...The big question that opened the conference: which has more influence on purchase consideration and recommendation, reputation or brand?
As new research presented by Robert Fronk of Harris Interactive revealed, the answer depends on what dimension you’re looking at. The Harris study found “excitement,” “quality,” and “outperforms expectations” rating high among brand-centric influencers, while “clear vision,” “strong growth potential” and “good company to work for” mattering among reputational factors.
None of that should come as any surprise. The big wow came from Harris’s painstaking cross -tabbing of data. As it turns out, the combination of positive brand equity and positive corporate reputation drives purchase and recommendation to a degree that often far exceeds the sum of parts. The Council packaged it up well as Hidden Harmony, a valuable white paper on the study....
["Hidden Harmony" is a valuable white paper and important reading for PR, branding and marketing. The most important take is the power of brand equity and reputation working in concert. ~ Jeff]