Why I'm Not a Hard-Line Brander
Branding. Even the word conjures up something painful. You think those cows relish having some rancher's logo on their ass?
After a marketing career that sometimes seems to have begun when Gutenberg was just starting to churn it up, I have become ambivalent about branding. Make no mistake. I completely agree that one must be consistent in messaging, keeping the brand promise and all that vital stuff.
But the logo-police, never-varying, don't change-it-up attitude of some branders gets to me. Too much consistency isn't just boring, it poisons creativity. And that's not good.
Take Google. They play with their logo in creative ways. That's good. That makes branding interesting. Apple changes its look almost yearly. Target puts its logo on a dog's eye. That's different, but at least they change things up.
What I'm getting at is that brands aren't all that serious, don't-touch-it or don't-change-it propositions. Have fun. Be creative. Be a better marketer.
