Articles International Brand
Management:
Content
The brand relationship spectrum, the key to the brand architecture challenge, Aaker et al. 2000........1
Negative spillover in brand portfolios: exploring the antecedents of asymmetric effects, Lei et al.
2008........................................................................................................................................................3
The brand relationship spectrum,
the key to the brand architecture
challenge, Aaker et al. 2000.
Companies nowadays have a lot to take into account when being
active on a market with their brands. A tool that can help then
with these challenges is brand architecture. This is an organizing
structure of the brand portfolio that specifies brand roles and the
nature of relationships between brands. The article introduces a
powerful brand architecture tool, the brand relationship
spectrum. This is intended to help brand architecture strategists
to employ, with insight and subtlety, sub-brands and endorsed
brands. The brand relationship spectrum is related to the driver
role brands play. The driver role reflects the degree to which a
brand drives the purchase decision and use experience. The
model distinguishes 4 levels:
1. House of brands
Each brand has its own driver role. The strategy of this level
involves an independent set of stand-alone brands, each
optimizing the impact on a market. In example every product of
the master brand has each an individual brand. Benefits of this
strategy is that a firm can position their products as they wish in the market without them having
associations with the parent brand. Another advantage is that the brand name can be specific to the
product, strengthening the product. A firm can also have a shadow endorser, a shadow endorser
brand is not connected visibly to the endorsed brand but many consumers know about the link.
2. Endorsed brand
The endorser usually plays a relatively minor driver role. Endorsed brands are still independent, but
are also endorsed by another brand, usually an organizational brand. Making the endorser brands
strategy work involves understanding the distinction between an organizational brand and a product
brand. A variant of this strategy is a token endorser which is substantially less prominent than the
endorsed brand. A small token on the product resembles the endorsed brand. Another option is a
linked brand name, where a name with common elements creates a family of brands with an implicit
or implied endorser (Mcmuffin, Mcflurry, etc.). It provides the benefits of a separate name without
having to establish a second name from scratch and link it to a master brand.
Management:
Content
The brand relationship spectrum, the key to the brand architecture challenge, Aaker et al. 2000........1
Negative spillover in brand portfolios: exploring the antecedents of asymmetric effects, Lei et al.
2008........................................................................................................................................................3
The brand relationship spectrum,
the key to the brand architecture
challenge, Aaker et al. 2000.
Companies nowadays have a lot to take into account when being
active on a market with their brands. A tool that can help then
with these challenges is brand architecture. This is an organizing
structure of the brand portfolio that specifies brand roles and the
nature of relationships between brands. The article introduces a
powerful brand architecture tool, the brand relationship
spectrum. This is intended to help brand architecture strategists
to employ, with insight and subtlety, sub-brands and endorsed
brands. The brand relationship spectrum is related to the driver
role brands play. The driver role reflects the degree to which a
brand drives the purchase decision and use experience. The
model distinguishes 4 levels:
1. House of brands
Each brand has its own driver role. The strategy of this level
involves an independent set of stand-alone brands, each
optimizing the impact on a market. In example every product of
the master brand has each an individual brand. Benefits of this
strategy is that a firm can position their products as they wish in the market without them having
associations with the parent brand. Another advantage is that the brand name can be specific to the
product, strengthening the product. A firm can also have a shadow endorser, a shadow endorser
brand is not connected visibly to the endorsed brand but many consumers know about the link.
2. Endorsed brand
The endorser usually plays a relatively minor driver role. Endorsed brands are still independent, but
are also endorsed by another brand, usually an organizational brand. Making the endorser brands
strategy work involves understanding the distinction between an organizational brand and a product
brand. A variant of this strategy is a token endorser which is substantially less prominent than the
endorsed brand. A small token on the product resembles the endorsed brand. Another option is a
linked brand name, where a name with common elements creates a family of brands with an implicit
or implied endorser (Mcmuffin, Mcflurry, etc.). It provides the benefits of a separate name without
having to establish a second name from scratch and link it to a master brand.
