Wei-Lun Chang, Tamkang University, Taiwan
ABSTRACT
Co-branding, is a marketing arrangement to utilize multiple brand names on a single product or service.
Basically, the constituent brands can assist each other to achieve their objectives. Co-branding is an increasingly popular technique for transferring the positive associations of one company’s product or brand to another. In the absence of a clearly defined strategy, co-brand mergers are frequently driven by short-term goals to mistrust and failure. In this paper, we identify critical factors of a successful co-branding strategy, co-branding position matrix, and co-branding strategies respectively. We also utilize certain real-world cases in order to demonstrate our notions.
Finally, this research aims to provide clues and a roadmap for future research in co-branding issues.
INTRODUCTION
Co-branding, is a marketing arrangement to utilize multiple brand names on a single product or service. Also, co-branding can be seen as a type of strategic alliance between two parties. Basically, the constituent brands can assist each other to achieve their objectives. Obviously, creating strategic alliances by engaging in co-branding has become increasingly popular across many industries. A successful co-branding strategy has the potential to achieve excellent synergy that capitalizes on the unique strengths of each contributing brand.
Co-branding is an increasingly popular technique for transferring the positive associations of one company’s product or brand to another. In other words, creating synergy with existing brands creates substantial potential benefits of various kinds. As Gaurav Doshi notes in a recent 2007 article, such synergy: (1) expands the customer base (more customers), (2) increases profitability (3) responds to the expressed and latent needs of customers through extended production lines), (4) strengthens competitive position through a
References: Riiber K. Trond, Lars Finskud, Richard Tornblom, and Egil Hogna, “Brand Consolidation Makes a Lot of Economic Sense: But Only One in Five Attempts Succeeds,” The McKinsey Quarterly, 4 (Autumn 1997): 189-195. Tom Daykin, “Miller, Coors to combine U.S. operations,” JSOnline, Oct. 9, 2007. Available at: http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=672364 The Journal of American Academy of Business, Cambridge * Vol. 15 * Num. 1 * September 2009 84 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.