GoDaddy’s present brand image and the way the company originally establishes it
GoDaddy has a negative brand image because of its previous organizational culture of using scantily dressed models to promote its services (Ovide and Demos par. 2). The bad-boy image of the brand was established by the company’s choice of advertising when it was in the growth stage (Ovide and Demos par. 4). The management chose to use scantily dressed models and race-car drivers to appeal to the people. Fortunately, the strategy worked well, and the company grew rapidly and attracted many customers who liked their services. However, the company is finding it difficult to change its brand image that it has capitalized on since its founding in 1997. Customers have learned to associate it with the bad-boy image that it has portrayed since its establishment.
The future kind of the company and the required type of brand image
In the future, GoDaddy wants to be a trusted business partner that helps small businesses grow and improve their productivity by providing a wide range of services such as bookkeeping software, e-commerce tools, and company-specific email addresses (Ovide and Demos par. 6).
On the other hand, the company wants to be a business that has a strong brand reputation because of the services it offers and not because of its brand image created through advertisement. GoDaddy wants to be the type of business that attracts millions of customers not because of its risqué advertisements but because of its services that helps small businesses to increase their productivity.
This will require the company to change its brand from a bad-boy image into an executive and innovative brand image. There are very many businesses that provide the types of products and services that GoDaddy wants to provide in order to improve the productivity of other businesses. Therefore, creating a brand image that is based on quality and innovation is a requisite for brand repositioning. It is important for customers to change their perception of the company because it is famous for web addresses. The company needs to create a brand image that proves to customers that the business is more than web addresses, and they are capable of providing high-quality services that satisfy the needs of customers in other areas.
Reposition of the brand image
Strategies available for GoDaddy to reposition its brand image include innovation and change of business name (Sengupta 44). First, it is important for GoDaddy to change its business name to a name that encompasses all its business services and portrays change. This is important because customers associate the name GoDaddy with the risqué adverts that the company used to promote its services. Unless the business changes its name and rebrands, it will be difficult to change the perception that customers hold. In addition, the business needs to choose a name that reflects its global presence.
Finally, the company needs a name that will reflect its emerging role in the market place and new services (Sengupta 65). The company could also embrace innovation and use it as the foundation of its new brand image. Innovation enables companies to develop creative products and services that set them apart from their competition (Sengupta 72). GoDaddy has many competitors providing products and services similar to theirs. Therefore, focusing on quality and customer satisfaction should be a priority. In addition, it will enable them to embrace new technologies and transform their activities ranging from sales, marketing, and design of products.
Marketing research methods to gauge customer perceptions of the brand
GoDaddy primarily uses primary research methods to gauge the perceptions of customers regarding its brand. These methods include interviews, phone calls, questionnaires, face-to-face discussions, and focus groups. Talking to customers directly is the most effective method.
Works Cited
Ovide, S., and Demos, Telis. GoDaddy Out to Lose Bad-Boy Image. 2015. Web.
Sengupta, Subroto. Brand Positioning: Strategies for Competitive Advantage. New York: Tata McGraw-Hill Education, 2005. Print.