Brand - What is it? function, types, classification, examples, and more

Brand - What is it? function, types, classification, examples, and more
Posted on 01-03-2022

Brand

Name, term, sign, symbol, design, or a combination of these, used to identify an organization.

What is a brand?

The brand is a name, term, sign, symbol, design, or a combination of these, used to identify an organization and differentiate it from the competition since a brand helps the consumer to distinguish between items from different manufacturers.

Brand fixation began during the Middle Ages when artisan and merchant guilds were formed to control the quality and quantity of production. One of the requirements was that each producer applied trademarks to his articles, in such a way that their production could be restricted when necessary.

This practice also implied that poor quality products that could discredit other goods produced within the guild were more easily identified, which of course had negative consequences for those who produced and traded them. Likewise, these first brands represented protection for buyers, since in this way they could determine the origin and quality of the product.

Branding is an important issue in product strategy. When developing a marketing strategy for individual products, the company will have to make important decisions regarding the branding of its product, since it will require a significant amount of financial resources and long-term investments, with an emphasis on advertising, promotion, and packaging of products. brand, if that is the case.

brand function

The functions of a product brand are as follows:

  • It allows contrasting and comparing products within an open market economy, for the benefit of the consumer.
  • They are reliable quality guides. If consumers use well-known brands, they can function more effectively, as well-known brands tend to have fairly consistent quality.
  • They confer status. Many customers care more about the symbolic value of the product than about the intrinsic characteristics of the good they are purchasing. In this case, psychic satisfaction is the most relevant, since the consumer considers that part of the status or prestige of the product derives from them.
  • It encourages repeat purchases, speeds up the customer's buying process, and therefore decreases the time of the sale and the effort of the marketer.
  • It can create a loyal clientele, as the entrepreneur using them can develop their own market of loyal consumers.
  • A company can use various brands to segment markets and satisfy the needs of different downstream customers.
  • Enhance the image of the company. Good brands can enhance the company's name, simplifying the presentation of other products.

brand types

A brand can be classified as follows:

  • Registered trademark: brand or part of it to which legal protection is provided, by virtue of which it can be owned exclusively. A registered trademark protects the exclusive rights of the company for the use of the nominal mark and/or logo of the same.
  • Nominal brand: it is the part of the brand that can be vocalized; the phonetic voice of the same, the pronounceable part of the mark. Said pronunciation has the ability to differentiate the brand phonetically from others that may be considered of the same species or class.
  • Unnamed brand: these brands are recognized by their logo, their symbols, or figures, which allow them to be identified with a distinctive sign.
  • Mixed brand: is one that is made up of both the nominative element as well as the distinctive sign that visually identifies it.
  • Factory brand: symbol or denomination that identifies an article in which the manufacturer and place of origin are also mentioned.
  • Own brand: an item that bears the name or brand of the store where it is sold, preferably the name of the producer. For example, supermarkets, hypermarkets, and drugstore chains usually offer their customers private label consumer products.
  • Private brand: the one created for a line of products different from the company logo but still owned by it.
  • Generic brand: products with little-known or attractive labels, in which it is not possible to identify the company or the goods that are sold or marketed in the market. Their sale prices are usually lower than those of prestigious brands. This is widely observed in the field of drug sales, in which generic products are marketed at prices considerably lower than those produced by recognized laboratories such as Pfizer or Bayer.
  • Leading Brand– Good or service that is considered to be the best in its field, or is sold or perceived with such presumption.
  • Individual brand: the name applied to a single product.

brand examples

Below are some examples of trademarks, according to their classification:

  • Nominal brand: In the field of the automotive industry, the FORD brand is one of the unmistakable brands.
  • Unnamed Mark: A logo in the sports apparel arena, where you only need to see the image on the product to recognize it, is the PUMA mark.
  • Mixed brand: another brand located in the clothing and sportswear sector is the NIKE brand, but in this case, in addition to the well-known company logo, its identification in letters is also usually included.
  • Private brand: a very graphic example of this type of brand is the company CATERPILLAR, a brand of construction machinery that also has a line of footwear and clothing products.
  • Leading brand: In the ubiquitous field of search engines used on the Internet, there is no doubt that the leading brand is GOOGLE.

 

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