I completed my final year dissertation on "the role of social networks in brand revitalisation" achieving a 2.1 grade (65 marks) in May 2012. The study focuses on two key areas:
- What role (if any) social media has in brand revitalisation.
- How organisations can best utilise the technology of social media to revitalise brands.
"The Role Of Social Networks In Brand Revitalisation" by William Farmer.
(10,338 words).
Introduction
I conducted my study on:
“the role of social networks in brand revitalisation”
My research is into brand revitalisation and more specifically what role social networking
has as part of brand revitalisation strategy and how social networking can be best used by
organisations to revitalise brands.
I have decided to research into this subject as I find marketing an interesting subject within
business studies due to its relevance to the everyday decisions people make – the sales
and marketing “face” of an organisation is the part of an organisation with which consumer
primarily engage with most. Additionally, marketing is an innovative and rapidly changing
area of business studies due to its direct interaction with people and societies with whom it
has to respond and adapt to.
Within marketing I chose brand studies and the revitalisation of brands in particular
because brands also play a direct part in our everyday lives, as consumers we interact
with different brands on an almost daily basis. There are also many interesting examples
of successful and unsuccessful attempts at brand revitalisation by many companies which
I wanted to study in more depth.
I decided to focus specifically on the social networking element to brand revitalisation as I
am also familiar with social networks and I wanted to learn more about how they operated
and in particular how companies use social networks to revitalise their brands.
The benefits of this research could be numerous. Firstly, I aim to compare and contrast the
literature on brand revitalisation and the various brand revitalisation strategies within that
literature. This should give a good idea as to the best approach for a company to take
regarding brand revitalisation and which strategies are the most (and least) effective. This
research should also highlight the key themes in brand revitalisation giving an indication to
the essential points to consider when revitalising a brand.
Secondly, the research should indicate the main factors that can be used to determine the
success of a brand's revitalisation. Thirdly, my research should indicate if - and if so – how
brands can use social networks successfully as part of a brand revitalisation strategy.
The Aims and Objectives of the study are:
● To identify the factors involved in brand revitalisation strategies and determine the
relevant success and importance of these factors.
● To identify the factors to measure the success or failure of the revitalisation of a
brand.
● To understand what role social networking can have in brand revitalisation.
Key Terms
“Brand”
The American Marketing Association defines a “brand” as : “A name, term, design, symbol,
or any other feature that identifies one seller's good or service as distinct from those of
other sellers....A brand may identify one item, a family of items, or all items of that seller. If
used for the firm as a whole, the preferred term is trade name.” (American Marketing
Association).
(Pars. 2011:228) has a slightly different definition for the term “brand”, this is:
“A name, symbol, logo, signature or a combination thereof that defines a manufacturer's or
retailer's products or services through differentiating them from competitors' products or
services and offers perceptions such as quality, value, prestige to the consumers”.
Although both definitions are good definitions of the term brand I am going to use the
second definition as in my opinion it is the most accurate and well worded of the two.
“Brand Revitalisation”
It is also important to define what is meant by the term “brand revitalisation”, this is
because “brand revitalisation is a key term that it used in the main question of the study
and one that I will use frequently throughout, in my opinion the main study question also
comes under the general subject area of brand revitalisation.
During my search for a definition of brand revitalisation, I came upon many various and
contrasted definitions, these included:
“A strategy to recapture lost sources of brand equity and identify and establish new
sources of brand equity. This may include product modification or brand repositioning.”
(Black Coffee)
“Brand revitalization relies on innovation to reinvigorate mature or stagnating brands.
Revitalization combats brand stagnation with the introduction of new and updated
products.”
(Sparxoo, 2010)
Although both these definitions are useful they lack some clarity and consistency. For
example, in the first definition the author names two ways of achieving brand revitalisation,
I don't think the definition should focus on any particular factor in brand revitalisation given
that there may be many and I wouldn't be able to include all of them in a concise definition.
I prefer the second definition, however, I think it could be worded better. It also focuses on
innovation as a factor in brand revitalisation and this is only one of many factors meaning
this definition would not apply to all factors in brand revitalisation. I have written my own
definition of brand revitalisation:
“Brand Revitalisation is when a business uses a variety of factors to improve the
success of a brand – this success can be measured by many different categories.”
• Brand Revitalisation can also be spelt Brand Revitalization using a “z” in place of “s”.
This spelling has the same meaning as the original spelling. I will use the original
spelling during my study.
“Social Network”
A common definition of social network is:
“ a network of friends, colleagues, and other personal contacts: Strong social networks
can encourage healthy behaviours.”
(Dictionary, 2006).
This is the definition of “social network” in a literal sense – it is a network, a group of
people.
In an online context “social network” is defined as:
“an online community of people with a common interest who use a Web site or other
technologies to communicate with each other and share information, resources, etc.: a
business-oriented social network.” ...
“a Web site or online service that facilitates this communication.”
(Dictionary, 2006).
I will use a similar definition of social network:
“a website or online service that facilitates the communication between members of
an online community, primarily used to share information or resources.”
Common features used on social network can also be used to define whether a website is
a social network or not. Such common features include: the ability to share information
between users of the social network and between other websites, the ability to share other
resources such as pictures, videos, etc. in the same manner, the ability to contact other
users on the social network, a social connectivity aspect between users.
Social Media is a looser term for social network and can include all types of media with
user-generated content enabling users to share information. Social networks are a form of
social media.
Popular examples of social networks include Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube and
Myspace.
Literature Review
During my literature review I will synthesise, compare, contrast and evaluate the relevant
literature on my subject area. I will use a broad range of literature from different sources
such as journal articles, books, newspaper and magazines articles and websites. I will
firstly concentrate my literature review on brand revitalisation in general – the measures of
brand revitalisation and the influencing factors in brand revitalisation, before moving on to
what role specifically social networking can play in the revitalisation of brands.
What is a Brand?
I began my literature review by exploring the meaning of the word brand, and came across
this particular useful and thought provoking quote:
“A product is something that is made in a factory; a brand is something bought by a
customer. A product can be copied by a competitor; a brand is unique. A product can be
quickly outdated; a successful brand is timeless.”
– Stephen King, WPP Group, London
(Managing Brand Equity: Capitalizing on the Value of a Brand Name, 1991:1).
It is often assumed that the product and brand are the same, however this quote suggests
otherwise. It infers that the product is a part of the brand, rather than the branding being a
part of the product. This statement also implys then that “brand revitalisation” does not
simply involve changing the product as this is only one part of the brand, brand
revitalisation can therefore involve many other elements beside changes to the product.
(Light, 2009. 1) states that “brand revitalization means defining where you want the brand
to be and then deciding how to get there.” Clearly it is not just up to the company to
redefine its brand it must also take into account the opinions of consumers and other
stakeholders. However, I still think this is a good definition of brand revitalisation as it
explains the basic aim of the brand revitalisation process.
Going back to the original brand quote the author makes the statement “a successful
brand is timeless” (Managing Brand Equity: Capitalizing on the value of a brand name,
1991. 1). This suggests that some brands don't have to change, that they don't need
revitalisation – that consistency is better than revitalisation.
(Keller, 1999:104) uses the examples of Budweiser, Coca-Cola and Hershey large
companies who have been successful with a consistent business strategy having achieved
a market leadership position. However, (Keller, 1999:104) then goes on to explain that
consistency does not mean that there should be no changes in the marketing program and
that in fact brands may require numerous “tactical shifts” to stay relevant and keep a
consistent overall strategic objective.
(Keller, 1999:105) also goes on to explain that keeping some consistent “key elements” in
a marketing strategy such as a familiar character such as Kentucky Fried Chickens (KFC)
Colonel Sanders has also proved successful .That maintaining some level of consistency
through branding overtime helps to establish a brand.
This supports the idea that incremental brand revitalisation and consistent “tactical shifts”
and changes to a brands image are an essential part of a successful marketing strategy.
Therefore brand consistency and revitalisation needn't be opposed, but in fact brand
consistency and brand revitalisation can be the same.
It is often difficult to measure the success of brand revitalisation. (Andrews. 2007:354)
suggest three factors to measure brand revitalisation: brand image, brand attributes and
brand associations. Going on to say that revitalised brands show positive improvements
among brand image, brand attributes and brand associations.
To demonstrate how brand image can be a measure of brand revitalisation (Andrews.
2007: 356) uses the example of Fiat. In the 1980's Fiat suffered from an image of poor
quality cars, this negatively impacted on the Fiat brand and adversely affected sales.
From my research the Fiat brand is still tarnished considerably by a reputation for poor
quality cars even in its more recent models (USA Today, 2009) and this has prevented its
full brand revitalisation as this Fiat brand image for “poor quality” tarnished the Fiat brand
as a whole and the company's values. This supports the idea that brand image is a good
measure of a company's success in brand revitalisation.
According to (Keller, 2003:1) a brands power lies in the minds of the consumers and come
from their experience of a brand over time. This suggests that the more a consumer users
a brand the more “power” that brand has over the consumer. This also suggests that bad
experiences with a brand can also affect the consumers perception of that brand.
One of (Andrews. 2007:354) suggested measures of brand revitalisation is brand
association. (Keller, 1993) argues that a positive brand association comes when the
consumer believes that the brand has sufficient attributes and benefits that if fulfils their
needs and wants.
(Vieceli. 2011:245) tested the brand associations of three product categories across three
different categories, these were; shampoos (fast moving consumer goods), banks
(service) and cars (durable goods).
(Vieceli. 2011:245) summarised that associating information to a brand makes it more
accessible in the consumers memory. The study also states that a large number of brand
associations is desirable, especially from a variety of different situations, the more cues
one has to a brand the richer and more complex the consumer understanding of the brand
is (Vieceli. 2011:247).
(Andrews. 2007:356) goes on to state that “the image associated with brands can
influence, among other things, perceptions about quality, value, or price.” Brand image
having been identified as one of the three key measurements of the success of brand
revitalisation.
(Pars 2011:228) defines brand image as “the meaning that the consumers identify with the
product or as the sum of their understanding of the product.”
(Pars 2011:228) also says that brand is images results from the impression a consumer
has gained about a particular brand and that this impression can come from many
sources.
(Andrews. 2007:354) suggests that brand revitalisation can be influenced through four key
strategies. These are: innovative product improvements, product warranty programs,
positive third party appraisals from positive sources and effective advertising
communications. The study suggests that each of these four factors can independently or
collectively revitalise a brand with a negative brand image.
(Andrews. 2007: 364) says that despite being seen mainly as a selling tool, product
innovations can improve customers negative perceptions of a brand. That by making
product improvements in the form of innovations the company can reduce perceived risk in
their products (perceived by the consumer) and therefore positively influence the buyers
decision making process (Andrews. 2007:356).
(Nowlis. 1996) states that the impact of innovative product improvements adds even
greater value to the perceived quality of the product when a product has comparatively
poor existing features or is already associated with lower perceived quality.
So for example in the case of Fiat where the perceived quality of their products is already
low by making innovative improvements in their products they can improve their brand
image proportionately more than a company with an existing reputation for high quality
products.
(Andrews. 2007:359) also note than when dealing in international markets high levels of
local market knowledge are important to determine the best ways to improve products. For
example, if the technological improvements in a product can be utilised in the country is its
being sold in then the improvements will have little value.
(Andrews. 2007:354) also states that positive third party appraisals from reputable sources
are a way of revitalising a brands image. According to (Fisher et al., 1979) customers are
more likely to believe sources that are perceived as being knowledgeable about the matter
at hand. This could also be termed “competent sources”.
For example, (Andrews. 2007:353) uses the example of the product Tylenol. Tylenol a
drug used to treat cold and flu symptoms was reported in 1982 to have been contaminated
with cyanide leading to several deaths. Remarkably, by addressing obvious quality control
issues with the product and releasing a series of “you can trust us commercials” the
product survived a potential collapse in confidence in the Tylenol. Tylenol is still available
today and going strongly as part of the McNeil Consumer Healthcare group a subsidiary of
Johnson & Johnson (Tylenol).
(Cobb. 2008:18) uses the interesting example of Starbucks to illustrate brand revitalisation.
In 2008 used many tactics within a diverse marketing campaign aiming to gain as much
publicity as possible. This strategy included: a three hour mass closure of its stores for
barista training, a re-designed Starbucks logo, free coupons for Starbucks products and
the company's entry into social networks including a new social networking based website
“mystarbucksidea.com”. Starbucks also doubled its marketing budget to $110 million.
However in (Cobb. 2008:18) many criticise Starbucks brand revitalisation strategy. Many
comment that Starbucks lost sight of its “core brand values” and that by opening lots of
stores the company “spread itself too thin” causing the company to dilute its brand image,
others comment that Starbucks has “lost it luxury edge” and also that it has become
irrelevant to the younger generation (Cobb. 2008:18).
Despite this the social networking element of the revitalisation strategy including the
launch of “mystarbucksidea.com” is praised in the study. Particularly for helping to connect
Starbucks with the younger generation it was criticised for being so out of touch with. In my
opinion it has also given the Starbucks brand a more customer focused approach,
“mystarbucksidea.com” allows uses to post suggestions about how Starbucks can be
improved giving the customers a direct influence on the evolution of the Starbucks brand.
In (Berry, 1988:15) the author suggests a seven step brand revitalisation program. These
seven steps as follows. Firstly the business should rededicate itself to and focus itself on
improving the quality of products. Secondly, the company should then evaluate everything
that is contributing to the customers perceptions of product quality – this may be the actual
quality of the product, or negative PR/communications surrounding the product. Thirdly,
the company should carefully manage the relationship between the customer and brand.
Fourth, the company managers should have a clear understanding of the brand's values –
so that revitalisation of the brand doesn't lose sight of these values. Fifthly, each brand
should have its own kind of unique idiosyncrasy. Sixth, it should be the company itself who
orchestrates the brand revitalisation. Finally, the author adds that the revitalised brand
should be given a notable and “newsworthy” re-launch party – presumably to raise
awareness that the brand has been revitalised and give the newly revitalised brand some
positive PR and publicity.
The first step in (Berry. 1988:15) “ the business should rededicate itself to and focus itself
on improving the quality of products” is very similar to what (Andrews. 2007:364) refers to
as innovative product improvements. In the case of Fiat for example, where the quality of
Fiat's products (poor quality) negatively impacted on the company's brand image this first
step is particularly relevant. Following the example of (Berry. 1988:15) Fiat could have
focused on improving its product quality, this would have significantly strengthened their
brand image.
The second step “ evaluate everything that is contributing to the customers perceptions of
product quality” (Berry. 1988:15) is also simmiliar to (Andrews. 2009:364) innovative
product improvement and includes improving “actual product quality” as well as negative
perceptions of the quality through poor PR and communications.
In (Light, L. 2009, 2) the authors suggest six steps for brand revitalisation. In summary
these six steps are: refocus the entire organisation, restore the brands relevance, reinvent
the brand experience, reinforce an end to end “results culture”, rebuild brand trust and
realise global alignment (Light, L. 2009, 2). They base these steps on the example of
McDonald's, explaining how the six brand revitalisation steps contributed to the
revitalisation of the McDonald's brand.
The six steps referred to by (Light, L. 2009, 2) go into much more detail than the four
(Andrews. 2007:354) steps (innovative product improvements, product warranty programs,
positive third party appraisals from positive sources and effective advertising
communications) and comprise several sub steps.
However, there are many similarity between the brand revitalisation factors referred to in
both (Light, L. 2009, 2) and (Andrews. 2007:354). For example, (Andrews. 2007:354)
mentions innovative product improvements. When discussing “reinventing the brand
experience” (Light, L. 2009, 2) includes “innovation” and “renovation”. This can include
innovation and renovation in the products design. (Berry. 1988:15) also referred to
“improving the quality of the products”. Improving product quality is a clear theme running
through much of the literature on brand revitalisation, suggesting it is an important factor in
revitalising brands. Additionally (Berry. 1988:15) indicates that “evaluate everything that is
contributing to the customers perceptions of product quality” should be a step in
revitalisation including “actual product quality”.
The author uses his experience as a former worldwide chief marketing officer at
McDonald's to demonstrate the six rules to brand revitalisation and how they can be
applied. The first rule – “refocusing the organisation” consists of redefining by the brand
and the businesses purposes and goals as a whole. (Light, L. 2009, 34) explains that the
brand purpose should be aspirational. Using McDonald's to illustrate this point the
company's aim was to become “our customer's favourite place and way to eat and drink.”
(Light, L. 2009, 34).
The second rule is to “restore brand relevance”. (Light, L. 2009, 35) This means evaluating
where the brand currently is and where you want it to be and then making the brand
relevant to those consumers you are targeting. The author uses the example of how at
McDonald's they went from a focus on affordable meals for families with kids towards a
stronger focus on teenagers and young adults.
The third rule is “reinventing the brand experience”. (Light, L. 2009, 35) The author uses
the five action P's (people, product, place, price and promotion) to demonstrate how the
brand experience can be reinvented. In summary, he suggests that by reviewing each of
the five P's and reinventing them as to what you want your brand to be the business can
successfully change the whole experience of the brand.
Rule four is to reinforce a results culture. (Light, L. 2009, 36) recommends setting three
year measurable milestones to evaluate company performance, making it the aim and a
key priority of the business to reach these milestones. By using this method the company
can achieve its aims and objectives.
The fifth rule is to rebuild trust in the brand (Light, L. 2009, 37). The author uses increased
transparency, social responsibility and improved integrity as ways McDonald's restored
trust during his time with the company.
The sixth and final rule is to “realise global alignment” (Light, L. 2009, 38). This stage
refers to “aligning” the workforce – in other words, getting the businesses employees into a
simmiliar mindset all working toward the same clear aims and objectives.
(More than a PR job. 2008:20) is a case study into rebranding at the telecommunications
business TELCI. Although, this study is into “rebranding” a different concept to brand
revitalisation I think it has some relevance to brand revitalisation. (More than a PR job.
2008:20) main conclusion was that taking into account the businesses culture is an
important part of re-branding (something TELCI did do), that the company must
successfully communicate the re-branding process with its employees, consult employees
on brand changes and appreciate the “sub-cultures” that may be in the firm - taking these
into account.
An example of a poor brand revitalisation strategy came in 1985 from the Coca-Cola.
Suffering from a falling market share Coca-Cola withdraw its original Coke recipe in favour
of a new Coke with a new recipe and flavour. Due to the hugely negative reaction from
consumers about the new Coke flavour, Coca Cola was forced to reintroduce its original
Coke recipe under the new name “Classic Coke”. Eventually the new Coke flavour was
dropped and the original Coke recipe came back, reverting to the company's pre 1985
position (Snopes, 2011).
Many have called Coca-Cola's revitalisation strategy disastrous as they were forced into a
humiliating withdrawal of the new product and reinstatement of the new one. However,
some have speculated over whether the whole situation was planned by Coca-Cola to
create a demand for its original recipe (customers didn't know what they had until it was
gone) and that the “new Coke” was a ploy. Coke's market share (the original) also
increased significantly post 1985 following the indecent leading to more suspicions.
However, the Coke situation shows how by changing a significant brand element (such as
the product flavour in Coke's case) can sometimes have a negative impact on the brand
rather than revitalising it. This situation is also contrary to (Andrews. 2007:356) suggestion
that innovative product improvement is a key positive factor in brand revitalisation.
Showing how on some occasion innovative product improvement can hinder brand
revitalisation.
Perhaps the fact that Coke's flavour was already perceived as high quality is why a
change to this element was unsuccessful (Nowlis. 1996). If a simmiliar product with a
lower perceived quality of flavour, for example, a supermarket value brand Cola innovative
product improvement (changing the flavour) may have been more successful.
(Keller, K. 1999:110) suggests an interesting brand revitalisation strategy - the brand
should “go back to its roots”, the article uses the example of Adidas. Having lost its
position as market leader to Nike and Reebok the company decided to focus their
advertising on urban youth with performance-oriented products and athlete endorsements,
predicting that this group would reject the sports brands of their parents generation in
favour of creating their own distinct identity with adidas (whom had fallen out of fashion).
The strategy paid off and the company gained market share.
There are many examples in the literature I have reviewed of the internet and social
networks in particular being an integral part of brand revitalisation strategies. There are
also many examples of how companies have utilised social networks to revitalise their
brands.
On the role of brands in virtual worlds, (Barnes. 2011:937) is an interesting study looking at
exploring the real fit of brands in virtual worlds, using the example of the “second life”
video game. The study concluded that the success of brands in the virtual world depends
primarily on how well the brands “real-life” offerings fit within the virtual world, for example,
if the brand is relevant to the type of virtual world it is advertising in and how well the
brands synchronises itself into the game. This suggests that brands should only advertise
in virtual worlds (social media) appropriate to their brand.
In the case of Starbucks (Cobbs, C. 2008:18) the website “mystarbucksidea.com” formed
a crucial part of the firms brand revitalisation strategy. The “mystarbucksidea.com” site by
giving customers the power to create, share and comment on ideas and using these social
networking tools to shape the Starbucks brand this makes the “mystarbucksidea.com”
website in itself a social network.
In this way Starbucks has not only used outside social networking sites to revitalise its
brand but it has also created its own social network as part of its brand revitalisation
strategy.
Starbucks has introduced many of the ideas put forward on “mystarbucksidea.com” by its
customers from introducing a Mocha Cookie Crumble Frappuccino, Chocolate Cinnamon
Bread a new fruit drinks range called Evolution Fresh and even new taste testing events
(My Starbucks Idea, 2011). The social network aspect of Starbucks brand revitalisation is
allowing it to interact with its customers and giving them an influence into how the
company brand evolves through the new products and services it introduces. I believe
Starbucks case demonstrates how social networking can play and important role in the
revitalisation of brands.
According to (Keller, K. 2003) a brands power lies in the minds of the consumers and
come from their experience of a brand over time. This again suggests that if a brands
image and values can reach potential consumers through social networking, even if the
consumer doesn't use that brand they will build up an impression of what using that brand
would be like. It will become familiar.
This links in to (Grewal et al., 1998) who suggested that in situations where a consumer
has not had a direct experience with a brand, exposure to the brand name (and its values)
gives the consumer a familiarity with the product – making them more inclined to use the
product. This conclusion could be directly applied to social networking as it is one medium
where the companies are able to advertise their brands creating a familiarity between
consumer and brand.
However on brand association, (Vieceli. 2011:248) states that there is a clear distinction
between direct experience with a brand (using that brand) and indirect experience
(advertising, word of mouth), and that “brand association based on direct experience are
likely to be more relevant.”
(Mathieson. 2011) looks specifically how brands can advertise through digital platforms,
including social networks. According to (Mathieson. 2011) brands must be meaningful to
the target audience, business have to understand the type of social media onto which they
are advertising and the types of consumer that use that media.
Another important point made in (Mathieson. 2011) is that the business must work out
what exactly it wants that particular social media to do for its brand, be it attracting
customers to the brand, raising awareness of the brand or improving the brands image.
(Okazaki. 2009) uses the example of a real brand promotion – a hair styling wax targeted
at adolescent men – to show how interactive marketing utilised using mobile internet
communications affecting the young peoples relationship with a brand. The study also
compared interactive marketing with word of mouth communication between the youth
about the brand in the study.
The results of (Okazaki. 2009) actually showed that although mobile internet
communications were used more frequently than word of mouth when a brand referral was
made word of mouth communication created a stronger brand commitment between the
young people and the brand.
(Zeisser. 2010:28) says that word of mouth on social networking sites can be described as
a form of marketing. But it must be earned by the business through being useful to users
and engaging in real conversations, not just simply having a presence on a social
networking site (Zeisser. 2010:28).
Social networks allow users to make comments on and review brands, this can sometime
positive influence brand revitalisation – if the comments are good, or can hinder brand
revitalisation – if the comments are negative. However, if a company utilises social
networks and includes a focus on social networks as a key part of the overall brand
revitalisation strategy the company will at least be able to put strategies in place to
maximise the positive reviews and comments of its brand – by bringing attention to them;
and also to minimise the impact of negative reviews and comments – by overemphasising
the positive reviews and comments.
This links in to (Andrews, 2007:357) comments on how positive third party appraisals are a
key part of revitalisation of a negative brand. However, (Andrews) also states they should
be from “competent sources”. Backed up by (Fisher et al., 1979) who says customers are
more likely to believe sources that are perceived as being knowledgeable about the matter
at hand. Given that anyone can use a social network and they don't necessarily have to
have an expert opinion on the subject on which they are commenting, not all positive
comments on the brand will be from competent sources.
Perhaps, a part of the brand revitalisation strategy could be to highlight the positive
comments by competent sources on social networking sites.
(Jean. 2011) also suggests that parodying a rival brand through media advertising can be
successful.
(Booth. 2011) recommends identifying who the most influence social networking, those it
calls “new somebodies” to shape perceptions of a brand through social media. (Andrews.
2007:354) identifies third party appraisals as a key factor in brand revitalisation.
Persuading those “new somebodies” (Booth. 2011) to positively appraise a brand, using
their social networking influence to persuade others of the brands value could be an
effective way of getting third party appraisals through social media. (Zeisser. 2010:28)
backs this up by remarking that an effective way for a brand to use social networking is
make people who originate word of mouth conversation about the brand seem important in
their social environment – so others will follow them and therefore also follow the brand.
In (Wang. 2011:813) when studying sports teams the authors found that a sponsors
perceived identification and congruence with that team, lead to an improved perception of
credibility by consumers toward that sponsor, and that this in turn lead to increased brand
equity for the sponsor. This study could be useful when applied to social networks.
(Okazaki. 2009) using a real brand example – a young men's hair styling wax - showed
that mobile internet communications were used more frequently than word of mouth when
a brand referral was made word of mouth communication created a stronger brand
commitment between the young people and the brand. This study suggests that although
social networking may be a very effective tool in creating publicity for a brand and raising
awareness of the brand, fostering a familiarity between potential consumers and brand
(Grewal et al., 1998), social networking may not be the best medium in creating brand
commitment.
Methodology
My study was conducted on the following topic:
“the role of social networks in brand revitalisation”.
I have had several key objectives I wanted to focus on during the research.
These are:
● To identify the factors involved in brand revitalisation strategies and determine the
relevant success and importance of these factors.
● To identify the factors to measure the success or failure of the revitalisation of a
brand.
● To understand what role social networking can have in brand revitalisation.
This section will cover the methodology of the data I collected during this study.
I collected data relevant to several subjects relating to my study. This included journal
articles on marketing topics in general, sources relevant to branding, sources relevant to
social networking with and without a marketing element, sources on brands relationships
with social networks, sources on brand revitalisation, case studies detailing real examples
of various companies brand revitalisations and journal articles and other sources on brand
revitalisation with a social network element (these were the most directly relevant to my
study).
I collected data on several topics related in different ways to my topic for various reasons.
Firstly, there were very few sources (in particular) on social networks direct relationship
with brand revitalisation. Secondly, I wanted to widen my search into as many different
related topics as possible in order to get as broad a view as possible of social networks
role in brand revitalisation from many different positions and disciplines (marketing,
advertising, branding, social networks in general, etc.). Lastly, I wanted to research into
case studies of companies who had attempted brand revitalisation to get practical
examples of how companies applied brand revitalisation theory, and how successful these
were.
I even researched examples of brand revitalisation strategies that did not have a social
networking element as these strategies could still in many cases be applied to social
media (even if they weren't in the example used).
I collected several types of data including journal articles, books, pages from websites,
news articles and magazine articles.
The key resources for my study were journal articles. I used two main journal databases
in my research, these were: EBSCO Business Source Complete and Emerald Journals.
I found these academic databases extremely useful as they contained many interesting
resources relevant to my study particularly journal articles.
I collected the journal articles (my main resource) using search engines within the
academic databases, searching with terms relevant to my subject. I also found many
journal articles through references to them in journal articles I had already collected. This
was an immensely effective way of expanding my search for relevant articles particularly
into my subject of “social networks role within brand revitalisation”. A subject with not a
vast amount of resources.
As I collected the majority of the my sources from respected academic databases –
EBSCO business source complete and emerald journals I am confident that my sources
are accurate and reliable. Many of my sources were having been referred to in journal
articles from these sites, so I am also confident that these sources will be reliable and
valid. For sources not collected from academic databases or journal article references I
have made sure to check the reliability of the website, company, etc. before including
these sources, I am confident that all of my sources of information and data are reliable
and valid.
Analysis and Discussion
During my review of the relevant literature I found that many different factors contribute to
brand revitalisation and the role that social networking can have in the application of these
factors. In this section I will compare, contrast and analyse this literature to come to a
conclusion on my research question and aims and objectives.
A challenge of this study has been applying general principles of brand revitalisation to a
social networking context. (Zeisser. 2010:28) admits that the true value of social networks
remains unclear. Continuing to remark that “while common wisdom suggests that they
should be tremendous enablers and amplifiers of word of mouth, few consumer
companies have unlocked this potential.” (Zeisser. 2010:28)
This suggests that there although there is much that is unknown about the benefits of
using social networking in brand revitalisation strategies, the benefits of doing so may be
tremendous if done correctly.
I noted in the literature review that (Andrews. 2007:354) suggest three factors to measure
the success of brand revitalisation: brand image, brand attributes and brand associations.
In the literature review I identified brand image as an important factor in determining the
success of a brand revitalisation. Defined by (Pars 2011:228) as “the meaning that the
consumers identify with the product or as the sum of their understanding of the product.”
(Andrews. 2007:???) states that “the image associated with brands can influence, among
other things, perceptions about quality, value, or price.”
As brand image as an important factor in determining the success of a brand revitalisation,
improving brand image therefore has a key role in brand revitalisation strategy.
(Pars 2011:228) says that brand is images results from the impression a consumer has
gained about a particular brand and that this impression can come from many sources.
This suggests that a consumer impression of brand image can also come from social
networks (other sources) – it also suggests that social networks can be used to positively
influence brand image.
(Andrews. 2007:354) also refers to brand association as a measure of brand revitalisation.
(Keller, 1993) argues that a positive brand association comes when the consumer believes
that the brand has sufficient attributes and benefits that if fulfils their needs and wants.
(Vieceli. 2011:245) tested the brand associations of three product categories across three
different categories, these were; shampoos (fast moving consumer goods), banks
(service) and cars (durable goods).
(Vieceli. 2011:245) summarised that associating information to a brand makes it more
accessible in the consumers memory. The study also states that a large number of brand
associations is desirable, especially from a variety of different situations, the more cues
one has to a brand the richer and more complex the consumer understanding of the brand
is (Vieceli. 2011:247).
Brand associations can be made through social networks, therefore a part of brand
revitalisation could be to create as many brand associations as possible with the consumer
utilising social networks to do so. This would give the consumer an increasingly rich and
complex appreciation of the brand.
According to (Keller, K. 2003) a brands power lies in the minds of the consumers and
come from their experience of a brand over time. So the more experience the consumer
has of the brand (association) the greater and deeper the consumers appreciation of it.
(Andrews. 2007: 364) says that despite being seen mainly as a selling tool, product
innovations can improve customers negative perceptions of a brand. That by making
product improvements in the form of innovations the company can reduce perceived risk in
their products (perceived by the consumer) and therefore positively influence the buyers
decision making process (Andrews. 2007:356). This particular piece of literature is difficult
to apply to a social network situation, although it could be said that innovative
improvements to the social networking page add value to the brand. In a fast changing
environment such as social networks it is particularly important to be innovative in the
brand to keep pace with other brands.
(Nowlis. 1996) state that the impact of innovative product improvements adds even greater
value to the perceived quality of the product when a product has comparatively poor
existing features or is already associated with lower perceived quality. So for brands with a
particularly low perception of quality innovation through social networks is especially
important.
(Andrews. 2007:359) also note than when dealing in international markets high levels of
local market knowledge are important to determine the best ways to improve products. For
example, if the technological improvements in a product can be utilised in the country is its
being sold in then the improvements will have little value. This is particularly important in
the case of social networks as coverage is varied in many countries. For example, Twitter
and Facebook are banned in china (web2asia, 2009). So if the product was targeted at a
Chinese market using this network would obviously be the wrong choice.
I have also found that effective advertising communications are an important factor in
brand revitalisation. Using the example of Tylenol which managed to minimise negative
publicity and a potential collapse in confidence in its product following several deaths
(caused by Tylenol becoming contaminated with cyanide). The company did this using an
effective advertising campaign including commercial focused on a “you can trust us”
message. This showed how effective advertising campaigns can have a role in brand
revitalisation even in very difficult circumstances such as those experienced by Tylenol.
During my research into brand revitalisation I found that improving the quality of the
product itself was mentioned several times in the literature as a key component of a
successful brand revitalisation strategy. Using the example of Fiat I found how a poor
quality product can negatively affect a brands image. (Andrews, 2007:264), (Berry,
1988:15) and (Light, L. 2009) all cited product improvement as a key part of any brand
revitalisation strategy.
Applying this to social networking it is important that a company reinforces how the quality
of its product has improved through advertising these product innovations and
improvements on social networks. (Nowlis. 1996) states that the impact of innovative
product improvements adds even greater value to the perceived quality of the product
when a product has comparatively poor existing features or is already associated with
lower perceived quality. So a company with a poor quality product had more to gain in
terms of brand image than a company with a high level of product quality by improving the
quality of its products. These improvements should then be appropriately advertised
through social networks.
On brand association, (Vieceli. 2011:248) stated that there is a clear distinction between
direct experience with a brand (using that brand) and indirect experience (advertising,
word of mouth), that “brand association based on direct experience are likely to be more
relevant.”
The author is not necessarily suggesting that indirect experience has no relevance but
merely emphasises the importance of direct experience. Social networks could be used to
promote brand events where potential consumers are invited to experience the brand, this
would increase the positive associations of the brand for those attending the event.
(Berry. 1988:15) is an important piece of literature which suggests seven steps to brand
revitalisation. In my opinion, the first two and final steps are the best and most relevant to
my study. The first step is for the business to rededicate itself to improving product quality,
the second is to evaluate all that is impacting on the customers perception of the product.
Both of these first two steps are simmiliar to (Andrews. 2007:364) – innovative product
improvements. Improving the quality of the product is clearly an important part of brand
revitalisation as it comes up repeatedly in the literature.
The final step in (Berry. 1988:15) is that the revitalised brand should be given a notable
and “newsworthy” re-launch party. In my opinion, this an important and interesting factor in
brand revitalisation. The aim of the re-launch party is to publicise the revitalised brand as
much as possible, this links in to social networks which can also be used to publicise the
revitalisation of a brand and spread word of mouth about this. Perhaps, in some cases a
role for social networking and a launch party would not both be needed, however, if they
were social networks could be used to publicise the launch party as well as the revitalised
brand added to the positive brand image, and raising more awareness among consumers
of the brand.
In the literature review I identified the six rules (Light, L. 2009) identified for brand
revitalisation.
Although not all of these stages are relevant to my research I find the second and fifth rule
particularly relevant. Restoring the brands relevance is particularly helpful as it allows the
company to refocus its aims and objectives for the brand and whom it wants the brand to
target. This is simmiliar to how (Andrews. 2007:364) and (Light, L. 2009) mention
innovatively improving the quality of the product, and managing the perception of the
consumer of the brands quality.
The fifth rule - rebuilding trust in the brand also sound particularly useful. In my opinion,
poor trust by the consumer in the brand is a obstacle to effective brand revitalisation, the
consumer needs to have absolute confidence in the brand.
In the literature review I suggested that a study showing that a sponsors perceived
identification and congruence with a sports team lead to an improved perception of
credibility by consumers toward that sponsor, and this in turn lead to increased brand
equity for the sponsor (Wang. 2011:813) – could also be applied to social networks.
Putting the social network in place of the sports team. This is because there are several
similarities between the two: for example, both offer leisure/entertainment services,
consumers usually have a loyalty to a particular social network or sports team and they
interact with this social network/sports team on a frequent basis (almost habitually).
Applying this study to social networks then, a perceived identification and congruence
between the brand and social network could increase the brands perception of credibility
by users of that social network and therefore also increase its brand equity. A perceived
identification and congruence between the brand and social network could come in many
ways. For example, by the brand showing it is familiar with social network terminology, so
on twitter this could mean using hashtags (#) in tweets and on facebook it could be
“tagging” other people and brands in posts. Another example would be if the brand
interacted with other topics and trends (on Twitter for example) apart from its own brand to
show that it is familiar with using social networks, using them not just to promote brands. In
this way the brand can portray itself as a genuine social network user rather than a
faceless business simply promoting a brand.
These are just a couple of examples of how a brand can improve its perceived
identification and congruence between itself and social networks, therefore, increasing
brand equity (Wang. 2011:813). As we have seen during this study increasing brand equity
is an important part of the brand revitalisation process.
In the literature review I highlighted that (Jean. 2011) suggests that parodying a rival brand
through media advertising can be successful. Although aggressive advertising towards a
competitor doesn't directly aid in brand revitalisation, it may indirectly help with
revitalisation by creating a negative brand image of a competitor. Particularly, in a duopoly
market. We can see this in the attack ads by Apple on Microsoft in the personal computer
market (Jean. 2011), a market dominated by those two companies (excluding tablet
computers and smart phones). Also not completely dissimilarly we have seen in political
campaigns how aggressive advertising towards a competitor can help in a candidates
campaign, and particularly through the medium of social networks. Perhaps negative
advertising through social media against competitors could play an important part in a
company's brand revitalisation strategy.
I also highlighted how word of mouth on social networking sites can be described as a
form of marketing and that it must be earned by the business through being useful to users
and engaging in real conversations, not just simply having a presence on a social
networking site (Zeisser. 2010:28). This suggests it is important that the brand engages
with consumers meaningfully on social networking sites in order to gain credibility and
word of mouth referrals.
(Barnes. 2011:937) looks the real fit of brands in virtual worlds, with the example of the
“second life” video game. Concluding that the success of brands in the virtual world
depends primarily on how well the brands “real-life” offerings fit within the virtual world, that
brands should only advertise in virtual worlds (social media) appropriate to their brand. It is
noted toward the end of this article that the findings in the study are applicable for many
types of social media advertising. In my opinion, therefore brands should also only
advertise in social media suitable to that particular brand (in addition to other virtual
worlds).
(More than a PR job. 2008:20) made clear that consulting employees on changes and
taking a businesses culture are important when making brand decisions. This suggests
that an employee consultation stage could play an important part in the brand revitalisation
process, and that the businesses culture should be taken into consideration for the new
brand.
It is also important that the brand advertises on the correct social media, that it is relevant
to the audience on that media, and it understands the social media. This was mentioned in
(Mathieson. 2011).
In (Mathieson. 2011) it also highlights that the business must work out what it wants for its
brand from a social media platform. In this case, I would refer to (Andrews. 2007:354)
three measures of brand revitalisation as to what I wanted to achieve for my brand from a
social network – improving brand image, brand attributes and brand association.
Brands should also not be afraid to take some risks when using social media (Mathieson.
2011).
(Zeisser. 2010:28) says that word of mouth on social networking sites can be described as
a form of marketing. But it must be earned by the business through being useful to users
and engaging in real conversations, not just simply having a presence on a social
networking site.
There are also many disadvantages in using social networks as a part of brand
revitalisation, few of which I have discussed thus far. Disadvantages include the reach of
social networks – not everyone uses social networks so using social networks in the
overall brand revitalisation strategy will have little impact on this groups, they will have to
be reached by other means. In certain products cases it may be particularly
disadvantageous to use social networking as very few of there consumers may use it, in
these example I would not advise using social network as part revitalisation or only to a
limited extent. Rather focusing on other factors in brand revitalisation.
Another disadvantage is that consumers may not accept social networking as a form of
communication between themselves and the brand. Consumers may use the social
network with intent of avoiding any communication with brands making it more difficult for
them to be reached in any brand revitalisation.
Finally, a role for social networking in brand revitalisation should only be one part of a
brand revitalisation strategy not the whole of it. Any over emphasis on social networking
may be ineffective for reasons mentioned above. So although, during this study I have
established that social networking has many important functions in brand revitalisation it
shouldn't be the strategy on it own.
Conclusion
At the start of this study I identified three key aims and objectives that I wanted to answer
during the study. These were:
● To identify the factors involved in brand revitalisation strategies and determine the
relevant success and importance of these factors.
● To identify the factors to measure the success or failure of the revitalisation of a
brand.
● To understand what role social networking can have in brand revitalisation.
During the course of this study I have identified many factors that contribute to the success
of brand revitalisation. (Andrews. 2007:354) mentioned four factors – innovative product
improvements, warranty programs, reliable third party appraisals and effective advertising
communication. All of these factors are useful in brand revitalisation in the correct
situations. (Berry, 1988:15) suggests a seven step brand revitalisation program, these
steps include – the business focusing on improving the quality of products (this is simmiliar
to (Andrews. 2007:364) innovative product improvements), analysis of what is contributing
to the customers perceptions of product quality, carefully managed relationship between
the customer and brand, company managers should have a clear understanding of the
brand's values, unique idiosyncrasy for each brand, the company itself should orchestrates
the brand revitalisation and finally, the brand should have a notable and “newsworthy” relaunch
party. I determined that the first, second and final steps were the most relevant to
my study, partly because of the similarity to previous literature.
(Light. L. 2009) suggested six rules to brand revitalisation, the most notable of these were
– restoring the brand relevance and rebuilding trust in the brand. It is also important that
business consult with employees when making brand decisions (More than a PR job.
2008:20).
I also identified the key factors in measuring the success of brand revitalisation. Primarily
from (Andrews. 2007:354) who gave three key factors – brand image, brand associations
and brand attributes. I analysed each of these factors and found them all to be an accurate
measure of success of brand revitalisation. Additionally, I researched how best to influence
these three factors.
I many learnt many lessons throughout this study about the role of social networks in
brand revitalisation. Businesses should use social networks relevant to their brand
(Mathieson. 2011) (Barnes. 2011:937) and engage in real conversations with users of
social networks in order to gain credibility (Zeisser. 2010:28). Identification and
congruence between the brand and social lead to an improved perception of credibility by
the consumer (Wang. 2011:813).
(Jean. 2011) parodying a rival brand through social media advertising is another useful
strategy, particularly in a duopoly.
A key lesson learnt from this study has been that instead of trying to manipulate content on
outside social networks it is beneficial if the company creates its own website with social
networking elements as part of its brand revitalisation strategy. This was very successful in
the case of Starbucks as the company set up its “mystarbucksidea.com” website with
social networking elements, the website allowed customers to give their feedback on
Starbucks brand and give ideas for new products and services. By allowing customers to
directly the evolution of the Starbucks brand, engaging them directly with the brand in my
opinion this was a hugely successful brand revitalisation element.
A key limitation of the study was the lack of primary information utilised during the study.
Primary information is information that has been obtained first hand, this includes
information from sources such as surveys and interviews conducted by me.
I suggest that for further research into this topic that the author uses more primary
information to compare with the the secondary information collected and also to keep the
study and relevant and up to date as possible. Particularly, as social networking and the
internet as a whole is a rapidly changing medium.
Another limitation of this study is that although there was sufficient literature on brand
revitalisation and topics related to social networking, there was very little on the role of
social networking in brand revitalisation and even about advertising through social
networks in general. As a result, I made many assumptions by applying literature on brand
revitalisation to social networks to come to a conclusion. Any more research into this
subject needs to find sufficient literature on social networks role in brand revitalisation to
come to an accurate a conclusion as possible.
In Conclusion, there are many factors that contribute to brand revitalisation and specifically
many factors that contribute to brand revitalisation through social networks. Despite the
possible disadvantages of using social networking in brand revitalisation, brand
revitalisation clearly has an important role in the revitalisation of brands.
9, 547 words (excluding references)
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