Introduction There Are Many Techniques

Introduction There are many techniques for specifically measuring how the sound of a given brand influences the perceptions of consumers, in turn leading to significant changes in consumer behaviour over time. The intent of this paper is to provide a solid theoretical foundation for how the Apple Computer brand, now referred to as Apple, Inc., due to its breadth of product strategies and services, and is perceived by consumers. The sound symbolism of the Apple brand continues to be anecdotally analyzed on the Internet through blogs and all other corms of consumer-generated media. These non-scientific analyses fail to provide a solid theoretical foundation linguistically for understanding how Apple as a brand has been able to create a brand culture that is highly unique and resilient to common factors that degrade brand equity over time. The intent of this paper is to define how linguistics and semantics analysis applied to the Apple brand illustrate how the brand continues to gain value both from its broader communications strategies in addition to the linguistic, semantic and sound symbolism achieved. The ultimate positive effect of a brand gaining equity is to reinforce the loyalty of existing customers and attract new ones. Linguistic Analysis of Apple Despite the many anecdotal analyses of the Apple brand that amount to an advanced form of literary analysis that seeks to attach the meanings of universal values of simplicity, trust, education, and perfect packaging (an Apple is self-contained and can be taken anywhere, consumer anywhere) there are semantic and linguistic analytical foundations to the basis of why Apple as a brand intuitively appeals to consumers. From the work completed by Klink (2000) on the assignment of short versus long vowel sounds at the beginning of brand names, his conclusion shows that brands that begin a soft a (pg, 14) have the inherent attributes of being perceived as smaller, lighter (relative to darker), milder, thinner, faster, friendlier and lighter. Klink (200) is quick to point out that these attributes are not specifically tied to any given product category. In the case of Apple, the analysis of the many findings from Klink (2000) accentuates the values the company has worked so diligently to achieve. Friendly, unpretentious, intelligent, non-conformist yet adaptable to standards, agile, and noted for its freedom of expression that has created one of the most loyal brand cultures in the high technology industry, Apple's aligning their messaging to the inherent strengths of their brand name from a linguistic perspective is exceptional. Yorkston and Menon (2004) also illustrate through their findings how consumers assign semantic interpretations of brands using the frameworks defined by Klink (2000). The implications on consumers' behaviour is that a referent framework is defined, with semantic attributes (or the sounds of words) connoting specific imagery, sounds and values. The interlinking of these semantic attributes with brand values, as is the case with Apple and the strength of its brand shows how a brand that combines semantic attributes inherent in its name with the branding messaging being promoted, can gain customer loyalty over time. Consumers are continually creating their own perceptual sets or frameworks, and the effects of brands that semantically and linguistically align with the perceptions, values, and sensations a brand connotes will be inherently for effective in having their message continually accepted and reinforced over time. The role of sound symbolism in Apple's brand is supported from a theoretical standpoint by the work of both Klink (2000) and Yorkston and Menon (2004) which together illustrate how this specific brand has been so successful in building exceptional brand loyalty while capitalizing on innovations including iPhone and iPod.