Brand New Brand Thinking: Brought to Life by 11 Experts Who Do

Design Management Journal, Fall 2003 by Hanna, Jeannette

Brand New Brand Thinking: Brought to Life by 11 Experts Who Do Edited by Merry Baskin and Mark Earls

Caveat emptor.... Before plunking down any cash to add this book to your library of brand-related tomes, be aware of the following: This is a collection of 11 essays. The authors are a disparate group of self-proclaimed experts. Their brand of brand expertise: advertising. The cultural context: UK.

All these factors shape the content-and its relevance. Those for whom the title "planner" equals "strategist" may find some interesting tidbits here. If, however, your brand horizons are somewhat broader, this is often an infuriating book, because it promises much and, for the most part, under-delivers.

The challenge for any collection of essays is maintaining a consistent level of quality across the range of contributors. Brand New Brand Thinking starts with great gusto as co-editor Mark Earls serves up the juiciest, most provocative essay of the book in "Chapter 1: Learning to Live Without the Brand (AKA: the seven-step program to personal and professional liberation)" Earls, we are told, is reputed to be, "the London advertising scene's foremost contrarian." In this essay, he goes directly for the jugular, tackling the "sensible," as well as the superficial, with deft insights.

"You could describe the brand concept," Earls writes, "as one of the best examples of an idea-virus.... It helps so many companies and individuals make sense of complex phenomena and challenges (but) the sheer variety of brand concepts has also become a hindrance to plain speaking and sensible business thinking." Earls chastises many professionals for their careless laziness about the "b-word," which leads to the confusion and sloppy thinking he describes as "brand babble."

Refreshingly, Earls make the case that for too many planners in advertising, "brand essence" means focusing on the past and is an "enormous overstatement of the importance of what we do." What's missing is the all-important work of creating meaningful, relevant insights that will drive future behaviors and perceptions. Behind every strong brand should be an idea about how the world should be. "Think purpose rather than positioning.... Where are you and your product going to take your stand?" Earls asks.

Would that the rest of this book challenged the status quo with equal intelligence. The "new thinking" quotient in the rest of the volume is remarkably skimpy-with one exception. Robert Poynton's piece on how theatrical improvisation techniques can be used in account management offers up useful tips in an entertaining format.

For advertising planners looking for some strategic training wheels, this could be a helpful primer. Otherwise, invest your time and money elsewhere.