When two brands are better than one

　　Elena Alvarez takes a look at the effectiveness of marketing partnerships

　　In the corporate world, rivalry is more common than co-operation. But increasingly; companies have been setting aside their differences; the new idea is that two brand names are better than one. Sharing databases, strategies and communication systems can be the most effective means of attracting customers. (G )This partnership will give it access to the utility company's database of thousands of corporate clients, who will be offered special deals on all its products.

　　The philosophy behind such joint ventures is simple. In economically challenging times, marketing partnerships provide a cost-effective method of increasing brand awareness and sales. As one expert in the field puts it, 'Clever marketing partnerships allow brands to target the right people, cutting down the above-the-line spend.' (8) .....E....... It is better to simplify the

　　process and give them one focal point.

　　Recent research has indicated that marketing partnerships can be up to 27 per cent more productive than single company campaigns.(9) .......B..... In particular, it is ideal for bringing instant branding to companies that lack immediate consumer appeal.

　　One well-established UK phone manufacturer, ITB, was quick to realise this, and formed an alliance with 7a/fc a leading women's magazine. The phone company has benefited from the strong branding of the magazine, which has its customer base among professional women in their early 20s. (10) ....D........ This combined approach also offered ITB a quick route into image enhancement, and this is true of many other marketing partnership deals. To give another illustration, it is no coincidence that some well-known cartoon characters are currently enhancing the image of Nasco household cleaning products.(11).....F.......And, of course, this strategy should also guarantee that consumers' children insist on these products rather than rival brands.

　　However, while association with a powerful brand can give a significant boost to sales, being connected to a devalued brand can have a negative result. The problems of one brand inevitably impact on the other in a partnership.(12).....A.......A company may take years to recover from this sort of bad publicity. Indeed, there are numerous examples of disastrous marketing alliances. In such cases, not enough thought has been given to the partnership and the reasons behind it, and it has brought little value to either the customer or the companies involved.

　　A In such circumstances, the effects are frequently major and can be long-lasting.

　　B Some experts therefore predict that this style of marketing will take up an increasingly large proportion of many companies' total marketing budgets.

　　C Successful marketing partnerships can consequently bring a financial advantage even to small and struggling companies such as these.

　　D In return, its partner enjoys a broader distribution platform from which to promote its brand.

　　E With only a finite number of consumers in any target market, there is no need to overwhelm prospects with competing messages from different organisations.

　　F These are fairly standard items, but clearly the company hopes to transform them by broadening the associations consumers have with the brand.

　　G For example, Profit Plus, a large UK financial services company, has recently joined forces with a leading supplier of electricity.

　　這篇文章名為《When two brands are better than one》，兩個品牌強于一個，講的是市場合作(marketing partnership)的好處。第一段總論這種合作的好處，可以共享數據、策略和交流系統(tǒng)。第二、三段接著說市場合作的優(yōu)勢，好的市場合作可以使品牌對準正確的目標人群，同時提高生產效率。第四段是列舉實例來說明這種合作是怎樣有利于雙方的，第五段講的是與一個貶值的品牌合作的后果。

　　第八題。第二段前面說市場合作提供了一種提高品牌知名度和銷售的有成本效益的方法。然后一個專家指出市場合作可以使品牌對準目標人群，并削減線上支出。第八空的后面說使過程簡化會比較好。整個這一段都是在講市場合作的好處，從內容上看，E是最適合填入第八空的。但E選項的內容需要重點理解：任何一個目標市場上都只有有限的消費者，沒有必要通過從不同的機構競爭信息的方式來贏得潛在客戶。E的說法是從反面來證明市場合作的優(yōu)勢和必要性。prospects在這里是潛在客戶的意思。

　　這題可以輔助以排除法來做。題目給定的幾個選項，很多都有代詞、短語等等，用在這里銜接不上。比如A的in such circumstances，B的therefore，C的such as these，D的in return，F的these。如果要選擇這些選項，上下文一定會有相應的提示。

　　第九題。前面介紹說市場合作比單個公司單打獨斗的效率提高了27%。B選項無論是內容還是連詞therefore都能用在這里：一些專家因此推測這種市場類型在很多公司總的市場預算中占據的比重將逐漸增加。不選A，因為前面并沒有與the effects相關的內容。C不選，上文沒有提到companies such as these，D的in return和F的these也不匹配。

　　第十題。這一段是以兩個公司的市場合作為例來做進一步說明的，一個手機生產商和一個女性雜志的合作。第十空前面說手機公司從雜志的強烈品牌中獲益。這一空的后面有一個this combined approach，從內容上看，第十空應該說相應的雜志是如何從手機公司身上獲益。D選項的內容完全吻合，詞組in return可以算是一個答案信號：作為回報，它的合作者擁有了一個更寬廣的分發(fā)平臺，并從中提高了品牌的知名度。

　　第十一題。這一空前面是列舉的另一個例子，一些知名的卡通形象正在加強Nasco家用清潔產品的形象。也就是說家用清潔產品公司正在和卡通公司合作。這一空的后面也是講的這種策略有什么好處。所以這一空應該填入兩個公司的合作的原因、好處等等。F的內容吻合：這些都是相當標準化的產品，但是很明顯公司是想通過加大消費者和品牌之間的聯(lián)系來進行一些改變。These are fairly standard items，說的是這些家用清潔產品。

　　第十二題。最后一段講的是和一個貶值的品牌合作所帶來的影響。前面說不可避免的會影響到(inevitably impact on the other)，空格后面有一個may take many years to recover，所以應該選A，A的the effects正好對應于前面的impact：在這種情況下，這些影響通常很大并且會持續(xù)很久。

　　最后強調下prospect

　　在商務英語里，這個詞有自己特定的含義：潛在客戶。

　　a person, company, etc. who is a possible customer

　　e.g:We follow up the most likely prospects first.