Critical outcomes of assignments 1 and 2 and profile for assignment 3 Essay

Critical outcomes of assignments 1 and 2 and profile for assignment 3 - Essay Example When we look at the three advertisements in question, namely BMW, Nike and Adidas, there are strengths and weaknesses that are projected, related to how these brands are advertised. For instance, in the BMW adverts, the positive side displays confidence, vitality, style; a product that is coveted by others who don’t have it. While on the downside, it directly attacks a rival brand (Audi) by implying that it is inferior and thus may displease the consumer segment who own or prefer Audis at present. What remains to be seen as the most important point though, is that throughout the advertisement an effort is made to establish an emotional connection between the end consumer or the target market and the brand. This is done by projecting the brand image in such a way that people who own BMWs feel proud of their purchase and people who don’t, but aspire to purchase a BMW covet the brand for the luxury it is posed as and the glamour it will bring to their lives when they do ev entually purchase it. Kotler (2000) says that a brand can be defined as â€Å"the name, associated with one or more items in the product line, that is used to identify the source of character of the item†, elaborating this point, Keller (2003) says that then, essentially, â€Å"whenever a marketer creates a new name, logo, or symbol for a new product, he or she has created a brand†. This holds true when practically examined as well. Every now and then, companies are coming up with new brands, each with its own identity and image, each portraying a different color and image and each creating a separate emotional bond with its target market. Branding thus becomes a critical component of a particular product’s strategy (Kotler, 2000). The importance leant to the brand is due to the fact that this is the part of the product that will be actually communicated to the target market, in essence the marketers will use the brand to create and allure for the customers and pique their interest to reel them in. however, in the highly competitive market that firms operate in, in this day and age, only creating a brand is not sufficient. To be successful, a brand must â€Å"create a strong and distinctive image† (Kohli and Thakor 1997) which means that it is essential for a brand to define its unique selling point or its factor of differentiability. Kapferer (1997), says that a brand has eight functions to complete; identification, that is to be able to be easily identified by its target market, practicality, that is to be economical to guarantee a repurchase, guarantee, that is to be quality consistent, optimization, that is to be the category/market leader, characterization, that is to build a strong brand image and identity, continuity, that is to provide continued satisfaction, be hedonistic, that is create an attraction and allure and be ethical, that is socially responsible in actions and implications. Ghodeswar (2008) says that building a b rand from the ground up takes time, the most important thing to focus on is differentiability of the brand so that the customers can forge a bond