Panasonic Brand Report Nitin Jindal (11131)

Table of Contents

Abstract ................................................................................................................................................... 3

Brief History of the Company ................................................................................................................. 4

Panasonic Brand History ......................................................................................................................... 5

Brand Evaluation .................................................................................................................................... 7

Decline .................................................................................................................................................... 8

Repositioning .......................................................................................................................................... 9

Repositioning Efforts in India ............................................................................................................... 11

Conclusion ............................................................................................................................................ 14

References ............................................................................................................................................. 15

Abstract

The term paper on ‘Panasonic’ presents information regarding Panasonic brand, its history,

development, success and reasons for the brand decline, as well as review the reasons,

advantages and disadvantages for repositioning of Panasonic brand.

Panasonic was well built up by Konosuke Matsushita over the years. It has a robust legacy

which has earned equity for the brand Panasonic. Panasonic was the one of the brand present

in the family of brands under the company Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. Later the

all the brands came under the umbrella corporate brand Panasonic. Organization name was

also changed to Panasonic Corporation.

Company suffered several losses and started declining in 1990’s. Its products reported

defects. Company suffered in 1990 recession and reported heavy losses. It could not recover

until many years. Panasonic was unable to develop imaginative products. The period opened

up the firm to criticism and set off soul searching within the company. Panasonic was hit too

bad by the earthquake and tsunami in 2011 as most of its factories were well out of harm’s

way. But the company staged a comeback with a strategy which would position Panasonic as

its main global brand in order to strengthen brand competitiveness worldwide. A new global

brand campaign was launched with a new brand slogan 'Panasonic ideas for life' that reflects

the customer-focused strategy behind the development of Panasonic products.

The brand now needs a consistent approach to communications and dialogue worldwide.

Brief History of the Company

Panasonic was founded in 1918 by Konosuke Matsushita as a vendor of duplex lamp sockets.

In 1927, it began producing bicycle lamps; the first product which it marketed was under the

brand name National. It operated factories in Japan and other parts of Asia through the end

of World War II, producing electrical components and appliances such as light

fixtures, motors, and electric irons.

After World War II, Panasonic regrouped and began to supply the post war boom in Japan

with radios and appliances, as well as bicycles. Matsushita's brother-in-law, Toshio Iue,

founded Sanyo as a subcontractor for components after WWII. Sanyo grew to become a

competitor to Panasonic, but the rivalry settled down and Sanyo eventually became a

subsidiary of Panasonic in December 2009.

In 1961, Konosuke Matsushita travelled to the United States and met with American dealers.

The company began producing television sets for the U.S. market under

the Panasonic brand name, and expanded the use of the brand to Europe in 1979.

The company used the National trademark outside of North America during the 1950s

through the 1970s. (The trademark could not be used in the USA, probably because it was

already in use by the National Radio Company who was operating in a closely related

product area.) It sold televisions, VHS VCRs, hi-fidelity stereo receivers, multi-

band shortwave radios, and marine radio direction finders, often exported to North America

under various U.S. brand names. The company also developed a line of home appliances such

as rice cookers for the Japanese and Asian markets. Rapid growth resulted in the company

opening manufacturing plants around the world.

The company debuted a hi-fidelity audio speaker in Japan in 1965 with the brand Technics.

This line of high quality stereo components became worldwide favourites. Throughout the

1970s and early 1980s, Panasonic continued to produce high-quality specialized electronics

for niche markets such as shortwave radios, as well as developing a successful line of stereo

receivers, CD players, and other components.

On November 3, 2008, Panasonic and Sanyo announced that they were holding merger talks,

which eventually resulted in the acquisition of Sanyo by Panasonic. The merger was

completed in December 2009, and resulted in a corporation with revenues of over ¥11.2

trillion (around $110 billion). In recent years, the company has been involved with the

development of high-density optical disc standards intended to eventually replace

the DVD and the SD memory card.

Panasonic Brand History

Panasonic produces electronic products under a variety of names, including:

Panasonic (home appliances, personal electronics, audio/video equipment,microchips,

automotive components)

Technics (music equipment like headphones and turntables, overlaps withPanasonic

branded products in some audio categories)

Sanyo became a subsidiary of Panasonic on December 21, 2009.

Ramsa Professional Audio Systems is currently the division that manufactures high

end audio equipment globally; they are most publicly used at the Olympic Games

since 2000.

Panasonic used to own Universal Studios, then known as the Music Corporation of America,

since acquiring the company in 1990 but sold it to Seagram in 1995. Universal Studios is now

a unit of NBC Universal

The Panasonic brand name was created in 1955 and was first used as a brand for audio

speakers. It is a combination of the words, "Pan", and "Sonic", sound and has a meaning of

bringing sound our Company creates to the world. National came in to existence in 1966. By

the end of the 1971 Technics brand was also introduced. In 2007, Panasonic was the

corporate logo with three sub brands Panasonic, National and Technics.

Since 2008, it is used as the corporate brand representing the Company, products and

services.

Brand Evaluation

Panasonic as a brand has a strong legacy. Matsushita, its founder began producing radio

receivers in 1930. By 1934, it was Japan's largest producer of radios. It also made electric

fixtures, cooking heaters, storage batteries, phonographs and motors as well as bicycle lamps

and batteries. In 1936, it began producing incandescent light bulbs. atsushita Corp., like every

other company in Japan, participated in war efforts during World War II. Konosuke

Matsushita was originally supposed to be ousted from Japanese industry for his involvement

in the war but was removed from the list after Matsushita employees petitioned the

Americans for his removal from the list. During the 1950s, 60s and 70s, Matsushita

expanded its consumer products divisions and began making transistor radios, televisions,

stereos, tape recorders, microwave ovens and video tape recorders. In 1952 it made its first

black-and-white television. In 1960 it produced the first color television in Japan. In 1974, it

purchased Motorola's television operation in the United States and Canada. It sold 100

million televisions by 1985; 200 million in 1998 and 300 million in 2008. Panasonic was the

first television maker to produce 300 million televisions. This history provides a robust

ground to Panasonic Brand.

Panasonic not only means products that do good to customer but also have gained internal

buyin in the organization. Panasonic prides itself on its corporate culture and looking after its

employees. A favourite catch phrase for the company is that it has built people not just

products. Matsushita was the first Japanese company to give workers a five-day work week,

provide equal pay for women and develop a corporate spiritual philosophy. It sponsors

classes in flower arrangement and meditation and other things for its employees and hosts

sporting events. Matsushita has had few labour disputes and never had a strike. Young

Panasonic workers and engineers do well in national and international skills competitions in

categories such as lathe work, machine assembly and sheet metal working. In the machine

assembly category, competitors produce about 10 machine parts and assemble them time

within seven hours based on an assigned design. A trade school in Kadoma Osaka trains

workers and engineers for these competitions.

Panasonic had a legendry leadership that defined what it is known today.Matsushita was

known as "the god of management." Among Matsushita's sayings were: “Do not sell what

customers like. Sell what would do the customers good.” The word to the Panasonic song

goes something like this:

For the building of a new Japan

Let's put our strength and mind together

Doing our best to promote production

Sending our goods to the people of the world

Endlessly and continuously

Like water gushing from a fountain

Grow industry, grow, grow, grow!

Panasonic is known for its environment friendly products. Panasonic make sure that they are

contributing the society as well. This has given meaning to the brand at the core. Brand is

known for the products that do good for the people. Following is the snapshot of how they

source keeping CSR in mind.

Decline

Panasonic has long had a reputation for being slow to move and adapt and lacking

innovation. It instead copied designs and products of competitors and introduced its versions

as the products became popular. n the mid-1990s, malfunctions in a series of Panasonic

products prompted the company to inspect and repair 430,0000 defective refrigerators and

televisions for problems. At the same time Panasonic was unable to develop imaginative

products. The period opened up the firm to criticism and set off soul searching within the

company. During the recession of the 1990s, Panasonic fortunes began to decline and the

company’s long cherished principals were changed. The company began moving more and

more of its operations overseas, particularly to China, and shifting employees to profitable

sectors. There was a discussion of laying off workers but a great effort was made to get

employees to change their work habits and modernize or take early retirement rather than lay

them off. There was even some talk that Panasonic might move its headquarters from Osaka

to Tokyo.

In fiscal 2001-2002, Panasonic announced huge loses of more than $1 billion due to sluggish

demand for electronics. It responded by laying off workers, closing factories and overhauling

product lines. ob cuts and higher sales of DVD players and video camera helped Panasonic

post a profit in 2002. Panasonic president Kunio Nakamura was chosen by Forbes magazine

as Asian Businessman of the Year in 2003 spearheading the company’s recovery and

upstaging rival Sony. Panasonic posted impressive sales figures in 2004 due to demand for

flat-screen televisions, digital cameras and DVD recorders. Panasonic profits rose almost 30

percent to ¥281 billion in fiscal 2007-2008 amid strong sales of Lumix digital cameras and

flat-screen televisions. Panasonic lost $3.8 billion in fiscal 2008-2009 and $5.3 billion in the

April-to-June quarter in 2009 during the global financial crisis and responded by closing13

domestic and 14 overseas production bases in 2009 and cutting 15,000 jobs by end of fiscal

2009-2010. In addition to a drop in demand caused by the economic crisis in 2008 and 2009,

Panasonic also suffered as result of competition in the flat screen television sector and decline

in sales of digital camera and audio equipment. Vivendi bought Panasonic’s stake in

Universal Studios. During the economic crisis Panasonic urged its employees to “Buy

Panasonic” with most employees urged to buy products valued over $1,000 and managers

and above purchasing products valued at $2,000 and above. The company’s top executives

took 30 percent pay cuts in fiscal 2009 to take responsibility for the company’s poor

performance during the crisis.

Panasonic was hit too bad by the earthquake and tsunami in 2011 as most of its factories were

well out of harm’s way. Operations at factories hit by the recent Japanese earthquake were

recovering steadily, but disruptions in its supply chain were still affecting output.

Repositioning

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd., known for its Panasonic and National brand names,

announced on 22 April 2011 that the company would position Panasonic as its main global

brand in order to strengthen brand competitiveness worldwide. A new global brand campaign

would be launched with a new brand slogan 'Panasonic ideas for life' that reflects the

customer-focused strategy behind the development of Panasonic products.

The slogan will be incorporated in all of the company's corporate communications and

advertising messages worldwide. The change in brand strategy comes from the company's

strong needs to consolidate its brand communications efforts under the 'Panasonic' brand

which covers over 90% of sales outside Japan. The brand slogan, 'Panasonic ideas for life',

represents the commitment of all the employees, from R&D and manufacturing to marketing

and services, to supply products and services based on valuable ideas that can enrich people's

lives and advance the society. Matsushita Electric adopted the brand name 'National' in Japan

in 1927 at the initiative of the founder, Konosuke Matsushita. The 'National' brand name

became a very popular household name in Japan and was also increasingly used in overseas

markets. The Panasonic brand was first introduced in 1961 in the U.S. where the 'National'

brand name had been registered by others and therefore, could not be used. Building on the

successful brand recognition of Panasonic in the U.S., the company started using the

Panasonic brand name in Europe in 1979 and in other regions in the late 80's for products

other than home appliances for which 'National' brand name continued to be used. Under the

new global brand strategy, the brand name for all home appliance products in Southeast Asia,

the Middle East and China will be changed to 'Panasonic' from 'National' by the end of March

2004. The 'National' brand will, however, continue to be used in Japan where the brand was

originally born.

New communication campaign designed to bring attention to the brand's broad scope of

products and solutions designed to meet consumer, business-to-business, and industrial

needs. The campaign would also underscore Panasonic's global commitment to becoming

the electronics industry's leader in green innovation by its 100th anniversary in 2018.

The multi-faceted campaign will showcase a series of print, on-line advertising and TV

commercials featuring the theme, "Just another way we're engineering a better world for

you." The combined marketing effort, which began July 27, represents Panasonic's

highest advertising investment in a sports event in its history. At the center of the

campaign are three TV commercials – 30- and 60-second spots -- including an anthemic

commercial highlighting the brand's extensive range of products and solutions for

consumers and business, as well as a commercial spotlighting Panasonic's comprehensive

business solutions and a Smart VIERA HDTV commercial featuring US Women's

National Soccer Team player Alex Morgan.

The anthemic commercial will spotlight both products the company is well known for,

including Viera flat-panel internet and 3D-enabled TV's, and Toughbook computers, as

well as its Lithium Ion batteries to power electric and hybrid vehicles, in-flight

entertainment and communications systems and energy-saving solar panel arrays at

stadiums and other sports centers. It also profiles an entire planned eco-smart community

called Fujisawa Sustainable Smart Town, which Panasonic is developing in Japan to

demonstrate a model for sustainable living. The new campaign is designed to complement

and be true to that legacy by communicating Panasonic's intention to engineer ways for

people to enjoy better and more sustainable lives around the world.

By changing its name to Panasonic Corp. this fall, Matsushita Electric Industrial Co.

expects to create a strong corporate image and boost its standing on the global market with

a wide range of products unified under the Panasonic brand name. The name Panasonic

has a history of nearly 50 years in the audiovisual equipment area, but it has yet to be

widely recognized. Taking advantage of the image of state-of-the-art technology that is

already associated with the Panasonic name, the company must also build up a new image

that will provide the sense of assurance and trust that have been associated with the

National brand

Repositioning Efforts in India

Electronic Products from Panasonic can be classified into three main categoriescomprising a

variety of products under them.

Washing Machine, Mini Compo Audio, Home Theatre, Movie Camera, Projection TV

,Plasma TV

GSM Mobile Phones, Special VS edition of Slim Mobile Phones is the latest range.

Business Products: ITS -Basic Speaker Phone 2-Line With Speaker Phone, Caller ID,

Fax-Thermal, Plain Paper, Cordless, Laser ,All-in-one- Copier, Laptop, Projectors

The recently launched Panasonic Products in the Indian consumer electronics market are

mainly targeted at the younger generation. These include:

VIERA range of plasma TV's that is projected to be a breakthrough for better image

quality, innovative technology, enhanced reliability and great value.

E.cam - Digital Movie Camera

Lumix- Digital Still Camera. It is priced at Rs. 13,990 onwards and has first of its

kind mega OIS (Optical Image Stabilizer) and LIECA DICOMAR Lens

Branding Through Ad - Agency

IBD India, a Percept-Hakuhodo company, has recently won the creative duties for two

Panasonic brands – Viera and Lumix. The media duties for these two brands would be

handled by Percept’s in-house media agency Allied Media Network.IBD India is a total

communication solutions agency specializing in advertising, films, identity management and

interactive media. Panasonic is planning an aggressive marketing push in India for its Viera

range, which comprises LCD and plasma televisions, and Lumix, which comprises digital

cameras. Commenting on the account win, Rahul Gupta, Managing Director, IBD India, said,

“It is a wonderful opportunity to work with a global giant like Panasonic. Even more thrilling

is the fact that India will be the regional hub for developing strategy on both brands. We

demonstrated a deep understanding of the Panasonic brand and worked out a strategy based

on fresh consumer insights. Our work on the brand will move beyond advertising into

innovative brand-building activities.”“The high visibility campaign for Viera and Lumix will

be launched in the coming festive season. The campaign will use print, television and outdoor

media as well as a host of below-the-line activities. The TVC will break in next 10 days’

time,” Gupta informed. He further said, “In the new campaign, we will focus on the unique

feature of faster moving images and more clarity of Viera TVs. For Lumix digital cameras,

we willhighlight their unique inbuilt wide angle lens, which allows one to capture more.”

Advertisement of Panasonic

IBD (integrated brand development) India, Percept out-of-home (POOH) and Percept

Knorigin which are divisions of Percept Limited kick started the Panasonic “Sound for India”

campaign in July 2010. IBD India has handled the creative duties in terms of

print,online and retail design; Percept Out-Of-

Home has done the OOH & on groundactivation while Percept Knorigin has created the

website

Commenting on the campaign, Rahul Gupta, MD, IBD India said, “Panasonic wanted to

reach out to dominant middle class in Tier II & Tier III cities with LCD TVs having superior

sound output. IBD partnered with Panasonic to heighten the ‘Sound’ advantage. We

positioned the TV as the perfect choice for the Indians who are passionate about sounds. The

Sound for India campaign celebrates the sounds that represent India. A common platform of

contests has seamlessly collaborated online, traditional & on road efforts to communicate the

message across town classes. The Sound for India contest is a unique engagement activity

and is running across 70 cities in India. With the kind of response we are receiving, I am sure

the judges will have a tough time!”For the OOH campaign as part of an eye-catching

innovation, LCD Cut outs which protrude out of the Hoardings have been used on prominent

Locations in Delhi to create an impact of an actual television. Panasonic has used more than

1,000 sites for outdoor advertisements. Sanjay Pareek, President, Percept OOH, said, “The

client brief was, to announce a new LCD developed for better viewing experience through

superior speaker quality and design in the VIERA range of TVs with a Bang’. We gave their

TG a ‘Big announcement’; we used about 20 different mediums and didn’t just stick to Bill

boards since the OTS were high. It is for the first time that Panasonic has used the

outdoor medium to announce a launch with such a high budget.” We have used innovation at

all the landmark sites by putting the cut out for enhancing the recall and placing the product

on the pedestal thereby staying ahead from the other products in the category.”The inspiration

and motive for the campaign is based on the consumer insight which demands low energy

consumption for Electronic products. Panasonic with this campaign intends to revolutionize

the essence of LCD TV in Indian households.

Ranbir Kapoor roped in as brand ambassador for Panasonic India. He is the young star face

selling Pepsi and now Ranbir Kapoor has become the brand ambassador for consumer goods

giant Panasonic India as well, his second endorsement deal so far.“We conducted a research

and wanted that our brand ambassador should meet fivedimensions –

he should be an established personality, should be able to createexcitement, should have a

competent personality, should be a premium brand himself and should be seasoned. For us,

Ranbir’s cool and trendy image was a perfect match,” Sharma told reporters. As the brand

ambassador, Ranbir would be involved in “communicating the brand values of the company

through multi-media campaigns”, the company official said.

Panasonic to Focus on Black in Advertising Campaign

In their latest advertising campaign, Panasonic is emphasizing on the color black to promote

their latest range of VIERA Neo Plasma TVs. It is also trying to impress on people that the

way black is rendered can make a lot of difference to the overall viewing experience. The

latest advertising campaign for Panasonic has been designed by The Campaign Palace. It

aims to focus on the way black color is represented in its new range of VIERATVs. Cameron

Hoelter, Creative Director of The Creative Palace stressed that the depth of black can tell the

difference between a good and an average TV. He also claimed that

thenew campaign will stress on the clarity of black color and everyone will also beimpressed

by the new range of Panasonic VIERA Neo Plasma TVs. Panasonic is also claiming that it

has incorporated a lot of improvements in its latest range of Plasma TVs and people will be

instantly able to get a better picture and color quality from these TVs. It will significantly

improve the overall viewing experience for the viewers and they will be able to see better

images whether they are watching 2D or 3D TV. The latest round of advertising campaigns

will be starting from the current week.

Panasonic Unveils Eco Ad Campaign

Panasonic has launched a print and television advertising campaign that highlights the

company’s eco-initiatives for energy-saving products and products that can be more easily

and completely be recycled. Panasonic unveiled its “Green Plan 2018” environmental action

plan in October, aimed at stepping up its efforts to meet environmental goals in time for the

company’s 100thanniversary in 2018.

Panasonic’s “Connecting with the Earth” campaign features five different ads that will appear

in the print and online editions of the New York Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, and

Washington Post and networking Websites such as Linked In, Facebook and Panasonic’s

Twitter site. The five ads target different “green” products for home and business,

including: –Panasonic’s line of VIERA Full HD 3D TVs that feature an Energy Star 4.0

rating. –Panasonic’s work on the development of solar energy panels, whole-house fuel cells,

super-efficient LED light bulbs that use 6.9 watts of energy, and next-generation battery cells

to power electric vehicles. –Panasonic’s Tough book line of laptop computers that meet or

exceed many of the world’s strictest environmental standards, according to the company.

Panasonic says all Tough book computers are manufactured in Clean Factories where at least

98 percent

of generated waste is recycled. Toughbook computers are also ISO14001 and RoHS-

compliant, Energy Star-qualified, and rated either Gold or Silver on the EPEAT registry. –

Panasonic’s High Definition Visual Communications system enables businesses to conduct

meetings in Full HD over the Internet, which eliminates the need to travel to meetings. –

Panasonic’s line of home ventilation fans, which feature a green manufacturing process,

were awarded the 2010 Energy Star “Partner of the Year Award.”

Conclusion

Panasonic, the Japanese multinational electronics organization, is in the process of

reinventing itself. Incoming President, Kazuhiro Tsuga, has called for “a return to the basics,”

putting customers at the heart of the Panasonic business and ruthlessly eliminating any

measures that do not create value. From solar panels and lithium ion batteries to a full

consumer electronics line-up equipped with “EcoNavi” energy-saving features, Panasonic

boasts industry-leading technologies and is well on its way to achieving a key objective:

becoming the number one greenest company in the electronics industry by 2018.

Demonstrating this commitment, Panasonic’s Eco Solutions North America has joined forces

with Renewable Social Benefit Funds (RSB Funds) to finance, build, and maintain solar

photovoltaic projects in the public, private, and non profit sectors. By integrating and

managing energy generation, storage, and use, Panasonic is aiming to offer comprehensive

solutions that significantly reduce consumers’ impact on the planet, while simultaneously

allowing everyone to enjoy a higher standard of living. It is a worthy goal, and one that

combines Panasonic’s strengths into an offer that competitors will struggle to match.

Panasonic has a wealth of good stories to tell, and a strong stance on corporate citizenship.

Under its “Sharing the Passion” slogan, Panasonic served as an Olympic Partner during the

2012 London Games. The brand now needs a consistent approach to communications and

dialogue worldwide.

References

http://panasonic.net/ir/annual/2012/pdf/panasonic_ar2012_e.pdf

http://panasonic.net/history/museum/index.html

http://www.interbrand.com/en/best-global-brands/2012/Panasonic

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/text/nb20080226a2.html

http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2003-07-11/news/27518040_1_brand-strategy-new-

brand-national-panasonic-india

http://visiblebusiness.blogspot.in/2011/08/panasonic-brand-strategy-2011.html

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/matsushita-electric-to-strengthen-global-brand-

strategy-by-focusing-on-its-panasonic-brand-name-70896957.html

http://factsanddetails.com/japan.php?itemid=916

http://retailingtoday.com/article/panasonic-launches-major-brand-awareness-campaign