| Measuring brand equity allows a company to | | | | prospective customers). While historical |
| establish a baseline and track changes in its | | | | financial performance is important in |
| brand equity over time. If a company | | | | understanding brand strength, it does not |
| consistently works to improve the strength of | | | | tell the whole story, especially in terms of |
| its brands, it must trace progress, or risk | | | | what the future might hold for the brand. |
| "flying blind." Changes in a quantitative | | | | This potential deficiency derives from the |
| measurement of brand equity can show the | | | | choices made in defining brand equity.Scott |
| company the effects of its work, and greatly | | | | White is President of Brand Identity Guru a |
| aid in setting marketing and management | | | | leading Corporate Branding and Branding |
| priorities in the next business planning | | | | Research firm in Boston, MA.Brand Identity |
| cycle.Once a brand equity measurement system | | | | Guru specializes in creating corporate and |
| is established, a company can better | | | | product brands that increase sales, market |
| understand and therefore determine if equity | | | | share, customer loyalty, and brand |
| in a given brand can be leveraged or | | | | valuation.This Article may be freely copied |
| transferred to an entirely new product or | | | | as long as it is not modified and this |
| service category. Thus, a firm can increase | | | | resource box accompanies the article, |
| the return from the investment in building a | | | | together with working hyperlinks.Over the |
| particular brand over time by extending that | | | | course of his 15-year branding career, Scott |
| brand's equity into new categories.A company | | | | White has worked in a wide variety of |
| may want to measure its brand equity to aid | | | | industries: high-tech, manufacturing, |
| in assigning a monetary value to a brand. | | | | computer hardware and software, |
| Wall Street measures the strength of a brand | | | | telecommunications, banking, restaurants, |
| by looking primarily at current and | | | | fashion, healthcare, Internet, retail, and |
| historical financial measures, with minimal | | | | service businesses, as well as numerous |
| use of information directly from the "voice | | | | non-profit organizations. |
| of the marketplace" (i.e., current and | | | | |