The 10 Com-Brandments

WORDS: BRENDA MCNALLY & PAT KINSLEY

Has branding become a victim of its own success? These days it seems as though brand-mania is the name of the game whatever game you’re in. It’s become the catch-all phrase that is used to define anything from a great product, to a great leader or the best party in town. Even job-seekers are advised to think in terms of branding to help them bag that next promotion.

You could say that branding has become so over used as a word and a strategy that it’s in danger of no longer being understood. But while some argue that it might be time for a new word for branding, there’s no argument that good branding always follows a set of values or rules. And for those in doubt about the stairway to brand heaven, we’ve prepared the
10 Com-Brandments!

1. Thou shalt not have strange brands before me!
People and brands are attracted to strong leaders, there’s an in-built need to follow them. But in the Land of Brand, following doesn’t mean copying, if you’re entering an existing market you need to come up with your own unique quality and make that your brand strategy. But brands also need to keep sight of who they are if they are to maintain their unique identity. The best brands have a strong identity; their customers know who they are and what they stand for. So, if you are the brand leader, then always act like it. Believe in your core values and don’t try. And if you’re a new product, don’t try to be a me-too product, come up with your own original feature and just be yourself.

2. Thou shalt not take the brand name in vain!
You reach for the Kleenex and hoover the house, even if you own a Dyson. Most brands are delighted when everyone talks about their product. As the ‘mot de jour’ your brand profile is enormous. But your brand name is also one of its most valuable assets: the best ones are descriptive and emotive and customers connect to brand names. The more successful your brand, however, the more it’s in danger of becoming a generic brand. And the problem with becoming a generic brand name like, Coke, Portakabin or Jacuzzi is that your brand is in danger of losing a unique identity. In order to remain the number one in a category, a brand has to stay in control and remember to protect their name. Otherwise you risk losing brand recognition as any and every me-too product jumps on your ‘brand’ wagon.

3. Remember to keep holy the Brand Day!
Who doesn’t love having a special day? It offers recognition and also sets us apart. And as Ireland Inc has shown with St Patrick’s Day, special days can work wonders for brands too. The global celebrations of the St Patrick’s Day proves that there is a large appetite for brand days. They offer more than a way of recognising your creation they can also help to keep a brand relevant and growing. If, for example, your brand introduced something new to the market place when it was needed, it makes sense to let your customers know about this. Or if your brand used to be more relevant, but now seems less so, an anniversary provides an opportunity to review and reinvent for the next year

Read more of the Business of Branding in the December | January 2009 issue of WMB,

on newsstands now.