Monday, November 29, 2010

Class Content: Study material... Bazinga!

As stated in the textbook an iBrand is “an individual's Internet personal connections with its own positioning and brand equity”. iBranding is a new innovative tool that enables the customer to create a connection both online and offline. (Reinventing Interactive and Direct Marketing)

p. 179

"One way to help consumers build their iBrands as producers is to give them the right raw materials. Just as manufacturers need a supply chain, consumer iBrands require raw materials to spark the motivation to create."

Just as a manufacturing company relies on raw materials to create and distribute products to customers; iBranding is analogous in that customers need to be equipped with the necessary tools (raw materials) to produce products that are their own. These tools are located online where a unique product that displays individuality can be created.

A popular example of this would be the website used by Nike, called NIKEiD. This website allows customers to customize shoes in a creative and fashionable way. A wide range of products are available with multiple colour choices for all panels of the shoe, and to truly create a unique shoe it is possible to add characters and writing on select spots of the shoe.

Another example would be the ability to customize desktop and laptop computers online and purchase them directly on the site to be shipped to your home. Dell is a leader in this market and has also expanded with the acquisition of Alienware. Alienware is popular for its sleek design and high performance capabilities. They have extended the customization from the internal components to the colour of the keyboard lights or the case lights.

iBranding is a shift from the conventional paradigm of creating a product, and advertising it to a particular market; to giving consumers to the option to design a completely unique product to purchase from that company.

p.181

"Others will attempt to contribute to the ongoing digital conversation - only to become the victim of their heritage of poor service as Web 2.0 consumers build their iBrands by tearing down those products and service companies that disappoint."

The combination of E-commerce and Web 2.0 has developed a new form of internet marketing and the development of the online conversation. The Web 2.0 consumers are those who contribute to online forums by leaving comments, posting YouTube videos reviewing products, Facebook pages, general discussion boards reviewing products, and many more. Consumers with numbers can be a loud voice for or against particular iBrands.

Online services provided by companies, in attempt to create an iBrand, run the risk of immediate criticism by the common web surfer. Consumers who are not instantly thrilled, will take advantage of being behind a computer screen in the comfort of their home to write about their experiences online for others to views.

It is those that surpass the the expectations that survive to develop an iBrand, those such as customizable clothing (NIKEiD) and computer (Dell) websites.

p. 181

"There is a big social media payoff in today's Internet dependent world: Offline experiences have become a gold mine of raw material that consumers draw upon in producing online content that adds value to their iBrand equity and, at the same time, to our own."

If a business has great costumer service or great products, this can lead to consumers to add value to the brand online. Information travels fast on the internet, when a consumer were to say how great or bad their experience was online thousands of people will read this. Its consumers sharing their experience and if they are good chances are others will try it.

p. 185

"The 'friendships' with iBrands you want to develop are not as numerous as you might think. Even if you have a large, loyal online community following your brand, you may not have many at all who are actually dedicated consumer iBrands."

The relationship with consumers and the brand follows under a 90-9-1 principle. If you have a million people following your brand 90 percent of them are lurkers who just observe and don’t contribute to the brand. 9 percent are editors who modify or add content but rarely create them. 1 percent of users are creators who are responsible for create new content, these are the dedicated consumers.

p. 188
"[Marketing agencies] must develop programs that maximize how the client's entire enterprise contributes to the value and growth of its consumers' iBrand equity."

In particular, what does "consumers' iBrand equity" refer to?

p. 188
"[Marketing agencies] must develop programs that maximize how the client's entire enterprise contributes to the value and growth of its consumers' iBrand equity."
In particular, what does "consumers' iBrand equity" refer to?

Consumers iBrand equity refers to the measurement of existing loyal customers that are influencing new consumers to join the market sphere of the company. how this is done is usually
through word-of-mouth advertising. the brand equity can be measured through impact on sales, transaction count, new orders, product movement, retail traffic etc.

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