What’s Killing
Your
Brand
@davidbrier www.risingabovethenoise.com

What’s Killing
Your
Brand
l it before it kills you)
ow to kil
(and h
@davidbrier www.risingabovethenoise.com

OR
How to
Sell More
(& Live Longer)

Right now, someone is suffering from
INFORMATION OVERLOAD

ONLINE

IN STORES

IN WAREHOUSE
OUTLETS

AT RETAIL

AT EVERY AGE

& EVERYWHERE
YOU TURN

So what’s killing
our brands?

Is it this year’s
26,000
new products?

Is it today’s
50 million
tweets?

Or the
new blog
every half-second?

No.

FACT:
Doing something stupid
with your brand in half
the time isn’t progress...
or smart or profitable.

In other words
Unnecessary (stupid)
brand changes done
more efficiently do not
make them smarter.
For example...

Wow! We just got our cliché relayed
to 3X more people than last month!
Now Hey, we just made an
double unnecessary change to our
the brand faster than ever!
people
know
that we Look at the speed
stand for with which we can
nothing! alienate customers.

Death by cliche:
Unless you know which
side you’re on, you’ll
inevitably use clichés
and me-too approaches.
And add to the
information overload.

Huh?

YOUR BRAND HAS TWO SIDES

Seller
YOUR BRAND HAS TWO SIDES
YOUR BRAND
Buyer

Seller
YOUR BRAND HAS TWO SIDES
YOUR BRAND
Buyer

So what is
killing our
brands?

Costly
Brand
Mistakes

Costly
Cliché
Brand
Mistakes

Costly
Cliceful
Wasthé
Brand
Mistakes

Costly
Cli itnaél
Oadcefry
Wrs h u
Brand
Mistakes

Cldcpfrd
r i i e iu
Oaunaé l
St
Costly
W sth y
Brand
Mistakes

Cldcpfrd
r i i e iu
Oaunaé l
St
Costly
W sth y
Brand
AV O I D A B L E
Mistakes

Answer
this:

Ever been in a meeting that you
knew would result in a really
stupid branding mistake?

Been there.
Done that.

The 8 principles to brand elevation
are found here. Yet 1 principle will
help isolate what’s killing our brands...
The book can be found on blurb.com

This one
principle helped
get these results:

in june
t 30 days
se in firs
increa
300%
february
exceeded
st sales
augu

ebranding
hs since r
in 10 mont
ase in sales
300% incre
d section
k times foo
n new yor
featured i
was
omm arts
rds incl. c
design awa
rnational
ned 3 inte
ear

months
mers in 3
ew custo
ease in n
800% incr

n 1st year
ourists i
walk-in t
crease in
500% in

1st month
les in the
ease in sa
20% incr
ortified
r dialog f
custome

ebrand
ars after r
on 3 ye
growth
397%

So here’s
that principle

Principle #6
Know what side you’re on:
What companies sell and
what consumers buy are
not the same thing.

Write down
what your
company
sells

Write down
what your
company
sells
(Really, go ahead.
Trust me.
You won’t regret it...)

Charlie Perfume:
What they sell:
Fragrance

Charlie Perfume:
What people buy:
Feeling and smelling
attractive

Nike:
What they sell:
Sneakers and
Sportswear

Nike:
What people buy:
The Hope of Better
Athletic Performance

Ragu:
What they sell:
Spaghetti Sauce

Ragu:
What people buy:
Convenience in an
overly inconvenient
world

Porsche:
What they sell:
Performance Vehicles

Porsche:
What people buy:
The ultimate
status toy in the
passing lane

Dyson:
What they sell:
A vacuum cleaner

Dyson:
What people buy:
The
anti-vacuum cleaner
vacuum cleaner
(OK, no loss of suction)

Google:
What they sell:
Information

Google:
What people buy:
Access to the world
(and buyers, etc.)
in a few seconds

Haagen Dazs:
What they sell:
Ice Cream

Haagen Dazs:
What people buy:
The perfect adult
indulgence

Write down
what your
customer
buys

Write down
what your
customer
buys
(Now, compare
your 2 answers.)

THE GAP
between your 2
answers is what’s
killing your brand

Fact:
If your brand is using
cliches, you’re promoting
your category,
NOT your brand.

A comment on Social Media:
Social media is NOT
a brand strategy.

Social media is a
channel
(not a strategy).

HISTORY IS
FILLED WITH
“OH, THIS WILL
MAKE US RICH!”
CHANGES.

HISTORY:
The fax machine.
Relayed messages and brands faster and easier

HISTORY:
The fax machine.
Relayed messages and brands faster and easier
Internet.
Relayed messages and brands more broadly

HISTORY:
The fax machine.
Relayed messages and brands faster and easier
Internet.
Relayed messages and brands more broadly
Social media.
Relays messages everywhere and right now by anyone with computer access

Good content and
branding is all that
ever worked.

RECAP:
1. In the Information Overload age
2. Using clichés adds to the noise
3. Know which side you’re on
(Sell more. Live longer.)
4. Social media is not a strategy
5. Know all 8 principles

That’s all from one principle.
Want to know more? Get the book.
The book can be found on blurb.com

You can follow me
@davidbrier

OR
You can buy the book and
be the envy of your office,
company or competitors.

OR
You can hire us and really
become the envy of your
competitors.

Final thought:
“You can’t shrink
your way to greatness.”
Peter Drucker

Text, editorial content, branding and design:
copyright 2010
DBD International, Ltd.