An effective way to build a brand’s
core
value (primary parent brand) is to present the parent
brand as the primary lead with its products and services serving as its
sub-brands. This approach delivers value back to its parent brand. OKI’s E-Marketing
accomplishes both extremely well. Note the OKI logo/name is the dominant brand
identity in the e-mailing and its new products are subordinate and are
presented as OKI’s sub-brands.
Organizations who understand these principles
build the most recognizable brands and ensure they will never confuse their
target market. The two branding principles in
operation deliver enormous brand impact:
- The primary brand is presented as
the dominant identity to present the corporate owner. - The sub-brand is presented as
subordinate and must bring value back to the parent brand.
Another branding principle is to align the
primary brand with strong brand partners. The recent E-Mailing provided a
hyper-link to a Web site page that introduces their new printers’ compatibility
with both the Windows and Macintosh operating systems. Following
the dominant brand hierarchy in use, these operating systems are presented as
sub-brands that also deliver value back to the parent brand because of their
strong positions in OKI’s markets. They are not featured as the primary topic,
but rather as a supporting cast member.
The consistent use of brand hierarchy and architecture builds a
consistent OKI brand in its market and provides an excellent platform for future
marketing communications. It also eliminates the need for fruitless
conversations of ‘who’ OKI is and ‘what’ it provides to the market. In their
case, high quality and precision is their primary brand messages. Assuming
their products do not disappoint, they are on their way to taking a strong
position in their marketplace.