Brand Development and Credibility
By Judith Gloppen, Consultant, Norwegian Design Council
 |
 |
| Judith Gloppen |
Management is often a matter of responding to a given challenge.
One such challenge can be the perceived need for visual changes
and/or further development of a brand. An important factor is whether
this need is sensed only within the organization, or whether the
need is confirmed by external signals from the market. Strategic
design management involves making the effort to work out future
needs and choose a direction that will enable the company to take
a leading role in its market. The greatest asset that design managers
can bring to strategic decision-making is not just their immediate
knowledge, but their general ability to wisely encourage and make
use of both internal and external feedback.
The development of a brand is a key area of management, dealing
with the preservation of the company’s most important values.
Strong, established brands have often achieved a state of harmony
between the actual product or service being offered (identity),
the customer’s experience with that product or service (image),
and the wider public perception of the company and/or brand (profile).
(See figures 1 and 2.) Any further brand development must allow
for the need to preserve this state of equilibrium while maintaining
control over the image and profile in particular.
|
|
Figure 1
|
A sense of harmony between these three elements generates a feeling
of credibility—a central concept in building a brand. In pursuit
of further development, how great of a change can we make in the
visual expression of the brand without losing this harmony and credibility?
If we go too far, we risk confusing the market.
Take my friend Beth: If she should suddenly change character, confounding
my previous experience of her personal values (the actual product),
my perception and my reaction to her (image) would change accordingly,
making me insecure. Perhaps she has made a conscious choice to change
her lifestyle, expressing this in part through a change in her clothing
and general appearance (profile). That is a personal choice. Similarly,
changing the product or service and the desired public perception
of the brand is a choice, but there should be deliberate and strategic
thinking behind it.
|
|
|
Figure 2
|
Excessive change in the visual expression creates disharmony when
an expectation is created that something must have changed, but
the person, or the actual product, hasn’t really changed.
People and brands can lose their credibility. It is quite another
thing if changes have actually been made to the product, and a revolutionary
visual change is used to communicate the company’s strategic
shift or product improvement.
How great of a change can be made before the consumer consciously
or unconsciously experiences a disharmony in the further visual
development of a brand? There is no easy answer, and how far you
can go will be different in each and every case. The important thing
is to be conscious of the challenge.
An example of a company with a strategic long-term approach to
brand development is the dairy producer TINE, Norway’s biggest
food company. TINE’s values are solidly based in the organization
and are reflected in all product development, market communications,
and in the brand hierarchy. Design has been used strategically to
help visualize TINE’s strategy.
| |
|
Figure 3
TineMilk
|
TINE currently owns more than 40 brands with a clear labelling
structure, from monolithic brands tied strongly to the TINE label,
such as TineMelk (TineMilk, figure 3), to TINE-endorsed brands such
as Jarlsberg (figure 4). Based on a clear labelling philosophy,
structure and guidelines, all products are systematically and strategically
positioned in the brand portfolio.
|
|
Figure 4
Jarlsberg Cheese
|
The board decided in 1992 to introduce the brand name TINE on
all generic products (milk, butter, etc.). In addition, all products,
including existing brands such as Jarlsberg, were to use the TINE
consignment label. The name of the company, Norske Meierier (Norwegian
Dairies) was changed in 1997 to TINE Norske Meierier. In 2002, after
a massive restructuring, the strategic decision was taken to use
only TINE as company and brand names.
The choice of the name “TINE” was not arbitrary. It
is short, visually striking, and easy to remember. The symbol TINE
and the colors red, white, and blue also functioned as a bridge
between the old and new identities. “Tine” is a Norwegian
word with historical resonance, describing a bentwood box used in
the 17th century and later for carrying and storing food, primarily
butter and cheese. Using the name TINE enabled the company to suggest
(and maintain) visual and emotional values established over many
years.
|
|
|
Figure 5
Brand Development
|
The TINE logo has gradually changed its visual identity while managing
not to transgress those hard-to-define limits within which a brand
retains the same associations and hence its credibility.
TINE’s determination to strive for long-term harmony between
actual product lines (identity) and customer experience (image)
has unquestionably contributed to its strong reputation and market
position. In 2004, the first comprehensive Norwegian Reputation
Quotient survey, in which high-profile companies competed irrespective
of sector, placed TINE clearly on top. TINE is not only the company
rated as the most reputable by Norwegians, it was the best overall,
winning four of six categories and scoring highest among men and
women in all age categories.
Consumers have faith in TINE primarily because of positive experiences
they have had with TINE products, and because it reminds them of
childhood memories and other emotional experiences. For most Norwegians,
TINE is a natural part of daily life. TINE has credibility. TNS
Gallup’s Brand Monitor has ranked TineMelk as Norway’s
strongest brand three times in a row, and several other brands from
TINE are high on the list. In addition, students rate TINE highest
as a desirable employer.
|
|
Figure 6
“TINE lady”
as a visual portrayal of TINE’s personality.
|
TINE’s strong position among Norwegian consumers is associated
with the core values of the company as reflected in products that
are natural, healthy, and tasty. Other important implications of
the brand are that the company is child-friendly, environmentally
sound, caring, and possessing a strong Norwegian identity. In addition
to these overarching values, the individual branded products each
have their own specific values, their own target groups, and market
positioning in line with defined sets of values. The company has
made its personality visible through TINE’s human face (figure
6).
The consumers have sensed the harmony between TINE’s products
(identity), desired public perception of TINE as defined through
its core values (profile), and the customer’s experience (image)
of TINE at both product and corporate level. TINE has managed to
visualize the development of its brand at both levels, without losing
its credibility.
Judith Gloppen is a consultant with the Norwegian
Design Council. She has focused on integrated and strategic
design management, and works with several of Norway’s strongest
brands. She holds an MBA in Design Management from London and is
a member of the DMI Advisory Council.
Judith is especially grateful to her colleague
Beth Stensen, and Jarle Jodnes and Brit Græsholt of TINE for
their invaluable help.
This article appeared in the March
2005 eBulletin.
Feedback on DMI Viewpoints and article proposals
are always welcome! Please email jtobin@dmi.org.
All articles reflect the opinion of the author and not the Design
Management Institute.
|
