Those who don’t know… By Ali Rashidi

In the modern day world, a competitive market which guarantees a lasting brand is a concept known as brand management. Although brand management has been applied for years and is considered as one of the main indicatives of marketing, it is not measured as precedence in our country and despite its significance, it dates back only a few years. Naturally, brand owners desire that their product/service becomes the consumer’s first choice. To accomplish such a goal in the past, Iranian brand owners embarked on the change of prices and the increase of advertisements, which at one point passed. Later  human societies grew to be more intellectual and consumers needed more convincing reasons to select the brand. These methods gradually lost their effects and nowadays are deemed as entirely remote. They have been replaced with managing and preserving the position of the brand; a method whose realization has no way to work but through brand management. With regard to creating the structure and management of a brand, there are generally two approaches. The first involves designers, creative directors and advertising agencies, which concludes the creation of brand structure only in visual identity. The fans of this approach believe that product logo and packaging design along with colorful advertising can lead any brand to success. Although this belief can be reasoned as necessity for any brand creation, it is never enough for its success and continuity. Without possessing enough information about the market, target audience and competitors environment, only series of visual elements for the brand are created that lack scientific and practical backup. This perception results in numerous short-term brands that are extremely varied and chaotic without any strategy or emphasis on brand values. The second approach belongs to the brand owners. This group perceives the brand in the result of producing a product or offering a service, and summarizes brand management in sales. The loyalists of this theory usually do not regard the role of a creative idea or design as significant enough and are always after the least expensive price in advertising affairs. The simple mindedness part of this group can often bring irreparable results for the entire respective collection. Proof to this approach is the existing organizations whose advertising consultants are as raw as newly graduated students who quickly turn into executors for management and change all of their needed visual elements according to orders. Iranian government organizations and institutions are clear examples of this type of mindset. This group by no means believes in research and analysis of the market and strengthening their brand positioning. They run their organization in the same traditional way by relying on experience, trial and error and their sense of trading. These managers, often owners of the industry, are infatuated with production and see brand success in increasing the number and type of products. This is why every day we are exposed to new products that have been produced with no reflection for brand management standards and without the least logical, scientific and visual backup. They seek to gain a niche in the market only through baseless advertising. Without a doubt, big organizations that rely solely on their magnitude and financial strengths will succeed on a trial and error system but after a while are bound to change their methods because it has been proven today that brand success is only plausible with the help of marketing, design and brainstorming groups coupled with an integral program. In today’s world, successful companies are identified through research and review of market conditions. Although each may have approached it through different manners, they have attained efficient methods in brand management. Some brands continue their path relying on new and integrated marketing perceptions and by innovation in manufacturing their products and creativity in offering their services, which eventuallygain the trust of their consumers as well as creating reputation for their brand. Among the brands that have opted for this outlook, a worthy example is DELL computers. 3 Through complete strategic understanding and correct marketing, they have achieved brand success. DELL Company has removed all distribution channels from its circle and has allowed the consumer to review his/her computer capabilities according to his/her  needs before actual order and purchase from the factory. Before focusing on different marketing methods, some other brands emphasize on the design and innovation of their products. Though incidentally active in the same category, Apple is by far the most notorious of this kind of marketing method. Apple, in addition to introducing new technologies and products, has always paid special attention to artistic aspects of designing and advertising for their products. It gained considerable success through its unique advertisements. A quick look at the body design, packaging and advertisements of the ipod, iphone and other Apple products, one can easily understand how this brand has been able to mold its name with innovation and creativity. Apple’s strengths in the arena of competition and people’s increase for demand of their products are indicative, if not reality of how much the role of design can affect creation, maintain product position and expansion of any brand. Although the era of designers, who by mere artistic impression of their work did not allow the client to intervene or impose any opinions, has passed yet their vital role cannot at all be ignored. The problem is that in one hand the effect of creative design and the idea of brand success are not easily measurable or tangible for the client. On the other hand the cost of design and advertising has increased by the day making it hard for the client to decide. Because of these two reasons, nowadays clients whom are aware of brand management communicate their needs more precisely and usually refrain from traditional methods and personal judgments on the sense of trading. Considering what was said earlier it is understood that designers and creative people greatly contribute to the making and management of brands. But before clients and brand proprietors find out about this fundamental role, it is the designers that have to arrive at that belief and stop limiting their professional duties to solely sitting behind desks and working with computers. In modern society, brand management has become increasingly important to brand owners in Iran in order to continue their successful presence in a competitive market. They have to inevitably relinquish traditional methods that can at times put a brand at high risk. In the first place, such a need requires that practitioners and the informed make a pathological review of professional relations between the main groups on two sides of this process; meaning brand owners and creative agencies. It seems that mutual understanding and respect towards a professional specialty can greatly help the expansion and consistency of the brand management process in Iran. By a quick review of the relationship between brand owners and creative agencies, we will notice that the majority of these entities change their partners almost every year, after becoming disappointed by one another and then in search for alternative client/agency. Unfortunately, these shortcomings and unfinished relationships can bring along disappointing results and slow down the spread of a concept such as brand management. Perhaps client confusion towards their demands and lack of presenting a logical and plausible solution on the part of the creative agency is the most prevalent reason for the appearance of this conflict. The main root of this problem stems from lack of information of specialties and the application of unprofessional erroneous methods. If the client is aware of his needs and demands, and the craetive agency, by studying the market and client’s professional backgrounds, becomes familiar with his concerns and problems, achieving a logical and final resolution with high work output can be a simple task.