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Text 2. Nokia - Building A Powerful Technology Brand

Before you read discuss the questions with your partner:

1. What do you know about Nokia?

2. Do you happen to have a Nokia mobile phone? Are you satisfied with the quality?

The world of parity has hit the mobile phone market just as it has many other technology product categories. The products range from the simple to the complex, but every manufacturer offers, of course, the latest features. Leapfrogging in sales between brands is frequently based on design. But overall the market is predictable, with Nokia, Motorola, and Ericsson fighting it out at the top and several less successful brands like Samsung, Philips, Siemens and Panasonic trying hard to make inroads into their top competitors' market share. So what makes the difference between the most successful and less successful brands? It certainly is not what product features are offered. How, then, do consumers choose? The answer seems to be what the brand names mean to them.

Nokia Group the Finland-based manufacturer of mobile phones, has been steadily working on its corporate brand name and the management of consumer perceptions over the last few years. Its efforts have paid off, because it is now the number one brand in many markets around the world, effectively dislodging Motorola from that position. The brand has been consistently well managed across all markets. Nokia has succeeded where other big brand names have so far failed, chiefly by putting across the human face technology and dominating the emotional high ground.

Nokia has detailed many personality characteristics for its brand, but customers do not have to remember every characteristic. They do, however, have to remember the overall impression of the product, as you would when thinking about someone you have met. As the focus is on customer relationships, the Nokia personality is like a trusted friend. Building friendship and trust is at the heart of the Nokia brand.

When Nokia positions its brand the message must clearly bring together the technology and human side of its offer in a powerful way. The specific message that is conveyed to consumers in every advertisement and market communication (though not necessarily in these words) is "Only Nokia Human Technology enables you to get more out of life".

In many cases, this is represented by the tag line, "We call this human technology". This gives consumers a sense of trust and consideration by the company, as though to say that Nokia understand what they want in life, and how it can help.

Nokia is a great brand because it knows that the essence of the brand needs to be reflected in everything the company does, especially those that impact the consumer. Product design is clearly critical to the success of the brand, but how does Nokia manage to inject personality into product design? The answer is that it gives a great deal of thought to how the user of its phones will experience the brand, and how it can make that experience reflect its brand character. The large display screen, for example, is the "face" of the phone. Nokia designers describe it as the "eye into the soul of the product". The shape of phones is curvy and easy to hold. The faceplates and their different colors can be changed to fit the personality, lifestyle, and mood of the user. The soft key touch pads also add to the feeling of friendliness, expressing the brand personality. Product design focuses on the consumer and his needs, and is summed up in the slogan, "human technology."

Nokia achieved its brilliant feat through consistent branding, backed by first-class logistics and manufacturing, all of which revolve around what consumers what.

Task 1. Explain in English the following phrases:

1. to hit the mobile phone market;

2. leapfrogging in sales between brands;

3. to make inroads into;

4. efforts have paid off;

5. human technology.

Task 2. Make the sentences complete:

1. The overall mobile phone market is predictable… .
2. Nokia has succeeded where other big brand names have failed because … .
3. Nokia has detailed … .
4. When Nokia positions its brand in the crowded mobile phone marketplace … .
5. Nokia is a great brand because … .

Task 3. Say what you think about these statements:

1. There are a lot of mobile phones brands but only few of them are at the top of the market.
2. Brands become successful due to the superb product features offered to the consumer.
3. The strength of the corporate brand is to give an eye-catching name.
4. The product design that Nokia suggests focuses on the consumer and his needs.
5. Product design is clearly critical to the success of the brand.
6. People are more likely to buy products of the brands that they trust.

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