The document discusses a case study of a Brazilian cement company called Poty that was able to command premium prices in its region despite cement being a commodity product. A researcher conducted surveys and focus groups to understand why consumers preferred the Poty brand. The surveys found that the Poty brand had strong emotional associations that increased its brand equity more than its functional attributes. When the company was sold, the researcher helped the new owners develop a branding campaign to transition the brand successfully. The campaign focused on increasing brand awareness, recognition, and attachment by creating opportunities for customers to experience the product beyond just purchasing it. The case showed that even for commodities, emotional brand image can significantly impact brand equity.

1. How to Build Brand Attachment with
Commodity: The case of a Brazilian
Cement Company
ANTÔNIO AUGUSTO SANTOS JÚNIOR

2. Scenario
Cement Market in Brazil: about 8 billion dollars in sales
(SNIC, 2012).
Even when dealing with a product with standards imposed
by ABNT (organ that standardizes the characteristics
specified by the government), consumers are willing to pay a
premium price on a particular brand, which varies from
region to region (SNIC, 2012).
The factors that lead to this behavior are object of this
article, which presents a proposal and a test of a model of
brand value and brand image in this market.

3. ROI
2005
46
78
76
190
Quality
Professional
Quick
& Easy
I Need
Help
Finance
Focused
Share of
Population
Market
Economic Value
Mauá
Economic Value
ROI
2008
77
83
83
175
Buyer Segmentation

4. Brand Platform
Branding
InvestmentsPrice war
CP III

5. The Case
The POTY Cement Case
Poty in Tupi Language is the same as Shrimp ..
Poty tribe: Indians that used to eat Shrimp

6. The Case
●1942, Votorantin Group, a Brazilian Holding that
operates in 20 countries, built a cement plant in the
Northeastern of Brazil, to supply the demand
●Poty is the name of a Tribe of Native Indians that
used to live in that region
●Poty becomes market leader in the region and
charged a premium price

7. The Case
 2008, World Financial Crisis, Votorantin sold the Plant to
Lafarge, World leader in building materials, that operates in
64 countries
 Votorantin sold the plant, not the brand, and Lafarge has 45
days to change the brand and communicate it to the market
 Antonio demanded a research to understand the market and
to choose the new brand

8. The case
 In the exploratory phase of the research, we discovered that
Votorantin tried to abandon, in the past, Poty´s Brand in order
to use their national cement brand : Votoran, and the sales
dropped to near zero in Volume. After that, Votorantin
decided to keep Poty brand in the Northeastern of Brazil in
order to maintain sales levels
 What would you do as Marketing and Brand Manager? You
have 45 days to change the brand - You know that without
Poty´s brand it would be very risky as you could even face a
collapse in sales …
Questions
Why consumers buy Poty?
Which brand (of the portdolio)
must we adopt?
How to communicate the new
brand?
What are the relationships
between these consumers and
Poty´s brand?
How differentiate cement in this
market?

9. Hypothetical model
Emotional
Image
Brand
Equity
WOM
Mass
Communica
tion
Previous
Experiences
with Brand
Functional
Image
Symbolic
Image
Cognitive
Image
H2 H3
H4
H5
H6 H7
H8
H9
H10 H11
H12
H13
Brand
Awareness
Behavioral
Intention to
Buy

10. Methodology
 Qualitative Phase: 4 focus groups with end-users and company
personnel
 Quantitative Phase 1: survey with 200 end-users in the city of
Belo Horizonte. Main goal was to validate the scale for brand
attributes
 Qualitative Phase 2: survey with 385 end users in 3 cities: Rio de
Janeiro, Belo Horizonte and Recife

11. Scales
Constructs Base
Brand awareness, Punj e Hillyer (2011), Wang, Wei e Yu
(2008),
Previous experiences
Parasuraman, Zeithaml e Berry (1996)
External Media/Advertising Shankar e Fuller (2008) e Yoo,
Boonghee e Mandhachitara (2003)
Influence Groups Adapted from Parasuraman, Zeithaml e
Berry (1985)
Purchase intent Parasuraman, Zeithaml e Berry (1996)
Brand Equity Yoo e Donthu (2001)
Image Adapted from De Toni, Milan e Schuler
(2004)

12. Nomological Phase _ results SEM
FIGURA 2 - Teste do Modelo Hipotético de Pesquisa
Fonte: Dados da pesquisa. OBS: ***Indica carga significante ao nível de 0,1%; **Indica carga
significante ao nível de 1,0%; *Indica carga significante ao nível de 5,0%.
Na Tabela 1 se pode observar as estimativas do modelo:
R2
= 53,0%
R
2
= 56%
Brand
Equity
R
2
= 63,5%
WOM
R
2
=8,5%R
2
= 67,0%
Previous
R
2
= 47,9%
R
2
= 44,2%R
2
= 81,0% R
2
= 1,0%
0,292***
0,736***
0,101*
0,176***
0,692***
0,900*** 0,728***
0,100
0,665***
0,208**
0,033
0,485***
0,209***
-0,002
0,743***
Brand
Awareness
Mass
Communica
tion
Experiences
with Brand
Functional
Image
Cognitive
Image
Symbolic
Image
Emotional
Image
Positive
Emotional
Image
Negative
Behavioral
Intention to Buy

13. Brand Platform
2010 2011 2012

14. Brand value after stimulus
High
Preference
Low
Preference
Low
Awareness
High
Awareness

15. What did we do with the results?
 3 Steps campaign:
 Awareness
● http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2cfr5S0fTco
 Brand recognition
● http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JR7aoeAfaPE
 Brand attachment
● http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=erlO61OkW3s
And SAMPLING! Lots
of SAMPLING!

16. Main conclusions
 In Cement market, we could improve brand perception is by
creating previous experiences with the product, thus increase the
moments within which the end user is exposed to it and deals
with it:
 Not just at work, but during leisure hours
 Not just when he decides to buy, but being able to try the product
before
 Capturing the end user when he is still learning: sponsor classes
and training
 Once the end user understands the brand value he becomes an
advocate to it: the influence group is majorly formed by other
professionals teaching the new ones.
 The impact of the survey changed radically the way advertising
campaigns are treated in the company: now it makes sense!

17. Main conclusions
 It might be expected that, in the commodities market, the
decision was rational and based on price.
 However, according to the survey results, the emotional image,
image, was the factor that had the most significant impact on
brand equity - this impact was greater than the cognitive image,
that is more rational.
 Antonio was promoted and now he is the Worldwide Director of
Marketing at Lafarge
 He was supposed to be here, but they sent him to Manila,
Philippines, and he couldn't find a flight to arrive in time ..

18. Thanks !