Power Branding: Leveraging the Success of the World's Best Brands

Every one of the largest, most successful corporations were, at some point, mere startups. McKee explains what enables some companies to growbigger and better, while others stumble along year after year, running but never winning the race. The difference is that the biggest and best brands aren't slaves to conventional marketing wisdom. McKee shows by example how the same, sometimes counter-intuitive, strategies used by the biggest brands can also best serve small and mid-sized companies. Among the topics explored: How can a company grow big by thinking small? Why do the best companies sometimes avoid being better? Why do brands that create the most memorable advertising stay away from focus groups? What is the secret to an effective slogan? When can admitting a negative become a positive? A diverse selection of companies provides powerful lessons, ranging from traditional icons like Coca-Cola, McDonald's, and General Motors, to new media models like Google and Facebook. This book appeals not only to time- starved executives, but also to middle managers and owners of small businesses who have a wide variety of marketing problems to address and who need to change the way they think about how to generate healthy, consistent growth.

Table of Contents:
WHO 1. Who Comes First 2. Small Means Big 3. Happy are the Hunted 4. Uncommon is Common 5. It's Not About You 6. Heart Beats Wallet 7. Relationships are Reciprocal 8. Irrational is Rational 9. Customers are Wrong 10. Research can be Deceiving 11. It's Not the Shoes 12. Self-Expression Doesn't Sell 13. B2B is P2P 14. Brands R' Us 15. Your Brand is Theirs WHAT 16. Brands Belong 17. Consensus is Good 18. Ideas are It 19. Margins Take Money 20. Relevance Rules 21. Simplicity Sells 22. Bad can be Good 23. Different is Refreshing 24. Feelings Come First 25. Conventions can be Challenged 26. Counterbranding Works 27. Scarcity Drives Value 28. Copycats Never Cease 29. Innovation Prevents Liquidation 30. Form Can Top Function HOW 31. First Impressions Matter 32. Words Count 33. Testing may Fail 34. Giving Gets 35. Less is Often More 36. Gaps are Good 37. Not All Bells are Equal 38. Promises are Problematic 39. Creativity Sells 40. Partnerships Pay 41. Boring is Criminal 42. Humor Helps 43. Manners Matter 44. Behavior isn't Belief 45. Discounting is Dangerous WHERE AND WHEN 46. Convergence Spells Opportunity 47. Branding is Everything 48. Credibility is Critical 49. Sales and Marketing Mix 50. Integration is Power 51. Social can be Slippery 52. Data is Big 53. CRM can Backfire 54. Analog is Awesome 55. Investing Returns 56. ROI may be Deceiving 57. Accretion is Amazing 58. Patience is a Virtue 59. Visibility Brings Credibility 60. Harmony is Hard WHOOPS 61. It's OK to be Uncomfortable 62. Entropy Happens 63. Size Won't Save You 64. You Can't Fake Authenticity 65. Free is Costly 66. Doing Good Might Hurt 67. Tactics are Deceiving 68. Price is a Product Feature 69. Focus can be Fleeting 70. Aspirations may Backfire 71. Celebrities Bite 72. Nobody Likes a Bully 73. Christmas isn't Uncool 74. Speed can Kill 75. The Mirror can't be Trusted CONCLUSION: TO BE CONTINUED

About the Author :
Steve McKee is president of McKee Wallwork & Company, an integrated-marketing firm recognized by Advertising Age as one of top ten small agencies in the US. He is a BloombergBusinessweek.com columnist and is the author of the Axiom Award-winning business book When Growth Stalls.

Review :
"Both readable and wise--a rare combination--this book will be a welcome counselor to both the CMO and CEO as they look to build and nurture their most important asset--their company's brand." --Jon Iwata, SVP, Marketing and Communications, IBM "Steve McKee is masterful in taking the theoretical and making it real. Continuing his approach from his previous informative book, When Growth Stalls, Steve looks at a business's most valuable but misunderstood asset, its brand, and aids readers with a look in the mirror at how they are managing theirs." --Tommy Millner, Chief Executive Officer, Cabela's Inc. "In Power Branding Steve McKee delivers a knockout that should be mandatory reading in every business school in America. This is now the definitive book on modern branding." --Jay Baer, New York Times bestselling author of Youtilty "Steve McKee breaks brand strategy down into bite size pieces with concrete examples to consider. With a simple and compelling message, Mr. McKee's book is so thought provoking that I am giving a copy to my entire senior management team." --Stan E. Hubbard, CEO, REELZCHANNEL "I found the book entertaining, insightful and best in class on the subject of branding. For those of us interested in building exceptional companies, Steve shows us how essential and powerful it is when we develop and communicate our brand in alignment with our Vision, Mission and Value Proposition. For leaders looking to internally inspire, motivate, and spur creativity and growth while building great cultures and lasting customer loyalty, this book is invaluable." --Kim Bang, Former CEO, Bloomberg Tradebook "Most business books these days either rehash the same themes or merely validate what you already know. It's refreshing to read Power Branding and be able to apply so many things both your customers and marketing team will appreciate." --Jay Steinfeld, CEO/Founder, Blinds.com