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Consumer Influence on Brand Meaning

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MKTG203 Investigative Essay:
Consumer Influence on Brand Meaning

The marketing team or the end consumer: Who determines the underlying meaning behind an established brand? By design, the marketing of a brand or product is undertaken with the intention to stir a response within a consumer about the apparent value attributed to that product or brand, and ultimately result in the consumer making a purchase. With that in mind, one could assume that the definitive meaning of a brand would be formed as the general intention of the marketers who have either created the brand, or currently work on it. This essay will debate that it may indeed be consumers that have the capacity to determine a brand’s meaning, rather than the marketer responsible for the brand, and that this newly developed meaning may not even be remotely comparable to the marketer’s initial intended meaning.
The underlying meaning behind a brand, whether intentional or not, can be conveyed and interpreted through the influence of multiple factors. From culture, religion, politics and travel exploration in an increasingly global landscape; to multiple media platforms including film and television; to internal factors such as past experience and memories revived from childhood; consumers can use their own awareness, surroundings and experiences to form their own interpretations on a brand’s meaning.
Culture can often have a great influence on brand meaning. The addition of all the customs, beliefs and values that impact a society’s consumption patterns formulate that society’s culture (Schiffman et al. 2014, pp. 392). These beliefs and values highlight the majority views on the meaning behind a brand, which can often be intense enough to coerce the greater population. This is particularly apparent in many Middle-Eastern countries where Islam dictates unambiguously the apparel which is appropriate for

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