Information Component of Branding: Case of Public Catering Institutions

Given the widespread penetration of Internet technology in marketing practices, one of which is branding, accelerating the internetization of business processes due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the requirements of social distancing, continuous improvement and expansion of online branding tools, the task of defining and justifying of the role of branding informational component becomes actual. The proposed article is devoted to solving this issue on the example of cases of catering establishments. The application of a set of scientific methods, including review-analytical, system, case-method, induction method, and processing of publications in professional and specialised publications, media materials, social media content, made it possible to distinguish technological and content components in the information dimension of catering establishments’ branding. The content component includes: 1) development of the concept or “legend” of the brand – its positioning in a competitive environment, which determines the key messages aimed at ensuring brand recognition and identification; 2) visual and verbal expression of the agreed concept of the brand: – visual information – logo, room design, staff uniform, site design, representations in social networks; – verbal component – slogan, menu, style and content of messages. The technological component of the information dimension of branding includes those software and technology tools through which information is disseminated about the brand and communication with the customer environment: official websites of institutions, their representation in social networks, mobile applications, messengers, online advertising. It is proved that effective branding involves a harmonious combination of content and technological components. The emphasis on technology and failures in the content component create risks of reputational and financial losses of the enterprise