Gimme a Great Brand....

The greatest brands are built over many years, through top performance and growth of trust. But it's possible to build a memorable brand more quickly.

Use concepts & memes already in the minds of the wider public:

• Famous people & what they represent
• Religious & cultural themes
• Famous places

Building on well-known generic themes creates great brands fast:

Washington Brand
Saint Brand
Baptist Brand
Israel Brand
Venus Brand

It's the Brand, Stupid

Many economic choices involve branding. Trust has value.

We haven't the time & energy to investigate each option and it's possibility of failure. We trust the brand, in part because any non-performance offers some potential for retaliation and indemnity. In essence, good brands offer security.

Place Branding

Brands are often a good investment. Place branding is now a huge growth area. Competition for investment & people is intense, as migration of capital & labor became easier. Municipalities must develop, market & promote their region -- or tourism and investment will flounder, and their best & brightest local residents will go elsewhere.

Mobility is a crucial pathway to modern success. Living & working in trendy areas brings wide-ranging benefits, where we enjoy capital gains from rising property values, and fresh opportunities with leisure & lifestyle.

no people = no jobs = no tax base = no services

Don't wait for stronger signals. Your locality is now under threat, however successful it seems.   Wake Up & Brand It! Competition started awhile ago !

Successful place branding challenges every person to secure supportive infrastructure & social services. This isn't a task for only municipal officials or the Chamber of Commerce. Build a local brand and rally round. Developing the local brand builds municipal vitality.

How best to brand & market places? Experts should assist (see http://placeappeal.com), but four steps are essential:

1) Recognize your locality's image & the branding process are urgent for survival

2) Build coalitions where all social groups consider ways to magnify local attractiveness. Include everyone. Bang the drum continuously, promoting your local community amongst yourselves and to others

3) Make your place more special

4) Get the word out systematically. Invest in marketing your place.

These days visiting New York City or Los Angeles, I feel at home; if not Lord of the Manor, at least a stakeholder. Why? As owner of NewYorkCitybrand.com and LosAngelesbrand.com I'm helping develop platforms for municipal success.

Many images & messages circulating in mainstream corporate media - such as "We are the 99%" - can be equated to a brand message. A place marketing brand message conveys the image "we are all here together" as well as local pride.

Share and Build

Great place brands can be developed without great cost.
The price of a single houselot can raise property values & the local tax base by millions (even billions) of dollars.

Choose an easy name, which locals hear once & remember.
Great place brands include:
Newportbrand.com
Connecticutbrand.com
Massachusettsbrand.com
Chesapeakebrand.com
Kentuckybrand.com
NewMexicobrand.com
BeverlyHillsbrand.com

Brand New

This blog discusses branding.

Further growth of brands is expected, as we've an open-market world, where marketing hype & dog-eat-dog capitalism quickly bankrupt the foolish.

Brands provide familiarity, comfort & security.

Major institutions have become brands. From national governments to universities, from museums to religion to individual artists, branding provides focus, validation and quality control.

Welcome to an ongoing discussion!