Video Title: Plymouth Rock Assurance: Brand Awareness and Identification
Run Time: 3:56
Classroom Application: Instructors will find this video useful in the study of company branding. Plymouth Rock Assurance serves as an excellent case study for this topic because the organization has recently gone through a gradual rebranding process. Providing students with such knowledge can help them to appreciate and better understand the effects brand awareness can have on a company’s long-term success.
Synopsis
Plymouth Rock Assurance is an automobile insurance company. In the past, this organization contained three distinct brands. These three brands went through a rebranding process to combine as one organization, which came to be known as Plymouth Rock Assurance. The branding process for this parent company was very gradual. Customers were informed early of the merger that was going to take place, in an effort to reassure customers that continuity and stability were the main priorities of the organization.
Discussion Questions
1.Describe the reasoning behind Plymouth Rock Assurance’s decision to rebrand the company.
Originally, the company was operating under three distinct brands. It was expensive to market all three of these companies effectively. Due to changes in the environment of the states where the company does business, the organization’s leaders decided it was in the best interest of the company to begin operating under one parent company’s brand. This positioned the organization to better compete with large competitors in the industry.
2.Describe the process Plymouth Rock Assurance used to rebrand their company.
The process Plymouth Rock Assurance has used to rebrand the company has been a very gradual one. Once the company had made the decision to rebrand their three separate companies as one parent company, they immediately began to communicate this plan with their customers. They included information about the rebranding efforts in every communication they had with the customer. The reasoning behind this communication effort was to make certain that customers had no concerns about the continuity of their insurance coverage or the long-term stability of the company.
3.What does Plymouth Rock Assurance aim to do to distinguish the company from its competitors?
Plymouth Rock Assurance’s number one goal is to offer exceptional customer service. They strive to exceed the customer’s expectations on every interaction the customer has with the company. Plymouth Rock Assurance wishes to create a “Wow!” moment with each customer. This is what the company hopes will distinguish Plymouth Rock Assurance from its competitors.
Quiz
1.Suppose as an agent for Plymouth Rock Assurance you were asked by a High Point customer, “Why did you join with Plymouth Rock?” Which response would be best?
a.High Point and Pallisades joined Plymouth Rock because we couldn’t compete in the insurance market and needed the strength of the reputation of Plymouth Rock to survive.
b.High Point and Pallisades joined Plymouth Rock because we felt as one united company we could provide better service than as individual companies.
c.High Point and Pallisades joined Plymouth Rock as a cosmetic change only. We changed our name but our company has not changed at all.
d.High Point and Pallisades joined Plymouth Rock because we felt we needed a new and better way to do business. You’ll find that we have a new attitude as Plymouth Rock that is tougher and less forgiving than High Point.
Answer: b
Explanation: The priority for Plymouth Rock Assurance was to provide a positive reason for the rebranding, not to focus on some deficiency. Therefore putting the emphasis on providing better service as a united company is a better choice than focusing on not being able to compete in the marketplace, making a cosmetic change, or developing a new, tough attitude.
2.Which of the following companies would be LEAST likely to go through a rebranding process?
a.a car company that has recently dropped to last place in its market segment
b.a successful car company that was tarnished by a bribery scandal featuring many of its leaders
c.a car company that has gone through a highly publicized bankruptcy process
d.a successful car company that plans to come out with an exciting new car model
Answer: d
Explanation: A company that is having troubles with scandals, bankruptcy, or disappointing sales might decide to go through a rebranding process. An already successful company that is coming out with a new model would have little incentive to rebrand; instead it would want to enhance the brand image that it already has.
3.Which of the following best describes the reason for rebranding at Plymouth Rock Assurance?
a.It was more efficient to market a single brand than three separate brands, and the rebranding better positioned the company to compete with large competitors in the industry.
b.Many customers disliked the service that they received from the High Point brand; thus, rebranding was an attempt torid customers of negative associations of the old brand while at the same time retaining their business.
c.The management team at Palisades was failing, and the merger allowed management at High Point to take over the daily operations of Palisades.
d.Plymouth Rock had a much better reputation than Pallisades or High Point, so the change allowed the companies with a poor reputation to benefit from the company that had the better reputation.
Answer: a
Explanation: When the company operated under three separate brands, it was expensive to market all three of these companies effectively. Due to changes in the environment of the states where the company does business, it became necessary to operate under one parent company’s brand. This positioned the organization to better compete with large competitors in the industry.
4.Which of the following best characterizes the way in which Plymouth Rock Assurance handled the rebranding process?
a.in a gradual manner to make the change without customers taking notice
b.in a gradual manner to allow customers to get used to the new arrangement
c.in an abrupt manner to allow the inconvenience to occur all at once
d.in an abrupt manner to make sure that customers took notice
Answer: b
Explanation: Plymouth Rock Assurance decided to use a gradual approach to allow customers to get used to the new structure without being jarred or feeling shocked. The hope was that customers would warm to the new company once they saw that it was a continuation of the service that they received from their old company.
5.Which of the following identifies the greatest fear that Plymouth Rock Assurance in making the rebranding change?
a.that employees will feel confused and abandoned and end up quitting the company
b.that customers will feel confused and abandoned and end up signing up with competitors
c.that the laws will change and insurance companies that have combined under a single umbrella will be outlawed
d.that the laws will change and competitor companies will start combining under a single umbrella and outcompete Plymouth Rock
Answer: b
Explanation: Plymouth Rock Assurance had little to fear from employees quitting, laws changing, or competitors joining forces to outcompete them. What the company was concerned about was that confused customers would feel betrayed and simply end up discontinuing their service and signing up with other insurance companies.