Exploring dimensions of brand image - Himalaya

Abstract

Indian consumers are spending more money on skin care segment than 5 years backdue to increase in consumer spending resulting from GDP growth. These rising incomelevels present an opportunity for companies in skin care segment to offer consumerswith high quality and differentiated products. Inspite of growing skin care segment,toilet soap segment saw a meagre growth in recent years and penetration level of toiletsoaps in Indian households stand at 98%. In this context, it is important to understandhow companies can build a successful brand image in toilet soaps category andinfluential factors of brand image for various categories of users.This study aims to understand the dimensions of brand image among three sets of usersviz. non-herbal users, herbal users who use Himalaya Products and herbal users whodon’t use Himalaya Products. Himalaya Soaps, an offering from Himalaya herbalHealthcare, is a category extension from Himalaya from its offering of Face wash andtoothpastes. Literature related to brand image dimensions was explored to come updimensions which are relevant to Indian soap industry and Himalaya soaps. The chosendimensions were converted to a primary survey using an online questionnaire using anappropriate scaling method. The survey responses were analyzed using suitableanalytical methods to derive inferences. These inferences were used to presentimplications for the managers for building a successful brand image. Results of the studysuggest that brand image developed through chosen dimensions is same among threecategories of consumers considered. They also showcase purchasing decision of Indianconsumers is similar across categories for various factors considered such as Fragrance,moisturisation etc. Results also indicate that advertising plays a dominant role inbuilding brand image. These results are then used to suggest competitive positioning forHimalaya Soaps.A study of this kind will enable readers to understand the dimensions to be consideredfor building brand image, improving brand communication and understanding ofpurchase decisions in Indian soaps category