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Only brand names register in the mind… What you should generally do is take a regular word and use it out of context to connote the primary attribute of your brand.

Al Ries

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Marilyn Monroe Paulo Coelho Abraham Lincoln C. S. Lewis Khalil Gibran Charlie Chaplin Gautama Buddha Isaac Newton

It’s the first company to build the mental position that has the upper hand, not the first company to make the product.
AL RIES

Company Hand Mental Mind Position Product Upper
Your brand’s power lies in dominance.
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Brand Dominance Lie Power
After a slow buildup, people become convinced that they have known about the brand forever.
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Brand Convince Forever Known Peop Slow
The real barrier (to building a brand) is the human mind.
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Barrier Gray Human Matter Mind Real
Positioning is not what you do to a product.
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Mind Position Product
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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Build Computer First Incent Mind Position Prospect
The crucial ingredient in the success of any brand is its claim to authenticity.
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Authenticity Claim Ingredient Success
If you can build a powerful brand, you will have a powerful marketing program.
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Almost Brand Build Builder Come General Market Powerful Previous World
It takes a mile before anything happens. And if it was a wrong turn, getting back on course takes even longer.
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Anything Back Before Course Even Happen Longer Mile Take Turn Wrong
When a really new product comes along, it’s almost always a mistake to hang a well-known name on it.
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Along Come Mistake New Product Really Simple Successful
Branding is simply a more efficient way to sell things.
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Brand Efficient Sell Thing Way
Marketing is not selling. Marketing is building a brand in the mind of the prospect.
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Brand Build Market Mind Prospect Sell
But with a laser, you can drill a hole in a diamond or wipe out cancer.
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Cancer Diamond Laser Source Week
The Internet is the ultimate in brand-centered buying.
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Brand Buy Center Internet Ultimate
Good things happen when you narrow your focus.
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Focus Good Happen Narrow Thing
Successful brands get into the mind slowly. A blurb in a magazine. A mention in a newspaper. A comment from a friend. A display in a retail store.
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Brand Comment Display Forever Friend Magazine Mind Newspaper People Slowly Store Successful