BRANDING

History of Branding

According to the American Marketing Association (AMA), a brand is a “name, term, sign,
symbol, design, or a combination of them, intended to identify the goods and services of one
seller or group of sellers and to differentiate them from those of competition.” The word "brand"
is derived from the Old Norse brandr, meaning "to burn". It refers to the practice of producers
burning their mark (or brand) onto their products.

Although connected with the history of trademarks, brands in the field of mass-marketing
originated in the 19th century with the advent of packaged goods. Industrialization moved the
production of many household items, such as soap, from local communities to centralized
factories. It quickly became apparent that a generic package of soap had difficulty competing
with familiar, local products. The packaged goods manufacturers needed to convince the market
that the public could place just as much trust in the non-local product.

The industrialization that followed brought an extraordinary wave of life-changing innovation,

introducing new products like the car, the vacuum cleaner, and the electric iron. At this point, it
was widely believed that good products sold themselves and advertising’s primary role was to
make sure everyone knew the product existed. Regardless, some of the earliest brand names were
given to soaps. Its manufacturers pioneered market research; the first TV ads were of soap; soap
operas, tales of domestic melodrama, were so named because they were often sponsored by soap
companies. In addition to soaps, Campbell soup, Coca-Cola, Juicy Fruit gum, Aunt Jemima, and
Quaker Oats were among the first products to be 'branded', to increase the consumer's familiarity
with their products.

Factories established during the Industrial Revolution introduced mass-produced goods and
needed to sell their products to a wider market, to customers previously familiar only with
locally produced goods. When shipping their items, the factories would literally brand their
insignia on the barrels used, extending the meaning of "brand" to that of trademark and was
largely limited to the use of logos.

Bass & Company, the British brewery, claims their red triangle brand was the world's first
trademark. Lyle’s Golden Syrup makes a similar claim, having been named as Britain's oldest
brand, with its green and gold packaging almost unchanged since 1885. Cattle were branded long
before this; the term "maverick", originally meaning an unbranded calf, comes from Texas
rancher Samuel Augustus Maverick who, following the American Civil War, decided that since
all other cattle were branded, his would be identified by having no markings at all. Even the
signatures on paintings of famous artists like Leonardo Da Vinci can be viewed as an early
branding tool.

Around 1900, James Walter Thompson published a house ad explaining trademark advertising.
This was an early commercial explanation of what we now know as branding. Companies soon
adopted slogans, mascots, and jingles that began to appear on radio and early television. By the

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1940s, manufacturers began to recognize the way in which consumers were developing
relationships with their brands in a social/psychological/anthropological sense.

The proliferation of consumer goods in post-war USA brought an explosion in consumer choice,
but with only incremental innovation. It led to the need to differentiate products, and the focus of
branding shifted again, to the communication of superior features, unique ingredients, and their
functional benefits. But as real product differences increasingly diminished, companies started to
shift their focus from what a product could do towards how a brand made the consumer feel
(emotional benefits), attempting to build emotional bonds with customers primarily through
advertising. This sparked a creative revolution in advertising which itself became synonymous
with branding.

From there, manufacturers quickly learned to build their brand's identity and personality, such as
youthfulness, fun or luxury. This began the practice we now know as "branding", where the
consumers buy "the brand" instead of the product. The trend continued to the 1980s and is now
quantified in concepts such as brand value and brand equity. Naomi Klein has described this
development as "brand equity mania". In 1988, for example, Philip Morris purchased Kraft for
six times what the company was worth on paper; it was felt that what they really purchased was
its brand name.

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Branding in the 21st Century

“In the 21st century, branding will ultimately be the only unique differentiator between
companies. Brand equity is now a key asset.”
- Fortune Magazine

Branding is today seen as one of the most important aspect of a business strategy and hence, is
said to me a key tool from the perspective of maintaining competitive advantage in a crowded
marketplace.

The Brand Resonance Pyramid by Kevin Keller explains that the competitive advantage through
branding starts building with brand salience which incorporates both the level of brand
awareness that consumers have as well as the facility of brand recall they exhibit. Brands are said
to serve multiple purposes for consumers varying cognitive and informational to psychological,
emotional and ego expressive. This dual perspective is captured in the brand resonance pyramid
which explains that brands are successful in achieving resonance with consumers by building
functional brand knowledge that generates evaluative judgements of quality and/or curating
imagery through which they can generate and emotional response from the consumer. Hence,
brands that can achieve resonance earn a special place in the lives of the consumers as well as in
their consumption routines. They are also likely to enjoy higher levels of brand loyalty and
stronger consumer brand relationships1.

A time of fierce, cutthroat competition prevails amongst brands today. A consumer typically
remembers two to three names whenever he thinks about a particular category and the rest
become part of a huge crowd (phenomenon known as product laddering). In the black cola
category, Pepsi and Coke are dominant, in the instant noodles’ category, Maggi and Knorr, in the
packaged milk category, Milkpak and Olpers, in the hygiene soap category, Safeguard and
Lifebuoy, in the recipe masala category, Shan and National, in the luxury car category, Toyota
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Understanding Brands – Harvard Business School
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and Honda, in the washing powder category, Surf and Ariel. These examples go on to illustrate
one of the 22 laws of Marketing by Al Raies called the Law of Duality which states that in the
long run, every market becomes a two-horse race.

However, at the same time there are product categories where only one brand is remembered and
consumed. Qarshi’s Johar Joshanda and Dettol’s antiseptic liquid are cases in point. And then
there are several other categories where one would remember more than two brands as popular.
Cooking Oil category has several brands that are popular with the market - Dalda, Habib, Soya
Supreme, Eva and Meezan to name a few. So, what is the reason behind such varied form of
competition? One of the several reasons can be lower barriers to entry and hence more brands
being launched from different companies. But do all these brands in the cooking oil industry
have differentiated positioning? The answer is no. Most brands are overlapping with each other
and are majorly selling on the same proposition. Consequently, several housewives from the
urban settings now choose their brand based on price and not the value promised by the brand.
Accordingly, a brand turns out to be more of a commodity and less of a brand. Similar is the
situation with the telecom sector in Pakistan.

What should then a brand be doing? Ideally speaking, a brand is a lot more than just the tangible
aspect. It is the experience or the feel-good factor that a brand lends to its user that commands
lifetime brand loyalty. Most people understand a brand to be a name, color, logo, etc. but those
are only the elements of branding. Nike says “Our identity is more than a swoosh splashed on a
product. Our identity is the relationship we have with the world we touch.” A brand is a single
idea, a promise that the product aims to fulfill for its consumers. The ambition behind any brand
is to become a household name. A subsequent requirement that flows from this ambition is the
ability to innovate.

From the perspective of innovation, brands have also started experimenting with the context that
they are featured in on the Internet. With technology growing at a rapid pace, it is likely that the
Internet will begin to become accessible to everyone from almost anywhere and hence, its
expansion is likely to change the way marketers interact with consumers2. Studies suggest that it
will destabilize the four Ps of traditional marketing however, the marketing goal will remain the
same i.e., to deliver the right product to the right customer at the right time. Contextual
marketing, in relevance to this, creates opportunities for companies that are unable to form
ongoing digital relationships such as single product companies and infrequent service providers.
An example of Johnson & Johnsons clearly explains the application of contextual marketing:
Accepting that it was unlikely to develop a meaningful dialogue with most of the consumers
regarding headache remedies such healthcare product manufacturers have decided not to invest
much on a website alone. Instead, the focus upon placing their product in most fruitful digital
context possible. Banner ads for J&J’s Tylenol headache reliever was shown on the e-broker
websites when the stock market fell by more than 100 points. Hence, J&J capitalizes on this
marketing opportunity at the best time possible.

Several brands in Pakistan confuse innovation with imitation. In most MNCs, successful brand
strategies that are cleverly designed for the developed countries are foolishly implemented in our
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Contextual Marketing: The Real Business of the Internet – David Kenny & John F. Marshall (Harvard Business
Review)
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country, rendering the brand irrelevant. As far as local companies are concerned, the strategy is
to pursue a tried and tested formula and join the rat race. Therefore, if the mineral water business
shows promise, then Sufi launches Sufi Mineral Water, Naurus launches Naurus Juices and so
on.
It is important to have differentiated relevance - the ability of a brand to be perceived as
distinct, unique, and superior to competition while remaining relevant to the market it serves.
That to some extent explains why consumers distinctly remember only two brands in a product
category while the rest lose their significance over time. On the other hand, some brands become
so popular in the market with their concept of differentiated relevance that they end up as generic
names. Pampers for example is the only brand name remembered in the disposable diaper
category. It has become so synonymous with the generic word diaper that consumers invariably
refer to any X, Y, Z brand as Pampers!

While marketers continuously strive to come up with distinctive propositions based upon
breakthrough ideas, it is important to note that most successful ideas or brands are those that are
simple. Simple ideas tend to resonate better with the target market because they mean relevance
and easy adoption.

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The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding – Al Ries & Laura Ries

A few specific laws, to dominate a category and build a formidable brand - whether your product
is sold in malls or on the Internet, have been focused here out of the 22 ones explained in this
book:

1. Law of Name - 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. In the long term, the unique idea or concept
disappears. All that is left is the difference between your brand name and the brand names of
your competitors.
Example: Xerox was the first plain-paper copier. This unique idea built the powerful Xerox
brand in the mind. The difference between brands is not in the products, but in the product
names. Or rather the perception of the names. The most valuable asset of the Xerox Corporation
is the Xerox name itself.
Although the success of many popular brand names can be retro- rationalized, there does not
seem to be a fixed formula or science to churning out successful names. Some say that names
should be short and sweet, but that theory was blown out of the water by breakthrough brands
such as ‘I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter’ and ‘Gee, Your Hair Smells Terrific!’, which spawned
their own legion of copycats. Even names like ‘Standard Chartered’, ‘Harley Davidson’, and
‘Bang & Olfsen’ are heavy on the syllables, proving that simplicity and brevity are not
necessarily requisites for successful names. If that were the case, everyone would be opting for
cryptic acronyms such as ‘IBM’, ‘BMW’, or ‘DHL’. Yet many brands prefer their lengthy
monikers, opting out of the more condensed abbreviations.
Another school of thought is to come up with names that are suggestive or contain some sort of
meaning. ‘Amazon’, for example, connotes the vastness of products, just as ‘Sprint’ suggests
speed. Some names use parts or combinations of existing words to exaggerate their meaning with
a twist. ‘Intel’ (from “integrated electronics”), ‘Mospel’ (“mosquito” and repellent”) to name a
few. But then, how do these compare with abstract brand names like ‘Apple’, ‘Lays’, or
‘Yahoo!’ which have nothing to do with their products, or with nonsensical names like ‘Google’,
‘Kodak’, or ‘Häagen Dazs’, all of which have no actual meaning? Even stranger, some names are
counterproductive. Take ‘Foodpanda’ for example. Who would want their food delivered by a
lazy, slow-moving vegetarian? Wouldn’t ‘Food Cheetah’ have been so much more appropriate?3
2. Law of Color - A brand should use a color that is the opposite of its major
competitor’s.
There are five basic colors: red, orange, yellow, green, and blue. Neutral colors are black, white,
and gray. It is best to stick to one of the five primary colors rather than a mixed or intermediate
color.
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Does the Brand Name Really Matter? Aurora – Dawn

http://aurora.dawn.com/news/1141698/does-the-brand-name-really-matter
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Red appears to move towards you, while blue is a more laid-back color. If you want to
communicate corporate stability, use blue. Red is more of a retail color and is used to attract
attention. White connotes purity. Black may communicate luxury. Blue is the color of leadership.
Purple means royalty. Green is the color of the environment and health. Do not select a color for
your brand identity based on mood alone. The best color is normally the one most symbolic of
the category. There is a powerful logic for selecting a color that is the opposite of your major
competitors. When you ignore this law of color, you do so at your own risk. Be the opposite.
Kodak is yellow, so Fuji is green.
3. Law of Expansion - The power of a brand is inversely proportional to its scope.
The emphasis in most companies is on the short term. Line extension, mega branding, variable
pricing, and a host of other sophisticated marketing techniques are being used to milk brands
rather than build them. Milking will bring in money in the short term, but in the long term it
wears down the brand until it no longer stands for anything.
Customers want brands that are narrow in scope and are distinguishable by a single word, the
shorter the better. If you want to build a powerful brand in the minds of consumers, you need to
contract your brand, not expand it. Expanding will diminish your power and weaken your image.
Take a look at Chevrolet, a company that used to be the leader in the automobile industry. It
expanded its brand into Corvette, Camaro, Caprice, Lumina, Malibu, Prizm, and so many other
brands. People do not exactly know what a Chevrolet is anymore. What happens when you
extend your product line into so many types? You steadily lose your market share.

4. Law of Contraction - A brand becomes stronger when you narrow its focus.

Focus is equal to narrow vision and product concept, do not extend the line just to create more
profit today, it will not survive tomorrow. Consistency is the key.

Narrowing the focus has resulted in big time success stories:

 Toys R’ Us narrowed the focus from the original Children’s Super mart concept carrying
kid’s clothing, children’s toys, baby food, and diapers down to a store that offered a
greater selection of toys.
 Subway specializes in the submarine sandwich.

To be the brand that rules your category, these are the five basic steps:
1. Narrow the focus.
2. Stock in depth.
3. Buy cheap.
4. Sell cheap.
5. Dominate the category.

5. The Law of Word - A brand should strive to own a word in the mind of the consumer.

Volvo owns the word “safety”. Mercedes owns the word “prestige”. BMW owns the word
“driving” and the idea of being fun to drive.

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Brand name and its associations that create a lasting effect and create meaning in the consumers’
mind. To get into the consumers mind you must sacrifice. You must reduce the essence of your
brand to a single thought or attribute – an attribute that nobody else owns in that category.

6. The Law of Category - A leading brand should promote the category, not the brand.

The way to become first in a new category and eventually be a market leader is to narrow your
focus and start something totally new.

 Launch the brand in such a way to create the perception that the brand is the first, the
leader, the pioneer, the original.
 Promote the new category.

Customers do not really care about new brands; they care about new categories. By first pre-
empting the category then aggressively promoting the category, you create both a powerful brand
and a rapidly escalating market.

The rightful share of a leading brand is never more than 50 percent. Do not fight with
competitive brands, fight against competitive categories.

Some examples from Services Industry in Pakistan include:

 Looking at the services industry in Pakistan, we see banks such as Alfalah, HBL as well as a
lot of insurance companies going through the re-branding phase and through their
communications trying to establish their brand identity.
 Bank Alfalah’s logo change is part of a rebranding exercise. The important thing is deciding
your brand proposition and then determining your vision, mission, and values accordingly.
This is how they started looking at it as well, because their brand proposition is all about ‘go
your way with Bank Alfalah’.

According to Mr. Aly Mustansir, CMO, Bank Alfalah4:

‘We have never chosen the easy path and we have done things our way and this is what we want
people to be able to do. Although we were alone on our journey, we want to help people who
want to do it so that it is less difficult. When we started talking about our identity and our
colours, we realised that we are young, and we are playing to our age. We do not sound old or
over the top authoritative; we are energetic and extremely passionate about how we impact
people.

So, the colour red came very naturally, and it helped us stand out in the sea of greens and blues
that are prevalent in the industry. Then we looked at our logo – and I will be honest, with brands
like ours it is very hard to create a new identity and leave the last one behind, so you choose the
evolutionary method of doing it. Our previous word mark was a bit odd in the sense that it had a
very colonial font for a bank that is seen both as a conventional and Islamic bank with a strong

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Bank AlFalah’s New Look – Aurora DAWN
http://aurora.dawn.com/news/1141061
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Middle Eastern association. So, we created a new script that is modern yet has touches of Arabic
typography and we chose an upper lower case which is a bit more informal and approachable.

The results of a brand health tracker for our previous campaigns had also come in and we did
not score very well on brand equity, and it seemed as if we were losing relevance with the
market. So, it is always advisable to hold your money on campaigns until you have decided on
your new branding’.

The Concept of Underdog Effect5

There are other several ways through which marketers build their brands. One of which is
through capitalizing on the underdog effect. This entails the concept that the brands portray
themselves through two narrative components: a disadvantaged position (they highlight the
company’s humble beginnings and portray it as being outgunned by bigger, better sourced
competitors) and a passion and determination to succeed against the odds. One of the studies
showed that the consumers are more likely to prefer underdog brands because they identify
themselves with its characteristics. However, not every brand can benefit from the underdog
story. Brands such as Rolls Royce capitalizes on its top-dog lineage whereas in case of hospitals,
this is likely to backfire as consumers can perceive their disadvantaged position negatively
affecting quality or safety.

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Capitalizing on the Underdog Effect – Anat Keinan, Jill Avery & Neeru Paharia (Harvard Business Review)
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Why do Brands Fail?

‘When brands don’t innovate, they die’ says Barratt6, in a 1907 interview, “Tastes change,
fashions change, and the advertiser has to change with them. An idea that was effective a
generation ago would fall flat, stale, and unprofitable if presented to the public today. Not that
the idea of today is always better than the older idea, but it is different – it hits the present
taste.” Even after having such progressive thinking, Pear’s is regarded as a tired brand along
with some others like Kodak and Barbie. Soap, a mass-produced block has been abandoned by
consumers for its liquid versions – shower gels, face washes, etc. The soap has been deemed
‘unhygienic.’ Hence, after years of staying ahead Pear’s soap failed to ‘fit the present taste.’

According to Al and Laura Ries, “Today most products are bought, not sold.” What this signifies
is that branding has the potential of winning customers even before the “try & buy” stage. In the
fiercely competitive world of today where most products are closely positioned, brands are built
on perceptions; a winning brand strives to involve consumers emotionally while remaining
relevant. Marketers are increasingly spending their budgets in measuring “Brand Enthusiasm” by
asking consumers “Is this a Brand that you would spend time with?”

If successful brands are those that not only build but maintain a long term emotional connect
with the target market, it is logical to believe that brand failures take place when something
happens to shake this bond. Consumers feel let down and end up disowning the brand altogether.
In case of new brand failures, the idea may never pick up with the target market or the brand life
cycle may be very short.

As consumers become better informed and intelligent value seekers, brand management becomes
an uphill task for marketers. Contrasting to the developed markets like Japan, the Pakistani
market is fairly simple, and the consumer is still very basic. While consumers in Japan force
marketers to design packaging such that the shampoo must dispense each time only in a given
required quantity, consumers in Pakistan are easy to satisfy and delight. Nonetheless, they hope
to derive both monetary and experiential value from brands. Hence, brands today are not
remembered because of what they say but because of the experiences involved with
consumption. Gone are the days when marketers could reap benefits from simply delivering on
the promise. Consumers today demand more than mere well performing tangible products. They
adopt brands that contribute to their self image and social status - hence the evolution of Brand
Play. Brand Play involves consumer engagement, giving customers a pleasurable and enjoyable
time with the brand. It builds affinity and memory. If a brand is able to win the battle for hearts
and minds, it can successfully charge a premium.

Given the popularity and usage of social media platforms, it is becoming increasingly important
for marketers to use these platforms as tools for engagement and collaboration. It is necessary
6
The man behind Pear’s Soap’s early promotional efforts, Thomas J Barratt, has often been referred to as ‘the
father of modern advertising.
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that the brands capitalize on the four fundamental qualities to benefit the most from the use of
social media7:

- Communicate clear and relevant customer promise.

- Build trust by delivering on that promise.
- Drive the market by continually improving the promise.
- Seek further advantage by innovating beyond the familiar: This primarily involves using
social media to gain potential insights.

In his book Brand Failures, Matt Haig indicates that perfectly good products can fail because of
bad branding. He further goes on to classify the different types of failures that various brands
have gone through. Some of these classifications can be easily applied to the Pakistani
environment also.

• Idea Failures:

Haig notes that “clever brand strategy cannot make customers buy a product they don't
want. Or at least, it can't make them buy it more than once. Even some of the world's
most successful brands have been guilty of introducing incredibly bad products.” Among
many other examples of idea failure from famous brands mentioned in the book, Pepsi’s
launch of Crystal Pepsi is worth reproducing here.

In 1992, Pepsi thought it had discovered a gap in the market which could be served by
launching its new, clear formula called Crystal Pepsi. Pepsi assumed that the new brand
was the answer to the ‘new consumer demand for purity.’ After an initial failure in the
market, the company withdrew the brand and reworked the formula. The product was re-
launched in the market in 1994, now as simply ‘Crystal’, however, it proved to be an
even bigger failure than the previous version. People had negative associations with the
previous form and Pepsi had to finally accept defeat.

‘Pur’, the water purification tablets launched in Pakistan by P&G was a similar idea
failure. PUR water sachet, an innovative product that promised to provide safe drinking
water by simply mixing it with a bucket of contaminated water, was a commercial failure
during pilot test. Although it met a clearly observed need, the market was not buying it.
Consumers were suspicious of new products that required them to change the way they
managed their lives.

• Brand Extension Failures:

According to the law of extensions from Al and Laura Ries, the easiest way to destroy a
brand is to put its name on everything. Studies in US show that 90% of all new products

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The One Thing You Must Get Right When Building a Brand – Patrick Barwise & Sean Meehan (Harvard Business
Review)
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 are extensions and 90% of them fail. The rationale behind brand extension is frequently
debated amongst experts, be they practitioners or academicians. The debate between the
followers of Classical and Modern Schools of Thought is an ongoing one. Several
examples of both successful and unsuccessful brand extensions can be quoted to prove
one’s standpoint; however, no general formula that can be given as recipe for success has
emerged from the endless discussion on the topic.

There are several positives of a brand extension strategy, ranging from taking advantage
of established credibility with customers, to distributors and retailers willing to carry and
stock the new product, to finally having multiple brands share the marketing expenses.
While the idea of leveraging equity of established brand to introduce a new product
seems a shorter route to expanding business and exploring greater avenues for growth, it
nonetheless, remains a risky proposition. In case of an extension failure, the devastating
effects go right back to the parent brand’s image.

Industry experts like Umair Naeem and Kashif Effendi support the idea of brand
extension but only when it is designed and executed carefully. Naeem believes that a
brand is a capital which must be invested wherever there is an opportunity and supports
his belief by giving the examples of successful extensions from English Boot House
(EBH) and Google. Initially a shoe store, EBH today is quite well known for its handbags
and leather accessories. Google on the other hand maintains a consistent visual and
organizational approach in all its extensions. According to him, the aptness of an
extension can be measured in the following three dimensions:

 Functional similarity: The new and the existing product should share the similar values.

 Resonating brand values and personality: The ethics and personality of the brand should
reflect in the new category.

 Organizational capabilities: The new brand shares resources and organizational strengths
with the existing brand.

Effendi believes that the success of an extension depends upon answering the following
questions:

 How close it is to the core category?

 How strong or weak the competition is in the extended category?

 What effects will the extension have on the original category?

Amongst many successful brand extensions that we have seen, Vaseline is worth
mentioning here. From petroleum jelly to foot lotion, the brand remains an impervious
choice of customers looking for better skin. Similarly, Olper’s extension into dessert
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cream also proved to be successful. There are however numerous examples of
unsuccessful brand extensions that have ended up in brands struggling for survival or
being withdrawn from the market. Haig gives the example of Procter & Gamble
overextending the Crest toothpaste brand, which at one point numbered over 52
different variations confusing the toothpaste buying public. Colgate, the prime competitor
capitalized on this weakness and launched Colgate Total, offering fluoride, tarter control,
and gum protection. As a result, Colgate was back on top of the market and eating into
Crest’s sales. What can be learned from Crest?

 Don't confuse the customer

 Don't offer too many products

 Remove product duplicates

 Be transparent i.e., make the customer's choice very clear

 Remember your heritage. Crest suffered from brand amnesia by failing to

replicate the success of its ‘Triumph Over Tartar’ campaign of the late 1950s.

Some of the failed brand extensions from Pakistan include Super Asia Motorcycles.
Super Asia - a brand name that is largely remembered in the market for its very
successful washing machines - could not enjoy similar success when it extended into an
unrelated category. Similar was the failure experienced by Dettol when it launched its
water purification tablets.

Dettol is a highly successful brand, clearly associated with hygiene with established
antiseptic characteristics. It enjoys a monopoly and blind trust of consumers and has
successfully extended its name to other product categories including soaps, liquid hand
washes, hand sanitizers, shower gel, all-purpose cleansers, and antibacterial wipes.
Knowing that most Pakistanis have one time, or another been affected with health
problems generated by water borne diseases, the gap in the market was identified on the
basis of a large population not having access to clean potable water. While the drinking
water needs of the higher end of the market had been catered to by numerous bottled
water brands, the same need for the middle-income segment remained un-served.

Dettol Water Purification Tablets were launched as an easy, economical solution to

consumers for safe drinking water. The product was simple to use, all a customer had to
do was put the tablet in pre-determined quantity of water, wait for a little while and
consume it. Two tablets were sufficient for a household’s daily water consumption.
However, the brand failed in the market.

Some of the reasons cited for the failure are as follows:

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  Product did not deliver on its promise of water purification. Consumers wanted to see
clarity in the water, but visibility of dust and lack of water transparency, post usage,
affected their belief on the product claim.
 Strong taste of chlorine which did not go very well with water.
 Dettol’s antiseptic association was for external use and to consume it with water
received a negative response.

Another recent example of a questionable brand extension is that of Tapal Iced Tea.
Industry experts believe that there is limited rationale behind extending into this category
as Tapal’s undertone has been very ‘desi’ and the brand is a leader in the ‘doodh pati’
category. There seems to be incongruence between the personality of the recently
launched Iced Tea and the original image of Tapal. The brand manager counters the
argument by saying that Tapal Iced Tea can be called both an extension as well as the
launch of a new brand. A further justification given is that Tapal has a history of
launching brands initially as extensions that over a period of time become strong brands
in themselves, e.g., Mezban, Mixture, Danedar. Whether it is a right move on Tapal’s
part or not is something that the market would decide over time. Experts say that the idea
is perfect, but a clear brand strategy is lacking, simply adding a logo to a product will not
make people want to buy it. A better approach would have been to develop a new
category with a younger image to launch Iced Tea. This category could be further
developed to include a range of ready-to-consume line. Nestle can be cited here as a
company carrying a corporate brand but with multiple independent brands like Fox
crystal fruits, Nido, Cerelac, After Eight chocolates, with independent identities.

Thus, brand extensions are viable in the following context8:

- Owning benefits or attributes: This implies that a brand may be needed to focus
and potentially own a functional benefit such as in the case of Head & Shoulders
which dominates the dandruff control shampoo category.

- Capturing a different personality: A brand may need to extend if it plans to cater

to customers with various personality and styles. This is common in the case of
restaurants and hotels where various chains vary from one another in terms of
their setting to cater to a different target audience.

- Representing an offering that creates a new subcategory: In case a new offering is

innovative and has the potential to change the market dynamics, it is essential that
they should be branded so that they can own a space such as in the case of Apple
iPod & Toyota’s Prius.

8
Prioritize Brands in the Portfolio – David A. Aaker (Harvard Business Press)
14
 - Resolving a channel conflict: Channel conflicts are likely to result in new brands.
This is a common case with fragrances and clothing brands which need different
brands to access upscale retailers, departmental stores, and drug stores. A very
prominent example of this is Loreal which has Lancome, Loreal and Maybelline
New York cosmetics each catering to different channels.

In addition to this, a research9 conducted by Silvia Bellezza countered the notion that is attached
with downward extension i.e., it tarnishes the brand. However, it was found that under certain
conditions, non-core customers are likely to intensify the brand’s prestige. This was explained
through the concept of brand tourism which as follow: Consider brands as countries. Influx of
immigrants is likely to generate a backlash among the citizens (the core customers) but in
contrast, the presence of tourists generally raises a country’s status. The research further suggests
ways a company can extend their brand without alienating their core customers. These include:

- Managing the extent to which the noncore consumers can claim membership of the brand
community.

- Differentiate core products and brand extensions by using special packaging or different
distribution channels.

• Public Relation Failures:

“It can be expected that brands will have at least one crisis in their lifespan. If a brand is
well known, its crisis can also be expected to make the headlines. If the company behind
the brand acts responsibly and sensitively, the crisis situation can normally be diffused.
However, if the company fails to do this, the public is unlikely to forgive” says Haig in
his book Brand Failures.

An interesting example given in the book is that of Pepsi. The brand faced criticism when
a syringe was discovered in a bottle. The crisis was handled by Pepsi sharing the exact
and true information to everyone in the company right down to the sales force.

Generally speaking, there are only two ways of handling a crisis situation, one is to
confront it and handle the matter with truth and the other is to avoid it by denying it.
There may be a third category whereby you may not completely agree or disagree with
the situation; this is where the company shifts the blame on a third party.

Many brands in Pakistan have suffered from PR failures. In the 1990s, Yummy ran a
huge public awareness campaign on TV, taking Pakistan’s one of the largest FMCGs to
task. Unilever was accused of deceptively calling its ice-cream brand Walls a dairy
product. Yummy showed Tahira Syed, a known Pakistani showbiz icon and a lawyer in
its ad, saying that a product can be called a dairy item only when it uses milk as an

9
How Brand Tourists Can Grow Sales – Silvia Bellezza & Anat Keinan (Harvard Business Review)
15
 ingredient. Walls, therefore, was not a dairy product, as it was made from vegetable oil.
The campaign pressurized Unilever to a large extent and the company had to change its
labeling as a result. Today Walls is categorized as a frozen dessert.

Market has seen some other Pakistani brands face rough PR times. Ajinomoto (Chinese
Salt, popularly used in Chinese dishes) and Pepsi’s Lays both were disowned by the
market for using pig fat as an ingredient. As a result, a number of cooking experts on
TV, started providing advices on how to prepare dishes without Ajinomoto. Lays, on the
other hand, hired Junaid Jamshed, a known celebrity, and a practicing Muslim, to endorse
that the product was completely ‘Halal’ and fit for a Muslim market.

• Culture Failures:

As the world becomes borderless, marketers look for expansion and growth opportunities
beyond their core market. Countries with similar culture as the home country are
generally seen as possible new areas of development to introduce a successful brand.
What is sometimes overlooked is the distinct nature of these markets resulting from their
cultural, religious, and social norms. A developing country with an immense
population base is usually misjudged as a lucrative market where successful global
brands can be introduced. Haig gives the example of Kellogg’s launch in India where the
cereal did not take off.

Liril, an immensely successful brand in India, faced an uphill task in Pakistan to

communicate its unique proposition. The target market was the youth, and the brand was
positioned along the freshness benefit, with lemon10 as the main ingredient. The on-air
campaign in India featured Preity Zinta – a famous Bollywood actress, feeling excited
and fresh in a waterfall. The commercial also had a very catchy jingle that registered
almost instantly with viewers. In Pakistan, due to censor policies, a similar copy could
not be produced. Local advertisers tried to communicate the same excitement and
freshness in as best a manner as they could but faced major criticism. The brand, despite
being well-liked amongst the users, demanded continuous investment from the
company’s side to sustain its position in the market. This increased pressure on the
company budget came at a time when the Unilever had globally decided to concentrate
on its 400 power brands. Hence, the decision was made to withdraw Liril from the
market.

Although very strong in the northern markets, National Masala in Southern markets of
Pakistan has been facing tough competition from Shan. This is because people in the
south like their food to be spicier whereas food prepared with National recipe masalas is
mild in taste. In order to counter the problem, the company launched another brand of
recipe masala called ‘Ronaq.’ This was a spicier version and was launched to directly
10
Lemon is known for its cleaning efficacy and also for the freshness it brings to skin.
16
 compete with Shan. Ronaq failed to capture the market it intended to because of an
advertising failure: To begin with, the launch strategy to use the actor Shan as a brand
ambassador backfired. Viewers thought that the ad copy was petty; “you can’t sell your
product by piggy backing on competitors”, the Brand Manager Ronaq now says. In
addition, it actually helped promote Shan by improving its brand recall.

Cadbury Pakistan, on the other hand, has been able to successfully meet the cultural
challenge in Pakistan. Entering Pakistan in 1993, Cadbury was not able to experience
significant growth until 2004. The confectionary market in Pakistan had been built
around low-price points; chocolates and candies were seen as pre-teen products and adult
consumption was very low. With its Dairy Milk, Cadbury Pakistan played a significant
role in changing the market dynamics and consumption behavior. With Dairy Milk’s
popular theme ‘Kuch meetha ho jaye,’ Cadbury was able to bring the older consumers
into the brand fold. With a promise to deliver superior experience, the company was able
to upgrade the chocolate market to higher price points i.e., Rs. 10 and above.
Furthermore, distribution of Cadbury chillers at retail outlets helped in delivering on
promise.

• Rebranding Failures:

An ambition of every marketer is to avoid the ageing process for his brand; hence product
re-launches are designed to extend the product life cycle. How the changes in the re-
launched brand resonate with the target market is what makes the re-launch successful or
unsuccessful.

Haig explains that there are enough examples of rebranding disasters to prove that it isn't
as easy as it sounds. The company behind the brand either can make changes so subtle
that the consumer will hardly notice, or it must make sure that the changes it makes are in
accordance with the customer's wishes.

Once a dominant brand in the packaged milk industry, Haleeb faced tough competition
from Olper’s soon after its launch. The brand was known for being thick and creamy but
started to lose its charm in the market when consumers started switching their loyalties.
Haleeb started losing share and by 2008 Olper’s became number two with close to 22%
of the market share. As an attempt to break from this lull, the brand was re-launched with
an aggressive media campaign and viewers saw Shan and Zeba Bakhtiar (popular
showbiz icons) endorse the brand. However, the effort did not help boost the sales and
today Haleeb is only popular in the dessert making industry where thick milk is largely
sought.

Amongst the many reasons cited for brand failures in Pakistan, marketers’ tendency to look for
opportunities with mass markets when the brand is only meant for certain specific segments is a
major one. While on paper they would seek to serve a particular SEC, their brand message would
17
seek to influence the general population, compromising the positioning and acceptability of the
brand. Another major reason is the lack of research or broadly targeted research leading to a
message design reflecting the marketer’s self-image and not consumers. Market Research is
seen as an expense; the tendency is to assume that since the industry is growing, and sales are
coming therefore the brand must be delivering value.

It is also important to understand that the focus of companies should be towards customer equity
rather than brand equity11. For companies to be successful over time, it is essential that they shift
their focus to maximizing customer lifetime value – this is defined as the net profit a company
accrues from transactions with a given customer during the time that the customer has a
relationship with the company. Brand equity, on the other hand, is defined as the sum of
customers’ assessments of a brand’s intangible qualities, positive or negative. Consider a
hypothetical example were suppose customer A get tired of a particular brand or the brand stops
resonating with him/her despite of having positive brand equity. Hence, if the company manages
the customer relationship properly, they can introduce this customer to another brand of theirs
which resonates more with them. Thus, the attitude from the company’s perspective should be
that brands come and go but customers such as A must remain. Customer brand management
therefore calls for:

- Making brand decisions subservient to decisions about customer relationship.

- Building brands around customer segments and not the other way around.
- Making brands as narrow and as specific as possible.
- Planning brand extensions based on customer needs.
- Developing the capability and the mindset to hand off customers to other brands in the
company.

Failures are normal and are a reality in all market, be they developed or not. The bigger question
to ask is what have we learnt from our mistakes and what must be done to avoid failure in the
future? It is important to understand the critical factors behind brand success. In successful
organizations, the brand revolves around a small set of values that are experienced by the entire
organization and radiate outwards to all key stakeholders. This goes far beyond the creation of a
favorable image through communications activities and requires the anchoring of brand values in
every part of the organization. If a brand is to become successful, it is very important for all the
partners to align their efforts in delivering brand strategy. This means that the brand managers,
media agencies, advertising agencies, etc, need to act like brand ambassadors. So long as their
efforts are synchronized, brands will be able to maintain their presence in the market.

There are a number of Pakistani brands that are very successful locally, such as Tibet Snow,
Dawlance Electrical Appliances and Pakola. They also have immense international demand.
However, not many amongst them have moved to capitalize on the opportunity. Martin
11
Customer-Centered Brand Management – Roland T. Rust, Valarie A. Zeithaml & Katherine N. Lemon (Harvard
Business Review)
18
Lindstrom believes that people/businesses in Pakistan lack the confidence it takes to build a
Global Brand.

19
How to Win the Brand Relevance Competition – David Aaker

The most common basis of competition is to win the brand preference battle with a “my brand is
better than your brand” strategy in well-established categories and subcategories. Most
marketing budgets are allocated in this direction and generate no discernible change in sales or
market share. None! There is simply too much market inertia.
The second basis of competition is to win the brand relevance competition by creating new
categories or subcategories for which competitors are irrelevant and by building barriers that
make it hard for them to become relevant. Winning this second competitive arena, with rare
exceptions, is only way to gain real growth.
Brand Relevance Vs Brand Preference

The brand relevance route to competitive success involves making competitors irrelevant by
developing offerings so innovative that they contain “must haves” that define a new category or
subcategory. The defining “must haves” can include characteristics such as personality,
organizational values, social programs, self-expressive benefits, or community benefits.
However, each “must have” needs to be so appealing to a segment that an offering that lacks that
characteristic will not be considered. The typical customer decision process is shown in Figure 1.
The first phase is to select the category or subcategory to buy. In a second phase, the customer
identifies brands that are visible and credible and thus relevant to that category or subcategory.

These two phases define brand relevance competition. To be relevant, the right category or
subcategory needs to be selected and the brand needs to be considered an option. The third
phase, which defines brand preference competition, is to select the brand from those considered.
Winning under the brand relevance model is based on being selected by customers because
competitors are not relevant (rather than not preferred)—a qualitatively different reason.

In brand preference competition, the category or subcategory (for instance, an SUV) is a given,
as is the identity of the brands to be considered (such as Cadillac, Lexus, and BMW). Winning
the brand preference competition for the Cadillac brand, involves making sure that Cadillac is
preferred to Lexus and BMW. That usually means being superior in at least one of the
dimensions defining the category or subcategory and being at least as good as competitors in the
rest.

20
We spend way too much time and money in brand preference competition and way too little on
brand relevance competition. The routes to winning are completely different, you win in brand
preference competition because your brand is preferred over other brands and the strategy is to
engage in incremental competition and to engage in marketing programs where you spend a lot
of money on marketing campaigns telling the world that your brand is better. The problem with
this approach is that incremental innovation can be copied by others and all the marketing
activities go into vain. However, the dynamics of brand relevance are completely different, you
win because competitors’ brands are not at all considered. So, the strategy is to engage in
substantial and transformational innovation and to create new categories and subcategories and
then to manage them.

Innovation Continuum

Key Observations by David Aaker

 Ideas come from all over the place – You can observe customers (employ ethnographic
research), you can be a customer (Zappos was founded when the founder realized he

21
 couldn’t find shoes in his size), partner with a customer (P&G and Walmart’s relation has
created a subcategory in the packaged industry), technology (Siebel – CRM Programme),
augment the product, it can also be the CEO’s vision.
 Timing is everything – You need the market, technology, and the firm to be ready. The
iPod (referring to Sony’s Memory Stick Walkman) was introduced by Sony two years
before Apple did, so Sony had the vision, but they didn’t have the timing right. They
came with a product that was too expensive, could only hold 16 songs and had a
complicated download system.
 Become the exemplar of the subcategory like iPhone, Whole Foods Market, or Geek
Squad has done. If the brand is the exemplar, it will by definition be the most visible and
credible brand. Any competitors are in the awkward position of defining their relevance
in a way that only reaffirms the authenticity of the exemplar. The exemplar role also
helps to define the category or subcategory. Without an exemplar, the definition can
easily drift, in part because there is no firm in charge. How can a brand become an
exemplar? Some guidelines:
o Advance the category or subcategory rather than the brand.
o Be the early market leader.
o Be the authentic brand.
 Create Barriers to Competition – If you get a monopoly, you need barriers, otherwise you
lose it. There are three kind of barriers:
o Execute Over the top service – Zappos doesn’t spend money on marketing rather
devote it all to 24/7 call center and their service is supported by a set of ten
values, the most famous of which is ‘have fun a be a little weird’ so the whole
personality of the brand is made up of those values which are hard to imitate.
o Continuously Innovate – Apple is the best example of innovation.
o Go Beyond Functional Benefits - Expand the brand beyond functional benefits to
include other “must haves” that can define a category or subcategory, such as
delivering self-expressive, emotional, or social benefits; having organizational
values that provide a basis for a relationship; or presenting a personality that
connects. Functional benefits often fail to involve or provide an ongoing basis for
differentiation. They are often quickly copied, but when the category or
subcategory is defined by a set of characteristics involving the experience or the
relationship, it is much harder to become relevant.
 Look at underserved segments – Sony targeted young males who were heavy video
games users whereas Nintendo targeted mothers, girl and family and provided them with
educational interactive games.

Branding is not just for products and services but also for countries. The next topic talks in detail
about the concept of ‘Nation Branding’ for Pakistan specifically. Although nations have always
existed as brands, recently there has been an explosion in "nation-branding" — coordinated
government efforts to manage a country's image, whether to improve tourism, investment, or
even foreign relations.

However, branding a nation or a city is a far more complex task than selling detergent. One can
argue that it requires more complex trade-offs and co-ordination than branding work for a
22
product in the private sector. For example, no country begins with a clean slate: Each has to
contend with its history and with perceptions already in existence. Nation branding also involves
many, often unrelated and conflicting dimensions ranging from foreign policy to sports and the
arts. It addresses multiple, diverse target audiences; and involves politics.

23
Understanding Nation Branding

Branding is the way in which an organization communicates, differentiates, and symbolizes itself
to all of its audiences. There is no single definition of Nation branding. To some it is simply
another term for country-of-origin effect or place marketing (Kotler, 2002). To others it refers to
a consistent national brand strategy which determines a realistic, competitive, and compelling
strategic vision for the country, and ensures that this vision is supported, reinforced, and enriched
by every act of communication between the country and the rest of the world (Anholt, 1998). In
nation branding, the aim is to create a clear, simple, differentiating idea built around emotional
qualities which can be symbolized both verbally and visually and understood by diverse
audiences in a variety of situations. To work effectively, nation branding must embrace political,
cultural, business and sport activities.12 Nation branding is doing the same thing, but to a whole
country with diverse audiences. Nation branding is a field of theory and practice which aims to
measure, build, and manage the reputation of countries. The concept of measuring the global
perception of a country in several spheres has been developed by Simon Anholt. A subsequent
ranking of nations, following his surveys, was first released in 2005 known as the Anholt Nation
Brands Index and was initially published four times a year.

Nation Brands Index (NBI), a project run jointly by Simon Anholt and a polling firm called
Global Market Institute (GMI), is the only major source for numerical data on the relative
strengths of national brands. Every three months, Anholt and GMI record the opinions of
consumers in thirty-five different countries, mainly in developed markets, tracking their
perceptions of several different aspects of a country’s image. Anholt divides the idea of nation
branding into six main subfields

The criteria underlying the NBI ranking are:

People: Measures the population's reputation for competence, education, openness and
friendliness and other qualities, as well as perceived levels of potential hostility and
discrimination.

Governance: Measures public opinion regarding the level of national government competency
and fairness and describes individuals' beliefs about each country's government, as well as its
perceived commitment to global issues such as democracy, justice, poverty, and the
environment.

Exports: Determines the public's image of products and services from each country and the
extent to which consumers proactively seek or avoid products from each country-of-origin.

12
Fan, Y. 2006. “Branding the Nation: What Is Being Branded?”; Journal of Vacation Marketing.
24
Tourism: Captures the level of interest in visiting a country and the draw of natural and man-
made tourist attractions.

Culture & Heritage: Reveals global perceptions of each nation's heritage and appreciation for
its contemporary culture, including film, music, art, sport, and literature.

Investment & Immigration Determines the power to attract people to live, work or study in
each country and reveals how people perceive a country's economic and social situation.

The goal of this index is to give an overall sense of the strength of international opinion on a
given country, positive or negative. This system does not meet uniform approval. Cromwell says
he finds the Nation Brands Index’s methodology “pretty weak,” noting the enormous
undertaking it would require to comprehensively understand global perceptions through polling
data. Still, he concedes that there isn’t much else to go on at this point. He points to foreign
direct investment, tourism arrivals, and trade levels as potentially useful metrics.

Discussion

Countries across the globe have always been interested in projecting a positive image. However,
the methods used to manage reputation in the global arena have significantly changed over the
last decade. Globalization can be cited as one of the reasons behind this occurrence. Every
country today is competing for a greater share of the global consumers and marketplace. A
number of countries around the globe have hired PR firms and consultants to help them develop
and launch impressive brand campaigns. Nation branding influences decisions of people and
other nations around the world to visit, to invest in, and to buy products of the country that is
being branded.

Branding a nation and positioning it positively in the world is not only being recognized by the
various country heads but also by the United Nations. One of the UN agencies – World
Intellectual Property Organization works actively to help developing countries brand themselves
and their products better. The idea has also caught the attention of Philip Kotler and together
with Somkid Jatusripitak and Suvit Maesincee, he has written a book titled “The Marketing of
Nations: A Strategic Approach to Building National Wealth”.

A number of countries such as United States, England, Canada, Greece, Germany, France,
Portugal, Estonia, Poland, Finland, Oman, South Africa, Botswana, Tanzania, India, Thailand,
Malaysia, etc. have all taken serious steps towards building a strong profile and a powerful
country brand. Generally speaking, there can be multiple objectives behind such efforts, ranging
from luring foreign investment to attracting tourists, from countering a negative perception to
promoting trade, from projecting a very modern and liberal image to breaking free from a
stereotypical image etc. Specifically, the objectives can be grouped under five heads as identified
by Ying Fan in his research paper in 2006 titled “Nation branding: what is being branded?”
25
1. To use a nation’s image to promote exports, to emphasize a product’s country of origin
(COO), e.g., Rover cars use the Union Jack as part of its logo - The New Zealand Way

2. To promote a country as a tourist destination or an opportunity for foreign investors (place

marketing), e.g., 100% pure New Zealand

3. To promote the people, culture, etc, e.g., Cool Britannia, Incredible India, Malaysia; Truly
Asia.

4. To manipulate one’s own country’s image against enemy countries (political marketing) e.g.,
from the evil Soviet Empire in the Cold War to the recent labeling of three countries as “Axis
of evil”.

5. To promote a region, e.g., The Four Dragons in Asia, a term coined in 1980 to symbolize the
newly industrialized countries, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Korea, and Singapore.

There are multiple examples of successful branding campaign that have done good to a number
of nations. Post Yugoslav countries Slovenia and Croatia launched campaigns soon after their
secession and were able to attract a significant number of tourists as a result. Another example is
that of South Africa. According to the Apple and Pear Growers’ Association, exports from the
country to Britain have increased by 10% after they started labeling each fruit with the “Proudly
South African” labels.

Country Branding Campaigns may seem as a very simple formula to a positive image projection,
however, there are examples where countries have been disappointed with the branding
campaigns, Switzerland being a case in point. The country approached a consultancy firm to help
counter the public accusation of holding Nazi Gold and saw limited success. Similarly, the “Cool
Britannia” campaign launched by Tony Blair in the late ‘90s was disliked and discontinued soon
enough.

Teslik quotes Van Ham and Cromwell as saying that countries need to give their brand
campaigns time to show results. It is more like watching a flower grow that requires patience.
Other reasons quoted for country branding failures are the poor coordination among different
ministries of a country to project one big positive image. There needs to be collaboration of
purpose amongst the higher ups in a country both from the government and the private sector.
Nation Branding is a fairly complex task that involves sustained and concerted coordination at
multiple levels.

Designing of a “fine” branding campaign is a systematic process that begins with the assessment
of the distinctive qualities possessed by a nation, followed by an understanding of how the
country is perceived in the world and eventually the coordination among all important ministries
of the country, private businesses, cultural centers, sports teams, etc. to project a coherent image

26
of the country. Once a brand is developed for the country, it needs to be reinforced, enhanced,
and enriched through every piece of communication that goes out to the world at large.

Although core marketing practices are increasingly being applied to create a brand for a country,
there are fundamental differences between product branding and country branding. The most
significant difference is the intangible nature of the nation. As there is no tangible offer in a
nation brand, its attributes are difficult to define or describe. The only benefits a nation brand
could create for its audience are emotional rather than functional. A brand here is built upon
diverse set of associations; hence, it is quite common for the audience of the message to be
confused. It is therefore extremely important to understand the audience of such Nation
Branding efforts. The audience is generally divided into two categories: the citizens of the
country and the rest of the world.

Pakistan as a brand

Pakistan is a country that is on the front of post 9/11 US led war on terror. While the political
and economic impact of the war on terror cannot be overstressed, the social impact has been
immense. Pakistanis today suffer from a psychological setback whereby the balance of the
society stands severely shaken. Events unfolding post 9/11 have transferred a global image of
Pakistan to the larger world in a manner that most Pakistanis today would not like to identify
with. A country that was formed with a dream to be a place where tolerance and patience would
be the hallmark, where prosperity and stability would prevail and where security and self-esteem
would be looked after, is now marked with internal conflict, social insecurity, and political
instability.

The war on terror has changed Pakistan from a country under severe US sanctions and military
restrictions to one of the largest beneficiaries of US military assistance in the world. Pakistan
receives billions of dollars that get directly invested into projects; however, the impact of this
financing is not very clear. The public at large eyes them with mistrust and skepticism. One of
the possible reasons for such an occurrence may be the incomplete or flawed communication that
revolves in various circles of the society. The negatives overshadow the positives, and the net
effect is a highly doubtful society that does not believe any good can be brought about.

Through six decades of national voyage, Pakistan has faced several challenges on multiple
fronts. A country that has an immense potential to become one of the fastest growing nations in
the South Asian region is severely misperceived. Some of the questions that are often widely
debated over numerous TV channels, radio programs, conferences, and social blogs are: Who is
to be blamed? Is it the fault of the system or is it the fault of the people? Who is going to fix it?
Where do we start from? Sometimes such debates become an integral part of our dinner table
conversations, but do we go beyond the mere discussions and debate is the biggest question that
must be answered.

27
While we may be debating the image of Pakistan with our friends and family members, we are
inherently more concerned about how this negative image gets transferred onto our individual
images. It is quite common to come across people who are exceptionally critical of the state yet
at the same time would hate to admit that the luxuries enjoyed by them in this country is by far
unmatchable. The tendency to keep declaring that the glass is half empty is rampant. Gripes
about the nation range from calling it a highly unstable country suffering from major leadership
crisis to problems of poverty and poor health standards. From deteriorating law and order
situation to widening gaps between urban and rural income patterns, and from low literacy levels
to higher degrees of corruption. But that’s not all. Our perception in the world community is a
derivative of how we feel at home. We have an unrecognizable and negative identity. We are
seen as a dishonest, dangerous, extremist, and fundamentalist state. While most of the claims
stated may be true or partly true, does it really mean that Pakistan is all negative with no hope of
bouncing back.

The future of any country is profoundly dependent upon its youth. More than half of Pakistan’s
population today comprises of individuals who are less than 20 years in age. That is a huge base
of human capital that can be turned into intellectual capital. Most of the enlightened youth from
the country seeks for greener pastures abroad. Their aspiration is to join the global workforce and
progress in life. While there may be nothing wrong with that ambition, there also needs to be a
commitment to do something for the motherland.

It’s about time that the youth of this country instead of passing the buck onto someone else, takes
charge of the situation and views the glass as half full. Being a citizen is more than just gathering
in our schools, colleges, universities to sing patriotic songs on the 14 th of August or 23rd of
March. It entails carrying that patriotic feeling throughout the year and becoming agents of
change.

There are multiple positives of the country that need to be highlighted for a better sense of
belonging amongst the citizens as well as for a better projection of Pakistan’s reality in the world
community. At this point it is important to understand what positive means. Positive is anything
that lends hope. Some of the positives of the country are listed below:
 Pakistan has immense natural beauty to offer to tourists, from Thar (one of the largest
deserts of the world) to Haleji Lake (Asia’s largest bird sanctuary), from Shandur Polo
(world’s highest polo ground) ground to Kan Mehtazai (Asia’s highest railway station
located 2240m above sea level), from Lalazar to Gwadar (natural deep-sea port). Pakistan
is also a land of grand mountain ranges with four out of 14 highest peaks of the world in
the country.
 Pakistan is an investor friendly nation. The country ranks 2nd in the South Asia, just
behind India, in the ease of doing business parameter, according to the World Bank
Report on Doing Business in South Asia 2014. Total Foreign Direct Investment for the

28
 financial year 2007-2008 registered an increase of $13.2 million from the previous fiscal
year.

 Pakistan is a well-recognized name when it comes to the Sports Industry. In June 2002,
the world’s largest football was unveiled in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The football was made
from artificial leather PV-PVC and hand-sewn by staff at Ihsan Sports of Hajipura,
Sialkot, Pakistan, had a diameter of 4m (13ft 1in).

 The seventh largest mosque in the world is Badshahi Mosque, and the 9 th largest is the
Shah Faisal Mosque, near Islamabad, Pakistan. The total area of the Shah Faisal Mosque
is 18.97 ha (46.87 acres), with the covered area of the prayer hall being 0.48 ha (1.19
acres). It can accommodate 100,000 worshippers.

 Pakistan is the world’s ninth largest English-speaking country.

 Pakistan has the seventh largest pool of scientists and engineers in the world.

 Pakistan has the largest volunteer ambulance organization. Abdul Sattar Edhi (Pakistan)
began his ambulance service in 1948, ferrying injured people to hospital. Today, his
radio-linked network includes 500 ambulances all over Pakistan and attracts funds of
US$5 million a year.

 Pakistan has the world's second largest salt mine in Khewra. Khewra salt mine has
proven reserves of 300 million tons. This reserve could not be consumed in 600 years
even at the daily production rate of 5 lakh tons.

 Pakistan has the world's 2nd Largest Coal Reserves. Thar Coal Reserve is around 850
trillion cubic feet which is equal to 400 billion barrels of oil.

 Pakistan has the world's 3rd largest gas reserves.

 Pakistan is the world's 4th largest cotton producer, the third largest cotton
consumer, second largest importer of cotton and has the fourth largest cotton area.

 Pakistan has the World's 5th largest copper & gold reserves. The most credible
international surveys suggest that Reko Diq is one of the biggest undeveloped copper
projects in the world with over 11 billion pounds of copper and nine million ounces of
gold.

 Pakistan has the world's 7th largest army. Furthermore, Pakistan is the world's 7th nuclear
power with delivery mechanisms i.e., Pakistan is capable of launching nuclear missiles
on a short notice of 10 minutes. The ballistic missile inventory of the Army is substantial.
It comprises Ghauri III and Shaheen III IRBM; medium range Ghauri I and II and

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 Shaheen II, and short range Hatf I- B, Abdali, Ghaznavi, Shaheen I and M -11 missiles.
Pakistanis also recognized as the world’s 7th nuclear power.

 Pakistan is the World's 4th largest milk producer, 11th largest wheat producer and the
World's 12th largest rice producer.

 Pakistan also has the honor of producing the youngest civil judge. Muhammad Ilyas
passed the examination enabling him to become a Civil Judge in July 1952 at the age of
20 years 9 months, although formalities such as medicals meant that it was not until eight
months later that he started work as a Civil Judge in Lahore, Pakistan.
 Pakistan has recently (2009) been ranked the 4th heaviest SMS user country in Asia
Pacific. With 763 million text messages Pakistan's traffic volume grew by 253 %
compared to last year during the same period.
 Contrary to the popular misconception of being as a terrorist state, Pakistan leads in the
list of the 10 main contributors to UN peacekeeping followed by Bangladesh, India,
Nigeria, Nepal, Ghana, Jordan, Rwanda, Italy, providing more than 60% of UN military
and police personnel.

Knowing about strengths is the first step in brand development followed by a systematic
approach in communicating such strengths. Lack of methodical and organized effort has left
Pakistan with mixed up mental associations in the minds of audiences both at home and abroad.

Various steps can be taken at different levels to reinvent the image of Pakistan:

Role of government

The country comprises of culturally diverse segments with majority identifying itself first as
Sindhis, Balochis, Pathans or Punjabis and only later as Pakistanis, depicting a clear lack of
common identity and national cohesion. Unequal distribution of opportunity across various
factions of the society can be cited as one of the reasons leading to a disunited Pakistan. The
young citizens of the country have lost hope in the political system as they have seen multiple
democracies failing to address any of these issues.

If Pakistan is to emerge on the world map as a moderate Muslim nation, then the role of
government cannot be overstressed. In order to deal with the internal issues of the country,
concrete steps need to be taken to build infrastructure, upgrade the education system, provide
equal employment opportunities, and ensure the independence of judiciary. Furthermore, it is
imperative to coordinate amongst all relevant ministries and private businessmen to project a
sound and positive image of Pakistan to the rest of the world. If Pakistan is to be developed as a
brand then we need to identify brand ambassadors, create role models, and cultivate our present
strengths of culture, heritage, agriculture, art, and tourism.

Role of the Civil Society

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Much can be done at the individual level too. With the explosion in the media industry, there are
multiple platforms through which the positive realities of Pakistan can be communicated.
Internet penetration in the country is significantly high; therefore, individuals are free to post
their opinions, views, and experiences on blogs. The phenomenon of online citizen journalism
must be leveraged for better image and reputation building of the country. According to
Wikipedia, “Reputation is the opinion (more technically, a social evaluation) of the group of
entities toward a person, a group of people, or an organization on a certain criterion. Reputation
can be considered as a component of identity as defined by others”.

A number of patriotic Pakistanis have been taking initiatives at their own level to help Pakistan
recover from this prolonged slumber and break free from long-held negative perceptions. Ammar
Jaffri is a case in point. Currently serving in the Federal Investigation Agency, Islamabad, he has
formed a group of persons (males and females) with the aim of bringing about change for the
betterment of our society. Their effort is to make Pakistan a "Bawaqar Pakistan". The only
objective of this initiative is to project GOOD about Pakistan and tell the world that we are not
terrorists or a nation with no vision for the future. Initiative of "Bawaqar Pakistan" has been
taken under a government registered NGO with the name "Pakistan Social Association" having
its branches in all parts of Pakistan and head office in Islamabad.

Role of Media

Media has been evolving at a very rapid pace in Pakistan. Professionals from the industry have
been building brands to effectively position them in a competitive environment such that they get
the biggest share of the consumers mind. A similar effort needs to be taken at a national level if
Pakistan is to get back on the positive track of growth and development. There are multiple ways
of achieving this objective.

An awareness program needs to be designed for the masses to educate them about the positive
effects of a number of funded programs underway. A number of UNICEF and WHO programs
are in progress in Pakistan, totally unknown to the local population. Another aspect of this
awareness campaign could be to address socially challenging issues such that the society
develops an understanding of the right and the wrong, of the benefits of progress and of the
positives of being in the league of the developed nations.

Secondly, a sense of pride needs to be instilled in Pakistani population. A number of Pakistani

men and women have drawn world attention for their exceptional work in the areas of fashion,
music, sports, education, film making, etc. Media needs to highlight their achievements through
print, TV, outdoor etc. to instill a sense of pride and ownership amongst all.

Lastly, there is a need to train the local media in positive image projection of the Pakistani
people, industry, and nation as a whole. There is an urgent need to establish Pakistan as a
progressive, modern, tolerant, and forward-looking Muslim nation in the world community and

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media can play a very positive role in doing just that. Consequently, pride amongst citizen is
likely to improve leading to reduced brain drain.

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REFERENCES

 Sahar J. Malik, Synergyzer, Branding Pakistan: An Idea or An Illusion?

 Umair Naeem, July – Dec 2007, Business Review, Volume 2 Number 2, Branding
Pakistan For the Future

 Lee Hudson Teslik, Backgrounder on Nation Branding Explained from Council on

Foreign Relation, November 09, 2007 - http://www.cfr.org/publication/14776/

 http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Nation_branding

 JIM RENDON, NewYork Times, November 23, 2003, When Nations Need a Little
Marketing http://www.nytimes.com/2003/11/23/business/yourmoney/23brand.html?th

 Peter Gumbel, Brand Aid, Not Band Aid, could some of Africa’s problems be solved by
starting with an image makeover? Time Europe Magazine, May 29,
2005http://www.time.com/time/europe/html/050606/africa/viewpoint.html

 FAN, Ying. 2006. “Nation branding: what is being branded?” Journal of Vacation
Marketing, 12:1, 5-14. http://bura.brunel.ac.uk/bitstream/2438/1286/3/BrandingNat.pdf

 Ammar Jaffri, Jan 21, 2009, My first thought on Bawaqaar Pakistan.

http://bawaqarpakistan.com/articles/3/1/My-First-thought-on-BAWAQAR-
PAKISTAN/Page1.html

 Faisal Rahim, June 25, 2009, Pakistani World Records,

http://bawaqarpakistan.com/articles/48/1/Pakistani-World-Records/Page1.html

 Aamer Abbas, April 15, 2009, Fact Sheet About Pakistan,

http://bawaqarpakistan.com/articles/33/1/Fact-Sheet-about-Pakistan/Page1.html

 Khurram Jafri, Feb 01, 2009, Pakistan’s Contribution in Global Peace Efforts,
http://bawaqarpakistan.com/articles/5/1/Pakistans-Contribution-in-Global-Peace-
Efforts/Page1.html

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