All people accept brands differently because of their subjective perception. Some brands are considered cool, some others – reliable, the third kind of brands – excessively advertised. It happens because we connect brands to the advertising, experiences of other people, sales statistics etc. In many cases, a brand image is formed due to our personal experience. We can compare the products we buy and associate their quality with the brand.
Marketing specialists say brand image consists of brand awareness and brand preference. It means that popular brands that produce best-selling goods always have a positive brand image. It can be measured by brand value, brand characteristics, and brand associations. Brand value is the satisfaction that brand gives to their consumers. Brand characteristics are how the brand describes itself. Brand associations emerge as we build the link between different brands and their products.
Consumer preference is the choice people make favoring any brand over their competitors. Numerous studies concentrate on how we make choices and what makes us prefer some things over the others. It appears that 90% of our choices are emotional or impulsive. Only some 10% are conscious decisions – these are the goods we buy repeatedly. Purchasing a product for the first time, we are most likely to be guided by its hype, brand popularity, or recommendations of other consumers.
A brand image has a great influence on customers’ decision-making. The picture drawn by the advertising is most persuasive to the target audience, and people often orient on the popularity and positive reputation of the brand in the market.