ABSTRACT
Over the course of the past decade, firms have come to the realization that one of the most effective tools they have to hedge against risk is the portfolio of relationships that consumers form with the company’s brands. Strong relationships guarantee cash flows in the form of brand loyalties and trial of new brand extensions, create supply-side cost advantages through evangelism and word-of-mouth advocacy, and protect shareholder value in the wake of the crises that inevitably befall brands. But, as marketers have rushed to build equity though their brand relationships, they have also come to realize that the creation of value through brand relationships is a difficult and challenging task. Brand relationships are complex psychological and cultural phenomena. They must be carefully created, astutely nurtured, and judiciously leveraged if they are to thrive. They require an organization and internal culture aligned in terms of relationship principles and ideas. Today’s brandscape, enabled through social media and web 2.0 technologies, has fundamentally changed the face of branding, further complicating the relationship-building task.
