Brand management at a local scale: a case of ‘ghost awareness’

Abstract

This research builds upon the study of a multinational brand relationship with the local community to test a model of analysis of brand awareness. In the model, the evaluation of two dimensions of the phenomenon is suggested: the type of awareness and the drivers of awareness. And the case study was developed through the examination of two groups of stakeholders: the general population and the local opinion leaders. The results suggest that the corporate brand has high levels of awareness, but faces a structural identity problem because of the existence of a strong competitor: a corporate brand that has left the region decades ago but whose recall is still very strong among local stakeholders. We call this phenomenon ‘ghost awareness’. Following these clues, we present some recommendations that can be adopted by companies with the same perception problems.