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Be Unpredictable
Customers love delightful surprises

Giving away Lady Gaga’s Born This Way album for 99-cents was a generous offer by Amazon. Daring carries risks. In this case it generated bad customer experiences when extreme demand crashed Amazon’s servers. What no one could have predicted was what happened next.

After scaling up their server capability, Amazon  repeated the offer two days later. Bad feelings were washed away by their making it right. The offer was incredibly generous: the do-over cost Amazon an estimated $3 million dollars. Because it was so unpredictable, the entire episode generated many more times that in publicity.

What else would you expect from a double-dip of the Ten Be’s of Better Branding?


Be Specific
Define expectations clearly

Clearly, this guy doesn’t get it. This pile-up of products is a classic. Trying to be all things to all people makes you nothing to anyone. I learned as a teenage disc jockey a lesson about choosing which records to play that applies equally to business:

You’re defined as much by what you don’t do as you are by what you choose to do. Kitchens and baths? Sure. Kitchens and baths and floors? Okay. Kitchens and baths and floors and garage doors? Heh?

This also steps on the toe of Be #1: Be real, know who you are—and who you aren’t. I’ll bet if you called this guy, he’d do roof repair too. I’m sure he’s not plugged into the Ten BE’s of Better Branding.

Can it just work for you too?

Apple doesn’t build computers, mp3 players, or even phones. They provide something more meaningful: human connections. Instead of merely selling a device, Steve Jobs and company connects us to what we care about: music, people, memories. How they do is easy to see, if you know where to look.

In his Worldwide Developers Conference keynote address,  Jobs gave up the magic on a single slide. It wasn’t quoted in any news story or blog I could find. Yet, it succinctly conveys both what Apple does and how you can drive focused excellence in your company.Continue Reading


Be specific:
Define expectations clearly

Examples of the Ten BE’s of Better Branding often times jump out at me. While passing through the Whole Foods store in Austin (the kids and I refer to it as The Mother Ship), I came across this declaration of specificity.

They could have said “We contribute hundreds of thousands of dollars to our community.” Instead, the store tracks their donations to the penny. By posting them thusly Whole Foods gets credit and credibility. Added bonus for calling out a specific cause; bonds deep with supporters.

This practice applies equally with advertising claims. Be specific. It tells people you pay attention to and honest enough to share details.

Grooveyard of posts past