Thai brands need to be quicker in following market trends, willing to invest technology

to create innovative products and more motivated to enter the international arena

so that they can compete when global free trade is fully implemented, a branding expert said last week.

Dr Paul Temporal, group managing director of Temporal Brand Consulting (Thailand), said many Thai brands had already been globally recognised as being of good quality and creative.

However, they need to constantly follow market trends to keep on top of the competitive environment and quickly changing consumer behaviour. Only by doing this can they find all the "touch points" that can link their products to consumers' shifting tastes, he said.

Another key factor is for firms to invest in technology and use that technology for the maximum benefit of their products. This will allow them to constantly introduce innovative products to their target groups.

Consistency in building brand awareness is also crucial, said Temporal.

Using "emotional marketing"

to build brand awareness is one of the key strategies of many global brands as they bid to win and enhance recognition.

The brands need to go back and find consumer touch points, as this will lead to long-term trust and loyalty.

He said some brands like

Nike put a high premium on building brand awareness this way, while many other large companies had still to apply emotional marketing.

"In this modern era, everyone can develop their products to offer the same high-quality products as yours. Some of them even duplicate your products. Yet one thing that they cannot imitate is your brand recognition and customers' high loyalty towards your brands," said Temporal.

Asked whether the current political situation in the Kingdom was hitting Thai brands in the international market, Temporal said the internal conflict had not affected brand loyalty overseas. In addition, Thailand is still perceived internationally as a strong market, he said.

Temporal Brand Consulting has been operating in Thailand for two years. Its customers in-clude the Metropolitan Electricity Authority, the Metropolitan Waterworks Authority, Muang Thai Life Assurance and Phatra Securities.

The company also has offices in Beijing, Kuala Lumpur, London, Singapore, Shanghai, and St Louis.

In addition to his consulting work, Temporal writes books on how to build strong brands. His latest, "Asia's Star Brands", features brand-building methodology in the global arena and the success of rising brands in Asia.

Thai brands including Red Bull, Bumrungrad Hospital, Jim Thomp-son, Siam Cement and Double A are among the successful Asian brands covered in the volume.

Nitida Asawanipont

The Nation