The new approach

Branding.

Most of us on campus, who are aspiring to be graduates in marketing, are just dreaming about that glamorous word. Branding.

Is marketing only about branding? Well, to say the least, I am seriously in the agreement that yeah, it is. Marketing today has been replaced by branding. And this does seem right. Let me give you my perception as to why it is right.

Branding is nothing but how you are able to connect the product with the customer. How you are able to transfrom a commodity into an object of respect, love, admiration or appreciation. Yeah that is branding. In short, branding is more akin to making a relationship.

Marketing on the other hand, is about the needs of a person. Identification of the need, appreciation of the need and then efforts made to convert that need into a want and finally satisfy it. If we look closely at these two definitions, we can say on a broader plane, that they both mean the same thing.

People have this perception that marketing does involve a more rational approach to product selling while branding has a more emotional approach. But thats not the case. Ultimately, both cannot succeed without a good quality product. A bad product can never sustain a good marketing/branding strategy. These strategies are just the mechanisms to spread the quality of the product to a larger audience and in this manner, be able to generate profit for the organisation. No step in any of the processes involves fooling around with the customer. This is more of a win-win situation.

Branding does represent the glamourised version of selling a product. It does seem to be having more finesse. It may give you the impression as out of touch with ground realities. But thats not the case. A brand is the personality affixed to the product. Its development requires the same zeal in the sales team, the same penetration of the distribution channels and the same efficiency of the supply chain. It fact, its a more comprehensive scenario of meeting the need of the customer. It in fact is a more sophisticated method of easying out the purchasing decision of the customer. Its about giving him that extra confidence while buying and also being able to save time. Its not about blind belief but its about faith. And thats why, branding is an all-inclusive and comprehensive strategy for meeting the company's and the customer's expectations.

I would come up with more of such thoughts. Till then,
Ciao.