| By Doris Walczyk,
Director of Brand Strategy,
Optima Group
 The phenomenon of globalization
requires brands to find superior
ways of capturing consumers’ attention
and mind share in order to drive
sales. Strong global leadership and management
have shown that brands like
Nokia, Ikea and H&M can come from
small, less familiar markets, and become
global powerhouses. As domestic competition
continues to put pressure on
global expansion, and new global players
become more savvy, marketers will need
to look for better management tools and
more refined strategies that can help
them manage their brands across these
new markets.
One key area for assessment addresses
the level of brand adaptation in foreign
markets. Based on the success of
brands like Coca-Cola, standardization
was once looked on as the ideal global
strategy. However, today’s consumers
have many more choices and are privileged
to choose brands that connect
with their particular desires and values.
Another area to consider is the
brand’s territory and how it relates to
the consumer in a particular environment.
Even if in its home market a
brand clearly defines its core values and
personality, these might not transfer successfully
to other cultures and will need
to be expressed differently—sometimes
with major adjustments.
Finally, streamlining and implementing
a process for global brand leadership
has proven to be one way of generating
and nurturing a culture that drives successful
global brand innovation. Given
that brand strength and lasting differentiation
can flourish as a result of innovation
and creativity, companies that are
open to sharing across their organization
and finding mutual inspiration are well
ahead of the curve.
Customization versus Standardization
For many, customization is still perceived
as unnecessarily costly. On the flip side, if
standardization is managed as a purely
financial matter, individual brand distinctiveness
can be dangerously compromised.
Even brands like Coca-Cola and
McDonald’s that once crossed borders
without major adaptations to their
branding today increasingly customize
certain aspects of their marketing communication.
Coke, for example, decided to use
Coke Light in Europe with a different
descriptor from that of Diet Coke that is
used in the U.S. In India, the brand
focuses on looking less like an all-
American brand and places more
emphasis on affordability and corporate
responsibility.
Chicago-based McDonald’s has also
(in some countries) adapted beyond
what was once thought to be necessary.
In India, the brand caters to a largely
vegetarian and non-beef eating population
where its leading burger, the
Maharaja Mac, is made with chicken and
local spices.
The Lay of the Land
A brand’s territory should be constructed
to fit global demands, depending on
several key parameters. First, the maturity
of a category in which the brand operates
will differ from one country to
another. Understanding the historical
context of the category within a specific
country and culture can help unearth barriers that might impede a brand from
being immediately adopted by consumers.
This understanding can also
arm the marketing team with ideas for
how to make the adoption process more
successful.
Second, the favorable associations
that a brand has created in one country
might not have the same relevance in
other markets.More relevant associations
can be highlighted and emphasized
more overtly depending on the motivational
context of the consumer and the
competitive environment. In Russia, for
example, Ikea emphasizes low prices,
while in mature markets the same association
is secondary to creating a unique
personal style.
Lastly, the context of expressing a
brand’s values and its associations can
be very critical to the brand’s acceptance
by consumers. Such key touch points as
package design, the retail environment
and emphasis on particular sensorial
experiences can play a great role in
terms of how much of an impact a certain
brand will make on consumers.
Global Brand Leadership
One way to help turn brand innovation
into reality is to adopt an effective way
of managing brands on a global basis. A
study conducted by David Aaker with 35
CEOs from Fortune 100 corporations
around the world revealed four strategies
to successful global brand leadership.
The first centers on a company-wide
communication system as the most basic
element of global leadership. Learning
about local programs that worked or
failed and sharing this knowledge effectively
can be priceless. The challenge is
to overcome barriers such as criticism,
information overload, or “it won’t work
here” attitudes and instead, develop a
nurturing and supportive culture from
the top down.
The second strategy deals with individual
country brand managers using
their own vocabulary or their own strategy
blueprints which can contribute to
inferior marketing and weakened
brands. Companies that practice true
global brand management share a
branding process that is consistent across
markets and products and make one
person or group responsible for the
brand and its strategy.
The third strategy addresses local
managers who believe that their issue is
unique and are not open to implementing
learnings from other markets.
Companies that have a decentralized
structure have more difficulty persuading
local teams to adapt global strategies
and plans.Making an individual or
group responsible for the global brand
helps to generate credibility and greater
acceptance. Likewise, a business management
team can be most suitable when
the company’s top managers specialize in
marketing or branding and are regarded
as key assets to the business, such as with
Procter & Gamble.
Finally, simply doing a good job is not
enough in today’s global reality.
Knowing how to balance the leverage of
global strengths while recognizing local
differences can sometimes be tricky yet
it’s absolutely necessary. This means that
it is critical to first consider what brandbuilding
paths to follow instead of focusing
on execution. This includes getting
the best people to work on the brand,
finding a way to leverage every global
success, and carefully measuring results
along the way.
This article appeared in the Summer 2005
issue of DMI News & Views.
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