The Hindu Business Line : Zen and the art of brand maintenance

Static patterns of quality can never survive forever in a society because once they do, society turns rigid and rusts. Pirsig singles out dynamic quality which is constantly changing. Which is why we find newer fashions, newer products and revolutionary ideas which keep society moving.

QUALITY is an event and can't be defined. Quality creates the subject and the object. Quality or the event therefore creates the consumer and the brand. Unless the subject in interface with the object does not find quality in the object (here, the brand), the subject, the consumer, will not buy the brand.

I plan to use Pirsig's MoQ (Metaphysics of Quality - Robert Pirsig is author of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance) model to understand brands from the subject-object metaphysics debate. This model is appreciative in nature, somewhat similar to Maslow's hierarchy of needs model. Consumption requires both the subject and the object. Therefore, in marketing, the subject and the object are inseparable. They form an event which is a level higher, which is Quality.

I shall start first with identifying the subject, i.e., the consumer's value system or values, thereby indirectly hinting at the object, i.e., the product or brand.

Now we all know that man is not inorganic, i.e., `substance', which is inanimate. On the higher level, the biological side, man's needs are primarily biological or physiological, which implies that man needs food, shelter and clothing for his basic sustenance. In which case, products will have to be basic and functional in nature. Commodities and unbranded goods will generally be bought at this level.

On the social side, the consumer buys goods to attain membership with his class. There is a need for affiliation with his peer group or his social class. Marketers frequently associate their goods with a particular social strata in order to appeal to the consumer. Therefore, the consumer now finds quality in the brand during purchase.

The highest level of the static quality side is the intellectual level where consumers act as individuals in order to differentiate themselves from the rest. The consumer finds a need to display his unique persona.

Static patterns of quality can never survive forever in a society because once they do, society turns rigid and rusts. There is no progress, no evolution. Which is why Pirsig singles out dynamic quality which is constantly changing. Which is why we find newer fashions, newer products and revolutionary ideas which keep society moving.

The most important role played by marketers is on the dynamic quality side. True to their nature as mythmakers, they propagate new symbols and new products which disrupt the current static social patterns. In short, they rock the boat. The new-found product then percolates from the top to the bottom gradually. The new product diffusion models work this way.

Now, we may ask what is the lesson marketers can learn? How does one experience quality in the object? Quality is experienced based on one's value systems, which are learnt through numerous influences - social groups, family, media and so on. Each person's value systems are unique and normally follow the above pattern as indicated. An unbranded atta or a low priced atta consumer finds biological value in the experience and therefore, derives positive quality from the event.

As indicated above, the model is an attempt to understand brand-building from both the subject and the object's point of view - marketing attempts to develop products from understanding the consumer in terms of his needs, motivations and so on. Therefore the model implies that understanding the consumer's value systems or his place in the static quality side can help develop the right product so that the consumer experiences quality in the brand. Now how can this model be used in practical terms? In order to do that marketers must first determine the consumer's value-systems or values which drive his consumption behaviour in the market. This can be done by using existing methods such as Rokeach's Value Survey/List of Values (LOV) method/Means-Ends analysis, wherein the fundamental idea is to measure the terminal values of the consumer in interface with the product. A product's attributes leads to suitable benefits for the consumer, which is instrumental in achieving his terminal value in life. This terminal value is the consumer's value system. This terminal value drives his consumption in the market. Now, a terminal value, i.e., an end state, could be a social recognition for a consumer. In which case, this consumer values or derives quality from his experience from such a product which can offer him such a terminal value. For a consumer whose terminal value is self-fulfilment will derive quality from a product which helps him to differentiate his unique personality from others.

Once the value systems of the consumers are isolated, clusters can be made so that the size of each segment can be determined, based on which the product can be developed. All brand messages in the form of communication, packaging, and so on can be designed around the benefits instrumental in achieving the terminal value of the target consumer.

Marketers can use the MoQ model to identify the basis for quality or finding value in their offering. Brand loyalty measurements can also be made through this model. Brand loyalty is not a direct function of satisfaction. Brand loyalty, i.e., wherein the consumer continues to find quality in the brand, derives from values which is a function of satisfaction with the brand. Values drive loyalty, i.e., `quality'. Satisfaction from the consumption experience, which helps the consumer in achieving his end state, will lead to the consumer deriving quality from the experience. The consumer, therefore, values the brand and will keep buying the brand till the time he sees quality in the event/experience.

Now, how can the loyalty process be measured? Terminal values are generally enduring in nature. Terminal values are few in nature. It is only the nature of the product benefits desired to achieve the end state which will keep changing, as newer value-additions enter the market.

The benefits, i.e., rational/emotional/symbolic offered therefore, will have to remain relevant in the minds of the consumer for the brand to be valued constantly. Brand loyalty measurements can be done by constantly monitoring the benefits being offered/desired in the market to the value segments and the subsequent correlations with purchase behaviour changes. When constant monitoring of the segment (where the marketer is present) in terms of benefits offered and subsequent purchase behaviour changes are determined, one can understand the changes or developments in that particular segment. When benefits are no longer desired, this will lead to a loss in the market share.

I shall end with an interesting question to ponder. Does the value system remain stable across all product categories, wherein the consumer exhibits the same patterns in different quality events? If no, why not?

(The author is Product Manager, Dabur India Ltd.)

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Zen and the art of brand maintenance