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QUESTION
Some marketers feel that the image of the particular channel in which they sell their products does not matter—all that matters is that the right customers shop there and the product is displayed in the right way. Others maintain that channel images—such as a retail store—can be critical and must be consistent with the image of the product.
Take a position: Channel images do not really affect the brand images of the products they sell that much versus Channel images must be consistent with the brand image.
Include:
§ Title slide.
§ Introduction slide.
§ 3-4 slides covering response to the questions.
• Speaker notes on all substantive slides.
• In-text citations where needed on the slides and/or in speaker notes.
§ Conclusion slide.
| Subject | Communication | Pages | 12 | Style | APA |
|---|
Answer
CHANNEL IMAGES MUST BE CONSISTENT WITH THE BRAND IMAGE
- In marketing, channel images and brand images play a crucial role in determining the success of a brand or product.
- Brand image is the perception and features that customers associate with a particular brand (Methaq, 2016).
- Channel image is the perception and features that customer associate with a particular distribution channel such as a store (James et al., 2019).
- Brand and channel consistency across all spheres of business is important to maximize the effectiveness and awareness for brand recognition and company survival in the long-run (James et al., 2019).
A marketing channel is responsible for smooth distribution of products from the production to consumption stage overcoming, the time, place, and possession gaps.
A company can utilize different marketing channels to reach its products and services to consumers.
However, the channel must be consistent with the brand image.
Brand consistency across all channels may be a vital strategy to maximize effectiveness and awareness of the companies’ brand images as brand recognition is very significant to a company’s survival, thus, it is one of a company’s most vital assets.
BRAND IMAGE
- Brand image is equivalent to the corporate image and refers as the customer’s impression of the brands.
- A brand image is achieved after consistent advertising campaigns with a consistent theme which is authenticated through the consumers direct experience (Dan & Douglas, 2013).
- Brand image can be perceived differently by different consumers. Hence, the formation of a consistent brand image is a huge task for any businesses.
- A strong brand image ensures that an organization achieves higher profits, easy to introduce new products, build investor confidence, and enhance business-customer relationships.
Brand image and channel image should be consistent with each other.
Therefore, consistency between channel image and brand image is conditional only if it enhances brand image.
strong brand image has the following advantages –
- More profits as new customers are attracted to the brand.
- Easy to introduce new products under the same brand.
- Boosts the confidence of existing customers. Helps in retaining them.
- Better Business-Customer relationship.
CHANNEL IMAGE
- A marketing channel is also known as the distribution channel and is typically a set of activities or practices that are necessary to allow the successful transfer of goods from the production stage to consumption.
- A channel image is built through strategic partnership and alliances (Steve & Alexis , 2014).
- An organization should select a channel image that is consistent with its brand for sustainability.
- For example, the channel distribution network for Coca Cola that specializes in drinks is different to that of Apple that specializes in phones since they had different products that achieve a different value to consumers.
- Therefore, a channel image is the successful value creation to consumers.
- For companies that produce high-end products such as iPhone the image of the channel is vital as it can affect the image of the brand. Hence customers, will always purchase the iPhone brand if it is displayed in high end stores. If displayed in the streets, customers may view the brand as inferior and may be reluctant to purchase the product. High-end stores provide a better channel and its an image of quality. This goes in line in building the image of the iPhone in global market.
- Hence a firm will always consider the stage and value of its brand to make sure it is consistent with its channel image.
Position: CHANNEL IMAGES MUST BE CONSISTENT WITH THE BRAND IMAGE
- Channel Images should be consistent with the brand image because:
- A brand image is developed through a channel with which it does image hence the standards of the brand and channel should be consistent with each othe r(Robert & Rodney , 2013).
- If XYZ Company is involved in the selling of multiple products such as phones, computers, accessories, and watches a quality issue with the mobile phone brand which is the channel will affect its brand in the market forcing sales to go down.
- The remedy for this is that XYZ Company should maintain a consistent standard and mode of delivery to its customers by enhancing quality.
- To achieve a competitive advantage, the organization should maintain same standards for all products which in the long-run achieves the brand image of the organization.
- I believe that Channel images must be consistent with the brand image.
- a) Brand image is most of the times developed through channels and hence the standards of the brand and channel should be consistent with each other.
- Example: If we assume that there is an organization XYZ corporation who is dealing with multiple products like mobile phones, accessories, computers, watches, etc. if there is a quality issue in the mobile phone channel the brand image will go down and also affect the other channels of business and this is inevitable because business is done using the brand image largely.
References
- Dan, P., & Douglas, A. (2013). Communicating Experiences: A Narrative Approach to Creating Service Brand Image. Journal of Advertising, 26(4), 49-62.
- James, Z., Erik, T., Trang, T., & David , L. (2019). Two decades of the Journal of Marketing Channels : Impacting the present and directing the future of marketing channel research. Journal of Marketing Channels, 1-11.
- Methaq, A. S. (2016). The Impact of Brand Image and Corporate Branding on Consumer's Choice: The Role of Brand Equity. International Journal of Marketing Studies, 8(1), 1-98.
- Robert , P. J., & Rodney , C. R. (2013). Brand Experience and Brand Implications in a Multi-Channel Setting. The International Review of Retail, Distribution, and Consumer Research, 265-290.
- Steve , B., & Alexis , M. (2014). The International Transfer of Store Brand Image . The International Review of Retail, Distribution and Consumer Research , 395-412.
Appendix – ABS QuickStat Suburb Comparison Tables, 2011 Census
Part II of Assignment 1 requires you to download and enter ABS QuickStats data into the comparison tables presented in this document. Please see below for step-by-step instructions.
Step-by-Step Instructions for Completing the Comparison Tables
Step One – Download the data you need from the ABS QuickStats website by:
- Click on the link www.abs.gov.au/websitedbs/censushome.nsf/home/quickstats.
- If the link does not work, copy and paste the link into your web browser.
- The link will take you to the ABS QuickStats Search function.
- Type the name of the first suburb you selected, in the ABS QuickStats Search Box.
- You will then need to choose a statistical level from a list of options. These options will be automatically generated once you enter the suburb name. Please select ‘State Suburb (SSC)’ For example, if your suburb is Blacktown, the correct option to choose is: ‘Blacktown, NSW(SSC)’,
- Make sure 2011 census data is also selected and click-on ‘go’ (2016 was the last census conducted in Australia, but not all of the data from this census is currently available).
- QuickStats data for your suburb will then be generated.
- Repeat the process for the comparison suburb. Remember that the comparison suburb is to be selected from a Sydney region that is different to the region of the suburb you first selected.
Step Two – Enter the ABS QuickStats data for the two suburbs into the tables below, noting:
- You will need to manually enter the data in the tables.
- Please note that you WON’T need to enter all the data generated by the ABS website, only the data for the tables below.
Step Three – Use the Comparison Tables to complete Part III of the assignment
Step Four – Include these completed tables as an Appendix to your completed Assignment
ABS QuickStat Suburb Comparison Tables, 2011 Census
Table 1: QuickStats Summary Statistics, 2011 Census (ABS)
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Summary Statistics |
[Write the name of the first Sydney suburb you selected] |
[Write the name of the comparison Sydney suburb you selected] |
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Number (n) |
Number (n) |
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People |
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Male |
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Female |
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Median age |
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Families |
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Average children per family |
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Private dwellings |
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Average people per household |
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Median weekly household income |
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Median monthly mortgage repayments |
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Median weekly rent |
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Average motor vehicles per dwelling |
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PEOPLE — DEMOGRAPHICS AND EDUCATION
Table 2: Education (i.e. currently studying), 2011 Census (ABS)
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Type of Education Institution |
[Write the name of the first Sydney suburb you selected] |
[Write the name of the comparison Sydney suburb you selected] |
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Percentage % |
Percentage % |
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Primary – Government |
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Primary – Catholic |
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Primary - Other Non Government |
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Secondary – Government |
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Secondary – Catholic |
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Secondary - Other Non Government |
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Technical or further education institution |
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University or tertiary institution |
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PEOPLE — CULTURAL AND LANGUAGE DIVERSITY
Table 3: Country of birth, 2011 Census (ABS)
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[Write the name of the first Sydney suburb you selected] |
[Write the name of the comparison Sydney suburb you selected] |
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Country |
Percentage % |
Country |
Percentage % |
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Australia |
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Australia |
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Other Top Responses |
Other Top Responses |
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1 |
[fill in] |
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[fill in] |
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2 |
[fill in] |
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[fill in] |
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3 |
[fill in] |
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[fill in] |
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4 |
[fill in] |
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[fill in] |
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5 |
[fill in] |
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[fill in] |
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Table 4: Birthplace of parents, stated responses, 2011 Census (ABS)
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Birthplace of parents |
[Write the name of the first Sydney suburb you selected] |
[Write the name of the comparison Sydney suburb you selected] |
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Percentage % |
Percentage % |
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Both parents born overseas |
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Father only born overseas |
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Mother only born overseas |
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Both parents born in Australia |
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Table 5: Religious Affiliation, 2011 Census (ABS)
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[Write the name of the first Sydney suburb you selected] |
[Write the name of the comparison Sydney suburb you selected] |
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Religion |
Percentage % |
Religion |
Percentage % |
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1 |
[fill in] |
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[fill in] |
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2 |
[fill in] |
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[fill in] |
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3 |
[fill in] |
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[fill in] |
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4 |
[fill in] |
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[fill in] |
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5 |
[fill in] |
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[fill in] |
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Table 6: Language, top responses (other than English), 2011 Census (ABS)
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[Write the name of the first Sydney suburb you selected] |
[Write the name of the comparison Sydney suburb you selected] |
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Language |
Percentage % |
Language |
Percentage % |
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1 |
[fill in] |
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[fill in] |
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2 |
[fill in] |
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[fill in] |
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3 |
[fill in] |
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[fill in] |
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4 |
[fill in] |
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[fill in] |
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5 |
[fill in] |
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[fill in] |
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English only spoken at home |
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English only spoken at home |
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Households where two or more languages are spoken |
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Households where two or more languages are spoken |
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PEOPLE – EMPLOYMENT
Table 7: Employment status, 2011 Census (ABS)
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Employment Status |
[Write the name of the first Sydney suburb you selected] |
[Write the name of the comparison Sydney suburb you selected] |
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Percentage % |
Percentage % |
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Worked full-time |
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Worked part-time |
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Away from work |
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Unemployed |
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Table 8: Employment – hours worked, 2011 Census (ABS)
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Hours Worked |
[Write the name of the first Sydney suburb you selected] |
[Write the name of the comparison Sydney suburb you selected] |
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Percentage % |
Percentage % |
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1-15 hours per week |
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16-24 hours per week |
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25-34 hours per week |
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35-39 hours per week |
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40 hours or more per week |
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Table 9: Occupation, 2011 Census (ABS)
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[Write the name of the first Sydney suburb you selected] |
[Write the name of the comparison Sydney suburb you selected] |
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Occupation |
Percentage % |
Occupation |
Percentage % |
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1 |
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2 |
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3 |
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4 |
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5 |
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6 |
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7 |
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8 |
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Table 10: Median weekly incomes, 2011 Census (ABS)
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Income Category |
[Write the name of the first Sydney suburb you selected] |
[Write the name of the comparison Sydney suburb you selected] |
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Amount ($) |
Amount ($) |
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Personal |
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Family |
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Household |
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Table 11: Household income, 2011 Census (ABS)
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[Write the name of the first Sydney suburb you selected] |
[Write the name of the second Sydney suburb you selected] |
[Write the name of the comparison Sydney suburb you selected] |
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Percentage % |
Percentage % |
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Less than $600 gross weekly income |
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More than $3,000 gross weekly income |
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DWELLINGS — MORTGAGE & RENT
Table 12: Weekly rent payments, 2011 Census (ABS)
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Weekly Rent Payments |
[Write the name of the first Sydney suburb you selected] |
[Write the name of the comparison Sydney suburb you selected] |
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Amount ($) |
Amount ($) |
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Median rent |
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Percentage (%) |
Percentage (%) |
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Households where rent payments are less than 30% of household income |
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Households where rent payments are 30%, or greater, of household income |
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Table 13: Mortgage monthly repayments, 2011 Census (ABS)
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Monthly Mortgage Payments |
[Write the name of the first Sydney suburb you selected] |
[Write the name of the comparison Sydney suburb you selected] |
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Amount ($) |
Amount ($) |
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Median mortgage repayments |
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Percentage (%) |
Percentage (%) |
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Households where mortgage payments are less than 30% of household income |
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Households where mortgage payments are 30%, or greater, of household income |
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Assignment 1 Completion Checklist
When you think that you have completed Assignment 1, use this checklist to ensure that you have included all of the key components of this assessment.
Completion Checklist
- Did you read the Assignment 1 Marking Criteria to ensure you know what you need to do in each part of obtain a maximum grade?
- Part I – Did you provide answers for all four (4) questions?
- Part II – Did you provide a comprehensive description of four (4) of the main socio-economic differences between your comparison suburbs?
- Part III – Did you demonstrate a comprehensive knowledge of the reasons for the socio-economic differences between your comparison suburbs using academic literature (books, journal articles and books) and the lectures from Module 1?
- Part III – Did you use at least two (2) journal articles, book chapters or books from the list of suggested readings for Assignment 1 AND/OR Module 1 readings?
- Part III – Are your in-text citations correctly formatted using Western Sydney University’s Harvard Referencing Guidelines?
- References – Have you included a reference list correctly formatted using Western Sydney University’s Harvard Style Referencing Guidelines?
- Appendix – Have you included your ABS QuickStat Comparison Tables as an appendix item?
- Turnitin – Have you submitted your assignment to Turnitin and carefully checked the familiarity report to ensure that you have correctly paraphrased information from secondary sources in your own words?
If you have successfully completed all of these steps, CONGRATULATIONS on completing the first assignment for People, Place and Social Difference! Send a tweet using #PPSD17 to celebrate with us!