Building brands

Building brand identity in competitive markets: a conceptual model
Bhimrao M. Ghodeswar
School of Management, Asian Institute of Technology, Klong Luang, Pathumthani, Thailand
Abstract Purpose – The purpose of this conceptual paper is to identify important elements of brand building based on a literature review and case studies of successful brands in India. Design/methodology/approach – This paper is based on a review of the literature and takes a case study approach. The paper suggests the framework for building brand identity in sequential order, namely, positioning the brand, communicating the brand message, delivering the brand performance, and leveraging the brand equity. Findings – Brand-building effort has to be aligned with organizational processes that help deliver the promises to customers through all company departments, intermediaries, suppliers, etc., as all these play an important role in the experience customers have with the brand. Originality/value – The paper uses case studies of leading Indian brands to illustrate the importance of action elements in building brands in competitive markets. Keywords Brand identity, Brand loyalty, India Paper type Conceptual paper

An executive summary for managers and executive readers can be found at the end of this article.

I. Introduction
Building a brand driven culture is a lifelong commitment to a mindset and a way of life that takes time, planning and perseverance that produces intangible outputs which include greater customer satisfaction, reduced price sensitivity, fewer customer defections, a greater share of customers’ wallets, more referrals, and a higher percentage of repeat business (Knapp, 2000). Customers value their relationships with their branded possessions and with marketing agents and institutions that own and manage the brand (Alexander et al., 2002). The brand identity needs to focus on points of differentiation that offer sustainable competitive advantage to the firm. Brand