Branding Time

On the range, in the spring, newly born calves were rounded up and branded. This kept things neatly organizes, showed to whom they belonged, conferred on them a belonging to a set, though I doubt the cowboys realized that at the time. They were just trying to keep ownership clear.

In the golden age of Madison Ave., the fifties and sixties, branding was done to show the attributes of a product that would differentiate it and make it more valuable. Then as in all things, the drive to brand became stronger and better, and as the marketing profession grew, so did branding.

Branding is a term whose definition is in continual re-definition. The idea of branding now is supposed to encompass everything about something. A pretty good deal for marketeers. At the core of a good brand is a focus that is apparent to all, for a good brand abhors diffraction and murk.

Now "branding" is the buzzword in politics, and is being widely applied to anything. This is not very new, we have seen books and seminars on how to brand yourself for success for years now. Currently, the Republicans and the pundits are obsessing about their brand. Most of this is of little note for this blog though. Until today, when I saw a column about re-branding America.

So why does this merit a post on Exechobo? Because I object to the idea that marketing and even business terms, ideas and processes should be applied to everything. It is as inappropriate as applying military or sports thinking, ideas and processes to everything. Business, sports and military terms may help us understand something on a quick and superficial level, but are limited to being mere metaphors. However, Marketing and branding are the current darling measures of the success of our national policies and politics in the media today, as if the most important measure of success for our country, or a political philosophy is how it is viewed. More off target, the article referenced above continues the misplaced obsession with how we are viewed in the foreign academic circles (for others it is in the media, or in popular media).

A nation is not a business or a brand. If that helps communicate what it is, great. But if using those metaphors simplifies the perception of the nation, they should not be used. Brands never attempt to do the right thing. They only attempt to stand for what is popular, acceptable or desirable. Countries must above all else adhere to their founding philosophy. In the case of the USA, that can be accessed in full right here.

This often emulated foundation of free government does not define a brand. It is not written to provide a framework for popularity.