Browsing Category
Branding
Building strong brands and brand personalities
When Marketing Stinks
Olfactory marketing has been used for years, and usually the objective is to use appealing scents and create a positive branding message. Not always, though - one politician is conducting a campaign that, well, stinks. Carl Paladino,…
College Branding, Personal Branding
Although the concept of personal branding was likely launched by Tom Peters' excellent 1997 article, The Brand Called You, the idea that others perceive you as an amalgam of personal characteristics, experience, and qualities no doubt…
We Don’t Need No Stinkin’ Marketing
The comments on "Revealed: How Steve Jobs Turns Customers into Fanatics" show that many Apple fans don't believe marketing has played a role in Apple's success. Other consumers also think they aren't influenced by ads. When a business…
Revealed: How Steve Jobs Turned Customers into Fanatics
Marketers gaze in envy at brands like Apple. The firm that built some of the first home computers turned their customers into legions of fanatical evangelists. But, without a Steve Jobs at the helm, or with fewer resources than Apple,…
When Consumption Isn’t Conspicuous
Marketers know that a key element in many purchases is to signal something about the buyer. A Toyota Prius, for example, says that its owner is concerned about the environment. Expensive luxury brands let the world know the buyer has…
The Buying Brain by A. K. Pradeep
Review: The Buying Brain: Secrets for Selling to the Subconscious Mind by A. K. Pradeep
The world of neuromarketing seems to be shrouded in mystery. There are no university studies that conclusively demonstrate that one can improve…
A Tight Brand Focus
Most companies think about extending their brand to maximize their exposure and value. That's why we have HUMMER cologne (at least while the vehicles were in production), and Purple Oreos. In many cases, these brand extensions makes…
Aggressive vs. Agreeable
In Spent: Sex, Evolution, and Consumer Behavior, author and evolutionary psychologist Geoffrey Miller spends a lot of time discussion the "Big Five" personality traits, two of which are agreeableness and aggressiveness. These traits…
Sonic Branding
What does your brand sound like? If you have no clue, you are missing an important part of an overall sensory branding effort. One firm that knows what its signature sounds are is Audi, which has gone to considerable effort to establish a…
When Complicated Is Good
When it comes to products, "complicated" is rarely a compliment. Would you buy a computer advertised as "complicated?" A piece of furniture that claimed, "complex assembly required?" An automobile that promoted the fact that it had a…
