The last ten years saw the rise of several buzz words in marketing, especially the term "branding". The result of which has left a lot of company owners and managers burnt out on the word. Why? Simply because it became a "darling of the industry" and a lot of folks from people who wrote best selling books to the local media rep claimed they were a practitioner of "branding".
The result of which left many business owners and CEOs leary and burnt out on the term. Turns out many of those folks didn't know what they were doing and left the clients feeling misled.
"I've tried that branding and it didn't work" is an all-too familiar phrase we still hear many times today.
Branding isn't something you try, it's something you do. Branding isn't advertising. Branding isn't buying spots. Branding isn't a logo re-design.
Branding is a strategy.
Throughout the whole company, not just in the newspaper.
I know a lot of decision makers are tired of the term. The fact remains, though, that people are brand loyal. Building a brand is still the best way to ensure business vitality long-term. Many companies in America have drifted from it throughout their history. You can probably name the ones who have lost their way in this strategy today. Many haven't. I just saw on television this morning, one of the most enduring companies which is experiencing a huge burst of profitability during the New Economy is Campbell's Soup.
Campbell's Soup isn't a flashy brand, but it is a consistent one. Compare it to, let's say...General Motors?
General Motors will spend 50 million dollars a month in it's new plan to re-vitalize the company and hopefully re-pay it's U.S. Government loans. Let's see a show of hands. Who thinks spending 50 million a month in ads will fix GM's brand issue?
It's the brand which needs the revitalization, not the ad budget. Your thoughts?