How to differentiate your brand? Part 3

Over the last two decades, brands have become 200% less distinct from one another. The ones that stand out, however, have something in common: They integrate two seemingly opposing personality traits. In this series of six blogs, I offer different methods to discovering and leveraging the duality embedded inside your brand. By tapping into these insights, …

How to differentiate your brand? Part 1

Here is the news flash: Over the last two decades, brands have become 200% less distinct from one another. The ones that stand out, however, have something in common: They integrate two seemingly opposing personality traits. For instance, think about Harley Davidson (rebellious yet social.) Or Target (affordable yet chic.) Or Tesla (environmentally conscious yet …

Three mature archetypal meanings of ice cream

On our last essay, we analyzed the three youthful archetypal meanings of ice cream, which were the Inner Child, the Companion, and the Jester. Let’s pick up from where we left off and interpret three more mature archetypal meanings of ice cream. The Seductress Etymologically speaking, seduction means “to lead away, lead astray” in Latin. Back …

Three youthful archetypal meanings of ice cream

Have you ever heard of the term “benefit laddering?” It is a traditional technique used by most marketers and researchers. Simply put, you start by listing the key attributes of a product. Then you progress to the product benefits. Next, the direct consumer benefits, and finally the key emotional benefits. Based on Maslow’s Hierarchy of …

What went wrong with brand Guadalajara? Part 4/4

This is the fourth instalment of a series of “systematic problems of placebranding projects” illustrating the roadblock faced by the brand Guadalajara. These essays are intended to help practitioners -both city officials and consultants- to launch more successful and resistant brands. (Read the earlier instalments here and here, and  here.) Problem #6: Overlooking the change management side of the …

What went wrong with brand Guadalajara? Part 3/4

This is the third instalment of a series of “systematic problems of placebranding projects” illustrating the roadblock faced by the brand Guadalajara. These essays are intended to help practitioners -both city officials and consultants- to launch more successful and resistant brands. (Read the earlier instalment here and here, and the subsequent one here.) By using the weak start of …