The Evolving Nature of Branding: Consumer and Managerial Considerations

• Published in: Academy of Marketing Science review 1999-01, Vol.1999, p.1
• Main Author: McEnally, Martha R. and L. de Chernatony
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Advertising; Brand image; Brand loyalty; Brand management; Brand names; Consumer behavior; Consumers; Marketing; Packaged goods; Personality
• ISSN: 1526-1794; 1526-1794

This paper is primarily a review of the brand literature and has two aims. The first is to bring together two separate streams of literature: (1) the literature about brand concepts developed by management and (2) the literature about brand images developed by consumers. Doing so clarifies the nature of the dual processes of corporations creating and communicating brand concepts to consumers who then form brand images in memory. The second aim is to examine the dynamic nature of brands in terms of changing brand strategy and increasing consumer sophistication. To achieve these aims, the paper describes the evolution of brand concepts and images in terms of six stages suggested by Goodyear (1996). The first four stages represent the traditional classic marketing approach to branding; the last two represent the post- modern approach to branding. The Goodyear model was chosen because its conceptual nature. It indicates the possibilities available to any brand over time. From examining the marketplace, it is clear that not all brands will go through all stages. Nevertheless, the model is useful because it focuses strongly on the need to respond to changes among customers. In doing so, it emphasizes the importance of two-way communication with consumers. The model was also chosen because it is more flexible in explaining: the differences in branding strategies across firms in a product category, the differences in branding the same product across international markets and the evolving nature of brands over time. Changes in branding are related to: the expertise of management, the firm's strategic goals and market targeting activities, the branding activities of other firms, the sophistication of consumers, the level of involvement in the product category, the stage of the product life cycle and the development of branding in the relevant product category. This paper extends Goodyear's conceptual model of brand evolution by relating each stage to the learning and valuing processes that consumers engage in. Finally, the paper concludes with by recognizing that the evolutionary model requires substantial empirical support and thus, there is a need for further research.