The Big Issue magazine is a publication sold by homeless people to earn income and improve their lifestyles. This project is funded by the Big Issue Foundation and it aims at improving the lives of the homeless people in the society. The magazine was first published in the 1990s and is currently sold in four continents in the world. The main aim of the magazine publishers is to improve the lives of its vendors. It is said to be the world’s most distributed magazine owing to its circulation in countries like South Africa and other Australian countries. The magazine sellers are able to earn their own money, buy their own homes and become self dependent. They can also afford to purchase basic needs like food and clothing. The vendors of the magazines are encouraged to strive to increase their sales and hence boost their own income (Anonymous, 2012). In order to carry out a brand audit and assessment of the Big Issue brand, some elements of the brand will have to be evaluated. The brand is the image of a product or a service in the market or how the customers perceive the products. It is imperative to manage the brand of a company so as to control how it will be positioned and capture the target market of a firm. Managing the brand of a company is also crucial for maintaining a good image of the organization. The elements of the brand include the product itself, pricing, promotional strategy, the marketing mix and the distribution or placement. All these elements will determine how the brand of a firm will perform in the market hence they need to be considered in the evaluation and assessment of a company’s brand. Carrying out a brand audit will help a firm in developing its marketing communication and in coming up with the best decisions that can enable a firm to position its brand in the market (Brady, 1997). In order to carry out an audit of the Big Issue brand, we will first asses their marketing and promotional strategy. The Big Issue employs an aggressive promotional mix in its marketing strategy. The Big Issue bases its campaign mainly on their social enterprising orientation in their marketing strategy. The company markets itself on the internet through its website and also on other sites. This is an effective strategy as it enables the company to reach a wide market all over the world and encourage the growth of its brand. Readers of the magazine can now access the magazine online; this is an effective positioning tool that gives the Big Issue additional advantage over its competitors in the market. The company’s website shows the firm’s product profile that deals with women, their usual magazine and the scholarly magazine. The Big Issue also has online pages on twitter and face book, they use this as an avenue for engaging with their clients. They also take advantage of free marketing platforms that are available on social media such as face book and twitter (Kennedy, 1994). The Big Issue magazine also markets itself on other platforms such as television and radio but the adverts here are not as intensive as their online campaigns. Online marketing has given Big Issue greater visibility and positioning especially due to the advancement in technology that allows a