MB and O&M Roll Out Cross-Cultural Brand Index

WPP research and ad agencies Millward Brown and Ogilvy & Mather have partnered to launch a syndicated tool called The Brand Cross-Cultural Index (BCCI), designed to help understand a brand's value across racial or ethnic segments.

The tool is powered by Millward Brown's BrandZ brand equity database, which combines consumer research with public financial data to measure the contributions brands make. It also taps into the firm's Meaningfully Different brand equity framework, designed to understand how brands drive financial growth for their organisations.

Through the BCCI, brands are assessed and ranked according to their appeal to non-Hispanic white, Hispanic, black and Asian consumers. The new solution provides two core elements: a BCCI ranking which identifies the brands best at nurturing a connection with consumers across segments; and 'Brand Power', a predictive model of a brand's volume share based on perception.

David Burgos, Millward Brown's VP of Cultural Strategy, and co-author of the BCCI report, says that with the US Census predicting that 80% of growth over the next five years will be coming from ethnic consumers, there are major implications for brands. He adds: 'Marketers eager to grow brands in this diverse and evolving marketplace are in need of tools to support their decision-making process, and the BCCI will help them pinpoint growth opportunities and understand revenue potential of dialing up various marketing levers within and across segments'.

Web sites: www.millwardbrown.com and www.ogilvy.com .