Brand personality is the set of human characteristics that a brand encompasses and represents the accumulation of psychological, emotional, behavioral and intellectual patterns that are associated with a brand. It is the description of a brand for humanitarian reasons.
Every brand has significant traits, just like human beings. These traits define the brand’s personality. It evolves from the ideology that brands that have human-like traits connect better with their target audience. It helps people recognize the brand. It helps a brand stand out with consistent and authentic features. In this way, one can differentiate between a strong and a weak brand. In other words, brand personality indicates the type of relationship a customer has with its brand.Contents
What is brand personality?
Definition: Brand personality is the incorporation of human characteristics by a brand in such a way that various brand-like adjectives can be attributed to a brand. (eg authentic, innovative, witty, unique, funny, youthful, caring, trustworthy, creative, rebellious, honest, cunning, simple, dishonest, strong, etc.)The personality your brand possesses is one of more important things that can be identified by consumers. Any brand becomes effective by maintaining some significant features. Target a specific niche. Strong traits make a brand more credible and persuasive, while weak traits often create confusion among people to choose a brand and remain loyal to it. Overall, brand personality refers to the type of human personality traits or attributes on that encompasses a brand, so if a brand has strong personality traits, a brand would be understood as strong, whereas if the brand’s traits matched the attributes of a weak person, the brand would be called a weak brand .The importance of brand personality
A brand must take into account that consumers are already busy with their work schedule. Thus, they do not have time to check everything in detail. They only look for the one that stands out in the crowd and catches their eye.
Also, let’s not forget that social media plays a crucial role. People encounter different brands every day by scrolling through social media platforms. Thus, one always compares between two or more brands before availing a product or service. If I can’t find any line of difference, then I go by price. People tend to choose a cheaper brand than the other. A brand can stand out only by adopting a different strategy made according to the uniqueness of the brand personality. It’s only possible by humanizing your brand. Consistency of style and message are more likely to attract consumers’ attention. It starts with defining a brand’s personality traits. It helps reduce the time it takes for a consumer to recognize a brand. That way, they are more likely to remember a brand. Also, don’t forget about your competitors. Brand personality gives your brand meaning and humanizes it. It helps people understand brands better and adopt one. It will also help a consumer stay loyal to your brand. It also helps determine a brand’s position. Brand personality forms the basis of the relationship a consumer builds with a brand. Apart from that, it also helps in maintaining the equity of a brand. The following are the key reasons why brand personalities are crucial.
- Differentiates you from your competitors
Brand personality is a significant factor in creating a distinction between your brand and your competitors. Your brand personality will help redefine similar products that are available with your competitors. It will respond to your brand ideology and its consistency . Also, let’s not forget the relationship of your products with your consumers. - Helps spread brand awareness
A great brand experience can be achieved through a unique brand personality. It will help you create memories in addition to recognition. They form the foundation of brand awareness. It’s not just about spreading your brand awareness to new prospects. But it also includes existing consumers. It will help them choose your brand every time it comes up, apart from recognizing it. - Develop an emotional connection
When consumers find a brand that embodies the personality traits they like or gravitate towards, they begin to have an emotional connection with that brand. According to an analysis conducted by PRNewsWire-
More than 71% of consumers prefer to recommend those brands with which they have an emotional connection.
- Increases Brand
Loyalty A brand’s loyalty depends on the creativity and life it can maintain through ads and views. People will see their reflections on the brand when they meet it. Apple is one of the perfect examples. They strategically create their advertisements that leave an imprint on the minds of consumers for a prolonged period. It is successful in reaching the target audience. People tend to come back to buy it despite the price estimates. - Makes communication easier
With the help of brand personality, the process of communicating with the target audience is eased.
Audiences who are inclined towards your brand would have similar traits to your brand and therefore would easily relate to your branding messages and brand story.
How to build your brand personality When defining your brand personality, you need to look at different common traits that can be attributed to your brand’s set of characteristics. They are the expressions that a brand puts out into the public domain to allow people to choose them. It also helps people create a brand perception. Sometimes it involves features that relate to the brand’s demographic. For example, Apple targets a young and creative audience. On the contrary, Microsoft focuses on professionals and their maturity. People tend to choose a brand if the traits match their own. The most common personalities are sincerity, sophistication, enthusiasm, toughness and competence. To define your brand personality, you can get help from the frameworks below:
- Brand personality traits according to the Aaker Brand Personality Dimension Framework
The brand personality framework depends on five distinctive traits, sincerity, competence, toughness, enthusiasm and sophistication. Jennifer Aaker is the first person to define all these traits in The Journal Of Marketing Research. She was an expert in branding and marketing.
These traits help a brand stand out from the crowd. These traits are identifiable in various large luxury brands across the globe. It is crucial to identify your brand position by considering several factors. It includes a brand’s core values, archetypes and compass.
- Sincerity
It is one of the most significant components of the brand personality. It includes brands that are honest in their approach, healthy, down to earth and cheerful. Some of the brands that occupy this space are Coca-Cola, Hallmark, Orpah, Pampers and many more. - Competence
A brand is only competent when people can rely on it. They will also be successful and have intelligence. Brands that are part of the healthcare, insurance, financial and logistics industries fall into this category. These brands are confident, loyal and hardworking. Brands such as Microsoft, Volvo and Chase belong to this personality.
- Toughness
Brands that describe the outdoors, adventures and toughness are tough. These brands show their strength, brawn, authenticity and hard work. These brands typically feature sports, construction, and the outdoors. Some brands that occupy this space include Jeep, Levi’s, Yeti and more. - Excitement
It is that category of brand personality that aims to reach a young audience. It shows the youth and enthusiasm that lingers in them. These traits include energy, the power to imagine, boldness and avant-garde. Their strategy is endorsement through celebrities and advertisements that are thrilling. Brands that fall into this category are Nike, GoPro, RedBull, Disney and more. - Refinement Sophisticated
brands prioritize glamour, luxury and refined nature. These brands target the upper class audience whose main concern is class and status. These are brands that fall under luxury and fashion. Brands like Nescafe, Apple, Hermes, Mercedes and many more are part of this personality trait. - Brand archetypes framework

To define your brand personality, you can also choose an archetype that is based on Carl Jung’s theory which suggests that we human beings use symbolism to understand different concepts.
He came up with 12 archetypes classified into 4 types-
- Social types who want to connect with others
- Every ordinary man or guy or girl who likes to match, for example, Visa and Levi’s
- The lover who prefers privacy like Chanel and Victoria’s Secret
- Jester enjoying life eg M&Ms and Skittles
- The types of order that want to give structure to the world
- The creator who likes to innovate, for example, Adobe and Crayola Lego
- The driver who likes to control (drive) the likes of Microsoft, Rolex and Mercedez-Benz
- The caregiver who loves to serve others, for example UNICEF, Heinz and Johnson & Johnson
- The types of Egos who want to change the world
- The magician who has the power to do magical things like Apple and Disney
- The hero who has rule the world a better place, for example Nike and FedEx
- The rebel whose goal is liberation, eg Harley Davidson and Virgin
- The freedom types who want to find paradise
- Innocent who wants to help their customers feel great inside, for example Coca-cola and Dove
- Explorer who loves freedom and wants to offer new experiences like REI and The North Face
- Sage whose aim is to understand eg Oprah, Quora and Google
How brand personality comes to life and into action
Human beings are defined and unique because of their distinct personality. It’s the same for brands.
Three significant points help determine the vibrancy of a brands personality. It involves action, appearance and sound.
- Appearance
The primary identification of a brand is through its appearance. It includes the brand color and logo. Apart from that, it also involves images and typography. People tend to recognize these characters better. Thus, they become the symbolic representation of a brand. The appearance of a brand will help people recognize it from afar. For example, if we consider Coca-Cola, the first thing that strikes our mind is color and typography. Thus, appearance or appearance plays a vital role in defining the personality of a brand. - sound
A brand’s sound involves the music or track it uses when portraying the brand. It can also include voices and languages it uses to convey a message to prospects. The main concern here is the tone of the message. It is the main thing a consumer notices about a brand. The sound that hits the ears tends to leave a brand mark in people’s minds.
For example, a brand like Lincoln uses a voice that denotes distance and structure. These characteristics create a line of distinction between brands.
- Action
A brand differentiates itself from its competitors through its activities. It denotes the behavior of the brand. It also includes how to engage with consumers. It helps a consumer develop a sense of connection with the brand and makes it relatable to them.
A brand like Virgin has left a mark on people’s minds like no other brand ever can. Help destroy the industry that only focuses on the social structure of the upper class. 12 types of brand personalities
1) The Favorite
This is a favorite brand of customers and they simply love it. They are attracted to the brand because of its class, glamor and beauty. Their intention is to stand out and act as a charm for customers. Its main features are to make you feel attractive in every possible way, as well as being sensual and explaining that you deserve to treat yourself. The best example of such a brand would be Garnier with the Take Care slogan. They exist with the disadvantage of projecting themselves as superficial and fancy names just to attract attention and sales. 2) The Adventurer This brand appeals to customers who want to explore different things and get out of their comfort zone. The appeal to thrill-seeking customers won’t stop until they arrive. The purpose of such brands is to challenge you to go on an exciting adventure with the goal of self-fulfillment and discovering new aspects of our own selves. The philosophy is to advertise to be independent and daring and they preach taking risks . One of the best examples of an adventurer brand would be Thums Up with the slogan Taste the Thunder or The North Face – Never Stop Exploring. 3) The Wise These brands appeal to customers who want to develop their mental capacity to support and grow at a higher level of wisdom among their peers and social groups. They try to be the source of basic information at all times and bring immense satisfaction. Customers of such brands are often impressed by analytical data, intellectual concepts, innovation and logic. These brands are constantly expanding the intelligence of a mind and are always enhanced with new customer insights. The best example would be Google. Very few people know that the unofficial motto of Google is “Don’t be evil”. 4) The Playful Brand This type of brand personalities are also known as jester, who are playful and cheerful in nature. Sometimes they might be weird, but fun is something that is built into them all the time and they are forever ready to see positive things. Some people may consider them silly at heart, but that in itself is the defining trait of the character and the same is what what attracts customers. The goal is to bring fun and joy with light laughs. The best example of a playful brand would be funskool.5) The Supreme Brand This type of supreme brand or Ruler appeals to customers who crave supremacy and dominance among others. The grave to be observed and admired and it itself forms the top agendas in life. Wealth, respect and prestige form a massive attraction for them. The purpose is to exude success and intense power to attract a cult. The best example would be Rolls-Royce. The tagline says bold performance and bold choice, which appeals to people who crave prestige. Another example of a similar category would be Rolex. 6) The Magician Brand They enchant customers and associate with their dreams, but disregard logic and rules and focus on magic and responsibilities. They want to appeal to customers to go on an exciting journey with them. Their goal is to transform themselves as they understand the universe through innovation and make their dreams come true on a personal level, but for everyone. Working on the philosophy that they can be whatever they want to be the only important thing is to believe and follow it. The best example of a magician brand would be Disney. Twitter’s tagline series never misses a minute of magic.
7) Caretaker BrandUsually customers who need care or need care for them, these brands promise them a safety and security. They seem gentle and subtle and are nowhere near harsh or negative. Their purpose is to protect and care for and help others, being full of compassion and altruism. They are imbued with deep empathy and help the people they are presented with at every opportunity. The example would be a personal brand that is Princess Diana. She was believed to be a true caretaker and followed this philosophy all her life. The Red Cross Society is another example of Brand Caretaker. 8) Pure Brand Here, Purity should not be taken as a parameter of quality, but rather as a nature or personality of the brand that another, in other words, is called innocence. Innocent brands are genuine and down to earth and provide honest communication every step of the way. Transparency is a major philosophy for them and it is like complexity and always avoids risk. The aim is to spread happiness and freedom in the form of purity and their philosophy is to be honest, positive and kind and make sure things are done right. 9) Everyday Brand Their main aim is to make customers comfortable and to feel at home. They are often looking for high levels of practicality without flashy fleets attached. The main aim is to be accepted and befriended by the common man. The philosophy is that everyone is equal and free and it is necessary to do the right thing without any fuss. An example of this type of brand personality would be Kellogg’s Corn Flakes. It attracts users to be healthy and makes its presence on the daily breakfast table, making it a familiar and everyday brand. 10) The originator brand They attract customers from the creative category and people who love innovation. It attracts customers who enjoy setting trends and seeing themselves as different. These brands depend on customer loyalty and attract those customers who see them not just as a brand but as a way of life. Their aim is to innovate and inspire vision through artistic expression and appeal to individuality, while their philosophy is to create a depth in the world by creating, creating, beginning or initiating something beautiful. The best example would be The Lego that inspires and develops the boundaries of tomorrow. Apple is another example of a similar category. 11) Outlaw These brands live off-world and enjoy the wild side of life. The day that plans to revolutionize the entire industry and refuses to be boring. Appeal to rebellious customers who won’t take no for an answer and refuse to be in the status quo. these customers do what they like when they like and that’s exactly what makes them religious about these types of brands. The goal is to change or break traditions and be apart by opposing authority by breaking the rules. You only live once, so be disruptive and do whatever you want, is their philosophy. Harley Davidson is an example of such a brand with a slogan like “Screw it”. Let’s ride.12) Hero brand They appeal to customers, appreciate the value of quality and endurance, and customers want to try something new to progress quickly. They want to be miles ahead of everyone else, and that’s exactly the feeling that this kind of brand instills. The goal is to drastically improve concepts about the world in an inspiring way. They appeal to the strong, brave and honorable customers who want to be nothing less than a champion.
The best example of such a brand would be Duracell. the main words associated with this brand are empowerment, motivation, determination and strength. Gold’s Gym is another example of The Hero Brand.
Examples of brand personality You will find quite a few examples throughout the article. But here are some of them that will help you understand the brand personality better.
- Dove
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It is a brand that represents elegance and innocence. It conveys the message of a person’s femininity and aesthetics. It does not only focus on a certain skin type, but also on a variation of the range. Dove presents its honesty and conveys a positive vibe to consumers. It also conveys self-confidence and believes that beauty does not indicate a significant group of people. - Red Bull
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It’s a brand that focuses on radiating energetic and edgy content. You can distinguish the features by the bull logo and the color it uses to portray the product. You can also determine the message it conveys. All these characteristic features help him to become part of the sports industry. - Harley Davidson
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The brand presents a breakthrough against all societal norms. It focuses on the hardness of the brand. It defines the personality of the brand. It is powerful and conveys the message of freedom. It has a bright logo that helps limit the personality trait of the brand. - Amazon
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A brand that describes sincerity as well as competence is Amazon. People trust the brand with their eyes closed. It has earned respect through the services it provides. It changes with the changing industry and environment.
Believe in reliable return policies. The brand has a wide range of products. It offers anything and everything a consumer needs. Thus, it has worldwide popularity. The brand’s fearless approach helps establish a strong network across Amazon.how to adapt top brand personality methodologies to your brand.Now you can do the same for any other product or brand. Compare the BBC with MTV or Nickelodeon with the Discovery Channel and you will see that the brand personality is changing. Understanding what these brand personalities look like will also help the brand manager to decide the right media vehicles for brand propagation. Your brand personality helps your dream customers choose you. Conclusion A brand is not a person in real life. Thus, it is impossible to shake hands with him. But the humanization of a brand is only possible through its brand personality. It helps a brand become part of a consumer’s everyday life. It happens only through the identifiable characteristics of the brand. Not only does it help a brand grow, but it also helps people recognize themselves.
People often recognize a brand by its name and color. But only when they can find a brand personality that matches theirs do they adopt it. The message and ideology that a brand conveys through its messaging helps define its personality. The appearance and behavior of a brand determines its position in the world. The humanitarian perspective attracts more and more people to a brand and helps it to be successful in the long term. How important do you think brand personality is in optimizing a brand’s presence, lead generation and conversions?
TYPES OF LICENSE AGREEMENTS Thinking of licensing something you own, but not sure about the different types of license agreements? There are several ways to license intellectual property (or “IP”). To do this, you first need to understand the different types of license agreements.
Here, we’ll discuss what a license agreement is and how you can decide which one is right for you.
WHAT IS A LICENSE AGREEMENT?
A license agreement is a legal contract whereby one party that owns a particular IP allows another party to use that IP. The party that owns the IP (the licensor) receives a payment (a royalty) when the other party (the licensee) uses the IP.
License agreements can be broken down by the types of IP they grant. They can be broken down into exclusivity and duration.HOW TO DECIDE BETWEEN TYPES OF LICENSE AGREEMENTS
- DECIDE WHICH IP TO LICENSE.
Patent Licensing Patents cover science and innovation. Patent license agreements are the documents by which a patent owner allows someone else to use their patent. In practice, patent owners choose to license their patents so that they can produce and distribute them widely. The people and businesses that create patentable material (such as new inventions) are usually not the same parties that can easily produce and distribute it. It’s easier to let someone else handle the commercial side of the patent while still earning royalty payments. These are generally the most complex types of licensing agreements because of everything involved in obtaining and maintaining a patent. Licensing for Trademarks Trademarks are signifiers of the commercial source, namely, brand names and logos or slogans. Trademark licensing agreements allow trademark owners to allow others to use their IP. Most often, trademark owners license their trademarks for commercial goods, such as clothing, iPhone cases, or food products. Rights Licensing by copyright Copyright is the artwork of the IP world. Copyright exists, for example, in works of visual art such as paintings, films or songs. Copyright also exists in characters, such as Mickey Mouse.
Copyright licensing agreements are often used for consumer goods, as are trademark licenses. They are also used for distributions such as musical works or movies.Licensing Trade SecretsTrade secrets are unique in that they are not registered with the government. Patents, trademarks, and copyrights are most valuable when they have been registered with the federal government. Trade secrets are protected only by their secrecy. Two of the most famous examples of trade secrets are the formulas for Coca-Cola and the KFC chicken recipe. License agreements for trade secrets often come with non-disclosure agreements (or NDAs). NDAs state that the party receiving certain confidential information cannot share it with anyone.
- DECIDE IF YOU WANT YOUR LICENSE TO BE EXCLUSIVE.
Exclusive Exclusive licenses are those that create a unique relationship between the licensor and the licensee. In these types of license agreements, the licensor agrees that the licensee is the only one who can use the IP. These usually cost more to the licensee. Non-exclusive In a non-exclusive license, the licensor can license the IP to multiple licensees. These types of license agreements usually cost less to the licensee.UniqueIn a unique license, the licensor agrees to use only one licensee, but the licensor reserves the right to continue using its IP. - DECIDE THE DURATION OF YOUR LICENSE.
There are also two different types of license agreement durations.Perpetual A perpetual license is one where the licensee buys the right to use the IP once and then can use it for life. These are often the more expensive type of license because the licensor will not receive ongoing royalties. Perpetual licenses are most commonly seen in software. Term A term license is organized in one of two ways: (1) the licensee the licensee may pay a one-time fee for a specific term or (2) the license may be paid per use (these are traditional royalties). Term licenses are much more common in all industries. Although many people don’t think about it, when you pay Netflix each month, part of that fee is a license to use their proprietary digital software. License agreements are similar to leases. Much depends on the property involved and the relationship of the parties. As you can see, there are many types of licensing. An experienced IP attorney can help you figure out what type of license agreement you need, as well as what needs to go into that agreement.
What is a license?
A license is simply the right to do or use something. The word, from the Latin, means “permission”, thus implying that a license is given by one controlling party to another. Licenses are divided into three basic forms: 1) the right or permission to carry out an activity otherwise regulated or prohibited by the government; 2) the right to use a name, image or representation (including a brand) in packaging, promotion, signage, marketing and similar contexts; and 3) the right to use and apply proprietary know-how, whether patented or not, for any lawful purpose, including its full embodiment in products. Licensing activity comes in two forms: Licensors grant licenses to others; licensees receive licenses from others.
WHAT IS THE PRODUCT LICENSE? EXPLANATION OF PRODUCT LICENSES AND PRODUCT LICENSES?
Product licensing may be the best kept secret in business. The practice allows brands to expand their product offerings while providing revenue streams.
Product licensing may be the best kept secret in business. The practice allows countless brands to expand their product offerings while providing additional revenue streams. And while many of our friends, family, and even our colleagues in other departments might not be able to give a definition of product license, there’s no doubt that some of their favorite products are licensed—and they probably don’t even know it. that. Product licensing involves two parties: a licensor and a licensee. The licensor owns the rights to certain intellectual property (IP), while the licensee manufactures products using the IP granted by the licensor through a license agreement. A product (or merchandise) license allows licensees to use popular IP to create branded products, usually for a specified period of time. Once the rights have been secured, the licensee manufactures the product using the licensed IP and in return pays the licensor a royalty for its use. This can be a flat fee or a percentage of sales of products that have incorporated PA. This model can be applied to almost any product, from clothing and accessories to toys, home goods and more. Merchandise licensing has advantages for both the licensor and the licensee. The licensor is able to offer new products that are not within its core competencies. It also provides critical revenue streams to entertainment producers and brands looking to grow. Meanwhile, the licensee gains a competitive advantage in the market by differentiating products through memorable IP or associations with quality brand names. Both companies can see their respective brands gain relevance, recall and increased revenue, which helps explain why some of the biggest firms use the product licensing business model. Many Disney products are made by third-party manufacturers using licenses for products or merchandise. Entertainment properties have long been a large part of the licensing industry. In 2018, The Walt Disney Company was the largest licensor by sales volume. While the average consumer might assume that Disney manufactures all products offered for sale under the Disney brand at retailers worldwide, a large number of these products are produced by licensees. And this makes sense – Disney is great at making movies, and there’s no need for them to become experts at making every product under their name. So, while Disney is busy animating the next blockbuster, they can tap into the expertise of other companies to make clothing, bedding, and toys that will be released with the movie. Because everyone involved uses the same IP (movie characters, for example) and everything is held to the highest standards, consumers never know that someone other than Disney created their beloved t-shirt, quilt or doll.
The fashion industry also has an extensive history of product and merchandise licensing. Today’s well-known designer brands such as Ralph Lauren, Michael Kors and Vera Wang rely on licensees to build their product ranges and present a complete lifestyle offering to customers. While Mr. Kors or Ms. Wang may create their eponymous clothing collections themselves, they often outsource the production of other product categories in a contemporary lifestyle brand’s portfolio. Accessories such as hats, ties and the like are regularly manufactured by licensees, as are home products, footwear, perfume, eyewear and more. Other major players in the world of product licensing are media and gaming properties, sports teams professional and collegiate and food and beverage companies. Product licensing is probably responsible for your favorite sports jersey, your child’s prized toy line, and the characters in your favorite video game. Each has their own reasons for using the product licensing business model, but all reach new customers and expand their product offerings beyond their internal capabilities by doing so. When done right, consumers may not never know that some of their favorite products were produced by a third party and not by the brand whose name is on the label. And this is the foundation of any successful product licensing program. When done right, licensors reach new customers and diversify their revenue streams, while consumers have more opportunities to interact with their favorite brands.
What is the difference between licensing and franchising?
Licensing and franchising are two forms of business agreements that typically involve the licensing of a trademark and the joint use of branded elements, technologies, or systems in the operation of a business. Licensing agreements are more limited than franchise agreements and involve the joint use – under license – of a trademark, technology or business system between businesses that operate independently of each other and use their own individual and distinct brands. Franchise agreements are broader than licensing agreements and, in addition to licensing the use of a trademark, regulate and control the entire brand and operations of franchised businesses that operate under a single brand and use the same systems, supply chain and operating procedures .
Summary of Licensing and Franchising Differences:
• Different levels of control – Licensing agreements are limited to giving another company the right to use a trademark or technology, but do not include control over how the business operates. Franchise agreements are broader and control how a business operates.
• Different legal regulations – License agreements are governed by general contract law. Franchise agreements are governed by federal and state franchise laws.
• Different business objectives – Licensing agreements are used to monetize trademarks and technology through independently operated companies. Franchise agreements are used to grow a brand through outlets that operate in uniform systems controlled by the franchisor.
What is the license?
Licensing is a business agreement involving the joint use of a trademark, technology or other intellectual property. The agreement that creates a license relationship is a license agreement, and the parties to a license agreement are the licensor and the licensee. The licensor is the owner of the trademark or technology, and based on the terms of the license agreement, including the payment of a license fee, the licensee is granted the legal right to use the licensor’s trademark or technology. License agreements can be exclusive or non-exclusive and can cover a wide range of intellectual property assets including trademarks, copyrights, patents and music. License fees can be structured as one-time fixed fees or ongoing fees based on usage, sales and other performance criteria.
License agreements are similar to franchise agreements in that both involve the joint use of business assets and intellectual property rights. License agreements differ from franchise agreements in that license agreements are more limited than franchise agreements and do not give the licensor control over how the licensee operates the underlying business. If a license agreement is improperly prepared and includes too much control over the core business, the license agreement may give rise to an illegal franchise relationship.
Examples of license agreements include:
• License of a trademark where the licensee is granted the right to use a trademark for a limited and specified purpose. Example: Walt Disney granted McDonalds a license for McDonalds to co-brand McDonalds Happy Meals with a Disney-branded character.
• License of a technology in which the licensee is granted the right to use the licensor’s software or other intellectual property. Examples: Apple grants individual computer users a license to use the Mac operating system, and Spotify grants subscribers a license to listen to music on the Spotify network.
• License of a patent in which the licensee is granted the right to use a patented process or technology. Example: A patent owner who grants a drug manufacturer a license to use the patented formula in the manufacture and sale of a prescription drug.
In each example of licensing, the underlying business operations of the licensor and the licensee are distinct from each other and, unlike franchising, the degree of control the licensor has over the licensee is limited to the underlying trademark or technology that is licensed . . Using the example of McDonalds and Disney Happy Meals, although Disney will have say and control over how McDonalds uses the Disney trademarks for McDonalds Happy Meals, Disney has no control over the overall business operations of McDonalds.
What is the franchise?
A franchise is a business agreement that includes licensing a trademark, paying a fee, and controlling how the underlying franchise business is operated. The agreement that creates a franchise relationship is the franchise agreement, and the parties to a franchise agreement are the franchisor and the franchisee. The franchisor is the company that owns the trademarks and has created the systems and procedures for developing and operating a franchise business. Under the terms of a franchise agreement, the franchisor grants the franchisee the right and legal obligation to develop and operate a new franchise business location. The franchisee is required to pay the franchisor an upfront fee known as the initial franchise fee and ongoing fees known as royalties. Unlike a license agreement, franchise agreements are meant to duplicate a brand, its business model and its ongoing operations. Franchise agreements require uniformity and within a franchise agreement, as opposed to a license agreement,
Examples of franchises include restaurants such as McDonalds, retailers such as GNC, healthcare providers such as American Family Care, service providers such as RE/MAX, and many other businesses and industries. To learn more about franchising, read our Ultimate Guide to Franchising Your Business.
Why is licensing not an alternative to franchising?
Although licensing and franchising are very similar, licensing is not an alternative to franchising and there are important differences.
License agreements are limited to a business relationship between two businesses that share a common brand element or technology, but generally operate independently of each other and without control over how the other operates and conducts its own business . Any control involved in a license relationship is limited to the use of the co-branded element or technology and is only a small part of the total business operations. Franchise agreements, on the other hand, are much broader and, in addition to the shared use of a brand, technology and systems, regulate and control the entire branding and operations of the core business.
Every franchise agreement includes a license, but not every license agreement creates a franchise. What qualifies as a franchise is determined by the Federal Franchise Rule issued by the Federal Trade Commission. Under the Federal Franchise Rule, a franchise is created by any written or oral agreement that:
1. CREATE A CONTINUOUS BUSINESS RELATIONSHIP;
2. GRANTS A TRADEMARK LICENSE (THOUGH THIS IS NOT REQUIRED IN CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES);
3. CONTROL THE WAY A BUSINESS IS OPERATED; AND
4. REQUIRES THE PAYMENT OF A FEE.
Because points one through three are common to both license agreements and franchise agreements, the determination of whether a franchise relationship exists is usually based on the fees received at the time of sale and the level of control an agreement grants a franchisor over a franchisee’s operations.
Under the Federal Franchise Rule, if a business license agreement meets the criteria of a franchise, the legal relationship established by the agreement would be construed as a franchise – not a license.
If a franchise relationship is found to exist between the two parties to the agreement, the franchisor is required to meet certain requirements under federal law. These requirements include issuing an FDD to prospective franchisees before offering or selling a franchise, preparing and properly disclosing the FDD, and, in cases where a franchise operates in franchise registration states, registering and filing additional documents in those states.
Because of the potential legal violations and penalties that could result from failing to meet these obligations, entrepreneurs should evaluate their legal agreements to ensure that their business relationships are well defined and legally compliant.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of licensing and franchising?
The advantage that licensing has over franchising is that licensing agreements are basic legal agreements that are usually unregulated and less expensive to create. Franchise agreements are governed by federal and state franchise laws, require FDD disclosure, registration in franchise registration states and, compared to license agreements, involve more legal action and legal expenses. The disadvantage of licensing is that license agreements are extremely limited in what they can regulate and control, and license agreements cannot be used to achieve multi-unit expansion of a trademark with uniform systems and quality control standards and many others.
What is the difference between licensing and selling licenses?
The distinction between licensing and selling often becomes important if you have intellectual property such as a patent, design, know-how, etc. (IP). Such an IP often claims rights to manufacture a product, item, etc. (The product). An individual or small business may not have the resources to manufacture and market the Product, so they must decide how to bring the Product to market.
The difference between licensing and sale (or assignment) is essentially one of ownership. Selling involves changing ownership of the IP for a price, normally money, while licensing involves retaining ownership but giving permission, again in return, to use the IP and commercialize it Product. Payments for the sale or use of IP can be in the form of royalties or one-off payments, with the rights of both parties included in a commercial agreement. By selling or licensing, you can get a return on your IP without incurring the expenses involved in manufacturing, marketing, distributing and selling the Product. To license or sell? Many individuals are reluctant to part with ownership, because they see it as preserving wealth or value. However, it may be better to look at the risks and/or rewards of both licensing and selling. That is, it might be preferable to calculate the potential profits from both licensing and selling, and then weigh the risks to both. One of the advantages of licensing over selling is often continued profits in the form of royalties. While the upfront payment is less than you would get for selling, you are more likely to secure recurring payments over a period of time (even indefinitely). A disadvantage is that you (as the licensor) are, to some extent, dependent on the licensee to maximize sales and to be honest in reporting sales revenue. You can protect yourself by setting certain sales goals in the contract that the licensee must meet in order to retain the license, and you can include audit rights to ensure that the licensee is accurately reporting its sales revenue. You will also depend on the licensee to make quality IP Products. To the extent that the public knows that your IP is the basis of the Product,
While there is no reason why the purchase price for the sale of the IP should not be in the form of ongoing royalties, this will often involve a one-time payment or payments in several installments. This generally means a larger upfront payment, but all rights are transferred and you lose all the benefits and burdens of retaining ownership.
What is the difference between selling your work and licensing it?
The distinction between licensing and selling often becomes important if you have intellectual property such as a patent, design, know-how, etc. (IP). Such an IP often claims rights to manufacture a product, item, etc. (The product). An individual or small business may not have the resources to manufacture and market the Product, so they must decide how to bring the Product to market.
The difference between licensing and sale (or assignment) is essentially one of ownership. Selling involves changing ownership of the IP for a price, normally money, while licensing involves retaining ownership but giving permission, again in return, to use the IP and commercialize it Product. Payments for the sale or use of IP can be in the form of royalties or one-off payments, with the rights of both parties included in a commercial agreement. By selling or licensing, you can get a return on your IP without incurring the expenses involved in manufacturing, marketing, distributing and selling the Product. To license or sell? Many individuals are reluctant to part with ownership, because they see it as preserving wealth or value. However, it may be better to look at the risks and/or rewards of both licensing and selling. That is, it might be preferable to calculate the potential profits from both licensing and selling, and then weigh the risks to both. One of the advantages of licensing over selling is often continued profits in the form of royalties. While the upfront payment is less than you would get for selling, you are more likely to secure recurring payments over a period of time (even indefinitely). A disadvantage is that you (as the licensor) are, to some extent, dependent on the licensee to maximize sales and to be honest in reporting sales revenue. You can protect yourself by setting certain sales goals in the contract that the licensee must meet in order to retain the license, and you can include audit rights to ensure that the licensee is accurately reporting its sales revenue. You will also depend on the licensee to make quality IP Products. To the extent that the public knows that your IP is the basis of the Product, while there is no reason why the purchase price for the sale of the IP should not be in the form of ongoing royalties, this will often involve a one-time payment or payments in several installments. This generally means a larger upfront payment, but all rights are transferred and you lose all the benefits and burdens of retaining ownership.[17:37, 2022-09-14] Alex Talpos: What is the difference between a- sell your work and would you license it?[17:40, 14.09.2022] Alex Talpos: It all depends on who owns the works and how the owner exercises his rights. Selling your work means you give up all rights and title to the work: you can’t reuse it and you can’t profit from it again. It’s out of your hands. You are no longer the owner. Conversely, licensing means that you still retain ownership as well as most of your rights, but grant (hopefully in exchange for money or other valuable goods/services) to another party the right to use your work in a limited capacity for a limited time. .
What are property rights? For works of art, the Copyright Act provides six rights to a copyright owner. These rights are: 1. The right to reproduce or make copies of a work2. The right to make derivative works based on the work3. The right to sell, lend or rent the work4. The right to publicly display the work5. The right to perform work publicly (if applicable)6. The right to publicly perform sound recordings of the work (if applicable) Selling the work means that although you are still the creator and may be credited as such (make sure that every time you sell your work, the contract affirmatively states that you will be credited), you cannot exercise any of these rights. Licensing the work means you can because you are still the owner. What does this look like in real life? Here’s an example: Let’s say you’re an illustrator and a client hires you to create a new illustration for her company’s website. SELLING THE WORK If you were to sell the client the copyright to the illustration, that you can use your portfolio artwork and show the world “hey, I did this and I can do something similar for you!” But you may not use, copy, resell or license that particular track. You may not modify or make derivatives of it. It’s a one-and-done deal. In the meantime, the customer, as the copyright holder, can now exercise any of the six rights mentioned above. She can make copies of the illustration, hire another designer to tinker with it, and modify it. She can resell the artwork or use it for projects other than her business. She can even recreate it to be the logo of her business. She can do whatever she wants with it. It’s hers. LICENSING THE WORK On the other hand, if you were to license the illustration, as the owner you would only be giving up the rights you want and could place restrictions on how the client can use it. Not only could you deny them the right to resell, reuse, or modify the work, depending on the specifics of the job and the power dynamics at play (which you should always consider), the work might not be granted to him even exclusively. basic… in other words, you could simultaneously license the illustration to other parties. You may prevent each party from using the illustration in ways or for projects that you do not approve of. In short, you have a lot more authority to dictate how a party can use your work. COMPLICATIONS? All of the above seems pretty cut and dry, and for the most part, it is. But sometimes complications arise, especially around works of art where there is a physical product at the end of that work, such as paintings or furniture. You can sell the physical items to a buyer while still retaining the copyright, but many artists don’t know that. For example, if a client hires you to paint a portrait of their family, they’re not just paying for the right to pose for hours, they want the physical painting to hang in their foyer, which they’ll use to impress friends and valuable business clients. But just because you’re parting with the product doesn’t mean you’re letting the buyer take the intellectual property.
Always remember that copyright does not usually deal with physical products. It is an intangible asset that has monetary value separate and apart from the physical product to which it may be attached. You are not obligated to sell your copyright just because you are parting with the product as well.
The choice of whether to sell or license the copyright in your work will depend significantly on the type of work you do, the type of business you run, the clients you deal with, norms and customs your industry and the amount of authority you have to make those decisions. You can also sometimes run into contract construction and work-for-hire issues that muddy the waters in terms of copyright ownership, so whenever you start work for a client, make sure you specify clearly in writing if the work is sold or licensed. And if you license your work, be as specific as possible about the rights you give up and retain: things like how long you use, what you’re using, how much of your work can be used, any fees or royalties you owe.
What do we mean by positioning?
Positioning is defined as the act of designing the company’s offering and image to occupy a distinctive place in the minds of the target market. A simple example of positioning would be If I say An expensive TV, the first thing that comes to your mind will probably be A Sony TV or A Samsung TV, while if I say a cheaper TV or VFM (Value TV ) you might consider an Onida. or a Videocon. That’s positioning. Why did you only call out these respective names? That’s because brands are positioned in your mind in terms of awareness.
The main points you should remember are: Positioning is the final part of the SEGMENT – TARGET – POSITION or STP process Positioning is undoubtedly one of the simplest and most useful tools for marketers. Positioning is all about “perception”. As perception differs from person to person, so the results of the positioning map, for example what we perceive as quality, value for money in terms of value, etc., will be different from any other person’s perception. However, there will be similarities in certain cases. After segmenting a market and then targeting a consumer, the next step will be to position a product in that market. It refers to a place that the product offering occupies in the minds of consumers on important attributes, relative to competing offerings. How new and current items in the product mix are perceived in the mind of the consumer, thus emphasizing the importance of perception!! New product – the need to communicate the benefits. The most attractive positioning that can generally be targeted is: (a) Prospectively profitable: characteristics of the segment (e.g. price levels, growth rate) and competitive environment (e.g. number of competitors , the basis of competition) are conducive to a growing group of profits. (b) Homogeneous within the segment, i.e. members are relatively similar in terms of attitudes, purchase criteria, media habits, etc. (c) Heterogeneous across segments, i.e. members from different segments have fundamental differences and act accordingly.(d) Accessible: members can be effectively reached through communications and shop at outlets through which products can be effectively distributed.(e) Earnable: distinctive strengths of the company suit the requirements of the segment and provide an advantage over the competition, so the company can reasonably expect a co acceptable share of industry profits.