What's all this about branding?

“Hey, Cowboy, what’s all this I’ve been hearing about branding? I don’t want to be branded; I don’t even have a tattoo.”

“Stay with me, Jaded Julie, and I’ll try to explain. So to launch our discussion, ‘what’s your brand?’”

“My father’s brand was Camels, but you know me, Curmudge, I don’t smoke. I guess I don’t have a brand.”

“Of course you do; everybody does. It’s what people who know you think of when they see you.”

“I understand, Curmudge. When people see me they think, ‘There goes Jaded Julie, a woman who is attractive, intelligent, charming, and witty despite the fact that she is wearing blue scrubs and Superclogs™.’”

“At least they are correct about the blue scrubs and Superclogs.”

“Curmudge, I always thought of a brand as a commercial thing, like Coca-Cola. When I see or hear that name I envision a cool drink in a ‘coke bottle’-shaped bottle.”

“Me too, Julie. A bottle of Coke used to cost a nickel; I’d buy one and get two straws—one for me and one for my date.”

“Get with it, Curmudge. Your mind is drifting back into the last century. Please return to the issue at hand. I’ll bet that establishing their brand cost Coca-Cola millions in advertising. Is that what all commercial organizations have to do to establish their brand?”

“No way, Julie. Roger’s Barber Shop didn’t do that, and they certainly have my brand loyalty. When I walk in the door everyone knows me, they cut my hair—the little bit that I have—like I want it, and they only charge $9.00 for ‘lucky retired guys.’ Their success is based on the personal brand—friendliness, efficiency, and professional competence—projected by each person in the shop.”

“I’ve got it, Curmudge. The corporate brand of an organization that provides services to individuals is the aggregate of the personal brands of its employees. The brand of a hospital is the combined personal brands of its doctors, nurses, housekeepers, and even its volunteers.”

“This type of corporate brand gets its power when all of the personal brands have similar attributes and are working together in phase, as scientists would say. It is everyone working together pulling in the same direction.”

“That’s a great concept, Curmudge. After all of that strenuous thinking, it’s time for us to take a Coke break. But please, may I have my own bottle?”

Affinity’s Kaizen Curmudgeon