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Business 2000 EIGHTH edition www.business2000.ie introduction Since setting up in Ireland more than 70 years ago, Cadbury has become the undisputed market leader in the chocolate market with a 48% share of a market worth €473 million annually. The Dairy Milk brand alone accounts for approximately 33% of Cadbury’s total chocolate blocks (moulded) and bars sales, making it the number one confectionery brand in the market. The continued success of the Dairy Milk brand is testament to the quality of its brand management. This study will examine the nature of a brand and the critical role of managing a brand concept.The latest strategic development of the Dairy Milk brand will then be reviewed: The Building of the Dairy Milk Megabrand! What is a brand? A brand is "a name, sign, symbol or design, or a combination of these, intended to identify the goods or services of one seller and to distinguish them from those of competitors".Branding helps differentiate products and can be a powerful tool of competitive strategy.While products can come and go over time, brands (if properly managed) can live indefinitely. Brands have many benefits for companies and consumers. For companies; strong brands add value, and consumers develop positive associations with the brand and are less likely to purchase competitors’ products.This means the brand can act as a barrier to competition. For consumers, brands help them to quickly identify products and make shopping easier.Strong brands carry a guarantee of quality which consumers trust and are often willing to pay more for. Consumers will pay a premium (top price) for a branded product when they believe it provides higher value. Building strong brands is an important marketing activity for companies, enabling premium pricing, and making widespread distribution easier to achieve. Brand loyalty helps create and sustain high sales and profits.This increased value is called brand equity. Brand equity is the value of a brand based on the extent to which it has high brand loyalty, brand name awareness, perceived quality, and strong brand associations (these create positive feelings and reasons to buy). These associations are created by means of a strong brand identity. Developing brand identity A brand identity is the message sent out by the brand through its name, product shape and design, visual symbols (such as logos), advertising etc. This identity needs to be planned by brand management, as this is key to gaining market acceptance and leadership. A brand pyramid can help managers plan and analyse a brand’s identity. The top tier of the pyramid consists of the brand core. Brand core values are the genetic code of the brand and remain the same over time. Closely related to these values is the brand proposition: the promise the brand makes to consumers. This proposition should be easy to understand and appeal to the target market. The middle tier represents the brand style; or elements of the brand’s identity that represent the self image of the brand and need to be relatively stable over time.The base of the pyramid is formed by the brand themes which are concerned with how the brand currently communicates through its advertising, packaging, physical appearance etc. Brand themes are flexible and change with fashion, technological developments and changing consumer tastes. The brand pyramid helps managers understand the strengths of the brand and ensure consistency of its message. This also helps to identify opportunities for brand stretching and brand extensions. A brand extension is the use of a well known brand name on a new product within the same broad market or product category.We will discuss this in relation to the Dairy Milk brand. Brand stretching is the use of an established brand name in unrelated markets or product categories, e.g. using a well known designer name on cosmetics, clothes, sunglasses, etc., such as "John Rocha Waterford Crystal". Cadbury: The Brand The Cadbury brand enjoys a high level of brand equity in Ireland. Research shows 96% of consumers recognise the brand, while 74% state that when it comes to chocolate, only Cadbury’s will do! There are three main brand name strategies: ◗ Family brand names: The parent brand is also known as an "umbrella" brand. This term is given to product ranges where the family brand name is used for all products. The advantage of this approach is that positive associations with the parent brand will transfer to all sub-brands. The risk however, is that if one brand is unsuccessful or falls into disrepute, the reputation of the complete family of brands can be tarnished. Cadbury is a family brand. ◗ Individual brand names (or multibrands): In this case each brand is created and named separately and has a separate identity. Using a family brand may not be suitable as the brand values may be too far apart. ◗ Combination brand names: This approach allows for the optimal use of the corporate (family) brand name, while allowing an individual brand to be identified, e.g. Cadbury Dairy Milk. Cadbury uses a combination brand strategy.The family brand, Cadbury is linked with its famous sub-brands, i.e. Cadbury Crème Egg, Cadbury Roses, and Cadbury Flake, to name a few. The family brand identity is firstly communicated by the packaging with the Cadbury corporate purple colour and the distinctive Cadbury script logo. The sub brand is then distinguished by its own individual livery. Recently marketers have identified particularly strong family or corporate brands as Masterbrands. Cadbury is such a brand. However, a true Masterbrand is more than the name of the company – it incorporates the company’s mission, vision and values, representing them in a way that is easily understood by consumers. IBM is another example of a Masterbrand. Cadbury’s core brand values include "life’s everyday pleasures that make us feel good and never let us down. As a reward or a pick me up, we consumers trust Cadbury chocolate to make us feel better". Building a Megabrand: Cadbury Dairy Milk In the last year there has been a major development in brand strategy at Cadbury Ireland. The Cadbury Dairy Milk brand has been stretched to become a family brand in its own right. Of all the successful Cadbury brands, the one with the greatest loyalty is Cadbury Dairy Milk. In 2002, more than 19 million Dairy Milk products were sold. Cadbury made a strategic marketing decision to leverage the value of the Dairy Milk brand (i.e. optimise the market potential of the brand) by elevating it to a Megabrand or range brand. Brand Development - Building the Dairy Milk Megabrand EIGHTH edition Cadbury Ireland - Brand Development - Building the Dairy Milk Megabrand Business 2000 Best Quality Cocoa Beans Fresh Irish Milk and Sugar Cadbury ‘Know How’ Creamy, Distinctive and Tastes Like More Cadbury Ireland is a subsidiary of Cadbury-Schweppes plc, a global leader in the manufacture of beverages and confectionery products. Cadbury Ireland was set up in 1932, producing just three products, including Cadbury Dairy Milk. Today, Cadbury Ireland has three production plants, in Coolock and Dun Laoghaire in Dublin and Rathmore, Co. Kerry. All have become centres of excellence for the manufacture of confectionery products. More than 200 products are exported from Ireland to 30 countries around the world, making a contribution of €110 million to Irish trade. Cadbury Ireland uses local ingredients and is one of the largest users of indigenous Irish materials. Using local produce is a major factor in creating the legendary taste of Cadbury Ireland’s products. brand themes brand style brand proposition brand core The Cadbury Family Range The Brand Pyramid - Brand Meaning Cadbury - Unique taste to suit Irish tastes
