Driving brand performance<\/p>\n
Bambang Bhakti, Marketing trainer, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Today's challenge among marketing professionals
\nis to promote superior shareholder value though becoming a
\nleading profitable growth company in any product\/service
\ncategory.<\/p>\n
This is only possible if the respective brand gains customer
\nor consumer satisfaction that results in brand loyalty; purchase
\nloyalty and attitudinal loyalty are linking variables in the
\nchain of effects from brand trust and brand effect to brand
\nperformance.<\/p>\n
Purchase-loyal consumers may be willing to pay more for a
\nbrand because they perceive some unique value in the brand that
\nno alternative can provide.<\/p>\n
Price premium as a source of brand profit, therefore, is
\nobtained. This uniqueness, on the other hand, may derive from
\ngreater trust in the reliability of a brand or from a more
\nfavorable effect when customers or consumers use the brand.<\/p>\n
When loyal consumers repeatedly purchase the brand, the market
\nshare position is strengthened. Furthermore, because of affective
\nfactors, loyal consumers may use more of the brand, that is, may
\nlike using the brand or identity with its image. As a result of
\ngreater customer or consumer loyalty, superior brand performance
\noutcomes such as greater market share and a premium price are
\nobvious.<\/p>\n
The key terms here are purchase loyalty and attitudinal
\nloyalty that drive brand performance. Strategically, purchase
\nloyalty is driven by the unique value of the brand, while
\nattitudinal loyalty is driven by greater trust in brand
\nreliability and\/or various affective factors.<\/p>\n
These rational and emotional factors become the fundamental
\nframeworks in marketing program development, both in thematic and
\nschematic activities.<\/p>\n
Entertainment, in the eyes of a marketing professional, has a
\nkey role as an image-building vehicle to foster brand trust and
\nbrand effect to serve as key determinants of brand loyalty or
\nbrand commitment.<\/p>\n
By definition, entertainment is a creative event to create
\nattention and create a positive feeling among a specific
\naudience. It has, however, a certain aura of image either being
\nentertainment for the general public or a specific segment of the
\naudience, or being entertainment for a high-quality or economy
\nentertainment performance.<\/p>\n
From this entertainment matrix positioning, 'Joged at RCTI,
\nfor example, is positioned in the quadrant of public general
\naudience with economy performance as opposed to Ananda Sukarlan,
\nPiano Resital, which is positioned in the quadrant of a specific
\naudience with a high-quality performance.<\/p>\n
The Krisdayanti Show, on the other hand, is perceived to be in
\nthe quadrant of public general audience with a high-quality
\nperformance whilst Ketoprak Humor is positioned as for specific
\naudience with economy quality performance.<\/p>\n
Depending on the brand communication objectives, an
\nentertainment program is selected. One brand may consistently
\nassociate it with its brand positioning such as Gebyar BCA,
\nTelkomania, A Mild Music Programs being in the quadrant similar
\nto Krisdayanti Show, with high-quality performance.<\/p>\n
The President of Djarum with Aning Katamsi, Pall Mall Wet
\nParty and Yamaha with Piano Resital are in the quadrant specific
\nsegment audience with high-quality performance.<\/p>\n
Contrary to this principle, Bank Mandiri seems to have been
\nlinking its brand positioning to various entertainment programs,
\nwhich may dilute its brand image.<\/p>\n
At one time, 'Bank Mandiri' can be seen through RCTI's Who
\nWants to be Millionaire, while it is also seen at another event,
\nTembang Kenangan and also associated with Indonesia Football
\nLeague.<\/p>\n
Who Wants to be Millionaire seems appropriate for promoting a
\npositive image around the brand of Bank Mandiri. Tembang Kenangan
\nis very good entertainment. However, it is segmented for a mature
\nand \"recreational\" audience, while Indonesia Football League is
\nvery popular, but perceived as low-quality performance, ruined by
\nthe bonek (penniless football hooligans) image.<\/p>\n
If we contrast the different approaches of BCA and Bank
\nMandiri, from the perspective of purchase loyalty and attitudinal
\nloyalty, their brand trust are still being challenged. BCA is
\nstill in the image transition from Salim Group to IBRA and soon
\nto \"new\" investors. Whilst this issue is only known by elite
\ngroups of government, investors and politicians, BCA continues to
\nimprove its brand image by focusing on improving customer
\nservices through innovative technologies, and is seen as friendly
\nto most audiences.<\/p>\n
In the case of Bank Mandiri, being a relatively new brand, its
\nkey issues are brand awareness, brand trials, and brand
\npreference. A solid brand trust will have to be developed into a
\nnew image in order to build purchase loyalty and attitudinal
\nloyalty.<\/p>\n
Therefore, in addition to service or technology improvement
\nprograms, a single focus image development with high repetitive
\npenetration into the customer's mind is needed.<\/p>\n
Who Wants to be Millionaire is a good move, but \"moving the
\nbrand around\" with embang Kenangan and Liga Sepak Bola will only
\nhelp them increase brand awareness, without directing the brand
\nimage to the desired position.<\/p>\n
Brands that make customers or consumers happy or joyful or
\naffectionate should prompt greater purchase and attitudinal
\nloyalty. People may not purchase the brands they \"love\" for their
\nhigh price and so forth.<\/p>\n
In this respect, linking the brand with appropriate
\nentertainment programs should, therefore, promote purchase
\nloyalty and attitudinal loyalty as long as it is done
\nconsistently with its brand objectives.<\/p>\n
The McKids entertainment program on RCTI, screened late in the
\nafternoon every Saturday appeals to the purchase and attitudinal
\nloyalty of kids towards McDonalds products.<\/p>\n
The key word here is appropriateness. An entertainment program
\nmay be good but not necessarily appropriate to link to a certain
\nbrand.<\/p>\n
But not many brands capitalize on the power of the
\nentertainment industry. This is understandable because not every
\nentertainment program is designed to link the brand and its
\ntargeted customers or consumers. Many entertainment programs
\ndesigned as \"canned\" or \"off-the-peg\", as if good for any brands,
\nhowever, do not consider the needs of a specific brand mission.<\/p>\n
Designing an entertainment program for a specific brand
\nmission on the other hand, requires unique talent and motivation
\namongst brand owners, especially top management.<\/p>\n
If the top executive of the company does not have an
\nappreciation of entertainment and sees it as one of the strong,
\npowerful media to communicate the brand, then a \"traditional\"
\napproach toward brand communication is an obvious choice.<\/p>\n
As this article was being written, the board of executives and
\nmanagement team of BCA were attending a spectacular Gebyar BCA
\naired by Indosiar directly from Hilton Hotel, Nusa Dua, Bali.<\/p>\n
It was a program designed for the audience by the BCA
\nmanagement team with their partners in the media and
\nentertainment business.<\/p>",
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