Brand Portfolio and Hierarchy Management: Unilever Case Study

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Brand Management
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Table of Contents
Task 1 – Building and managing brand over time............................................................3
Introduction...................................................................................................................... 3
Analyse the key components of a successful brand equity..........................................5
The successful strategy for strengthening brand equity...............................................5
Successful strategies for brand extension....................................................................5
Successful strategies for reinforcing the brand.............................................................6
Revitalizing the brand...................................................................................................6
Conclusion....................................................................................................................... 7
Branding and marketing............................................................................................... 7
Importance of brand as marketing tool.........................................................................7
Task 2 – Brand portfolio and hierarchy management......................................................8
Introduction to Brand portfolio strategy............................................................................8
Meaning of brand portfolio strategy..............................................................................8
Importance of brand portfolio strategy..........................................................................8
Conclusion....................................................................................................................... 8
Introduction...................................................................................................................... 9
Hierarchy management of brands of Unilever Company..............................................9
Conclusion..................................................................................................................... 10
Introduction.................................................................................................................... 11
Strategies for managing the equity of the brands.......................................................11
Conclusion..................................................................................................................... 11
References.....................................................................................................................12
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Task 1 – Building and managing brand over time
‘Brand is Power’
Introduction
The brand is basically a product, service or concept that differs from some other
products or services. The brand name can be stated as the popularity of an
organization or can the name of a specific product or service provide by the company.
The meaning of a brand can be stated as identification of the product and the
company. This is most necessary for the organization Optimum Impression Ltd to
make the effective brand value which helps to attain more growth and development.
The brand elements are the expressions or signs which used to differentiate the
brand from others and also gives popularity and representation to the specific product
or services. The elements of the brand are like brand identity, image, positioning and
so on. The current market value of the brand in the market known as the brand
equity and it determines the value of Owners Company and product in the market.
The brand equity of the organization Optimum Impression Ltd is the strength of the
share which they continue from the past 16 years (Balmer, 2012). Brand equity is
most important for an organization as it determines the value of their productivity in
the market as if the brand equity is positive then the company can ask for a higher
price and if it is negative then the company have to make some significant changes in
the productivity.
Steps to building a successful brand:
This is most necessary for the organization Optimum Impression Ltd to implement
some approaches which help them to attain the successful brand. As a successful
brand helps the organization to make stability in the market. These are the steps
which can help to make the brand successful. The steps to make the brand
successful are:
 Determination of targeted audience: This is most necessary to make the
idea of the targeted market as these are the people who will make productivity
more popular.
 Defines the objective of the brand: This is most necessary to make the
objective of implementing the product or services defined.
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 Consideration of competition: The Company Optimum Impression Ltd needs
to make the determination of competition as it will help to make the approaches
to reduce such competition.
 Value proposition: The value proposition is most necessary as it gives
concise information about the outcome of the brand and its strength.
 Brand guidelines: The guidelines or strategies of the brand gives the idea to
make the brand successful and effective.
 Marketing of brand: The final step of brand success is making the marketing
of brand which provides success to the brand in the market.
The role of marketing communication is most important while implementing the
brand equity in the current world which is full of technology and technology.
Effective marketing helps to make the customers queries and issues resolved which
gives the opportunities to attain the customer’s beliefs and trust.
Analyse the key components of a successful brand equity
Akers brand equity model
Brand equity needs to be successful as this directly links to the brand values in the
market. The negative brand equity can influence the business in a destructive
manner. This is most necessary for the organization Optimum Impression Ltd to
implement some components which help to attain the successful brand equity (Zhang,
2015).
 Brand awareness: The brand awareness is the concept which determines the
customer’s perception about the brand.
 Brand compliance: This is most necessary for the company to make the
effective and impactful place of the brand in the market.
 Brand loyalty: This is the key component which gives justification and
relevance to the brand in the market.
A successful strategy for strengthening brand equity
The brand equity depends on the performance of the company and also gives the
rectification to the procedures and ideas which have been implemented by the
company to enhance brand equity (Hanna and Rowley, 2013).
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 Value products and facilities: This is foremost necessary for the organization
to provide quality products and services which will help to attract more
customers.
 Competitive analysis: The determination of the competition is most
necessary as it gives information about the current stage of organization in the
market.
 Consistent brand image: The brand image place a vital role in the formation
of brand equity as if the brand image is positive the brand equity will also be
positive.
 Customer’s feedback: This is most necessary to make consideration of the
customers' needs and requirements.
Successful strategies for brand extension
The extension of the brand is most necessary to make the determination of expansion
of the brand in the current market. The strategies of brand expansion are:
 Relevance: This is most necessary to make the relevance and justification
about the proper brand.
 Recognition: The recognition of the brand in the real world market is most
necessary to make the product or services valuable.
 Credibility: The flexibility or credibility in the brands is most necessary as it
makes the brand to be used in more products.
 Transfer: This is most necessary for the brands to provide advantages and
facilities to different communities.
Successful strategies for reinforcing the brand
The reinforcement of the brand includes some different strategies to make the brand
more effective and valuable (Braun, et. al., 2013). There are some different strategies
of reinforcement available which have been discussed below.
 Sustaining brand reliability: This is most necessary to make the brand
qualities consistent.
 Source protection: The sources are the most vital concept of brand and
necessary to be secured.
 Fortifying vs. Leveraging: The fortifying refers to making brand awareness
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whereas leveraging refers to making money from the brand.
 Support of marketing program: The consideration and support of the
marketing plan are most necessary to establish brand development.
Revitalizing the brand
Revitalizing the brand is the concept of reducing the crisis which has implemented in
the existing brand or making some different opportunities to extend the brand.
 The first step which can be taken is the expansion of brand awareness as it
helps to make the expansion of the brand in the mindset of people.
 Another approach is of enhancing the brand image which includes the
strengthening and development of the entire brand.
Conclusion
Branding and marketing
The branding refers to making the productivity consistent and stable and this is the
concept of making the companies productivity strengthen. The strategies of marketing
give concise information about making the brand relevance and nearby to the
customers. Marketing is the process of making the brand more sustainable in the real
market. The marketing is the essential requirement for an organization in the current
time of period (Kemp, et. al., 2012). It includes the different strategies to extend the
business like promotion and advertisement of the products.
Importance of brand as a marketing tool
The marketing tools are the most essential elements to make the brand more
sustainable as it helps to give the relevance to the marketing of brand (Buil, et. al.,
2016). The specific tools of marketing are:
 Social media: The current world is mostly engaged with social media and this
is the best concept to make the marketing of the products and services.
 Internet marketing: The concept of internet marketing includes some online
ways to make marketing this could be a website or blog and gives concise
information about the brand.
 Surveys and campaign: The surveys and campaign are the concepts of
making the face to face marketing of the product and services which helps to
make the people aware of the brand and company.
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Task 2 – Brand portfolio and hierarchy management
Introduction to Brand portfolio strategy
The brand portfolio can be referred to as the assortment of different brand under a
particular company. This portfolio refers to the different brand structure of the company
and all the different brands include in the company's brand portfolio (Urde, 2016). The
strategy of the brand portfolio provides information about the relevance and justification
of a different brand.
Meaning of brand portfolio strategy
Each of the organization attains some different brands of a specific brand to make the
enhancement of the company products. A brand portfolio strategy is an approach which
helps to make the sequential and relevant manner to maintain the brand in the
organization.
Importance of brand portfolio strategy
The brand portfolio strategies help the organization to build a strong structure in front of
the competitors as it gives the opportunity to showcase different and valuable brands.
The different product also helps the company itself to make the determination about the
desired changes.
Unilever is the multinational company headquartered in London and implemented the
portfolio strategies to strengthen the brand (Hanna and Rowley 2013). The company
have different brands like food, home care and personal care and for each of the
segment, the company had implemented strategies to maintain the business in a
significant manner.
The brand portfolio strategy is most necessary to balance the different brands which
have been developed by the company. This can be identified that the brand portfolio
helps to make standard in front of competitors. The company Unilever had implemented
the idea to reduce the issues of brand management.
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Hierarchy management
The hierarchy management refers to managing the brands of the company as per the
manner of priority and values. The hierarchy structure gives more concise information
about the brand and its particular requirement in the company structure.
Hierarchy management of brands of Unilever Company
Hierarchy of brands of Unilever Company includes the products of different brands and
have been mentioned above.
 Food & beverages: The food and beverages services are provided by the
company Unilever. This mostly includes the benefits of packaged food and
beverages. The company most likely provides the products like Bru, Lipton,
kissan ketchup and James (Penumaka, et. al., 2013). These are some of the
examples of food & beverages provided by the company.
 Ice cream: The Company Unilever is the largest manufacturer of ice cream in
the world. The logo of the company's ice cream brand is ‘Heartbrand'. In the
current time of period the company is providing the ice cream services via 11
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Unilever
Food and beverages
Ice creame
Personal & Home care

functioning factories in different countries and the main motive of the company is
to make the standard sustain. The example of ice cream is Ben & Jerry, Buavita,
Heartbrand and so on.
 Personal & home care: This is the other brand facilitate by the company and
this is one of the most popular brands provided by the company. The company is
providing the home and personal care products from a long time and serving in a
significant manner (Braun, et. al., 2013). The example of personal and home
care product is Pepsodent, Pears transparent soap, Dollar shave club, Lysoform
etc.
This is concluded from the above study that the brand hierarchy provides concise
information about the value and differentiation between different brands of the company.
There was a piece of concise information about the brands on Unilever and elaborated
with relevant and suitable examples. The discussion of different brands determined that
all the products equally contribute to the company structure and growth.
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Strategies for managing equity of brands
The brand equity is one of the major concerns for the organization as the equity shows
the value of the brand in the market. This is foremost necessary to implement some
strategies which help to build the right concept of brand equity in the internal and
external market segment.
Strategies for managing the equity of the brands
The company Unilever is one of the largest companies in the UK and also transforming
all over the world with the assistance of its valuable brands. Consequently, it becomes
more necessary for the company to implement some strategies which help to attain
growth and development. The company Unilever works on its 5C framework which
according to them is the most necessary element of their organization.
 Consumers: The major concern of the company is to fulfil the requirements of
customers.
 Connect: The Company realises to connect with the audience and for such
reason, the company had implemented some innovative advertisement ideas.
 Content: This is the major focus of the company to provide good quality content
to present the advertisement.
 Community: This is the key concern to have a better and focused workforce to
complete the task and make the objectives accomplished.
 Commerce: This is most necessary for the organization to have a different and
large number of options for the consumers.
Conclusion
This is concluded from the above study that brand equity is the most valuable and
necessary part for the success of any of the organization and the selection of a
particular approach is most necessary to build the concept.
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References
 Balmer, J.M., 2012. Corporate brand management imperatives: custodianship,
credibility, and calibration. California Management Review, 54(3), pp.6-33.
 Braun, E., Kavaratzis, M. and Zenker, S., 2013. My city–my brand: the different
roles of residents in place branding. Journal of Place Management and
Development, 6(1), pp.18-28.
 Buil, I., Catalán, S. and Martínez, E., 2016. The importance of corporate brand
identity in business management: An application to the UK banking sector. BRQ
Business Research Quarterly, 19(1), pp.3-12.
 Hanna, S. and Rowley, J., 2012. Practitioners views on the essence of place
brand management. Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, 8(2), pp.102-109.
 Hanna, S. and Rowley, J., 2013. A practitioner-led strategic place brand-
management model. Journal of Marketing Management, 29(15-16), pp.1782-
1815.
 Hanna, S. and Rowley, J., 2013. Place brand practitioners' perspectives on the
management and evaluation of the brand experience. Town planning review,
84(4), pp.495-515.
 Kemp, E., Childers, C.Y. and Williams, K.H., 2012. Place branding: creating self-
brand connections and brand advocacy. Journal of Product & Brand
Management, 21(7), pp.508-515.
 Penumaka, S., Vaidya, M.A., Gupta, T.V.K. and O'malley, D., Social Yantra Inc,
2013. System and method for brand management using social networks. U.S.
Patent 8,447,852.
 Urde, M., 2016. The brand core and its management over time. Journal of
product & brand management, 25(1), pp.26-42.
 Zhang, Y., 2015. The impact of brand image on consumer behavior: A literature
review. Open journal of business and management, 3(1).
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