IBM Brand
Table of Contents
Branding: Case study of IBM brand
i.Introduction
ii.IBM Brand type
iii.IBM branding strategies
iv.IBM Brand Positioning
v.IBM Brand Image
vi.IBM Brand Identity
vii.IBM Brand Awareness
viii.IBM Brand Loyalty
ix.Conclusion
References
Branding: Case study of IBM brand
Introduction
International Business Machine well known as IBM has operated since the 19th century, and it originates from the United States of America with headquarters based in Armonk, New York. The company is currently top 3 in the computer technology sector after Google and Microsoft according to a brand ranking report by Brand ValueTM (2015). IBM was founded in 1911 and started as a producer of meat slicers and censor tabulators IBM has tremendously grown and is currently worth $100 billion (Brand ValueTM, 2015). The company is mainly involved in the manufacture of computer hardware and software and has expanded to provide infrastructure, IT consulting services and hosting amenities. IBM is also well known to be the world’s largest provider of computer and system instigators.
Additionally, IBM has 12 research laboratories and over 400,000 employees and workers globally (IBM, 2015). Notably, a brand is a design, emblem, mark, character, logo or image of a product, organization, individual, service, person or geography. A brand differentiates one product from the competitors in the market. Branding is the processes, activities and strategies or tactics used in differentiating the brand from another. A product may be well known to customers in the market while the organization is not famous. This report discusses the types and elements of branding that IBM uses to lure its customers.
IBM Brand type
A company may decide to build its brand by manufacturing products while it may also decide to own a brand as a distributor. Own-label brands are created and made by organisations or businesses that operate in the distribution channel and are mostly referred to as distributors (wholesalers and retailers). Therefore from the above review, I opine that IBM’s brand type can be classified as either manufacturer, organization, product and service brand. This is because IBM is involved in the manufacturing of computer hardware and software. For example SPSS, IMS, Lotus, etc. SPSS, Lotus and IMS are commonly used and preferred software in the market. IBM also provides services such as hosting, IT consulting and after sale services.
IBM branding strategies
The main strategy that IBM has adopted is the Smarter Planet Strategy, which allowed decentralization of activities in the various IBM branches in different states. The states were allowed to create their marketing, public relations and communication to localize the processes and thus met the needs of the market. The Smarter Planet strategy not only focused on localization but also encouraged global and international market interaction, influence, and planning as Ivy (2009) points out. The branches were to ensure that their plans are within the global and international standards. This strategy changed the pathway and history of IBM. IBM is also well known …
