It's all about the Brand

My take on the Brand

Branding is ubiquitous but important. Talking to my friend Stan Voelkel today at lunch made me think,

What brands “impact” you?

Starbucks is all about “your order,” funky jargon, even personalizing the cup. It isn’t just an ordinary Styrofoam cup, it has style.

Doesn’t the local Starbucks remind you of the TV show “Cheers” in some way? That is part of the brand. It's about more than coffee, it's about community.

Some others:

Target

Honda

Barak Obama 2012

Apple

Twitter

Stan Voelkel

Each one carries more meaning than the product, person, or service. It is dynamic.

The Houston Texans N.F.L.® brand is all about fan fun! The organization wants the fan experience imbued with passion. The noise, the smoke, the bulls, the spirit, the music. Texans brand is strong. It built momentum this year. Winning will do that (ahem, Houston Astros?! They might just re-brand).

If you are thinking about your own brand, or what you do as a service/product, here are some questions you must consider: 

• Perceived need:   what do your customers need?
• Brand awareness:   what information is your customer gathering about you; is the message cohesive?
• Points of comparison & clarity:   how does your customer evaluate the value proposition of you or your brand when compared to alternatives?
• Brand equity:    does the value of the brand make it worthwhile to purchase or choose? 
• Brand measurement:   after all this, what is the assessment of the purchase decision?  Do you have metrics attached to the brand?

 Simple questions, complicated answers. But don’t ignore the importance of your brand...

©Mark H. Pillsbury

Ultimate Texans » Photos: Texans fever

Ultimate Texans » Photos: Texans fever:

'via Blog this'

After ten years in this city, the Texan franchise has finally reached the high plateau of the NFL meritocracy, The Playoffs.

Like a contagious disease, Houston's citizens caught fan fever this week, and across the 4th largest city in the US, today they suffer from Texanitis.

As the sun broke over clear blue skies this morning and Houstonians got out to youth games, the grocery store, or the local coffee shop, all the talk was about the game this afternoon at Reliant Stadium, in the shadow of the old AstroDome. Fittingly, the new breed of professional football players see the shrine to the Oilers right next door, the 8th wonder of the world: the AstroDome. The creepy, dark, out-dated, concrete monolith to the past; where the last Houston playoff victory took place over 20 years ago.

There is nothing like the football euphoria of the playoffs. In a town that prides itself in entrepreneurial grit, civic pride, teamwork, courage, and success--which has largely eluded the city on the gridiron since the Texans started ten years ago; this football team overcame years of under-achieving and the hardship of a roller-coaster season to land its first NFL party since Super Bowl XXXVIII was played in Reliant Stadium in February of 2004.

Predictions are bold. Chips and salsa are flying off the shelves. Only the lucky and the patient are actually going to the game. Traffic around my neighborhood will be terrible this afternoon. But the city is buoyant with excitement. Being a life-long Dallas Cowboy fan spoiled me, but not anymore! The Cowboys are no shoe-in, having one playoff win in the last 15 years. Since I arrived in Houston the fall the Texans started, I have followed them closely every year and could not be any happier to see them succeed. Like any of the millions of Houston transplants who want our team to do well, I'm riding high today, waiting for kickoff.

used with permission: ©K. Woolet 

It should be a low-scoring affair, and with our 3rd QB starting the game, the Texans will have to rely on the Defense (led by the last Cowboy coach Wade Phillips). Turnovers usually change momentum, so look for that to be the pivot-point.

The buzz in the city today is red-hot (Battle Red), the fever is true-blue (Liberty Blue), and for one bright shiny day in Houston, we are all Texans!

©Mark H. Pillsbury