Brand building

Japan began as a low cost economy after the World War II and it took 40 years for its brands to develop major recognition. Now it has six in the Interbrand top 100 including Sony, Canon and Toyota.

South Korea's brand success has come in the last 10 to 15 years with Hyundai, the car manufacturer, and Samsung, the electronics group, now being well-known names across the globe.

Roll says there is still a lack of understanding among Chinese management about the significance of branding.

"A lot of Chinese companies tend to be run by engineers and people with technical or financial backgrounds. Somebody with the job of marketing director is often found at the bottom level in Chinese firms. This is what you used to find in Korean firms but now they are some of the best run companies in Asia and they are doing very well," he says.

The Interbrand survey might downplay the progress that some Chinese brands have already made.

In the Brandtz Top 100 Brands 2010 survey, produced by global market research and consulting firm Millward Brown, China had seven in the top 100 in the world.

This survey attached greater weight and importance to the strength of Chinese brands in its home market.

In this list China Mobile was the eighth biggest brand in the world with a value of $52.6 billion, closely followed by ICBC in 11th spot valued at $43.9 billion.

Other Chinese brands to make the list were China Construction Bank, PetroChina, Internet search engine company Baidu and China Merchants Bank.

James B. Heimowitz, president and CEO, North Asia of global public relations consultancy Hill & Knowlton, based in Hong Kong, is confident Chinese companies are beginning to develop more effective brand strategies and are beginning to persuade international consumers they are not just cheap.

"Once consumers become familiar with Chinese products and Chinese manufacturers become more consistent in their ability to manufacture and distribute quality products, then China will move up the quality and brand chain as well," he said.