Place branding in a bottle: management strategies for unplanned messages

Purpose This paper explores an important yet overlooked concept in place branding literature, unplanned messages. Focusing on unplanned messages, this study aims to contribute to a better understanding of the concept of spontaneous order in place branding and how to manage the unplanned communication process so as to ensure a high reputational status for a place. Design/methodology/approach This paper builds on past research on place brand communication and proposes a conceptual framework for unplanned messages. Findings Classification schemes for places and place brands are proposed, contributing to place brand management in three aspects: reviewing of decisions and strategies undertaken, assessing current situation and planning way forward when it comes to priorities for place management and development. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first paper that introduces the emergent image and presents a classification scheme for places that contributes to a strategic management program of unplanned messages in place branding.

The role of novel instruments of brand communication and brand image in building consumers’ brand preference and intention to visit wineries

This research aims to analyze brand communication and brand image as specific drivers of wine brand preference and their influence on wine consumers’ intention to visit associated wineries. Specifically, this paper enhances the understanding of the roles of advertising-promotion, sponsorship-public relations, corporate social responsibility, and social media in brand communication, as well as functional, emotional and reputation components in brand image development in the context of wine tourism industry. Data was collected through a structured and self-administered questionnaire from 486 visitors to wineries in Spain. Partial least squares regression was used to evaluate the measurement model and the hypotheses. The empirical analysis shows that brand communication and brand image have similar positive effects on brand preference, and that brand image mediates the relationship between brand communication and brand preference. This research suggests implications for theory and practice relative to brand management in terms of communication and image; and it proposes insights into novel communication tools and marketing activities for the winery tourism industry. Firms should employ a holistic evaluation of brand communication to involve the whole organization, which would enhance the strategic role that brand communication plays.

BRAND MANAGEMENT PRO-SOCIAL ACTIVITIES AS AN EFFECTIVE ELEMENT OF IMAGE STRATEGY

The aim of this article is to research the effectiveness of pro-social actions in the building of a brand image and if it really might be an effective determinant of marketing actions – which has an influence on consumer choices: chosen aspects of pro-social actions used in the strategies of NIVEA and Rossmann drugstores are explored here. In addition, analyzes of pro-social actions during pandemic was carried out. It is proved that companies which took a part in relief efforts during the crisis were appreciated by consumers; which helped when it came to creating brand value. The most important question seems to be not “Whether to invest in CSR?” but “How to invest?” This issue is sure to become the subject of numerous research projects and analyzes in the future.

Digital branding of the university as a factor in the development of academic mobility of students and teachers

В настоящее время в сфере образования все большую популярность приобретает феномен академического электронного брендирования, включающий в себя управление брендом университета, в том числе брендирование образовательного процесса, академических журналов, научных исследований, менеджмента вуза всех уровней. В статье представлены выявленные в процессе проведенного автором исследования особенности цифрового брендирования вузов Чувашской Республики, а также условия, при соблюдении которых брендинг позволяет образовательному учреждению установить эмоциональную связь со своей аудиторией и убедить её сделать выбор в свою пользу. Показано, что цифровой брендинг университета может стать важным шагом, способствующим успешному набору студентов, в том числе иностранных. Раскрыт его потенциал для развития академической, в том числе международной академической мобильности обучающихся и преподавателей. Currently, in the field of education, the phenomenon of academic electronic branding is gaining more and more popularity, which includes university brand management, including branding of the educational process, academic journals, scientific research, and university management at all levels. The article presents the features of digital branding of universities in the Chuvash Republic identified in the course of the research conducted by the author, as well as the conditions under which branding allows an educational institution to establish an emotional connection with its audience and convince it to make a choice in its favor. It is shown that digital branding of a university can be an important step contributing to the successful recruitment of students, including foreign ones. Its potential is revealed for the development of academic, including international academic mobility of students and teachers.

Information Control for Creator Brand Management in Subscription-Based Crowdfunding

Digital content creators, such as podcasters, musicians, writers, and YouTubers, are increasingly using subscription-based crowdfunding (SBC) platforms to attract backers and obtain recurring funding from them. Unlike conventional crowdfunding, a hallmark of SBC is the recurring funding scheme structured as a creator-centered freemium model. Empowering creators to build their person brands, SBC platforms are providing creators with novel features to control the information that they share with their backers or fans or conceal from them. Based on a large-scale study on Patreon, an SBC platform, we show how creators can effectively leverage two types of information controls—earnings concealment and private postings—to build their person brands and thereby develop their backer base and fan engagement. Interestingly, we also find a reinforcing relationship in which the increases in backer base and fan engagement further stimulate creators to leverage information controls in their SBC campaigns to grow their person brands. In sum, although information controls are effective in aggregate to build person brands on SBCs, creators need to dynamically adjust the extent of use of information controls based on changes in their backer base and fan engagement.

Brand Promotion Strategy in the Internet Services Market

Digital technologies have become an integral part of modern life, the Internet services market is rapidly developing all over the world, which requires business companies to enter cyberspace. Staying on the Internet has long been an obligatory part of the business not only for large multinational companies but also for small regional and local business structures. It is not just the presence of a website or a group in social networks that is important, a brand communication strategy is necessary. The relevance of the studied subject is due to the need to increase the competitiveness of Ukrainian companies in the field of Internet marketing. The purpose of the article is to develop standard recommendations for strategic brand promotion in the Internet services market, to study the most effective promotion tools and communication channels with the audience in cyberspace. The leading methods for studying the problem were sociological and statistical methods. The technologies of system analysis and modeling are applied. The article analyses the best international and industry branding practices in cyberspace, examines the e-commerce market in Ukraine, and structures the main trends in its development. The material of the article formulates the mechanism for developing and introducing a brand positioning strategy in the e-commerce market, the main characteristics of successful branding, structures recommendations for the use of marketing technologies on the Internet. An important component of the research is the analysis of digital marketing tools and communication channels in the Internet services market. The materials of the article are of practical importance for the business community, specialists in the field of public relations, marketing, advertising, sales departments, and other specialists in the field of management. Effective brand management of Internet services allows increasing the commercial results of one's business, provides additional competitive advantages

BRAND MANAGEMENT IN STRATEGIC ENTERPRISE MANAGEMENT

Branding is an integral part of an enterprise's marketing activities and can be analyzed in various aspects. Brand management – is the process of creating and managing a brand that is based primarily on the sale of goods. The main components in this process are brand ideas, market analysis, strategy development, organization of an advertising company. In addition, to date, branding policy is one of the elements of marketing, it determines the positions of other types of policy, because today the role of brand for the enterprise is a determining factor of competitiveness and survival of the enterprise in the market. When forming a brand, it is necessary to formulate problems related to needs, supply and demand, as they fully reflect the specifics of the functioning of the product market. The process of brand management is differentiated into blocks; methods for determining the brand value of an enterprise are proposed. The prerequisites for changing brand management are related to the processes and cycles that occur in the economy such as: globalization of business, development of scientific and technological progress, changes in the external environment and society, and even the expansion of market boundaries, so a comparison of the dynamics of brand- enterprise management; brand management concepts are compared. The strategic brand management process is important for creating and maintaining brand equity. Developing a strategy that successfully supports or enhances brand awareness, strengthens brand associations, emphasizes brand quality and use, is part of brand management. In today's world, in order to maintain a competitive position, every leader must first and foremost consider the value of his or her brand in developing its strategy and pay attention to branding and find key points for winning the position.

LUXURY-ТЕХНОЛОГІЇ ЯК ЗАСІБ ПІДВИЩЕННЯ КОНКУРЕНТОСПРОМОЖНОСТІ ПІДПРИЄМНИЦЬКОГО БІЗНЕСУ

The article seeks to explore the specifics of premium brands and current trends in business entrepreneurship. Managing modern Luxury business, in other words, fashion industry, and in particular designer brands as its key asset is an independent scientific and applied research issue which has gained increasing importance over the last decades. The economic crisis spurred by the COVID-2019 pandemic has become a profound turmoil for the global economy. However, according to the results of modern research studies, this situation has contributed to creating favourable environment for bringing business to a qualitatively new level which resulted in the first place in shifting much of creative business processes to a virtual domain, thus transforming fashion business into online business models. The research hypothesis is represented by the statement that a thoroughly developed and implemented marketing strategy based on Luxury technologies, as well as doing entrepreneurship-driven business including strategic marketing positioning, will facilitate a significant increase in the company market share and profits along with finding pathways to outperform the competitors, including big international market players. The purpose of this study is to substantiate the variability of making use of Luxury technology as a promising tool to boost the competitiveness of entrepreneurial ventures. The methodological framework of the research covers a branding theory – to identify the most appropriate methods to build Luxury brands, strategic marketing tools – to develop a business strategy to promote Luxury brands, portfolio and matrix approaches – to justify the positioning of Luxury brands. In addition, the study offers a matrix approach to managing designer brands, together with suggesting a better understanding of the role of a designer brand portfolio concept as the most effective business model in the area of Luxury sector management. It is argued that application of Luxury technology will help to enhance the designer brand management paradigm in both local and the global Luxury markets.

Scaling up Sirohi: can women empowerment and sustainability drive a luxury brand?

Learning outcomes The case offers a unique opportunity to understand the market dynamics of a young luxury brand that aspires to empower women and pursue the broader goal of marketing sustainability in an emerging market. The discussion would enable learners to conduct environmental analysis and assess implications of crisis (current pandemic) on business, understand the marketing mix implications for a firm with societal orientation, learn to design effective brand positioning strategies and plan social and market driven brand strategies to ensure sustainable growth. Case overview/synopsis Gauri Malik, an investment banker-turned-social entrepreneur, forayed into the luxury home décor and furniture market with Sirohi, in 2019. In a market driven by exclusivity and design appeal, the brand had sustainability at its core. Malik worked with 200 women, from a conservative rural base in India to create traditional products that were hand-made with recycled natural fibres and upcycled plastic wastes. Driven by the goal of securing the livelihood for a larger group of women artisans, Malik wanted to scale up from 350 to 5000 products in the next five years. Hence, for materializing her ambitious plans she sought answers to- Could her home-trained women artisans deliver the promise of quality and finesse to support Sirohi scale up as a luxury brand? While it was extremely critical for Sirohi to have an articulated image-she wondered if the parallel focus on the up-market luxury brand image and sustainability-create competitive advantage or lead to diffused positioning? Complexity academic level Classified as MODERATE in terms of difficulty level, the case can be effectively used in post-graduate programmes for foundation courses on Marketing Management, elective courses on Brand Management or Sustainability Marketing. Supplementary materials Teaching notes are available for educators only. Subject code CSS 8: Marketing.