I admit my first reaction to the news that Apple acquired Beats was skepticism. The deal may have made sense from a business perspective, but it didn’t seem a wise move for the Apple brand — especially since Apple announced it would be keeping and using the Beats brand name. But after I got past my knee-jerk […]
Today’s headlines about brick and mortar companies are troubling. Office Depot just announced it will close 400 stores. Radio Shack wants to close 1,100 stores but its lenders are resisting. Sears is looking to sell off chunks of its real estate. The prevailing wisdom of retailing strategy seems to be minimizing investment in brick and […]
My “brands to watch” post was such a hit last year, I thought I’d share who I will be keeping my eye on in 2014. Some of these brands are sure to grow in the coming year, the future of others is less certain – but I’m pretty sure we’ll be hearing a lot about […]
brand-as-business bit: “Don’t say it, be it” – as in “don’t say you’re cool, be cool” – has to be one of the most well-known principles in advertising. And yet we see so many brands fail to heed it. The most recent offender? Apple. I’m sure there are a lot of people who disagree with […]
brand-as-business bit: The news that emerged a few weeks ago about Apple getting approval from the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office for aspects of its store design got me thinking. On the one hand the application seemed somewhat excessive — that a single brand could lay claim to a glass storefront and oblong tables with stools […]
“Emotion is the bridge to take to cross the chasm from the early market to the mainstream market.” That was one of the points from my address at a Women in Technology International luncheon last week. The topic of my talk was “Crossing the Digital Health & Fitness Chasm.” I outlined practices that enable technology […]
Between spring break, March Madness, and primary season, there’s been a lot going on outside the brand world this month. But there’s also been a flurry of new brand-building content going around. Here’s a handy recap of what I contributed to the conversation: brand-building: Steve Jobs on Brand-Building — a slide show of what Walter Isaacson’s […]
On the eve of a special Apple event, it seems the allure of the Apple brand is as strong as ever. “We have something you really have to see. And touch,” declares the invitation to the March 7th media event. Quite a buzz has been building up! I don’t know if tomorrow’s announcement will impress […]
brand-as-business bit: At CES last week, I couldn’t help but feel a little like I was in Apple’s 1984 commercial. I could only take comfort in knowing that adoption of wearing glasses to watch TV will never cross the chasm into the mainstream — they’re impractical, they’re too invasive, and they detract from the shared […]
2012, according to the Chinese calendar, is the Year of the Dragon. In Chinese tradition, each year is dedicated to a specific animal and predictions for 2012 are for a dragon-like year of excitement, unpredictability, exhilaration, and intensity. With this expectation in mind, I’ve selected several brands to keep my eye on. They’re likely to […]