The concept of the value chain was coined and explained by Michael Porter in his popular book “Competitive Advantage: Creating and Sustaining Superior Performance” in 1985. Value chain is a sequence of activities or practices which aims at creating and adding value to a product or a service. Value is added at every process of doing business. Businesses aim at enhancing their margins and thus they need to work on their operating procedure carefully. Businesses work to change input into an output by adding greater value in it. Thus the logic behind it is simple; the more value a company creates, the more profitable it becomes. When more value is created, the same is passed on to the customers and thus further helps in combining a competitive edge. One happy customers gets ten more customers. Value adds brand loyalty and brand awareness in markets. The primary activities of value chain are inbound logistics, operation, outbound logistics, marketing & sales and after sales service. These primary activities are supported by procurement, technology, human resource management and firm’s infrastructure. Products pass through a chain of activities in order, and at each activity the product gains some value.

Processes that go in primary and supporting activities of value chain are as follows:

Primary activities:

Inbound Logistics: involves relationships with suppliers and it includes all activities required to from placing order for raw material, receiving it, storing it, stacking it and circulate inputs. Inbound logistics is associated with receiving, storing, disseminating inputs for the operation such as material handling, warehousing, and inventory control, vehicle scheduling and servicing the suppliers.

Operations:  involves all the activities required to transform inputs into outputs (products and services). For example machining, packing assembly, equipment maintenance, testing, printing pasting, stacking and facility operations.

Outbound Logistics: is associated with distribution. All activities required to collect, store, and distribute the finished product. It includes reaching the finished goods to the point of consumption.  Warehousing, material handling, routing, selection of routes, mode of transport, order processing and scheduling.

Marketing and Sales: activities include market research, segmenting market, sales promotional activities, developing, positioning and branding. Marketing and sales activities inform buyers about products and services. The activities in marketing facilitate the purchase with advertising, promotion, sales force size, training and developing, channel selection, channel relation and pricing.

After Sales Service:  includes all the activities required to keep the product or service working effectively for the buyer after it is sold and delivered. Such as installation, repair, training, parts supply and product adjustment

Support activities: 

Procurement: is the acquisition of inputs, or resources, for the firm.

Human Resource management: This consists of all activities involved in recruiting, hiring, salary, training, developing, compensating, motivation and performance appraisal. A transparent, ethical Performance Appraisal system is never demoralizing or inhuman. What’s inhumane is failing to make the organization’s standards and values clear and transparent and not letting people know where they stand.

Technological Development: It pertains to the equipment, hardware, software, procedures and technical knowledge brought to bear in the firm’s transformation of inputs into outputs. The digital revolution has created an Information Age.

Company’s infrastructure: this facet shows a company physical infrastructure, intellectual infrastructure, human infrastructure, digital infrastructure etc. In short, it refers to internal strengths of the company and how well connected it is externally.

Example of Starbucks for a better understanding of value chain:  The Starbucks journey began with a single store in Seattle in the year 1971 by three partners who met while they were students at the University of San Francisco: English teacher Jerry Baldwin, history teacher Zev Siegl, and writer Gordon Bowker. To become one of the most recognized brands globally, Starbucks planned a mission statement “to inspire and nurture the human spirit – one person, one cup and one neighborhood at a time.” To achieve the mission the organizations concentrates on all primary activities such as:

Primary activities:

Inbound Logistics: The inbound logistics for Starbucks refers to selecting the finest quality of coffee beans from the coffee producers in Latin America, Africa and Asia. In the case of Starbucks, the green or unroasted beans are procured directly from the farms by the Starbucks buyers. These are transported to the storage sites after which the beans are roasted and packaged. The ready beans are sent to the distribution centers few of which are company owned and some are operated by other logistic companies. The company itself does the procurement to ensure high quality standards right from the point of selection of coffee beans.

Operations: Starbucks operates in 65 countries either in the form of direct stores operated by the company or as licensed stores. Starbucks has more than 21,000 stores internationally which includes Starbucks Coffee, Teavana, Seattle’s Best Coffee and Evolution Fresh retail locations. According to its sales figures, the company generated 79% of the total revenue during fiscal year 2013 from its company operated stores while the licensed stores accounted for 9% of the revenue.

Outbound Logistics: There is very little or no presence of intermediaries in product selling. Majority of the products are sold in their own or licensed stores only. As a new venture, the company has launched a new range of single-origin coffees which is sold through some leading retailers in the U.S. such as Guatemala Laguna de Ayarza, Rwanda Rift Valley and Timor Mount Ramelau.

Marketing and Sales: Starbucks invests in superior quality products and high level of customer services than aggressive marketing. However, need based marketing activities are carried out by the company during new products launches in the form of sampling in areas around the stores. At Starbucks at a point in time, some of their executives visited their coffee shops and noticed that good employees were losing their poise when faced with agitated customers. Instead of coming down on the individual employees, they developed new training material that eliminated the stress of these situations. The executives at Starbucks found that when they empowered their employees with tools they needed to serve customers happily, their employees gained their smiles back.

After sales service: Starbucks aims at building customer loyalty through high level of customer service at its stores. The retail objective of Starbucks is, as it says in its annual report, “to be the leading retailer and brand of coffee in each of our target market by selling the finest quality coffee and related products, and by providing each customer a unique Starbucks Experience.”

Support Activities:

Infrastructure: This includes all departments like management, finance, legal, etc which are required to keep the company’s stores operational. Starbucks well designed and pleasing stores are complemented with good customer service provided by the dedicated team of employees in green aprons.

Human Resource Management: The Company’s committed workforce is considered a key attribute in the company’s success and growth over the years. Starbucks employees are motivated through generous benefits and incentives. The company is known for taking care of its workforce and this is perhaps the reason for a low turnover of employees, which indicates great human resource management. There are many training programs conducted for employees in a setting of a work culture which keeps its staff motivated and efficient.

Technology Development: Starbucks is very well known for use of technology not only for coffee related processes (to ensure consistency in taste and quality along with cost savings) but to connect to its customers. Many customers use Starbucks stores as a make shift office or meeting place because of the free and unlimited wifi availability. The company in the year 2008 also launched mystarbucksidea.force.com as a platform where customers can ask questions, give suggestions and openly express opinions and share experiences. The company has implemented some of the suggestions given via this forum. Starbucks also uses Apple’s iBeacon System wherein customers can order their drink through the Starbucks phone app and get a notification when they walk in the store. Thus, Starbuck uses the available technology to their fullest strength.

Procurement: This involves procuring the raw material for the final product. The company agents travel to Asia, Latin America and Africa for the procurement of high grade raw material to bring the finest coffee to its customers. The agents establish strategic relationship and partnership with a supplier which is built up after reconnaissance and communication about the company standards. High quality standards are maintained with direct involvement of the company right from the base level of selecting the finest raw material which is coffee beans in case of Starbucks.

Conclusions: Starbuck’s rivals benchmark their business processes.

A jingle is a short tune used in advertising; it contains one or more hooks (it’s a musical idea which often is a short riff, passage or phrase) which helps promote explicitly of a product or service. Jingles are hummable, catchy little slogans. They are typically a form of sound branding. Because we can hum them, they are phrased with catchy words which can be remembered easily. Jingles live a longer life. Though they seem trifling, they are successful at getting us to remember a product, to buy the product and even make us think we need the product to be accepted or successful.

The first jingle was born in 1926 in Minneapolis, Minn. when an a cappella group played a quartet in praise of “Wheaties” – a General Mills breakfast cereal. Executives at General Mills were actually about to withdraw Wheaties from the market, but when they noticed a point in its popularity in the regions where the jingle was aired, they changed their minds. The company decided to air the jingle nationally on the radio, and sales went through the roof. Eighty years later, Wheaties is still a household staple in kitchens across the globe.

Since then, jingles have become an important part of any advertising campaign. Some jingles will never die, and they have become a part of our lives. Effective jingles have the capacity to build tremendous brand equity of a product. A successful jingle promotes a positive image, making the consumer more likely to want to purchase the product.

Music can fulfill several tasks when it is used in advertisements. The appealing and entertaining aspect of music helps making an advertisement more interesting. Captivating jingles can make the commercials attractive and engage attention of viewers. From this point of view music need not necessarily manifest any special affinity with a particular product or service in order to play an effective and useful function. The music functions more as bridge between viewer and advertisement. Another basic attribute of music is to support an advertisements structure and continuity. Music adds dramatic approach to a TV or radio commercial. The narrative of the commercial becomes more meaningful with the music. Jingles are also called ‘Singing commercials’ and they have made a self-contained genre.

Look at the lingering jingle of Nirma washing powder; it is one of the most famous jingles. It’s been years down the line but the jingle of Nirma is still jingling in the ears of Indian People. It was of no importance whether the detergent gave clothes the “Dhood si Safedi” or not. But the feisty and spirited ad made a marvel out of the brand. Think of Nirma and the picture of a little girl twirling around with her white frock cannot be forgotten. This jingle has become so familiar in our minds. Nirma took on the might of giant multinationals and wrote a new chapter in the Indian corporate history!

Jingles have the poetic and emotional appeal; it scores over logical, informational advertisements. I think this happens because music can provide a message without the customer consciously noticing it. For providing rational facts in the same time “mixtures of speech and song provide advertisers with opportunities for both logical and factual appeals. Music can therefore function as a nonverbal identifier for certain groups with different musical taste.

Do you know that in sixties and seventies companies wishing to advertise on Radio used external radio stations like Radio Ceylon and Radio Goa (then Goa was under Portuguese control). Radio Ceylon was a popular station as it aired film songs, which was banned on All India Radio (AIR) because the then Information & Broadcasting Minister Mr. Balkrishna Vishwanath Keskar – who thoroughly disapproved of film music. However, in 1965 when Ms. Indira Gandhi was Information & Broadcasting Minister under the Prime Minister Mr. Lal Bahadur Shastri, she changed things. In 1966, Ms. Indira Gandhi became the Prime Minister and she gave serious attention to the use of Radio as a mass media. In 1967, the government accepted the recommendations of an expert committee under the former Director of AIR – Krishna Chandra Sharma. And ads started broadcasting on radio which further saw a spurt in sweet and melodious radio jingles.

Even today the jingle “tandurasti ki raksha karta hai Lifebuoy, lifebuoy hai jahan tandurusti hai wahan” rings in our ears. Similarly ‘Utterly, Butterly, Delicious AMUL’ was another great success.

In the seventies India witnessed a lot of new agencies being set up, including the Mumbai-based Rediffusion, Trikaya Grey and Chaitra and the Chennai-based R. K. Swamy & Associates. Reliance Group setup Mudra Communications in Ahmedabad. In 1977, Doordarshan started accepting ads. It changed the life of Indian ads radically and brought a qualitative leap in making of ads. I still remember the first TV ad was a still for the Topaz brand of razor blades from the house of Malhotras and the first ad prepared for TV was of Jenson & Nicholson modeled by Dalip Tahil and Maya Alagh arguing over the color of their bedroom. This ad was created by Rediffusion. There were only 3 TV Programs on Doordarshan. I still recall we never got irritated when in between the programs ads were played. The programs were: CHITRAHAAR, PHOOL KHILE HAIN GULSHAN, GULSHAN and Sunday Evening Feature Film. And, due to TV ads, lesser known brands were marketed with ease all over the nation.

And then in early eighties the Hawkins Pressure Cooker jingle sung by Preeti Sagar (My heart is beating, Film Julie singer) the jingle words were “Hawkins ki seeti baji, khushboo hi khushboo udi, Mazedaar, lazzedaar khaana hai tayyar, aji khaana hai tayyar! Murg Musallam, Tomayyto Soup, Matar Pulao, Maaki Daal, Kheer aur Dum Aloooooo Har vyanjan swadisht banaaye, minton mein jhatpat pakaaye Hawkins! Hawkins! Hawkins Pressure Cooker! Every Indian household thought of buying the Hawkins Pressure Cooker.

Alyque Padamsee of Lintas was approached by Lever Brothers to write an ad film for HAMAM. He drafted script showing a bikini model bathing with HAMAM under a waterfall. This idea was absolutely rejected by Lever Brothers considering that Indian housewives are restricted to kitchen, and they rarely go out for a picnic or a movie. Padamsee then made a simple ad “chehre ki sundertaa ko nikharta HAMAM”. See how ads show the transformation in society, its culture and philosophy – time passed and Lever team once again told Alyque Padamsee to write another ad film for a new soap – LIRIL. Alyque took out the old and rejected script from his cupboard, changed the title from HAMAM to LIRIL and rest is the history. Within 10 years the Indian housewife was elated from her mundane surroundings to a more confident and earning woman. The Liril ad showcased the modern and liberated Indian woman to the world. It was the hottest ad in the early 80s. Which showed the LIRIL girl drenched under the falls wearing only bikini? The ad was all about waterfalls, abundant water and the girl splashing about. The background score was “la…la la la laaa..”. The la,la, la notation just went about with a hummable tune. The first Liril ad was a masterpiece of with unmatched caliber; it was a product of Alyque Padamsee’s imagination. It was shot in Kodaikanal at a waterfall a little beyond Guna caves. LIRIL brand became largest selling brand of soap in Luxury Soap Segment. Both men and women used it!

I recall this sweet little jingle of Bajaj Electricals. It seems Bajaj Electricals made a historical success by giving a fight to Philips bulbs with their jingle “Jab mein chhota baccha tha, badi shararat karta tha, meri chori pakdi jaati,…aur roshnee karta Bajaj” the attractiveness of this jingle is haunting. The ad shows a kid hiding and reading comics, then a young man sneaking in room from window and at the last shot of an old man sneaking into the fridge for some sweet.  The changeover in pitch and tone from a childish jangle to the old man’s rattle is so fascinating in this jingle.

Some of the older jingles can still bring a smile on our faces. They are inseparable from our lives. They have become iconic and like diamonds they will remain with us forever.

Logo is a graphical mark used to identify a company, an organization, product or brand. Logos are displayed alongside of a company’s name in order to generate awareness of the company’s association with a particular product or service. It is presented with graphical lettering, or an abstract shape of design.

The current era of logo design dates back in the 1870s; with the first abstract logo of Bass Brewery – the biggest beer company then.  Its logo red triangle began the branding campaign in history.  Its brand name and the iconic “red triangle” logo were registered as a trademark under the British Trade Mark Registration Act 1875 on 1 January 1876, just when the act was freshly implemented. After successfully becoming the first registered trademark in England, Bass Ale was filed as trademark no.1. It seemed practical for Bass Ale to use a shape as basic as a lozenge triangle; the triangle symbolizes rising energy, prosperity and the wealth of life. The use of red color, on the other hand, also signifies energy, as well as passion, vitality and enthusiasm for life. The brand name is handwritten to underline the elegant and authentic expression.

Today there are countless corporations, products, brands, services, agencies and other entities using an ideogram (sign, icon) or an emblem (symbol) or a combination of sign and emblem as a logo. But, out of countless logos only few are recognized without name. An effective logo may consist of both an ideogram and the company name (logotype) to emphasize the name over the graphic, and employ a unique design via the use of letters, colors, and additional graphic elements.

A good logo is instantly recognized; it should be inimitable, and exclusive to be remembered by people. Usually people recall a name, a design, a shape if they see it twice, whereas their eyes could pass right over written matter. So people don’t register written statements compared to a shape or design. The more often a potential customer sees and associates a reference to a company the more familiar he/she will begin to feel to the company. And their association with the logo makes their buying process easier.

Logos are an example of intangible assets because they hold value, but not in a physical form. They have become an essential part of a company’s identity, and are used heavily in the marketing of products and services. A well-recognized logo can increase a company’s goodwill, and is trademarked for intellectual property protection.

The three ellipses seen in the logo for Toyota represent three hearts: the heart of the customer, the heart of the product, and the heart of progress in the field of technology.

So why should organizations invest in a logo? Maybe the organization is considering branding or re-branding. Perhaps it has grown very big and needs fighting out competition or it plans to diversify business, whatever the reason, designing a evocative logo is the starting point of the exercise. The logo intensifies the branding efforts. Building a solid, well-designed logo is pivotal to the success of a business, its life and its marketing and sales activity.

Not only does a logo set apart a business from others, it appears on its stationary, website, advertisements, business cards of its executives, packaging, hoardings, name board – it becomes an inevitable part of the corporate communication.  The company’s logo design influences the design of its entire existence and business process. It represents the philosophy of the company therefore designing a ‘brandable’ logo is a must.

See how the letter “M” for McDonald’s stands out. There really isn’t much meaning attached to this logo. In the 60′s, McDonald’s wanted to change the logo but their design consultant and psychologist Louis Cheskin insisted that they continue with the golden arches made in “M” Louis told them that the customers will unconsciously recognize the logo as “symbolism of a pair of nourishing breasts.” Whether this is true or not, their logo is one of the most recognizable in the world.

Historically, pictures were used to convey messages to individuals who were unable to read. A picture of a loaf of bread would be used on a signage to denote a baker. Even if the word “bread” was not displayed, consumers knew the type of product available at that store.

A powerful logo is one of the most valuable assets a company can utilize to broaden its base and maximize its recognition. It is a vital and extremely rare component in the success of a corporation. The practice of using symbols to claim ownership is not a modern invention. Logos existed in the world for hundreds and thousands of years to facilitate identification. Romans used to stamp their bricks with the manufacturer’s emblem, place of origin, as well as their intended destination. As time progressed the logos became more refined and stylized, offering them a touch of sophistication and distinctiveness. Today’s world is surrounded with an abundance of diverse icons and monograms, as well as countless forms and styles of logos and trademarks that consist of numerous shapes, symbols and color combinations.

BMW has a history in aviation and its logo stays true to its roots. The blue and white represent a propeller in motion with the sky peeking through. In fact, BMW had a role in World War II as a creator of aircraft engines for the German military.

The Apple logo represents the forbidden fruit from the “Tree of Knowledge” in the Biblical creation story of Adam and Eve.

There’s no rule against giving a facelift to a logo. Every big brand name you can think of, whether it’s Apple, FedEx, Pepsi, or KFC to name a few, has had a major logo redesign at some point during its history. There are many cases in which a redesign is necessary, which cannot be ruled out. Pepsi’s logo was redesigned at $1,000,000 by the Arnell Group in 2008. In early October 2008, Pepsi launched an entirely new logo, but it did not come into effect until early 2009, when the last logo ended. The Pepsi Globe is now two dimensional again and the swirl design has been changed to look like a smile, of which changes size according to the type of Pepsi. It also added white outlines.

Australia and New Zealand Banking Group’s logo was redesigned in 2009 for $15,000,000. Though the earlier logo was not a brilliant one, it was simple and meaningful. There was nothing strange or anything futile about the old logo.  People had accepted the logo and it went well with them for doing business with ANZ. The new logo does not connect with the mindset of people. The new ‘ANZ’ letters lost the dynamic incline of the old logo. The four horizontal lines don’t make any sense. It is not implicit why ANZ needed to spent $15 million to change its good logo to a bad one.

The importance logo cannot be underestimated in the branding strategy.  Therefore choosing the right logo is very important for the company. The process takes a lot of time, vision, capacity, strategy and most importantly lot of money. They have become progressively crucial in the corporate world as companies make strenuous efforts to distinguish themselves from one another in the worldwide arena. They have to be simple, readable, visually distinctive, cohesive, relevant and consistent.