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Balansering och differentiering av varumärken i multi-brand portföljer
Multi-brand portfolios are characterized by comprising many brands in the same product category. Companies that have chosen to organize their products according to this strategy are facing both possibilities, such as expanding the accessible market size, and challenges such as how to organize the brands, their individual roles and their relation and position to the other brands in the category to maximize revenues. To address these aspects of multi-brand portfolios, I have investigated four product categories where multiple brands are represented at Mölnlycke Health Care, Unilever, Fagerhult and L?Oréal; how the multi-brand portfolios are organized, how the segmentation, positioning and product differentiation are done and what advantages and disadvantages that are associated with this strategy. My conclusions are that multi-brand portfolios can be organized in many different ways and to become successful, they have to be set in relation to the company?s whole brand architecture. Segmentation, positioning and product differentiation are important tools to differentiate the brands and to match them against distinct and specific customer needs. However, the importance and the function of each of them may depend on the overall brand and product organization. The main benefits of having many brands in the same product category are the opportunity to offer a complete solution for the customer and to reach a larger market by meeting diverse customer needs and preferences. The drawbacks are the risks for cannibalization, high marketing and administration costs and confusion among customers if they cannot distinguish between the multiple brands.