Abstract:

The measurement and monitoring of brand image is a major requirement of marketing management and a major preoccupation among market researchers. It has been for almost fifty years. The ways in which brand image is measured have not changed much in that time. However, markets and consumers have changed. And while the technology available to market researchers has been limited, recent developments now enable brand image measurement to be approached in a more meaningful way. Nowadays, markets are more complex. Everyday life is more complex. Brand choice is greater, competition is fiercer and brands are more similar in terms of their benefit bundles. It is argued that brand image measurement needs to be approached in a way that more directly relates to how consumers choose brands - on the basis of both rational and emotional considerations and by taking account of mode and situation. This will result in brand image data that can be used in tactical and strategic marketing decisions. A system of measuring brand personality and brand identity, the two quite separate components of brand image, is proposed. It uses an implicit personality model. Two different case histories are shown. One looks at the beer market; the other treats Conventional medicine and complementary medicine therapies like Acupuncture, Homoeopathy and Osteopathy as "brands".