Brand is Never Dead
Yesterday I got an email with a subject line: “Trend Talk: Brand is Dead.” I’m registered to attend this seminar tomorrow. It’s by Jody Turner, of Culture of Future, and in typical AIGA fashion, she’s been brought in to expand on a key topic in the design world, branding. I’ve already paid my $10 and now I won’t go. First, I don’t have the time; it’s too early and too long of a drive. Second, when I originally signed up brand was alive and well, albeit loosely defined. And now it’s dead.
I’m reminded of when a famous person dies. The headlines are everywhere. You’d think everyone had just been declared dead when in fact there are 6,525,486,603 people. Everyone is very much alive - minus one. According to Marty Neumeir, author of The Brand Gap, brand is defined by the consumer, not by the company. The company’s role is more of guidance, massage, strategy and a little luck. This means that brand is never dead, and it’s not a recent phenomenon. Rather, it’s constant, consistent and something that is necessary to manage.
