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Just a decade ago, very few people knew about branding. Thankfully, things have changed for the better. People understand and appreciate the value of branding, business schools offer specialisations in brand management and people are looking at branding as a serious career option.
So, if you’re wondering what exactly is a brand, it is a product plus values and associations. A car is a product while Hyundai i10 is a brand that cues images of Shah Rukh Khan. A soap is a product while Liril cues images of girls dancing under waterfalls.
A shoe is a product while Nike cues the swoosh, ‘just do it’ and athletic prowess. Clearly, successful brands are those that have done the hard work and taken their place in the consumer’s mind, for ultimately a brand is a time saving device for the consumer.
Brands are an integral part of our lives and the smarter brands are actually able to charge a premium for being an important part of our lives.
Careers in branding
Careers in branding could be either working with large consumer and consumer durable companies like Levers, Britannia, United Spirits or Sony. A brand manager would be responsible for all aspects of branding of a specific brand, whether it is 50-50 biscuits or Kingfisher beer.
He would deal with the ad agency, work with the packaging company, the PR Company, the events company as well as with the sales team that is selling the brand. He is responsible for the well-being of the brand and guides its destiny. To do this, a young aspirant has to be in marketing in a company, get exposed to sales as well and then hopefully move to brand management.
The newer and more recent option is in a brand consulting firm. In India, many of the top brand consulting firms are in the area of brand communication. These firms come up with brand names for new products, services and companies.
The other important area that these companies contribute is in the area of visual identity. Some of the most striking logos that you have seen have all been designed by brand consulting firms that specialise in designing and creating visual identities.
While the Nike swoosh might have been designed by a college student for a princely sum of $35, today it is not uncommon for design firms to charge crores of rupees for creating a visual identity.
The next competence of a brand consulting firm would be in areas like positioning of products. Successful brands are well positioned and made to appear different from their competition because they are based on research and strategy.
Similarly, brands may need to be repositioned because their positioning is unclear or hazy. Then there are other specialised services like the designing of a company's brand architecture - the relationship between various brands from the same company, etc.
Skill sets
A career in branding normally requires a passion for brands and branding. Aspirants need to be keen observers of human behaviour. They need to know the broad trends that are affecting Indians. They also need to have an exposure to research and the ability to understand research.
While work experience is preferable, an MBA or a communications degree is necessary. People with creative abilities and are art graduates too have lucrative job opportunities in the branding arena. Generally, young people are valued as they can give a fresh perspective to the concept and make it look contemporary and yet different.
Branding is an emerging discipline and presents an opportunity in what could well be a sunshine industry. The emergence of the digital medium has popularised it further. Fresh branding executives can hope to earn anything from Rs 15,000 upwards and can be assured of excellent growth prospects.