(Source: Hong Kong Brand Development Forum 2007)
The Hong Kong Brand Development Council (BDC) and the Chinese Manufacturers’ Association of Hong Kong (CMA) jointly organized the “Hong Kong Brand Development Forum” at JW Marriott Hotel on 4 July 2004. With the theme of “Building Up Our Brands, Shining Up Hong Kong”, the Forum aimed to showcase Hong Kong’s enviable achievements in branding and to provide a platform for the Government, industries, professionals and the academia to discuss on the way forward and strategies for Hong Kong brands in the future.
The “Brand Determines” Panel Discussion session brought the Forum to a climax. Gist of some speakers’ views is re-captured in the following sections.
Dr Danny Ngai: Tripartite Model for Brand Development
Dr Ngai, Vice-Chairman of Hong Kong Brand Development Council, believed that brand development was a key direction for Hong Kong’s economic transformation, but it was a complicated and formidable task. It not only requires continuous investment of human and physical resources and capital, but also tripartite efforts by the business community, the government and the public; the guidance and subsidies from the government are also of particular importance.
The Hong Kong Brand Development Council has repeatedly suggested to the Central Government and the HKSAR administration that brand collaboration be incorporated into the contents of CEPA, to facilitate the mutual recognition of brand appraisals in both Hong Kong and the Mainland. The Council has also called on Beijing to grant Hong Kong brands privileges on par with brands in the Mainland. Looking forward, the Council will actively promote Hong Kong brands by organizing “Hong Kong Top Brand Awards”, “Hong Kong Top Service Brand Awards”, and relevant seminars, as well as participating in exhibitions held in the Mainland.
Prof Leo Sin: Cracking “iPod”
Professor Leo Sin from the Department of Marketing of the Chinese University of Hong Kong considered that brand development was the key to survival for today’s enterprises. Successful brands not only rake in huge profits for companies, but also help boost the overall economy. For example, the famous brand Coca Cola tops the world with a brand value of US$67 billion; the trend-setting iPod has recorded sales volume of over 100 million. All these testify to the importance of brand building.
All in all, Prof Sin said that the edge of Hong Kong could be summarized in the “iPod” acronym, where “I” stood for Intellectual Property Protection, “P” for People, “O” for Open Economy, and “D” for Domestic Mainland Market. At the same time, he emphasized that Hong Kong ought to understand its deficiencies, which could also be conveyed by the word “APPLE”, namely Attitude, Persistence, Professional knowledge, Learning, and In search of Excellence.
Regarding the secret of successful brand development, Prof Sin said that the Chinese word for “brand” could be construed as brand personality. Moreover, the character comprises three “mouths”, which alludes to three Chinese words including “taste”, “promise” and “reputation”. That means a brand should be unique, while manufacturers must understand the demands of the market and customers in order to draw customers through high quality products and services. This is the secret of successful brand building for manufacturers.
Bankee Kwan: Success Factors for Retail Branding
Mr Bankee Kwan, Chairman of Hong Kong Retail Management Association considered that Hong Kong possessed advantages in terms of timing, geographical location and human resources since the city was backed by the Mainland and closely connected to the world. With regard to timing, Hong Kong benefits from the influx of individual tourists, helping the services and retail industries thrive and prosper. At the same time, Hong Kong people have a better understanding of the needs of Mainland customers, making them easy to enter the Mainland market. Besides, Hong Kong is strategically located in the region with strengths in infrastructure, the rule of law, and the flow of capital, human resources and merchandises. As to human resources, Hong Kong has nurtured numerous sales management professionals who exhibit marketing acumen.
Mr Kwan added that companies owning brand names ought to deliver on their commitments to their customers, which was the right customer-based way to success. He believed that Hong Kong’s service industry had attained an international level and had already earned the reputation of “Trustworthy City”, as evidenced by the annual double-digit growth of local up-market products.
Dr Choi Lung Wai: Leveraging on Celebrity Effects
Dr Choi Lung Wai, Managing Director of Goodway Electrical Co Ltd said that two decades ago, Hong Kong people liked to buy imported products, like Japan’s electrical appliances, but snubbed domestic brand name products, thereby hampering the growth of local brands. Today, both Hong Kong and overseas brand name products are often made in China with little difference in quality, enabling Hong Kong manufacturers to compete with their overseas counterparts.
Dr Choi shared his secret in brand development, emphasizing that quality and services of products were of utmost importance. Products launched for sale must be of good quality and come with appropriate after-sales services. Dr Choi also mentioned that it was a daunting task to create a brand, which required good positioning in the first place as it would indirectly affect a company’s investment in a brand. He considered that if a company wanted to gain access to a market in a short period, the use of celebrities would be the most direct approach. That is why Goodway has commissioned TV star Nancy Sit as its spokesperson in advertising, with annual promotion expenditure of over HK$10 million.
