Integration of Brand Management and Marketing Strategy: A Core Path to Building Sustainable Competitive Advantage

Abstract

In today's highly homogenized and information-transparent market environment, it is difficult for companies to maintain competitiveness in the long term based solely on isolated marketing campaigns or fragmented brand identities. Branding and marketing strategy, as two core functions of corporate value creation and delivery, have long been relatively disconnected in theory and practice. The aim of this paper is to deeply delve into the inner rationale, mechanisms, and channels for systematic integration of the two. The article first describes the conceptual evolution and inherent dialectical relationship between brand management and marketing, arguing that brand is the strategic compass of marketing and marketing is the tactical tentacle of the brand. Furthermore, this paper constructs an integration model founded on value, clarifying the integration framework in a systematic manner from the three aspects of strategy, tactics, and value. This article demonstrates empirically the critical role of integration in enhancing customer loyalty, achieving brand premium, and building competitive walls. Finally, it addresses the new challenges of the digital age by proposing a new integrated paradigm with an emphasis on data-driven, omnichannel experiences, as well as social responsibility, providing business managers with an applicable theoretical framework and actionable recommendations.