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The Law of the Generic: One of the fastest routes to failure is giving a brand a generic name.

Al Ries

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

Good things happen when you narrow your focus.
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Focus Good Happen Narrow Thing
Each year we send more and receive less.
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Each Less More Receive Send Year
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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Accept Allow Brande Decade Enough Forget Need New Normal Old Person Time Truth
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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Bvious Define Known Ladder Name Occupy Reason Rung Sharp Sit Top Well
Positioning is not what you do to a product.
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Mind Position Product
A successful branding program is based on the concept of singularity.
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Based Brand Concept Mind Perception Program Successful
Even if all the cattle on the range look pretty much alike.
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Alike All Cattle Look Much Pretty Range
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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Brand Build Effort Else Focus Known Mind Nobody Owing Word
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
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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Allow Build Decade Ear Forget Normal Old Person Take Truth
THE LAW OF THE CONTRACTION: A brand becomes stronger when you narrow its focus.
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Band ContrAction Focus Law Narrow Stronger
It’s better to be first in the mind than to be first in the marketplace.
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Better Business First Marketplace Mind
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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Cancer Coherem Energy Focus Laser Light Source Stream Weak
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
What should a brand leader advertise?
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Advertise Behavior Brand Important Leader
War and marketing have many similarities.
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Many Market Similarity War

The Law of the Generic: One of the fastest routes to failure is giving a brand a generic name.

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