Personality approach

Question 1

What is the personality approach?

Answer 1

Explains how and why people choose brands with certain personalities and how imbuing brands with personality can be a powerful tool to create and enhance brand equity.
- Focused on the consumer, whereas Identity approach is focused on stakeholders

Question 2

Assumptions

Answer 2

1) Consumers’ need for identity and expression of self is a key driver of brand attitudes, choice, and consumption
2) Symbolic benefits are expressed by imbuing the brand with a human-like character
- Essentially, consumers ‘see’ themselves in the personality of the brnad

Question 3

Brand personality construct

Answer 3

1) Personality perspective: High level of homogeneity among consumers’ perception of the personality of brands.
2) Brand-consumer exchange: There is a symbolically charged interaction between the brand and the consumer that motivates consumers to choose one brand over the other.

Question 4

Brand-consumer exchange framework

Answer 4

Brand personality –(Symbolic brand value)–> Personality of stereotypical consumer –(Adds personality and symbolic brand value back to the brand)–> Brand personality

Question 5

Theoretical building blocks

Answer 5

1) Supporting theme: Personality
2) Supporting theme: Consumer self
3) Supporting theme: Self-congruity
4) Core theme: Brand personality

Question 6

Supporting theme: Personality

Answer 6

Determines how a person will react to different situation or behave in general, also influences how humans connect with one another

Question 7

Supporting theme: Consumer self

Answer 7

Consumers’ construction and expression of self, how they attach meaning to possessions

Question 8

Supporting theme: Self-congruity

Answer 8

Social identification process consumers engage in with brands they consume:
1) Form associations about brands related to self
2) Representations of selves are activated (actual, ideal, or social self)
3) Engage in a matching process between their perception of associations derived from the brand and their representation of self

Question 9

Personality dimensions

Answer 9

1) Extroversion
2) Agreeable
3) Consciousness
4) Emotional stability
5) Openness

Question 10

Core theme: Brand personality

Answer 10

Personality traits describe the characteristics that people associate with each brand personality dimension

Question 11

Aaker framework of brand personality

Answer 11

Brand dimensions on the left, dominant personality traits on the right:
1) Sincerity –> Down-to-earth, honest, wholesome, cheerful
2) Excitement –> Daring, spirited, imaginative, up-to-date
3) Competence –> Reliable, intelligent, successful
4) Sophistication –> Upper class, charming
5) Ruggedness –> Outdoorsy, tough

Question 12

Archetypical personality

Answer 12

The basic mechanisms ad source codes that enable people to communicate and connect at a rudimentary subconscious level
- Creator
- Caregiver
- Ruler
- Jester
- Regular girl/guy
- Lover
- Hero
- Outlaw
- Magician
- Innocent
- Explorer
- Sage

Question 13

Methods & data

Answer 13

Qualitative:
1) Descriptive methodologies: Consumers are asked to determine to what extent a word or a symbol is self-descriptive
2) Free association methodology: Photo sorting or autobiographical, where consumers describe their autobiographical memory related to certain stimuli that have a relation to the brand in question

Quantitative: Use of questionnaires and scaling techniques

Question 14

Scaling

Answer 14

The process of measuring or ordering entities according to the attributes or traits that characterize them.

Question 15

Types of scales

Answer 15

1) Normal scales: Used to categorize or label
2) Ordinal scales: Impose more structure on objects by rank-ordering them in terms of the subject’s characteristics such as weight or colour (eg. 1st place, 2nd place)
3) Interval scales: Assumption of equal intervals between the numbers. Numbers indicate the magnitude of difference between items, no absolute zero point (eg. rank on a scale of 1-5)
4) Ratio scales: Like an ordinal scale, but there is a fixed zero point (eg. age, income, length, population)

Question 16

Managerial implications

Answer 16

• Companies must:
  1) Understand how the brand contributes to construction and expression of identity
  2) Translate understanding into a brand personality strategy that delivers symbolic benefits, value, and relevance for the consumers
• Creation of brand personality
• Self and brand personality management
• Early adopters and brand self-congruity
• Sources of brand personality

Question 17

Creation of brand personality

Answer 17

1) Identify personality: Identify personality dimensions and traits to be communicated and built into the behaviour of the brand
2) Make sure it is appealing to consumers
3) Understand target groups
4) Align the personality of the brand and the consumer
5) Develop the communication platform

Question 18

Self and brand personality management

Answer 18

Insight into what layer of the self-concept that is predominant for a specific brand is key, knowing exactly which level of the self the brand appeals to is essential.

Question 19

Early adopters and brand self-congruity

Answer 19

Early adopters are critical for the alignment of brand personality.

Question 20

Dos

Answer 20

1) Remember to uncover the complex ways the brand contributes to consumers self construction and expression
2) Make a thorough personality statement hat can guide brand-building activities
3) Consider how the brand personality sets the standard and boundaries for how the brand can behave
4) Make sure the organization is able to deliver on the promise and expectations linked to the chosen brand personality
5) Choose and focus on the right target group
6) Take a dynamic approach to brand personality, analyze how the brand personality affects the relationship with your consumer