In my last blog I talked about how I break down marketing into three interrelated silos; Brand Focus, Brand Communication and Brand Experience. Brand Focus is about building, defining and living your brand in such a manner that it not only brings deep value to your customers, but it enables and inspires them to tell a friend what makes it special. Most marketers believe their brand is special and it’s really cool when it gets talked about.

Today, I’ll talk about Brand Communication. There is little to say about this subject that hasn’t been said before, but I’ll share a few nuggets that I feel are relevant.

If you’re looking for an extensive, informative and a really fun read, check out Luke Sullivan’s book, “Hey Whipple, Squeeze This: A Guide to Creating Great Advertising.” Luke takes advertising seriously, but you’ll see (beginning with the title of his book) and on his blog, he doesn’t take himself seriously.

Unify – Simplify – Amplify. Ken Carbone, designer and Chief Creative Director of Carbone Smolan Agency sums up this three-word formula that the world’s most successful brands use to tell their story. Click this one-page thesis. It’s simple and it can work for your brand. Only gotta minute? Then skip the rest of this blog and click the link.

Tell a bold or exquisite story. My old boss/creative director Tom McElligott used to say to the Fallon McElligott creative staff, “If you’re dropping a creative atom bomb, it doesn’t matter if you’re not exactly on target." Brand Communication fails most often because the ad/PR/marketing creators (or the marketer him/herself) wimped out and the world simply didn’t notice.

Be authentic. Another reason Brand Communication falls short is because the brand simply didn’t live up to its promises. The communication should be a direct reflection of the brand experience. Don’t stop with “what” you make… tell them “why” you make the products you sell. (Note: If the Brand Promise isn’t all that compelling, no amount of advertising will help.)

Be about attraction, not persuasion. You’ve heard me preach this before… talk less about offering value, fun, information, etc. and simply be more valuable, fun, informative, etc. in your communications. Ever wonder why food and fashion ads haven’t changed their formula much since the 60’s? Maybe it’s because they’ve always given their readers ideas… real value right there in the ad.

Make it easy/fun/fascinating/valuable for others to share your story. Unless you have an enormous marketing budget, you absolutely need to have a story people will talk about. Social media has changed everything. Never before have we had the opportunity to spread the word about our brands and stuff we have to sell. People want to tell their friendfs about cool new products, restaurants, stores and services... as long as they really are cool. Btw, if you actually have an enormous marketing budget please call me at (612) 247-1516.