15. Brands

1. What famous brands do you know and what do they sell?

2. Read Parts a and b quickly. Does the text come from an e-mail, a newspaper article or an advertisement?

Part A

Big companies spent millions of dollars on developing their brand and designing their logo.

Market research shows that more and more people are paying attention to the brand of the things they buy. Why? Because global brands like Pepsi have ideas and values connected with them.

Some people are very loyal to one brand because of the ideas and values associated with it. For example, some makes of car are associated with quality or reliability.

Other people are buying an image of themselves – the brand you use says what kind of person you are. Drinking Pepsi Max means you want to get the most from life – you want freedom and adventure, and therefore you are an exciting person. Wearing Nike trainers or sports clothes is all about individual achievement$ you can do anything you want – just do it.

Part B

We asked some brand conscious shoppers what brand they buy, and why.

Kate, 16: I wear these trainers because

all my friends wear them. It's important to be cool.

Tom, 27: This car tell people I'm successful.

My clients expect me to drive an expensive car.

It gives me right professional image.

Jane, 20: Yes, it's the latest model. It's got lots of new

features and I love the design. I use it to text my friends

or call my boyfriend.

3. Read the text again and answer the questions.

1 Why do big companies spend a lot of money on brands?

2 Why do people buy a particular brand?

3 Can you guess which brands the three people are talking about?

4 What values or image do they associate with their brand?

4. Match the words or phrases from the article (1-6) with the definitions (a-f). Then write the words and phrases in your language.

1 logo ___________________

2 values ___________________

3 loyal ___________________

4 image ___________________

5 individual achievement ___________________

6 brand-conscious ___________________

a the general impression you give to other people

b something you do successfully, on your own

c aware of different brands and what they represent

d not changing, always buying the same brand

e things that are important or that you believe in

f symbol that appears on a company's products.

5. Read the text below about launching a new product. In each line there is one wrong word. For each line, write the correct word in the space provided.

Are you planning to launch a new product or service? If you are, remember that

not only what you say about it is importance, but also how you say it. You 1 …...........

should try to emphasise the features of your product which not other product 2 …...........

have, i.e., its unique selling point. You should also try to describe the 3 …...........

benefits of your goods or services from your customers' perspective. 4 …...........

Successful business people usually know or at least have a good idea of what they 5 …...........

customers want or need. These knowledge can be very useful in building 6 …...........

customer satisfaction an loyalty. 7 …...........

6. Work in pairs. Are you brand-conscious? Discuss these questions.

• Are brands important to you?

• What brands do you buy?

• What values do you associate with them?

• What image do you want other people to have of you?

• Are there any brands you would not buy?

7. Design your own brand. Think of a product – anything you like, What ideas and values do you want to be associated with it? Give it a name and design a logo.

8. Research a brand that you are familiar with and that you think has good values associated with it. Find more information about it on the Internet. Explain your brand to the class and say why you think it's successful.

GRAMMAR REVIEW

9. Complete these sentences with the correct form of say or tell.

1 He …................. that he was finding it difficult to manage people.

2 He …................. me that he was finding it difficult to manage people.

3 She …............... him to improve his performance.

4 She …............... they would never agree.

5 My boss …....... me not to pay the invoice.

6 He …................ that he worked for General Electric.

10. Use say, tell, ask to report this dialogue between two company directors. e.g. Philip told Amanda/said (that) he wanted to motivate their managers more.

Philip I want to motivate our managers more.

Amanda Are you delegating the less important decisions?

Philip I think so. And I'm making more time to listen to their suggestions.

Amanda That's good. Responding to their ideas is really important.

Philip Is the department investing enough in training?

Amanda Yes, it is. This year's budget is bigger than last year's.