Brands are our economy’s atomic core, but they are being threatened like never before by a series of hostile forces in a confused and diffused marketplace that is evolving faster than the brands that populate it. The best defense is to build a brand that protects the brand’s franchise and provides a springboard for innovation and profitable growth. Strong brand strategy allows brand and marketing managers to better understand who they are selling to, what their brand is today, and what it can be, in order to create the optimum brand intent.

Arguably. One of the most straightforward definitions of brand can be expressed as an equation: Reputation = brand = behavior. An organization’s behaviors are manifested through people, products, and services; communications; and environment (both in the electronic economy and in the physical experience). These form the channels that shape an organization’s reputation, and as such they determine the brand. And it is the organization’s cumulative behaviors, expressed through strategies, actions, and communications, that will build the brand in the long term.

Building brand is about consistency. Every company, once it assumes a brand identity, has to live with the moral consequences of that identity. A brand is a promise, and you have to keep promises. There is no difference between what we sell and who we are.

The benefits of aligning actions around the brand intent are tremendous. A powerful core idea of what a company stands for can provide a focus for every thought, action, and relationship made in the company’s name. It also can engender pride and passion in the company’s employees. For consumers, even a bold new proposition will gain credibility if the organization is seen to be making regular and consistent business decisions that support that position.

Living the brand also provides a focus for organizational policy and operational decisions about quality standards. Employees and suppliers will be asked to measure themselves in a different way, asked to deliver a performance that can – and will – be judged according to how well he brand promise is delivered.