For many years, I have meant to visit Columbus, Indiana.  You know that’s the town that is differentiated based on the architecture of its companies and buildings. I went yesterday.
If it is possible to overdo branding for a city, Columbus may have done it.  The reason for the differentiation is real.  The logo is just [...]

I learned this morning that new products guru Margot Chapman jumped off the Golden Gate bridge ending her brilliant career.  I will miss her.  We were friends for almost 35 years.
Margot first made waves back in the late 60’s inventing Warm Fuzzies, the very first sheepskin bedroom slipper with the wool inside.  Yes, all the [...]

There is a commercial for a new paint or stain by Behr which in my opinion is guilty of burying the lead.  I don’t remember the name, whether it is a paint or a stain, but I remember one line of the commercial that was accompanied by an almost impactful visual demo, had it been [...]

Awhile back, I wrote about James Bond Island in Pha Nang Bay in Phuket.
Today, let’s look at a different destination that was re-branded closer to home.
In the late 1970’s The Herschend family purchased a small, Smoky Mountain theme park called Gold Rush Junction. It had a steam train ride, a few general store type shops [...]

What if you are sitting at your desk and someone says, “let’s brand fragrance.”  You reply, “you mean a certain fragrance?”  “No” they say, “let’s brand all fragrance.”  Sounds ridiculous, doesn’t it?
Well consider what Muzak did years ago when they created the idea of using music in the background in the workplace.  Muzak is known [...]

I gave a speech on the principles of KILLER BRANDING a few years ago at the William Mason business school at William & Mary college, and one of the students whose name escapes me now, immediately branded himself as “the Generator,” someone who generates change, who makes things happen.  He put it on his letters, [...]

I discovered Ira Koretsky today, not a very compelling or memorable name is it?  How about if I said that I discovered The Chief Story Teller™ today?  That is how Ira brands himself.
In fact, if  you go to the website of The Chief Story Teller, you will note that he does not use his name [...]

This is one of the big issues in marketing? When is it time to change the brand’s differentiation?
Overall, it is always time to improve.  It is rarely time to change.
No matter how good your position, you can always improve.  I call your attention to Aflac.  Their new campaign (woman on crutches coming to watch the [...]

A young mother in Atlanta, Britt Menzies started a company based on her children, which she called Stinky Kids.  She created the characters and gave them a Mom-desired reason-for-being.  The focus of her brand is “teaching good.”
Stinky Kids always make the right choice.  Stinky Kids do the good thing.
Britt was wearing a Stinky Kids t-shirt [...]

Rustoleum Universal is to me an under-marketed potential Killer Brand.
The promise of “covers any surface universally even” is new in the spray paint category, and the actuator over-cap on the aerosol can is just down right cool.
The commercial does a good job of demonstrating that the canister can be sprayed at any angle, including upside [...]