The Lakeview Blog

We've talked about branding on this blog a number of times. Today, I'd like to tackle it from a different perspective. We know that people have crummy memories, right? If you tell your kids to do five things, you're lucky if they'll remember two. Whenever you go to the grocery store to pick up a few things, how many times do you return home without the most-needed item? That's why communication folks say to only have one to three key messages and to repeat them over and over. People will remember very little of what you tell them; I've read that words account for as little as seven per cent of the impact of a presentation, for example. So, what's the one thing -- the ONE thing -- you want people to remember about you? The one thing you want them to tell others about you? That you were helpful? Professional? Friendly? Expert? Inspiring? Have a look at these adjectives. Think of these as a jumping off point and use other words if these don't...

I've written and spoken (a lot) about brand. What it is and what it isn't. It's a favourite soapbox of mine. Over the years, I've been asked many times to "create a brand." As soon as I begin to ask questions about their customer service, internal culture, market position, etc., I am often met with that deer-in-the-headlights look. They aren't really asking for help with their brand. What they are saying is: "Create a logo for us." Your logo, motto or slogan, the colours, fonts and images that you use represent your brand -- or what you think your brand is or want it to be. Brand itself is quite different. To define your brand, ask yourself some questions. How would you describe your business's culture?  What behaviour do you recognize and reward among your employees?  How do you think your customers would describe their experiences with you?  How responsive are you to requests for service after the sale?  Do you give...

Let's talk about "brand." I would be hard-pressed to find a subject that is as misunderstood as is branding. This confusion is easy to understand since the term "brand" has evolved to mean different things over time. Many marketers cite the first brand as being that used by ranchers to identify their cattle. I argue that - although it wasn't called a brand back then - the seals used by nobility on their correspondence may have been an earlier use of branding. The branding of cattle or use of royal seals gave "brand" a physical presence, which has carried on in the minds of some today who believe that a brand is nothing more than a logo. The next stage in branding evolution came along when corporations began creating their brands. They they owned their corporate reputations. Most of the rest of us had little evidence to disprove them and took it at face value that they were what they said they were. Today, with the onset of digital a...