The Nobel Prize: the identity of a corporate heritage brand
| Date | 20 July 2015 |
| Published date | 20 July 2015 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JPBM-11-2014-0749 |
| Pages | 318-332 |
| Author | Mats Urde,Stephen A Greyser |
| Subject Matter | Marketing,Product management,Brand management/equity |
The Nobel Prize: the identity of a corporate
heritage brand
Mats Urde
Department of Business Administration, Lund University School of Economics and Management, Lund, Sweden, and
Stephen A. Greyser
Department of Marketing and Communication, Harvard Business School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Abstract
Purpose – The purpose of this study is to understand the identity of the Nobel Prize as a corporate heritage brand and its management challenges.
Design/methodology/approach – An in-depth case study analysed within a heritage brand model and a corporate brand identity framework.
Findings – The Nobel Prize is a corporate heritage brand – one whose value proposition is based on heritage – in this case “achievements for the
benefit of mankind” (derived directly from Alfred Nobel’s will). It is also defined as a “networked brand”, one where four independent collaborating
organisations around the (Nobel) hub create and sustain the Nobel Prize’s identity and reputation, acting as a “federated republic”.
Research limitations/implications – The new and combined application of the Heritage Quotient framework and the Corporate Brand Identity
Matrix in the Heritage Brand Identity Process (HBIP) offers a structured approach to integrate the identity of a corporate heritage brand. In a
networked situation, understanding the role of stewardship in collaborating organisations is essential: The network entities maintain their own
identities and goals, but share common values of the network hub.
Practical implications – The integrated frameworks (HBIP) provides a platform for managing a corporate heritage brand.
Originality/value – This is the first field-based study of the Nobel Prize from a strategic brand management perspective.
Keywords Nobel Prize, Brand stewardship, Corporate brand identity, Corporate heritage brand, Heritage Brand Identity Process,
Networked brand
Paper type Conceptual paper
An executive summary for managers and executive
readers can be found at the end of this issue.
1. Introduction
The purpose of our study is to understand the identity of the
Nobel Prize (Nobelpriset) as a corporate heritage brand and
its management challenges. This is the first field-based study
of the branding and identity of the Nobel Prize. The broader
aim is to contribute to the theory and practice of the strategic
management of corporate brands with a heritage. Thus, we
have introduced the “Heritage Brand Identity Process”. This
is intended to serve as a structured approach for managing
such brands.
Understanding a corporate brand’s identity and heritage is
relevant and concerns many organisations and institutions.
We believe that all established brands have a history, which
may vary in richness and length. Some brands have recognised
the relevance of their history and have incorporated it as part
of their identity even if only by the phrase “founded in [year]”
as a component of its advertisements and website. Among
these, some have found their history to be a salient part of their
identity and use it as a component of their defined brand
heritage. For those, heritage helps answer defining questions
related to identity such as: “Who are we? Where do we come
from? What do we stand for? What do we ultimately promise
our stakeholders?”
Many brands have a heritage, but only a few can be
categorised as heritage brands. Brand heritage is a perspective
on the past, present and future. It is an overarching concept
that applies to all brand types and organisations; it is a
distillation of an organisation’s heritage. Brand heritage is
defined by Urde et al. (2007, p. 4) as “a dimension of a brand’s
identity found in its track record, longevity, core values, use of
symbols and particularly in an organisational belief that its
history is important” (Figure 1). Our definition of a corporate
heritage brand is based on Urde et al. (2007, p. 4) original and
general definition: “A [corporate] heritage brand is one with a
positioning and value proposition based on its heritage”. For
clarity, here, we added “corporate” as a prefix to “heritage
brand”. If our study concerned a product or service brand
(which it does not), we could have substituted the prefix
“product” or “service”. When evidence shows that a brand
“measures up” on all five elements of heritage, it is considered
to have a very high Heritage Quotient (HQ).
Related constructs to brand heritage are retro branding (for
example, re-launching of historical brands; Brown et al.,
2003), iconic branding (culturally driven branding with high
symbolic content; Holt, 2004), nostalgic branding (linking the
past to the present; Davis, 1979), monarchic branding (for
example, using its monarchy to symbolise nationhood for a
country; Balmer et al., 2006;Balmer, 2011b), and history
marketing (the past as part of business history; Ooi, 2002). The
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on
Emerald Insight at: www.emeraldinsight.com/1061-0421.htm
Journal of Product & Brand Management
24/4 (2015) 318–332
© Emerald Group Publishing Limited [ISSN 1061-0421]
[DOI 10.1108/JPBM-11-2014-0749]
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