Brands represent very important intangible assets, that
have been especially in the light of marketing research.
We use an empirical survey, based on 132 German
companies with brands, to investigate the state of the
art of brand accounting, brand control, and brand
valuation. The focus of our study is the general
perception of brands as an (intangible) asset and as an
investment, the organization of brand management, the
valuation of brands for internal control purposes, and
the tactical and strategic performance measures for
brand management. We also examine the budgeting process,
the brand-related decision making and the underlying
incentive systems. Our results show a gap between the
perception of brands as valuable intangible assets and
the implementation of an adequate management control
process (implementation gap). Our study discusses
implications for better strategies in brand management
and control that can also be used in the management
control process of other intangible assets.
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