Why using brand nicknames in marketing is a bad idea
Researchers from Western University, Stockton University, and the University of Massachusetts Amherst have published a new study examining whether companies can benefit from adopting popular nicknames in their branding efforts.
The study, published in the Journal of Marketing, is titled “BMW is strong, Beemer is not: Nickname branding hurts brand performance” and was written by Zhe Zhang, Ning Ye and Matthew Thomson. did.
Many brands have popular nicknames that have become part of everyday conversation. BMW is commonly referred to as Beemer, Bloomingdale’s as Bloomies, Rolex as Raleigh, Walmart as Wally World, and Starbucks as Starbees.
Given their popularity, some marketers have adopted these names for their own branding efforts. For example, in 2021, Bloomingdale’s officially adopted “Bloomy’s” for its new store in Fairfax, Virginia, Target launched a style campaign in 2018 with the tagline “Autumn Again in Tarsey,” and Howard The slogan for Johnson’s hotel chain is “Go.” Let’s go happy. ”
Can companies actually benefit from adopting popular nicknames in their branding efforts? This new study finds that nickname branding actually has a negative impact on brand performance. did. Because nicknames for brands are usually given by consumers.
“Accepting a consumer-given nickname indicates that the brand is demonstrating that the consumer is ‘responsible’ and publicly accepting and promoting the altered identity given by the consumer,” said Chan. When a brand begins to accept and even adopt the nickname given to it by the consumer, it weakens the brand’s power in the eyes of the consumer. .”
Nickname use by customers and marketers
Many brands are closely monitoring their consumers’ language use, especially on social media. However, the purpose of this monitoring is to generate insights, not to mechanically repeat what consumers are saying. Brand nicknames are certainly a term of endearment, but only when used by the right people (i.e. consumers). When marketers use nicknames, nicknames do not bring consumers closer to the brand. In fact, copying anything that could be construed as a consumer’s “intellectual property” makes your brand look weak.
Marketers need to be aware that there is a difference between a consumer using a nickname and a business using that nickname for branding. The researchers say that consumers’ use of nicknames does not indicate that the brand is influenced by consumers, so it is unlikely to weaken perceptions of brand power. In fact, previous research has shown that brand nicknames can have desirable outcomes when used by consumers.
“Marketers need to be aware of the differences between the use of nicknames by consumers and marketers,” says Thomson. “While you may wish to avoid adopting nicknames for marketing purposes, this should not preclude their use within the consumer community.”
Additionally, brands should carefully evaluate the brand’s stereotype (i.e., competent vs. warm) and type of message (transactional vs. collaborative) before adopting a nickname. We believe that some brands may benefit from using nicknames under certain conditions.
For example, if a family-owned restaurant in a small town adopts a popular nickname given by local residents to raise money for the local library, people may not necessarily think it is inappropriate. . Because the business is not intended for power, and its motives are: benefit the community. Rather, the nickname becomes an emotional connection that activates the consumer’s community identity, potentially attracting more donations to the local community.
Additionally, it is important for marketers to assess the implications of a brand name change. For example, Apple Computer became Apple, IHOP briefly became IHOb, and Dunkin’ Donuts became Dunkin’. These were meaningful name changes and part of the brand’s repositioning strategy.
The new name clearly communicates to consumers what the brand wants to be. Apple offers more than personal computers, Dunkin’ offers more than just donuts, and the IHOb burger should be taken seriously. These are internally initiated changes that signal a brand’s new identity and market position, unlike nickname branding activities that are initiated externally.
“If nickname branding does not involve significant changes to a brand’s core identity, it may seem like a relatively superficial effort to appeal to consumers,” says Thomson. For example, Radio Shack’s adoption of nicknames (e.g. tagline: “Our friends call us Shack”) is a high-profile example of clear submission to consumer influence. , is believed to have hastened the company’s trajectory towards bankruptcy.
Lessons for chief marketing officers
Marketers need to be careful about misappropriating consumers’ words. Marketers need to be aware of the difference between consumer use of nicknames and nickname branding. For example, when General Motors banned the use of the nickname “Chevrolet” within its organization in 2010, the company was heavily criticized for not being consumer-oriented. However, critics argue that the policy is aimed at reducing internal use of nicknames (for example, when salespeople talk to consumers) and does not prevent consumers from using nicknames outside the company. I overlooked that fact. Some brands may benefit from using nicknames under certain conditions. As your brand grows, you may need to change your brand name. However, if nickname branding does not involve significant changes to the brand’s core identity, it may seem like a superficial effort to appease consumers.
Further reading: Zhe Zhang et al., BMW is powerful, Beemer is not: Nickname Branding Impairs Brand Performance, Journal of Marketing (2024). DOI: 10.1177/00222429241266586
Provided by American Marketing Association
Source: Why using brand nicknames in marketing is not a good idea (October 8, 2024) from https://phys.org/news/2024-10-brand-nickname-good-idea.html 2024 Retrieved October 8, 2018
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