Product Branding & Logos

I believe that product branding is one of the most important selling points that a company can use for its products. Often times a product's brand name can become so popular that it is used to describe the product. This is the case in Kleenex (instead of tissues), Q-Tip (cotton swab), and some other products as well. This gives these companies a huge market share and allows them to keep profits up through a successful marketing campaign in the past. Consumers are willing to pay more money for these brand names even though they may be no different than a generic brand or another company's identical product.

Brand marks and logos can also be very important in a company's success. I know that many successful companies have very recognizable logos, such as the McDonald's golden arches, the Nike swoosh, and Apple Computer's bitten apple. These logos have been around for a long time and represent success and a familiar sight that allows customers to know that they are purchasing a quality product. Many times on Nike clothes, shoes, equipment, etc, it will only show the swoosh and does not even say Nike on it. On the back of my iPod, it only contains Apple's bitten apple logo and does not say Apple anywhere on the back.

I believe that establishing a recognizable name and logo are crucial for a company's marketing success. The name should be easy to say and have an interesting logo that consumers will be able to notice as the company becomes more popular. Do you think that having a recognizable brand name and logo are important in a company's marketing success? Can you think of any other brand names that are used to describe a product (e.g. Kleenex)? Why do you think many people buy more expensive recognizable brand names?

In response to Kelcy's post...

In Kelcy's comical post, she posed the question:

I think that I would stick with a company, such as Vaseline, that has had a strong reputation and I know will work well. Although Butt-Paste is a brand name that describes exactly what the product will be used for, I don't think that it is a good brand name. This name could cause some controversy and even offend some people and may actually hurt their sales. Since both products are the same price, have the same ingredients, and work just as well, I would have to stick with a brand name that has a good name running.

In my post about product branding, I believe that having a good, catchy, easy-to-say brand name is key in how well the company performs in terms of sales and how easy it will be to market their product. Brand names like Vaseline and Chap-Stick are names that are widely used to describe the product (rather than petroleum jelly and lip balm). This shows that the company is reliable and has been around for a long time, which is why I would choose Vaseline over Butt-Paste and day of the week. Do you think that brand names actually play a role if the product is identical, has the same ingredients, and costs the same?