Requirements of a Brand Manager

A brand manager’s role is to analyze how a brand is perceived in the market by taking the intangible elements of a brand into account. Intangible factors include the experience that the consumers have had with the brand and their emotional connection with the product or service. The intangible characteristics of a brand build brand equity.

Brand equity is the price above the product’s value that consumers are willing to pay to acquire the brand. Brand equity is an internally generated intangible asset in which its value is ultimately decided by consumers’ perception of the brand. If consumers are willing to pay more for a brand than a generic brand that performs the same functions, the brand equity will increase in value. On the other hand, the value of brand equity falls when consumers would rather purchase a similar product that costs less than the brand.

 A cult brand is an example of a "benign cult" where the customer base for a product or service is extremely loyal, leading to the brand's success as a growing legion of customers feel a unique emotional connection with the brand. 

Special Considerations

Brand management involves not only creating a brand but also understanding what products could fit under the brand of a company. A brand manager always has to keep its target market in mind when conceiving new products to take on the company’s brand or working with analysts to decide what companies to merge with or acquire.

The difference between brand management success and failure comes down to ongoing innovation. A brand manager that continuously seeks innovative ways to maintain the quality of a brand will retain its loyal consumers and gain more brand affinity, compared to one that is content with the current good name of the company’s brand.

A brand manager is tasked with managing the tangible and intangible properties of a brand. The tangible aspects of a company’s brand include the product's price, packaging, logo, associated colors, and lettering format..