Companies need to build a strong brand and differentiate themselves from the competition in today's highly competitive environment. Today, a brand is essential as companies strive to gain customer trust, which leads to the final decision to purchase the product. This article aims to assess the impact of brand identity on the consumer behavior of some customers of old and new Kazakhstani dairy brands.
This work aims to identify whether there is a correlation between customers' perception of a brand and their purchases. The proper positioning, clear definition of the target audience, the fulfillment of the promises, and always the execution of the customers can lead to enormous results that transform the company into a strong brand and well-recognized brand identity. The main aim of this paper is to consider the evidence of brand identity's impact on consumer behaviour.
Literature review
Primary Data
- Branding
- Building strong brands
- Brand identity
- Brand equity
- Consumer behavior
Slogans are usually attached to the brand names and come to mind immediately after the name. These steps lead to a basis of the brand strategy that needs to be developed to grow the brand further. Aaker, 1996) Brand identity is the combination of the brand's name, design, logo, package, website, visual appearance and communication that reflects the brand's unique attributes to customers.
According to Aaker (1996), the core identity should consist of components that contribute to the value and uniqueness of the brand. The core identity can therefore form the basis for the value and credibility of the brand. A well-developed value proposition refers to the brand-customer relationship and improves the purchasing decision.
Identifying and managing the brand identity is the basis for building a strong brand and brand equity. Brand image is pointed out by the links that come to mind of the brand node along with the other information nodes.
Secondary Data
- Dairy industry
- Brand identity influence on consumer behavior
- Factors influencing Consumer behavior in a Dairy Industry
There is a connection between the mission and vision of the brand and the logotype and the messages they give to their customers. The brand is the complex of emotions, representation and association that comes to the mind of the consumer. Knowing one's brand identity simplifies the decision-making process for the company, and every decision affects the experience customers interact with the brand.
Once the brand fails to deliver on the promise, it can immediately impact the company's indicators. All customer touch points should remind them of the main idea of the brand, so that the customer will always recognize what the brand stands for and how it differs from the competition. Visual branding is like the face of the brand and creates a first impression and represents what the brand stands for.
With the speed and scale at which photo and video content is created across channels, advertisers face challenges in controlling brand identity. People's decision-making is related to the extent to which the brand's identity matches its own identity. However, some people do not want to have the same identity as the brand identity they buy, but they want to have a relationship with that brand.
So, they decide to buy a specific brand to expand their personality according to the brand characteristics they don't have. Promotion also influences the purchase decision of milk brands as it provides information about the advantages of the brand and increases brand awareness. Research conducted by Gilaninia Sh., Ganjina H. and Moridi A. 2012) suggests that brand owners will benefit from an accurate translation of brand credibility and prestige.
Moreover, the role of stores needs to be expanded due to the growing trend of cross-channel orders. Before creating or changing the packaging design, the company must develop the brand positioning and decide how the products will be positioned. A similar study to this article was conducted in Sweden, analyzing brand identity and consumer engagement with two non-dairy brands, Alpro and Oatly.
Methodology
Consumers said that when they buy Oatly products, they feel proud because they feel their involvement in environmental issues. Consumers consider Alpro to be a more functional brand, and consumers perceive reflection and self-image as consuming functional food and taking care of their health. Regarding the attitude aspect, respondents emphasized that they feel an emotional connection with Oatly products, as Oatley communicates with its consumers, especially hipsters and vegans, by creating a culture and ideology around the brand.
The authors hypothesized that Oatly's strong relationship with customers is due to the brand communicating the brand's core culture and showing the benefits of using alternative milk, which is at odds with the dairy industry. As Alpro is part of Danone, a major dairy producer, it may not have a strong position vis-à-vis the dairy industry. The main takeaway from the research is that in the example of Oatly, culture is a vital facet of brand identity that increases consumer involvement.
Two experts working in the marketing and branding spheres were selected to provide their feedback on the influence of brand identity on overall consumer behavior, particularly in the dairy industry. Both experts have experience in marketing and branding and work with local and external medium and large companies. Having experience of working with dairy companies and in general in the dairy industry is a non-mandatory criterion, but given the added value to this paper.
Using these two research methods will help make this article more objective and better test the hypothesis.
Research Findings and Analysis
Survey and Sample characteristics
Data analysis
Tetra pack and fin pack (soft pack) are the most popular among consumers; 52.4% and 40.8% chose the milk in that package. Taste was considered the most essential factor in the milk decision-making process. However, if they cannot find their preferred brand of milk in the store, almost half of respondents (48.5%) will buy another brand of milk.
Consumers' willingness to switch between milk brands if they don't find a favorite in store indicates that the availability of brands on the shelves is a crucial factor in a purchase decision. 36.9% of consumers said they are likely to try a new milk brand and only 13.6% of respondents said they are unlikely to try a new milk brand. A primary factor influencing switching between milk brands is quality (35.9%) and recommendations from friends/relatives (29.1%).
More than half of the respondents (62.1%) said they prefer to buy milk in a package with standard category colors. 53.4% answered that if they see a specially branded refrigerator with milk in the store, they tend to buy it as it will attract their attention. 25.2% of the respondents answered that it would attract their attention but they will not buy that milk and 20.4% of the respondents said that it would not attract their attention as they buy milk in a regular refrigerator , where all brands are put together.
However, price does not affect whether the consumer is more likely to try colored milk in the unusual category or not. There is also a correlation that consumers with higher income level prefer to buy milk in tetra-pack, while people with lower income level buy milk in a. However, people with higher income levels are more willing to buy milk in specialized brand refrigerators than consumers with lower income levels.
Price is considered a minor factor influencing consumer behavior in the dairy industry, while taste and shelf life are considered the most valuable factors.
Experts
Price will not be the deciding factor in the mid- and mid-plus segment, unlike convenience. In the middle and middle plus segments, usability and convenient package design are more critical and should differ from economy class. Andrey Khalov said that brand identity works the same for consumers of different income levels because people have the same nervous system.
As a result, they value product features and overall brand identity more, and price is less critical. Both experts emphasized the importance of brand identity development as one of the steps in brand building and its influence on consumer behavior through brand perception. This article aimed to assess the influence of brand identity on consumers' decision-making process when purchasing milk and the impact of package design on milk purchase.
Brand identity is central to brand building and should reflect the brand's values and mission. Brand identity influences the decision-making process in many industries, and the dairy industry is no exception. The good combination of all brand elements leads to a strong brand identity that influences brand awareness.
Both research and experts confirm that a clear brand identity with solid positioning and clear product messaging with high-quality features increases the desire to buy and recommend the product. Creating a clear brand identity based on positioning the brand with a high-quality product will positively influence consumer behavior by increasing the desire to purchase the product and brand loyalty. In addition, future research can categorize milk as cow's milk, plant milk, and goat's milk to gain a deeper understanding of consumer preferences and the impact of brand identity on different types of milk.
How new companies can establish brand identities. https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesbusinessdevelopmentcouncil how-new-companies-can-establish-brand-identities/?sh=3e6926a6689e. In what direction will Kazakhstan's dairy production develop? https://kz.kursiv.media v-kakom-napravlenii-budet-razvivatsya-molochnoe-proizvodstvo-kazakhstana/. Why is visual communication important for your brand? https://your-comics.com/en/article/definition-communication-visual-business-28.html 32. What is product design and the product design process. https://uxplanet.org/what-is-product-design-and-the-product-design-process-41b41a5bf795. https://likeagency.kz/ru/portfolio/adalmilk.
