An Exploratory Research on the Practice of Brand Management of the Philippine American Life and General Insurance Co., Inc.

Abstract

Brands have been central to marketing for more than a century, and its most essential function is to create a distinction among entities that may satisfy a customer's need. The logic of brand management has been "Build a brand, and the world will beat a path to its door". Brands perform many functions such as brand reduction for buyers, facilitation for sellers, facilitation for the introduction of new products, facilitation of promotional efforts, and also the facilitation of premium pricing as well as the facilitation of market segmentation, and brand loyalty (Berthon, etal., 1999). These functions spur diverse firms to base their strategies almost entirely on building brands. The trends that are changing brand management today include the influx of information technology, the changing consumer values, and the emergence of brand/product/service mimicry. Brand managers are held responsible for the success of single bi-ands or categories of products (Berthon, etal., 1999). In view of this, the researcher wished to determine how the Philippine American Life and General Insurance Co., Inc. (Philamlife) effectively practices the concept of Brand Management. Subsequent problems that the researcher also aimed to answer are the following: 1. With the onset of technological changes, what are the steps that Philamlife is willing to undertake to cope with these technological advancements? 2. With the changing consumer values, what are the tactics that Philamlife is using to keep its current market and lure a larger market? 3. With the introduction of new insurance companies with their respective products and services, how does Philamlife intend to be competitive and maintain its position in being the number 1 insurance company in the country? Information on how the Philippine Life and General Insurance Co., Inc. (Philamlife) practices the concept of brand management could aid in the implementation of a new program for brand management to increase productivity and profitability for the company. This study would also show the importance of long-term planning for any company, business or organization. It would also broaden knowledge of the concept of brand management for the current study's readers. The scope of the study revolved around the practice of brand management by the Philippine Life and General Insurance Co., Inc. (Philamlife). The current study involved personal interviews by the researcher with the employees of the Philippine Life and General Insurance Co., Inc. (Philamlife) whom are directly associated with its brand/product/service management with the aid of an -- interview schedule. The study was limited in its representativeness and generalizability due to the small sample and qualitative analytical procedure. From the data gathered and analyzed by the researcher, the following conclusions have been reached about the company: • In terms of customer-service, the Philippine Life and General Insurance Co., Inc. has adapted well to the technological changes in the corporate world with their web site, 24-hour Call Center, E-mail programs for all branches and offices nationwide, and E-mail literacy for employees of the company. • Product and service diversification facilitates for better service of Philamlife. • In terms of advertising, Philamlife focuses more on improving corporate image instead of promoting specific brands/products/services. • Personalized customer service and stability will be the key ingredients for Philamlife to be able maintain its competitiveness and position being the number 1 insurance company in the country. • Overall, the Philippine Life and General Insurance Co., Inc. concentrates in improving its image with the public since the company believes that a good image projects good products and services. And from these conclusions, the researcher has decided to give the following recommendations: To Philamlife, the company should: • should engage in long-term planning so as to anticipate the needed changes in the concept of brand-management. • should allow consumers to be able to purchase insurance policies on-line through their web site, provided that there would be a background check before policies can actually be sold to clients. • create brand management teams for each product or service Philamlife offers to ensure the brand's successful performance, assessed by monitoring shifts in the brand's share of the market and/or contribution to profit. • concentrate on advertising geared towards the Class C market of the population stressing on the benefits of pre-need insurance policies. • improve their advertising schemes to gain more exposure to the current market. The Philippine Life and General Insurance Co., Inc. should concentrate in promoting its products and services more than its corporate image. To future researchers of the concept of brand management, the researcher recommends that: • the company chosen to be evaluated in its effectiveness is a well-known and established company for them to trace back the success of their respective companies. • there should be an accommodating contact person inside the chosen company to be researched on so as to be able to visit the company often for better and more accurate observations. • There should be an increase the research's sample size to be able to give better generalizations and conclusions on the researched company.