Corporate Identity

Corporate identity – the management of the process of change in the name/logo in the context of brands’ merger

Joana César Machado
Paulo de Lencastre
Pedro Dionísio

Universidade Católica Portuguesa
E-mail: [e-mail]
E-mail: [e-mail]
Instituto Superior de Ciências do Trabalho e da Empresa
E-mail: [e-mail]

Abstract
The creation of strong corporate identity, including identity signs, is crucial for companies to encourage positive attitudes in its different target publics (Dowling, 1993; Van Riel & Balmer, 1997), and may provide an important competitive advantage (Simões, Dibb & Fisk, 2005). The corporate name and logo are two essential components of the corporate identity construct, since they are the most pervasive elements in corporate and brand communications (Henderson & Cote, 1998; Schechter, 1993), and play a crucial role in the communication of the desired positioning strategy (Alessandrini, 2001; Van Riel & Van den Ban, 2001). The reasons for changes in the brand identity signs are numerous, nevertheless mergers are one of the main events leading to a new name and logo (Ettenson, 2004; Kapferer, 1997; Dellatre, 1999 and 2002; Stuart & Muzellec, 2004). Furthermore, the building of a strong and clear corporate visual identity is critical for the merger’s success (Balmer e Dinnie,1999; Melewar, 2001; Rosson e Brooks, 2004).
On the other hand, we should notice that there is a need for empirical research in the domain of the management of corporate identity, namely visual identity (Melewar, 2001), as well as studies that examine the reaction of the several audiences to the management of corporate identity (Simões, Dibb & Fisk, 2005).
The aim of this study is therefore to give an answer to the following research questions:
1. In a merger situation, what type of behaviours can organisations assume in terms of corporate identity, in particular, in respect to the identity signs (name and logo)?
2. How are the

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