| Kippreport.com

Inside Intel

February 19, 2010 11:04 by Alex Malouf

As a marketer, how would you sell your product and your brand if you weren’t actually selling direct, if your product was being sold by your partners in the market? As the world’s largest producer of semiconductors, the chips that power computers and notebooks, Intel doesn’t sell to consumers but to businesses direct.

The man responsible for overseeing Intel’s operations across the Gulf region is Nassir Nauthoa, who plays a key role in promoting the advancement of digital communities in the Middle East through activities such as digital content development, CSR initiatives and training. Most consumers, however, know Intel from its advertising and prominent logo displayed across retail shops and on PCs regionwide. For Nauthoa, who holds a marketing diploma from the UK’s Chartered Institute of Marketing, his aim is to build both a brand and meet customer expectations.

“First and foremost at Intel we focus on the brand. What we do is to make sure the Intel brand resonates with the public as well as with businesses and government. We want consumers to have an affinity with the Intel brand promise. When they go out and buy an Intel product they need to think and know that they are buying a leadership product. What we aim to do is create and shape a brand promise, the Intel Inside promise, which will set consumer expectations.”

Globally, Intel has proved to be a leader in the concept of derived branding, the idea that a supplier of a key component in a product will aim to guarantee and build market share by promoting that component as a brand in its own right. Speaking during its “Intel. Leap Ahead” brand unveiling, the company’s Eric Kim, Intel senior VP and GM of the Sales and Marketing Group, outlined how Intel aims to portray itself to customers.

“‘Intel. Leap ahead’ is a simple expression that declares who we are and what we do,” said Kim. “This is part of our heritage. Our mission at Intel has always been to find and drive the next leap ahead – in technology, in education, social responsibility, manufacturing and more – to continuously challenge the status quo. It’s about using Intel technology to make life better, richer and more convenient for everyone.”

For Nauthoa and his marketing team, headed up by marketing manager Shabbab Al-Ghamdi, much of their work consists of local brand activation. On a consumer level that involves working in-store with retail partners such as Jarir Bookstores and eXtra.

“A lot of marketing is about segmentation and positioning, as our products cater to different needs and different user groups. For consumers going into a retail environment we do a lot of education through point of sale [PoS] material, training for retailers, and co-marketing with several retail customers. Our approach is to work through integrated marketing campaigns in conjunction with our local original equipment manufacturer partners and retailers which will benefit all of our value chain.”

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Tags: Intel, Nassir Nauthoa, semiconductors