Cisco, like many technology companies, thinks only linearly. What they do is in the context of their technological hold in the market, but the Flip does not fit this model

Large companies and even mid size to smaller can now get tons of data on you. How you shop, what you buy, what your age group does, what your neighborhood does – but do they really get you?

If you’re like me most of your banking is done online these days. I go the accounts area, pay bills, move money around and occasionally check out other services, all with no person involved. I then deposit checks at nonhuman ATM machines. I usually only interact when I need something fixed or just plain don’t [...]

Denny’s may be a top restaurant chain but its focus is on one segment of the market. It may not be my brand. Gap may be a great clothing brand to some but it’s limited to the demographics where it succeeds, just like Jack in the Box

I see a lack of real strategy on building a bigger online community and more of a move towards adding revenue based on targeted groups.

The brands that convey the most customer loyalty like Apple, Coke and Nike are the you brands. The brands that convey your personalized experience that empowers you as part of a greater community.

Brand strategy is the connection between your marketing goals and your customers’ experience. How you position your brand defines who comes to buy, why and how to build your market.

So do you have what it takes to enlist your own army of brand followers? Take a look at how you interact with your customers and ask yourself if you are worthy of their loyalty.

With branding and tag lines you focus on the simplest words that convey meaning and differentiation to the potentially most loyal consumer.

The shocking part about the Gap’s disastrous misstep is that it shows their lack of connection to their own consumers, which is incredibly important.