NEW KHALIL INC CASE

Brand Management

New Khalil The product is a food item consumed regularly and hence is being consumed daily. In case of food items, quality and hygiene are the factors that affect consumer choice the most. Price and convenience come next, while the prestige associated with the product or the brand is last. In case of almonds, it is available loose and has limited branding activities revolving around it. For positioning for almonds is that the values attributed to a product need to be credible for the psychological attributes to go beyond the mere functionality of a product. Khalil Inc, a Morocco based quality almond producer is contemplating to enter in India with almond or a derivative product of almonds.

Current Company Profile:

Commodity supplier Produce is shipped to either products which used almond and its derivatives to manufacture products in which almond is considered to be an essential and important ingredient Buyers include top chocolate producers which are in the league of Nestle and Hershey A large part of produce is also bought by international buying houses which supply materials to big retailers in bulk. The bulk so supplied is then repackaged into customer friendly quantities for selling directly to customers by retail brands

Industry Analysis:

Technological advancements in almond cultivation and use of new modern farming methods contributed to the pressures in the marketplace Changing market forces, buyer power is increasing. Buyers becoming more demanding Establishing a relationship with buyers is not enough to sell

Current Positioning:

Almonds Betterment of brain function Enhancing good memory

Almond Oil Improve body strength Good for the skin Make hair strong and healthy

Functional Benefits: Memory Obesity control Goodness of the nut for the heart Controlling bad cholesterol Improve body strength Good for the skin Make hair strong and healthy

Customer Buying Decision Process: Usually, it is the women in the family who do the shopping of food which includes nuts. While the really affluent and health conscious women have it on their list to buy the almonds, some women also buy them when they see other women buying at the store and when they are pinched by the responsibility of taking care of their family members by providing them higher nutrition. For those women who go to stores with the decision of buying nuts, a price difference of a few rupees is not an issue (since almonds is a premium product). They visually check the various varieties and opt for the one that offers a better value proposal, i.e., the variety which she finds has the best quality nuts. If the women finds that the almonds she buys are sourced from amongst the best region where almond is grown, she would be more likely to buy that brand. Almonds are almost an unbranded commodity for her. A brand would add more credibility to the product. The promise that the almonds are processed through the best in class standards and are untouched by hand and are dust free would prompt a customer who has already made a decision to buy branded almonds. Almonds are known as a healthy food and have many health and cosmetic benefits. The brand promise should be capable of evoking a variety of facts, beliefs and motivations. Presently the consumers awareness about values, qualities and all other attributes related to these products is very low due to absence of branding. The positioning should be something that the competition has difficulty in matching. The positioning should reflect a brand characteristic, rather than an obvious advantage. The consumer should be emotionally motivated to buy the product. A few of the strategies which can be used 1. Reinforce value of almond in food applications to core market (house wife etc)

2. Communicate variety of benefits of almond (prevents cancer, healthy snack) from health as well as cosmetic benefits (almond oil, improves eye strength). 3. Educate new audiences like kids, working professionals on benefits and versatility of honey in relevant applications. 4. Produce hygienically packed products in consumer-friendly packaging.

5. Differentiate the products freshness and nutrition level by getting certification from an industry body 6. Establish and conduct retail promotions, and increase awareness of almonds versatility with appropriate health and beauty professionals.

The first step in positioning a brand is in-depth research. The research should provide you with the following:

Profound consumer insight - functional, emotional, experiential and self-expressive consumer benefits. A thorough knowledge of the competitive set An understanding of consumer benefits (by segment)

4 key components to brand positioning:

Target customer the primary audience to whom the brand is designed to appeal Brand essence the heart and soul of the brand Brand promise a promise of relevant differentiating benefits Brand personality adjectives that describe the brand as if it were a person

Together, these components define the brand. They are codified in a simple format that provides direction not only for marketing communication and the brand identity standards and systems, but also for all of the organizations activities. A powerful brand position should be:

Believable, understandable, unique and compelling Aspirationally attainable Admirable and endearing Difficult to emulate Timeless and enduring Extendable

Positioning a brand is complicated. It is an art and a science and is not likely to be well understood or appreciated by operationally oriented people in your organization. It is, however critical to the organizations long-term success. Communicating a brand image is an essential part of marketing and a fundamental marketing activity in order to be successful. Aaker (1991) defines brand image as a set of associations that are organized in a consequential order. As mentioned the image is built up upon a set associations, each association is like a piece of a puzzle and all associations categorized into one group creates a puzzle, which communicate a meaning that the consumer can identify according to her preferences. Reynolds and Gutman, (1984), argue that a well communicated brand image should help establish a brands position, protect the company from competition and therefore enhance the brands market performance. The brand positioning is the foundation for the following brand image. According to Gardner and Levy (1955), long term brand success originates and depends on the marketers abilities to select and highlight the association that creates the image into a meaningful appearance and to be consequent and maintain the image over time. The fact that several brands managed to maintain their position for over a century supports their academic research. Aaker (1991) further states that

there is an undefined portion of subjectivity when it comes to the consumers perceived image of the brand. Perceptions in general differ from person to person, therefore it is crucial for the company to have a well defined objective of how they wish to be portrayed and perceived by their consumers. A company that has developed a well defines positioning plan, will enjoy a competitive and attractive position that is supported by strong associations (Aaker, 1991). Positioning can be based upon one or combination of following techniques: 1. Using Product characteristics or Customer Benefits as a positioning strategy 2. Pricing as a positioning strategy 3. Positioning strategy based on use or application 4. Positioning strategy based on product process 5. Positioning strategy based on product class 6. Positioning strategy based on cultural symbols 7. Positioning strategy based on competitors For branding a product like almond the most important aspect should be differentiation with respect to positioning. Since the firm itself is new to the market, first it should generate familiarity with the local market and identify the core needs of the consumer. The company should also research into what are the pain areas of the consumer and then utilize the resources to design ways to bridge those gaps. For a pan-country positioning they need to take into consideration factors like Size of the market Growth rate of the market Firms ability to acknowledge consumer demands, The resources available for product standardization.

The company should identify whether the consumer is a habitual buyer and study their buying pattern to identify what are the differentiating factors which the consumer uses to assess the attractiveness of one variety of almonds from the other. The company should also look at offering a core benefit to the consumer with respect to almonds which will help to transcend across all product categories and also use this to differentiate itself among other unbranded products. Some of the core benefits could be: 1. Natural (no chemical, no pesticide) 2. Freshness & purity 3. Natures basket of nourishment The differentiation can be in terms of the technology used, or it could be in terms of the place where it is grown (Morocco) or the quality of the almond. Initially this core brand offering should be promoted through limited number of brands and later on it can be extended to more products which are created as product extensions.

It is important to identify what does the consumer see as the significance of the product and then map it with the offering or the core brand promise. A few of the parameters could be to identify what are the risks the consumer sees while purchasing loose almond and then using that platform to generate awareness about its own brand. This will build the reputation of the brand and position itself different from other things. Awareness needs to be built using extensive promotion and it should be matched up with accessibility of the product in kirana shops, modern retail etc. The brand should leave a memory in the minds of the consumer to aid top of the mind recall for the brand. So it is necessary to identify the critical product attributes associated with almonds, almond oil etc and also the criteria for making a brand choice. This will build the beliefs and attitudes about the product class and the brand class respectively. They should be combined together to make a successful branded product purchase. The brand should try to drive usage through those consumers who are willing to try new things and then treat them as brand champions. There should be some benefits and freebies offered to enhance brand loyalty. So from unawareness of the brand, we need to create awareness, then drive product usage, built a positive belief of the brand, then reinforce the sentiments to drive brand loyalty. The brand should support a cause like Classmate notebooks support education, Tata tea support anti corruption etc. The Brand power should be a product of the differentiation offered by the brand, the relevance of the core benefit to the product and consumer needs, the esteem associated with its usage and the knowledge or awareness among consumer. The target consumer should initially be driven through super markets and modern retail centres where most products are available branded. So for this product it could be initially for consumers seeking healthy foods free from pesticides, chemical or preservatives. Pricing should be competitive and there should be a strong identifiable attribute to the brand. MOROCCO ALMONDS - Also the brand can use its international reputation as well as services to big consumers like Hersheys etc to build a reputation of quality and esteem. The brand can associate itself through social campaigns, emotional benefits, sentiments to generate awareness. A well crafted tag line and logo will help enhance the positioning of the brand. All brand positioning elements like Packaging, Pricing, Distribution, and Manufacturing should be on the similar theme to create emotional triggers with customers to build customer relationships. Every touch point associated with the brand should be a good experience.