How to Create a Powerful Tagline
Are Unique Selling Propositions (USP) different than Taglines? The correct technical answer is absolutely yes, but you'd be surprised at the number of people (even marketing types) that don't know the difference. However the truly sad part is not just in the lack of understanding, but in the missed applicational leverage and lost opportunity costs associated with the lack of understanding. In…
Why Brand Name Clients Matter
If your company doesn't have a recognized brand, I will guarantee that your selling cycle is longer than necessary as your sales process grinds to a halt while you endeavor to establish credibility. Even after enduring the good fight, when all is said and done, you likely end up making frequent price concessions to win business. You are most probably sick and tired of dealing with repeated…
The Value of a Brand
In an earlier post this month entitled "Assessing Brand Value" I provided a fairly in-depth overview of both how to calculate a brand's value as well as describing why it is critically important to focus on creating brand equity. Nothing illustrates the impact of a brand's contribution to the overall health of a company more than an assessment of its financial contribution marked by its…
Push vs. Pull Marketing
It is more important than ever to understand the differences in and relationships between "Push" and "Pull" marketing given continued advances in technology, the corresponding proliferation of mediums, and the ever-shrinking global marketplace. I'll also apologize in advance as I'm using this post as yet another opportunity to rant on the damage caused by those would be subject matter experts who…
The Truth about MLM
Today's Myatt on Monday's question comes from a CEO who asks: "I'm evaluating using multi-level marketing to accelerate my distribution Is there anything truly wrong with MLM?" Let me begin by disclosing that I am not involved in a multi-level marketing (MLM) and/or network marketing. Let me also be quick to state that in my opinion there is absolutely nothing wrong with the business model. In…
Branding Demystified
Much of N2Growth's activities evolve around branding, one of my greatest business passions is the art and science of branding and about half of my personal practice is built around creating dominant corporate and personal brands. Because I eat, sleep and live branding I am always amazed at how many savvy executives and entrepreneurs don't understand the importance of building significant brand…
The Power of Personal Branding
With as much as 80% of a corporation's net value being comprised of its brand equity, it's no wonder that almost 1.5 trillion dollars are spent on corporate branding initiatives. While most CEOs readily understand the need to build brand equity at the corporate level or for products, services, intellectual property, etc., very few understand the substantial benefits that are created from…
The Name Game: Part 3
This is the 3rd and final post in this series on naming. The first post dealt with how to select a naming firm, the second post addressed the components that go into creating a great corporate name and this post will deal with other venues within the naming field. A lot of focus and attention is brought to bear on the topic of corporate naming as this is the most visible high impact area of…
The Name Game: Part 2
Today's post is part two in a three-part series on naming. Yesterday's post contained advice on how to select a naming firm and today's post will cover the elements that go into creating a great name. Contrary to popular belief all of the great names have not already been taken. So, what are the components of a great name? While the answer varies a bit from industry to industry the following…
The Name Game: Part 1
The disciplines of branding and corporate identity have long been personal passions of mine, and nothing within this genre holds a greater fascination for me than the practice of corporate naming. This post is the first in a three-post series and will discuss whether corporate naming should be handled as an internal initiative, or whether it should be outsourced to a professional naming firm.…
How to Capitalize on a Strong Brand
OK, so you've made all the right moves and built a strong, recognized brand Now what? Don't make the mistake of many companies who rely on existing brand recognition to carry them forward. Rather take your recognized brand equity and leverage it into new strategic partners, broader and deeper customer relationships, and new products and services. The fastest path from brand recognition to brand…