we ll as its g oals. It can really be w orth while t o get the
right kind of graphic designer on board. This will ensure that y our logo looks pr ofessional.
Sometimes, it’s n ot just the design, but the ch oice of colors and other elements of a logo
that w ork magic .
3. Trademark y our brand.
Now that y ou have a great l ogo representing y our pr oducts or service, w ouldn’t y ou like
to have exclusive rights t o it? H ow w ould y ou feel if s omeone else launched these

11 DUMMIES – How to Devel op a Brand. Available here: http://www.dummies.c om/business/marketing/branding/h ow-
to-devel op-a-brand/

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products, with the same brand name? What if he was pr ompt en ough to officially register
that brand in his name bef ore you did? All th ose years of hard lab or will g o down the
drain instantly. Of course, y ou could file an injuncti on against his using the brand, but d o
you want t o get embr oiled in a time -consuming legal battle? Theref ore, it’s wise t o get
your brand registered with federal trademark offices even bef ore you start pr omoting y our
brand. Y ou may elect t o hire a c onsultant wh o can help navigate these c omplicated waters.
4. Make the right first impressi on.
Whethe r this is y our first business launch or an existing business g oing thr ough a rebrand,
it’s imp ortant that y ou make the right impressi on in the first instance. Pay attenti on to
customer service. If y our marketing campaign can persuade pe ople to make a purch ase,
then the last thing y our business needs is t o be let d own by p oor cust omer service. Offer
avenues t o your cust omers f or after -sale service and general inquiries. Y our entire staff
needs t o be well -trained and capable en ough t o offer a great service overall. Otherwise,
the wh ole process of branding c ould s oon lose tracti on.
5. Research the c ompetiti on.
Competiti on fuels the w orld of business. It makes the marketplace m ore exciting. Every
now and then, y ou must d o a little research ab out your competit ors to see what they’re
doing right, and h ow you can stay ahead of them. F ocus on your unique selling p oints.
There’s n o sure sh ot way t o beat the c ompetiti on, but standing y our gr ound with
authenticity and integrity in a c ompetitive w orld will earn a l ot of kud os for your brand
moving f orward.
6. Ensure y our branding is c onsistent acr oss all platf orms.
After y ou trademark y our brand, y ou’ll necessarily have t o maintain c onsistency acr oss
all platf orms. Y our brand will have t o be displayed everywhere, in exactly the same
design, f ormat and c olors as y ou submitted with the trademark offices at the time of
registrati on. Keeping branding c onsistent ensures that the inf ormati on relayed t o people
is not misleading or confusing in any manner. When pe ople see a well -establi shed brand,
they instantly rec ognize the pr oducts. This is a great advantage of having a brand in the
first place.

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A brand registered in y our name is like owning a piece of real estate that gives y ou dividends
over time. Any big brand that y ou’ve ever he ard of could n ot have made it s o big in absence of a
well-thought-out branding strategy.
Branding, as a wh ole, is essential f or any seri ous business because a c ompany’s brand is what
distinguishes it fr om its c ompetit ors. In t oday’s c omputer age, it is nec essary f or most businesses t o
have an online presence t o stay c ompetitive. Effective Internet branding, just like its offline
counterpart, helps bring awareness t o your unique business offering and drive cust omer demand.
While Internet branding offers huge opportunities f or business, in order f or it to be effective,
one needs t o attract and engage its cust omers. This isn’t easy on the Internet. Branding is n ot as easy
as putting up a website and adding y our company l ogo and sl ogan. Y our Internet branding st rategy
should make y our online brand n oticeable and apparent. Branding utilizes hi -tech t ools to create an
online presence f or your business. Graphics and animati on, compelling web c opy, and overall website
design that reflect y our company are s ome of the important elements that will bring y our online brand
alive. An attractive website that helps cust omers easily and quickly find the inf ormati on they need is
the key t o getting cust omer interacti on and eventually, business. Y our branding plan sh ould include
good design elements and ease of use t o create a n effective overall impressi on. A str ong online image
will make the difference between a cust omer wh o buys fr om you online or switches t o your
competit ors. Remember that online cust omers can just leave y our website and g o to your competit ors
with the click of a m ouse. A l ot depends on the impressi on they get fr om your website. Branding
seeks t o convey an immediate unique message ab out your business t o your target clients.
Everything we kn ow ab out every pr oduct we use is because of branding. It is the link that
connects the c ompany t o the cust omer and vice versa. Branding is a must f or every small, startup,
partnership and c orporation, and there are a l ot of reas ons why branding is imp ortant t o your
company.
Branding links y our name, l ogo, online presence, pr oduct/services and appeal t o the masses.
Make marketing skills c onsistent and the c ontent the same acr oss all channels. This brings a united
and clear message t o customers, future partnerships and their c ompetitors.
A brand is an asset. What y ou present t o the public is a huge chunk of your business. The
worth is just as much as revenue and sales. A l ot is at stake, finances, creativity and time is on the
line. Branding will make the difference between reve nue/sales and debt/liquidati on.

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Speaking of sales, branding will create sales and revenue f or your business. Y ou will make
money based on how the branding marketing strategies w ork out. Cust omers will be tempted t o test
you out, and y our results will det ermine if y ou make m ore sales.
Branding is a pr oclamati on. You hereby state that y ou will deliver on your pr omises and
claims the c ompany makes. Everything the c ompany stands f or should be spread thr oughout the
organizati on too. Otherwise the c ompany will be disc onnected and cust omers will be c onfused and
grow distant. If y ou are n ot willing t o make pr omises y ou can't keep, d on't state it on your brand.
Percepti on of branding gives c ompanies a chance t o let cust omers see the business f or who we really
are. This is the chance t o be honest and open ab out what this c ompany represents. The l ook, feel and
message c onveyed will separate y ou from the pack.
People are m ore attached t o companies with a brand than c ompanies that d oesn't. Brands
create a b ond filled with g ood mem ories and g ood times, and cust omers will never f orget it. That
connecti on can't be strategized, it just happens.
A good branding will create cust omer l oyalty. L oyal cust omers will c ontinue t o supp ort you
in good and bad times. They will spread a positive message t o people they kn ow. Their influence
will intr oduce new pe ople to your company.
As cust omers get t o know your business they will begin t o trust y ou. In order t o build trust
you must give cust omers a reas on to test y ou out. The brandin g must be sp ot on as the first cust omers
will determine h ow many m ore or less y ou will receive. Excepti onal cust omer service, experience
with the pr oduct/services and p ositive online c ommunicati on on social netw orks will keep them
coming back f or more.
Branding can reach s o many pe ople in s o many outlets. It reaches pe ople offline, online,
mobile and niche markets. It reaches the many pr oducts and services y ou currently sell and plan t o
sell in the future.
Branding pr otects y ou from competit ors wh o want y our success. With out it they will have n o
problem making c opycats of what made y ou popular and claim it f or themselves. They can carry the
same or similar pr oducts but they w on't be able t o take y our style and originality away.
Your brand is the identity cu stomers c ome to know. The imp ortance of branding with y our
business cann ot be overstated. Branding is h ow cust omers perceive y ou and the blueprint of the
business. May y our brand be the symb ol of happiness, c omfort, loyalty and lasting impressi ons.

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Company branding usually begins with a new c ompany l ogo. Quite often, c ompanies d on't realize
the imp ortance of properly branding their c ompany. Let us help y ou brand y our company pr operly.

2.2 Influence of branding and re -branding in the c ompetitiveness of firm s

Huge techn ological, ec onomic and s ocial changes have taken place since the end of the last
and beginning of this century, s o all long term predicti ons are risky. But, apart fr om that fact, s ome
global trends in this very imp ortant area of business can b e anticipated. Generally speaking, it is
certain that brands will be the m ost imp ortant component of professional assets of companies.
Modern literature and c ommercial practice sh ow that the brand is created by l ong term,
persistent, patient and dev oted w ork on your own offer. Each c ompany or entrepreneur can and
should create its brand alm ost at the m oment of forming the c ompany in already qu oted view. It can
even be claimed that it is c ompletely l ogical and pr ofessionally needed. H owever, n obody can expec t
the brand t o be created in the m oment of creating the brand, i.e. by its ann ouncing!
It is n ot disputable that all brands d o not bec ome str ong brands and as well that all rivals are
not the leaders. The brand has its bigger or smaller values. Careful pla nning and great l ong term
investing are fundamental f or creating ''str ong'' brand. The Brand management bec omes a key
component of marketing management.
Thus, the brand is created and n ot ann ounced! It is als o important t o menti on that once created
strong brand d oes not necessarily mean warranty f orever. The brand is created but it fades by time.
It is a marketing law and l ogics, which was c onfirmed many times bef ore and it is g oing to be m ore
and m ore imp ortant in the future. Brand has its life span, t oo and brand managers have t o bear that
in mind.
Creating a str ong brand is aimed at a c onsumer. Each brand w orths as much as the c onsumers
experience it in their feeling during facing an offer. The brand is identified in the mind of a consumer
with an expecte d value, and as such it is an expressi on of ''promised'' value. Objective value of the
brand is in the mind of a consumer and n ot in the assessment of the management.
The r ole of branding in the c ompetitiveness of global firms/c orporations is huge, just be cause
this c ompetiti on gave them the opportunity t o became greater than their c ompetit ors and vice versa.
They always tried t o come out or to invent s omething new, s omething out of the b ox, that will break
the market. F or example the relative new c ompany of cars named Tesla owned by a El on Musk

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introduced new cars that w ork only on electricity, giving t o the pe ople the opportunity t o save our
planet of all the t oxines that cars n owadays make. Viewing this, one of the biggest car pr oducers
BMW als o started t o produce electric cars and intr oduced a new line of cars in their pr oducti on such
as i3 m odel and i8 m odel. This is h ow the c ompetitiveness w ork, each organizati on or company make
other organizati on better and fr om this c ompetiti on the beneficiars are the simple humans.
Another example of competiti on is fr om my t own where I walk every day. S o, there are tw o
stores of constructi on materials relatively near each other (1km) and the c onsumers can easily check
the prices and quality of products fr om both stores. And there is a str ong competetiveness between
this tw o stores as they c ompete f or each cust omer and always impr ove their brands and try t o maintan
the quality, s o the cust omer t o came back t o their st ore, not to the c ompeti ors one.

Figure 3 : The 3 Law s of Brand C ompetitiveness

Source: Retrieved fr om Pro Integrated Brand Marketing 2015

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12They are the laws of distinctive relevance, c oherence and participati on. Whereas the three
theses refer t o robust characteristics of how the brain w orks, the three l aws deduced fr om them
stipulate what the aims of branding activities must be t o act in acc ordance with these brain
characteristics. As the three laws are neur ologically f ounded, they p ossess a str ong regularity that
turns them int o branding prerequisites. They are used, in varying degrees, as rules of thumb .
Law 1: The higher the distinctive relevance of branding eff orts, the m ore likely the brand will
be ch osen.
Increasing the pr obability a brand is ch osen requires ass ociating it m ore str ongly and uniquely
with elements that are of pers onal significance t o the cust omer at the m oment of decisi on-making.
This is the law of distinctive relevance. An element is relevant t o the degree it is used by cust omers
as a cue f or activating brand names at the m oment of choice and f or evaluating brand perf ormance.
Brands may als o be able t o influence the cues pe ople use. The brand's c ore message and its
propositions must be built ar ound and distinguished within the range of cues that are imp ortant t o
customers in the speci fic envir onment the brand operates in.
Law 2: The higher the c oherence of branding eff orts acr oss time and space, the m ore likely
the brand will be ch osen.
Ensuring a fr ont position in the c onsiderati on set requires repetiti on of a specific, relevant
core message f or the brand. This is the law of coherence. Repetiti on is needed t o create str ong
synaptic c onnecti ons with ch oice criteria, which in turn is required f or increasing c ortical
representati on probability, which in turn is required f or bec oming t op of mind at the m oment of
choice. Specificity is necessary because specific messages are much m ore likely t o repeatedly
reactivate the same c onnecti ons and hence strengthen them —thus impr oving the brand's c ortical
representati on probability. Similarly, speci ficity must be c ombined with the opposite need f or
broadness. After all, str ong brands bec ome m ore profitable when they are successfully leveraged int o
other categ ories.
Law 3: The m ore engaging the branding envir onment that is created, the m ore likely the
brand will be ch osen.
To win the battle f or awareness, brands must create as many synaptic c onnecti ons as p ossible
between ch oice criteria and the brand name and within their own ass ociation netw ork. We call this a

12 TJAC O H WALVIS – Thre e laws of branding: Neur oscientific f oundati ons of effective brand building . Available:
https://link.springer.c om/article/10.1057/palgrave.bm.2550139

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rich netw ork of synaptic links. Brands t hat induce m otivated attenti on by making us curi ous or by
better tempting their cust omers t o try, play, practice, learn, exercise, adapt, interact or socialise with
them are m ore likely t o win the battle f or awareness and be ch osen. This is the law of part icipati on.
Again, there are many ways in which brands can create participati on in practice. The law of
participati on does not stipulate what way sh ould be ch osen; it merely states that brands creating
participati on increase their chance of being ch osen. F or instance, brands may seek t o reach cust omers
with richer media and m ore intriguing, engaging f orms that create interacti on, inv olvement and
dialogue within c onstraints such as brand fit, budget, reach, etc. In practice, brands must devel op a
participati on strategy that balances richness with reach, as richness and reach often f orm a trade -off.
Competitive brand p ositioning it's a strategy that defines h ow your business will establish and
maintain c ompetitive advantage. It's one half of your brand platf orm – the other is y our brand identity,
or what y our brand stands f or. Your competitive brand p ositioning references wh o you are selling t o,
what y our business sc ope is, and what y ou do to create value f or your cust omers. It drives y our
business strategy and operating plan.
The future of brand c ompetitiveness l ocal and gl obal seems bright, as existing c ompanies
invest a l ot in their brand and they bec ome a m odel for the ones that want in the near future t o open
a new c ompany – that with out a str ong brand strat egy, their future c ompany will fail.
Conventi onal kn owledge suggests that brands square off in the arena of public awareness.
Each party assembles its awareness and l oyalty generat ors and then launches a charm offensive t o
consumers offering them multiple reasons and multiple channels t o choose them instead of others. In
the fight between big and big, that’s a relatively straightf orward c ompetiti on. But h ow do you take
on the biggest brands in the w orld if y ou are a much smaller marketing f orce or if y ou’re looking f or
an alternative strategy?
Perhaps y ou do so by not taking them on directly. And perhaps y ou don’t take them on alone.
A thought f or this is that a massive and p owerful adversary can be seri ously affected by a much,
much smaller f orce that leve rages its netw ork and m oves quickly t o find p oints of vulnerability. The
relevance of this p oint, that it takes a netw ork to defeat a netw ork, for business t oday is captured
neatly in this th ought. “ Our organizati on was designed f or a pr oblem that n o longer existed, we had
brought an industrial age f orce to an inf ormati on age c onflict. I believe this same challenge c onfronts
organizati ons in every sect or of the m odern envir onment.”

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Now combine that idea of competing via a wired netw ork with the idea that a brand centered
on principle will act as a p owerful c ohesion point for diverse pe ople. As this p oints out, pe ople will
address issues t ogether, under a banner, that they w ould n ot address individually.
How do these ideas c ome together? Suggesting that a p owerful brand strategy may lie in
applying the same principles t o the way a brand c ompetes. That, instead of going head t o head,
companies c ould empl oy an asymmetrical brand strategy, one that c onnects pe ople int o a netw ork
centered ar ound a “pr otest”- based principle (using s ocial media f or example) and then uses that
principle as a guerrilla tactic t o compete with rivals at p oints where they are m ost vulnerable.
What w ould happen if brands were able t o rally their cust omers in the same way as pr otest
organizers have d one ar ound the w orld? And what if, instead of protesting, they were able t o make
their presence felt thr ough surges of purchases?
The key differences here t o traditi onal strategies lie in the use of principle as the c ore
underlying value pr oposition, in the rapid assembly and disassembly of competitive offers and in the
thought that c ompetiti on for the larger brand may n ot lie in one rec ognizable rival but in a netw ork
of challengers wh o nip at them fr om vari ous p oints, s ometimes independently, sometimes
simultane ously. In the same way, challenger brands c ould c ome t ogether t o out-innovate their
behem oth rivals, disrupt a sect or, force change by adjusting c onsumer expectati ons and then leave.
Such a c oncept n ow seems increasingly p ossible. There is an increasing invent ory of previ ous
innovations that can n ow be c ombined.
There are a gr owing number of creative minds that can be depl oyed. Pe ople can n ow interact
at greater speed and with increased efficiency and higher levels of trust exist between people wh o
share. While the future f or large brands increasingly lies in presence, the wider c ompetitive future
for some brands in s ome markets may lie in the applicati on of a combinati on of principles and pace
– essentially treating the scaled players as a constant backdr op against which they rally and then
retreat as reacti on builds. Perhaps brands have m ore to learn ab out competing f or loyalty and attenti on
from un orthodox organizati ons than they realize.
Market c ompetiti on can affect inn ovation in sever al ways. On the one hand, t oo much
competiti on disc ourages inn ovation. When c ompetitive pressures are t oo strong, firms are n ot in a
position to innovate. Given that inn ovation is c ostly and risky, any additi onal expenditure w ould have
to be justified by t he potential pr ofit margin. Where intensely c ompetitive market c onditions prevail,

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the pr ofit margin may n ot be sufficiently large, or significant en ough, f or firms t o recover their
investments in inn ovative activities.
Using a different line of reas oning, too little c ompetiti on also hampers inn ovation. Firms that
operate in markets where few rivals challenge them, or where they d o not face any c ompetit or, are
less likely t o innovate because there is n o motivati on for them t o do so.
What matters fr om an ec onomic viewp oint is the presence and size of economic rents. When
firms operate in markets where they enj oy some ec onomic rents – and their rents are threatened by
the p otential entry of new rivals – these firms are m ore likely t o innovate. They inn ovate s o as to
ensure that they c ontinue t o enjoy their rents, as well as ensure that they c ontinue t o stay c ompetitive
in the market. New entrants, on the other hand, are enc ouraged t o innovate and enter the market s o
as to capture these rents f or themselves. In this case, c ompetiti on enc ourages firms t o innovate, thus
leading t o generally higher inn ovation levels.
However, when firms operate in markets where the ec onomic rents are small – as happens
when market c ompetiti on is intense – the reward fr om inn ovating may be t oo small t o justify the
investment, and theref ore the level of inn ovation in the market will als o fall. At the other extreme,
when rents are large and there are n o competitive pressures, firms can c ontinue t o enjoy their
economic rents with out any need t o innovate.
Competitive pressures als o affect the types of inn ovation that firms bring t o the market. The
effect varies acc ording t o whether the inn ovation is a pr oduct or process inn ovation, leaving aside
industry -specific fact ors.
Process inn ovation is generally viewed as reducing firms’ pr oducti on costs. In a c ompetitive
setting, each firm w ould be m otivated t o invest in inn ovative activities that w ould reduce its
producti on costs, s o as to earn higher pr ofit margins than its rivals; this impetus to innovate bec omes
stronger the higher the pr ofit margin is expected t o be. M oreover, if a firm’s pr ocess inn ovation
significantly reduces c osts, it w ould be able t o replace the existing leader in the market and gain
market share. Theref ore, in this case, market c ompetiti on generally enc ourages inn ovation, which in
turn may pr ovide a basis f or interventi on from competiti on auth orities if there is high risk of the
market bec oming t oo concentrated.
Product inn ovation – characterized by the intr oducti on of new and impr oved pr oducts – can
thrive in b oth competitive and less c ompetitive settings. The reas on for this is that pr oduct inn ovation
will alm ost always increase firms’ pr ofits fr om the sale of both the new and the old pr oducts,

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especially when the pr oducts are differentiated. In the case of process inn ovation, however, the new
process meth od often makes the older meth od obsolete, and s o the pr ofit that the inn ovator gains is
only fr om the use of the new or the old pr ocess meth od, and n ot both. Theref ore for product
innovation, regardless of whether the market is c ompetitive or not, firms tend t o have the incentive
to innovate. This result, in turn, makes it relatively difficult f or competiti on auth orities t o assess if
there c ould be c ompetiti on issues at p lay in cases where they are assessing markets in terms of
differentiated pr oduct inn ovation.
With out competitiveness of brands, they might only remain a c onceptual visi on or a set of
cultural values which s ound great but d on't really make a difference in t he marketplace. A
meaningful, p owerful, valuable brand is based a clear, crisp articulati on of your competitive strategy.

2.3 The r ole of branding and re -branding in firm performance

Today, having a c oherent brand strategy is one of the m ost imp ortant th ings y ou can d o to
move your business f orward. Sadly, many c ompanies d on’t realize this until it’s t oo late. Far t oo
many businesses feel a brand strategy is s ome ethereal thing that's alm ost too hard t o fathom – or
afford. The reality is just the opposite.
Brand strategy is a l ot of things, but at its heart, is one simple c oncept: Y our brand is whatever
your cust omers say it is. F ormulating an effective brand strategy can be a game changer in t oday's
crowded markets. This is especially imp ortant f or mid -market c ompanies wh o need t o differentiate
themselves fr om competit ors.
To begin with, str ong brand value – whether induced by reputati on or by image – can have
an imp ortant impact on firms’ gr owth p otential. In the first place, it can increase firms’ financ ial
value ab ove the traditi onal acc ounting b ook value, which in turn can help them raise m oney in the
financial market. The m oney raised can then be used t o generate m ore inn ovation. In additi on, firms
with str ong brand value are m ore likely than their riv als – and tend t o be faster than them – at
introducing new pr oducts. This is useful because studies have sh own that a firm that breaks int o a
new market segment first is m ore likely t o retain a significant share of the market. Theref ore, str ong
brand value not only helps raise m oney in the capital markets, but it can als o help secure a firm’s
future revenue stream.

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It is unclear, h owever, whether branding channels such as advertising increases firms’ pr ofit
margins. When empirical studies examine the impact of advertising on firm -level pr ofits, the results
are mixed. The reas on for this can be attributed t o industry -specific fact ors. H owever, when industry –
specific fact ors are taken int o considerati on, this branding channel is f ound t o increase the pr ofit
levels of firms in certain industries. F or example, P orter (1976) sh ows that the advertising -to-sales
ratio increased pr ofits f or firms operating in c onvenience g oods industries (i.e. n on-durable g oods
that are easily purchased by c onsumers, and which tend t o be low priced and widely available), but
not in sh opping g oods industries, which c onsists of durable g oods that tend t o involve c onsumers in
more selecti on and c omparis on effort than is required f or purchasing n on-durable g oods.
As outlined earlier, bran d investments generate market p ower f or companies. This market
power is at the heart of brand equity and can be defined as the result of a company branding activities
to promote itself – in comparis on with other c ompanies that d o not engage in such activit ies. One of
the outcomes of this equity is the ability of branded pr oducts t o command higher prices than their
generic c ounterparts, thus increasing their mark -up over pr oducti on costs. This ability t o command
higher prices can be due t o the firms’ pr oduct differentiati on efforts, such as investments t o produce
higher pr oduct quality, or to use m ore efficient pr oducti on meth ods. It als o allows firms t o distance
themselves fr om their rivals and t o compete on fact ors other than on just price.
Strong brand nam es can als o help firms venture int o new markets, where they may have had
no previ ous commercial experience; alternatively, it may enable firms t o license out their name in
return f or royalty payments. In essence, these firms use their brands t o draw c onsum ers’ attenti on to
the quality of the firms’ new pr oducts in the new markets. In many cases, this strategy has been
proven t o be quite successful, especially when firms have a str ong brand reputati on. Zara, an Spanish
fashi on company, has successfully pursu ed the strategy of licensing out its name in order t o diversify
its business fr om clothing t o perfumes. By licensing out its brand name, Zara c ompany was able t o
expand its revenues fr om the design and manufacture of clothing lines t o include r oyalty payme nts
from the licensing activity. F or the c ompany that licensed in the Zara brand name, the licensing
provides a way t o mitigate s ome of the c osts and risks in building a brand by using an established
name t o enter new markets.
However, there is the risk th at the new pr oducts may undermine the original brand. When
firms fail t o deliver on their pr omises, c onsumers are likely t o punish the brand by withh olding future
purchases or by bad -mouthing the brand. This helps t o explain why s ome firms prefer t o create

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separate brands when c ommercializing new pr oducts in different market segments, or when
introducing pr oducts in markets that are very different fr om their original pr oduct-based brand
identity. C onsider, f or example, T oyota’s investments in building luxur y cars. The c ompany has
chosen t o commercialize this cars by creating a new brand, Lexus. T oyota’s successful marketing
and advertising eff orts, c oupled with its inn ovative techn ology, have led t o the creati on of a Lexus
brand that is a different car f or a specific audience.
Due t o the often high upfr ont costs of establishing a brand, the presence of strong brands in a
particular market may p ose a barrier t o entry int o that market by new firms. C ompetiti on am ong
existing brands may still be fierce and, as e xplained earlier, may be sufficiently str ong to promote
innovation. However, in selected cases, brands may bec ome s o powerful that they may result in the
firms having d ominant market p ositions.
Branding is one of the ways that helps firms rec over the inves tments they have made in
innovating. Surveys c onducted many c ountries on how firms appr opriate their returns on investment
in inn ovation show how imp ortant branding activities are. The fact or known as “sales or services
efforts” appears as one of the t op five imp ortant ways that firms use in order t o appropriate their
returns on investment in inn ovation – however, it is n ot the only meth od that firms use t o achieve this
objective. C ompanies use branding activities as a way of promoting their pr oduct inn ovation. In fact,
companies that invest m ore in research and devel opment (R&D) activities are als o more likely t o
invest in branding activities. This finding is n ot surprising given that branding channels, such as
advertising, have been sh own to be useful in p romoting the sale of firms’ g oods or services. H owever,
the durati on of this effect and its significance varies acr oss the types of goods and industrial sect ors.
13The business needs t o create a p ositive image in the minds of consumers. C ontrary t o what
most people believe, branding isn’t just a l ogo. Your business’s purp ose, focus, and image all
combine t o create y our brand. Why sh ould y ou make this eff ort? The answer is simple, just because
you or your business will benefit fr om this in time. This are a fe w benefits:

 You are remembered: It’s hard t o remember a c ompany with a generic name. Y ou may n ot
be able t o distinguish their purp ose and business f ocus. And why w ould y ou call a c ompany
if you couldn’t tell what they did? Branding y our business ensures t hat c onsumers will kn ow

13 MICHAEL C OHN – Understanding Branding Imp ortance in Marketing Y our Business. Available online:
https://w ww.c ompuk ol.com/understanding -branding -importance -in-marketing -your-business/

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what y ou’re ab out.
 You gain cust omer l oyalty: The fact is, pe ople build cl ose bonds with brand identities.
Consumers want quality pr oducts that they can trust. S o, your business sh ould have an identity
that y our cust omers can cling to. If y our company delivers great pr oducts and services and
has a great brand identity, pe ople will remember y ou. Additi onally, they will often refer y ou
to friends and family.
 You bec ome well -known: Y ou want the pe ople wh o have n ot done business with y ou to still
know wh o you are and what y ou do. If they see y our ads on billb oards, hear them on the radi o,
see them on televisi on, or any other media, they will kn ow your brand identity. And when the
time c omes that they need y our pr oduct or service, y our company will be the first t o come to
mind.
 Consumers pay f or image: We are a very brand -aware s ociety. Pe ople c ommonly ass ociate
brand names with quality and may only buy certain brands f or that reas on. If pe ople only want
one brand of a particular pr oduct, t hey are willing t o pay a higher price. Having a great brand
will make y our company have a superi or image and cause c onsumers t o forget ab out the
competiti on.

Generally speaking, branding activities pr omote inn ovation and inn ovation-related activities.
However, there are m odels where firms may use branding strategies t o repackage an existing pr oduct
instead of investing in inn ovation – for example, when a firm creates a different image f or an existing
product and markets it as a new pr oduct. Acc ordingly, br anding can have tw o effects on product
innovation: when firms invest in branding activities t o sell an inn ovation-based pr oduct, branding
complements inn ovation. But when firms rely on these activities t o sell an image -based pr oduct,
branding may substitut e for innovation.
Two factors help determine whether firms invest in intr oducing inn ovation-based pr oducts as
opposed t o image -based pr oducts. The first fact or relates t o the c ost-effectiveness of investing in
either type of product. The sec ond relates t o broader c onsiderati ons, such as whether the investment
can be used acr oss multiple pr oducts or techn ologies t o maximize the firms’ brand name.
The c ost of investing in inn ovation-based pr oducts, as opposed t o image -based pr oducts, is
related t o industry s pecific fact ors as well as fact ors that are specific t o the firm in questi on. Firms
that operate in industries where the market is new, and there are avenues f or product-based

38
differentiati on, may find it c ost-effective t o introduce pr oduct-based inn ovation. Conversely, firms
that operate in markets where pr oduct differences are few and far between, and where further
investments in pr oduct inn ovation may be c ounter -productive, may find that image -based pr oducts
have a clear advantage. Many c onvenience g oods categ ories – low-priced c onsumer packaged g oods,
such as ready -to-eat cereals, canned s oup, and ch ocolate bars – may fall int o this categ ory. Firm
specific fact ors that determine whether firms intr oduce inn ovation-based pr oducts or image -based
products in clude the firms’ market perf ormance, techn ological pr owess and reputati on
considerati ons. Firms that have str ong R&D capabilities are likely t o introduce pr oduct inn ovation.
But if these firms find themselves s o techn ologically advanced that their rivals a re unable t o keep up
with them, they may expl oit their strategic and reputati onal advantage –independent of activities that
would lead t o the creati on of new pr oducts – and instead intr oduce image -based pr oducts t o maintain
their market lead.
Product inn ovations that have search attributes are relatively easier t o promote than th ose with
experience attributes. In particular, branding channels such as advertising are particularly effective
in making claims f or goods with search attributes. This is because g oods with search attributes can
be checked by c onsumers bef ore they purchase them. Here, advertising plays a clear, inf ormative
role by p ointing out the things that matter f or product differences t o consumers. In the case of goods
with experience attributes , however, advertising has t o be b oth inf ormative and persuasive. By
definiti on, claims in advertising f or experience g oods cann ot be verified bef ore pr oduct purchase,
and s o consumers tend t o discount these claims. C onsequently, firms that pr oduce experie nce g oods
may be m ore inclined t o spend m ore on advertising than firms that pr oduce search g oods, since the
quality of informati on conveyed may n ot be as relied up on as that used f or promoting search g oods.
In general, investments in advertising increase a ccording t o the difficulty of dem onstrating
innovation superi ority: in other w ords, investment is l ow for differentiated search g oods, it is higher
for differentiated experience g oods, and it is highest f or non-differentiated c onvenience g oods.
However, th is does not mean that firms that spend m ore on advertising necessarily pr oduce
better quality pr oducts, especially in the case of experience g oods. S o, how can c onsumers determine
if the pr oducts advertised are g ood? In other w ords, can c onsumers rely on advertising expenditure
as an indicat or of product superi ority? It is difficult t o definitively answer this questi on. Many fact ors
can have an impact on the effectiveness of advertising as an indicat or.

39
First, it depends on a firm’s incentive t o differenti ate itself fr om others. Firms that are m ore
likely t o profit from advertising tend t o spend m ore on advertising than firms that d o not fall int o that
categ ory. F or example, a firm that wishes t o distance itself fr om its rivals – because it has a better
quality pr oduct than its rivals – tends t o invest m ore in advertising. In additi on, because its c onsumers
are likely t o make repeat purchases, this firm sh ould be able t o recover s ome of the extra spending
required in order t o promote its pr oducts. But this i ncentive may n ot be en ough t o determine the
effectiveness of advertising as an indicat or of product quality. If c onsumers in general will c onsider
that advertising d oes indeed pr ovide a g ood indicat or of product quality, then firms pr oducing l ower
quality product w ould have the perverse m otivati on to advertise as much as their high -quality pr oduct
rivals. In such a situati on, advertising bec omes a n oisy indicat or of product quality. H owever, if the
cost of advertising is high – and c onsumers d o not complete ly rely on advertising as an indicat or of
quality – then firms which need t o advertise w ould d o so. As a result, once again this branding channel
becomes a g ood indicat or of product quality.
A sec ond fact or that determines h ow good the pr oduct quality is d epends on how simple
consumers can verify a firm’s advertising claims bef ore they make a purchase, this is especially true
in the case of products with experience attributes. Here, the ability of consumers t o verify advertising
claims plays an imp ortant r ole in pr omoting sales of the pr oduct. This verificati on may manifest itself
in the f orm of repeat purchase, or third party review or certificati on. Archibald et al (1983), f or
example, studied the relati onship between quality, price and advertising in the case of running sh oes.
They f ound that evaluati ons published by the Runner’s W orld magazine had a p ositive impact on the
effectiveness of advertising as an indicat or of product quality, when fact ors such as price differences
were taken int o account.
When y ou have distinguished y our business thr ough branding, the marketing has the
capability of bec oming s o profound that little else is necessary. Devel oping y our brand takes time
and eff ort, but after it has been s olidified, and after cust omers have had the ch ance t o identify with
it, your sales can increase naturally. Y ou won’t have t o spend as much time planning marketing
strategies t o attract the public.

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CHAPTER II I BRANDING AND RE -BRANDING IN REPUBLIC OF MOLDOVA

3.1 Overview of branding in the Republi c of Moldova

Branding in the Republic of Moldova is relatively new. It started t o devel op in the recent
years because o the techn ological pr ogress that t ouched M oldova too. Nowadays, there are l ot of
firms that realized that branding is very imp ortant t o succeed in every d omain. And n ow the new
firms, when are f ounded, m ost of them think in advance ab out branding, taking int o considerati on
the appr oches fr om global firms. As f or the existing ones, a l ot of them tried t o rebrand thir existing
companies in order t o retain existing cust omers and t o gain new ones. But unf ortunately, n ot all of
them succeed. S ome of them even cl osed the firms, others have struggled and tried fr om scratch t o
build a new brand havinf n othing in c ommon with the old one.
Among the f irst wh o realized of the imp ortance of branding and re -branding in Republic of
Moldova were the wine pr oducers when there was the c onflict with our wines on the Russian market.
In that m oment they tried t o switch t o new markets but imediatly failed just be cause the brand of our
wines was unkn own on the gl obal marketplace.
14In 2013, theref ore, Ministry of Agriculture and F ood officially launched the nati onal brand
"Wine of Moldova" in the event attended by winemakers, ambassad ors and p oliticians. S oon, a ver y
clever visualizati on was presented (Figure 4) and a web platf orm under the same name established.
This platf orm is extremely m odern and user -friendly, but als o designed t o offer a deep insight int o
any questi on one might ask ab out M oldovan wine. Here, th e statistical data on wine exp orts, wine
producers included under the umbrella of the brand, hist orical overview of the wine pr oducti on,
cultural elements with wine m otives as well as upc oming events are accessible. The new brand is
awarded only t o quality wines rec ognized as such by Nati onal Office of Vine and Wine. Their
program t o market l ocal wines enc ompasses c omplex strategic initiatives, the legal framew ork of
quality c ontrol, a unique pr omotion and visual identity. The sub -brand of the “Wine of Moldova”
strategy is als o the grape -shaped c ountry. Alth ough the idea of equating the shape of the c ountry with
the strategic g oal is n ot new on the branding market, it c ould significantly c ontribute t o promotion of
Moldovan image as a wine c ountry. Catchy des cripti ons are als o a good way t o attract attenti on of
the travellers and audiences researching ab out the c ountry – getting t o know it. An other str ong side

14 WOM –Wine of Moldova 2015 available online: http://www.wine ofmoldova.com/en/

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of this strategy is the pr omotion of wine exhibiti ons in which “Wine of Moldova” participates.
Intern ational pr omotions are a very p owerful t ool for attracting investment, but als o creating a certain
opinion about the c ountry thr ough its pr oducts.

Figure 4 : Wine of Moldova Brand (W OM, 2015)

Source: Retrieved fr om WOM www.wine ofmoldova.com

Also among the firsts wh o think and realized that branding is essential f or success, are the IT
companies that operates in in M oldova. As they saw h ow the big c ompanies create their branding
and maintain the existing brand on a high level.
In the recent years in our country appeared new firms that offer services, such as brand
creati on, re -branding of existing pr oducts or services. This is because appeared the need of such
services and there is a demand in our country n owadays.
While I was at the internship, I had the opportunity t o discover the pr ocess of creating a new
brand inside the c ompany, and als o to assist at a re -branding appr oach f or existing firm. I was really
impressed by the quality and the way h ow this brand was created by this c ompany. They really take
into considerati on alm ost all the aspects that t ouches or will t ouch in the near future, s o they prepare
a plan and a visi on for the future of the brand. In terms of re-branding pr oject they haved, there were

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an existing brand of a digital pr oduct that l ost a little bit of tracti on to the c ompetit ors. So there was
a need of a new strategy, t o keep the existing cust omers and t o gain new ones.
On November 20 2014, within the premises of the Nati onal Museum of Ethn ography and
Natural Hist ory, T ourism Agency of the Republic of Moldova presented the new brand of the t ourism
industry in the Republic of Moldova. The event was organized by the T ourism Agency of the
Republic of Moldova, with the supp ort of the USAID C ompetitiveness Enhancement and Enterprise
Devel opment II (CEED II) Pr oject.
15The s o-called “Tree of Life”, as it was called by the auth ors, represents a stylized tree the
basis of which is the initial “M”, and at its t op is the symb olic rose. It was als o presented the t ouristic
slogan that acc ompanies thi s logo, namely: “Disc over the r outes of life”, which urges visit ors to
follow the path t owards new disc overies, thr ough the h ospitality, hist ory, wine, gastr onomy and
Moldovan traditi ons, the pr oject creat ors say.
The Tree of Life, the creat ors say, is a c omplex symb ol of nati onal culture and was ch osen to
represent the values and specific character of tourism in the Republic of Moldova. Thus, each
terminati on of the branches is a symb ol. Letter M – is the breeding gr ound of Moldova, the heart,
representing hospitality, the glass – wine culture and traditi on, a cr oss – the symb ol of religi ous
culture. Vertical lines represent the c ountry r oads which are t o be disc overed.

Figure 5 : Tree of Life (AGEPI , 2014 )

Source: Retrieved fr om “Tree of Life” – The New Touristic Brand of the Republic of Moldova!
www. agepi.g ov.md

15 TREE OF LIFE – The New T ouristic Brand of the Republic of M oldova! Available online:
http://agepi .gov.md/en/news/%E2%80%9Ctree -life%E2%80%9D -%E2%80%93 -new-touristic -brand -republic -moldova

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This sh ows of how imp ortant is a brand n ot just f or a firm, but even f or a country such as
Republic of Moldova.
As ec onomic and p olitical integrati on transpires thr ough gl obalizati on, local and national
customs, traditi ons, standards, and b oundaries begin t o dissolve, which leads t o an extremely
complex diverse gl obal envir onment, and pr ovides businesses with the need and the opportunity t o
read, identify, and devel op new cultural c ompetence. The se enc ourage businesses t o build on the
present cultural capital within c ountries t o create new successful marketing techniques, and at the
same time t o prevent unsuccessful pr oduct devel opment, pr omotions, pricing and distributi on.
Creating well -known bra nds and successful marketing techniques c onsistent with a c ountry’s
cultural dimensi ons represents a challenge f or internati onal firms, but is necessary f or success.
Branding builds cust omer awareness, enc ourages repetitive purchases, l oyalty, enhances pri cing
power, facilitates brand extensi ons, pr omotes distributi onal efficiency, and pr ovides a c ompetitive
advantage in pr omotional eff orts. By analyzing a c ountry’s cultural framew ork a firm can anticipate
and av oid cultural pitfalls. A c ompany that has a g lobalizati on strategy or a multi -national strategy
should research each c ountry’s cultural dimensi ons, local patterns, and segments f or the purp ose of
aligning the firm brand and image with that c ountry’s culture. This brand -image alignment enables a
firm to quickly and successfully build brand equity in the gl obal-local market place.

3.2 Legal framew ork concerning branding in the Republic of Moldova

Branding in the Republic of Moldova are regulated by vari ous laws and n ormative acts. M ost
important of these ones are:
 Law N o. 38-XVI of February 29, 2008, on the Pr otection of Trademarks (as amended up t o
Law N o. 101 of May 26, 2016) (2016)
 Law N o. 114 of July 3, 2014, on the State Agency f or Intellectual Pr operty (2014)
 Regulati on on Rec ognition of Notorious Product Trademarks and/ or Service Trademarks
(2011)
 Government Decisi on No. 1425 of December 2, 2003, on the Manner and C onditions for
Auth orizati on to Use the Official or the Hist orical Name of the State as a Trademark of a
Product and/ or Services, and as an Industrial Design or Model (2010)
 Government Decisi on No. 541 of July 18, 2011, on the Appr oval of the Auth orized

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Representatives in Intellectual Pr operty (as amended by G overnment Decisi on No. 1157 of
October 10, 2016, on the Appr oval of Amendments and Additi ons to Some Other
Government Decisi ons) (2016)
 Government Decisi on No. 488 of August 13, 2009, on the Appr oval of Regulati on on the
Procedures of Filing and Examinati on, Granting and Registrati on of Trademarks (2009)
 Implementing Regulati on of the Law on Trademarks and Appellati ons of Origin of Goods,
No. 588 -XIII of September 22, 1995 (2003)
 Government Decisi on on the Appr oval of the List of Trademarks as State Pr operty N o. 1080
of October 8, 2001 (2001)
 Government Decisi on on the Appr oval of the Regulati on on the Pr ocedures of Usage of the
Trademarks Determined as the State Pr operty Nș 852 of August 16, 2001 (2001)
 Singap ore Treaty on the Law of Trademarks (March 16, 2009)
 Trademark Law Treaty (August 1, 1996)
 Agreement on Measures f or the Preven tion and Repressi on of the Use of False Trademarks
and Ge ographical Indicati ons (June 4, 1999)
Legal basis is the Law on Protection of Trademarks n o. 38-XVI of February 29, 2008.
Moldova is a member of the Madrid Agreement and the Madrid Pr otocol and of the Singap ore Treaty,
as well as Trademark Law Treaty (TLT).
Trademark pr otection is obtained by registrati on. Trademarks which were pr otected in the
former S oviet Uni on are pr otected in M oldova only, if they were transcribed within the peri od
stipulated.
According t o Art. 2 of the Law on the pr otection of trademarks (as amended by the Law N o.
162 of July 30, 2015) trademark is any sign (visual, audit ory, olfactory, tactile), used t o individualize
and distinguish the g oods and/ or services of a natural or lega l pers on from those of other natural or
legal pers ons.
Registrable as a trademark are all distinctive and graphically representable signs, such as
words, names, acr onyms, letters, numbers, devices, c ombinati ons or shades of colours, three –
dimensi onal forms, the three -dimensi onal form of a g ood or its packaging and any c ombinati on of
the menti oned signs, pr ovided that such designati ons all ow the g oods and/ or services of one natural
person or legal entity t o be distinguished fr om the g oods and/ or services of other natural pers ons or

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legal entities. The f ollowing trademark types are registrable: trademarks, service marks, certificati on
trademark (sign of corresp ondence) and c ollective marks.
The applicati on is filed at the State Agency of Intellectual Pr operty (AGEPI). Multiple -class
applicati ons are p ossible. F oreign applicants need a l ocal agent. A n on-legalised p ower of attorney is
sufficient. F oreign applicants d o not need a d omestic registrati on. The applicati on process includes a
formal examinati on, an exa minati on of distinctiveness and a search f or prior trademarks. Signs n ot
deemed distinctive in the examinati on can be registered if distinctiveness has been acquired by use
in the territ ory of the Republic of Moldova. The pr ocessing time fr om the first fil ing to registrati on
is appr oximately fr om 12 t o 14 m onths.
Before substantive examinati on the trademark applicati on is published in the Official Bulletin
of Intellectual Pr operty.
A trademark registrati on is valid f or 10 years fr om date of applicati on. The registrati on is
renewable f or peri ods of 10 years. If the trademark has n ot been used within 5 years fr om registrati on
or has later n ot been used f or 5 consecutive years, it may be subject t o cancellati on.

3.3 Branding and re -branding devel opment in Repu blic of Moldova

Within a marketing and c ommunicati ons framew ork, brand devel opment is ab out having clear
definiti on of the firm’s brand assets and the pr otocols and pr ocedures ar ound applicati on of logos,
palette and p osition statements. It is imp ortant t o appreciate that the applicati on of the brand and
positioning will extend bey ond the implementati on activities of the Marketing and C ommunicati ons
Unit. C onsequently, the pr ocess sh ould engage and inv olve other business units f or input on the
limitati ons and requirements of practical implementati on.
There are three key objectives that need t o be realised in the Brand Devel opment pr ocess.
These are:

 Alignment on position: Brand supp orts how entity needs t o be positioned.
 Style guide outlining pr otocols and rules: Guidelines available f or all business units.
 Schedule f or roll out of applicati on: Timeline f or implementati on acr oss organisati on.

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The figure bel ow sh ows Brand Devel opment driven fr om Research and Insight and
contributing t o the Marketing and C ommunicati ons tactical plan, and lists the required steps.

Figure 6 : Brand Devel opment Scheme

Source: Retrieved fr om Brand -Devel opment -Framew ork-LGNSW

Brand Devel opment has a linear relati onship with Research and Insight; and Marketing and
Communicati ons tactical plans. Research and Insight deliver critical inf ormati on on key
stakeh olders’ percepti ons and aspirati ons for the new entity fr om which the brand can be devel oped
to underpin the creati on of Marketing and C ommunicati ons tactics. The Brand Devel opment pr ocess
in itself d oes not measure perf ormance of the brand as this is captured as part of the reviews embedded
in the Marketing and C ommunicati ons tactics and the ongoing Research and Insight pr ogram.

47
16It is assumed f or the purp oses of this framew ork that the name of the new entity will have
been established. C onsequently, the key steps in Brand Devel opment as listed in the previ ous
illustrati on are n ow briefly outlined as f ollows:
1. Establish Pr oject Budget . There is little value in c ommencing any par t of the brand
devel opment pr ocess if the organisati on does not have a sufficient budget. C onsequently,
the first step in the pr ocess sh ould be t o define the c osts for the devel opment of the brand
assets and p ositioning and supp orting style guide. It is li kely that a creative agency will
need t o be engaged t o assist with the pr oject and c onsequently up t o three pr oviders sh ould
be requested t o provide indicative c osts. As part of this pr ocess there sh ould als o be an
initial discussi on with other business un its as any applicati on for a budget all ocation
should include an estimate of the c ost of implementati on acr oss the organisati on bey ond
those elements with resp onsibility of the Marketing and C ommunicati ons unit. Examples
may include signage, unif orms and g eneral stati onery.
2. Review Research and Insights . The Research and Insight pr ogram sh ould be expected t o
provide a basis as t o the expectati ons and aspirati ons of external stakeh olders t owards the
organisati on. Understanding h ow the organisati on is currentl y perceived by key audiences
is an imp ortant basis fr om which t o devel op the new entity’s branding and p ositioning.
3. Engage Key Internal Stakeh olders . In additi on to understanding the final implicati ons of
new brand assets, it is als o critical t o engage rep resentatives of internal stakeh older gr oups
both for their input on their aspirati ons for the organisati on and t o help facilitate ongoing
supp ort and engagement acr oss the new entity with the ad opted p ositioning.
4. Define Desired Future P osition. With an und erstanding of external percepti ons and
engagement fr om key internal stakeh olders, the next step in the pr ocess is f or the
organisati on to determine its desired future p osition – or how it w ould like t o be perceived
by key audiences. It may be that the exte rnal percepti ons are aligned with the
organisati on’s preferred p osition or there c ould be gaps that need t o be addressed. With a
new entity it is m ore likely that external stakeh olders are yet t o form str ong opinions or
beliefs which present an opportunity to more readily p osition the organisati on. This
opportunity als o comes with the risk that early initiatives and c ommunicati ons will have

16 LEE FREDERIKSEN – A 10 Step Brand Devel opment Strategy f or Your Pr ofessional Services Firm. Available online:
https://hingemarketing.c om/blog/story/a_10_step_brand _devel opment_strategy_f or_your_pr ofessional_services_firm

48
a far greater influence on the devel opment of percepti ons. It is rec ommended at this time
to engage the m ost seni or members of staff t o ensure that the desired future p ositioning
aligns with the aspirati ons and overall objectives of the organisati on. There sh ould be an
appreciati on that while brand identity and p ositioning will assist with creating a p ositive
percepti on of the new entity, it will be less effective if it is n ot supp orted and reflected in
the culture and practices of the organisati on. This makes the inv olvement and engagement
of the seni or executive m ost critical.
5. Devel op Brand Assets . Devel oping brand asset s – logos, colour palates, tag lines – is
simple t o achieve but difficult t o do well. It is a pr ocess that is b oth creative and gr ounded
in specific insights and objectives. While it is likely there will be individuals in the
organisati on wh o believe they can undertake this pr ocess, and indeed may already have
ideas, it is preferable t o engage a creative agency t o ensure the balance between creativity
and strategy. The brand and p ositioning sh ould be realised acr oss the organisati on – with
touch p oints enga ging all aspects of the organisati on. For example, while it is often readily
recognised that it will be apparent in signage, c ollateral and staff unif orms, branding
should als o be a dem onstrative part of both the public facing and internal w ork areas with
the brand identity c omplementary of the organisati onal culture and evident in interacti on
of staff with ratepayers and cust omers. The brand is the identity of the organisati on and
should be leveraged as such.
6. Create Style Guide . Implementati on of the new b randing and p ositioning will require
finite rules and pr otocols. The creati on of a Style Guide that is accessible acr oss the
organisati on and addresses all applicati ons of the brand assets sh ould be created as s oon
as the elements of the branding and p ositioning are agreed. Again, the need f or the brand
position to be underst ood and supp orted acr oss the organisati on is key t o its success in
influencing external stakeh olders.
7. Consider Applicati on and Use . As menti oned previ ously, t o be m ost effective, the ne w
entity will have a need t o apply the new branding and p ositioning acr oss the organisati on
which will have implicati ons bey ond the Marketing and C ommunicati ons Unit’s
functi ons. Examples outside of the n ormal sc ope of promotional tactics may include
signa ge, unif orms and general stati onery. An audit of the organisati on sh ould be
undertaken t o identify the extent t o which the new branding will need t o be applied t o

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identify b oth scope of works and any unf oreseen issues.
8. Define Budget Implicati ons. In concert with defining the c omplete applicati on of the
brand assets and identifying any physical issues or problems, there will als o be the need
to establish the t otal c ost of implementati on acr oss the organisati on. While c ost of
implementati on should n ot command the design of brand assets, it w ould be unrealistic
not to be prepared t o scale back c omponents if c onfronted with excessive and av oidable
implementati on costs.
9. Test with Key External Stakeh olders . Having reached agreement and engagement with
key internal stakeh olders on the brand and p ositioning and having satisfied that
implementati on is within budget parameters, it is rec ommended the attributes are tested
with representatives of key external gr oups. This pr ocess sh ould be as a final review t o
identify a ny unf oreseen issues rather than t o contribute maj or insight and c onsequently
would be expected t o involve three t o four focus gr oups of up t o eight individuals.
10. Create Implementati on Schedule . The devel opment of the branding and p ositioning has
necessitat ed the engagement and c ontributi on of seni or executive fr om all parts of the
organisati on. It will n ow be necessary t o again w ork acr oss the wh ole of business t o create
a schedule f or implementati on. Ideally applicati on would be simultane ous acr oss the
organisati on. H owever, there may be physical or budgetary c onstraints that need
considerati on. Even with out limitati ons or impediments t o wholesale applicati on there
will need t o be a detailed implementati on schedule ad opted t o ensure that all aspects are
captured. The schedule sh ould include timelines and assign resp onsibility within each
business unit.

As I kn ow, a perfect name f or a brand c ould make a pr oduct’s success. Nevertheless, it is n ot
easy t o find a suitable name f or a brand. Even th ough, marketer s need aff ord this difficult j ob. First
of all, marketers need t o do some research ab out their pr oducts with the pr ofit, the market f or the
target, plus the strategies f or the future marketing (Fennis & Pruyn, 2007). Later then, naming a brand
needs s ome k nowledge on science, art, and hist ory. A perfect brand sh ould have the f ollowing 6 parts.
 The first one is when pe ople hearing the brand name, which can give s ome inf ormati on
about benefits and qualities t o them.
 The sec ond one is the brand name c ould be s imple t o issue, understand, remember and say.

50
 The third one is the brand name sh ould be c ommon (Pechmann & Ratneshwar, 1991).
 The f ourth one is it had better be expandable and extendable.
 The fifth one is the new name f or the pr oduct c ould be better t o translate easily int o
different languages and have a gl obal name.
 The sixth one is the brand name need t o be able t o list and t o have a legal pr otection.

In fact, finding an excellent name f or a design brand is a difficult j ob. So, once ch osen a brand,
the b rand name must be pr otected. Actually, s ome g ood brand name can give c onsumers imp ortant
informati on that includes benefit and attributes very clearly. F or example, the brand name "Pizza
Pepper oni" its a very c ommon name f or a pizzeria and its a very simpl e and quicker remembered
name. McD onald’s is a large fast f ood chain that l ogo is colorful and n ot easy t o forget t o consumers.
Apple C ompany did a g ood job either. They ch oose “apple” as the brand name because it is a very
common fruit’s name and it’s g ood for our healthy. S o, every one can remember the brand name and
it’s an easy j ob for us.
In the past times, the c ompany wh o has their nati onal brands always had advantage in the
market. In recent years, m ore and m ore wh olesalers and retailers have their own brand st ores ar ound
the c ountry.
Nearly all manufacturers have their own brand name thr ough spend a l ot of time and m oney.
However, a small part of manufacturers create their brand name just thr ough c opy other
manufacturers, use s ome well -known pe ople’s name, or use s ome fam ous m ovies name. F or example
there is a handmade sh oe manufacturer "Valentin Frunze". The fact that he already is kn ow by pe ople,
was a g ood reas on to name his brand with his name.
Resurgence of the brand appeared in c o-operati on in re cent years. C o-branding strategy is a
complex brand strategy, refer t o the tw o company’s brands als o appear in a pr oduct. C o-branding
strategy is that it c ombines the advantages of different companies, s o that can enhance the
competitiveness of products. B ut there are als o have risks with their brand. The tw o famous
companies wh ose name is Nike and Apple were w orking t ogether on a pr oduct "Apple Watch Nike+"
that c ombined the techn ology of apple watch with the active way of life fr om Nike. It is very p opular
today and sells very well. As we kn ow, iWatch is a successful series of the pr oducts fr om Apple. In
additi on, Nike is a fam ous sp orts company ar ound the sp orts w orld. There are b oth widely brand.
The purp ose of the c ooperati on is t o make c onsumers feel t hat they have a high -quality sp ort watch.

51
Actually, the new pr oduct gives their c onsumers m ore satisfied with the services. S o, Apple and Nike
cooperati on make them reached a high level.
Devel op a brand pers onality its very hard. Brands, like pe ople can ha ve pers onalities. F or
many brands it is their pers onality that is the key t o them achieving differentiati on in the marketplace.
Each brand sh ould have a distinct pers onality and it is these traits that help t o create the ‘image’ of
the pr oduct in graphical terms i.e. the pr oduct name, the design of the packaging, the t one of the
words used on the packaging and supp orting materials. One of the easiest ways t o help identify y our
brand pers onality is t o do a bit of lateral thinking – ask y ourself one or more of the f ollowing
questi ons:
 If my pr oduct/c ompany was a car what kind of car w ould it be?
 If my pr oduct/c ompany was a h oliday destinati on where w ould it be?
 If my pr oduct/c ompany was a film which one w ould it be?

The m ost imp ortant part of this is n ot your answer, but why y ou chose that particular answer.
If your pr oduct/c ompany was a Mercedes S Class then it is pr obably because it is prestigi ous,
premium and exclusive whereas if it was a Mercedes A Class car then it is m ore likely t o be young,
quirky and f un-loving.
Researching y our cust omers and their reacti ons to your pr oduct/brand can pr ovide vital clues
to creating a successful brand. Plan as much research as the firm can, int o your available budget and
time-plan. Research sh ould be ongoing thr oughout the brand devel opment pr ocess t o verify findings,
assumpti ons and t o gather c onsumer reacti ons. There are three key areas of research that sh ould be
considered:
1. Target Market. Inf ormati on gathered at this stage will help t o confirm that there is a place i n
the market f or the brand.
2. Consumer reacti on to the pr oduct. Get cust omers in the target market t o try the pr oduct – even
in prototype stage. Assess what they think of the pr oduct – taste, texture, c olour and als o how
they interact with the pr oduct. This will help refine the pr oduct t o meet their exact
requirements .
3. Consider using f ocus gr oups t o gather c onsumer opinions on the current range of products
available in the market place, their reacti ons to the pr oposed price, pr oduct name and
packaging.

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Devel op supp orting materials als o is a imp ortant part of devel oping the brand. Once y ou are
on the r oad to finalising y our pr oduct and packaging, c onsider devel oping the materials which will
help c ommunicate the brand. This includes supp orting pr oduct literatur e, point of sale material, sales
briefs t o provide backgr ound inf ormati on for buyers within the targeted retail outlets. Like the
product/brand these sh ould have c onsistent messages and a c onsistent l ook and feel.
And finally the latest stage of devel opmen t of the brand – selling the pr oduct. In c onjuncti on
with devel oping the brand the firm sh ould be devel oping a sales channel t o sell the pr oduct.
Depending on what type of brand this may be via maj or multiples, independent st ores, or perhaps
even int o foodservice. Regardless of the channel the firm ch oose, they sh ould devel op materials t o
help them t o sell the pr oduct t o them. F or example sales guides, marketing plans. The firm sh ould
also provide the buyers with samples of the pr oduct t o test.
In the last years, branding in Republic of Moldova substantially has gr own. The d omestic
companies realized the imp ortance of branding and started t o invest in this field. In the near years I
view that m ore and m ore firm's and individuals will invest in the devel opmen t of branding and re –
branding as a c onsequence of how this affect their business gr ow.

53
CONCLUSI ON

The main c onclusi on of this graduati on paper outline the fact brand is very imp ortant f or a
company and manufacturer. It can pr ovide a g ood position and value f or a manufacturer. F or a
success marketer, n ot only it needs t o design g ood products but als o needs t o create a g ood brand. It
can lead t o a good profit.
While I admit that the imp ortance of branding is n ot the same acr oss all industries and
companies, it is one of the m ost critical determinates t o sustainable gr owth.
Strategic brand management is one of the fact ors that c ontribute t o the success of a particular
product or brand. The scenari o in this c ountry sh ows that pr oduct b randing is g oing t o be m ore
important especially after realizing that gl obalizati on has an impact on the ec onomy of this c ountry.
Furtherm ore, the numbers of local brands that have succeeded in the internati onal arena are still very
low. Based on this fact or, it sh ows that the awareness of the imp ortant of brand management am ong
local manufacturer is n ot high en ough. A l ocal brand c ould only survive in the markets if it gets the
trust and l oyalty fr om local cust omers themselves.
Looking ahead, it is emphat ically clear that the c oncept of branding is essential t o any
business. Brand plays an imp ortant r ole when c onsumers are making purchasing decisi ons. Branding
is a key element of building pr ofitable businesses with l ong-term sustainability. Kn owledge of the
individual fact ors of brand equity, as well as, the applicati on of the fact ors, supp orts managers t o
devel op successful brand strategy. If brand strategy is pr operly executed, it ensures the
competitiveness of firms by increasing market share, gain c onsumer faith, increase sales, add value
to products and services and reduce marketing c osts. In order f or the pr oducts of a company t o be
competitive in the market, there is a need f or brand building t o be solid, true t o the organisati on,
embodied thr oughout their activities and c onsistent with the expectati ons of consumers. The str ong
brand sh ould be the main f ocal p oint in the marketing and c orporate strategy of companies as it
provides a c ompelling platf orm for the c ompetitiveness of companies.
In regard t o branding in Republic of Moldova, it sh ould be outlined that it is a c ountry g oing
through p ositive changes in the all areas of devel opment. Based on the c onducted research c oncerning
the role of branding and re -branding f or firm's fr om the Republic of Moldova following c onclusi ons
were maked:

54
1. Analyzing the literature and the didactical w orks, it is imp ortant t o figure out the imp ortance
and impact of branding f or local firms, bec oming one of the main l ocomotive f or
devel opment.
2. Analyzing the legal and instituti onal framew ork of branding in the Eur opean Uni on and
Republic of Moldova it sh ould be menti oned the eff orts in transparency of the legal system,
based on the latest example of implementing Acc ording t o Art. 2 of the Law on the pr otection
of tradem arks (as amended by the Law N o. 162 of July 30, 2015).
3. Examining s ome inf ormati on I understand that branding helps firms t o appropriate their
investments in inn ovation. Branding channels, such as sales pr omotion activities, marketing
and advertising, can extend firms’ market p ower. And finally, investments in branding may
give rise t o competiti on concerns. High c osts of advertising, f or example, can disc ourage or
prevent the entry of new c ompetit ors int o the market. An other cause f or concern is where
firms use their str ong trademarked brand name t o limit c ompetiti on in d ownstream markets.

To conclude, this graduati on paper revealed the r ole of branding and re -branding in the
competitiveness of firms within the l ocal and gl obal framew ork, by presenting the actual reality and
the perspectives of branding in the Republic of Moldova. Thus, pr oving that building y our brand is
the best way t o build y our business.

BIBLI OGRAPHY

NORMATIVE ACTS
1. Law N o. 38-XVI of February 29, 2008, on the Pr otection of Trademarks (as amended up t o
Law N o. 101 of May 26, 2016) (2016)
2. Law N o. 114 of July 3, 2014, on the State Agency f or Intellectual Pr operty (2014) Regulati on
on Rec ognition of Notorious Pr oduct Trademarks and/ or Service Trademarks (2011)
3. Government Decisi on No. 1425 of December 2, 2003, on the Manner and C onditions for
Auth orizati on to Use the Official or the Hist orical Name of the State as a Trademark of a
Product and/ or Services, and as an Industrial Design or Model (2010)
4. Government Decisi on No. 541 of July 18, 2011, on the Appr oval of the Auth orized
Representatives in Intellectual Pr operty (as amended by G overnment Decisi on No. 1157 of
October 10, 2016, on the Appr oval of Amendments and Additi ons to Some Other G overnment
Decisi ons) (2016)
5. Implementing R egulati on of the Law on Trademarks and Appellati ons of Origin of Goods,
No. 588 -XIII of September 22, 1995 (2003)
6. Government Decisi on on the Appr oval of the List of Trademarks as State Pr operty N o. 1080
of October 8, 2001 (2001)
7. Government Decisi on on the Appr oval of the Regulati on on the Pr ocedures of Usage of the
Trademarks Determined as the State Pr operty Nș 852 of August 16, 2001 (2001)

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