The Art and Science of Brand Management

Lots has been written about this Art and Science malarkey by far cleverer people than me. So I’ll keep this short.

It’s about 80 years since John Stuart, Chairman of Quaker Oats, uttered probably the most famous line about the pre-eminent but intangible value of brands,

“If this business were to be split up, I would be glad to take the brands, trademarks and goodwill, and you could have all the bricks and mortar — and I would fare better than you."

For any executive that relies on a brand to protect them from the death spiral of increased commoditization and price sensitivity, that statement is as true today as it ever was.

Brands are by far the most important asset supporting a CPG company’s stock price.

It follows that the people that build, manage and protect those brands should be the most respected people in the company [spoiler alert: would you believe this is quite often not the case!]

And yet, brands don’t actually exist…

…anywhere other than in our minds and that of our audience.

It is the managing of this acute contradiction which marks out the very best marketers.

The seeming contradiction between Measurable and Magical.

Efficient and Artistic. [this is starting to look a bit like a Dave Trott column…)

Commercial and Creative.

Art and Science.

Fin