Branding task 2- CONVERSE

Converse

Converse has been manufacturing the basketball shoe since the early 1900’s extending product ranges over the years. The brand now encompasses men’s, women’s and children's with an extensive product range for each market segment.
The success of converse has now spanned more than 100 years however with all the sports history and footwear innovation under its name it could be questioned why converse only wholesales in the UK and does not retail through its own outlets.

Target Market:
Sports:
Originating from the brands success as a basketball on-court shoe the brand today produces ‘a new generation of sports performance shoes’. Targeted at basketball, football, tennis, baseball and track sports players. One can assume that this target market contains both males and females between the sporting age of 8-45. However due to the nature of this market it could be suggested that most of these consumers would be 16-30 and primarily male.

Lifestyle:
The popularity of the sporting shoe filtered into the fashion market through editorial coverage. The brand image was taken from the track by high profile figures wearing the sporting shoes and the brand entered the new market of fashion.
This market targets children, men and women. The segments are wide and the consumers range vastly in age range.

Converse no longer has one part of the shoe market that it targets. It is no longer a sporting brand and is neither a fashion brand. It places itself mid-market and is a mass retailer.
The lack of targeting or unclear target markets is effecting the brands ability to reach defined stake-holders. Due to the history of the brand and the wearability of the product the brand is desired by many. In order to capitalise on this the brand needs to clearly define its target markets and address each in the correct manner. For example the sports market demands different from the fashion market in product development, advertising, 4 p’s and distribution.


Positioning:
Converse positions itself in both the fashion and sportswear market yet each position is not clearly defined. Both are mid-mass market in terms of pricing and place. The brand is often retailed amongst a variety of shoe styles for example in Office shoes or in Footlocker stores and may not be available to all of the target market as a consequence.
The wide availability of the brand may also be affecting the brand image. Often the shoes are available on auction websites such as ebay cheapening the image of the shoe and market saturation occurring.

Proposition:
Converse proposes to be ‘more than shoes’, however this intention is not easily recognisable in actions. The fact that the brand produces specific sporting shoes but is not easily linked to specific sporting events or does not publicise this events produces ambiguity in the brands intent. Converse could re-brand itself more people-centric through collaborating with a youth sporting event or even opening a youth basketball academy. The shift from seller-centric to people centric could help realign the brand in a more favourable position during tough economic times and strengthen the relationship between business and consumer.

A second weakness of the brand proposition is the distribution through wholesale retailers in the UK. The product can be purchased from many outlets but not from a converse store. The result of this is the consumer is not so much as buying into the brand but is just purchasing a branded product. Whilst the business is clearly successful the introduction of a converse retail outlet could result in dramatically strengthened relationships between the stakeholders. This also links back to the unclear target marketing, a converse outlet would make the product available for purchase to all market segments whereas at present the older consumers may not shop in Office, or the fashion consumer may not shop in Footlocker. Furthering this the brand could increase itself appeal by making its extra services available to all. Currently customised designs can be done through the website but this could be introduced into the store adding extra fun and hype to the brand with the scope for running in-store competitions that could link to the community through schools.



Brand expression/communication
Converse is easily recognisable through the distinctive star logo. It is memorable and not product-type specific yet it does not convey the modern side to the brand. I do not think the logo should be changed but extra emphasis needs to be placed upon the delivering the message of the brand. The logo represents the brands heritage through the consistent use of image and typography.
One area this needs to be focussed upon is the brands image representation:

This image is taken from the converse website homepage. Whilst the choice of models and styling targets the young fashion conscious consumer it does easily attach itself to the wide audience that buys into the brand. The brand could benefit from creating a more segmented website that is easily used by all.
One idea could be to include a childrens link from the homepage that could include activities and games to add a fun element to the product for children. This could be promoted through activation codes gained through product purchase that unlock certain links on the website. Furthering this a character that is easily recognisable to children could help market the brand in a more child friendly manner. This would also allow for advertising to children.

Converse as a brand expresses itself through the iconic ‘chuck taylor’ style boot that was the driving force behind the success. Yet as the brand has developed this static image has now does not represent the wide product ranges. An area for improvement could be tag lines that are implemented to go with each product area.


Summary
As a brand converse has been built on history of sports and success of a product but as the business has grown it now does not represent all the activities that it undertakes. The wide target audience is not being marketed to in specific areas and many products are not promoted to the right consumer. The brand needs to re-define which markets it wishes to hold a stake in a make sure it is serving these consumers. The biggest improvement for the brand would be direct retailing so Converse has the opportunity to convey its brand strategy exactly how it wishes. This would primarily been done through stand alone stores.