Measuring Sources of Brand Equity

Capturing the Consumer Mindset

Consumer Research

• Using ethnographic methods to understand consumption cultures

• Studying consumers in their natural surroundings

• Developing unique qualitative research techniques to identify brand associations and sources of brand equity

Profiling brand associations

Free associations:

What comes to mind with you think of Rolex?

What does the Rolex name mean to you?

Coding order of elicitation:

Place of responses in brand sequence yields a measure of brand strength

Kelly repertory grid

Brand triads:

Which two brands are most alike? Why?

Ford BMW Mercedes Benz

Chevy Saab BMW

BMW VW Jaguar

Eliciting Brand Associations

• Visual techniques (collages, photos)

• Projective techniques (brand as a car)

• Brand stories

• Usage associations (heavy/light; regular/non)

Projective Techniques

Couched in psychology

Types

• Constitutive - subject imposes structure; clay modeling

• Constructive - using structures to create reality; building blocks

• Interpretive - subject ascribes meaning to stimulus; word association

• Cathartic - play techniques• Refractive - subjects look back on behavior

Elicited material

Surface level

Word association

Sentence completion

Cartoon

Object sorting

Moderate level

Object personification

Shopping list

Picture drawing

Role playing

High level elicitation

• Collage construction - ZMAT

• Story-starters, dream extensions

• Photo sorts

• Auto-driving

• Video elicitation

List Technique

• Pound of hamburger• 2 loaves Wonder

bread• Bunch of carrots• Nescafe instant coffee• 5 lbs. potatoes• 2 cans Heinz catsup

• Pound of hamburger• 2 loaves Wonder

bread• Bunch of carrots• Starbucks coffee beans• 5 lbs. potatoes• 2 cans Heinz catsup

Archetype Research

• Fundamental psychological association with a cultural object

• PT Cruiser - gangster car or hot rod?

• Cheese - alive (aged) in France or dead (body baggie) in US?

Focus Groups

• 5-12 category users in structured location

• Facilitator ‘learns’ from respondents

• Protocol prepared

• Open-ended questions used

• Results used to identify themes

• Written report to client and creative team

Quantitative Techniques

Recognition measures

• T-scopes, eye tracking

• Package design

Recall measures

• Probes to stimulate memory

• Unaided for all brands(top-of-mind)

• Aided uses cues - attribute & usage probes

Image research

Open-ended measures for

• strength, favorability, uniqueness

Scaling techniques

• Likert scale for likeliness

Free-choice for brand attribute association

Ranking order of brands

Brand Responses

Purchase intention

Action - buy for self or as a gift

Target - types of products and brand

Context - store, conditions, occasion

Time - when, how soon

Brand Relationships

• Behavior loyalty

• Brand substitutability

• Other brand resonance dimensions - word-of-mouth, on line

Your Turn

Your client’s brand, Viagra, is losing some equity to Cialis brand.

1. Create a qualitative technique to learn about consumer perception about the brand

2. Develop a quantitative scaling measure to determine brand image.