In this day and age when a single customer has thousands of brands to choose from, how can corporations in India protect their brands to become the first choice of any buyer?

Gone are the days when companies in India operated more or less in a monopolistic environment. Subsequent liberalization has not only led to an influx of multinational competitors, but has also increased choice for Indian customers. In such an environment, can companies protect their future just by looking at their earnings at the end of the year? Certainly not. The concept of brand equity is still in its infancy in the Indian market. However, Indian companies are only just starting to realize the importance of branding as a driver of economic value. The brand valuation concept was pioneered by Interbrand Corporation, a global brand consultancy that generates a ranking for the top 100 global brands each year. One of the most surprising things on the leaderboard is that no Indian company is in the top 100. Does that mean that companies like Infosys, Wipro, Tata and Reliance have not yet reached the level of being considered ‘global’? In August 2005, the TATA brand was valued at $6 billion (over Rs 30 billion), enough to be included in the ranking of the top 50 global brands.

Organizations should not consider brand valuation in isolation. Although, every company would be interested in knowing the value of its brand; the important thing is learning to sustain it and then harnessing that value within the system of the entire organization. The valuation of an intangible asset such as the ‘brand’ is not governed by a formula. It is a logical analysis of each element that drives the value of that particular brand. Indian management consultancy like Equitor has gone a step further and started developing a model that enables an organization to turn its intangible assets into tangible results through the use of a balanced scorecard.

Looking at the current scenario in the Indian market, there is no alternative but to invest in the brand as an asset to secure future profit. And to make that future sustainable, it is how the brand behaves on a day-to-day basis; which means how the brand ensures that it consistently delivers on the promises it makes every day in every interaction that the organization’s stakeholders have with that particular brand.

The interesting thing is to realize that many companies fail to understand how to keep the promises they make to their end customers. When using communication tools like advertising, organizations often tend to make the mistake of overpromising. Why? Because most organizations tend to try to deliver on that promise by focusing solely on the end product or service; thus ignoring the entire channel that allows that product or service to reach that end customer. How would you feel interacting with a salesperson in a BMW showroom who lacks a great passion for “speed”? The point is simple. Every customer touch point should reflect the values ​​of the brand. And to do this, there is a logical step-by-step process that needs to be implemented.

Changing your client’s perception of your brand is not difficult as long as you give them clarity about what you are offering and demonstrate it on the ground. This clarity cannot come through advertising. It is your actions that should speak louder than your words!