Brand Management Report: Comparative Analysis of Apple and Samsung

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of brand management, focusing on the strategies employed by Apple and Samsung. It begins by highlighting the significance of branding as a marketing tool and its role in business practices, exploring the key elements essential for a successful brand strategy, including brand value, positioning, and target consumers. The report then delves into portfolio management, brand hierarchy, and brand equity management, examining various strategies and techniques for measuring and managing brand value. Through a comparative lens, the report evaluates the strengths and weaknesses of each company's approach to brand management, including how they navigate collaborations and partnerships at both domestic and global levels. Ultimately, the report offers valuable insights into the complexities of building and maintaining a strong brand in a competitive market, offering a detailed overview of the factors that contribute to brand success.

BRAND MANAGEMENT

Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
SECTION 1.....................................................................................................................................1
P 1- Significance of branding as a marketing tool and its role in business practice....................1
P 2- Key elements in successful brand strategy for making and managing equity of brand.......3
P 3- Various strategies of portfolio management, brand hierarchy and brand equity
management.................................................................................................................................5
P 4- Brand management in collaboration and in partnership at both domestic and global level.8
P 5- Various types of techniques for measuring and managing brand value...............................9
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................11
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................12

INTRODUCTION
Brand management is the activity which makes an organisation reputed in the market. It
is essential to maintain the image of product and services in the eyes of customer. Through the
process of brand management, the company can gain many types of benefits and advantages. It is
an activity which can effectively and efficiently promote the products and services in market
(Keller, Parameswaran and Jacob, 2011). This report is in accordance with brand management
activities of two companies Apple and Samsung. Both the companies are working in the
manufacturing industry and provide different ranges of mobiles to their customers. They both
work very hard to maintain their brand name. It will include about various tools which help in
making the brand strong. Furthermore, it will state about the portfolio management. This
discusses about various techniques which can measure brand value. It is very much important to
manage brand in an effective and efficient way for gaining many types of advantages.
SECTION 1
P 1- Significance of branding as a marketing tool and its role in business practice.
Brand is the term which shows some difference between the products and services of
company from other organisations. It is very much important to include process of brand
management in the business operations (Kapferer, 2012). This is the procedure which will be
followed to make brand name stronger in the market. There are various theories and models
which can be adopted by firms for activity of brand management. Furthermore, branding is the
process of making products and services different from the other companies.
Apple and Samsung both the organisations have very strong brand name in relation with
their mobiles. It makes the businesses to have very big customer range. Due to their brand image,
many customers get attracted towards them (Barrow and Mosley, 2011). Branding is termed to
be the marketing tool because it makes the products and services promoted in market, among the
customers. There are many advantages which the cited businesses get because of having the
strong brand name. Apple and Samsung launches many products in the market, these products
create lots of buzzes and excitement in customers because they have very strong image. The
organisations can increase its profits with the help of effective and efficient brand management
activities. Brand is the tool or technique which can be used in increasing the income generation
of firms.
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For making the brand stronger, the companies have to bring some innovation in the
products and services. The changes should be in accordance with the needs and preferences of
customers. It will need proper strategy to be formed to ensure effective and proper brand
management (Hanna and Rowley, 2011). Furthermore, the organisations should do proper
research of the business environment to make the proper changes in accordance with it. It is very
much important for the big companies like Apple and Samsung to use the most efficient tool for
the branding and marketing. This is because their customer range is very high. There is very
strong competition in the market. To ensure the sustainable business performance the
organisations need to adopt the techniques which will help them to make the customers loyal and
increase their brand image.
Brand is the term which depends upon the workings of companies and their performance.
The brand management will be effectively done when the organisations will provide the products
and services in accordance with needs and wants of the customers (Spence and Hamzaoui
Essoussi, 2010). This activity will highly satisfy all the consumers and eventually, it will
increase the reputation of businesses in market.
There are various elements and features which are included in the process of branding.
Those are brand name, title, logo, packaging, logo, target consumers, promise and positioning.
These are the elements or feature which should be considered while managing the brand. They
are also very much important to make the brand name strong in market (Phan, Thomas and
Heine, 2011). These elements will gain many types of competitive advantages if handled in the
proper way. Apple and Samsung both the firms are in the same market but the activities which
are done by them to manage the brand are different. Apple is considered to be the top most
brand. On the other hand, Samsung is at the 6th position. Both the businesses work in accordance
with their customer's needs and demands. Whenever the organisation launches some new
product, it creates lots of excitement in the consumers. It is just because of their strong brand
name in the market. There are many countries in which the cited organisations are established
(Zenker and Braun, 2010).
This states that Apple and Samsung both have very strong brand name. They work in the
direction of providing quality products and services to their customers. In addition, they ensure
that all the consumers get satisfied with their work. It makes the businesses to grow more in the
market and get developed. There are various factors which are considered to be challenge for the
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organisation in brand management. These can have some negative affects on the activities and
business operations. In spite of this, cited firms tries to manage all the activities effectively in the
challenging market (McDowell, 2011). They make sure that all the customers get satisfied with
the quality product and services. It states that there are many positive and negative impacts
which has the impact upon the practices done in businesses. The companies need to ensure
effective and efficient brand management activities to reduce the impact of negative factors. It
will make the firms to get more successful and developed in the market. This will also help them
to gain many types of benefits among their competitors.
P 2- Key elements in successful brand strategy for making and managing equity of brand.
Brand equity, it is the term which is used to show value of brand in the market. It states
about the various perceptions of customer for the brand of companies. Furthermore, brand equity
shows the exact position on which the business is in market (Kelley, Sheehan and Jugenheimer,
2015). It can be effectively analysed by the measurement of customer satisfaction, quality of
products and services, popularity of brand etc. There are many factors or elements which affects
the brand organisation. If the company, does not provide quality products and services to
customer, then they will start adopting the products and services of other businesses. It will
adversely affect the brand equity of firm. It states that there are both advantages and
disadvantages of brand equity. Prices of the products can be high if the brand equity of the
organisation is high. It will make them to increase their revenue or income generation (Gatti,
Caruana and Snehota, 2012). For making the brand equity high the organisations need to
implement the strategy which will be the best suited for them in accordance with the business
operations and activities. The strategy which will be adopted should be very effective and
efficient for making the brand strong. It will make the business to bring innovative change which
will lead the organisation towards the enhancement of their popularity. There are various
elements and factors which are to be kept in mind and followed effectively to ensure better build
and management of brand. Those factors are described below: Brand value- This is the factor which help Apple and Samsung to find what are the areas
which affects their decision making process. It is important to do proper research for this.
This is because it will make the companies to increase value of their brand (Hatch and
Schultz, 2010). It is important to consider the brand value while making the strategy for
making and management brand. These are values which can make the brand stronger in
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the market. There are various types of benefits which cited firms will get by considering
this element. Brand positioning- This the element or factor which shows about the image of brand
which is hold by the customers in their minds. It tells Apple and Samsung about the
actual position of them in the market in accordance with their competitors (Balmer, Liao
and Wang, 2010). This also shows what make the organisation different from others.
Brand positioning shows the proof of brand promise which is made by the business. By
analysing this factor, the organisations can effectively and efficiently make their strategy.
This will eventually lead them to gain many types of advantages. Target consumers- They are the people whom the businesses expect to buy their
products and services. It is the most important element which is necessarily to be
considered while making the strategy for managing brand equity (Iglesias and Bonet,
2012). The consumers which are targeted are always in accordance with profits and
income which can be generated through them. Apple and Samsung both the companies
have wide range of customer segments. Apple mostly attracts the consumers who are in
their youth. On the other hand, Samsung has targeted all types of customers. It states
whether the organisations have strong brand name or not, it is important for them to
target the individuals who will generate many types of profits for them. Brand perception- This is the element which makes the firms to analyse all situations in
better way. It finds about the perception of brand in the mind of customers which was in
the past, in the present and what it will be in the future (Braun, Kavaratzis and Zenker,
2013). The businesses will get to know about various things which the customers thinks
about the brand image. Furthermore, it helps the company to adopt some changes to
change the perception of consumers towards them. Brand perception is the element which
is necessarily to be considered if the organisations are planning to change the strategy. It
is very much important for making and managing the brand equity in effective and proper
way. Brand promise- It is element which show about the promise which is being made to the
target customers in accordance with the brand. It is the activity which shows the
customers about quality of your product and services (Components of a brand strategy: 5
key branding elements' 2017). This also shows the consumers about what they expect
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from the brand of product which they are buying from the firm (Zarantonello and
Schmitt, 2010). It mainly deals with the various types of emotions of people. Apple and
Samsung both the companies attracts the wide range of consumers. They manufacturers
the mobiles with high quality and make the individuals loyal towards them. Brand
promise makes the attachment with the persons in relation with the emotions. It is done to
gain the trust of customers.
 Brand voice- It is the element which shows about what the brand speaks in market. It
means what is the personality of brand. It is serious or fun loving. Apple and Samsung
get to know about their brand value by analysing their target customers. Relation between
the company and their consumers should be very effective and proper to have efficient
brand voice (Iglesias, Singh and Batista-Foguet, 2011). It shows the technique which is
used by the company to speak and interact with individuals in accordance with the brand.
There are many other elements too which can be considered while forming the new
strategy to build and manage brand equity. Such as logos, packaging etc.
P 3- Various strategies of portfolio management, brand hierarchy and brand equity management.
It is important to make the proper strategy for the portfolio management. This will help in
creating effective and healthy competitive environment. Portfolio of the brand is the term which
shows the opportunities which are their for the growth of company. Brand portfolios ensures that
the organisation will face minimum level of risks (Story and Hess, 2010). There are many
strategies in relation with brand portfolios which can be used to increase the brand image of
business in the market. It will eventually attract many types of customers. Those strategies are
described below:
Indexing
It is the element which shows about the trends in marketings. These trends are used by
the companies to make their all the customers satisfied. There are many advantages which the
firms get with the process of indexing. Bottom up approach- This is the approach which is in accordance with the financial
condition of organisations (Spear and Roper, 2013). It makes the businesses to focus on
the growth at financial level. Internal performance is also analysed by this approach. Active portfolio management strategy- It is the strategy which makes the firms to invest
in the elements which will bring many advantages for them. It will ensure the further
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expansion and improvement in products and services. The companies get the best return
in accordance with their investment. Top down approach- This is the strategy which will make the organisations to increase
their brand image and values. It will eventually lead them towards the success and grab
many types of effective opportunities (Bergkvist and Bech-Larsen, 2010). These
opportunities will make the brand name strong and will gain many types of advantages. Effective marketing theory- This is the theory which makes the companies understand
about the various elements of current market conditions. It finds about the various market
trends in accordance with the customers. The businesses need to understand current
trends to adopt some changes in the brand. It will also help the firms in producing the
new product. The company will be able to increase its brand value by the implementation
of this theory.
 Passive portfolio management strategy- It is the strategy which is in relation with the
demand associated with the customers. This strategy is adopted in the brand portfolios to
gain the attention of many customers towards the products and services of organisation
(Asmussen, Harridge-March and Farquhar, 2013). There are many types of advantages
which the firms will get by the implementation of this theory in strategy of brand
portfolios. It is the strategy whose focus is on the consumers. By this process the
company wants to manage the portfolio in effective and efficient way. This will
eventually lead the organisations towards satisfying all their customers.
These are some strategies which can be used for managing brand portfolios in effective
and efficient way. It will eventually increase the brand image in market.
Brand hierarchy management
Brand hierarchy of Apple and Samsung are very strong. Apple has the flat and tall both
the hierarchical structures. All the level which is formed in the company is interrelated with each
other. All the employees who are working in the organisation are delegates with the duties and
responsibilities from their managers or leaders (Eren Erdoğmuş, Bodur and Yilmaz, 2010).
Every department of cited business has the effective and efficient manager. Every task is
delegated in the groups which are made. It is done to achieve all the objectives and goals in
proper manner. There are many risks which are taken by the managers. It makes them more
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developed in the market. The structure which is being followed in the Apple is very much
efficient. It ensures that there will no activity which can make any mismanagement.
On the other hand, Samsung adopts the structure which is tall. They think it is important
to have the professional environment for the achievement of all the objective and managing
brand in the effective manner. Structure of cited organisation is well synchronised. It contains
top level management, middle level management and lower level employees. It makes the
company to delegate all the duties and responsibilities in the better manner.
However, both the structures of cited organisations are very much suitable for their
working style and business operations (Hanna and Rowley, 2013). It helps them to manage their
brand name in effective and efficient manner.
Brand equity management
There are various ways in which the brand equity can be manages. Many models and
tools are there which are used by the organisations to manage their brand equity. One of those
model is Keller's Brand Equity Model. In this model four steps are included which are explained
below: Identification- In accordance with this step the companies first have to understand what
are they. In simple it means to find out where there brand stands in the eyes of customers
(Burmann and König, 2011). It also analyses the perceptions of consumers about the
brand in the current situation. In this target customers are to be analysed. Performance management- At the second step of this model the organisations need to
understand what they are doing. It means the companies should analyse that their
performance is satisfactory for their customer or not. This will also analyse the value of
brand between the customers. Response- This is the step which analyses the image of brand in eyes of customers. It
makes the companies to understand about the feeling of individuals regarding the
products and services (Freling and Forbes, 2013). Response will be based upon the
quality of the products.
 Relations- It is last and most difficult part of the brand equity management. For reaching
this stage the companies have to make better relationships with the customers. It can be
analysed by the number of consumers who are loyal and number of purchase which are
made in the current year (Zarantonello and Schmitt, 2010).
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This model in effective and efficient for Apple and Samsung both. It will make them to
manage their brand equity in the proper manner.
P 4- Brand management in collaboration and in partnership at both domestic and global level.
Collaborative style makes the organisation to work hand in hand with the domestic as
well as global level. Many types of innovation are brought in the structure of Apple. It is done to
increase the brand image of products in the eyes of customers (Braun, Kavaratzis and Zenker,
2013). Best decision making strategy is used by cited organisation which makes them connect all
the consumers who are spread all over the world. This is because the company wants to be
successful and get developed in the various markets.
On the other hand, in Samsung matrix structure is being used to manage the brand
collaboratively at the domestic and global level. It is the structure which makes the company to
get connected with all the teams who are working all over the world. This makes the company to
manage their brand in the effective and efficient manner (Iglesias and Bonet, 2012). Cited
organisation is established in many countries which helps them to get more successful and attract
many customers towards their brand. It makes the firm to conduct and handle all the business
operations in effective and proper manner.
It states that Apple and Samsung both are very efficiently performing at the domestic and
global level. They perform well by following the best strategy which is most suitable for them. It
is important to adopt and implement the best strategy fort the proper brand management (Balmer,
Liao and Wang, 2010). The styles which are used by both the businesses is very much effective
and makes them to increase their brand value in the market.
For increasing the brand value Apple and Samsung had implemented the tool of
corporate social responsibility. It helps the companies to allocate their resources in the proper
manner without wasting them. This makes the firms to give sustainable business performance. It
increases their reputation in the market and makes them more successful and developed. There is
effective process of communication which is used in both the organisation. It makes them to give
all the necessary information to their employees in better way. The practices which are followed
by the company are at all the levels and all the branches (Hatch and Schultz, 2010). The working
styles which are used by the businesses are same all over the world. Furthermore, telling all the
information about innovation or new product to the customers in the effective manner. These all
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are the methods which can be used by the companies to improve their brand image. This will
help the organisation in effective and efficient brand management.
P 5- Various types of techniques for measuring and managing brand value.
There are various techniques which are available to measure and manage the brand value
in proper manner. It is very helpful for the leading firms like Apple and Samsung. This is very
important activity to analyse the position of brand in the market and its perception on the mind of
customers. It will help the organisations to perform in accordance with the needs and demands of
the consumers (Gatti, Caruana and Snehota, 2012). It will highly satisfy all the individuals who
are dealing with the businesses by purchasing their products and services. Measuring brand value
and managing it makes the firms to all the activities and business operations in effective and
efficient manner. Techniques and factors which can be used to manage and measure brand value
in Apple and Samsung are explained below: Customer response- It is the most important activity which can be adopted by the
organisation to measure and manage brand value (Kelley, Sheehan and Jugenheimer,
2015). It makes the companies to ask their loyal customers about their perception about
the products. Apple and Samsung frequently takes the feedback from their consumers to
find out their reaction on the products and services. The companies get to know that what
the customers think about the innovation or change which is brought by them. Customers
are the most important part which are necessarily to be considered while implementing
the strategies for brand management. Both the companies work and manage their brand in
accordance with the needs and demand of consumers (Zenker and Braun, 2010).
Analysing response of individuals by taking their feedback is very effective technique
which helps the businesses to measure and manage their brand in effective and proper
manner. It states that unsatisfied customers can decrease the value and image of brand.
This will highly affect the reputation of company in the market. Brand awareness- It is the activity which makes the people to know about the brand in
better manner. It is done to gain the attention of many individuals. There are many tools
and elements which used create brand awareness. Apple and Samsung both creates the
awareness about their diversified product range with the help of promotional activities.
There are many factors which can be used for the promotion. Such as advertising,
maintaining public relations, etc. (Phan, Thomas and Heine, 2011). Brand awareness can
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be also created by the fulfilment of all the social responsibilities. The activity of
advertisement is very good in making the customer aware about the brand. It is done to
attract and grab the attention of people towards the products and services. The
advertisement which is given in any types of media should include all information which
company wants to share with the individuals. The advertisement should be attractive
enough to grab the attention of people and increase the brand awareness (Spence and
Hamzaoui Essoussi, 2010). Maintaining public relation is also the effective tool which
can help in creating the brand awareness. For this the organisation have to fulfil all their
responsibilities towards the society. This will create the good image of organisation in the
mind of people. It will eventually lead the company to make better relations with the
individuals. Public relations can be also maintained through the following all the laws
and legislations in working style and business operations (Hanna and Rowley, 2011).
Apple and Samsung use the best strategy for promoting their products and maintain better
relationship with all the people who are related to them. This makes them creates high
brand awareness of their products and services.
 Quality products and services- Quality of the products and services is the element which
is mostly wanted by the customers. Apple and Samsung are the leading brands that's why
they ensure the quality of their products in the most effective and efficient way. They
think that if the customer is buying their product with the full trust, then it is their duty to
give them the products with proper quality (Barrow and Mosley, 2011). They highly
think about their customer satisfaction. Cited companies uses the best technology to
maintain the quality. If by any chance, customers are not satisfied with the quality of
product, then the product is resent for the quality check. By using this process the
companies are able to manage and improve the quality of product in the effective and
efficient manner. This activity is very much important and effective for measuring and
managing the brand value. It eventually leads the organisation towards getting the
attention of many individuals. Furthermore, it will increase the reputation of organisation
in the market (Keller, Parameswaran and Jacob, 2011). The businesses will be able to
gain many types of competitive advantages.
These are some tools or techniques which can be used for the measurement and
management of brand value. This is important for the companies to get successful and developed
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in the market. It will eventually make the organisations to satisfy all their customers in effective
and efficient manner.
CONCLUSION
This report includes about the concept of brand management. It is very important
activities to make the business more successful. There are many techniques of marketing which
are used by the Apple and Samsung for increasing their brand value. There are various strategies
which can be implemented by the organisations to enhance their brand image. Collaborative style
is used by the Apple and Samsung at the domestic and global level. The structure which is
followed in both the companies is very much effective. It avoids any types of mismanagement.
However, this report concludes that it is important to create brand awareness for the success and
development.
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Components of a brand strategy: 5 key branding elements. 2017 [Online]. Available through:
<https://ervinandsmith.com/blog/branding/brand-strategy-5-key-brand-elements/>.
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