A Research Proposal

On

Brand Strategy & Consumer Choice: A Study on the Brand ‘Dove’

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 Table of Contents

Particulars Page No.

Introduction 03

Rationale of the Study 03

Research Question 04

Research Objectives 05

Literature Review 06

Research Philosophy 10

Research Design & Methodology 11

Research Techniques: Data Collection and Others 14

Data Analysis 16

Limitations 17

Strategies to Overcome Barriers 17

Suggestion for Further Study 18

References 19

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Introduction:

Operational brand management strategies are crucially desirable for a long run
accomplishment of a business particularly in the circumstance of competitive
environment. Before developing as well as implementing these approaches it is very
significant to evaluate the current situation of company’s brand that where we are. This
existing position of a company’s brand can be measured through brand fairness. Brand
fairness is the gathering of assets and accountabilities of a brand, linked to the brand
uniqueness that displays the additional value in the mind of end user that enterprise had
earned from the historical performance of its brand (Aaker, 1991). So, when a firm
considers brand strategy it should focus on assets and accountabilities of a particular
brand.

Rationale of the Study:

The research will try to uncover the factors which relate brand strategy with customer
choice. And it is based on the examination of the fact that, how branding strategy is
helping in determining the action of consumers to choose a product or service or in what
extent branding strategy influences consumer choice. The research will also focus on the
particular brand – ‘Dove’ concerning customer choices. These will be much clearer in the
objective part and it will provide an over view of the research. And, of course the
research will be held on England perspective. It will be conducted on the senior
employees of ‘Unilever’ who have something to do with determining the branding
strategy of the particular brand ‘Dove’ and the consumers of this brand. After completing
this we will get an idea that in what extent branding strategy contributes to regulate the
mode of action in case of customer choice.

Research Question:
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Core Question:

Does branding strategy for the brand ‘Dove’ influence the product choice of consumers?

Sub – Questions:

 Is branding strategy influencing customer choice positively or negatively?

 What are the factors related with this process?

 How does branding strategy work from the consumers’ point of view?

 In what extent it is affecting consumers’ product choice?

 What measures should be taken to influence the consumers’ product choice

positively?

 What principle will be followed for media planning, public relation and
organizing brand management in case of the brand ‘Dove’?

Research Objectives:

To find out the relationship between branding strategy and consumer product choice.
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Sub – Objectives:

 Finding out the factors both individual and environmental which makes branding
strategy influential for consumer product choice.

 Focus on the extent to which branding strategy influences consumer choice.

 Identifying the aspects in which companies need to focus to influence consumers

positively.

 To examine branding strategy from consumers’ point of view.

 To overcome the lacking of branding strategy and make it effective to determine

consumers’ product choice.

Literature Review:

Scholars mentioned about brand past which states us how the publics have used the brand
as a sign of identification. In the previous times the brand was used to distinguish the
goods of one manufacturer to others (Hasan, 2008). The antiquity of branding drives back
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while people used burned mark on livestock in order to recognize the quality. Branding
ideas have been utilized for periods everywhere the world in diverse forms (Hill, &
Jones, 2009).

Brands play dynamic part in the result making procedures of the consumer. It is
imperative for businesses to find out consumer’s decision course and identify the
principles, which consumers relate while constructing decision. How brand titles
influence the consumer buying decision? Why consumers purchase a certain brand also
infers how consumers select what to buy. Consumers follow the arrangement of phases in
decision course to purchase a particular product.
They start understanding a necessity of product, get info, recognize & assess alternative
products then finally choose to buy a product from a particular brand. When consumers
buy certain brand regularly, he or she usages his or her previous knowledge about that
brand manufactured goods concerning performance, excellence and visual appeal (Pars &
Gulsel, 2011a).

Experts suggest that, in today’s commercial environment, businesses must make effort
firmer than ever earlier to attain some amount of difference in their goods. Many
businesses have required accomplishing this difference by branding their goods, simply
placing the company’s name on merchandise. The market is swamped with new as well
as old brands besides concentration of brand conflict is growing gradually. The
admiration of a brand is an instrument for existence and achievement of business in the
marketplace. In this respect businesses offer diverse packages to consumers with the use
of altered resource weaponries in this rivalry war for raising consciousness among the
consumers about the branded merchandise (Rosen & Olshavsky, 1987a).

It is thought that branding or else re-branding, through a new tag otherwise logo does not
originate cheap and should consequently be held with highest care and accuracy lest it
sums to a entire waste of money as well as other resources. Lead Edge (2005) declares,
based on the outcome of its study that the worth of a robust brand lies in the reaction left
with everyone who comes into interaction with the business. They additional opined that
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the maximum persuasive reasons for operative branding is to attain customer loyalty and
care a premium price since buyers rely on knowledge and their long thought outlooks
about a brand; besides that effective brands are frequently concentrated on one particular
market section. For a new authority, a most operative branding, involves an unforgettable
name plus an ever-present slogan united with an instantly identifiable and exclusive logo.
It suggested a simple and logical forward logo or else possibly, a rich design of an idea.

Some scholars talked about brand image. Brand image can be separate as the gist that the
consumers recognize with the merchandise or as the amount of their accepting of the
merchandise. Brand image is the outcome of feelings of consumers grown from
numerous bases about the brand. Several issues such as trying out the branded
manufactured goods, the producer's reputation, product packing, brand name, the
advertisement arrangement used as well as its content plus the sort of mass media
wherever the advertisement is accessible are amongst these sources. Brand image is
understood as the amount of the expressive and visual impressions which occur in the
users about the product. Many features such as whatever that the brand recaps, what it
suggests in the sense of the consumer besides the buying manners of the end user must be
considered with in order to define the brand image (Lombard, 2007a).

Consumers’ choice making decision is also determined by brand image. Brand image acts
in the thoughts of the consumer through views of brand that arise by means of the brand
suggestions reserved in memory. In addition to that, Brand image is the total of views
concerning the brand plus it may comprise basics such as product uniqueness, feelings, as
well as mind associations. Brand image is the quantity of elements totaling meaning
besides worth the brand. Consumers assess products as well as brands relating with the
image they shaped and they buy the image, not the merchandise. Product qualities and
assistances that it delivers can be measured as very significant issues for a branded
merchandise to ensure an image (Lombard, 2007b). Brand must suggest positive brand
qualities, assistances, company morals, character, and users in the minds of buyers for
formation of a robust brand image. In total, assimilation of the brand image using
commercial image is also essential for a brand image to be operational. Thus considering
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all these aspects and planning thereby if branding strategy is applied then it can be
expected that it will be proven to be influential to make the consumers choose a particular
product.

Daye, VanAuken and Asacker (2008) recognized color as a serious part in developing a
branding policy. They pronounced that a business necessity to be intelligent in bearing in
mind what they named the consciousness of color while designing their advertising
materials. These authors stated that colors not only improves the presence of the element
they also effect consumer behavior. They more said that the color of brand may mark or
ruin branding strategy whereas pointing out that result of colors varies; from nation to
nation. Some other researchers mention that firms should somewhat concentrate on
taking a brand collection which typically refers to the firms set of linked brands and/or
goods. According to them, the old-style logic after having a collection of brands than a
particular brand has been potential diversification as well as risk minimization. However
it is also advised that the existences of a firm taking one principal star brand plus others
of low quality simply ensuing have gone. There are three split methods to developing an
operative branding strategy specifically, determine which spectators to emphasis on, fix
what message brand should carry and lastly, determine what makes the brand. Further it
is opined that a brand need to have a strong audience attention, value emphasis and tone-
of-voice emphasis with which to convey its well-honed note.

In today's concentrated competitive situation, business’s purposes must not merely meet
consumers' expectations, but also surpass these expectations so as to stay alive in the
market plus companies must create trustworthy consumers by giving self-assurance to
them. So, companies’ purposes can reach these goals through branding (Pars & Gulsel,
2011b). Different strategies can serve this purpose. And strategies can be possibly hybrid
(Rosen & Olshavsky, 1987b). Mr. Eric and Mr. Tamar argued that brand strategy should
be based on economic metrics to be effective (Almquist & Dor-Ner, 2012). Sometimes
customers can be uninterested about a product or service for branding it by the store
name (EuroCommerce, 2010). Scholars say that consumer perception can be said as the

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image of a particular brand. To some extent it can differ from the physical aspect of the
product (Lombard, 2007c).

Research Philosophy:

Selection of subject:

In my judgment, of all subjects Consumer Behavior is the most fascinating since

understanding consumer behavior is crucial to succeed in today’s ever-growing
competition among businesses across the world. Partaking in the study of Consumer
Behavior, the limit of my awareness about consumer behavior will be widened and
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together I am immensely willing to do research on Consumer Behavior. The purpose I
chose the subject is mostly because it is directly connected to consumer behavior.
Consumers favor one brand above another, generally because of their behavior as well as
attitude to the merchandise and so forth.

Other aspects:

The key sources of my info for this work are books, writings as well as the database for
research articles from online. I will try my best to apply recent info in my study, since
recently available info is most dependable, authentic plus trustworthy. I realize branding
and consumer behavior are the arenas that gets modernized continuously.

In my view, the writings I have got and used in my study as a reference are reliable since
it has been written by specialists and well-known people in the arena of marketing. These
philosophies, books as well as articles, are recognized in whole of the educational world
plus are widely used as a reference. Furthermore many marketing executives and
investigators apply these philosophies as a marketing instrument. Consequently I can
trust this info as dependable to be used in my study.

Research Design & Methodology:

Nature of the Research : Descriptive Type.

Population : All the consumers of the brand ‘Dove’ in England.
Sample Size : 50 employees of Unilever and 300 consumers of the
particular brand ‘Dove’.
Sample Technique : Non Probability Sampling (Convenient Sampling)
Sources of Data : Primary (secondary to some extent).
Technique of collecting Data : Unstructured interview, Survey using 5 (five) point
Likert scale.
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 Data Analysis : Qualitative analysis as well as statistical analysis will
be performed through analyzing Percentage, Mean,
Standard Deviation, Coefficient of Variation,
Correlation and Regression using SPSS software.

Methods in detail:

Research Design
The study is based on the brand strategy and its influence on consumer choice of the
product. Research can be three types – Exploratory, Causal and Descriptive. Exploratory
research only explores the fact; causal research is conducted to find out the cause of a
particular phenomenon. And descriptive study describes a matter. So, it is not a causal or
exploratory study rather it is a descriptive research.

Population
Here the population will be consumers of the products bearing the brand ‘Dove’.

Sampling design
It is said that a drop of blood is a perfect sample to judge a human body. Studies will
show the appropriate result if the sampling is appropriate. ‘Dove’ is a product brand
under the mother company ‘Unilever’. The study will be conducted on the 50 senior
employees of ‘Unilever’ who have something to do with determining the branding
strategy of the particular brand ‘Dove’ and 300 the consumers of this brand in England.

Questionnaire Design
My planned questionnaire is very adjacent to the context of my study, which I need to
know through this study about consumer decision, consumer behavior, brand loyalty,
brand attentiveness, brand quality, brand name and customer experience, social class
price strategy etc. in relation with the branding strategy set by the management. My
questionnaire will focus on the issues like – Brand Name and Influence on Consumer
Choice, Brand Mark and Influence on Consumer Choice, Consumer Belief that their
Choice Brand is superior in Quality than Others, Consumers Ability to Identify Their
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Choice Brand, Consumer Ranking of the Dissimilar Elements of Branding as they Affect
their Choice, Wrapping and Influence on Consumer Choice etc.

Expected Result:

Based on the past studies it can be said that the research may show there is a positive
relationship between a good branding strategy and consumer choice of the produce. And
brand sign, color, etc. plays an important role to determine the course of action of
consumers in choosing a product.

Research Techniques: Data Collection and Others:

Qualitative Vs. Quantitative Approaches:

There are two types of approaches that scholars can employ when gathering information
for a study. These are known as qualitative and quantitative approaches. The cause of
qualitative research is to see what is in a consumer’s thoughts. It can be completed to
access and take an irregular idea about customer’s viewpoint. It helps the scholar to be
focused on to the diversity and complication of consumer’s doings and anxiety. The
Qualitative statistics is composed for various motives. It is very useful to know effects
which scholars can discover through Qualitative data analysis. Academics can straightly

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measure practical stuffs which are unmanageable otherwise, similar to respondents
emotion about particular product or brand, views, intensions and behavior.

The quantitative data investigation similarly plays a significant role in the study, this is
principal method used mostly in economics and business. The quantitative statistics is
used very commonly in study and now it has developed a significant share in research
analysis.
Quantitative research is largely employed as a substitute for any data analysis assembly
technique for instance questionnaire, data analysis formed through statistics and graphs.
The quantitative data states to all sort of such data that can be utilized for all type of
research policies for the products.

Data Collection Techniques for this Study:

 For Qualitative Data: Data will be collected through unstructured interviews both
from Unilever employees and from the consumers of the particular brand ‘Dove’.

 For Quantitative Data: Quantitative data will be collected through a structured

questionnaire using five point likert scales. And as it is mentioned earlier that this
questionnaire will be constructed focusing Brand Name and Influence on Consumer
Choice, Brand Mark and Influence on Consumer Choice, Consumer Belief that their
Choice Brand is superior in Quality than Others, Consumers Ability to Identify Their
Choice Brand, Consumer Ranking of the Dissimilar Elements of Branding as they
Affect their Choice, Wrapping and Influence on Consumer Choice etc.

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Data Analysis:

Qualitative Data Analysis:

It is some types tough to analyze qualitative data. Here this type of data will be analyzed
based on common sense, perception and previous experience. Assistance from the expert
may be required in this regard for getting the more appropriate result.

Quantitative Data Analysis:

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It has been mentioned earlier that quantitative data will be analyzed through using SPSS
software. For this different statistical method will be applied. Here a brief description of
these methods is presented –

Percentage: It is a simple method; this is mainly the percentage of total respondents who
give their consent on a particular fact or question and the consent goes to a certain
direction. For instance, regarding ‘Brand Mark and Influence on Consumer Choice’ 30%
(thirty percent) of the total respondents react positively.

Mean: It is simply the average of the answer given by the respondents on a particular
question.

Standard Deviation: This is a tool which measures that in what extent respondents’
answer can deviate from the mean or average answer.

Coefficient of Variation: It is a used to compare the variability of the response of the

respondents. It is calculated like this –
(St. Deviation/ Mean)*100

Correlation: It studies the relationship between two or more variable.

Regression: Using this statistical tool average probable change of one variable in respect
of certain portion change of another variable can be measured.

(Gupta & Gupta, 2007)

Limitations:
 It is said that qualitative judgment is difficult than quantitative judgment. In case of
quantitative judgment there are available statistical tool. This is so true in case of a
research. This might me a limitation for this study.

 Experience does matter. As a student I have not that much experienced as a

professional researcher. So, lack of experience can be a limitation for this research
and this may be reflected on the outcome of the study.

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 This study is done only based on England perspective. As the research is conducted
on a particular area, the outcome of the research may be biased and it will not focus
on the world’s situation as a whole.

Strategies to Overcome Barriers:

 To overcome the limitation come from qualitative judgment there is something which
can be a good strategy. To judge or derive conclusion from the collected qualitative
data, assistance from the expert or experienced individual can be posed as effective.

 Limitation arisen from lack of experience can also be overcome with the help of
experienced individuals or experts. This can be a fruitful strategy.

 As it is mentioned earlier the research is conducted based on certain environment thus

it could be partly biased. So, to overcome this limitation the sample should be
diversified. In case of consumers the respondents can be selected from different class
of people who have different outlook and philosophy on life.

Suggestion for Further Study:

The existing study is based on the particular brand ‘Dove’ and from England perspective.
Consequently, the outcome cannot be generalized for other parts of the world as the result
may from nation to nation since some other factors are there like – culture and so on. I think
more research can be conducted on a huge scale with big sample size and not only with the
brand ‘Dove”, but also covering other well-known brands and other products or in other areas
of the world focusing on branding strategy and consumer choice of the product.

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Some interesting evidences are found in past studies, amongst them one is that recognized
brand name is more popular than the unfamiliar brands. Individuals have a great
responsiveness about the well-known brand. Common of customers desire to buy a renowned
brand product. Thus customers do not need to take any risk to buy unfamiliar brands. Though
study displays that publics’ first inclination is to buy a branded products however I cannot
relate this result to other studies. Additional study can be rendered in this part for finding the
wide responses that this outcome can be applied for all other studies.

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Daye, D., VanAuken, B., & Asacker, T. (2008). Color Psychology in Marketing. [online]
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[accessed 29 December 2013]

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EuroCommerce (2010)Own Brands: Increasing Consumer Choice and Driving
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Pallister, J. & Issacs, A. (2004) Oxford Dictionary of Business. 3rd ed. Delhi: Oxford
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