Accidental Branding

I attended the Hampton Roads American Marketing Association luncheon today to hear David Vinjamuri, the author of Accidental Branding: How Ordinary People Built Extraordinary Brands. The program didn't disappoint.

Accidental Branding tells the personal stories of eight entrepreneurs who built some of the biggest and best-known consumer brands in the world. While the book and presentation are focused on products the lessons are equally valuable to professional services marketing.

Here are the six lessons of accidental brands:

1. Do sweat the small stuff. Pay attention to execution.

2. Pick a fight. Define what you are against. Then, people will know what you stand for. Who do you disagree with? Otherwise, you're doing the same as everyone else.

3. Be your own customer.

4. Be unnaturally persistent.

5. Build a myth. Tell your story so it explains the value of your brand. Make other people want to tell it for you.

6. Be faithful. Remember the customers who helped you grow. Get customers to be recommenders.

Click here to purchase Accidental Branding.