Unilever's Brand Portfolio: A Comprehensive Analysis

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BRAND MANAGEMENT
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Table of Contents
TABLE OF FIGURES....................................................................................................................3
INTRODUCTION........................................................................................................................4
TASK 1...................................................................................................................................... 5
TASK 2.................................................................................................................................... 10
TASK 3.................................................................................................................................... 14
TASK 4.................................................................................................................................... 19
CONCLUSION.......................................................................................................................... 23
REFERENCING.........................................................................................................................24
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TABLE OF FIGURES
Figure 1: Keller’s Brand equity Model......................................................................................7
FIGURE 2: UNILEVER LOGO...................................................................................................... 9
FIGURE 3: MODEL HOUSE OF BRAND OF UNILEVER...............................................................11
FIGURE 4: KNORR LOGO.........................................................................................................13
FIGURE 5: LINE EXTENSION OF KNORR...................................................................................14
FIGURE 6: BRAND EXTENSION KNORR....................................................................................14
FIGURE 7: DOVE LOGO.......................................................................................................... 18
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INTRODUCTION
The brand is a very important aspect that helps the organizations in representing their
identity; Brand is also the way that helps the companies in building trust and loyalty with
their customers. The brand is the means of communicating the position of the company in
the market. The goods as well as the services of various companies remain identified
through the support of brand. The management of the brand includes creating awareness
of the brand with the help of various tools and techniques; it also includes different
strategies and plan that helps in marketing & positioning of the company’s brand in the
market. The first part if the assignment will focus on formulating the article with relation to
the optimum impression limited company, the other part will include the preparation of the
brand portfolio and then discussing the brand hierarchical structure will be discussed and
hat will help in making the strong strategies and plan for the company. At last the various
strategies for the extension of the brand and the brand leverage will be discussed and the
assignment will also include the discussion of the various case studies of the different
companies that help in understanding the concept clearly.
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TASK 1
INTRODUCTION
A brand can be explained as an effective tool that helps in identification and the
differentiation of goods as well as services of one enterprise from its challengers in the
market. Brand can also be explained as the medium that helps in representing the company
through its brand name and the brand image. The customers get help in identifying the
company and their products with the help of the brand name (Lloyd, 2017). The brand of
the company also helps in setting different perception of the customers for the brand. The
power of branding is that it helps in creating the strong image of the company and it also
supports in building a different position in the marketplace and supports in getting the
desired results (Lloyd, 2017). Through the support of promotion as well as the creation of
the strong brand image in the marketplace, the goods as well as services of the company
leave a strong and deep impression in customer’s mind (Lischer, 2018).
Brand- major component and marketing tool and various tactics for managing and
building the equity of the brand
The brand equity can be explained as the term, that helps in adding the extra or additional
value to the company’s products, This is done by doing the activity for brand awareness and
its strong recognition in the market (Business Dictionary, 2019).
Marketing role
The marketing department is very important in creating the brand image of the company,
with the help of the marketing activities and strategies, promotion, advertising the
marketing department try to communicate the information of the company to its
customers. Thus marketing helps in constructing a sturdy brand image in many ways.
BODY
The branding as the promotion device for the business as well as its significance is explained
here:
Provides market recognition
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Market recognition is a very important aspect for the company as it helps in making a
different image of the company in the minds of the customers. Putting efforts for building
the strong brand image is necessary as it helps in recognition of the company's products and
when the brand becomes known for the customers it helps in creating the positive impact of
the company.
Support in increasing customers
The branding helps in creating strong customers base because the company's activities and
the changes in their performance can be analyzed through brand image. Along with
supporting in increasing the base of the consumers, it also support in managing the firm’s
relationship with their consumers (Lake, 2018).
Support in activities of advertising
The also supports effective activities of advertising with the help of branding and the
company can also plan promotional activities that help in attracting more customers and
creating a strong brand image (Heinemann, 2018).
Helps in building trust in the marketplace
As the market brand is built, then it helps in making strong trust because the customers can
recognize the products easily and they tend to repeat purchasing their products from the
same brand which gave them satisfaction (Smithson, 2015).
BRAND REVITALIZATION
This term can be explained as the market tool or the strategy that helps in bringing back the
product in the market after the product has reached the stage of maturity. This method
helps the company in securing its equity that is their customers in the market (Närvänen
and Goulding, 2016).
BRAND REINFORCEMENT
This term can be explained as the activity that helps in getting back those customers who
have tried the product of the company once with the purpose of repurchase and also helped
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the company in attracting new customers. This can also be said as the main goal in the life
cycle of the product at the growth stage.
The various successful strategies for the creation of the brand image are:
Brand association
The customer’s positive response to the brand is known as the association of the brand that
helps in creating the brand equity; this also helps the customers in recognition and
identifying the company’s products different from their competitors (Hankinson, 2015).
Analysing competitors
It is the responsibility of the company to analyse the strategies and plan of their competitors
that helps in satisfying customers by providing some of their products in some different
manner from their competitors (Hankinson, 2015).
Providing quality products
The company must provide quality products and services to the customers that help in
building strong brand equity and image (Hankinson, 2015). Thus these activities will help the
company in the process of activities of repurchasing.
For handling the brand of the business, different models as well as theories are explained
here:
A model of the customer base brand equity will be discussed here that helps in managing
the brand image of the company.
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Figure 1: Keller’s Brand Equity Model
[SOURCE: Çifci et al., 2016]
In this model, there are four stages explained and these are
Brand identity
In the model that is introduced by the Keller, this is the first step that explains that for the
success of the company, creating a strong brand identity is very important. This term means
creating awareness of the company's products and services that helps in making perception
of the customers about the products of the company (Çifci et al., 2016).
Brand meaning
This step includes two steps which help the company in explaining what the company's
brand means. The two steps are the performance and the imagery, where the performance
means, how well the company is able to satisfy customers by fulfilling their needs and the
imagery explains that in social and psychological terms, is a company able to fulfil customer'
needs (Çifci et al., 2016).
Brand response
The brand performance is measured with the help of the response of the customers to the
brand. This step supports the enterprise in identifying the reaction of the consumers in
various terms to the brand.
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Brand resonance
This is the most important step of the model that helps in analysing the deep and the strong
bond of the customers with the company and its brand (Çifci et al., 2016).
CONCLUSION
Thus the conclusion from the above article is that maintaining and building the brand image
of the company is very important as it helps in building trust among the customers and also
helps in differentiating the foods as well as services of the company different as compared
to its challengers. Making effective marketing strategies and plan will help the company
optimum impression limited in the development of the strong brand image.
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TASK 2
INTRODUCTION
Unilever is the most trusted brand that is known as one of the largest multinational
companies. The headquarters of the company is situated in London, UK. The company
deals in the consumer's goods and provides a wide variety of products to its customers. The
product range of the company includes cleaning products, confectionery products, beauty
and products for personal care etc.
FIGURE 2: UNILEVER LOGO
[source: Gillum, 2018]
Analysis of the various tactics of the management of the portfolio, Hierarchy of brand and
the management of equity
Managing the brand portfolio of the company is not an easy task; the company has to face
many challenges and difficulties. The brand portfolio of any company can be explained as a
combination or a group of different brands (Laforet, 2015). The strategy of managing the
brand portfolio is established by the company because it helps in attaining the objectives of
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the enterprise. In process of managing the assortment of brand or its portfolio of the firm,
there are some aspects that must be included and these are services, returns, features,
value etc.
Unilever's strategy for the brand portfolio
There are various brands that are included and owned by the company Unilever and there
are almost more than 400 brands that are owned by the company and in the sales, there are
almost 13 brands. The company's operations are majorly divided into the 4 major sectors
and these are personal care, food, refreshments and home care products. Various brands of
the company include dove, lifebuoy, Knorr, Magnum, Lipton, Axe, lux, sun silk etc. The
research and development department of the Unilever focuses on environmental impacts,
health & care, the sustainability of the Agricultural products etc. The products and brands
that are associated with Unilever are geographically distributed in the large area and there
are many sub-brands and family Brands that are managed in the portfolio strategy of the
Unilever (Laforet, 2015). There are almost 67 brands in the food & refreshments category
such as cornetto, Bru, Knorr etc. and 35 brands in the home care products category such as
domestos, omg, Surf, comfort etc.
HIERARCHY OF THE BRAND MANAGEMENT WITHIN PORTFOLIO OF UNILEVER
The hierarchy of the brand can be explained as the means that help in summing up the
strategy of the brand with the help of displaying various products of the company through
its common and distinctive elements (Carter, 2017). The products are differentiated and
displayed on the basis of the nature and number of brands and products. The brand
hierarchy is of three types and these are Branded House, hybrid brand model and the house
of brand (Carter, 2017).
The model of house of brand is used by the Unilever:
HOUSE OF BRAND MODEL
The house of the brand can be explained as the company which focuses on marketing
activities of many different brands and this model is usually used by big companies that
have distinctive and similar categories of the products. The house of the brand includes
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many other brands in which the different brands and their products are advertised by the
single business.
The house of the brand model Unilever
The model of house of brand is followed by the company Unilever through which the
company sells and markets the different brands and their products (Gillum, 2018). There
are many brands under Unilever and these are surf, Cornetto, Lux, Lifebuoy, sun silk, Lipton,
Knorr, axe, rinso etc., these brands and their products are sold and marketed under the
Unilever.
FIGURE 3: HOUSE OF THE BRAND MODEL OF UNILEVER
[source: Gillum, 2018]
Most of the time the customers are not able to find out which product is sold under which
brand with the house of the brand model and thus, as a result, the company is not able to
make the strong base of the customers for the business. With the loyal and efficient
working of the company Unilever for its customers and for fulfilling their requirements, they
are serving them with a huge number of brands and their products. The trust of their
consumption has been built over the years and it has become one of the largest FMCG
products companies.
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