how to achieve sustainable differentiation

The burger industry might be the best classroom in the world for brand strategy. Five chains. Similar products. Five completely different paths to market leadership—and every single one of them has lessons for your business, regardless of your industry. I recently joined The Hustle to break down exactly how different chains each built dominant positions […]

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Here’s a wake-up call as you lock in your 2026 strategy: 84% of leaders say long-term brand building is critical to business success, but only 36% believe their organizations are effective at it. That’s a huge gap! New research from Harvard Business Review Analytics reveals why most organizations fail at brand building and what the […]

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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. […]