Graphical Brand Mapping
The Brand Mapping exercise is a key component within the Brand Profile, and there are several ways to accomplish this, we will define the 2 most popular methodologies in this article.
The above diagram indicates the most obvious methodology for Brand Mapping - comparing your Brand’s relative merits against 2 key criteria and against your leading competitors. In plotting your Brand’s relative strengths, you should be better able to define exactly where you can be competitive, and what you need to evoke with your Brand Values to achieve market leadership.
In the above diagram, it is Competitor 1 who actually has the competitive advantage, as they can sell their product at a lower price, yet it conveys a higher quality association. To redress this balance, you either need to adjust your own pricing, or else work at evoking a higher quality Brand Image which justifies the higher pricing.
You can map your Brand against several connected key criteria in this way, and you will end up with invaluable ammunition for your Brand Profile.
Comparative Brand Mapping
An alternative process is simply to list the key Criteria in tabular format - comparing yourself with your 3 leading competitors, and ranking your Brand on the basis of Best | Better | Worse | Worst - against the key criteria; e.g.:
| Key Criteria |
My Brand |
Competitor 1 |
Competitor 2 |
Competitor 3 |
| Pricing |
Best |
Better |
Worse |
Worst |
| Quality |
Better |
Best |
Worse |
Worst |
| Range |
etc... |
|
|
|
You really don’t need any more than half a dozen, at most 10 key criteria to compare competitiveness on. The purpose of this exercise is to identify your competitive strengths and weaknesses so that you can figure out what you need to do with your brand to:
- Counter Weaknesses
- Take advantage of Strengths
In terms of Quality Perception, packaging and design can be significant influencers with the consumers on what they perceive the value of your offering to be. With subtle packaging differentiation you can really elevate your product up several notches. There are several brands which use high design values to justify a significantly higher price, even though the increased cost of manufacture might be minimal. Examples of this are Stella Artois and Red Bull - both companies price their products at a premium value, although the ingredients and cost of manufacture do not justify the high price. Successful positioning and complementary advertising campaigns have reinforced the ’quality’ aspect of said products and served to justify the high price.
You must decided how best to position your brand, and what cues and emotives are necessary to evoke the appropriate brand response.
