ABSTRACT
T he case study has a long and noble history in both the analysis of and teachingabout marketing. In his book Big Brands Big Trouble American branding guru Jack Trout (2001: vii) proclaims: ‘I have a better approach. Not only is learning from failure easier’ but studying brand failures ‘offers a more thorough analysis of what works and what doesn’t.’ According to Trout, frequently well considered marketing plans succumb when their managers fail to understand their brands are a ‘percept’, not a product. ‘There is no objective reality. There are no facts. There are no best products. All that exists in the world of marketing are perceptions in the minds of customers or prospects. The perception is the reality. Everything else is an illusion’. From his analysis of 100 cases of brand failures, Haig (2005: 7) similarly argues that ‘brands have also transformed the process of marketing into one of perception-building. That is to say that image is now everything. Consumers make buying decisions based around the perception of the brand rather than the reality of the product.’ Both agree that the only way to avoid brand failure in today’s dynamic markets is to understand the complex role of brand communication as the key element in the marketing mix.
