THE INFLUENCE OF BRAND IDENTITY ON CUSTOMER PURCHASING DECISION

(A CASE STUDY IN MINISO BANDUNG)

Annisa Novia Sari (annisa19010@mail.unpad.ac.id)
Rizki Novianti (rzknvnt@gmail.com)
Students of Master of Management Program,
Faculty of Economics and Business, Universitas Padjadjaran

RESEARCH BACKGROUND

Identity is a very important entity for a brand. It will be easier for a brand to reach customers if it has a unique
identity. With its own identity, the customers will find it easier to recognize a brand, the products offered by the brand, and
the vision of the company will be felt and remembered more in the minds of customer. According to Kapferer (Viega, 2018),
Identity has several elements which he described through the Brand Identity Prism model with one of the elements being
the physique element. Physical identity, such as name, logo, tagline, and jingle, is an element that can be directly felt and an
important part in forming a brand and is a differentiator from other brands that already exist. The wider the global market
is, the easier it is to find and acquire world brands with unique names and use of the language of their home country, which
has expanded to many countries to reach more customers.

Brand identity can be found in the Miniso brand. Miniso is a Chinese brand that has been operating in several
countries such as the United States of America and its states, Europe, Australia and Asia with average growth per month
reaching 80-100 retails. Miniso is here to provide a variety of personal needs items ranging from personal care, cosmetics,
to household needs with product designs that have similarities with various premium brands that have similar products. Like
its philosophy, Miniso provides a variety of products for everyday needs with good design, honest and reasonable prices
while still providing good performance and high quality products.

The existence of Miniso, especially in Indonesia, is a new phenomenon in the shopping experience. Moreover, the
existing mindset that Japanese products have good quality is closely attached to the Indonesian people, making Miniso brand
gain a special place for the community. With a brand name that has an ear catching Japanese element, Miniso has received
the most attention from the Indonesian market for 3 years of its operation in Indonesia. The unique name that is rather easy
to pronounce, formed in the shape and color of a distinctive Japanese logo with Miniso typography while incorporating
elements of hiragana, can make Miniso remembered by the public easily. In addition, in its activities, Miniso always performs
marketing communication activities to continue promoting "high-quality products of Japanese origin" while calling the
tagline “love, life, miniso” pronounced by retail employees. In its company attributes, such as the official website and social
media, Miniso always includes the words "Japanese" repeatedly in some of its information, i.e. in the bio column, business
profile and biodata of the founder by incorporating the supplementary sentence "Japanese Design Brand" to provide a strong
identity. Since its starting operations in Indonesia in 2017, Miniso has been present to meet the needs of Indonesian
customer. According to the data released by the AT Kearney Institute, Indonesia is in the Top 10 Most Attractive Retail
Markets by 55.9%

According to Southeast Asia's AT Kearney Partner and Head, Soo Ghee Chua, Indonesia has become the target of
foreign retailers. The opening of the Negative Investment List (DNI) opens up opportunities for foreign investors to enter the
domestic supermarkets and market e-commerce. The assessment consists of four criteria, which are attractive market, risk
level of a country, market saturation, and time pressure. This can also be seen by looking at the number of fast growing
Miniso retailers in Indonesia. From 2017 to 2019, Miniso has opened expansive retails in various regions in Indonesia, one of
which is in Bandung, marked by the opening of its first outlets located at Trans Studio Mall and followed by the opening of
other outlets in several modern shopping centers in Bandung such as Cihampelas Walk, Paris Van Java, Bandung Trade
Center, Istana Plaza and Bandung Indah Plaza in a period of three years.

Bandung is a city of tourist destination that is also known as a city of fashion, and it is also a potential market with
new retailers both locally and internationally. Aside from being the provincial capital, the design of the Regional Distribution
Center which will be based in Bandung can also increase the purchasing power of the community with the presence of new
and diverse retailers.
 Indonesia in 8th Place

Figure 1
10 Countries with the Biggest Score in Global Retail Development Index 2017
Source: https://databoks.katadata.co.id

Based on the phenomena that have been described above (databoks, 2017), this paper will examine how the
physical product identity can influence the buying interest of customers in Bandung. The research aims to find out and
analyze the influence of product identity with consumer buying interest, which can be useful as an input for Miniso
companies in Indonesia and it can become a consideration for making new innovations. In addition, this research can also
be useful for other institutions to see how customers buy interest, referring to physical brand identity. Moreover, this
research may serve as a reference for other companies such as UMKM or micro-small business, in particular for those in
Bandung city, and it can be used by them as an inspiration in considering a good identity brand that can be accepted and
also remembered in the minds of customer.

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

All of the questions regarding the core of this research are focused on finding out the influence of the quality of the brand
name, logo and slogan (tagline) of Miniso that are growing fast in Bandung city. The questions are:

1. Does the brand name of Miniso affect the customer purchasing decision?
2. Does the the logo of Miniso have an influence to the customer purchasing decision?
3. Does the tagline influence the customer purchasing decision?
4. Does the brand story play a role in influencing the customer purchasing decision?
5. How does brand identity affect customer purchasing decision?

RESEARCH AIM

By discussing the brand identity, we aim to find out and analyze how the physical brand identity such as brand name, logo
and slogan (tagline) of a product can influence the purchasing decision of Miniso customers residing in Bandung City. The
result of this research is also expected to be an input for other companies such as UMKM or micro-small business as an
inspiration in considering a good identity brand that can be accepted and also remembered in the minds of customers.

LITERATURE REVIEW

Brand Identity
In accordance with (Wheeler, 2009), it is stated that “Brand Identity is tangible to the senses. You can see it, touch it, hold it,
hear it, and watch it move. Brand identity fuels recognition, clarifies the differentiation, and makes creative ideas and
meaning reachable.”
Briefly Smith (2011) in (Cyntia & Muhammad, 2016) suggests that “Identity is how the brand looks and is sometimes called
the 'visual narrative', ie logos, colors and graphics.”

Brand identity is a unique way to show promise to customers. To be effective, a brand identity needs to make customer feel
a particular emotion about that brand, differentiate brands from competitors, and represent what organizations can and will
do from time to time (Ghodeswar, 2008) in (Cyntia & Muhammad, 2016).
The Element brand is a visual effort, sometimes even physically, to recognize a company's product or service elements Brand
such as names, types of logos, and slogans form the visual identity of a brand or company. (Kotler & pfoertsch, B2B brand
management, 2008) Some elements of brand identity are as follows:
 a. Name Brand
Name Brand makes the first and perhaps the greatest expression or the face of a product. A good-chosen name for a
company, product, or service can be a valuable asset as does the brand itself. Brand names will be used in all forms of
communication between companies and potential customers (Kotler & pfoertsch, B2B brand management, 2008).

b. Logo
The most creative thing for a brand, logo is a graphic display of a brand or a company name. The strength of the logos or
symbols should not be underestimated "because humans tend to be more receptive to images and symbols than others, and
strong logos can build interest and build identity awareness brand, facilitate recognition and recall of a brand" (Kotler &
pfoertsch, B2B brand management, 2008).

c. Tagline
Slogan brand is a sentence that can be easily recognized and remembered that often accompanies the name of a brand in
marketing communications program. The main purpose of a slogan is to support the brand image projected by the name and
logo (Kotler & pfoertsch, B2B brand management, 2008). For example, Miniso has a distinctive slogan which says "love life,
love Miniso".

d. Brand Story
The story may be more valuable and important in the life of a company. As a concept, the story has even gained an important
foothold in a debate about how the brand will be formed in the future. Should you want a brand to be truly special, you need
to have a creative yet legendary story about how the company started (Kotler & pfoertsch, B2B brand management, 2008).

Based on the theories outlined by scolars, Brand Identity is a stage in determining the brand of a product. Through the
identity and distinctive features of the product, brand identity can provide distinction from other products, which can adhere
to and interest the minds of customers, causing customers to be curious of the products offered by the company and
attracting them into buying them.

Purchasing Decision
When a customer makes a purchase of a product, the customer has made a decision regarding the product purchased by
him/herself, because when he/she makes the purchase, then he/she has chosen one of several product choices similar to
the product he/she bought.

According to (Armstrong & Kotler, 2008), customer’s purchasing decisions are the purchase of the most preferred brand.
There are two factors between the customer purchasing intention and the customer purchasing decision, both of which will
lead to a customer purchasing decision.

(Shehzad, Ahmad, Iqbal , Nawaz, & Usman, 2014), on their paper about influence of brand name on costumer’s preference
and decision, described that brand identity, especially brand names, has a strong positive relationship with customer buying
behavior.

Brand Identity

Brand Name

Customer
Logo
Purchasing
Decision
Tagline

Brand Story

Figure 2
Research Framework
Source: Personal Analysis
Based on the conceptual framework Described above, the proposed hypotheses are as follows:
H1 : The brand name affects the customer’s purchasing decisions.
H2 : The logo has an influence on customer purchasing decisions.
H3 : Tagline can influence the customer’s purchasing decision.
H4 : Brand Story has an influence on customer purchasing decision
H5 : Brand Identity affects the customer’s purchasing decision.

RESEARCH METHOD

The research variables analyzed in this study consist of independent variables, namely the brand identity (X) consisting of
brand name, logo, tagline, and brand story, and one dependent variable namely customer purchasing decision (Y). The scope
of the research is to analyze the influence of the physical brand identity such as brand name, logo, and slogan/tagline to
Miniso’s customer purchasing decision.

Study Setting
The analytical unit of this study is individuals (customers) who have already purchased the Miniso products in Bandung City.
This Study is a quantitative study. Thus, the data are collected through questionnaires listing questions related with brand
name, logo, tagline, and brand story to Miniso’s customer purchasing decision.

Data Collection Technique

The population in this study is customers who have already purchased the Miniso products in Bandung City. Primary data
are used in this study. They are obtained through questionnaires that are directly distributed to customers of Miniso.
Questionnaires will be made on the basis of the hypotheses that have been proposed and they will use the Likert Scale with
five rating points with details: 1 for Strongly Disagree, 2 for Disagree, 3 for Neutral Answer, 4 for Agree, and 5 for Strongly
Agree.

According to Hair (2006), the number of samples that are not known with a population of certainty is at least 5 times that of
the analyzed variables or indicators. The indicators of this study were 9, and the sample calculation was as follows; the
number of samples required was 9 x 12 = 108 samples in order for the data to be processed and to have the significant results
of the influence of the independent variable (X).

Table 1 Variabel
Variabel Indicator Scale

Brand Identity (X) 1. Brand Name Likert

2. Logo
3. Slogan/Tagline
4. Brand Story

Customer Purchasing 1. Product Choice Likert

Decision (Y) 2. Brand Choice
3. Supplier Choice
4. Choice at Purchase
5. Purchase Amount
Source: Data processed, 2019

The questionnaire filled out by respondents was quantified in advance in order to produce numerical outputs which were
then analyzed through the SPSS program (Statistical Package for Social Science). To determine whether the research
hypothesis is accepted or rejected, it is necessary to test the hypothesis. The research hypothesis will be tested using multiple
regression analysis, which will assess the regression between the independent and dependent variables. Regression analysis
is primarily inteded to estimate the average value of one or more independent variables. The regression analysis consists of
simple linear regression and multiple regressions. The formulation of the regression is as follows:

Y = α + β1X1 + β2X2 + β3X3 + β4X4 + €

Y = Customer Purchasing Decision
X1 = Brand Name
X2 = Logo
X3 = Tagline
X4 = Brand Story
β1, β2, β3, β4 = Regression Coefficient
α = Constant
€ = Error Estimation
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