Analysis of ESPN's Brand Development
Question: Analyze ESPN according to the brand development strategies from the text. What have they done in the past? What would you recommend to ESPN for future brand development?
Discussion: Brand development in the past has consisted of creating new and exciting ways to bring the latest sporting events. A company has four choices when it comes to developing brands. It can introduce line extensions, brand extensions, multi brands, or new brands.
Line extensions occur when a company extends existing brand names to new forms, colors, sizes, ingredients, or flavors of an existing product category. A company might introduce line extensions as a low-cost, low-risk way to introduce new products. Or it might want to meet consumer desires for variety, use excess capacity, or simply command more shelf space from resellers. However, line extensions involve some risks. An overextended brand name might lose some of its specific meaning. Or heavily extended brands can cause consumer confusion or frustration.
A brand extension extends a current brand name to new or modified products in a new category. A brand extension gives a new product instant recognition and faster acceptance. It also saves the high advertising costs usually required to build a new brand name. At the same time, a brand extension strategy involves some risk.
Now for ESPN. ESPN loves its name. It puts it name on everything. ESPN The Magazine. ESPN2. ESPN News. The ESPN Zone. To a degree it is fine, as long as it stays within the bounds of extending ESPN's core value: getting sports into every ounce of your life. ESPN The Magazine is the only one that isn't worhty of the ESPN headliner. They should have named it something else. It's not up to the minute, so it isn't consistent with everything else ESPN promotes. Anyways, ESPN Mobile fits the bill. Every sports fan has been stranded to some degree without being able to access sports info they needed to have. And die hard sports fans NEED their
Discussion: Brand development in the past has consisted of creating new and exciting ways to bring the latest sporting events. A company has four choices when it comes to developing brands. It can introduce line extensions, brand extensions, multi brands, or new brands.
Line extensions occur when a company extends existing brand names to new forms, colors, sizes, ingredients, or flavors of an existing product category. A company might introduce line extensions as a low-cost, low-risk way to introduce new products. Or it might want to meet consumer desires for variety, use excess capacity, or simply command more shelf space from resellers. However, line extensions involve some risks. An overextended brand name might lose some of its specific meaning. Or heavily extended brands can cause consumer confusion or frustration.
A brand extension extends a current brand name to new or modified products in a new category. A brand extension gives a new product instant recognition and faster acceptance. It also saves the high advertising costs usually required to build a new brand name. At the same time, a brand extension strategy involves some risk.
Now for ESPN. ESPN loves its name. It puts it name on everything. ESPN The Magazine. ESPN2. ESPN News. The ESPN Zone. To a degree it is fine, as long as it stays within the bounds of extending ESPN's core value: getting sports into every ounce of your life. ESPN The Magazine is the only one that isn't worhty of the ESPN headliner. They should have named it something else. It's not up to the minute, so it isn't consistent with everything else ESPN promotes. Anyways, ESPN Mobile fits the bill. Every sports fan has been stranded to some degree without being able to access sports info they needed to have. And die hard sports fans NEED their