BASIC MODEL OF COMMUNICATION

Over the years a basic model of communications has evolved that represents the various elements of the communications process. The elements of the model include: 

A. Source/Encoding—the sender or source of a communication is the person or organization who has information to share with another person or group. It should be noted that the source can be an individual (e.g., salesperson or hired spokesperson) or a nonpersonal entity such as the corporation or organization itself. The receivers’ perception of the source influences the manner in which the communication is received, interpreted and responded to. 

Encoding is the process of putting together thoughts, ideas and information into a symbolic form to communicate a message. The sender’s goal is to encode the message in such a manner so as to ensure that it will be understood by the receiver. 

B. Message—the encoding process leads to the development of a message that contains the information or meaning the source or sender hopes to convey. Messages can take a variety of forms and may include symbolic forms or signs. To better understand the symbolic meaning that might be conveyed in a communication, many advertisers have begun focusing attention on semiotics, which involves the study of the nature of meaning. From a semiotic perspective, every marketing message has three basic components: an object, a sign or symbol and an interpretant. The object is the product that is the focus of the message (e.g. Marlboro cigarettes). The sign is the sensory imagery that represents the intended meaning of the object (e.g., the Marlboro cowboy). The interpretant is the meaning derived (e.g., rugged, individualistic, American). 

The message must be put into a transmittable form that is appropriate for the channel of communication being used. Advertising messages range from simply written words or copy that will be read or heard as a radio message to the expensive production of elaborate television commercials with a great deal of visual impact and imagery. 

C. Channel—the channel is the method or medium by which the communication travels from source or sender to receiver. At the broadest level, channels of communication exist as two types: 

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• Personal Channels which involve direct interpersonal contact with target individuals or groups. For example a salesperson serves as a personal channel of communication when delivering a sales presentation. 

• Nonpersonal channels are those which carry a message without involving interpersonal contact between sender and receiver. These channels are often referred to as the mass media as messages transmitted through them are sent to many individuals at one time. The two major categories of nonpersonal channels are print and broadcast media. 

D. Receiver/Decoding—the receiver is the person(s) with whom the sender shares thoughts or information. Receivers are generally viewed as the consumers in the target audience targeted by the firm’s marketing and promotional program. Decoding is the process of transforming and interpreting the sender’s message back into thought and is heavily influenced by the receiver’s frame of reference or field of experience. Effective communication is more likely when common ground or shared meaning or understanding exists or has been established between the sender and receiver. 

E. Noise—throughout the communications process the message is subject to noise which refers to factors that can distort or interfere with adequate reception or comprehension. Noise can occur during the encoding, transmission, or decoding of a message. Noise can also occur because of a lack of common ground or understanding between the sender and receiver. 

F. Response/Feedback—response refers to the reaction the receiver has after seeing, hearing and/or reading the message. These responses can range from non-observable actions such as storing information in memory to taking immediate actions such as ordering a product seen in a direct response ad. Feedback is the part of the receiver’s response that is communicated back to the sender and takes a variety of forms. Feedback provides the sender with a way of monitoring how the message is being decoded and received by the target audience.

LAWS OF BRANDING

LAWS OF BRANDING

1.       The Law of Expansion

The power of a brand is inversely proportional to its scope.

When you put your brand name on everything, that name loses its power.

Brand hat means everything to everyone means nothing specific to anyone.

Reliance Investment, Reliance financial services, Reliance Telecom etc.

If one losses empact comes on everyone

2.       The Law of Contraction

A brand becomes stronger when you narrow its focus.

Focus on just one feature and uplift your brand on its basis.

3.       The Law of Publicity

The birth of a brand is usually accomplished with publicity, not advertising.

In the past, it may have been true that a beefy advertising budget was the key ingredient in the brand-building process. But what worked in the past doesn't Necessarily work today. We live in an over-communicated society, where each of us gets hit with hundreds of commercial

messages daily. Brands are born due to Publicity.

And how to generate publicity? The best way is to be first in category. For example

Rolex – First Expensive watch , Swatch – First Fashion Watch.

Diest coke etc

4.       The Law of Advertising

Once born, needs advertising to stay healthy.

Your advertising budget is like a country's defense budget. Those massive advertising dollars don't buy you anything; They just keep you from losing market share to competition.

Publicity is a powerful tool, but sooner or later a brand outlives its publicity potential. As the publicity dies out, brands will someday have to shift to massive advertising to defend their positions. First publicity, then advertising is the general rule.

5.       The Law of The Word

A brand should strive to own a word in the mind of the consumer.

If you want to build a brand, you must focus your branding efforts on owning a word in the prospect's mind. A word that nobody else owns.

Volvo – Safety,  Coke – Music,

6.       The Law of Credentials

The crucial ingredient to the success of any brand is its claim to authenticity.

Credentials are the collateral that you put up to guarantee the performance of your brand. When you have the right credentials, your prospect is likely to believe almost everything you say about your brand.

7.       The Law of Quality

Quality is important to have, but brands are not built by quality alone.

Quality or rather the perception of quality resides in the mind of the buyer. If you want to build a powerful brand, you have to build a powerful perception of quality in the mind.

As it happens, the best way to build a quality perception in the mind is by following the laws of brand building.

Take the law of contraction. What happens when you narrow the focus? You become a specialist rather than a generalist. And the specialist is always perceived to know more, in other words to have "higher quality" than a generalist.

An important aspect of brand building is having a better name. All other factors being equal, the brand with the better name will come out on top.

Another factor in building a high-quality perception is having a high price. Rolex, Haagen-Dazs, Mercedes-Benz, Montblanc and Absolut, are all brands that benefit from their high price.

There's nothing wrong with quality. We always advise our clients to build as much quality into their brands as they can afford. But don't count on quality alone to build your brand.

8.       The Law of The Category

A leading brand should promote the category not the brand.

The most efficient, most productive, most useful aspect of branding is creating a new category. In other words, narrowing the focus to nothing and starting something totally new. That's the way to become the first in a new category and ultimately the leading brand in a rapidly growing new segment of the market.

Citibank Credit Card- Creating Credit cards category

Mobilink – Creating Prepaid category

9.       The Law of The Name

In the long run a brand is nothing more than a name.

The most important branding decision you will ever make is what to name your product or service. Because in the long run a brand is nothing more than a name.

In the short term, a brand needs a unique idea or concept to survive. It needs to be first in a new category. It needs to own a word in the mind.

But in the long term, the unique idea or concept disappears. All that is left is the difference between your brand name and the brand name of your competitors.

Pampers Vs any other diaper

10.   The Law of Extensions

The easiest way to destroy a brand is to put its name on everything.

11.   The Law of Fellowship

In order to build the category, a brand should welcome other brands.

Customers respond to competition because choice is seen as a major benefit. If there is no choice, customers are suspicious. Maybe the category has some flaws? Maybe the price is too high? Who wants to buy a brand if you don't have another brand to compare it with?

Competition creates point of differences in brands which results in sales and loyalty in longterm.

12. The Law of The Generic

One of the fastest routes to failure is giving a brand a generic name.

The problem with a generic brand name is its inability to differentiate the brand from the competition.

13.   The Law of The Company

Brands are brands. Companies are companies. There is a difference.

A company is the organization that manufactures or produces the brand. It is not the brand itself. Microsoft isn't Word, Procter & Gamble isn't Tide. Microsoft produces many products one of which is Word. Procter & Gamble produces many products one of which is Tide.

It's not a cola made by the Coca-Cola Company. The cola itself is Coca-Cola, the real thing. This distinction is at the heart of an effective branding strategy

The brand itself should be the focus of your attention. If you have to use the company name, use it. But do so in a decidedly secondary way.

14.   The Law of The Subbrands

What branding builds, subbranding may destroy.

Dettol antibacterial soap Vs Dettol beauty soap

In particular, corporate management should keep the following principles in mind when selecting a sibling strategy

1. Focus on a common product area.
2. Select a single attribute to segment. Price is the most common, but other attributes include distribution, age, calories, flavors.
3. Create different, not similar brand names. You don't want to create a family of brands, you want to create a family of different brands.
4. Launch a new sibling only when you can create a new category.
5. Keep control of the sibling family at the highest level.

15.   The Law of Shape

A brand's logotype should be designed to fit the eyes. Both eyes.

A logotype is a combination of a trademark which is the visual symbol of the brand and the name of the brand set in distinctive type.

16.   The Law of Color

A brand should use a color that is the opposite of its major competitor.

Another way to make a brand distinctive is with color. But keep in mind that all colors are not created equal in the eye of the beholder.

17.   The Law of Borders

There are no barriers to global branding. A brand should know no borders.

The best way to grow your business is to build a global brand. Pizza hut offering different flavours to suite different cultures.

18.   The Law of Consistency

A brand is not built overnight. Success is measured in decades, not years.

19.   The Law of Change

Brands can be changed, but only infrequently and only very carefully.

But changing a brand does not occur inside a company. It occurs inside the mind of the consumer. If you want to change your brand, keep your sights on your target, the consumer's mind.

21.  The Law of Mortality

        No brand will live forever. Euthanasia is often the best solution.

Don't fight it. For brands, like people, there is a time to live and a time to die. There is a time to  invest in a brand and there is a time to harvest a brand. And ultimately there is a time to put the brand to sleep. Spend your money on the next generation. Save the money spent to prolong an old brand's life and invest it in a new brand with a future.

        22. The Law of Singularity
               The most important aspect of a brand is its single-mindedness.

What's a brand? A proper word that can be used in place of a common word.