QingDao Cigarette Factory Brand Promotion Research

Brand is the embodiment of the firm's core values and core competence. Implementing brand strategy is the critical means to achieve sustainable development of the firms. For a long time, the trade of tobacco in China has been firmly controlled by State Tobacco Monopoly Bureau. However, with China' sparticipation into WTO, faced with the rigorous competition from multinational tobacco corporations, the tobacco trade in China has to quicken the system reform in order to improve the actuality of the small scales and the lack of competence. So, the developmental strategy of the brand becomes the key for tobacco firms' survival and development.This paper considers a specific firm in tobacco trade "哈德门" on the basis of related theories of brand and competence of firms. We carefully analyze its brand promotion activities corresponding to the characteristics of the different phases of the brand promotion in a certain area (the period of introduction, the period of awareness and the period of fame and reputation). They made some explorations and innovations about management in the implementation of the brand promotion and finally achieved success. We conclude that surveys in advance and objective analysis determine the success of the brand promotion. Tobacco products, as unnecessaries consumed in restricted areas, are strictly circumscribed by related laws and restrictions. As a result, tobacco brands tend to have obvious regional and vocational characteristics. So, the brand promotion strategy that aims at and caters to customers has to be taken to draw more attentions to the characteristics of the brand, thereby achieving successful brand promotion. However, the brand promotion of tobacco products does not mean launching commercials only, it is a solid process with various modes and channels. There are several conditions in which the brands can be recognized: first, consumers should have an integrated impression of the tobacco brand. Second, the brand should have popularity, reputation, and people's loyalty. As stated before, the promotion of the tobacco brand is an all-round "battle" involved market investigation, strategic positioning, brand's VI design, channel construction, advertising, sales strategy, sales management and brand management etc. And the tobacco brand will possess lasting and strong vitality only under former conditions. Besides, the construction of the information database of the new product, as well as the cultivation of the key customers is also important task that should be done. From the beginning of the brand promotion of "hadman" , they had paid much attention to the implementation and monitoring of the working process and had efficiently modified their work according to the changes in the market. Consequently, good process results in good outcome with the presence of right directions.