High-tech brands also need to be seen as lifestyle solutions and provide a certain amount of "personality" as well as effective technical delivery.

Huawei, like many of its global high-tech rivals, does not appear to have considered any sort of emotional brand personality, but now is the time.

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But with China's 5,000-year history and an abundance of associations from which to choose, where should Huawei start?

Perhaps an effective starting point would be inside the typical high-tech global consumer's mind, where the company can uncover their knowledge and appreciation of Chinese history.

Such a starting point will undoubtedly lead to one of the nation's most famous literary works, The Romance of The Three Kingdoms, a brilliant novel that winds through Chinese history with a multitude of rich characters.

Huawei could "attach" some of the book's characters and images in order to build a brand with real personality.

Intellectual giant and masterful military strategist, Zhuge Liang, could feature prominently in any brand imagery and enable Huawei to begin to build an emotionally powerful, competitive brand.

Huawei continues to lead Chinese companies' international expansion with technical excellence and creativity, but it is brand image innovation that is much needed now.

The author is a visiting professor at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing and a senior lecturer on marketing at Southampton Solent University's School of Business. The views do not necessarily reflect those of China Daily.