I'd like to share with you insights from the book of Jonathan Salem Baskin: "Branding Only Works On Cattle". I hope this post will be helpful to all DP readers. Top 10 Rules of Branding 1. You can't brand your way out of reality. (One of the driving principles of branding in a post-branded world is that brands can’t expect to ignore or deny reality. Telling the truth is harder, but far more compelling and sustainable. - Baskin) 2. Say What You Meant To Say. (Story-telling in our post-branded world requires more literal, specifc expression... you can be wildly creative, but you have to do so with an eye to being understood. - Baskin) 3. Everybody Is Selling A Service. (What matters in your marketing is less what the thing you sell looks like, and more how you and others support it. - Baskin) 4. Shoot for the Moon, Not the Stars. (Go for a dedicated smaller group you can learn about, instead of hoping to exploit a larger population of people you’ll never know. Today’s trends are about buy-in, not selling out. - Baskin) 5. Integrate Over Time, Not On Content. (One of the catchphrases of traditional marketing has been “integrated marketing,†which is a broad allusion to the idea that various marketing tactics—like ads, web sites, etc.—should all ft together somehow, and support the same brand messaging... The latest behavioral and cognitive research suggests that people don’t really pay attention to things unless they’re already somewhat interested; if not, they actually tune it out the more they hear it.- Baskin) 6. There's No Time Like Now. (The best way to contribute to the future state of things is to take responsibility for helping create it, not just hope to be included when it’s created. So take prompt actions, behaviors that matter—vote, register, get, respond, whatever. There’s no time like now in the post-branded world. - Baskin) 7. Reality Has To Trump Virtual. (You need to fgure out how to make the reality of your consumer experience that much better. - Baskin) 8. Kill Your Mascot. (Instead of putting resources into a mascot, how about creatively fnding ways to communicate the qualities of your business? Think fewer objects, and more conversations. Not so much image, and lots more reality. - Baskin) 9. No More Secret Codes. (The tenets of branding suggest that companies should endeavor to “own†terms and slogans, much like they can own mascots or other gimmicks. yet the consumers in the post-branded world are searching for common sense and clarity, and that experience requires simplicity and honesty from brands. - Baskin) 10. Talk Is Cheaper Than Ever Before. (Conversation in the post-branded world isn’t an end unto itself, but a means to operationalize intent; social media are tools, or places where things get done. So, while traditional ideas about branding suggest that the frequency of brand mention in these conversations has merit, the reality of the post-branded world is that conversation is irrelevant unless it’s linked somehow, in some way, to subsequent behavior. Talk was always cheap. It’s just cheaper now. - Baskin) I hope you'd be benefited from these invaluable insights on branding.