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Here’s a hypothesis:  There are essentially nine different types of brands and you can jumpstart the development of your brand strategy by identifying the one that’s right for you. I’ve developed this hypothesis after working on brands for over 25 years.  I’ve come to realize that there is a finite number of brand types or […]

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I recently was asked to speak to the executive team of a $200 billion organization about increasing the company’s competitiveness.  It was an extraordinary opportunity and I seized it by sharing my insights on how to build a brand of distinction — one that isn’t merely different, but one that stands apart and above the rest. […]

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Brand differentiation is more important now than ever before.  You can’t just be better than your competitors — you must be different.  Here are five of my resources, all in one handy spot, to help you understand the new challenges and requirements to differentiate and how to achieve greater brand differentiation. […]

back to brand basics

Given all the new media options and technology capabilities today, it’s easy to forget the essential truths about brands.  I read several reminders this past month about getting back to brand basics. […]

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I’m working on two big and juicy brand repositioning projects.  While both involve quite significant departures from the companies’ current strategies and it’s still pretty early on in the projects, it’s likely one is going to be successful and the other, not, or at least less so. I thought the reason for the difference between […]

cisco brand aspirations

Recently I met with the folks in Cisco’s brand group and was delighted to find a few simple brand tools sitting in the place where a person’s business cards are usually found. […]

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Yesterday I explained that I’m devoting my blog posts this week to a series on “5 Brands We Would Miss.”  The series, prompted by 24/7 Wall’s list of “Twelve Major Brands That Will Disappear,” is intended to explore what we would miss as a result of some of brands’ demise.  Today, it’s Budget. […]