Some argue that brand loyalty is an outdated concept. In a recent article in The New Yorker, writer James Surowiecki makes a bold assertion: There’s no such thing as brand loyalty anymore. The internet killed it, and brands are a thing of the past. Brands, his argument goes, came about…

In 1984, the big talk in advertising was all about Apple’s “Big Brother” Super Bowl commercial, which broke many of the time-tested rules regarding advertising. It was long – one full minute; it only aired once – during the Super Bowl, and yet this ad is still talked about today as a masterpiece of advertising.

What branding lessons can be learned from the biggest natural disaster in history? As a horrified public watches images of ruined coastal areas and destroyed businesses, the petroleum company that once touted itself as a progressive force in environmentalism is now trying to save the tattered remnants of its corporate reputation. You can learn from their mistakes.

PR is great, because it gives the consumer a sense of third party endorsement. It’s almost like the media outlet is saying, “This company is good because we have analyzed it. This is a good company. Their core values are great. I like them.”

Recently, I read an article that appeared in the New Yorker Magazine. It discussed how two well-known cereal companies, Kellogg’s and Post, dealt with the economic depression in the late 1920s. At the time, ready-to-eat cereals were relatively new and Americans didn’t view them as a real alternative to oatmeal…

In my book, Branding Insights for Small Businsses, I used the example of Exxon, the oil company…