Accidental Branding: How Ordinary People Build Extraordinary Brands (Hardcover)

by David Vinjamuri (Author)
Key Phrases: optical data, winter harbor, accidental branding, Baby Einstein, Clif Bar, Columbia Sportswear (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
The stories of acclaimed entrepreneurs like John Peterman (J. Peterman) and Gert Boyle (Columbia Sportswear), whose brands generate a cult-like loyalty from consumers, give this book a lively flavor that goes down better than any list of dry strategies. Author Vinjamuri—a marketing professor at New York University and the founder of a marketing training company—reports that every brand I wanted to write about started with some fortuitous accident visited upon perfectionists who sweat every detail. Gary Erickson, creator of the Clif Bar, is one such perfectionist; a long-distance cyclist disgusted with foul-tasting energy bars, he invented his own bar, more delicious and nutritious than any of its competitors. Another example is Roxanne Quimby, who was living in a tent in Maine with her five-year-old twin daughters when Burt Shavitz, a beekeeper, picked her up hitchhiking and inspired her Burt's Bees brand. Luck and good timing played a role for these businesspeople, but their success ultimately stemmed from an ability to think like their own consumer. Despite a tendency to digress, Vinjamuri has a similar understanding of his readers. The chapter he dedicates to his own conclusions is thoughtful enough, but not nearly as compelling as the stories of the entrepreneurs themselves. (Apr.)
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Review
The stories of acclaimed entrepreneurs like John Peterman (J. Peterman) and Gert Boyle (Columbia Sportswear), whose brands generate a cult-like loyalty from consumers, give this book a lively flavor that goes down better than any list of dry strategies. Author Vinjamuri—a marketing professor at New York University and the founder of a marketing training company—reports that “every brand I wanted to write about started with some fortuitous accident” visited upon perfectionists who “sweat every detail.” Gary Erickson, creator of the Clif Bar, is one such perfectionist; a long-distance cyclist disgusted with foul-tasting energy bars, he invented his own bar, more delicious and nutritious than any of its competitors. Another example is Roxanne Quimby, who was living in a tent in Maine with her five-year-old twin daughters when Burt Shavitz, a beekeeper, picked her up hitchhiking and inspired her Burt's Bees brand. Luck and good timing played a role for these businesspeople, but their success ultimately stemmed from an “ability to think like their own consumer.” Despite a tendency to digress, Vinjamuri has a similar understanding of his readers. The chapter he dedicates to his own conclusions is thoughtful enough, but not nearly as compelling as the stories of the entrepreneurs themselves. (Apr.) (Publishers Weekly, February 8, 2008)

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Wiley (March 28, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0470165065
• ISBN-13: 978-0470165065
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.3 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #203,604 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Accidental Branding is excellent., May 12, 2008

By	Chris Houchens "Marketing Speaker" (Kentucky) - See all my reviews

All the companies David Vinjamuri profiles in Accidental Branding are strongly associated with an individual. These individuals have seen their brands develop over time and have a personal journey with the brand that is intertwined with their lives.

What David tries to show is that all these brands have developed a (sometimes small) group of dedicated followers who stuck with the brand even through rough times. Since the brand/business is so personal to the owners he profiled, there is an innate sense of quality and pride that leaks out and the brand authenticity is built in.

The companies that he profiles are all brands that you've heard of like Columbia Sportswear and Baby Einstein as well as lesser known but popular brands like Clif Bar and the Art of Shaving. My favorite chapters of the book were his discussions with Craig Newmark of Craigslist, Roxanne Quimby of Burt's Bees (he also talked to Burt), and my fellow Kentuckian - John Peterman of J. Peterman.

The book is not a typical business book. It consists of several good stories that are enjoyable even if people don't care about branding. David doesn't preach mantra in the stories. He just lays them out well and lets you learn what is obvious to you. He does begin and end the book with some of his own gleanings from his visits. Another great thing about the book is that you don't have to read sequentially (I didn't), but just take the stories and ingest them one at a time.

If you're beginning to build a brand or stepping back to take a new look at a current brand, this would be a good book to start reading.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Stories About Entrepreneurs, May 9, 2008

By	Jeff Epstein (New Canaan, CT USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I love business, I love stories about entrepreneurs, and I love this book.

I want to know, "Who are the founders of a business? How did they start? How did they build their first product, sell to their first customer and hire their first employee? How did they build something of enduring value out of ideas, determination, ability and luck?" Accidental Branding tells how.

The talented David Vinjamuri tells these vivid stories based on thorough research, including personal journeys to the entrepreneurs' homes and headquarters. The characters spring to life, with all their passions, successes, foibles and failures on full display.

The dramatic conflict of these stories starts with the premise: these entrepreneurs began with no money, no connections and no training, but somehow developed a crystal clear image of their company's mission and an overflowing passion for quality.

It reminds me of the wise career advice: if you have passion without skill, you're a fan; if you have passion and skill but no customers, you have a hobby; if you have passion, skill and customers, you have a career. These entrepreneurs created the careers they dreamed of.

The only problem with the book is it's too short. I can't wait for the sequel.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Inspiring for Marketers and Entrepreneurs, May 29, 2008

By	David Berkowitz "Blog - MarketersStudio.com" (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Once, I was reading Accidental Branding on the subway and two twenty-ish European women sitting by me paused to check out the book. "It's an interesting title," said the brunette.

The next day I was at UPS and a 30-something mother entered with her three-year-old. She asked to see the book, as it turned out she had Thanksgiving dinner with the author.

Later, I went to The Art of Shaving. This wasn't so accidental, as the company is prominently featured in the book as one of seven "accidental brands," which means it fits three criteria, according to author David Vinjamuri:

1. It was created by someone not trained in marketing.
2. The creator must experience the problem the brand solved (eg the co-founder of Art of Shaving experienced nasty razor burn).
3. The individual must control the brand for at least 10 years.

I was so captivated by the story of Shaving founders Myriam Zaoui and Eric Malka and so troubled over my own inability to get a decent shave that, as I was finishing the book, I took the subway to the nearest Art of Shaving store on East 62nd Street, the original store they opened. As the book hadn't been released yet, the store manager Angelo wasn't aware of it, but he was excited to glance at the chapter featuring his store. Fifteen minutes later, I learned enough from Angelo to attempt to try a new way of shaving at home, spending more than I ever have in my life on skin care products in the process.

Now, that has much more to do with the brand than the book, but it also gets to what makes the book so compelling. Vinjamuri tells seven stories of accidental brands: J. Peterman, craigslist, Clif Bar, The Art of Shaving, Columbia Sportswear, Baby Einstein, and Burt's Bees. Perhaps more than any individual brand's story, I'll remember the storytelling. Each story's told with affection, and the tone shifts ever so slightly for each one, from the wilderness of Peterman to the trailblazing Clif Bar to the high class shaving to the bucolic Burt's Bees.

And then again, I'm just falling for a trap. The brand's founders are the stars of nearly every page of the book, and their personalities, as captured by Vinjamuri, shoot of this magnetism.

This is not a how-to book. Yes, there is some advice up front to tie it all together, six characteristics of accidental brands and their creators. While that's necessary in a business book and the book would feel lacking without it, one can understand why he puts it up front and keeps the afterward brief. You get your formal education out of the way, and then you get to really learn from experience - the experience of the accidental branders.

Entrepreneurs will find the most inspiration here, as will most in the marketing field. The storytelling merits an even wider audience.

You won't need this to complete your MBA or successfully run a marketing department, but you may well find some added inspiration to keep doing what you're doing, or perhaps pursue a passion of yours with more zeal than you've had before.