In no more than 2-3 double-spaced, typed pages in 12-point font (Times New Roman), respond to the checklist items. Be sure to include references for any resources you use in APA format.

With reference to the marketing insight segment that opened Chapter 2 on page 32, summarize the case and answer the following: In view of the detailed section on brand equity later in the chapter, explain why brand awareness is a necessary but insufficient indicator of brand equity.

like you to think about brands or names of products and services you know. Considering everything, which three brands do you consider the best?" Interviewees were, in other words, asked to spontaneously identify up to three brands that they personally regarded as the "best." Results from the poll identified the following 10 brands as those most often mentioned as best:

Brand Ranking

Coca-Cola 1

Sony 2

Toyota 3

Dell 4

Ford 5

Kraft Foods 6

Pepsi-Cola 7

Microsoft 8

Apple 9

Honda 10

Critics of this form of one-question polling suggest that such polls are not true indicators of the equity of a brand. Ford Motors, for one example, is anything but one of the world's best brands when "best" is based on objective indicators such as profitability, market share, sales growth, and consumer confidence. How could an exciting, innovative brand such as Apple be beaten out by eight other brands, including those that are basically resting on past laurels (think Ford, Dell, etc.)?

It would seem that this "best brands" survey is more a measure of brand awareness than of brand equity and reflects past achievements rather than current performance.2 In other words, when asked to spontaneously identify the three best brands that come to mind, many respondents, especially in reply to an online survey, would mention those brands that come easiest and quickest to mind. Yet this top-of-mind recall, though certainly a good indicator of brand awareness, is not equivalent to a measure of a brand's strength, value, or equity. This chapter discusses in detail the concepts of brand awareness and brand equity, and upon completing your reading of this material you will fully appreciate why mere awareness is a necessary but insufficient indicator of brand equity.