Berthon, Holbrook, Hulbert, & Pitt, (2007) compile research titled “Viewing Brands in Multiple Dimensions” in which they discuss various aspects of brand marketing strategies. The research posits the general principle that the concept of “brand manifold” assists managers to comprehend the impact a brand has on the market varies depending on the authority valuing it. Moreover, it depends on the context and time of the valuation. The framework of brand manifold reflects an ongoing debate on the role of brands in shaping consumer behavior in the modern age of technology and innovation. The paper argues that brands are alive and have the capacity to change rapidly and these changes normally occur in ways that are unpredictable.
The research identifies brands as symbols around which consumers construct identities they can relate with and that ultimately determine what the think about the product. The idea of brands being alive means that managers have no option but to listen to what their particular brands have to say and this determines their trajectory in predicting consumer behavior. For as long as branding resides in the marketing department of the organization, the company is likely to always have issues. Therefore, the study suggests a wholesome approach to branding by the organization as a means of realizing an encompassing result.
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According to the study, top corporate managers have to embrace the concept of brand equity and also have to comprehend the power of customer loyalty and repeat buyers because these are the two tools that ensure continued success for the organization. The assumption that equity and loyalty only stem from satisfaction means that brands neglect the very essential foundations of marketing. The study suggests that successful companies focus on building a brand community based on customer value and trust. The manifold framework demonstrates that brand is multi-dimensional entities.
Berthon et al., (2007) posit that time has erased the distinction between products and brands and this has turned products into symbols in their own right. For instance, products like Cocacola and Bentley have become brands and hence the need to market them differently from conventional ways of marketing other products. Additionally, the lines between the consumer and the products have blurred over time. Managers who would have considered themselves brand owners have become co-owners whereas consumers have moved up to own the brands in a tangible manner.
According to Berthon et al., (2007) brands have too often been seen as instruments of management in the organization. This view assumes that the management owns the brand and if such a brand can properly be managed as tools for driving sales then they can prove beneficial to the organization. Brands have ultimately become ends as opposed to the means to an end as they used to be in the past. Contrary to popular opinion, the world has fallen out of love with brands and is, in fact, parading an antibranding campaign in which consumers actively desist the trapping of popular branding at the expense of intensive research and personal preferences.
Overall, Berthon et al., (2007) initiate an essential discourse concerning branding, pitting popular opinions about it against contemporary understanding. This paper tries to make sense of why brands that are generally considered massive and influential underperform after massive branding campaigns at the expense of other non-popular products. Ultimately Berthon et al., (2007) posit that a holistic appreciation of the role of brands in marketing is essential for organizations to thrive in today’s dynamic and highly volatile market.
Reference
Berthon, P., Holbrook, M., Hulbert, J., & Pitt, L. (2007). Viewing Brands in Multiple Dimensions. MIT Sloan Management Review, 48 (2), 37-46.
