Aaker on Branding: The Playbook to Building Strong Brands
Description
Branding is more than a logo-it is the promise, personality, and purpose that shape every customer experience. David Aaker's work has long been the global gold standard for understanding how brands drive strategy, relevance, and loyalty.
This Indian adaptation by Varsha Jain builds on this foundation, exploring how to build powerful brands in India's vibrant, values-driven market. From Amul's cooperative roots to Tata's purpose-driven pillars, this edition highlights how Indian brands build communities, leverage social programs, and create "must haves" that resonate with millions. Readers will discover actionable frameworks-the SBs, brand vision pillars, and signature stories-tailored for India's digital, diverse, and purpose-driven market.
Whether you're a student building your expertise, a marketer crafting the next big campaign, or a founder shaping your brand identity, this book will guide you in creating brands that don't just sell-they matter.
Branding is a craft. With vision and conviction, you'll build brands that last.
Table of Contents
Introduction: Why This Book?
The Book Objectives
The Flow
A Note on Branding
The Bottom Line
Part 1 Recognize That Brands Are Assets
1 The 5Bs: Brands Are Assets That Drive Strategy
A Bit of History
From Tactical to Strategic
Focus on Brand Equity—The 5Bs
Brand Relevance
Brand Image
Brand Loyalty
Brand Portfolio
Brand Equity
Why Is It Hard?
The Bottom Line
2 Brand Assets Have Real Value
Dove—Elevating Women’s Self-Esteem
16 Ways a Strong Brand Adds Value
Being Relevant Activates Passive Attention
Quantifying a Brand’s Asset Value
Case Studies
The Payoff from Brand Building Programs
A Conceptual Business Strategy Model
The Bottom Line
Part II Have a Compelling Brand Vision
3 Create a Brand Vision
The Brand Vision Model
The Process
The AJAX Case Study
Adapting the Vision
Emphasizing Different Elements of the Pillar
Spinning the Brand Story for the Local Market
Augment with Additional Vision Elements
Strategic Imperatives vs. Proof Points
Branded Source of Credibility
Silver Bullet Brands
The Bottom Line
4 The Organization as a Differentiator
Commitment to Quality
Aspire to Be the Best
Prioritize Price/Value in Offering
Innovation
Focus on Customer Needs
Exhibiting Success and Leadership
Representing a Country or Region
Social Programs
The Bottom Line
5 Signature Social Programs That Energize, Differentiate, and Engage
Barclays
Hellmann’s
Social Effort That Helps a Business Brand
Five Characteristics of Social Programs That Pop
Address Real Social Problems
Have a Strong Social Program Brand
Create Sizzle
Have a ”Feel Right” Fit
Connect the Signature Social Program to the Business Brands
Adopting vs. In House
Thrivent and Habitat for Humanity
Mahindra and Nanhi Kali Partnership
Finding the Right Nonprofit
The Bottom Line
6 A Brand Personality Connects
Building a Brand—Why a Brand Personality?
Represent and Communicate Functional Benefits
Provide Energy
Define a Brand Relationship
Guide Brand-Building Programs
Help Understand the Customer
What Brand Personality?
Making It Happen
The Bottom Line
7 The Role of a Branded Differentiator
Types of Branded Differentiators
A Branded Feature
A Branded Ingredient
A Branded Technology
A Branded Service
Branded Programs
The Value of Branding It
The Yin and Yang of Brands
The Bottom Line
8 Get Beyond Functional Benefits
Emotional Benefits
Self-Expressive Benefits
Social Benefits
Combining Benefits
Which Benefits?
The Bottom Line
Part III Branding and Disruptive Innovation
9 Create “Must Haves” Rendering Competitors Irrelevant
“Must Haves”
Sourcing “Must Have” Opportunities
Evaluating Potential “Must Haves”
Is the Concept Significant to the Marketplace? Is There a “Must Have”?
Can the Offering Be Created?
The Bottom Line
10 Branding: The Secret Sauce in Disruptive
Innovation
Become the Exemplar Brand and Define the Subcategory
How to Become an Exemplar
Defining the Subcategory
Framing
Building Barriers
Earn Exemplar Status
Innovate Becoming a Moving Target
Brand the Disruptive Innovations
Create, Grow, and Hold a Loyal Customer Base
The Bottom Line
Part IV Bringing the Brand to Life
11 Nine Brand-Building Actions That Work
Dove—Elevating Women’s Confidence and Self-Esteem
Building a Brand
Find and Employ Branded Energizers
Innovative/Dynamic
Involving/Engaging
Interesting/Exciting
Passionate about a Social Program
Mobilize Your Employees
Explore External Role Models
Establish Success Measures
The Bottom Line
12 Signature Stories
Sourcing Stories
The Power of Stories
Stories Get Attention
Stories Inhibit Counter-Arguing
Audience Discovers the Argument
Positive Feelings Are Created
Stores Are Remembered
From Stories to Signature Stories
Keeping Signature Stories Alive
The Bottom Line
13 Symbols and Taglines
Symbols
Why Taglines Work
The Bottom Line
14 Brand Communities
Etsy
A Brand Community
Self-Expressive Benefits
Social Benefits
Informational Benefits
Gaining Involvement
Communities not Integrated into a Business
Passive Members
How Brand Communities Help Signature Brands
When is a Brand Community a Brand Community?
The Bottom Line
15 Three Threats to Brand Relevance
Subcategory is Declining
Gain Parity
Reposition
Leapfrog the Innovation
Stick to Your Knitting
Disinvest or Exit
Select the Right Response
The Emergence of a Reason-Not-to-Buy
Negate the Negative—Hyundai
Addressing a Perceived Trust or Ethical Issue
Change the Discussion
Playing Defense Can Work
Brand Has Lost Energy
The Bottom Line
16 Consistency Wins Build and Reinforce vs. Adapt and Change
Brand Consistency That Builds and Reinforces
Forgoing Consistency
Challenging Motivations
The Marketplace Has Changed
Responding to an Organizational Opportunity or Need
Beware of Change Biases
The Bottom Line
Part V Managing Your Brand Portfolio
17 You Need a Brand Portfolio Strategy
Branding a New Offering—The Brand Relationship Spectrum
Driver Roles
The Brand Relationship Spectrum
Selecting the Right Position on the Spectrum
Two Additional Brand Roles
Brand Priorities within the Portfolio
Trimming the Portfolio—an Evaluation and Consolidation Process
The Bottom Line
18 Brand Extensions: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
The Good—The Brand Enhances the Extension Offering
Relevance/Visibility
Brand Associations
More Good—The Extension Enhances the Brand
The Bad—The Brand Fails to Help or Even Inhibits the Extension
The Ugly—The Extension Damages the Brand
Diluting Existing Brand Associations
Undesirable Attribute Associations Get Created
The Brand Fails to Live Up to Its Promise
Finding Extension Candidates
Branding a New Offering with an Existing Brand
Identifying Extension Opportunities
Thinking Strategically
Putting Extension Risks into Perspective
The Bottom Line
19 Vertical Brand Extensions Have Risks and Rewards
Moving into a Value Market
Risks
Branding Options to Reduce Risks
Moving a Brand into a Super-Premium Market
Risks
Branding the Upmarket Entry
The Bottom Line
Part VI Spanning Silos
20 Silo Organizations Inhibit Brand Building
Toward Silo Cooperation and Communication
Teams and Networks
Nonthreatening CMO Roles
A Standardized Marketing Planning Process and Information System
Allow Brands to Adapt to Silo Contexts
Make the Silos Assets Rather Than Barriers
Get CEO/Organizational Support
Functional Silos—The Other Silo Problem
The Bottom Line
Epilogue: Sixteen Branding Takeaways
Acknowledgments
About the Author
About the Adaptor
Endnotes
Index