Building brands for growth

Brand success is ultimately dependent on consumer behaviour. The brand a consumer chooses depends primarily on two factors, power in the mind (how people feel about a brand) and power in the market (the situational factors such as price and availability that may modify behaviour).

Understanding the dynamics of decision making is critical in order to influence brand choice.  This is challenging as the environment in which brands operate is complex and it is increasingly difficult to manage all of the elements that influence attitudes and behaviours. 

As the world’s leading brand and communications research agency, we have more conversations with the world’s consumers than anyone else.  We understand people and can provide a precise understanding of how they make decisions, their underlying motivations and the strategies that can be employed to grow and protect share. 

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Explore our Brand & Communication growth tools below

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Related case studies

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• Take greater market share by re-positioning brands for more emotional connections

  Business issue

  Our client, a leader in the food industry, with a strong presence in a number of chilled food categories, was specifically looking for ways to grow their meat brands by attracting new customers. They were looking for both short term solutions as well as a roadmap for long term growth.

  Precise insights

  The category had previously been thought of as largely functional, so efforts had been made to differentiate the brands at the product level. A strategic NeedScope study was commissioned to find new ways to differentiate the brands both within the portfolio and against the competition to generate real growth.

  NeedScope unlocked a new understanding of the category and, for the first time, the client understood the importance of emotion in their market and saw how emotional needs such as contentment, adventure and playfulness played a role.

  Indeed, the research identified that, at an emotive level, the client’s two leading meat brands, were competing head to head with a high degree of overlap.

  Plans for growth

  The new strategy was to pull the brands apart at an emotive level and the decision was made to re-launch one of the meat brands with a new positioning, targeting playful needs across key consumer touch points, including a new communications campaign. Market share for the portfolio and both leading brands has increased significantly since re-launch in early 2010.

  For more information please contact Rosie Hawkins.

• Find the best entry strategy for a new market

  Business issue

  Our client, a major network operator in Europe, had plans to expand into new markets.  To prioritise investments and optimise success, research was required to evaluate which markets would be most receptive to a new entrant.

  Precise insights

  ConversionModel was used to measure and understand consumer commitment to brands across a range of countries and provide a detailed analysis of consumer needs and the positioning of incumbent brands. It explored levels of satisfaction with existing suppliers and openness and willingness to try new suppliers. The results identified markets with the largest number of people open to changing their current provider, which was essential to identify the optimal growth and entry strategies.

  Precise plans for growth

  The client successfully launched a new operator brand in the two most promising markets achieving over ten percent penetration within the first 18 months.

  For more information please contact Lesley van der Walt.

• A new lease of life for a well-established juice brand

  Business issue

  Just Juice’s brand share and value had eroded over time as the cold drinks market evolved. The client knew innovation was essential to survive, but recognised that simply developing new flavours and formats would not be sufficient. Growth potential could be seen in fizzy drinks, but the client didn’t know whether this was right for Just Juice.

  Precise insights

  Using NeedScope qualitatively, we explored the dynamics of the cold drinks market, revealing the functional and emotional drivers of brand choice, unmet needs and opportunities in the market. Future-influential consumers were recruited to help guide the innovation process.

  We identified hybrid fruit juice & lemonade as Just Juice’s best innovation opportunity. Pinpointing the Just Juice brand essence and the emotional benefits of bubbles, guided brand positioning, as well as functional elements such as product and pricing.

  Plans for growth

  Just Juice Bubbles was successfully launched, with every element capturing the essential values of bubbly, lively fun. This became the company’s most successful new brand launch, with sales and profitability targets exceeded and achieving 35 percentage growth for the portfolio. The launch also successfully helped rebuild the core Just Juice brand.

  For more information please contact Rosie Hawkins.

• Double market share in a competitive market

  Business issue

  Our client had been the most successful new entrant in a highly competitive telecoms market with many successful, established brands. However, it was struggling to increase market share beyond 2-3% and was suffering from low retention rates. Clear direction was needed to understand how to increase retention rates and attract new customers.

  Precise insights

  Using the ConversionModel we explored the comparative strengths and weaknesses of the brand at a regional level, including retention, trial and conversion rates, as well as image perceptions. We found that the low retention rates were due to weak signals and late delivery of SMS’s. These issues were also a barrier to acquiring new customers. Those who stayed with the brand were predominantly very young and willing to trade off low prices and financial incentives against quality issues. The client was not addressing the important drivers in the market which included value for money and network efficiency.

  Precise plans for growth

  The client’s market share doubled. Although still lower than competitors, retention rates improved by 50%.

  For more information please contact Lesley van der Walt.

• Success through building a powerful new brand

  Business issue

  Our client was the market leader for scooters in India but had lost its leadership position in the two-wheel vehicle sector. Attempts to regain this position by launching a new motorcycle had been unsuccessful. Our client recognised that the problem was not just product but brand.

  Precise insights

  A qualitative and quantitative NeedScope programme investigated the dynamics of the market to identify the best growth opportunity for our client.

  By going beyond the functional, we showed that motorcycles and scooters meet very different needs in the Indian market. NeedScope explained what riding a motorcycle was really about and revealed an opportunity for a segment of the market best described as ‘liberation’. A new brand was required to appeal to this segment - young, sporty and irreverent - with a sense of freedom and exploration at its core.

  Plans for growth

  A new brand was successfully launched, targeted directly at the youthful, irreverent side of liberation. The new brand resulted in a renewed passion within our client, a return to number one position as well as accolades in numerous prestigious motoring magazines.

  For more information please contact Rosie Hawkins.

• Build on global leader status through growth in a new market

  Business issue

  Our client, a global leader in personal care, wanted to drive growth by entering a new market in Asia, with a global deodorant brand. Precise direction was needed on how to position the brand for success.

  Precise insight

  NeedScope provided a focused framework to understand consumer needs, evaluate the positioning of existing brands, inform brand development and outline the market opportunity. Specifically, NeedScope identified the emotive needs driving brand choice and how to satisfy needs through product and brand image (pack symbolism and communications).

  This provided a precise understanding of the deodorant market, a clear target audience and a clear path to growth. Existing brands in the market met a wide range of needs, but there were untapped needs in one NeedScope segment – vitality.

  In the segment, the underlying needs were more assertive expressions of individuality, articulated in terms of energy and activity. Deodorant needed to make them feel alive, giving a feel of refreshment. Not surprisingly, the type of person who exemplifies this need had an energetic, lively and active personality. We advised the creation of a new deodorant range using the vitality concept with precise direction on product formulation, packaging, positioning for a range of variants.

  Precise plans for growth

  The range was launched with packaging and communication targeting the vitality segment. It reached a 17 percent share and third position in the market after three months, most of it from the market leader.

  For more information please contact Rosie Hawkins.