Branding is simply a more efficient way to sell things.
AL RIESWar and marketing have many similarities.
More Al Ries Quotes
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THE LAW OF THE CONTRACTION: A brand becomes stronger when you narrow its focus.
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IBM didn’t invent the computer; Sperry Rand did. But IBM was the first to build the computer position in the prospect’s mind.
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The reason is obvious. A well-known name got well-known because it stood for something. It occupies a position in the prospect’s mind. A really well-known name sits on the top rung of a sharply defined ladder.
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A laser is a weak source of energy. A laser takes [only] a few watts of energy and focuses them in a coherent stream of light.
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After a slow buildup, people become convinced that they have known about the brand forever.
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You need to allow enough time for this forgetting to take place
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It’s better to be first in the mind than to be first in the marketplace.
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Customers want brands that are narrow in scope and distinguishable by a single word, the shorter the better.
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It normally takes decades to build a brand… It’s the forgetting of the old truth that allows a person to accept a new truth.
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Even if all the cattle on the range look pretty much alike.
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To get into the consumer’s mind, you have to sacrifice.
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It is better to have 50% of one market, instead of 10% of five markets.
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If you want to build a brand, you must focus your branding efforts on owning a word in the prospect’s mind. A word that nobody else owns.
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A brand should strive to own a word in the mind of the consumer.
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It normally takes decades to build a brand because it takes decades to penetrate the gray matter in between your ears.
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