Protecting Trade Marks & Designs: business related aspects Etienne Sanz de Acedo OHIM-General Affairs & External Relations Department

Basic Marketing concepts The Marketing Mix Brands - Definition - Functions - Classes The weight of Brands in business strategy Branding challenges CTM vs. national marks The registration of CTMs-OHIM Index:

“Marketing is the art of selling”. It implies goods, services, experiences, events, persons, places, information, ideas... Marketers are skilled in stimulating demand for a company’s products. Core marketing concepts: - target markets and segmentation, - customers needs, wants and demands, - customer value and satisfaction (value is the ratio between what the customer gets and what he gives), - marketing channels. Basic marketing concepts

Marketing mix is the set of tools that a marketer and its firm uses to pursue the marketing objectives in the target market. - The 4 Ps: 1. Product 2. Price 3. Place 4. Promotion - The 4 Cs: 1. Customer solution 2. Customer cost 3. Convenience 4. Communication The marketing mix

A brand is a name, term, sign, symbol, or design or combination of them, intended to identify the G&S of one seller or group of sellers and to differentiate them from those of competitors. A brand is an intangible but critical component of what a company stands for. A consumer generally does not have a relationship with a product or a service but with a brand - 3M invokes innovation - Hallmark stands for caring - FedEx means guaranteed delivery Brand Definition

A Brand is essentially a seller’s promise to deliver a specific set of features, benefits and services consistently to the buyers. A Brand is even a more complex symbol Business identifier Warranty of quality “Goodwill” Marketing function Functions of a brand

1.- According to the object 2.- According to their recognition Product markService mark Ordinary markNotorious markReknown mark Categories of brands

3.- According to their extension –National trademarks (USPTO, INPI, UKPTO) –International trademarks (WIPO) –CTM (OHIM) 4.- According to their nature Word marksFigurative marks3D marks Colour marksSound marksOthers Olfativas “The smell of fresh cut grass Fortuna CATEGORIES OF BRANDS

THE WEIGHT OF BRANDS IN BUSINESS STRATEGY

A strong brand provides the Cy with several benefits : - loyalty drives repeat business - brand-based price premiums allow for higher margins - strong brands lend immediate credibility to new products introductions - strong brands allow for greater shareholder returns - brands embody a clear, valuable and sustainable point of differentiation relative to the competition - strong brands mandate clarity in internal focus and brand execution - the more loyal the customer is and the stronger the brand, the more likely customers will be forgiving the company’s mistakes - brand strength is a lever for attracting the best employees. THE WEIGHT OF BRANDS IN BUSINESS STRATEGY

The 5 levels of customer attitude towards a brand: (from the lowest to the highest) - customer will change brands (price reasons) = no loyalty, - customer satisfied. No reason to change the brand, - customer satisfied & would incur in costs by changing brand, - customer values the brand and sees it as a friend, - customer devoted to the brand. Brand equity = positions 3, 4 and 5. THE WEIGHT OF BRANDS IN BUSINESS STRATEGY

Brand equity provides competitive advantages: - the company will enjoy reduced marketing costs because of brand awareness - the company will have more trade leverage in bargaining with distributors and retailers (PUSH & PULL strategies) - the company can charge higher price because the brand has higher perceived quality - the company can more easily launch extensions (the brand name carries high credibility) - the brand offers the company some defense against price competition. THE WEIGHT OF BRANDS IN BUSINESS STRATEGY

Managing brands requires to take several decisions: - To brand or not to brand? - Brand name decision - Brand strategy decision - Brand repositioning, packaging and labeling. BRANDING CHALLENGES

To brand or not to brand? - In the past most products were unbranded. - Today hardly anything goes unbranded. - However there has been a return to “no branding” - consumer goods - pharmaceuticals - Generics are unbranded, plainly packaged, less expensive versions of common products. - Generics offer standard or lower quality at a price between 20 and 40% lower than nationally advertised products. BRANDING CHALLENGES

Brand name decision: 4 available strategies - Individual name. The company does not tie its reputation to the product’s. (Seiko introduces lower quality watches under Pulsar without diluting the Seiko name). - Blanket family names. Development cost is less because of absence of name research (Heinz, General Electric introduce all their products under the same family name). - Separate family names for all products. Companies invent different family names for different quality lines within the same product class (Mead Johnson uses Nutriment for gaining weight products, and Metrecal for weight reduction products). - Company trade name combined with individual product names. The company name legitimizes and the product name individualizes (Kellog’s Rice Krispies, Kellog’s Corn Flakes). BRANDING CHALLENGES

Brand name decision Options - name of a person (Honda, Esthée Lauder) - location (Kentucky Fried Chicken) - quality (Safeway, Duracell) - lifestyle (Weight watchers, Healthy choice) - artificial name (Exxon, Kodak) Tips - Suggest something about the product’s benefits - Suggest product qualities such as action or color - Easy to pronounce, recognize and remember - Distinctive - Should not carry poor meanings in other countries and languages BRANDING CHALLENGES

Brand repositioning - Even if a brand is well positioned, the Cy might have to reposition it because of - competitors - changing customer preferences. - 7-Up Packaging - Packaging has become a powerful marketing tool. - Well designed packages creat convenience and promotional value - Self-service, consumer affluence, Cy & brand image, Innovation opportunities. Labeling BRANDING CHALLENGES