When we speak of a brand’s positioning, we are describing the things that differentiate one brand from others. When we speak of a brand’s personality, we are describing the way a brand expresses and represents itself.
Brand personality
Brand personality is a term used for the experiences that consumers go through in dealing with various products. Brand personality entails past impressions of a product in the mind of a consumer1. By integrating past impressions of a product or service in our minds, allows us to get a better idea of what to expect beforehand1. It is important to note that different consumers respond differently to a given brand. Variations in consumers’ responses as regards the issue of brands have enabled brand researchers and strategists to gain useful insights into the issue of brand personality. Brand personality enables us to enrich our understanding of consumers’ attitudes and perceptions towards a certain brand. For instance, we can distinguish between, for example, IBM and Microsoft. Brand personality not only defines the brand but also the experiences and product class of a certain brand. The use of brand personality in an organization is important because it aids in communicating the brand identity with texture and richness1. Besides, it also helps us to create brand equity.
Kellogg’s brand and product personality
Every Kellogg’s product carries a signature logo that also acts as a mark of quality. This is a marketing strategy aimed at ensuring continuity in the provision of healthy, nutritious, and high-quality products2. Kellogg’s brand boasts of a classic personality characterized by universal appeal as symbolized by the company’s various niche products.
I Ellwood, The Essential Brand Book: Over 100 Techniques to Increase Brand Value, Kogan Page, London, 2002.
Most people associate Kellogg’s products with childhood as they evoke childhood memories. As such, the brand bonds with a wider market. The entire product range of Kellogg’s reflects the natural, simple, healthy, and family-oriented lifestyles2. Most of us can at least identify with such a lifestyle. For instance, All Brans targets older adults who are health-conscious, while Special K targets women who wish to lose weight or are pursuing beauty.
Communication is an effective tool for Kellogg’s to show the importance of breakfast to its targeted audience
Kellogg’s communication concept rests on the premise that breakfast is the most important meal in that it is a source of healthy benefits to school-going children. It is thought to improve concentration levels in class, especially during morning hours. However, children rarely eat a healthy breakfast. A healthy breakfast also allows children to learn, socialize, and even play with classmates2. Based on the above findings, this prompted Kellogg’s to develop a plan that would allow the company to effectively communicate the important role of breakfast to specific target audiences using a multi-platform campaign. Kellogg’s campaign, dubbed, “Help give a child breakfast” was started in October 20112. The campaign was intended to demonstrate Kellogg’s commitment to supporting various breakfast clubs across schools in the UK. The campaign intended to communicate the following messages:
The Times 100, Re-branding a Corporate Image A Kellogg’s case study, 2012, Web.
- Breakfast is vital to people of all walks of life, and more so young people
- Breakfast clubs can have a positive impact on the attendance, ability to concentrate in class and behavior of children.
The fundamental component of Kellogg’s campaign was to communicate the message above. Besides, the campaign was also intended to raise funds to finance breakfast clubs by selling Kellogg’s products. Also, the campaign aimed to create awareness among schools that Kellogg’s would finance breakfast clubs3. Kellogg’s had to develop a communication plan to achieve the set objectives. The plan targeted both external and internal stakeholders. Internal stakeholders include Kellogg’s employees and shareholders while external stakeholders include schools, parents, the media, and the public. Some of the channels of communication that Kellogg’s used as part of its promotional campaign included written communication, whereby the company sent press releases to newspapers, television, radio, and letters sent to schools and MPs. The company also utilized the internet and social media. For example, the company sent messages requesting them to support the campaign. The company also developed a dedicated website that contained local breakfast clubs and videos. Besides, face-to-face communication was used whereby there was a briefing day with mummy bloggers. Kellogg’s employees also volunteered to work at various breakfast clubs.
The Times 100, Devising a communications plan A Kellogg’s case study, 2012, Web.
How does Kellogg’s influence consumer socialization and how will it succeed in persuading the parents to teach their children that Kellogg’s is a must in their breakfast meal?
Consumer socialization refers to a process in which children and young people can nurture and develop consumer-related knowledge, attitudes, and skills. Consumer socialization theory posits that young adults and children get to know more about rational components of consumption from parents3. On the other hand, they also get to learn how to give social meanings to various products through the mass media; peers teach them how to exercise differing social pressures while young adults and children also get to learn the significance of economic wisdom from schools.
Kellogg’s influences social mobilization by devising a communication plan that targets various agents of consumer socialization, including schools, parents, the media, the government, and the wider public as well. In this case, Kellogg’s has endeavored to increases or change public awareness as regards the effects of breakfast on children’s learning. For Kellogg’s to succeed in persuading parents on the need to teach children the importance of its products during breakfast, the company needs to demonstrate to parents that the availability of breakfast clubs in schools would support the academic performance of their children3. In this case, Kellogg’s should attempt to demonstrate how breakfast clubs are a good source of a healthy meal in a friendly and safe environment. It is also important for the company to demonstrate the important role of breakfast clubs in not only providing a healthy meal but also its role in improving the academic performance of students at school.
The Times 100, Devising a communications plan A Kellogg’s case study, 2012, Web.
Also, Kellogg’s should try and demonstrate how breakfast clubs are the ideal chance for children to learn, socialize, and play with classmates.
List the 5 advertising appeals
Advertising appeal refers to the most fundamental reason why a customer should purchase the products or services of your company. It acts as the basis for creating marketing and product awareness campaigns, such as in ads4. The five types of advertising appeals include card stacking, bandwagon, black and white fallacy, covert advertising, and demonizing the enemy advertising appeal. Covert advertising entails embedding the brand or products in both media and entertainment. Through covert advertising, an organization is better able to raise the brand image of its products. Consequently, such a product can easily be recognized by the target audience4. A good example of Covert advertising would be the movie Minority Report where the main character John Anderton, played by Tom Cruise, owns a Nokia cellphone whose logo is quite conspicuous on the top corner. Here, the film uses placement as a way of demonstrating the perceived excessive publicity and privacy in future societies. The Nokia ad, for example, is designed to recognize not just the consumer, but his/her state of mind as well.
Reference List
Ellwood, I, The Essential Brand Book: Over 100 Techniques to Increase Brand Value, Kogan Page, London, 2002.
The Times 100, Re-branding a Corporate Image A Kellogg’s case study, 2012, Web.
The Times 100, Devising a communications plan A Kellogg’s case study, 2012, Web.
Williams, PA, The impact of emotional advertising appeals on consumer implicit and explicit memory: an accessibility versus diagnosticity perspective, University of California Publishers, Los Angeles, 2002.
AP, Williams, The impact of emotional advertising appeals on consumer implicit and explicit memory: accessibility versus diagnosticity perspective, University of California Publishers, Los Angeles, 2002.