opic of Building brands at low cost. It will be great if anyone can share any ideas.

opic of Building brands at low cost. It will be great if anyone can share any ideas.

Hey I think there are a few factors you should be looking at
As you work to build your brand, you are probably asking yourself questions such as:

* What are we trying to achieve?
* Who should be involved in branding activities?
* How do we manage this?
* What are the tools and techniques to use?
* How do we know we're making progress?

What i feel is
Creating a strong brand identity will build mind share — one of the strongest competitive advantages imaginable. As a result, customers will think of your business first when they think of your product category. For example, when you think of tissues, more likely than not, you think of the Kleenex brand. And when you're looking for tape to wrap a present, Scotch is the brand that springs to mind. Likewise, when your child wants a hamburger, he will often say he wants to go to McDonald's. The reason behind these strong brand-product associations is that these companies have built rock solid brand identities.

"A brand is the one thing that you can own that nobody can take away from you," says Howard Kosgrove, vice principal of marketing at Lindsay, Stone and Briggs Advertising in Madison, Wis. "Everything else, they can steal. They can steal your trade secrets. Eventually, your patents will expire. Your physical plant will wear out. Technology will change. But your brand can go on and live. It creates a lasting value above and beyond all the other elements of your business."

NOW IN YOUR CASE

Look at the mantras of branding !!!

Today i feel you need to emotionally connect with your TG

Chik shampoo is a brilliant example of the same...once you zero in on your TG

Try understand their behavior buying patterns what do they generally do when they are free

Do they read News papers or are they glued to the Idiot box whats generally on their mind ...what motivates them to buy your product

If your TG is rural markets then

Road shows is the way to go!!!

you know the thing is you need to optimize your media mix for eg

if I am a low cost shampoo.. i cant show a shahrukh khan using it BUT
I can show my advertisement during a shahrukh khan movie which would be very Helpful!!!

things like that

In short to sum up

1. Relevance to a customer's lifestyle - The more apparent the connection is between the brand and the prospect's daily activities, the greater the chances are that the prospect will buy that product. Relevance, or the connection that the prospect has to the brand identity, is how customers ultimately decide which brands to buy and which they will discard.
Ask yourself: Is the identity of the brand too young for my target market? Is it too old? Is it too upscale?

2. Promises backed by support - Benefits need to be backed with some sort of persuasive reason to believe the product's hype. Many times, products or services have some formula or patent that is "unique" from all the other brands out there. Why do we trust Pantene shampoo, for instance? Because we believe in the brand's "revolutionary" Pro-V formula that leaves hairs strong and healthy. Why do we believe Secret antiperspirant will keep women smelling sweet? Because "it's pH balanced for a woman, and not a man."
Ask yourself: What promises are you making about your brand? Can my products or services follow through on those promises?

3. Message of the brand Is clear and focused - No matter how brilliant a strategy you have, you need to be clear about the message. Some examples of crystal clear campaigns include "Gillette - The Best a Man Can Get" or "Choosy Moms Choose Jif."
Ask yourself: Are my messages in line with what I want to convey about my products and services? Are there messages that can be misconstrued? If so, how can I change them to be more accurate?

4. Message of the brand Is appropriate - Have you ever seen a commercial on TV that seems to come from left field? It grabbed your attention, but told you nothing about the product or service, and it seemed inappropriate for what is being sold. For instance, financial institutions can't effectively work humor into their ads because the preconceived notion is that banks are not supposed to be fun or entertaining. The message that you send needs to be appropriate to the product or service you are trying to brand.
Ask yourself: Are my advertising messages in line with the image I'm trying to convey about my company, products and services? If not, could they be hurting, rather than helping, the brand?

Please feel free to contact me ... i wud love sharing my views with u
My email id is
anurodhsharma@gmail.com
09819409619