Private firms prove more agile in getting brands recognized (3)

"An expanding group of privately owned Chinese brands are increasing in value by meaningfully differentiating their brands," said Adrian Gonzalez, head of Millward Brown Greater China.

Take Gree's performance: the company's closing of a white goods subsidiary at the end of 2011 had badly affected the company's home appliances category, resulting in a 14 percent drop for the sector.

However, the Guangdong-based Gree stuck to its core market of air conditioning, sending a clear message and offering customers a wide choice of models.

It has now grown to control more than 50 percent of the market in China and become the No 1 air conditioner brand in the world, said Gonzalez.

Doreen Wang added that Chinese companies still have a long way to go in setting their brands recognized globally, and their continued marketing success will depend on a combination of new media and coming up with more creative advertising ideas.

"The challenge will be finding the best ways of building a corporate reputation, and trust with consumers."

We recommend:
China's first rail to 'sea of death' starts operation	Sales of Samsung's Galaxy Note 2 tops 5mmark	Beijing-Guangzhou high-speed rail to open
10th China Int'l Automobile Exhibition concludes	Harbin-Dalian high-speed railway starts operation	New wave of communication tools
Alibaba's 2012 transaction volume hits 1 trln yuan	China's savings rate world's highest	Shanghai Center Tower to rise over 400m