1. The concept of sports brand and its classification
1. The concept of sports brand
The American Marketing Association defines a brand as a name, term, mark, symbol or design, or a combination of them, with the purpose of identifying the products or services of a seller or a group of sellers and distinguishing them from those of competitors. As can be seen from the above definition, brand is not an empty concept, but carries a certain spiritual connotation, which is reflected by its carrier (that is, a product or service). Different brands have different connotations, and sports brands have their own unique values because they carry the spirit and characteristics of sports.
according to the definition of brand, according to the author's understanding, sports brand is a symbol of the individuality and unique selling point of sports goods represented by differentiation in the sense of sports marketing, a kind of consumption complex living in consumers' minds, a name, term, symbol, mark, or a combination of these factors. Sports brands are created by enterprises and consumers. Enterprises produce products and transmit information to consumers through certain channels. After the needs are met, consumers have a sense of identity with the products, and then establish good relations with the brands to form "loyalty" in consumption. At the same time, after the brand has been tested by consumers, it will constantly improve itself in the long-term operation in the future, forming a unique "brand culture" and finally forming a "brand".
2. Classification of sports brands
From the current practice of sports marketing at home and abroad, sports brands mainly include the following categories: First, sports core industry brands. Sports core industries include competitive performance industry, fitness and entertainment industry, etc., and sports brands formed by this industry include sports event brands and sports athlete brands. The second is the brand of sports events. Sports events are the core of sports, which can best show the vitality and charm of sports and best reflect the spirit and concept of sports. The third is the brand of sports athletes. Sports athletes are the participants and the core of sports activities, and play a subjective role in sports activities. It is they who present the charm of sports to the audience and let people feel their spirit and strong will in the sports field. They are the embodiment of strength and beauty and the transmitter of sports ideas. Fourth, sports support industrial brands. Sports support industry includes sports goods, equipment, clothing, venues and other industrial fields, and the sports brands formed by this industry include sports goods brands and sports facilities brands. The fifth is the brand of sporting goods. Sporting goods brand refers to the products created by the main body of sports enterprises in the market competition and recognized by the society. Compared with similar sporting goods, they have high popularity, high reputation, long life, high efficiency and high price trademarks and are among the best.
2. Analysis of the present situation and existing problems of sports brand development in China
1. Analysis of the present situation of sports brand development in China
Sporting goods industry is an important part of the sports industry, which is the earliest developed, oldest and most mature region in China, and also the most competitive industry in the sports industry. In recent years, China's sporting goods industry has developed rapidly, and the national residents' expenditure on sporting goods has ranked sixth in the important consumption expenditure besides daily basic living consumption. The total output value of the national sporting goods industry is growing at an annual scale of 49.3 billion yuan. At present, the annual sales of sporting goods in China are 3 to 4 billion yuan. In terms of geographical distribution, the production of sporting goods in China has been concentrated in Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Fujian and Guangdong since 199s, especially in Fujian and Guangdong, and the manufacturers of sporting goods are more intensive. At present, there are more than 4 million sporting goods enterprises in China, and the sports market in China has seen unprecedented prosperity, and the competition among domestic independent sports brands is becoming more and more fierce.
2. Problems in the development of sports brands in China
(1) The scientific and technological content of sporting goods in China is relatively low. Most of China's sporting goods enterprises are backward in production technology, and their R&D is in the stage of inclusive imitation, and they lack professional sports. In China's production enterprises, the phenomenon of "emphasizing production" and "neglecting R&D" is still very common. Most enterprises do not have their own R&D team, lack independent intellectual property rights, lack forward-looking awareness of constantly upgrading traditional products, and lack of mastery of domestic and foreign market information and accurate judgment of future trends. Enterprises do not pay enough attention to product research and development, and the capital investment is insufficient, which directly leads to the low grade, scientific and technological content and added value of the produced sporting goods, poor anti-risk ability and no competitive ability to participate in the international market. Therefore, it is not conducive to the rapid development of sports brands in China.
(2) China's sports products lack brand culture. Brand culture refers to establishing a clear brand positioning, on the basis of brand positioning, using various internal and external communication channels to form the audience's high spiritual recognition of the brand, thus forming a cultural atmosphere, and forming a strong customer loyalty through this cultural atmosphere. This kind of loyalty is the realm of highly integrating material and spirit, and the unity of characters is the summary of brand culture. It represents the lifestyle, values and personality of a certain group of people. Brand culture is actually a kind of values, a way of life and habits. Its charm lies in that it not only provides consumers with products or services, but also helps consumers realize their dreams. China's sports brands take culture as the starting point of brand strategy, and seldom understand the brand from the high-end or shape the brand from the macro perspective of culture, so China's sports brands lack cultural foundation as support.
(3) The market development is low and the industry competition is not standardized. In recent years, the active market has played a positive role in the circulation of sports brands. Excessive profit-oriented exhibition activities in a short period of time have caused disorderly competition and provided living conditions for a large number of low-quality fake and inferior products.
the standardization of sports brand industry in China has been lagging behind for various reasons. Therefore, it is necessary to strengthen the review of technical grade standards, enterprise measurement standards and enterprise quality management by economic and legal means, and limit the production and sales of products with imperfect testing equipment, non-standard production and lack of effective quality assurance.
Third, the strategic approach to the development of China's sports brands
The sports brand strategy is to take the market as the guide, establish a "brand awareness", and start from the aspects of product quality, science and technology, innovation, marketing service and management in an all-round way, with the concerted efforts and cooperation of internal and external enterprises.
1. Pay attention to brand quality and product innovation
Brand quality includes the product quality represented by the brand itself and the quality that the brand feels in the eyes of consumers. Brand quality is based on product quality and extends to the quality felt by consumers. Now domestic brands have noticed this development, but it is far from enough.
Science and technology are the foundation of innovation, and each brand product should have scientific and technological content and know-how that other products do not have. Due to the limitation of equipment, capital, technology and management, Chinese sporting goods enterprises pay more attention to low price, but ignore the research and development of product technology, especially the research and development of some high-tech sporting goods, such as racing cars, outdoor products and other equipment. The quality of products directly affects the quality that brands feel in the hearts of consumers. Only by constantly improving the technical content of products and creating enterprises' own patented technology can we attract more consumers and brand names become permanent brands.
2. Strengthening sports brand culture
High brand awareness does not mean high brand value, but the cultural connotation of the brand is the core resource of brand value. Behind the famous brand is culture, products are temporary, culture is eternal, and only culture is classic. Therefore, sporting goods enterprises should attach importance to the cultural content of the brand, and strive to inject culture, knowledge and wisdom into all the processes of brand creation, enrich the cultural connotation of the brand and make the brand more competitive. China's sporting goods enterprises are still generally in the initial stage. For this reason, we should learn from the mature brand culture concepts and operating experience of well-known foreign sporting goods brands, strive to improve the cultural creativity of enterprises, create brands with culture, and create brand value-added values with culture, so as to make brand culture an accelerator for the growth of China's sporting goods brands and build a strong brand of world sporting goods in China as soon as possible.
3. Clear market positioning and create brand personality
At present, many sports brands are gathering, so it is necessary to subdivide the market. We can find the brand positioning by choosing different sports, targeting different consumer classes in high, middle and low grades, and different regional markets. China's entry into WTO marks a great change in the international environment for the development of China's sporting goods brands. Therefore, we must base ourselves on the whole world and look at the world, and plan the development strategy of sporting goods brands in the international market environment. China's sporting goods brands should first correctly analyze the market living environment and define the brand positioning. The brand positioning of sporting goods brands in China is generally ambiguous. For example, "Li Ning", as the leading brand of sporting goods in China, has not been able to break through the upper limit of growth except for the rapid expansion period in the 199s, and its turnover has stagnated. Existing consumers have not bought products repeatedly, and no new consumers have joined. This result is mainly caused by the unclear brand positioning. In order to compete with world-famous sporting goods brands in the global market, Chinese sporting goods brands must form a clear positioning strategy at the beginning of brand creation, and clearly convey positioning ideas, concepts and principles to the market in the process of brand creation, provide sufficient marketing resources and ensure accurate positioning.
The successful marketing of sports brands can not only promote the great development of sports industry, but also promote the vigorous development of GDP. Sports brands are a new marketing point with great potential to be tapped in China. How to correctly understand the development trend of sports brands in China and how to formulate the development strategy suitable for sports brands in China is an important problem to be solved urgently.