Initiatives to develop Brands among SMEs 31-5-2011

1. Initiatives to develop Brands among SMEs 31-5-2011

2. www.acc10.cat • Main Branding problems that SMEs have to face. • Solutions implemented by ACC1Ó .

3. www.acc10.cat 1. Main Branding Problems that SMEs have to face.

4. www.acc10.cat 1. Main Branding problems that SMEs have to face. What is Branding ? • The role of Branding and Brand management has been primarily to create differentiation and preference for a product or service in the mind of the customer (Knox & Bickertorn 2003). A Brand is more than a name given to a product !

5. www.acc10.cat 1. Main Branding problems that SMEs have to face. Lack of Knowledge • Most SMEs have weak brand consciousness or even have no brand consciousness. • Some of them think that having a logo it’s having a brand... How much would you pay for this perfume ? And for this one… ? ROYAL EAU DE PARFUM

6. www.acc10.cat 1. Main Branding problems that SMEs have to face. Lack of knowledge • You really have a Brand when: • You can charge a higher price than your competitor. • Your client is willing to travel further to purchase it. • Your client is willing to wait longer to buy it. • Your client not only buys your product but also strongly recommends it. • Your client is expecting and willing to buy new products from your company. • Your client is willing to forgive your mistakes. So it’s very important to increase SMEs brand Knowledge!

7. www.acc10.cat 1. Main Branding problems that SMEs have to face. Do you want a good brand ? Have a truly good and unique product ! • Keep one thing clear: Nowadays nobody is waiting for us in the market ! • Meeting or exceeding customers expectations is a challenging task, especially in a competitive market, with lots of similar products addressed to the same need. Therefore, you must: • Know who your customer is (everybody is not a correct answer, be specific, find a niche !) • Discover special needs of your targeted client and offer something different and unique to satisfy them. • Communicate your differentiation, if you have a good product but nobody knows it, it is like having nothing. • Be aware that your clients really understand and appreciate this differentiation • Make your client pay for it !

8. www.acc10.cat 1. Main Branding problems that SMEs have to face. The brand is a matter of big business.. • Many SMEs do not give enough importance to brand construction when enterprises are small. • It is very important to let SMEs know that all the key segments of business are important, no matter the size of the enterprise. • Brand strategy is just the absolutely essential part of the business management. • Be focused on the client, not on the product or service. Nowadays having a good product is not enough. The most important thing is that clients really perceive that your product is better than others and are willing to make an effort to get it. So work the brand ALWAAAAYS !

9. www.acc10.cat 1. Main Branding problems that SMEs have to face. Brand construction need to spend a lot of money... • SMEs usually have lack of financial resources to invest, but... • It is possible to develop a strong brand with so little investment, we just have to be creative! • Case study: • Catalan beer company with 15 M€ turnover in 2010 (25% more than 2009). • Small marketing budget (not enough to do commercials) but a lot of creativity.

10. www.acc10.cat 1. Main Branding problems that SMEs have to face. Brand construction need to spend a lot of money... What they did..? Co branding with Munich

11. www.acc10.cat 1. Main Branding problems that SMEs have to face. Brand construction need to spend a lot of money... What they did..? Barcelona visibility, Moritz 600:

12. www.acc10.cat 1. Main Branding problems that SMEs have to face. Brand construction need to spend a lot of money... What they did..? Also merchandising!

13. www.acc10.cat 1. Main Branding problems that SMEs have to face. Brand construction need to spend a lot of money... What they did..? Beer collectors caps:

14. www.acc10.cat 1. Main Branding problems that SME’s have to face. Brand construction need to spend a lot of money.. What they did..? Participation in special events:

15. www.acc10.cat 2. Solutions implemented by ACC1Ó.

16. www.acc10.cat 2. Solutions implemented by ACC1Ó. ACC1Ó • Over 20 years of experience and know-how (CIDEM and COPCA) developing programmes and services to give support to companies. • Improving strategic support and strengthening companies’ competitiveness. • ACC1Ó gets close to the reality of the business world and assists with the process of providing businesses with a competitive edge. • Reference Point in activities aimed at increasing business competitiveness. • Public-private consensus. Collaborating with business organisations in order to create synergies. • ACC1Ó is the agency working to enhance the competitiveness of Catalan businesses. We specialise in promoting innovation and internationalisation.

17. www.acc10.cat 2. Solutions implemented by ACC1Ó . ACC1Ó • Budget of 73 million euros in non-recoverable funds. • 173 million euros in financing tools. 460 million euros raised via lines of funding. • More than 200 professionals serving enterprise. • Support for the materialisation of 3,000 projects a year. • 92 million euros of investment raised for R&D. • 5 delegations in Catalonia and 35 Business Promotion Centres around the world.

18. www.acc10.cat 2. Solutions implemented by ACC1Ó. What have we done ? Focus in 2 main objectives: • Raising awareness • Giving assessment and economical support

19. www.acc10.cat 2. Solutions implemented by ACC1Ó. Raising awareness • Organization of conferences about branding and industrial property rights. • Elaboration and distribution of branding and Industrial property guides. • Best practice cases published on our webpage.

20. www.acc10.cat 2. Solutions implemented by ACC1Ó. Giving economical and assessment support We create 2 different programs: • Program to promote Catalan trademarks. • Program to defend industrial property rights.

21. www.acc10.cat 2. Solutions implemented by ACC1Ó. Program to promote Catalan Brands. Objective:Provide to SMEs the orientation and assessment needed to create and potentiate their brands in international markets. Characteristics:Assessment is the main issue in this program and SMEs get a creation and boosting plan for their marks that could be develop among the following eligible projects: • Creation of company and product trademarks. • Brand management: Decide which trademarks have to be boosted in international markets. • Determine the economic value of a brand (For acquisitions). • Co branding activities (search of the partner, strategy development)

22. www.acc10.cat 2. Solutions implemented by ACC1Ó. Program to Promote Catalan Brands. Program methodology: • Interview with ACC1Ó branding expert. • Introduction of 3 consultants (certified by ACC1Ó). • Development of the project. • Maximum 12 months • ACC1Ó pays 50% of consultant’s fees up to 10.000 €. • Implementation and follow up. • Main figures: • Budget: 250.000 € • 50 SMEs applied for this program last year.

23. www.acc10.cat • 2. Solutions implemented by ACC1Ó. Program to Defend Industrial property rights. Objective: Help SMEs to protect and defend their industrial property assets. Characteristics:50% of the cost to protect and defend industrial property rights up to 10.000 €, the eligible concepts are: • Industrial property agent fees (to extend IPR protection outside the EU). • Lawyer fees (litigation against counterfeiting and piracy). • Main figures: • Budget: 450.000 €. • 125 SMEs applied to this program last year.

24. www.acc10.cat HVALA VAM NA PAŽNJI!