Brand strategies and brand effects in industrial markets

Abstract

The purpose of this report is to identify variables and situations that influence the importance of brands and brand strategies. Building strong brands may be of vital importance for these industries to compete with foreign companies both in international markets and in the domestic market. In the report we discuss the importance of brands and different brand assets in general. Since the literature has focused mainly on the consumer markets, most of the concepts are adapted from research in consumer behavior. However, we apply the concepts to an industrial context. Based on the theoretical discussion and the findings it is concluded that also in industrial markets you find brand effects, although some of the effects admittedly are small. Some limitations and directions for future research are discussed.