The main responsibility of a product manager is to create, develop, launch, and market a product (Chisa, 2014). Through value propositions, product managers identify business opportunities and move towards filling them (Geracie & Eppinger, 2013). As a result, not only are their products targeted, but also require the cooperation of numerous stakeholders. For instance, product managers need to collaborate with executives, developers, research and development, sales, and marketing teams if they are to introduce a new product.
In contrast, brand managers take an existing product, alter its public perception and maintain its value (Daye, 2012). Therefore, rather than creating a value proposition, brand managers maintain the intangible perception that a brand is valuable. Furthermore, brand managers will mostly work with marketers to inspire the users, evoke emotional responses, and create brand loyalty by altering the perception of the product.
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How can these roles work together within an organization to create a competitive advantage?
The roles of the product and brand managers are similar in that they are different sources of competitive advantage. For instance, both managers interact deeply with technology, business ideas, user experience, and perception (Rothaermel, 2013). Their work is brought together further by the fact that they aim to market a product and sustain its profitability for the long-term. If they are to be a source of competitive advantage, they need to be knowledge workers. Not only do they have to understand their competition, but also gain an intuition about their customers if they are to forecast future opportunities and create products for them today (Rothaermel, 2013).
How can the product manager contribute to the sustainability of the brand?
First, they can market the brand as environmentally safe, such as reduce the amount of packaging, use biodegradable materials, or even use recycled materials ( Lazzarini et al., 2018) . Secondly, product managers can contribute to the sustainability of a brand by creating products that are not only of high quality but also last long, are of maximum utility to the consumers, and create a positive user experience (Grubor & Milovanov, 2017; He et al., 2018). Lastly, product managers contribute to the sustainability of the brand by focusing on customer relationship management, such as using social media to maximize user engagement, brand awareness and loyalty (Bilgin, 2018; Shanahan, 2019).
Student Responses
Kelli Kinzer
Hello Kelli Kinzer, I agree with your definitions and main roles for both the product and brand managers. What I disagree with is the limited scope of their interactions within the company. The two job descriptions have a lot of overlap. For instance, both are a source of competitive advantage and, therefore, need to be knowledge workers. Not only do they have to understand their competition, but also gain an intuition about their customers if they are to forecast future opportunities and create products for them today. Therefore, there is no separation where the product manager works within the company while the brand manager gathers data from the consumer. Both work inside and outside the company and if they are productive enough, they will share their data to avoid being redundant.
Amber Ellis
Hello Amber, I like your approach of defining the roles and positions of the brand and product managers by focusing on the definitions of a brand versus a product. While I very much agree with most of your thoughts on the roles and contributions of the brand and product managers, you failed to cover how they are a source of competitive advantage to the organization. In my opinion, the roles of the product and brand managers are similar in that they are different sources of competitive advantage. For instance, both managers interact deeply with technology, business ideas, user experience, and perception (Rothaermel, 2013). Their work is brought together further by the fact that they aim to market a product and sustain its profitability for the long-term. If they are to be a source of competitive advantage, they need to be knowledge workers. Not only do they have to understand their competition, but also gain an intuition about their customers if they are to forecast future opportunities and create products for them today (Rothaermel, 2013).
Course Project: Brand Strategy Audit
My brand strategy audit project will be on the Marvel Brand, with a special focus on both the Marvel Universe and the brand management activities that go on behind the scenes at Marvel Entertainment, the brand’s owner. Formerly known as Marvel publishing Inc., Marvel comics has grown to be a household name, especially with the recent growth and expansion to the animations, movie, and TV show industries (Howe, 2013). The history of Marvel Comics is long, starting with the initial development by Martin Goodman in 1939 (Bell & Vassallo, 2013). By 1952, the brand was under the name Atlas Comics. The most recent purchase way the acquisition of the brand by the Walt Disney Company in 2009. I selected this brand not only because of its long history but also the diversity of its activities and the impact it has had on the entertainment industry.
Assignment: Fast Company Videos: NIKE
Nike is an internationally recognized athletic shoe and clothing company whose brand has been successful due to its constant innovation. Though most of their products fit the premium market, especially those that target pro athletes, Nike also sells other different products at competitive prices, both online and in stores distributed over 200 countries.
Marketing Mix
Product
The company has an extensive catalogue of athletic shoes and clothing for different sports and leisure wear
Place
Customers can purchase Nike branded products both at general sporting goods stores, Nike stores, and online.
Price
Nike puts the prices for their products to be competitive compared to their competitors. Nike also has different price points for different audiences.
Promotion
Apart from hiring pro athletes as brand ambassadors, Nike also sponsors sporting events and markets itself through both TV commercials and on social media
Brand Architecture
Nike has different sub-brands that manage the products for their different market segments. These sub-brands, however, have the same vision and mission objectives as the parent company. For instance, the Nike SB skateboarder and Jordan basketball shoes are for a specific market segment and lifestyle than that of the Nike Free running shoes.
Brand Positioning
Nike positions itself as a premium shoe and clothing brand that sells high quality sporting products. These products are endorsed by different famous pro athletes, which makes their buyers feel like they can perform as the athletes.
Brand Sustainability
As a classic brand, Nike has proven itself to be a sustainable brand through its continuous innovation that always keeps it up with consumer trends and demand.
In general, Nike’s marketing mix is its main source of competitive advantage. With an extensive catalogue of products priced at the customer’s price ranges, Nike does not lose out to its competitors. Furthermore, the company gets to enjoy an international customer base from its operating stores in 200 countries and online shops. Lastly, the promotion activities the brand invests in makes sure that its customer’s are not only aware of the brand, but are also more likely to remain loyal if they go through with a purchase decision.
If Nike is to create a greater competitive advantage, it should strive to create and expand its online brand community, mainly through social media. Not only is this strategy sustainable, but also a long-term source of revenue for the company.
References
Bell, B., & Vassallo, M. J. (2013). The Secret History of Marvel Comics: Jack Kirby and the Moonlighting Artists at Martin Goodman's Empire . Fantagraphics Books.
Bilgin, Y. (2018). The effect of social media marketing activities on brand awareness, brand image and brand loyalty. Business & Management Studies: An International Journal , 6 (1), 128-148.
Chisa, E. (2014). Evolution of the product manager. Communications of the ACM, 57(11), 48–52.
Daye, D. (2012). Brand management: Process and responsibilities. Retrieved from http://www.brandingstrategyinsider.com/2012/01/brand-management-process-and-responsibilities.html#.Vi94WY9Viko
Geracie, G., & Eppinger, S. D. (Eds.). (2013). The guide to the product management and marketing body of knowledge (ProdBOK®). Carson City, NV: Product Management
Grubor, A., & Milovanov, O. (2017). Brand strategies in the era of sustainability. Interdisciplinary Description of Complex Systems: INDECS , 15 (1), 78-88.
He, B., Li, F., Cao, X., & Li, T. (2020). Product sustainable design: a review from the environmental, economic, and social aspects. Journal of Computing and Information Science in Engineering , 20 (4).
Howe, S. (2013). Marvel comics: The untold story.
Lazzarini, G. A., Visschers, V. H., & Siegrist, M. (2018). How to improve consumers' environmental sustainability judgements of foods. Journal of Cleaner Production , 198 , 564-574.
Rothaermel, F. T. (2013). How to Sustain a Competitive Advantage? Harvard Business Publishing.
Shanahan, T., Tran, T. P., & Taylor, E. C. (2019). Getting to know you: Social media personalization as a means of enhancing brand loyalty and perceived quality. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services , 47 , 57-65.
