exposé...world. brands with a heritage can communicate to consumers through: symbols, nostalgia,...
TRANSCRIPT
Exposé
The use of brand heritage for packaging design:
An analysis of FMCG’s sector
Submitted by
Camille Roux-Michollet
European Master In Business Studies
University of Kassel
Department: Business Administration
Division: International Business Administration
Cohort: EMBS 6th
Generation
Semester: 3
Kassel, Germany November 2013
The use of brand heritage for packaging design
I
List of content
List of abbreviations .................................................................................................................... I
List of figures ............................................................................................................................ II
List of tables ............................................................................................................................. III
1. Abstract ............................................................................................................................... 1
2. Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 3
3. Review of literature ............................................................................................................. 5
3.1. Theoretical background of brand heritage –brand identity and image- ....................... 5
3.2. Globalization ............................................................................................................. 10
3.3. Memories and nostalgia / Promotion and advertisement ........................................... 10
4. Problem and Research question ........................................................................................ 12
4.1. Problem statement ..................................................................................................... 12
4.2. Research questions .................................................................................................... 12
4.3. Hypotheses ................................................................................................................. 13
5. Models and theoretical background .................................................................................. 15
6. Methodology ..................................................................................................................... 17
7. Overview of chapters ........................................................................................................ 19
8. Work plan .......................................................................................................................... 20
Bibliography ............................................................................................................................. 21
The use of brand heritage for packaging design
I
List of abbreviations
GCGB Global citizenship through global brands
HQ Heritage Quotient
AMA American Marketing Association
FMCG Fast-Moving Consumer Goods
The use of brand heritage for packaging design
II
List of figures
Figure 1: Simplified version of Aaker's Identity Planning theory (Aaker 1996) ..................... 15
Figure 2: Urde et al. (2007) Brand heritage positioning model ............................................... 16
The use of brand heritage for packaging design
III
List of tables
Table 1: Theoretical background of brand heritage ................................................................... 9
Table 2: Globalization .............................................................................................................. 10
Table 3: Packaging (notion of memoria and nostalgia) ........................................................... 11
The use of brand heritage for packaging design
1
1. Abstract_______________________________________
Title
The use of brand heritage for packaging design: an analysis on Fast-Moving
Consumer Goods (FMCG)’s industry
Keywords
Brand heritage, brand identity, brand essence, globalization, and packaging
Background
“Make a better future by developing elements from the past.” (Goethe)
Brand heritage is already identified as a reference of the essence of a brand, its
history and its identity. Many companies use their brand heritage to differentiate
themselves from the others, to become unique in order to face better the competition
and to deliver to the potential customers a story behind their brand. Promoting the
brand identity and thus the roots of the company induced to have packaging
strategies behind. In the context of the globalization, many firms were forced to
change their strategies in order to handle the competition. Some of them focused on
keeping their brand essence and their authenticity in order to sensitize the consumers.
Purpose
Consequently, the purpose of this study is to investigate and analyze the variables
that determine the usage of brand heritage in a firm’s packaging strategy and to find
out how to maintain and thus to promote it to the potential consumers in the
globalized world. A focus on the food market and more precisely on the Fast-Moving
Consumer Goods (FMCG)’s industry might be elaborated; especially regarding the
methodology section in order to make the results more consistent at the end. The
application of the Brand Identity Planning theory from Aaker will be effectuated in
order to find out the interaction between brand heritage, packaging, symbols and
finally the brand image and positioning (1996). Besides, hypotheses and afterwards
studies will be elaborated in order to describe the effect and influence of brand
heritage from the customers’ point of view. Eventually, conclusion will be drawn to
The use of brand heritage for packaging design
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orient the companies in their strategies in order to keep their identity or to modify
their strategies towards the competitive worldwide market.
Method
The required information will be collected through a qualitative study. Personal
interviews might be run in order to understand better if people are aware of the brand
heritage phenomenon and its impact .The responses will be taped and/or recorded
and then analyzed by focusing on different aspects such as the ages or even the
gender in order to gain insights. The interviews will focus on the attitude of French
consumers various international brands and their “heritage strategies” though the
packaging of specific products. Moreover, those interviews might contain stories-
telling, different kind of packaging in order to have their immediate reactions. At the
same time, semi-structured interviews will be elaborated on the Internet, using VoIP
software –Skype-. Eventually conclusions will be made in order to analyze the
impact of the brand heritage –strategies- on consumers, to see how the consumers
react towards the brand’s strategies and thus to propose possible solutions to
companies to maintain and promote it in a more or less short-term period. The
elaboration of a qualitative content analysis method might be made on the basis of a
coding method (to be chosen later) and I will follow the steps of Kumar (2008) for
the research process.
The use of brand heritage for packaging design
3
2. Introduction___________________________________
“The world is full of people whose notion of a satisfactory future is, in fact, a return
to the idealized past.” (Davies, 1960)
Nowadays, packaging plays an important role on the selection of products on the
shelves in a supermarket. Packaging has a massive power for marketing strategies.
Implemented firms but also new companies surf on the wave of the retro idea, use
the past as a secure value for their strategy. But how strong is the impact of
packaging design on the brand heritage spread?
The American Marketing Association (AMA) defines a brand as a name but also a
symbol for a company (2010). But when it comes to brand heritage, consumers and
thus marketers directly link it to a connection with the past. The term brand heritage
has already been identified as a reference of the essence of a brand, its history and its
identity. Hence, Urde, Greyser, and Balmer (2007) define it as “part of a corporate
brand identity” and as a “dimension of a brand’s identity found in its track record,
longevity, core values, use of its symbol and particularly in organizational belief that
its history is important” (Urde et al., 2007, pp.4-5). Therefore, according to Kapferer
(2008), brand identity gives guidelines for the company in order to know which
direction it has to follow, what kind of elements can be modified and eventually to
enable the company to involve its brand heritage over the years. Eventually, brand
heritage is a concept that companies use to differentiate their brands from their
competitors. It usually leads to a unique image for the consumers/customers (Keller
and Lehmann, 2006). Because of a lack of certainty, this “back to the roots” trend
(Aaker, 2004) is expected to increase by bringing a feeling of trustfulness and
stability (Ballantyne, Warren, Nobbs, 2006).
As already mentioned above, many companies use their brand heritage to
differentiate themselves from the others, to become unique in order to face better the
high level of competition and to deliver to the potential customers a story behind
their brand. Promoting the brand identity and thus the roots of the company induced
to have packaging strategies behind. In the context of the globalization, consumers
become less confident about the future which can lead to an “increase of interest in
The use of brand heritage for packaging design
4
brands with a heritage” (Hakala, Lätti and Sandberg,1992). Hence, many firms were
forced to change their strategies in order to handle the competition. Moreover, as
previously mentioned, the actual environment of homogenization (Levitt, 1984)
uncertainty forces some companies to focus on keeping their brand essence and their
authenticity in order to sensitize and reassure consumers.
All recent studies about brand identity and thus brand heritage only describe the
general meaning of the term (Aaker, 1991, 2003; Urde et al., 2007) and some of them
emphasize the importance of interaction with the media and communications
(Strizhakova et al., 2011; Merchant and Rose, 2013) but none of them specified the
need to maintain brand heritage in the global marketplace though those way of
promotion, and it that case through the packaging design of FMCG.
Considering this gap, the purpose of this study shall be to identity the general
meanings behind the terms brands, brand heritage and packaging and to analyze the
determinants of packaging in order to find how to maintain it in the actual globalized
world. Brands with a heritage can communicate to consumers through: symbols,
nostalgia, packaging and advertising (Ballantyne et al., 2006). According to Urde et
al.’s five key elements of brand heritage (2007), a focus on “use of symbols” will be
made in this thesis in order to analyze the possible relation between symbols such as
logo or “personas” –characters, mascots- and brand heritage.
The general research question to be answered by this study is:
How can packaging design communicate brand heritage of FMCG?
The use of brand heritage for packaging design
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3. Review of literature_____________________________
The following section will focus on the literature and theoretical materials that can be
used to develop the research question –mentions in the next part- .
Firstly, the section “theoretical background of brand heritage” –with also articles
concerning brand identity and image- will talk about all general ideas and concepts to
be applied. In the following part, a focus on “globalization” is elaborated and
eventually a part regarding packaging is set up.
Separate tables have been made in order to differentiate the topics. All the literature
which will be used in the future thesis argumentation is thus resumed in the
following tables.
3.1. Theoretical background of brand heritage –brand identity and
image-
The use of brand heritage for packaging design
6
Theoretical background of brand heritage –brand identity, equity and image-
Topic Title Author(s) Year Journal,
Book, etc
Contribution
Brand
heritage
Heritage
branding:
making the most
of the story
behind your
brand
2009 Brandscape
s Issue15
Journal
> gives examples in the food and
beverage industry
> notes that companies have to focus on
brand essence and how to maintain the
tradition of the company/product
> Heritage branding can be developed
through the product, packaging,
distribution and advertising
> Telling a story in order to the
attention and emotion of the potential
consumer
Brand
heritage
Heritage
Brands—
Treasured
Inheritance
Or ‘Over the
Hill’
Marilyn
Liebrenz-
Himes,
Hamed
Shamma,
Robert F.
Dyer
2007 Book p.140-
146
> exposes some examples of companies
concerned about brand heritage and
various references
> Definition of brand heritage (legacy
brand, icon brand, vintage brand)
> Nostalgia, Narrative strategy, symbol,
authenticity and History are mentioned
Brand
identity
Branding in a
global
marketplace:
The mediating
effects of quality
and self-identity
brand signals
Yuliya
Strizhakova
, Robin A.
Coulter,
Linda L.
Price
2011 Journal of
research
marketing
n°28
> establish the connection between
involvement of consumers buying
branded products and the use of brands
as a signal of identity and quality thanks
to the essence of the brand.
>mention the relation between local and
global brands, with the results on
consumers attitudes towards the brands
> “greater use of brands as self-identity
is linked to greater brand loyalty”
( reference of “going glocal” strategies)
Brand
identity
Experiences of
brands and
national identity
Sandy
Bulmer,
Margo
Buchanan-
Oliver
2010 Australian
Marketing
Journal n°
18
> story telling interviews and pair
interviews/ narrative methodology and
discourse analysis method afterwards
have been elaborated by using
television brand advert
> impact of national identity in brands
and reaction of consumers towards
those brands; feeling of belonging
Brand
heritage
Drivers and
Outcomes of
Brand Heritage:
Consumers’
Perception of
Heritage Brands
in the
Automotive
Industry
Klaus-Peter
Wiedmann,
Nadine
Hennigs,
Steffen
Schmidt,
and Thomas
Wuestefeld
2011 Journal of
Marketing
theory and
practice,
vol.19,
n0.2, p
> Development of the functions of
brands and how they are perceived by
the consumers; effect of brand heritage
on the consumers’ behavior and
attitudes
> Key elements of brands heritage
which lead to the effect on consumers
attitudes (cost, longevity, value, ,
loyalty, image,…)
> Gives hints for companies in order to
keep their brand heritage
The use of brand heritage for packaging design
7
> Explains the relation between the
drivers and outcomes of brand heritage
and the process of heritage branding
(different steps)
>Mention the notion of “old” in the
term “brand heritage” and how to use it
as a KPI
Brand
heritage
Corporate
brands with an
heritage
Mats Urde 2007 Journal
palgrave,
Brand
managemen
t, vol 15,
n°1
> Define heritage as part of corporate
brand identity
> Give hints regarding branding terms
that can be associated with heritage
> Define a brand’s heritage quotient
(HQ) and the elements of brand heritage
with a focus on brand stewardship
> Reasons for companies to keep their
brand heritage (distinctiveness in
positioning/ comparative advantage, add
brand value, reinforce the authenticity
and the credibility of the company or
brand…)
Brand
loyalty
Brand and
retailer loyalty:
past behavior
and future
intentions
Michaek T.
Ewing
2000 Journal of
product and
brand
managemen
t, vol.9, n°2
> Enounce the main ideas behind
“loyalty”
> Interaction between past behavior
(loyalty) and intention to purchase
through loyalty notion
Brand
loyalty
The chain effect
from brand trust
and brand affect
to brand
performance:
the role of brand
loyalty
Arjun
Chaudhuri,
Morris B.
Holbrook
2001 Journal of
internationa
l Marketing,
vol.65
> Purchase loyalty leads to greater
market share
> Willingness to pay more for an
heritage brand/product which brings
authenticity, an added and unique value
> Notion of trust in a product and in a
brand leads to marketing and cost
advantages
> Model of brand loyalty and brand
performance (impact on consumers,
prices, purchase intensions…)
Brand
authentic
ity
The consumer
quest for
authenticity: the
multiplicity of
meanings within
the MG
subculture of
consumption
Thomas W.
Leigh, Cara
Peters,
Jeremy
Shelton
2006 Journal of
Academy of
Marketing
Science,
vol.34, n°4,
> Authenticity can be seen as a
connection with the past, a kind of
reference or can simply be the
reproduction of something from the past
; a symbol of origin
>”View of quality perceived by
individuals that emerges from their own
personal experiences” (MacCannell,
1973)
> synonyme of aura of origin
> “Two views of authenticity in
marketing contexts have been based on
products’ physical characteristics and
brand essence” (e.g. icon, symbol,
The use of brand heritage for packaging design
8
authentic being)
> “Nostalgia underlies the association
of an MG with the subculture’s
collective memory of brand heritage”
can be applied with food products
>”Preservation of brand heritage may
be partially fed by antiquarianism”
(Arnold and Bending, 2003)
Brand
identity
Creating brand
identity: a study
of evaluation of
new brand
names
Chiranjeev
S. Kohli*,
Katrin R.
Harich,
Lance
Leuthesser
2004 Journal of
business
research
> Brand names create value, brand
equity for consumers
>Because of the globalization, there has
been an “explosion in news products as
well as in the ways to communicate
with consumers” (internets, direct/viral
marketing…)
> Zajonc, 1995 investigated on the
effect of repeated advertising on the
consumers’ attitude: should “enhance
the liking of brand names”
Brand
equity Examining the
role of
advertising
and sales
promotions in
brand equity
creation
Isabel Buil,
Leslie de
Chernaton
y, Eva
Martínez
2013 Journal of
business
research,
>”According to Aaker (1991), brand
equity is a multidimensional concept
whose first four core brand equity
dimensions are brand awareness,
perceived quality, brand associations
and brand loyalty.”
>Relation between the level and number
of advertising and the reaction of the
consumers toward the brand
(importance of creativity and
originality)
Branding A cultural
approach to
branding in the
global
marketplace
Julien Cayla
and
Eric J.
Arnould
2008 Journal of
internationa
l marketing,
vol.16, n°4,
American
Marketing
Association
(AMA)
> Phenomenon of acculturation from
Bourdieu (CocaCola, McDonalds are
symbol and can be a threat, “symbol of
corporate excess…)
> “The principles of building a strong
brand are basically the same across
cultures”
> Manager can surf on the waves of
cultural aspect in order to stimulate the
reputation of their brands
Brand
heritage
Operationalizing
brand heritage
and cultural
heritage
Hakala,
Ulla; Lätti,
Sonja;
Sandberg,
Birgitta
1992 Journal of
product and
brand
managemen
t
>Make the parallel between brand and
culture heritage in order to enhance the
productivity and the efficacy of a
brand’s identity and reputation
>strong implication of brands due to the
high level of competition
>Brand heritage “brings out to its
historical reliability”, bring stability
>”Going back to the roots trend”
(Aaker, 2004)
Symbolic
brands
Symbolic and
functional
Bhat,
Subodh;
1998 Journal of
consumer
>Advice to go either to symbolic brands
(related to prestige, image, heritage) or
The use of brand heritage for packaging design
9
positioning of
brands
Reddy,
Srinivas K.
marketing functional
Brand
symbols
Enhancing
Brand
Awareness
Through Brand
Symbols
MacInnis,
Deborah J.;
Shapiro,
Stewart;
Mani,
Gayathri
1999 Advances in
Consumer
Research
>Symbols facilitate brand recognition
memory, enhance brand loyalty –and
thus consumers-
>Logos, name, history can impact the
brand identity
Branding Building strong
brands
David
Aaker
1996 Book, The
free Press
>Brand personality definition and brand
positioning through symbols, images,
heritage
>”functional benefit model”
Symbolic
brands
Symbolic brands
and authenticity
of identityn
performance
Richard
Elliott and
Andrea
Davies
2005 Book,
Routeledge
>Effect of symbolic brands on a
company’s perspective
>Role of “authentic performance”
Symbolic
brands
Brand as
symbolic
resources for the
construction of
identity
Richard
Elliott and
Kritsadarat
Wattanasuw
an
1998 Internationa
l journal of
advertising
>Model of the dialectical relationship
between self-identity and social-identity
>Self-symbolism and experience of
advertising “heritage products”
>Brand can evoke nostalgia (cf 3rd
table), memories (reference of
childhood, family “sensitive period
of effect” from Schindler, 1994) and
provide comfort from insecurity
Table 1: Theoretical background of brand heritage
The use of brand heritage for packaging design
10
3.2. Globalization
In the context of a globalized market, companies have to find strategies in order to
maintain and promote their brand heritage. The globalization has already been
widely discussed in previous studies; therefore a brief definition and thus explanation
related to the subject of this study will be elaborated in the final report.
Globalization
Topic Title Author(s) Year Journal,
Book, etc.
Contribution
Globalization The
globalization
of markets
Levitt 1983 Harvard
business
Review
>Describe the “the emergence of
global
markets for standardized consumer
products on a previously unimagined
scale“
> Differentiation of “global” and
“multinational”
> Convergence of needs, of goods
(standardization, homogenization)
which increase the competition
(Fordism)
More articles and books will be added in the extended thesis report.
Table 2: Globalization
3.3. Memories and nostalgia / Promotion and advertisement
As previously mentioned, heritage –and thus brand heritage- is closely linked to a
connection with the past but has an impact in the present and future positioning of a
company. Consequently, in the context of branding, it can reinforce this connection
by creating emotions such as nostalgia or memories. The promotion –though
packaging in that case- is a key strategy to promote brand heritage for companies and
can be the reason for a price premium in certain cases.
The use of brand heritage for packaging design
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Packaging, Retro aspect
Topic Title Author(s) Year Journal,
Book, etc
Contribution
Strategy
to use the
past in the
present
business
Revising
the past
(while
thinking in
the future
perfect
tense)
Gioia,
Corley,
Fabbri
2002 Journal or
organizational
change
management,
n°6, vol. 15
> Make the past become an advantage
in the strategy of the company
> Describe the impact of brand
reputation and past reputation in the
future innovations of the firm
> How to maintain the credibility of a
‘story’ (past story or not) in the
company’s strategy
Retro
Branding
Teaching
old brands
new tricks:
Retro
branding
and the
revival
Brown,
Kozinets,.
Sherry Jr
2003 Journal of
International
Marketing,
vol.67
> Explain the overlapping between
nostalgia, brand heritage and brand
revival
> Describe ways of promoting products
through slogans or packages (intention
to reveal memoria)
>Develop the notion of 3As of retro
branding (eg. Aura refers to the brand
essence authenticity)
> Give recommendation about how to
use retro branding (eg. not only
relaunching an old brand)
Nostalgia
and brand
heritage
Effects of
advertising-
evoked
vicarious
nostalgia on
brand
heritage
Merchant,
M. Rose
2012 The journal of
advertising
> Marketers provide a feeling of
sensibility and thus security though
nostalgic advertisement
>Definition of brand heritage and the
impact/consequences of nostalgic
advertisement on it
> Focus group findings corroborate this
experience of transportation and suggest
that emotions related to ad-evoked
vicarious nostalgia impact consumer
perceptions of the brand's heritage.
Packaging Consumer
perceptions
of product
packaging
Ampuero,
Vila,
2006 Journal of
Consumer
Marketing
>Graphic variables in the design of
packaging
> Explanation about the positioning
strategy for a company; reputation and
its brand image
Packaging Influence of
Packaging
Design on
Consumer
Perceptions
Gelici-
Zeko,
Lutters,
Klooster,
Weijzen
2012 International
journal of
packaging and
science
>use of either categorizing or perceptual
mapping for the respondents
> Give advices to the companies at the
end & Notion of sensory and non-
sensory attributes
Table 3: Packaging, (memoria/nostalgia)
The use of brand heritage for packaging design
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4. Problem and Research question___________________
4.1. Problem statement
As already stated in the introduction, all –recent- studies about brand identity and
thus brand heritage only describe the general meaning of the term (Aaker, 1991,
2003; Urde et al., 2007) and some of them emphasize the importance of interaction
with the media and communications (Strizhakova, Yuliya; Coulter, Robin.; Price,
Linda, 2011; Merchant and Rose, 2013) but none of them specified the need to
maintain brand heritage in the global marketplace though packaging design.
Considering this gap, the purpose of this study shall be to identity the general
meanings behind the terms globalization, packaging brands image and brand heritage
and to analyze the determinants of promotion in order to find how to maintain it in
the actual globalized world. According to Urde et al.’s five key elements of brand
heritage (2007), a focus on “use of symbols” will be made in this thesis in order to
analyze the possible relation between symbols and brand heritage.
The figure1 in the section “Models and theoretical background” shall help to
conceptualize better the idea behind.
4.2. Research questions
How can packaging design communicate brand heritage of FMCG?
The research question refers mainly to the way of promoting brand heritage in the
context of globalization. As previously mentioned, consumers are more and more
vigilant towards brands and their identity, their history because of the actual unstable
atmosphere. It might refer to the way packaging strategies handle to communicate
brand heritage through their products.
RQa) Does brand heritage play a role in a company’s brand strategy?
The notion of brand identity and image is situated through the term brand strategy.
Aaker model will be applied in order to make the connection between those notions.
The use of brand heritage for packaging design
13
RQb) How to communicate brand heritage through packaging design?
How symbols such as logo or characters can be used to communicate brand
heritage?
This sub research question focuses on one aspect of brand heritage: the use of
symbols which are part of the packaging. Symbols are a key aspect of market
strategy and can have a positive or a negative impact on the perception of the brands
from the consumers’ point of view. The brand identity planning model from Aaker
underlines the fact that a brand itself can be perceived as a symbol; but in some
cases, symbols themselves in the packaging of products might influence brand
heritage and the image of the company behind.
RQc) How can packaging design influence brand image/positioning?
Some links can be made between the main notions of the general research question.
The packaging design of products has an influence on the perception of the
consumers which reflects afterwards the brand image and thus brand positioning.
4.3. Hypotheses and sub-hypotheses
The elaboration of the problem and the research questions lead to the following
hypotheses:
H1: Using symbols such as logos in the brand strategy impact brand heritage
positively
An explanation between symbols themselves such as logo or “personas” (owner of
the brand, typical person that represent the brand, a mascot) and the notion of “brand
as a symbol” will be elaborated in the final report. According to Liebenz-Himes,
Shamma and Dyer (2007), the “brand names, packages, logos and other symbols can
become icons” and can thus impact the brand heritage. Memories can appear and
help the brand to reach the success (Zaltman, 2003).
The use of brand heritage for packaging design
14
H2: Brand heritage has a positive effect on the image/positioning of a brand
Liebrenz-Himes, Shamma and Dyer (2007) explain the idea of influencing the image
of the brand through the use of brand heritage concept in the packaging strategy of
companies. Thus, firms might implement concepts such as “go back to the roots”
notion; the search for authenticity is rising due to the international context of
uncertainty and consumers look for trust, sure-value in the products they purchase.
H3: Enhancement of brand heritage through packaging has a positive influence on
the brand’s image/positioning
The term packaging refers mainly in that report to the design of the products: the
colors used to attract consumers, the shape and even more the symbols such as logo
or “personas” (mascot, owner, or representative of the brand). As explained in
Brandscapes (2009), “many brands such as Heinz Baked Beans, Guiness, Jack
Daniel’s are promoting aspects of their heritage during the recessionary times
through various tactic” (such as different elements of the packaging design) which
allow consumers to trust better on the products and therefore give a positive impact
and this image of the brand.
According to Gelici-Zeko, Lutters, Klooster and Weijzen (2012), “food packaging
plays an important role in attracting consumers’ attention” and it can be revealed by
graphical design, sizes, shapes, symbols in order to catch the attention and thus
promote the brand image and positioning comparing to other products.
The use of brand heritage for packaging design
15
5. Models and theoretical background
As already mentioned in the abstract, the theory of the Brand Identity Planning from
Aaker enables to understand better that brand heritage is also part of the corporate
brand identity and might be an added value for food oriented companies in their
futures strategies. The key part of this model is the four basis of the brand concept.
(1996). This paper will focus on the symbolic –“brand as a symbol”- aspects which
embrace the visual associations –such as logo, packaging. The following figure is a
modified/simplified version of Aaker model. An extended model will be provided
later which leads to the image of the brand, its positioning.
Figure 1: Simplified version of Aaker's Identity Planning theory (Aaker 1996)
Moreover, the theoretical model of brand heritage will be analyzed in order to get
insights regarding the symbol concept; the authors have elaborated axis referring to
the evolution of a brand to become brand heritage, mainly through the cores values,
products and symbols of a brand over a certain period of time (Hakala et al. 1992).
Furthermore, in the following years, the brand heritage model of Urde et al. (2007)
(see figure2 above) has shown the positioning of brand heritage throughout the past,
present and future period and expresses that “heritage helps make a brand relevant to
the present and prospectively the future” (Urde et al.,2007). It has also developed the
positioning and sometimes overlapping of different kind of brand such as retro-
brands, iconic brands and nostalgic brands. Some of them might have a connection to
the ‘brand as a symbol’, as mentioned previously by Aaker (1996).
The use of brand heritage for packaging design
16
Figure 2: Urde et al. (2007) Brand heritage positioning model
The use of brand heritage for packaging design
17
6. Methodology___________________________________
The hypotheses mentioned above will be tested and based on a qualitative approach.
Indeed, I believe that a qualitative study would be better appropriate than a
quantitative one because the purpose of the interviews will be to listen to the
respondents, have story-telling and perceive their opinion through packaging (maybe
evoked nostalgia or memoria as well) as Aaker, 1996 did for instance through story-
telling told by respondents while seeing advertising and/or packaging.
Moreover, Gelici-Zeko, Lutters, Klooster and Weijzen (2012) worked on the influence
of packaging on the consumer perceptions through interviews: they divided the
participants into two groups in order to show them different kind of dairy products. The
goal of their study was to use the categorizing and perceptual mapping methods. In this
paper, none of them will be used, a mapping of information might be elaborated at the
end of the interviews, in order to put the results together and draw conclusion.
Setting/ Sampling
The data will be collected through personal interviews and these semi-structured
interviews run on the Internet, using VoIP software –Skype-, emails, telephone or
personally if feasible. It will hold in December 2013/January 2014 with a dozen of
participants.
Participants
The study will focus on of French consumers in order to gain in consistency and
make the results more consistent. The sample will take all gender, income, ages, and
professions into account. Interviews will be held by one by one interview which will
be as previously mentioned recorded and noted. The basis of participants is 12
persons. However, if I reach the information needed after 6 interviews for example, I
won’t continue the interviews, as suggested by Gelici-Zeko et al. (2012) in their
methodological part concerning the mapping methods.
The use of brand heritage for packaging design
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Measurement instruments
The data will be collected through personal semi-structured interviews via Internet,
using VoIP software –Skype-, emails or personally if feasible. Therefore, a voice
recorder and notes will be needed.
Procedures
First of all, general questions regarding brands and brand heritage will be asked to
the sample of persons in order to know their level of knowledge concerning this
topic. Afterwards, images –such as packaging of products, its logo, etc- will be
shown and they will be asked to talk about their feeling towards it. This step is
mainly step up in order to check if the respondents will mention and talk about
previous experiences, a story behind it in order to reach the aspect of memoria and
nostalgia previously explained in the “Literature overview” part.
The final phase of the research is to analyze the information gathered from the
personal interviews and to set out some recommendation for the companies. A Likert
scale (from 1 to 7) might be elaborated to evaluate afterwards the overall tendency.
Data Analysis
The implementation of a qualitative method might be a useful help to justify the
future conclusions. As a tool of the analysis of the qualitative data, a coding method
will be used.
I will follow the “Steps in research process” (Kumar, 2008) for the methodological
part of the report which are:
1. Formulating the Research Problem ,
2. Extensive Literature Review
3. Developing the objectives
4. Preparing the Research Design including Sample Design
5. Collecting the Data
6. Analysis of Data
7. Generalization and Interpretation
8. Preparation of the Report or Presentation of Results-Formal write ups of
conclusions reached
The use of brand heritage for packaging design
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7. Overview of chapters____________________________
Abstract
List of content
List of abbreviations
List of figures
List of tables
1. Introduction
1.1. Importance of the topic and its background
1.2. Research question and objectives of the thesis (promotion of brand
heritage, impacts)
1.3.Structure of the thesis
2. Brand heritage
2.1.Brand heritage in the packaging design industry – Definition
2.1.1. Brand heritage
2.1.2. Packaging
2.1.3. FMCG
2.2.Dimensions of a brand
2.2.1. Brand identity
2.2.2. Brand image
2.2.3. Notion of symbols
2.3. Measurement
2.4. Models
3. Influence of packaging design on the image of brand heritage
3.1. Brand packaging strategies
3.2. Brand positioning strategies
3.3. Effect of nostalgia and memories
4. Research methodology
4.1. Methods and procedures
4.1.1. Personal and semi-structured interviews
4.1.2. Setup and structure
4.1.3. Progress and execution
4.1.4. Results
4.2. Summary of the results and consequences (Mayering method)
5. Scientific and Managerial Implications
The use of brand heritage for packaging design
20
6. Conclusion
6.1. Conclusion
6.2. Limitations
6.3. Future research and development
7. Bibliography and literature review
8. Appendix
8. Work plan_____________________________________
The table below describes the different step to follow for the realization of the final
master thesis. Only the most important milestones are included; sub-tasks are indeed
part of the main “sections” but were not written down yet due to a lack of
information.
Sections Time Activity / Phases Explanation
1. 01.08.2013-
01.09.2013
Find a master thesis topic Elaborate 3 main master thesis
topic to propose to the professors
2. 01.09.2013-
21.10.2013
Elaboration of the Exposé Find the main research question,
hypothesis, list of the articles and
the draft of the chapters
3. 21.10.2013-
15.12.2013
Theoretical phase Write theoretical part of the
thesis, focus on literature
4. 15.12.21013-
15.01.2014
Methodology phase
Intermediate presentation
Implement the interviews
Elaboration the presentation
5. 15.01.2014-
15.02.2014
Evaluation phase Evaluate the results obtained
6. 15.02.2014-
15.03.2014
Analysis phase Analyze and draw implication,
first results and conclusions
7. 15.03.2013-
01.04.2014
Finalization phase (I) Finish the master thesis report
8. 01.04.2014-
01.05.2014
Deadline (?) -
Finalization phase (II)
Correction, adaptation of the
work, preparation of the final
report and presentation
9. 20.05.2014 Final presentation Final presentation in Leon
The use of brand heritage for packaging design
21
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