What Are the Different Types of Brand Strategies?
Last update: 20 July 2023 at 09:58 am
5.00/5If you are looking to define your company’s branding strategy, or even build a brand for a project, it is important to understand this:
The value of a brand lies primarily in the way it is perceived by its target audience.
For this reason, it is essential that you always listen carefully to your customers, but also to your stakeholders in general. This way you can monitor and adapt the image your brand sends out.
In this dynamic, it is common to resort to branding, which consists of shaping and cultivating a brand through a set of marketing tactics.
Today, there are many different types of brand strategies you can use. In this article, we present you with four of them.
Umbrella branding
Umbrella branding is a single brand that covers a multitude of products and services belonging to a single company. The word umbrella comes from the fact that such a brand covers all the products of a single group in order to convey the same image.
Using this strategy is interesting if you have a brand that already has a certain reputation, and you are looking to launch a new product or service that you want to which you want to give a strong image as soon as it is launched. Products under the umbrella strategy, therefore, have the advantage of low communication and marketing costs.
Furthermore, this strategy can be presented in two ways:
- The umbrella branding strategy applies to products belonging to the same market without being intended for the same category of consumers: the brand can be imposed on car parts, trucks, bicycles, construction equipment, etc.
- The umbrella branding strategy covers products belonging to unrelated markets: for example, when the same brand is applied to pens, lighters, cars, musical instruments, electronic devices, household appliances, etc.
One of the major drawbacks of products under the umbrella strategy is the variety of the consumer universe of each of these products. If the diversification of product types is pushed too far, the logic between the daughter brands can be damaged, which will result in the image of the original brand being damaged.
Certification branding
The certification strategy designates a brand that already has a certain reputation. It is used to certify the value and origin of a product that is not necessarily known by the general public.
These unknown products are then the daughter brands of the certification brand and benefit from the trust that the public places in the latter.
The difference between a certification brand and an umbrella brand is that the former only covers products belonging to the same market and consumer category. Similarly, this strategy reinforces the consistency between the endorsed brands and thus helps to consolidate the identity of the original brand. For example, it can be applied to food products, such as biscuits. The daughter products then come in several shapes and varieties:
- Squares,
- Round,
- Chocolate,
- With hazelnuts,
- With milk,
- With butter,
- With fruit,
- Etc.
In some cases, the certification brand can also take on the function of a label. It can be used to authenticate a specific characteristic of a product. For example, to ensure that the product is locally produced, or that it is organic and fair trade. This marketing method allows to get closer to a certain category of consumers and to build loyalty.
The range brand
The range brand is one that is imposed on a set of products belonging to the same consumer category. These products come from a single company and meet the same needs or have the same quality promises. The width of the range refers to the number of different types of products. The length of the range refers to the number of products included in the whole range.
The fact that the products share the same brand name helps to reassure the customer and establishes logic in the branding strategy. For example, the same brand can be used on :
- Butter,
- Cheese,
- Yoghurt,
- Fresh cream,
- Chocolate mousse,
- Etc
Similarly, a range brand can be applied to a shower gel, a shampoo, and a soap. The products then belong to the same range.
The global brand
The global brand is used for products and product lines that are available worldwide. Not all countries produce the same versions. However, the identity, policy, and principle of the products and services remain the same. For example, the same phone model of the same brand can be produced in different countries with local assembly parts. Just as the same hotel chain can be present in different cities. Thus, the infrastructure is the same, but the services may vary according to the local context.
In conclusion
In the end, and despite their specificities, all these types of brand strategies serve a single purpose. To build a brand that can be trusted and consume products and services with confidence.
Whatever strategy you choose, keep in mind that your branding should serve two main purposes:
- Differentiate yourself from your competition,
- Build a relationship of trust with your audience.
In any case, we recommend working with an agency to define your branding strategy and find the right types of brand strategies for your business. Read our full guide to branding and image to find out more.
