Brand Types

A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that identifies one seller’s good or service as distinct from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create and store value as brand equity for the object identified, to the benefit of the brand’s customers, its owners and shareholders. Name brands are sometimes distinguished from generic or store brands.

The word “brand” is often used as a metonym referring to the company that is strongly identified with a brand. Marque or make are often used to denote a brand of motor vehicle, which may be distinguished from a car model. A concept brand is a brand that is associated with an abstract concept, like breast-cancer awareness or environmentalism, rather than a specific product, service, or business. A commodity brand is a brand associated with a commodity.

In the modern era, the concept of branding has expanded to include deployment by a manager of the marketing and communication techniques and tools that help to distinguish a company or products from competitors, aiming to create a lasting impression in the minds of customers. The key components that form a brand’s toolbox include a brand’s identity, personality, product design, brand communication, brand awareness, brand loyalty, and various branding (brand management) strategies. Many companies believe that there is often little to differentiate between several types of products in the 21st century, hence branding is among a few remaining forms of product differentiation.

Brand equity is the measurable totality of a brand’s worth and is validated by observing the effectiveness of these branding components. As markets become increasingly dynamic and fluctuating, brand equity is built by the deployment of marketing techniques to increase customer satisfaction and customer loyalty, with side effects like reduced price sensitivity. A brand is, in essence, a promise to its customers of what they can expect from products and may include emotional as well as functional benefits. When a customer is familiar with a brand or favors it incomparably to its competitors, a corporation has reached a high level of brand equity. Special accounting standards have been devised to assess brand equity. In accounting, a brand defined as an intangible asset, is often the most valuable asset on a corporation’s balance sheet. Brand owners manage their brands carefully to create shareholder value. Brand valuation is a management technique that ascribes a monetary value to a brand, and allows marketing investment to be managed (e.g.: prioritized across a portfolio of brands) to maximize shareholder value. Although only acquired brands appear on a company’s balance sheet, the notion of putting a value on a brand forces marketing leader to be focused on long term stewardship of the brand and managing for value.

• Service brand

This involves adding a value of service to the brand. It is considered more difficult to develop a service brand other in a product brand because the offerings of service brands are intangible. Once developed it is very useful to avoid competition since it is very hard to develop and prove the brand in terms of pricing.

A lot of new online brands have been developed like subscription brands wherein people pay money for access of services or products and these are rapidly challenging the salty and the expectations of technology for both service and product brands. For example, the integral and perceived value of products that come with apps. Southwest Airlines is an example of Service Brand.

• Personal brand

Personal brands are also known as an individual brand and they are defined as the brand which a person has built around himself to promote his or her career opportunities. This is associated with how people market themselves and put out or project themselves in and via media. Personal brand lacks a business model which is necessary to commercialize the strategy.

• Product brand

The perceptions associated with the commodity or good so that it exceeds the functional capability is called a product brand. Product brands are very common in FMCG industries. Tide detergent is an example of Product Brand.

• Activist brand

This brand is synonymous with the cause of purpose where the alignment defines its uniqueness and the minds of the customers. Examples include body shop it’s his define by its animal cruelty take.

• NGO or Non-governmental organization

A brand which is dedicated for more than fundraising but rather to drive social missions and which is more into non-profit business is called an NGO. Greenpeace is the classic example of an NGO which works only for promoting the environmental problems.

• Public brand

A brand which is owned and managed by the government has called public brand. At times even, the government is seen as a public brand in the eyes of normal people.

• Luxury brand

This is the kind of brand which offers high quality at a higher price. Luxury brands form a niche market for selected customers. It does not engage in reducing the price but rather it is more dedicated to providing premium service to bring our customers. Rolex watches are the perfect example of a luxury brand.

• Value brand

Unlike luxury brand value brand operates on price and offers basic services for a lower price. The target audience of value brands are the middle and is over the market which forms a volume of the entire market. Since the work on higher volumes, it is necessary that the price their product is lower. Titan is an example of a value brand. Although companies are not started to make two brands to tap every customer and gain more of market share.

• Innovative brand

These focus only on constantly improving the product by advanced breakthroughs in technology. Innovation as the primary aim and hence these are unique to the market and it sometimes maybe even the first in the market. Apple is known for its innovation in the market and Apple products are considered as innovative products.

• Organization Brand

The company and entity’s which deliver products and services are called organization brands. They are closely linked with a personal brand of an individual. For example, a particular celebrity association with a particular brand every time and watching that celebrity reminds you of that brand.

• Geographic brand

It is the idea of many countries to brand the best places they have to the world. These Geographic brands can be countries or States or cities or even buildings or streets. The government of the respective place works extensively to develop these brands and they often attract commerce and economic investments along with tourism and new residents.

• Celebrity brand

Celebrities have been using their famous high profile to promote a product or a range of products which gets all their followers to shift to the particular brand. The endorsements are done by celebrities themselves and at times they may be pleased even in their respective movies.

• Generic brand

A Generic brand is the one that has been used so extensively that it now it is being passed as a common language or as a verb to define the entire category. Example xerox which was initially a machine is not a term used for photocopying. The replacement of a common name by the generic brand itself says about its success in the market. There are very few Generic Types of Brands in the market. Xerox, Jet Ski, Xerox being some of the examples.

• Employer brand

The success of a company does not depend only on the best staff but also on the ability to retain that staff. Employers need to provide all the functions to the cause of white stuff in order for them to be retained in the organization. A better staff not only adds value but they also grow the organization along with themselves. Google is one of the highest rated employees and employees are found to love their jobs