This is a perfect example of executives run amock…Abrams, let your creative people do their job! They don’t need no thought control! (a quote from the pink floyd song, for those of you in the don’t-know…just like the title of this post). Having re-launch in such a manner is a sure sign that the folks over at WGN are merely trying to emulate the coolness of others. And, as we all know, that’s really just an admission that you have nothing original to offer.

Chick-Fil-A at Dogwood Mall here in Flowood has got to be the most efficient fast-food restaurant I’ve ever seen. Daily, lunchtime lines at the drive-through wrap double around the building. Even so, the wait is only a few minutes. The restaurant posts workers in the parking lot with touch-pads who work the line, take your order, and even run your credit card before you even get to the ordering kiosk. Rarely does one ever see that line standing still. What’s more, the service is friendly. At other fast-food restaurants, it’s generally a surprise to even be acknowledged, let alone treated with respect.

Some marketers are still relying on the idea that they can drill a catch phrase or benefit or USP or differentiation into our heads through ceaseless ads. It sure worked on me. Is this the core strategy behind the growth of your business? Not sure it’s going to work any more.

Imagine it’s the year 2000 and you ask the executive creative director from your agency—the same agency responsible for the re-design of your transactional site, if he/she purchases online regularly. The answer surprises you when they say that although they like the idea of making a purchase online—they have security concerns and prefer to do their shopping in the real world. Sounds silly I know. Now fast-forward seven years. What kinds of answers would you get if you asked these 10 questions of your agency execs?

In short, the web changed everything overnight. The market changed. The consumer changed. Business models changed. The economy changed. Products changed. Services changed. The only thing that didn’t change overnight was your perspective as a business owner. And that’s what Web 2.0 is all about. It’s bigger than a particular technology or methodology. It’s about your way of thinking. You can’t “use” Web 2.0. You can only realign your approach so as to be relevant in the Web 2.0 environment.

Retailers are experiencing some exceptional growth in their eCommerce business. While competition is high, many retailers are growing at an exceptional clip, with 20% online growth commonplace. Because of this growth, retailers are now addressing their multi-channel retailing businesses as core to their growth strategies.

This is how you create lifetime loyalty in your consumer. Sure, Weber spent some money to keep Ted happy. But it didn’t end there. Ted’s shared his experience with countless Home Depot customers, just as I’m sharing mine with you here. So, two acts of brand kindness are multiplied, thereby creating goodwill and perpetuating the notion that Weber is a quality product.

You’ve all probably seen or heard the ads for LifeLock, the company that provides insurance coverage against identity theft and credit fraud. CEO Todd Davis, to make a point, plasters his own social security number all over the company’s ads and dares criminals to steal his identity. Apparently, somebody took him up on the offer.

Think about it. If competition were such a bad thing, then why do authors trip over themselves to get their books into book stores? Why do record labels fill up shelves with competing artists? Why are art gallery walls sought-after space for painters? These kinds of outlets work because you walk in and your mind is saturated with the topic at hand. The more you read, the more books you will buy. The more you listen, the more CD’s you will buy (or download). The more you appreciate art in general, the more likely you will be to buy a painting.

So, how can you build a strong brand? Start by redefining what a brand means to you. Integrated branding is about acting out and expressing core values. The image of Nipper took hold because it was inherently true. It matched the experience the consumer had with the product. RCA didn’t draw a picture and then build a story around it, they selected a story that illustrated their core values. And it stuck. In short, get past the idea of viewing branding as a communications process.