Summary
The typical model for innovation is that a company will launch many products in the hope that some of them will stick and become a success. This article argues that brands should focus on identifying a smaller number of ideas that don't even have to be ground-breaking. The key is to identify and develop products that are at least better than the choices that consumers already have, so that they can command a price premium. McCain Ready Baked Jackets was the most successful launch of 2012 and is used as a great example of an innovation that brings a new benefit to address an unmet or under-met need. As well as identifying the unmet or under-met need, a brand also needs to identify the concepts that are most likely to bring incremental growth. Using data from Kantar Worldpanel, the article shows how to be more successful when driving innovation.

Summary
This article describes a step-by-step process for brand owners to ensure their core business is kept refreshed and reinvented. Economic and technological upheavals often result in loss of corporate focus, but research shows that most successful businesses are built on a solid foundation of a core business where a brand has a leading position. The core is important because it is the source of brand authority and credibility; it is also a business that the company masters thanks to many years of experience. While brand stretch can provide growth, this is difficult to accomplish successfully and risks dilution of core brand equity. To grow the core, there are three main features: to make the brand core as distinctive as possible, drive distribution through both existing and new channels, and core range extension. Sometimes it may be necessary to reinvent the core: in this case it is important to redefine the market based on consumer benefits, rather than products.

Summary
An efficient innovation process calls for a stage known as concept screening. If innovation is to deliver value to the bottom line, then it is essential to get concept screening right. Traditional concept screening evaluates ideas among 150-200 target consumers across a selection of metrics (purchase intent being the most common). But potential take up for a product actually has a weak correlation to the level of growth that product is likely to deliver. Using the example of Kodak Funtime Film, the article explains how the incremental value that a product will deliver needs to be examined during concept screening if major cannibalisation is to be avoided.

Summary
This briefing offers an overview of the history, theories and key trends related to Brand Architecture. It describes the historical patterns which have encouraged marketers to develop different approaches to exploiting their brand portfolios. Different models of brand architecture, including the house of brands and the endorser brand, are explained. The report also recommends further reading of case studies which employed brand architecture strategies by Boots, Pillsbury, Garnier and others.

Summary
Ingredient branding means giving a component of a product its own brand identity, which can be useful when looking for a point of differentiation. When the ingredient works in symbiosis with the parent brand, such as the case of hotel chain Westin's improvement of its beds and Walmart's Geek Squad, the benefits are great. However, this article highlights the dangers involved, including when the ingredient eats its host, such as in the case of Intel Inside (a model that worked well for Intel but not its partnering original equipment manufacturers, who were often over-shadowed). There are ways for separate businesses to partner successfully such as Starbucks and Barnes & Noble and Tetra Pak with many beverage manufacturers. The article concludes with a list of key questions to determine whether ingredient branding is the right route to take.

Summary
In a marketing environment, where there are fewer new brands being launched and a corresponding proliferation of sub-brands, the brand architecture questions that need more attention right now are on what basis and for what purpose are you launching a sub-brand and when is it right to kill off existing sub-brands? How do you avoid brand overload which in turn can lead to the dilution of the master brand and unnecessary empire-building by marketing managers.

Summary
Why is it that some new brands fail - even from major players such as Coca-Cola - while others thrive? Because brand launches are expensive and risky, brand managers need careful research and a strategic launch plan to ensure acceptance of the new brand in the market. Should the new product come under an existing brand as a line or brand extension, or as an entirely new brand? This article reveals the principles that should be followed to help ensure a successful launch and lay the groundwork for long-term competitive advantage.

Summary
Extending a brand into more upmarket territory to drive up brand value is not an easy process. When Volkswagen launched the luxury Phaeton car marque, it failed to elicit the emotional response from consumers of upmarket brands like Audi. But high street clothing retailer H&M has succeeded with upmarket brand extensions in the form of collaborations with designers such as Karl Lagerfeld and Lanvin. You should always make sure that the core perception of the brand is not a barrier to upwards extension, anticipating the key demand drivers in the target market and how the brand is likely to perform against them.

Summary
Most companies own a portfolio of brands, and metrics can be a valuable tool to measure and model brand architecture outcomes. The key issue is to identify the future brand architecture scenario that delivers the most value. Key questions concern the strength of the brand; how well it fits the category; its ability to move into new markets; where marketing spend should be invested; whether all brands in the portfolio have a discrete positioning; and the financial impact of alternative brand architectures. Addressing these issues enables clients to determine predictive metrics around future-facing brand architectures.

Summary
Sub-brands are products or services that are associated with a parent brand but have a positioning or essence that make them unique from the parent brand. Any diversification of a brand poses potential risk or reward for its owner. Sub-brands can create significant long-term value, but can also upset or detract from the equity the parent brand has developed. Appreciation of this ‘halo effect’ is vital in deciding how to extend, diversify, and manage a brand or product portfolio. In successful examples of the halo effect, such as BMW, both the parent and sub-brands are strengthened substantially as a result.