Branding and Packaging

Branding

Brand advertising is a form of advertising used to establish connections and build strong, long-term relationships with consumers over time.

Companies that use brand advertising aim to get long-term positive recognition by establishing brand identity, credibility, and loyalty, and connecting with prospects intellectually and emotionally to motivate them to take action in the future.

A strong brand creates a positive association between consumers and a business, product or service. Branding is important because it helps the public remember a company and its products and feel good about using them. The elements used to create a brand can include name, logo, tagline, color, music or jingle, and the message or feelings that the company wishes to associate with itself. Developing a brand for a product or service allows a company to differentiate an offering from other similar products in the same category, and to position the product or service relative to the current market.

Branding is absolutely critical to a business because of the overall impact it makes on your company. Branding can change how people perceive your brand, it can drive new business and increase brand awareness.

Importance of branding in Advertising

(i) Branding Gets Recognition

The most important reason branding is important to a business is because it is how a company gets recognition and becomes known to the consumers. The logo is the most important element of branding, especially where this factor is concerned, as it is essentially the face of the company. This is why a professional logo design should be powerful and easily memorable, making an impression on a person at first glance. Printed promotional products are a way of getting this across.

(ii) Branding Increases Business Value

Branding is important when trying to generate future business, and a strongly established brand can increase a business’ value by giving the company more leverage in the industry. This makes it a more appealing investment opportunity because of its firmly established place in the marketplace.

(iii) Branding Generates New Customers

A good brand will have no trouble drumming up referral business. Strong branding generally means there is a positive impression of the company amongst consumers, and they are likely to do business with you because of the familiarity and assumed dependability of using a name they can trust. Once a brand has been well-established, word of mouth will be the company’s best and most effective advertising technique.

(iv) Improves Employee Pride and Satisfaction

When an employee works for a strongly branded company and truly stands behind the brand, they will be more satisfied with their job and have a higher degree of pride in the work that they do. Working for a brand that is reputable and help in high regard amongst the public makes working for that company more enjoyable and fulfilling. Having a branded office, which can often help employees feel more satisfied and have a sense of belonging to the company, can be achieved through using promotional merchandise for your desktop.

(v) Creates Trust within the Marketplace

A professional appearance and well-strategised branding will help the company build trust with consumers, potential clients and customers. People are more likely to do business with a company that has a polished and professional portrayal. Being properly branded gives the impression of being industry experts and makes the public feel as though they can trust your company, the products and services it offers and the way it handles its business.

(vi) Branding Supports Advertising

Advertising is another component to branding, and advertising strategies will directly reflect the brand and its desired portrayal. Advertising techniques such as the use of promotional products from trusted companies such as Outstanding Branding make it easy to create a cohesive and appealing advertising strategy that plays well into your branding goals.

Packaging

The Packaging refers to all those activities related to designing, evaluating and producing the container for a product. Simply, the box-like container, wherein the product is stored to protect it from any physical damage and at the same time attracting the customer through its appeal is called as packaging.

The product might have three layers of packaging, such as, a toothpaste come in the plastic tube (primary package), then it is packed in a cardboard box (secondary package) and then finally is packed in a corrugated box (shipping or third package). Nowadays, the packaging is not limited to the protection of a product alone, but it has been used as a marketing tool for building the brand equity and boosting sales.

In today’s scenario, most of the companies use packaging as an important marketing tool because of the following factors:

• The packaging enables the self-service, as in the case of purchases done in the supermarkets and retail mart the customers select the products on their own without any assistance from the retailers. Thus, the company must design its product package in such a way, that it is capable enough to draw customer’s attention towards it.

• It helps in increasing the consumer affluence, which means the customers are willing to pay even more for the convenience, appearance, dependability of the better packages.
• The packages help in increasing the brand recognition among the customers. As soon as the customers see the package, they can instantly relate it to the company or brand. For example, the Brooke Bond’s Taj Mahal Tea comes in the blue pack with an image of a Taj Mahal on its box; this gives an identity to the brand.
• The innovative packaging also helps in bringing huge profits and benefits for the firm. Here, the company gives a unique design to its product package with the intent to grab customer’s attention. For example, the calcium Sandoz bottles targeted at children and women have been designed to make them attractive to the target segment (A dog shaped bottle for kids, while a lady-shaped bottle for women).

Thus, the packaging is capable of influencing a buyer to initiate sales since the buyer comes in contact with the package first and then after with the product.

Role of Packaging

1. To protect a product from damage or contamination by microorganisms and air, moisture and toxins.
2. To keep the product together, to contain it (i.e. So that it does not spill).
3. To identify the product.
4. Protection during Transport and Ease of Transport.
5. Stacking and Storage.
6. Printed Information.

Functions of Packaging

(i) Product Identification

Packaging serves as an identification of the product. A product is packed in special sized, coloured and shaped container for keeping its difference from the products of competitors. For example, the yellow and black coloured pack of KODAK ROLL tells itself of its producer.

(ii) Product Protection

The main function of packaging is to provide protection to the product from dirt, insects, dampness and breakage. For example, the products like biscuit, jam, chips, etc., need to be protected from environmental contact. That is why they are tightly packed.

(iii) Convenience

Packaging provides convenience in the carriage of the product from one place to another, in stocking and in consuming. For example, the new pet bottles of COKE makes the carriage and stocking easier. Similarly, the pack of FROOTI provides convenience in its consumption.

(iv) Product Promotion

Packaging simplifies the work of sales promotion. Packing material in the house reminds the consumers constantly about the product. In this way, the packaging performs the role of a passive salesman. Consequently, it increases the sales.

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