Endorsed brands or endorsed branding is a term that has evolved with the field itself.
Branding, as a discipline, aims to make the meaning of organisations easy to understand and endorsed branding is a strategy that can achieve that goal.
As organisations evolve and their portfolios of brands grow, flexible structures are required to keep things simple. This is the function of brand architecture in which multiple strategies can be found.
In this article, you’ll learn what endorsed brands are and how they can be used within effective brand architecture.
What Is An Endorsed Brand Strategy?
(Pros, Cons & Examples)
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What Is Brand Architecture?
Let’s kick things off with a quick explanation of brand architecture so we can fully understand the world an endorsed brand lives in.
Brand architecture is an organisational brand strategy used to organise a portfolio of products, services or entities, known as sub-brands.
Whether these sub-brands are segmented into individual entities or not, brand architecture clearly distinguishes the difference from simple product naming, right up to segregated market targeting, positioning and messaging.
What Is An Endorsed Brand?
Endorsed branding is a brand architecture structure (or strategy), consisting of distinctly different product or service brands that are positioned individually from its parent brand (also known as an endorser brand).
Although these sub-brands are obviously distinctly different, they each retain an association with the endorser parent brand through visual reference (i.e. the parent brand mark).
This architecture strategy leverages the brand equity and reputation of the parent brand while enjoying independent positioning, visual identity, personality and messaging.
In other words, an endorsed brand has the best of both worlds.
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What Is An Endorsed Brand Identity?
An endorsed brand identity is the visual brand identity of the endorsed brand.
The brand identity design and appearance is usually distinctly different from its parent brand without limiting any of the visual identity elements, which include:
Logo / Brand Mark
Typography
Colour Palette
Image Style
Iconography
Graphics / Illustrations
The only visual design consistency across an endorsed brand portfolio is the reference to the endorser brand (or parent brand) on the logo.
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Why Use An Endorsed Brand Strategy?
Strategies exist to navigate different problems. Brand strategies exist to navigate different branding problems.
Companies with portfolios of brands must decide how their brands should be structured for the purpose of both internal organisation and external communication.
While every brand architecture strategy each have their own nature which span from dependence to independence, the endorsed model sits somewhere in-between.
Endorsed Brand Pros And Cons
To dive further into why a parent brand would choose to become an endorser brand, let’s dive deeper into the pros and cons of the endorsed brand strategy.
Advantages Of Endorsed Brand Architecture
Endorsed brands are akin to trust fund babies. They can go off and enjoy the their independence with a leg up in the world.
Here are some of the major advantages:
They leverage the brand equity and reputation of the parent Brand.
They don’t need to establish brand awareness from ground zero.
Increased reputation and growth of sister has knock on effects
Added safety and security from established parent brand
Enhanced marketing effectiveness and reduced cost in conjunction with parent brand
Disadvantages Of An Endorsed Brand
While endorsed brands do have a distinct advantage, they also have risks to consider that other brands don’t.
Their brand reputation is tied to both the parent brand and sister brands
Although the endorsed brand enjoys independence, it must fall in line with the parent brand values and beliefs.
Complicated chain of command can lead to delayed market responses
Endorsed Brand Examples
Although most people probably wouldn’t be able to tell an endorsed brand from a completely independent brand, they are more common than you would imagine.
Nestle Brand Architecture
Nestle is one of the most well-recognised endorser brands in the world.
The reality is, Nestle is both a House Of Brands and Endorser brand.
While they endorse many of their brands, they also have a portfolio of brands that are considered giants in and of themselves such as
Nescafe
Nespresso
San Pellegrino
Cheerios
Chef
Nestea
Perrier
Nestle are the picture-perfect example of how to execute the endorsed brand strategy.
The parent brand leads with immense reputation and brand equity and while each endorsed brands have established themselves as independent big hitters in their respective markets.
Nestle endorsed brands include
Milo
Smarties
KitKat
Nesquick
Pure Life Water
Coffee-Mate
Milkybar
Over To You
Understanding the market landscape any endorsed brand might operate in and the pros and cons of leveraging the endorser parent brand is where such decisions are made.
Used wisely it can quickly put a brand on the map by leveraging the reputation and equity established by it endorser.
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Great Analysis.
Thank you