The Myth Of Building Brands Unveiled

Entering into the age of knowledge economy, profit and sales figures are certainly not the only factors to consider in establishing a business with value that goes above and beyond the tangible benefits that the products and services offer. Investing in brands is one of the most effective and long lasting strategies in creating long term value and customer loyalty for corporations especially. HKU SPACE College of Business & Finance has been offering a series of executive programmes on branding. Amongst them the Executive Diploma in Strategic Brand Management offered in collaboration with Hong Kong Brand Development Council is especially welcomed by brand builders who want to earn a practical perspective in creating, building and managing strong brands. As one of our celebrated events, a Brand Forum - “Uncovering the Myth of Building Brands 2010” was held on October 9, 2010. Five notable brand experts were invited to share their experience and knowledge in different aspects of building brands.

Huge Market, Infinite Possibilities

Dr. Jane Lee, Deputy Director and Head of College of Business and Finance, HKU SPACE, initiated the forum by outlining a list of events held during the past year, including “The Brand and its Builder” - a series of video programmes produced jointly with TVB.com. Together with the success attained in the first Brand Forum held last year, HKU SPACE is continuously working to create awareness within the business and marketing community, on the importance of investing in brands in a persistent manner.

Our first speaker, Alan Chan, who is one of the qfew Hong Kong-trained graphic designers who has achieved international recognition and won more than 600 local as well as international awards, stepped onto the stage in rounds of applause. Alan revealed his original plan of retirement 8 years ago, and how he changed his mind after discovering the infinite possibilities in the mainland market. “I was invited to initiate a re-branding project for the mainland retail outlets of Lee Kum Kee, and was shocked when I found that the design and decoration of their shops can hardly reach any aesthetics standard. However, I realized the existence of a huge market when I learned that their yearly sales turnover reached hundreds of millions RMB. There surely are much more to be explored if we work on the brand.”

Alan also shared his experiences in brand management for corporations of various industries in mainland during the past eight years. His words are inspirations for those up-and-coming brand builders, reiterating the imminent trend to gain exposure in the market of our motherland. Alan said, “Consumers in the mainland is catching up fast in grasping the global styles and trends. They are open to creative ideas and have developed a sense for innovative designs. The time is ripe for brand builders to tap into the market now.”

Be Positive Even When Things Go Wrong

Right after the encouraging and positive industry outlook presented by Alan, Eddie Booth, Chairman of Leo Burnett Greater China and CEO of Leo Burnett Hong Kong, quoted the controversial case of Tiger Woods and looked at the issue of brand building from another angle. “Tiger Woods is no longer just an athlete, his name is also an international brandname.” Eddie said, “Brands will sometimes go negative and find themselves in crisis, just like people do. Tiger, however, did not take an evasive stand when his scandal went public, he attended counseling sessions and re-engage himself in golf tournaments instead. Everyone should work their best to avoid making mistakes, but in case we do go wrong, we have to face it and re-gain our momentum by working even harder.”

Pros and Cons of Social Media Marketing

In an era when internet penetrated our life in every aspect, making use of online technology becomes an essential tool in building brands. Marisa Kwok, General Manager of Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications International AB, Hong Kong & Macau, talked about using the social media platform as one of the brand promotion channels. Sony Ericsson is certainly one successful case for us to learn from. Marisa said, “While traditional businesses rely on word-of-mouth, brands nowadays are making use of online contents sharing. Consumer behavior of the younger generation is closely tied with product testing forums and websites. Promoting brand image on social media platforms thus becomes an effective element of brand-building strategy.”

“Although the cost may be lower,” Marisa pointed out, “it is never an easy task to make online promotion count. The speed of response is the key to connect with online users. By opening and maintaining interactive communication channels, we can monitor and direct users towards seeing the truthful side of products and services. Even so, there may still be negative opinions circling around. While traditional ways of promotion is a one-way push, everything online is happening real-time. It is crucial and more challenging to handle online queries and complaints in a timely manner.”

“It’s all about people”

Without the specifications, features and functions, talents and artistes in the entertainment business may also possess extremely high brand value. Our next speaker is an expert in building brandnames for talented people. Ng Yu, Executive Director and CEO of Emperor Entertainment Group Limited, talked about the 4As in talents branding: Aim, Action, Active Learning and Attitude. He explained, “These four elements are all very important. Only by continuously acquiring new knowledges through reading and sharing, can these 4As be exhibited to their full extent.”

The final stage of the forum is an interactive one – an open discussion session facilitated by Melanie Lee, Adjunct Assistant Professor of HKU SPACE College of Business and Finance. The Chief Editor of LifeStyle Journal, Hong Kong Economic Journal, Peter Wong, was also invited to the sharing. Peter expressed his concerns on the widening wealth gap in Hong Kong. He stressed that businesses should spend more time and effort on realizing corporate social responsibilities, that will in turn enhance their image and brand value.

Please press the icon “中文”on the top right hand corner to view the Chinese version.