Thursday

Branding Anything and Everything

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I have long contended that almost everything is branded and many things can and should be managed as brands. Brands have identities, including personalities. Further, brands usually possess certain values and they usually make promises to their customers. There are usually a few key things commonly associated with each brand in people’s minds. Given that definition of brands, let us explore various entities in several different categories to determine which ones seem to possess the qualities of brands.

Municipalities:
Las Vegas
Dubai
Singapore
Paris
New York
Santa Fe

Musical groups/Entertainers:
Grateful Dead
Michael Jackson
Johnny Cash
Sigur Ros
Eminem
Phish

Restaurants:
McDonalds
Cabbages and Condoms, Bangkok
Moosewood Restaurant, Ithaca
Alcatraz, Tokyo
Dinner in the Sky
Nyotaimori (“female body plate” in English)

Nations:
India
China
Russia
Australia
Mexico
USA

Museums:
The Louvre
MoMA
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame + Museum
Guggenheim Bilbao
Strong National Museum of Play
Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum

Colleges and Universities:
Harvard University
MIT
Liberty University
Hampshire College
Rhode Island School of Design
École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts

Communities/Neighborhoods:
The Bronx, NY
La Jolla, CA
East LA, CA
Far Hills, NJ
South Beach, Miami, FL
Provincetown, MA

Automobiles:
Toyota Prius
Humvee
Lamborghini
KIA Rio
MINI COOPER
Cadillac DTS

Not for Profit Organizations:
ACLU
NRA
Creationism
Metropolitan Opera Patrons
Volunteers of America
Child Fund International

Which of the above have unique identities or personalities? Which ones have unique values or attitudes? Which ones say something about the people who admire or use them? Which ones say something about the people who despise or shun them? Which ones are actively trying to position themselves? Which ones make unique promises to their customers? Which ones are trying to target specific customers? Which ones have a unique set of customers? Which ones are supported by professional marketers or entire marketing staffs? Which ones are trying to increase their revenues, usage, membership or other forms of support? Which ones have effective websites? Which ones have ineffective websites? Which ones have no websites? Which ones recently completed rebranding projects? Which ones seem to be incongruent with certain others?

My point is that almost everything is branded and many things can and should be managed as brands. At The Blake Project we are increasingly called upon to brand the most unlikely types of entities. We think that makes perfect sense.

Sponsored By: The Brand Positioning Workshop


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