Justin Bregar is a web designer, web developer and semi-pro photographer living in the Denver, Colorado area. This is his personal blog. If you're looking for web design or development services, you want Branding, continued…
My buddy James asks what I think about this article on branding being dead as it relates to my previous post on the matter of getting a brand. I figured I’d reply here, because it’s a damn good question.
I think Hugh has a lot of good points… as usual. But I think we’re talking about different kinds of things. I don’t think he’d disagree (at least I hope he wouldn’t) that branding is one of the reasons Google is where they are today. Now, when I say branding, I mean the fact that “Google” has become synonomous with “searching for shit on the Intarweb”.
After reading it, I have to assume he’s talking about visual branding more than branding an experience. When I wrote this post, I was talking about experience branding. Making your product notable within the marketplace… and that’s so little about a flashy logo and more about being out there and talked about. And it’s really hard to be out there and talked about when your product is wearing someone elses’ packaging. Even when Google provided search results for other companies, it was usually with pretty obvious “powered by Google” tagging.
So, I think the days of the HUGE branding budget are dead… and good riddance. But branding in terms of making sure people know who’s behind that great experience is more important than its ever been.
on May 30th, 2006 at 9:31 pm
Good points. Although my thoughts on branding were totally interrupted by the idea that Google’s new motto (if they don’t already have one,) should be…
Google: Searching for Shit on the Intarweb.
At least unofficially, anyway.
on May 31st, 2006 at 8:58 pm
Good stuff Mr. Bregar. I am totally with you – micro-branding is not the shiny package, it is the experience of the product.
I think those of us who are branding on a budget should be focusing on getting people to remember the positive/remarkable experience they have with the product, not the colors or even the logo (that kind of branding costs millions in most cases).
Who gives a shit if people remember your colors or logo when they remember your company’s name and they tell other people about the great experience they had?
on May 31st, 2006 at 9:06 pm
Yeah, the problem is you need a trigger for the “great experience” recall… and that’s where basal graphical elements like colors and logos come in.
While colors and graphics are still important, I don’t think huge promotional pushes need to be set behind these anymore… and that’s where the real money always was (developing the identity isn’t expensive, it’s the promo of that identity).
But yeah, you can’t really ignore the aesthetic elements of branding… otherwise you get the “I had this great experience on this one web site…” and I don’t think you want to be “that one web site…” you want to be James.com… that’s where aesthetics come in.
on June 5th, 2006 at 9:04 pm
“that kind of branding costs millions in most cases”
well if you want lindon leader or pentagram to whip up a logo for you, sure. otherwise great design and memorable branding does not rely on deep pockets. it relies on creative and talented designers who can (and are given room to) do their jobs.