Breakthrough Branding: How Smart Entrepreneurs and Intrapreneurs Transform a Small Idea into a Big Brand [Paperback]

Catherine Kaputa (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 16, 2012

From the grassroots growth of beverage brands like Red Bull, and Honest Tea, to the exploding growth of digital brands like Twitter, and Groupon — successful companies of all types and sizes begin with three things: an entrepreneur, a winning idea, and a brand strategy. Branding expert Catherine Kaputa, founder of SelfBrand LLC, uses dozens of US and international brand histories to demonstrate what makes a brand thrive, and provides you with the tools to do the same.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Voted "2012 - Books Entrepreneurs Must Read" by Grasshopper.com

For both long-standing and newly-minted entrepreneurs, there is no greater defeat than having a customer go elsewhere because they didn’t understand your value. Breakthrough Branding clearly and skillfully leads its readers through the need and the creative process of branding a ‘position’ in the marketplace. By first creating a ‘clear benefit or promise of worth’ which is different from that of competitors, and then by allowing social media to be a ‘big microphone,’ each entrepreneur can learn to reinvent and redistribute their personal and business branding. I highly recommend this book as a must-have marketing tool in today’s highly-competitive, global marketplace.--Patricia Sigmon, President, David Advisory Group, and Author, Six Steps to Creating Profit

If brand building were courting and marrying, Kaputa’s strategies would be the best dating advice around! She shows you how to romance the marketplace with your package, your name, and your image without sacrificing the heart of your brand.-- Dr. Wendy Walsh, America’s Relationship Expert, Co-Host, THE DOCTORS and CNN’s Human Behavior Expert

Having a great idea isn’t enough. You’ve got to develop and build your brand if you want to be a successful entrepreneur, and Catherine Kaputa is just the expert you need to provide you with great ideas in a simple, direct way. Want branding to be easy? Read this book.--Anita Bruzzese, USA Today Workplace Columnist, and Author, 45 Things You Do That Drive Your Boss Crazy

An accomplished marketer and world-class businesswoman, Catherine has created the ultimate field manual for any aspiring entrepreneur. A must-have and must-read for anyone who wants their business to succeed!--Kevin Allen, Author, The Hidden Agenda

Your brand is a mental picture that consumers carry around in their heads. But the act of branding is something you can control—by using the tools of marketing communications to influence those perceptions. Here is a cheerful crash course on how to get going.-- Steve Rivkin, Marketing Consultant, and Co-Author, IdeaWise and The Making of a Name

Catherine’s Breakthrough Branding is a book you give to the ones you love who are building their own business. She takes us step by step through a process born of security of the perfect job to the jungle of entrepreneurship. She has been thrown into it and mastered it. Her lessons are invaluable. This is a must read for anyone aspiring or working to build a business.--Jim Camp, Founder Camp Negotiation Institute, and Author, Start With No

From one of marketing’s premier thought-leaders, Breakthrough Branding is a treasure chest filled with practical and immediately applicable advice on branding and marketing strategy. It is sure to become THE handbook of entrepreneurial branding and marketing strategy.--Robert Barnwell, Author, Lead, Follow or Get the Hell Out of the Way

Whether you’re dying to launch your own company, or are more of a reluctant entrepreneur, you face the imperative to build your brand. Catherine Kaputa has made this challenge her personal and professional study, and in this book she shares secrets worth many times the cost of admission. Now go forth and brand!--Daniel H. Pink, Author, DRIVE and A WHOLE NEW MIND

Breakthrough Branding is engaging, vital and packed with branding power. With examples from around the world, it’s a must read for entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs who have a business ide but need the tools to grow it into a big brand.--William H. Roedy, Former Chairman & Chief Executive of MTV Networks International, and Author, What Makes Business Rock

Anything that Catherine writes is worth reading. She was one of my best students on the subject of ‘Positioning’ and building brands. She won’t steer you wrong.--Jack Trout, World Famous Marketing Strategist

If you aim to be an entrepreneur and already have a big idea, but you never studied marketing and branding, this book will give you a running start. Catherine is a superb coach and her book delivers a wonderful collection of marketing steps and real world entrepreneur success stories.--Philip Kotler, Marketing Professor, Kellogg School of Business, Northwestern University

If there’s one thing you’ve just got to know about—but is tough to learn about—it’s branding. Catherina Kaputa tells you what you must know in this valuable book. Read it before your competitors do.--Jay Conrad Levinson Author, Million-Selling Guerrilla Marketing Series

If brand building were courting and marrying, Kaputa’s strategies would be the best dating advice around! She shows you how to romance the marketplace with your package, your name, and your image without sacrificing the heart of your brand.--Dr. Wendy Walsh, America’s Relationship Expert, Co-Host, THE DOCTORS and CNN’s Human Behavior Expert

"[Kaputa] provides direct and easy-to-grasp (and -apply) concepts within reach for any entre-/intrapreneur. . . Entertaining, engaging, and thankfully (and remarkably) untethered to marketing-, brand-, and ad-speak."— Barbara Jacobs, Booklist

About the Author

Catherine Kaputa is a branding strategist, speaker, award-winning author and the founder of SelfBrand, a personal branding and development company. From Madison Avenue to Wall Street to the Halls of Academe to founding her own company, SelfBrand, Catherine perfected her ability to brand products, companies and places. She learned brand strategy under Ali Ries and Jack Trout at Trout & Ries Advertising. She led the 'I Love New York' campaign at Wells, Rich, Greene. For over ten years, she was senior SVP Director of Branding at Shearson Lehman Brothers and Citi Smith Barney. And she taught a course in branding at NYU's Stern School of Business. For more information about SelfBrand and Catherine's work, please visit www.selfbrand.com!

Product Details

• Paperback: 296 pages
• Publisher: Nicholas Brealey Publishing (June 16, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1857885813
• ISBN-13: 978-1857885811
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.8 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #104,428 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #77 in Books > Business & Investing > Small Business & Entrepreneurship > Marketing

More About the Author

Catherine Kaputa is a personal branding strategist, speaker, workshop leader and author. She is the founder of SelfBrand, a NYC-based personal branding company (www.selfbrand.com ).

From Madison Avenue to Wall Street to the halls of academe, she perfected how to brand and market products, places and companies. Catherine learned brand strategy under Al Ries and Jack Trout at Trout & Ries Advertising. She led the award-winning "I Love New York" campaign at Wells Rich Greene. For over ten years she was SVP, Director of Advertising and Community Affairs at Citi Smith Barney, and taught advertising at NYU's Stern School of Business.
Yet Catherine discovered that the most important application for branding is not products, places and companies - it's for individuals to define and own their career identity.

Personal branding can help people create more success for themselves and the companies they work for, the topic of her book, U R a Brand, How Smart People Brand Themselves for Business Success, winner of the Ben Franklin award for Best Career Book 2007 (www.urabrand.com ).

Catherine is also active as a speaker and workshop leader on women's leadership, the topic of her new book: The Female Brand: Using the Female Mindset for Business Success (Davies Black, June 2009, www.femalebrand.com ).

Catherine has spoken at a wide range of corporations and organizations as part of talent development, sales force meetings and diversity and women's initiatives - organizations focused on creating career and leadership development opportunities particularly during turbulent times. Clients include PepsiCo, Microsoft, Intel, UBS, Boehringer-Ingelheim, Bank of New York, UST and others. (For more information contact: [e-mail]. Visit www.selfbrand.com. Catherine blogs at www.artofbranding.com ) You can follow her at www.twitter.com/Catherine Kaputa


Previous Public Speaking Events:

Book Expo America (BEA)
Book Signing, New York, NY
June 6, 2012
Breakthrough Branding


Microsoft's Tech-Ed Conference
Orlando, Florida
Women In Technology Keynote Speaker
June 14, 2012
The Female Brand

Con Edison
Private Conference
Bear Mountain, NY
June 18
You Are a Brand

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Standing Out July 24, 2012

By J. Tian

Format:Paperback

Catherine Kaputa delivers the goods. Her concepts of self-branding are thought provoking, and her ideas on how to implement them are even better.

The author goes into ways to differentiate yourself and stand out in person and virtually on the Internet through your website, blog or on social media like Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.

The keys are to be different, relevant and consistent at every touchpoint.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars You need this book if you're an entrepreneur! July 9, 2012

By JK

Format:Paperback

I am a solo entrepreneur, so I am constantly on the lookout for ways to increase the effectiveness of everything I do. This book provided so many insights on how I can leverage myself and build my business' brand. It certainly exceeded my expectations.

"Breakthrough Branding" is a must-have book if you're an entrepreneur. It provides practical ideas for thriving in today's competitive business environment. Catherine Kaputa presents real examples and company stories to support each of her principles and tactics. So the book is not just theory, but a fun read that gives you many ideas you can implement -- right now.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Branding A to Z October 22, 2012

By David Bellman

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I very much enjoyed reading Catherine's book Breakthrough Branding. I am about to launch my own product in the coming months and I will use her book to guide me through the entire process. I have read many books on branding and business over the years however this book is one of only two books i will constantly keep by my side as I move forward. The book is packed with useful ideas and I will be applying as many of her ideas as I can in the coming months.