#3 Critical Anaysis of Journal Article. (Brand Personality)

The article 'Dimensions of Brand Personality' by Aaker (1997) has been critically analysed below.

 

Although the model was clearly presented, Aaker (1997) should have included arrows to demonstrate the relationship between independent and dependent variables. The five main attributes/’Big Five’ to build brand personality should have been explained in further detail within the article after the model was presented. A few of these variables are additionally vague and hard to understand or gain an understanding upon how these will influence brand personality. For example ‘sophistication’ and ‘ruggedness’ are difficult to apply with no explanation as each individual could perceive and portray these differently. This therefore challenges the validity and reliability of the research.

 

Furthermore this article was written in 1997 suggesting that previous literature and research conducted is outdated considering the change in consumer trends within the industry since this date. The previous research and references mentioned within the literature review were not detailed enough to gain an understanding of how the concept of brand personality had formed. Additionally the outcomes of brand personality were not discussed within the article or the model. These are important aspects as they illustrate the importance and reasoning for why companies should use and incorporate brand personality. Understanding the outcomes also helps gain greater understanding of brand personality and how the ‘Big Five’ attributes should be used to enhance brand personality. Therefore the article lacks in in-depth research making it harder to understand and implement the model.

 

The structure of the report is hard to follow where statistics and methodology is illustrated prior to the ‘method’ chapter. Additionally no clear conclusion or implications were mentioned making the outcomes of the article hard to acknowledge and understand. 

 

Aaker,J. (1997) 'Dimensions of brand personality', Journal of Marketing Research, 34 (3), 347-356

 

Written by: Alex and Kiran