Customer Reviews

The Laws of Branding

5 star:		(59)
4 star:		(23)
3 star:		(12)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(14)

 

 

Focus. Don't do a line extension to save your life.

OK, this book is great and should be read by anyone involved in marketing (I mean come on, who doesn't have the 3 hours it takes to read this book). Unfortunately one serious drawback is that he uses plenty of examples to support his claims. Huh? Why is that a negative? Here's why: because it gets the reader to think of plenty of counter-examples that contradict his points. As another reviewer suggested the claim of "immutable" laws of marketing is a bit bold, but what the book does provide is food for thought in a highly readable context.

You gotta give the guy credit though. He takes a stand. And there's a lot to be said for taking a viewpoint and standing by it in today's middle of the road world.

If you don't feel up to reading "Focus," "Positioning," or some of the other texts by Al Ries, this one provides a lot of the insights in bite size pieces.

Despite the knocks against it listed above there are a few points worth acknowledging: 1. Al Ries is a legend in marketing. 2. It's a good, fun read with many useful examples worth keeping in mind when developing marketing strategies. 3. By reading it for yourself you can develop examples to refute a lot fo the laws and move along the path towards critically evaluating branding strategies.

Overall, this is a good read. But, don't fall into the robotic trap of believing EVERYTHING you read! Take what is good from this book (and there is some) and digest it with all your marketing AND common sense wisdom. The author claims that "symbols" are really NOT that important!... This sort of reckless disinformation only furthers the authors 'hidden agenda?' I have been a top international brand manager for numerous household names the past 35 years and I can tell you without a doubt that "SYMBOLS SELL." Now, don't get me wrong, I am not implying that the symbol is everything, but, A BAD, UNPROFESSIONAL AND CHEAPLY ACQUIRED LOGO DESIGN CAN SEVERELY AND SOMETIMES IRREVERSIBLY KILL YOUR BEST MARKETING EFFORTS OVER A PERIOD OF TIME. I have fallen victim to this problem more than once. Don't let it happen to you too!! We are a visual species; our unique and wonderful genetic disposition as humans endows us with the great gift of an advanced visual cortex within our brains. We see, we react, we think. But, by the time we get around to thinking, our subconscious mind has already assimilated a mountain of data about what we just took in. We innately gravitate towards that which is appealing to us visually; whether it be someone of the opposite sex or our favorite product (or LOGO) which captures our fancy in a magical way. Examples of logos like these are too numerous to mention here. Just look around your own little universe and "see" what it is that you yourself have become attached to over the years and think..."why?" The bottom line is this: Don't cut corners when it comes time to position your product or service in the global marketplace. A world class logo done right should be one of the FIRST things considered BEFORE launching your new product, business or service. You wouldn't set off to run a marathon with shoes from Wal-Mart. - Would you?? Shame on you, Al and Laura Ries for your gross error of judgement regarding the REAL WORLD facts.

The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding was primarily written by Laura Ries - Al Ries was a co-author on the book - in case anyone didn't know. Such information is available at their website. I rank this book a solid 5 star book because the insights / examples provided far outweigh any concerns / problems I found with the book. This book caused me to look at advertising / marketing from a different perspective in my daily life which is what I use to evaluate if something is a 5 star book

I loved The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding for the following reasons:

1. It flat out states the importance of marketing & branding, which is important to separate in the readers' mind before beginning. As they state "Marketing is building a brand in the mind of the prospect. If you can build a powerful brand you will have a powerful marketing program. If you can't, then all the advertising, fancy packaging, sales promotion and public relations in the world won't help you achieve your objective."

2. The Ries' call it like they see it. Excellent examples of marketing / advertising stupidity / effectiveness are provided.

3. They talk about the plethora of products that are produced each year.

4. They discuss how businesses must get inside a consumer's mind (AKA positioning) to win the war. Volvo = safety, BMW = Ultimate Driving Machine, Mercedes = prestige, Toyota = Reliability, Ford = ?, Chevy = ?. The Ries' clearly spell out an excellent reason as to why the U.S. automanufacturers are getting killed.

5. The book illustrates, as did the 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing, how companies dilute their brands through line extensions (I personally believe this due to my personal experience / buying patterns and observations of others.)

6. They point out the increasing importance of PR (public relations) compared to advertising. This is the subject of a new book by the father / daughter. Basically PR launches a product and advertising gives it life support is their main assertion.

I disliked The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding for the following reasons:

1. Overlap from prior books is definitely occurring. I have noticed this with Jack Trout's recent books too. I would estimate that 15% - 20%, at a minimum, of Trout's recent books and this book have been stated in one form or another in their prior works.

2. Some of the examples provide clearly refute other examples provided. On page 100 they state "the Mustang and former CEO of Chrysler Corporation (two powerful brand names.) In prior examples the authors clearly state that the brand is the maker of the company. Volvo = safety, BMW = driving machine, etc (you will find such features in all their vehicles -maybe not in Volvos convertible.) What does Chrysler stand for again? Minivans? I haven't exactly noticed it in their advertising......for a long time...

Conclusion: Buy the book. It is well worth the time and money. Most of my reviews are in business / economics and I encourage people to read them, whether here on Amazon or at my personal website. If you are interested in another good marketing book I highly recommend Differentiate or Die by Jack Trout or Seth Godin's book on permission marketing / launching an ideavirus. If you are interested in other subjects I would encourage you to read The Worldly Philosophers by Robert Heilbroner if you are interested in economic history - the book is international in scope and deals with the lives and times of the most famous economists in history. If you are interested in economic development / evolution of U.S. property history I would encourage you to read Hernando DeSoto's Mystery of Capital but note his lack of focus on corruption in certain countries. A great general business book is by the management guru Peter Drucker entitled "The Essential Drucker."

I write reviews on Amazon rather avidly. When I started reading this particular book, I knew it would be a good number to review. So I started marking everything in the book that I disagreed with or that I felt was worth commenting on.

That the Ries duo relies on sweeping statements (e.g., "Quality of a product doesn't matter. It's all about brands.") hardly made my intentions any easier. Needless to say, my copy of 22 Immutable Laws of Branding is riddled with lots of ink and copious sidenotes. There is a lot I said "Really?" to while reading.

But maybe that's the thing I adore about Ries Inc. Their books are anything but boring manuals on a topical issue so relevant to almost anyone in business. I was "involved" with this book like I have seldom been with a work of non-fiction. I adored and went all retrospective with the "Law of the Name" and the "Law of Globalism". The writing is trippy, semi-provocative and hence absolutely delectable in a piece of work such as this!

Do I recommend it? Wholeheartedly. A wonderfully satisfying read. Just keep your discerning senses about you and think twice before wrapping your (brand management) career around all the advice this book proffers.

Noteworthy: The whole book is also available in a PDF version, if you are not particularly averse to on-screen reading.

I can't believe some of these other reviews. Some guy gave it 5 stars and admitted that he hadn't read it yet! I assume that isn't a plant, because it's too stupid to be a plant.

The book is good, thought-provoking, and has some real insights. HOWEVER, it is a little simplistic, and it's written for the brand manager of Coke. For those of us without 80+ years of brand history behind us yet, some of his advice isn't relevant. Also, some of his conclusions are just too simplistic: "Symbols are overrated and don't matter much anyway" (paraphrasing). Come on. You can't tell me the swoosh isn't a powerful asset, and the authors admit it, but they poo-poo the entire concept.

Section on naming is very insightful. And the hard advice on expansion is right on! Overall, good, and worth buying for any marketing person. But, this is definitely NOT the bible. Come on, people!

Below please find the 22 Laws of Branding (and short elaboration)for your quick reference:-

1. Expansion: The power of a brand is inversely proportional to its scope
2. Contraction: A brand becomes stronger when you narrow its focus
3. Publicity: The birth of a brand is achieved with publicity, not advertising
4. Advertising: Once born, a brand needs advertising to stay healthy
5.The Word: A brand should strive to own a word in the mind of the consumer
6.Credentials: The crucial ingredient in the success of any brand is its claim to authenticity
7. Quality: Quality is important, but brands are not built on quality alone
8. The Category: A leading brand should promote the cateogry, not the brand
9. The Name: In the long run a brand is nothing more htan a name.
10. Extensions: The easiest way to destroy a brand is to put its name on everything
11. Fellowship: In order to build the category, a brand should welcome other brands
12. The Generic: One of the fastest routes to failure is giving a brand a generic name
13. The Company: Brands are brands. Companies are companies. There is a difference
14. Subbrands: What branding builds, subbranding can destroy
15. Siblings: There is a time and a place to launch a second brand
16. Shape: A brand's logotype should be designed to fit the eyes. Both eyes.
17. Color: A brand should use a color that is the opposite of its major competitor's
18. Borders: There are no barriers to global branding. A brand should know no borders.
19. Consistency: A brand is not built overnight. Success is measured in decades, not years.
20. Change: Brands can be changed, but only infrequently and only very carefully
21. Mortality: No brand will live forever. Euthanasia is often the best solution
22. Singularity: The most important aspect of a brand is its single-mindedness

If you feel fine with the above statements, I assure you that you will enjoy the book much with its smooth writing style and plenty of real life examples/graphs (and that trigger you to think of many counter examples, too, as stated by many reviewers already). If not, please give it a pass.

p.s. The additional 11 Laws of Internet Branding is definitely an A+.

I have read a few books written by Ries and there are two ideas that are emphasized again and again, that is, to focus and to place a word in the prospect mind. This book is no exception. The laws of branding built in this book are based on these two concepts.

"Marketing is building a brand in the mind of the prospect". I totally agree. People are exposed to an over-communicated environment, to place a word in the prospect mind can surely lead your company to success. In fact, in customers' mind, there is no difference between your products and your competitors'. Only by building a brand can you differentiate your company from its competitors.

I also agree that brand building is not just for marketing department but for the entire company, as a brand is not only composed of its name but also of its product, service, environment, communication and behavior of the company. Everything a company does is related to brand building. Therefore, apart from the name that includes the logotypes and the color, this book also provides us with a lot of ways to do with the brand. For examples, to focus in its scope, to achieve it with publicity and maintain it with advertising, to promote the category rather than the brand, to distinguish it from the company, to avoid using subbranding etc.

This book is clear in the format and the content, illustrated by plenty of examples of what not to do and lessons on how to brand in the customer's mind! I can get a lot of insights from it.

This book is worth reading! I highly recommend you to read it!

I do a little consulting in marketing & branding. I've got five other books on branding sitting on the shelf, & I've plowed through four.

I wouldn't say those other books were a waste of time, but I'm confident that this one has more immediately useful information than all of them taken together. And I'm stunned that it as easy read, not only informative but *fun*.

This edition is the one you want, as it combines the 22 laws with the other 11 that pertain very specifically to the Internet. By the time you get through the first few, you will find yourself looking at every brand -- on television, in the stores, on your own shelves -- in a whole new light. One of the prime models, coincidentally enough, is Amazon.com itself. The authors' comments on this very site will probably open your eyes to how remarkable the Bezos legacy has been.

I've barely finished, yet this book has already helped steer me better as to some website questions I had been studying. It's already paid for itself ten times over, & I am certain that the benefits have only begun. The simple, clear differentiation between a company name & a brand name has, by itself, been a unique lesson, & I've taken to heart the stern warnings (& wonderfully absurd object lessons) against line extensions & brand dilution.

Don't let the somewhat bizarre cover put you off (as it did me). This is one of the few books that I intend to re-read on a regular basis, & I will read more Reis titles in the near future.

This book was recommended to me by my business coach and I have not regretted the purchase ever. At first, I was a little concerned with the strange looking cover with the difficult to read font and the bright colors. My concern was that if they know so much about branding, why this kind of a cover.

But my concerns end with the cover as everything in between was very well laid out, backed by common sense and facts based on real companies. There are several examples used on every page to explain the total of 33 immutable laws (22 regular and 11 internet). We all intuitively understand branding because we are consumers and hence experience on a daily basis our purchasing being swayed by branding. So it was very nice to be able to read this perfect book on branding and understand so much in such a short time. It won't take more than a few hours to read this book cover to cover.

Let me share an example law without spoiling the book for you - #4 Internet Law: The Law of the Proper Name explains how proper names are better than common names for Internet branding. The clear proof of this is in the common names that never took off - drugs.com, university.com, wine.com, telephone.com, etc. and the proper names that did take off - priceline.com, amazon.com, etc. And I really like the explanation for why this law works.

So if you are a small business owner who can influence the branding of your business, products and services - go ahead and buy a copy of this book as you won't regret it. Of course, the content of this book is not restricted to small businesses. I am sure almost anyone involved in the branding efforts of the companies they work for will find it useful.

Good luck!

I don't know. To me it just seems much too easy to wait for a company to fail and then analyze and formulate certainties about why it failed. Conversely it's much to easy to do the same for a company that succeeds. I have yet to see anybody make projections about companies that are executing certain branding tactics RIGHT NOW!!! If these laws are immutable then we should clearly be able to find more than a handful of companies that have mutated these laws and say "Yes they will fail."
My feeling is that these laws and bits of certainties apply only to the past. And since the past can't be modified neither can the laws that are applied to them. But what about laws for the future? And can branding and marketing laws for the future even exist? Probably not. Because, and I'm sure most marketing guru's will agree, the tastes and preferences of consumers are anything but immutable. They change all the time. Even our ability to recieve and process information quite frankly depends on our mood - and I make that statement as a consumer and not as a Advertising specialist.

I would not classify these ideas of this book as laws, but more as considerations. They are things to consider when making choices about a Brand Strategy. We can analyze to high heaven about why a Brand will pass or fail, but in the end it will depend on the fickle desires of the consumer. We do our best to forecast, but even the weatherman has screwed up a "Bright and Sunny" forecast on what resulted in a Rainy and Miserable day.
Consumers are no different. And it is improbable if not impossible that we will ever lock down End-All-Be-All laws that will encapsulate the "Whatever" attitude of the public.