危機時的品牌成長 新型冠狀病毒全球大流行之際重新審視品牌塑造 By Laurent Dumouchel, Zarif Kahn, Catherine Burton and Oliver Hupp｜April 2020

當全世界都無法倖免遭逢新冠病毒的大流行，我們的生活

必然將有顯著的改變。在 2020 年一開始，全球仍有 75%的

人樂觀地認為今年對他們以及他們的家庭來說而言會是更

好的一年。然而僅過了三個月，有越來越多人認為新冠病

毒不僅帶來對國家的嚴峻考驗，亦有對人民的工作和生命

的威脅。

如同顧客在這充滿不確定的時刻所面臨的挑戰，品牌本身

也正面臨不同以往的市場變化，這其中的變化可能會從根

本上挑戰既有品牌建構過往所遵循的種種規則。在這篇文

章中，我們將會質疑一些對於品牌塑造的黃金守則，探究

那些傳統的品牌塑造觀點與益普索 (Ipsos)對品牌的看法有

何差異，特別是在這樣危機的時刻裡可以有哪些不同。我

們將提供不一樣的觀點來幫助品牌度過眼前的危機並在後

危機時代中能屹立不搖。

本分析主要是依據益普索 (Ipsos)已經驗證的 Brand Value

Creator (BVC)以及 Brand Mental Networks 分析模組，這兩

個分析工具主要幫助顧客追蹤與解釋品牌資產的核心驅動

力。我們都知道強勢品牌在消費者選擇時具有一定的優

勢，能提供具優勢的產品力並創造與消費者間的品牌親密

度。同時，強勢品牌亦擁有豐富且相互連結的品牌聯想網

絡，讓品牌在消費者選擇時極具吸引力。

在疫情流行期間與結束後，追蹤消費者認

知、市場動態以及消費者偏好是建立品牌

適應力的關鍵。

不同以往的商業環境

益普索 (Ipsos) 對於品牌成長的觀點著重於強調消費者決策情境的重要性。突發性的社交距離和

居家隔離意味著意想不到的情況，也連帶影響品牌消費。與親朋好友間的社會互動被新的 「繭

居」模式取代，家人被拉攏在一起。這亦將會改變消費者對於品牌的選擇。消費者的行為會適

應且改變，而不管這樣的行為改變是否持續，可以確定的是，對今天的品牌來說，了解市場狀

況絕對是重要的關鍵。

在新的現況中，許多品牌，不管是不是全球性的品牌，都處於危機中。就在幾個月前，許多人

認為在未來數十年裡，跨國公司的重要性將會慢慢取代政府。然而突然間，政府在面對疫情的

當下推出許多重大的決策影響人們的生活。新冠病毒的大流行對品牌來說是一個關鍵的時刻，

是一個機會讓品牌展示品牌是否言行一致。超越一般公司或企業所著重的社會公益角色，面向

消費者的品牌可以為民眾帶來更多有意義的效益與連結。舉例而言，減輕民眾孤立的焦慮與提

供安全感，尤其當未來一片混沌之時。

追蹤消費者對於這些認知、市場變化與顧客偏好的改變將是品牌在這段時間保持適應力的最佳

方法。不分品牌大小，品牌經理在努力建構品牌資產與達成市場成功同時應該有不同的思考，

如何同時與顧客所面對的全新現況產生高度關聯。

1. 理性 vs. 感性

品牌是否應該更進一步強調功能上的卓越與吸引力？

很明確地，當今的消費者不斷受到市場行銷訊息以及促銷活動的轟炸，同時間有著非常多樣的

選擇。他們依靠近乎直覺式的思考來自動選擇所消費的品牌。

我們發現，當僅從少數的偏好品牌中做選擇時，消費者的選擇受到對於強烈的情感因素連結，

或是短期的市場活動（包含降價、促銷、新產品、新包裝…等）的驅動。在建立品牌偏好方面，

品牌本身的表現漸漸不再扮演重要角色。事實上，除非其他品牌能夠打破消費者慣常的決策過

程或是透過有創意的行銷活動吸引他們的注意力，那些存在消費者原有選擇清單中的品牌中幾

乎是不受影響的。

舉例來說，在當前的不確定環境下，我們相信品牌如何與消費者建立親密的情感聯繫，並參與

消費者定義個人目標、價值與現狀的過程，將會更顯著的影響品牌選擇。

在當今被恐懼所掌控的世界中，透過正確的訴求方式展現同理心可能會是一個成功的策略。

舉例來說，健力士 (Guinness) 在聖派翠克節 (St Patrick’s Day，在平時是該品牌一個非常重要的

日子) 發起一項活動，鼓勵人們安全地在家中慶祝，並且如同舉起啤酒杯慶祝一般的互相鼓勵

對方。

當人們轉變為有意識的公民，而非毫無想法的消費者，品牌必須因應此狀況而調整他們的品牌

訊息去更貼近現實。這些與社會現況即時性的訊息將能讓品牌與消費者步調一致。

世界上最積極的公司正在調整執行方向，以符合變動中的商品與服務需求。

LVMH：已被許多廠商所追隨，LVMH 重新規劃他們的香水產線，改為生產洗手液。

ZF：一家汽車零件供應商，他們中國大陸的廠房正在生產呼吸器。

餐廳重新關注在符合新防疫標準的外送熟食服務（如法國的 Frichti）。

麥當勞：在德國出借其員工給人力短缺的零售商 Aldi，以協助其更快速地補貨上架，還有

更多類似的案例。

具有回應消費者，並且在必要的時刻伸出援手能力的品牌，在贏得消費者芳心的道路上將會領

先許多。到了消費者環境可能發生變動的後疫情時期，人們將會記得品牌與公司在逆境中扮演

或沒扮演過的角色。

2. 永遠維持能見度

品牌應該如何被「展示」 – 他們應該變得更加顯眼嗎?

即使目前人們的優先事項發生劇烈且迅速的變化，「線上」(Above-the-line) 的品牌溝通並非變

得不重要。我們從過往的危機中了解到，品牌在不影響基礎業務的情況下，不能持續長時間地

保持沉默。然而持續發聲並不意味著品牌應該和從前一樣發展。

在當前的危機時刻，品牌必須重新審視，他們如何讓消費者關注品牌：品牌有什麼樣的能力，

可以在消費者需要做選擇時，「滲透」進人們的注意力。在社會價值極力追求真實、支持與信

賴時，品牌需要相當謹慎。

品牌活動應專注在建立鮮明的記憶 (memory salience)。這意味著需要在消費者心中，加強並創

造正向回憶，並且能夠連結至品牌印象。

為此，品牌訊息必須忠於該品牌的獨特價值、特性與定位。市場行銷人員應警覺到，人們可以

快速辨識哪些品牌行動僅僅是投機性的市場策略，而非真實反映品牌所代表的核心價值。若真

是如此，品牌共鳴會被消蝕，同時與消費者的關係惡化，並影響到品牌是否能成功度過後危機

(post-crisis) 時期。

要能成功創造、更新並且加強一套具一致性的品牌聯想網絡，不同傳播通路的規劃也是極為重

要的。這些日子以來，人們花費更多時間在跨平台的多元化媒體，特別是社交媒體平台。品牌

建立因此不再能單靠臉書 (Facebook)、推特 (Twitter) 或其他自有的線上數位頻道。在這些充滿

不確定性的日子哩，傳統且受信賴的媒體如電視或廣播仍扮演重要角色。

品牌在各媒體上的分配可能會隨時間改變，但在傳統媒體上仍需維持一定的量，並且更好地整

合各類型的平台。透過這樣的方法，品牌可以在符合當今環境的情況下，在各類型不同平台建

立品牌能見度。

3. 行銷組合的再進化

品牌應該利用市場變動創造最大價值嗎?

創造強大的品牌不僅僅依靠刺激需求與建立消費者間的緊密連結。一系列完善的短期行銷活動

也可以產生很大的品牌效益。由於目前市場環境的最大特性為恐慌與不確定性，品牌需要更細

心的管理行銷活動。

益普索 (Ipsos) 的 Brand Value Creator 可以量化不同的市場因素，被稱為 「市場效應」(market

effect)，可以用以解釋品牌如何在消費者選擇的當下具有優勢。我們的資料顯示，影響產品或服

務購買計畫的最大障礙是（按重要性比例大小排序）：易取得性、產品多元性與價格。事實

上，即便在經濟成長時期，價格對解釋消費者為何不選品牌也有一定的限制（詳見圖表 2）。

鑒於消費者對於生活必需品的狂買、物資短缺、

價格上漲以及交易時間縮短，我們可以預期這些

將持續是一個具有挑戰性的議題。品牌必須謹慎

並且具有創造性地思考，如何改變來滿足消費者

渴望的常態行銷模式。既有的知名品牌可能需要

藉由增加線上通路與直銷模式（Direct-To-

Consumer），以探索產品與服務的數位易取得

性。消費品的產品組合亦可能不斷改變，以符合

對大包裝與耐用產品的上漲需求。

然而，我們也預期會有越來越多人對價格更加敏

感。保持社交距離以及居家隔離政策帶來的財務

影響，可能使消費者預期會有一系列的經濟問

題，導致消費預算減少。我們發現從上次的大衰

退開始，價格對品牌選擇的重要度有所增加（詳

見圖 3）。

品牌需要考慮暫時降價的短期效益，對總體品牌

資產及感知價值的可能負面影響。品牌應密切監

控消費者對品牌認知價格與品牌價值之間的差距，

應縮小影響並避免侵蝕長期需求。

4. 全球化與在地化

品牌應該繼續全球在地化 (Glocal) 嗎?

隨著這次的全球疾病大流行，未來會告訴我

們，這是否會擴大人們對抗全球化的焦慮。若

是如此，我們相信對於全球性品牌的挑戰將會

加劇，因為一致性的全球化訊息，以及單一的

策略將不再適用於各地。這可以藉由在地團隊

帶領的更多計劃，來快速追蹤不同品牌管理的

模型，計畫須關注於地方和特殊需求，並且不

斷精進塑造全球性連結的方法。

全球性品牌需要不斷重新評估他們和消費者當地文化的相關性，並且追蹤全球品牌與在地競爭

者的接受度差異。

事實上，一些全球競爭者已經設計出聰明的策略，以將其融入在地社群。莎瓦娜(Savannah)是一

個很好的範例，他們利用在地團隊，在非洲各地生產不同的地區特定啤酒。

新時代促進品牌成長

現在並不是時候坐下來等著看危機當中的不確定性如何影響品牌與消費者行為。現在最需要的

是即時訊息。COVID-19 疫情大流行引發的問題多過於答案，而未來將會出現更多的問題。隨著

當今社會對社群媒體的廣泛使用，線上討論的新興主題可能（或可能不會）形塑品牌與品類的

關聯。他們可能建立或打破消費者品牌關係的基礎。許多品牌將會利用這些情況，試圖更好地

滿足消費者需求。但不幸地，只有少數可以達成。

品牌的追蹤調查正在不斷進步，能有效識別市場競爭狀態、新品牌的驅動力以及新興流行趨

勢。在益普索 (Ipsos)，我們聚焦於能有效利用多面向的數據追蹤，來監測消費者對品牌相關主

題的想法與討論。透過對這些不同維度資料關係的了解，可以幫助品牌提供具創造力、務實且

具持續性的觀點，以利品牌思考如何在當今這個特別的時刻採取行動，以及品牌如何與他們的

客戶一同變得更加強壯。

持續變動的消費者環境將影響消費者決策制定，這創造出行銷人員校正

品牌目標和品牌行為的機會，以利於滿足新出現的需求。

危機時刻品牌的關鍵考量：

1. 建立強烈的情感參與 (emotional engagement)，可促進品牌價值。避免過度強調產品優越性

這可能造成與消費者感受脫節的風險。

2. 儘管線上 (Above the line) 的溝通與維持品牌聲量是重要原則，可維持品牌的核心價值，品

牌領導者仍應該著重建立鮮明持續的品牌記憶而非短期注意力。

3. 品牌應持續監測並掌握重要的市場影響因素，諸如價格（相對於品牌價值/資產）、易取得

性以及產品系列，同時重新思考如何利用傳統方式以得到最大收益。

4. 在全球化的背景下，在地化需求的增長將會加速企業採用不同的品牌管理模式與經驗。

5. 在這充滿變動的時代，品牌將會需要多面向的品牌調查與追蹤工具的支持，了解消費者說什

麼、想什麼、感覺如何，來建立有意義的品牌關係。

Ipsos是全球頂尖的專業市場調查研究機構，在全球九十個國家及地區設有分公司，在挖

掘顧客經驗，執行品牌行銷調查，我們具有創新的思維與先進的科技。我們是世界頂尖

企業執行長最信賴的企業顧問，我們也有熟悉各產業的專家協助測量、模擬和管理顧客

與員工關係。

更多的資訊，請參考 https://www.ipsos.com/en-tw/solution/overview#category3

或洽詢我們的研究團隊

資深研究經理 Johnson Hsiao 蕭偉強

02 2701-7278 ext.117 johnson.hsiao@ipsos.com

Ipsos 益普索市場研究

Brand Growth in Times of Crisis

Revisiting brand-building during the COVID-19 pandemic

By Laurent Dumouchel, Zarif Kahn, Catherine Burton and Oliver Hupp｜April 2020

As the world comes to grips with the global COVID-19

pandemic, there is a palpable recognition that our lives

have changed. The year started with 75% of people

around the world optimistic that 2020 would be a better

year for them and their family. Just three months later,

there is a growing consensus that the coronavirus poses

not just a threat to the country, but to people’s jobs and

livelihoods.

While customers face challenging times and are in a state

of uncertainty, brands are also bracing themselves for a

different landscape where the dynamics at play could

fundamentally challenge the brand-building playbook. In

this paper, we question some ‘golden rules’ of brand-

building, exploring how this conventional wisdom stands

up to Ipsos’ point of view on brands and – in particular –

what needs to be done differently in the current

challenging circumstances. We present some alternative

perspectives to help brands to strive now and in the new

normal of the post-crisis world.

Our analysis is powered by Ipsos’ tried and tested

methods of Brand Value Creator (BVC) and Brand Mental

Networks to help clients track and explain the core drivers

of brand equity. We know that strong brands are salient in

the moment of choice, deliver functional performance and

create emotional closeness with people while managing

in-market effects in the right way. We also know that they

have a rich and connected network of mental associations

which make them compelling in the moment of choice.

A brand new context: Business unusual

Ipsos’ way of understanding how brands grow highlights the importance of context in consumer

decision-making. The sudden escalation of social distancing and in-home isolation

ushered in unexpected circumstances, influencing brand purchases. Social interaction with friends and

colleagues has been replaced by new practices of “cocooning” and has seen families pull together. This

is likely to shape new brand choices. Behaviours will adapt and change, the consequences of which are

being seen right now – all in response to the disruption caused by a shared global change in context.

Whether these new behaviours endure remains to be seen, but what is certain is that understanding

the circumstances is key for brands today.

In this new context, many brands, including big global ones, will be at risk. Some months ago, many

expected global companies to be more important than governments in shaping the world over the

course of the next decade. Suddenly, governments are taking drastic decisions that are impacting our

lives, now. This pandemic presents a critical moment for brands, an opportunity to align what they say

- their reason and purpose, with what they do - their real and tangible behaviours. Above and beyond

the social role of companies and corporations, consumer-facing brands have a chance to connect and

bring meaningful benefits to people, for example, alleviate feelings of isolation and provide safety and

comfort when the future is uncertain.

Tracking these perceptions, market dynamics and changing consumer preferences will be key to help

brands build resilience during and after the pandemic. Brand managers, both big and small, will have

to think differently in their efforts across the building blocks of brand equity and rules for market

success, while remaining highly relevant to the consumer’s new realities.

1. Rational vs Emotional

Should brands build further functional superiority and appeal?

It is well known that today, consumers are exposed to a bombardment of marketing messages,

promotional activity and have a wide variety of choice. They cope with this by using mental shortcuts

and making mindless, automatic decisions when choosing which brands to buy.

We have found that when brand choices are made from a narrow set of preferred brands, choices are

driven by either a strong emotional relationship with brands or by short-term in-market tactics (price

cuts, promotions, new range/formats, renovations, etc.). Perceived brand performance has gradually

played a smaller role in building brand preference. In fact, the brands that exist in a given choice set

generally remain the same unless others are able to interrupt the usual decision-making process with

radical innovations or by grabbing attention with creative marketing campaigns, for example.

During the current uncertainty and beyond, we believe that building emotional closeness and

identifying with the personal goals, values and circumstances of consumers will play an even more

prominent role in impacting brand choice.

Building closeness in a world governed by fear is likely to be a winning strategy as it is time to

demonstrate empathy while adopting the right tone of voice. Guinness, for example, released a

campaign for St Patrick’s Day (in normal times a key date in the calendar for the brand) which

encouraged people to celebrate safely at home and to ‘raise each other up’ as they raise a pint.

As people are likely to shift into the mindset of mindful citizen, as opposed to mindless consumers,

brands will need to tailor messaging to be relevant to this reality. Adapting initiatives to the world’s

priorities will help them stay in sync with consumers.

The most proactive businesses are adjusting their operations to meet the shifting demand for goods

and services.

LVMH, followed by many others, has re-purposed its fragrance manufacturing to produce hand

sanitizers.

ZF, an automotive component supplier, is producing ventilators in their Chinese factories.

Restaurants are re-focusing on the delivery of precooked meals with new prophylactic standards

(e.g. Frichti in France).

McDonald’s in Germany is lending their workforce to Aldi, a retailer now short on staff, to help

refill the shelves faster; and there are many similar examples.

A brand’s ability to resonate with their customers and offer a helping hand in a time of need will go a

long way to winning people’s hearts. In a post-pandemic world where the consumer context may yet

shift again, people will remember what role brands and companies did or did not play in their lives

during times of adversity.

2. Always be visible

How ‘present’ should brands be – should they increase saliency?

Even as people’s priorities are shifting drastically and rapidly, ‘above-the-line’ communication does not

become irrelevant. We have learned from previous crises that brands cannot go silent for long without

compromising the fundamentals of their business. But maintaining share of voice doesn’t imply brands

should continue as before, either.

In a time of crisis, brands must review how they can generate attention saliency: a brand’s ability to

“saturate” people’s attention in the moment of choice. This must be done carefully when society is

striving for authenticity, support and reassurance.

Instead, brand initiatives should focus on building memory salience. This means to reinforce and create

positive memories and associations with the brand in the mind of the consumers.

In doing this, messages will need to stay true to the brand’s unique values, identity and positioning.

Marketers should be warned that people can very quickly identify when brand initiatives are more

opportunistic marketing tactics than a genuine reflection of what the brand stands for. If that is the

case, brand coherence may erode, relationships with consumers can deteriorate, and along with it, the

brand’s ability to succeed post-crisis.

Channel planning is also crucial to successfully create, refresh and reinforce a coherent corpus of brand

mental associations. People spend more time these days across multiple media, specifically on social

media platforms. Brand-building cannot however solely rely on Facebook, Twitter, or on its owned

digital media channels. Traditional, trusted, media like TV or radio can play an important role during

these times of uncertainty.

Overall spending patterns may be adapted to the times, but traditional media will need to be

maintained, while being better integrated with versatile digital platforms. In this way, it is possible to

be present across multiple channels in a way that fits with the current context that people and brands

are in.

3. Evolving marketing mix

Should brands use changing market effects to maximise sales?

Building strong brands is not only about driving demand and emotional closeness. A mix of sound

short-term marketing activities can maximize brand selection. As the current

in-market circumstances are characterized by panic and uncertainty, brands need to manage these

carefully.

Ipsos’ Brand Value Creator can quantify different in-market circumstances, called ‘market effects’ that

help explain how brands are winning in the moment of choice. Our data shows that the most

prominent barriers to a planned purchase of products or services are (by order of overall importance)

accessibility, product range and price. In fact, in times of economic growth, price alone plays a rather

limited role in explaining barriers to actual brand choices (see figure 2).

We can expect these to continue to be a challenging issue in the light of stockpiling essential goods,

shortages, price hikes and shortened trading hours. Brands will have to think carefully and creatively

about how the conventional marketing levers used to align with consumer desire will have to change.

Established brands may need to explore the digital accessibility of their products and services with

increased online offers and possibly direct-to-consumer (DTC) strategies. The product portfolio of

consumer goods may evolve to meet a growing demand for bulk packaging and longer-life items, for

example.

However, we must prepare for the likely increase in

people being price-conscious. The financial

implications of social distancing and quarantines may

require tighter budget constrains for consumers as it

is expected to create a range of economic problems.

We find that price was a more important criteria of

brand choice when the last recession started (see

figure 3).

Brands will need to consider the possible adverse

impact on overall brand equity and perceived value

upon short-term benefit of temporary price

reductions. The perceived price and equity gap

should be closely monitored to balance effects and

avoid eroding long-term demand.

4. Global vs. Local

Should brands still go GLOCAL?

As this global pandemic has quickly reverberated around the world, the future will tell us whether it

will amplify a growing concern against globalization.8 If this is the case, we believe some challenges for

global brands will increase, as consistent global messaging and a single-minded strategy may not be as

appropriate everywhere anymore. This could fast-track different models of brand management with

more initiatives led by local teams

focusing on local and specific needs,

while evolving new ways of building

global coherence.

Global brands will need to constantly

reassess their relevance against

consumers’ local culture and track their

relative acceptance alongside local

players.

In fact, some global players have

already designed smart strategies to

embed themselves in local culture.

Savannah is a great example as it is

manufacturing different local beers,

using local crops, in various parts of

Africa where it is consumed.

Driving brand growth today

Now is not the time to sit and wait to see how the crisis unfolds amid uncertainty of how it affects

brands and consumer behaviour. Never has there been a greater need for timely information. The

COVID-19 pandemic has raised more questions than answers, and more questions will arise moving

forward. As the use of social media is today pervasive, new and emerging themes discussed online

might (or might not) shape brands and category associations. They could make or break the foundation

of consumer brand relationships. Many brands will jump

on these occasions to better meet new consumer needs.

Unfortunately, only some will land.

Tracking research is evolving to identify the competitive

dynamics at play, new brand drivers and emerging trends.

At Ipsos, our work centers on leveraging the importance of

multi-data sourced tracking to monitor what consumers

think and talk about in brand-related topics.

Understanding these interrelations helps brands to offer

creative, practical and sustainable perspectives on how to

act in these special times and how to emerge stronger,

together with their customers.

Key considerations for brands in times of crisis

1. Building stronger emotional engagement shows greater potential to further drive equity than

promoting product superiority, which runs the risk of being disconnected from how people are

thinking and feeling.

2. While ‘above-the-line’ communication and maintaining share of voice is paramount not to erode

the brand’s fundamentals, brand leaders should focus on building memory salience over attention

salience.

3. Brands should continue to monitor and control important market effects, such as price (relative to

equity), accessibility and product range, while rethinking traditional approaches to maximize sales.

4. The increasing appetite for localism will likely accelerate the adoption of different brand

management practices in the globalized context.

5. Brands will need to be supported by multi-sourced tracking tools to establish meaningful

relationships between brand equity and what people say, think and feel in these changing times.

Ipsos is the global leader in branding and marketing research and has locations in over 90 markets across the world. Our creative solutions help us build strong relationships which lead to better results for our clients. This has made us the trusted advisor and with all matters lead by our industry expert from measuring, modeling to managing customer and employee relationships.

For more information, visit us online at:

https://www.ipsos.com/en-tw/solution/overview#category3

or contact our research team:

Johnson Hsiao, Senior Research Manager

02 2701-7278 ext.117 johnson.hsiao@ipsos.com

Ipsos