22 Immutable Laws of Branding (By Al Reis)
November 29, 2011 at 1:07 AM
01. Expansion
The power of a brand is inversely proportional to its scope
02. Contraction
A brand becomes stronger when you narrow its focus
03. Publicity
The birth of a brand is achieved with publicity, not advertising
04. Advertising
Once born, a brand needs advertising to stay healthy
05. The Word
A brand should strive to own a word in the mind of the consumer
06. Credentials
The crucial ingredient in the success of any brand is its claim to authenticity
07. Quality
Quality is important, but brands are not built on quality alone
08. The Category
A leading brand should promote the cateogry, not the brand
09. The Name
In the long run a brand is nothing more than a name.
10. Extensions
The easiest way to destroy a brand is to put its name on everything
11. Fellowship
In order to build the category, a brand should welcome other brands
12. The Generic
One of the fastest routes to failure is giving a brand a generic name
13. The Company
Brands are brands. Companies are companies. There is a difference
14. Subbrands
What branding builds, subbranding can destroy
15. Siblings
There is a time and a place to launch a second brand
16. Shape
A brand's logotype should be designed to fit the eyes. Both eyes.
17. Color
A brand should use a color that is the opposite of its major competitor's
18. Borders
There are no barriers to global branding. A brand should know no borders.
19. Consistency
A brand is not built overnight. Success is measured in decades, not years.
20. Change
Brands can be changed, but only infrequently and only very carefully
21. Mortality
No brand will live forever. Euthanasia is often the best solution
22. Singularity
The most important aspect of a brand is its single-mindedness