In today’s competitive business landscape only a strong brand can overtake competition and win the hearts of the customers. Without a doubt, once a brand is resiliently positioned in the minds of consumers it will sure enjoy a higher potential for growth and development. Keller’s Brand Equity model looks into this assumption and further investigates the steps towards achieving a strong brand image.
Keller’s Brand Equity model is compromised from four levels that all come together to form a pyramid. In order for a strong brand image to be achieved the organization needs to work its way up from the bottom to top. The levels of the pyramid from base to top are as follows:
Identity
The first step of the model is Identity and is situated at the very bottom of the pyramid. At this stage, you will need to define your brand persona along with its values and key messages. It is important that the consumers are clearly getting the intended message so that they perceive your brand the way you want it to be perceived. Let’s take as an example a premium beauty brand. In this case, you want your target audience to classify your product as a premium in order to be willing to pay a higher price for it.
Meaning
After you have established the identity of your brand, the next stage of the pyramid is to shape the meaning of your brand. This is what will in turn build a loyal consumer base that will choose your brand against competitors over and over again. This pyramid block stands on two pillars:
Performance refers to how well your brand is doing against consumer expectations on dimensions such as quality, conformance to specifications, usability and reliability.
Brand imagery refers to how well your brand results in psychological satisfaction to the consumers and how they perceive your brand on dimensions such as social status and internal gratification.
Response
Once identity and meaning have been established, the next phase of the model is response. In this stage, the brand has to live up to expectations it has previously established by delivering its promises including high quality standards, price points and credibility.
Relationships
At the very top of the pyramid, we find relationships which as one might expect is a difficult stage to achieve. Yet, the benefits gained once this stage is reached are more than rewarding. This pyramid block is concerned with resonance, or in other words the establishment of a community built upon the ownership of your brand. At this level, consumer loyalty is at all times high and brand love is at its peak.
Keller’s Brand Equity model starts by creating brand awareness and gradually moves into developing the brand image. Once those two have been checked the model further examines the brand responses and finally reaches the upper level – the brand relationships. Keller’s Brand Equity model is a vital tool for the marketer of the 21st century that wants to outperform competition and gain competitive advantage at whichever industry.