Branding in contraceptive social marketing: The Pakistani experience

Abstract

Branding is at best a complex phenomenon in conventional commercial settings and even more so in social marketing where the application of branding concepts and techniques are fairly recent but nevertheless gaining momentum. Against the backdrop of contraceptive social marketing programs implemented in Pakistan over the past 2 decades to promote the use of contraceptives, this article examines ways in which social marketing organizations used branding in a variety of ways to achieve positive behavioral changes and stronger market positioning. Using 3 illustrative case studies, our article provides a review of issues influencing branding in a highly regulated market-space. It finds that the development of trademarks and logos is fundamental to building a memorable brand, as is consistency of design and colors. Much of the techniques applied can be described as "pseudobranding" (Hall & Jones, 2007) - conveying the identity of the product while not actually naming it.