Companies are using merger and acquisition strategy to achieve expeditious grow thin todays highly competitive globalized world. A checklist has been provided for brand managers to check the health of the brands as the merger and acquisition may result in diluting the brands and negatively affect the company.
In
an increasingly competitive global marketplace, many companies are challenged
to achieve expeditious growth. With stockholders demanding swift returns on their
investment, many aggressive management teams bypass the long, slow path to growth
and instead buy a smaller business that already has achieved success in their
shared industry.And,
while numerous practical and fiscal benefits are immediately realized through
an acquisition, with the new efficiencies come brand identity issues that can
confuseor, worse yet, alienatestakeholders of the new, combined entity.
For
instance: Were the two companies previously fierce competitors? Does one enjoy
a sterling reputation, the other less noble? Are their products and services of
equal value in the eyes of the marketplace? Will their respective customers embrace
the combined entity or view the new offering with suspicion? In
order for both companies to enjoy maximum benefits from a merger, these questions
(and many others) must be addressed prior to acquisition. After all, customers
are fickle, easily lead astray, and have very short attention spans. Overlooking
the role of "brand" in the acquisition process is ill-advised and may
result in diluting two brands instead of fortifying one.
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