Brands and commodities: two rules
Just thought I’d break this out from a longer post on brands and commodities. It should be airtight, but I sense leaks. As always, comments appreciated.
Brands and commodities: two rules
- Brand: The shortest distance between customer and company.
- Commodity: The shortest distance between customer and price.
Rules:
- When the brand is strong, customer and company are one
- When commodity is strong, company and customer are done.
Coda:
If you’re in it for the money, your customers will be in it for the price.
Update: Changed “Moral” to “Coda”
(And yes, deepest apologies to Wm.Blake, RIP.)
August 4th, 2006 at 11:57 pm
Brian, simple yet effective. I love it.
August 5th, 2006 at 7:41 am
Elegant simplicity. Love it.
“If you’re in it for the money, your customers will be in it for the price.”
I ask clients, “are you tired of selling on price?” When they answer “yes” that is when the journey to brand begins.
Thank you for sharing this insight and enlarging my thoughts!
August 5th, 2006 at 8:25 am
One of the virtues of brands is that they can help clients discover latent forms of value hiding beneath the surface. These can be quite powerful. For brand builders, it’s rewarding to be part of a process that “lifts the veil.”
October 27th, 2006 at 12:38 pm
[...] We say more about commodities here and here. [...]
December 13th, 2006 at 12:40 pm
Brian, well said. I just found your blog and I’m glad it’s on my radar.
December 13th, 2006 at 11:48 pm
Derrick,
Welcome to the conversation. The whole field of brands is ripe for re-invention.
Brian