270 pages | 6 x 9 | Hardcover
Branding Iron
Branding Lessons from the US Auto Industry
Toyota will soon displace General Motors as the world’s largest automaker. Since 2000, GM’s market cap fell from $66 billion to $15 billion. In 1980 GM sold 45 of every 100 cars that rolled out of showrooms in the U.S. It now sells 26. By any yardstick, that is a crisis. The root cause of this financial cataclysm mystifies many of the players in the industry. But the numbers tell a clear story.
The headlines offer a simplistic interpretation. They say that legacy costs, poor cost control, ill-advised investments in other automakers and in undistinguished products—all of which are serious issues—caused the trouble. That’s wrong. Or, worse, incomplete and myopic—the same kind of myopia that created the problem in the first place.
#2 on Advertising Age's "Must-Read" Books of the Year
Like many a crisis, this one has been brewing for decades. And the cost-cutting quick fixes proposed by many industry “experts” won’t solve it. Why not? Because it’s not the root cause. What is killing US automakers is their inability to attract growing numbers of customers to its numerous brands, many of which seem almost irrelevant today. In a few words: bad brand management. (“Iron,” if you’re wondering, is what the auto industry calls its products.)
What makes a world-class brand? The authors describe great brands as “a promise wrapped in an experience.” The best brands make a strong, clear commitment to stand for something, to do it better than anyone else, and orchestrate the entire ownership experience. This requires a level of courage beyond most executives.
With wit and humor, Branding Iron uses lessons from the car business to guide readers in every business on a quest to build a world-beating brand that leaves a real mark, one made the old fashioned way—burned in with a red hot iron. The authors do the tough analysis and ask tough questions that most Boards of Directors should be asking, and they give even tougher answers.
Foreword by David E.Davis, Jr.
Acknowledgements
About the Authors
Introduction
Chapter 1 Dead Brand Tales and The Evil of Conventional Wisdom
Conventional Wisdom
“Product Is King”
“Customers Are Smart”
“Let’s Research It"
“Advertising Sells”
“You Can Charge More for a Brand-Name Product”
“The More You Pay,the Better the Product”
“More Expensive Brands Are Higher Quality”
“Adding Brands Creates More Synergies”
Proliferation, Fragmentation, and Ego
The Briefest of Automotive Primers
Dealer Body
Name plates and Models
Platforms
Badge Engineering
The Brand Portfolio
Oldsmobile: Centennial and Funeral
The Plymouth Saga
The Evil of Conventional Wisdom
Contents x
Chapter 2 The Market
The Test of Perspective
The Story of Saturn
How the Marketplace Works
Conventional Wisdom
Trends Founded on Contradictions
Brand Distinctiveness/Brand Portfolio
More Choice/Less Choice
High Growth/Low Reality
Brand Value/Insane Discounting
Low Risk/High Reward
The Brand Trianglesm
Testing Your Courage
Chapter 3 Differentiate
The Test of Vision
A “Mini” Case Study
Conventional Wisdom
Dangerous Trends
More Choice/Less Choice
Dialogue Marketing
Visions ofOutcomes
The Newest New Things
How to Set Yourself Apart
Your Imagination
Choose Your Customers . . . Wisely
Define Your Brand Unequivocally
The Allure of Authenticity
A Different Ending
Chapter 4 Culture
The Test of Engagement
How to Build a Culture in One Week
Conventional Wisdom
Trends
Downsizing and Outsourcing
Contents xi
Industry Consolidation
Brand Portfolios
There’s No “I” in Team
How to Brand a Culture
Legacy Cultures
Burning Your Brand into a Culture
Vision
Values
Focus
A Happy Ending
Chapter 5 Product
The Test of Skill
Song of the GTO
Conventional Wisdom
Trends
Brand Portfolios . . . Platform Sharing
Globalization . . . Localization
The Fraying of Newness . . . Number of Introductions. . . .
Pace of Change . . . Fast Tech/Slow Tech
The Skill Test Called Product
Excellence and Character
The Platform Trade-off
How We Build Cars
A Disciplined Approach
Your Look
Quality . . . Striving to Get It Right
The Voice of the Customer
Never-ending Questions
Chapter 6 Conspiracy
The Test of Inclusion
The Land Rover Centre Conspiracy
Conventional Wisdom
Trends
Downsizing, Outsourcing, and Insourcing
Proliferation and Fragmentation
The Work Treadmill
Building a Conspiracy—Who’s on Your Team?
The Power of Respect
The Conflict of Interests
How Not to Build a Conspiracy
How to Form a Good Conspiracy
The Power of Zealotry
Chapter 7 Consistency
The Test of Will
The Inconsistency of Jaguar
Conventional Wisdom
Trends
Management Turnover
Too Much Choice
Too Much Noise
The Power of Consistency
Designing the Experience . . . All of It.
Brand
Culture
Product
Retail
Necessary Constants: Vision and Leadership
Transparency of Communication
Your Personality and Your Tone of Voice
Price vs. Value
Creative Consistency
Chapter 8 Passion
The Test of Emotion
The Story of Helmut Bott
Conventional Wisdom
Trends
Consolidation and Culture Takeovers
Death ofthe Entrepreneurial Spirit
xii Contents
Growth Mania. . . .
Risk Aversion. . . .
Demographics. . . .
Globalization . . . New Entrepreneurs, New Workers
Now You See It . . . Now You Don’t. . . .
How to Generate Energy, Enthusiasm, and Expertise
Expertise: The Art of Selection
Enthusiasm: Selling and Storytelling
Energy: Environment and Chemistry
An Impassioned Conclusion
Chapter 9 Patience
The Test of Conviction
Nissan—the Irrational Discounter
Conventional Wisdom
Trends
Customer Value vs. Shareholder Value
Growth vs. Reality
The Power of Patience
Patience Means. . . .
Leadership . . . the Courage of Your Convictions
Time to Make It Work
Markets Change, Brands Evolve
An Enduring Conclusion
Chapter 10 Brand Portfolios
A Test of Parenting
Pontiac’s Sad Case History
Conventional Wisdom
Trends
Consolidation
Brutal Competition
Cost Reduction Pressure
Low Risk/High Reward
Supermarket Brands
The Smart “Smart” Customer
Contents xiii
Not Enough Talent
A Brand Portfolio Primer
Brand Charter
The Three Keys
Differentiation: Dare to Be Different, or Be Generic
Culture: Who We Are and How We Do Things
Product: Choose between Distinct and Extinct
Conspiracy: Who Wants to Be, Who Needs to Be, on the Inside
Consistency: Whoever You Are, Be That Everywhere
Passion: Energy, Enthusiasm, and Expertise
Patience: Having the Courage of Your Convictions
Putting It All Together
Chapter 11 Fixing Ford and GM—Some Modest Proposals
Conventional Wisdom
The Reality of the Situation
Forbes Global 2000
First, What about General Motors?
Ford: Is There a Solution for Anyone?
Brands to Build
Brands to Discard
Disposing of Winning Brands
The New Brand Portfolio
Culture
Product
Retail
What’s Stopping Ford?
Chapter 12 Steel in Your Britches
Perspective
Leadership
Culture
Courage
Charlie Hughes, co-author of Branding Iron, is one of the few men alive who has created a car company that’s still in business. The New York native has worked for six automakers on eleven different brands that include Cadillac, AMC, Jeep, Fiat, Lancia, Ferrari, Porsche, Audi, Volkswagen, Range Rover, Land Rover, and Mazda. He headed three different automotive marketing groups and was CEO of two auto companies.
As founder and CEO of Range Rover of North America, which became Land Rover North America, he built a car company from scratch, beginning in 1986 with an investment of $7.5 million. Eight years later, this had grown to a market value of $200 million.
“In the car business, being head of Land Rover was like being the owner of a four acre ranch in Texas, ”Charlie told an interviewer, “But we built one of the strongest brands in the industry and had fun doing it. We were mavericks all the way.”
In 2000, Ford Motor Company hired Charlie as president and CEO of Mazda North American Operations. There, he revitalized the Mazda image and repositioned the brand in the crowded US market. When he arrived at Mazda, Charlie found a company with over $5 billion in sales but no profit. It was also lost in the marketplace. Mazda made a profit in his first year and a larger profit in his second—during the most cut-throat-discount market in modern memory.
Today, Charlie heads a marketing consulting consortium, Brand Rules. As its founding president, he describes the firm’s mission simply: “In an over-branded marketplace, we help you learn what sets you and your company apart . . . and how to cut yourself out of the herd.”
Mississippi native William Jeanes, co-author of Branding Iron, has spent the last three decades closely associated with the auto industry. A graduate of Millsaps College and a former Lieutenant in the US Navy, his first writing job was as feature editor at Car and Driver.
After three years at Car and Driver, he left to become a copywriter at Campbell-Ewald (Chevrolet’s ad agency). He became an associate creative director and after two years moved to SSC&B:Lintas in New York (now Lowe & Partners). He remained there for five years, becoming a senior vice president and gained experience in packaged goods advertising and marketing. In 1982, he moved to J. Walter Thompson/Detroit as a senior vice president and director of the Ford Division account. There, he learned first-hand the research, marketing, and advertising decision-making processes at a major auto company.
He quit JWT in 1985 and returned to writing.His writing has appeared in a score of the world’s automotive publications and in Sports Illustrated, American Heritage, Smithsonian Air & Space, Playboy, Parade, and The New York Times.
In 1987, he became editor-in-chief of Car and Driver. He led Car and Driver to a million-plus circulation and made it the envy of the industry. During his six years as editor, he appeared regularly on “CBS This Morning” as its automotive expert, and his radio commentary on Detroit’s WJR reached 19 states each week. In 1993, he became a senior vice president and group publisher at Hachette Filipacchi Magazines.
Despite rising revenues, William forsook publishing to become the founding editor of Classic Automobile Register. Later, at American Media, he founded Auto World Weekly, the first US automotive magazine aimed directly at new-vehicle buyers.
The automobile industry is an ideal context to study brands because of the self expressive benefits attached to many of the brands. Branding Iron tells with insight and humor how blunders in brand strategy destroyed brands and damaged firms. A great read.
Dave Aaker
Principal
Prophet Brand Strategy
Author of Brand Equity and Brand Portfolio Strategy
What a simple and practical concept. Branding sells products! That’s a cornerstone of effective marketing. The authors show us clearly, through the use of a product category we’re all familiar with—automobiles, that effective branding differentiates any product from its competitors and builds demand and sales. Well done!
Tony Alessandra, Ph.D.
Author of The Platinum Rule and Non-Manipulative Selling
Today, many marketers are suffering from the “lab coat” syndrome. The field is dominated by complexity, esoteric approaches, models rather than people, and fears of oblivion. Branding Iron recognizes that people still have practical needs, firms still face practical problems, and solutions still have to work in real life. The book conveys a pioneering spirit on how to be unabashedly great again. It goes beyond watching things happen or wondering what happened, and helps the reader to make things happen.
Michael R.Czinkota
Professor of Marketing
Georgetown University
Former Deputy Assistant Secretary, U.S. Department of Commerce
One of the best books on branding I’ve seen in a long time. Branding Iron provides key branding and marketing insights for marketers in every industry. And, equally important, it shows a way out for those who find themselves in circumstances similar to this troubled industry.
Scott Davis
Senior Partner
Prophet Brand Strategy
Author of Brand Asset Management
Branding Iron should be required reading for every single person who aspires to be in business, let alone the automobile business, because it pounds into the reader the fundamental importance of, as Charlie Hughes and William Jeanes so eloquently put it: “standing for something, setting yourself apart, making a promise and delivering it in a well-designed experience. ”I would also like to give Hughes and Jeanes’ excellent “Brand Triangle” to every college professor charged with teaching marketing. Branding Iron doesn’t pull any punches, a style I can relate to, obviously—and when all is said and done it’s a must read. And with today’s tedious cacophony of blurred messages, two-bit pundits and frantic media overkill, that’s saying something.
Peter M. DeLorenzo
Founder-Publisher
Autoextremist.com
Important lessons for any marketer who wants to avoid the auto makers’ troubles. And even more important, they don’t just pick mistakes part, they provide a map to a more successful future.
Rick Kean
Managing Partner
Business Marketing Institute
Former Executive Director, Business Marketing Association
A first of its kind—the true story behind the auto industry. Branding Iron will supercharge your risk-taking batteries and fuel your brand-building strategies.
Thomas D.Kuczmarski
Preisdent
Kuczmarski & Associates
Author of Innovation and Managing New Products
This is one of the best, most coherent, readable and actionable books on brands and branding I have read in quite a while. The failures of the automobile industry provide cogent lessons for all senior managers tasked with growing their organization under highly competitive conditions. This is a veritable senior management manual on how to or, better said, how not to manage the most valuable asset the organization has: the brand. There are practical, useful lessons here that can be applied to any product category.
Don E. Schultz
Medill/IMC, Northwestern University
Author of Integrated Marketing Communications
and Brand Babble: Sense and Nonsense about Branding
The power of brands is nowhere brought to life more vividly or more authoritatively than in the pages of Branding Iron. This book is a marketing thriller that every marketer should read, racing along from one automotive intrigue to the next, illustrating at every turn the fundamental importance of good branding, or, even more importantly, the terrible consequences of bad branding. Branding Iron is an advanced primer on the ways in which marketing makes the crucial difference.
J.Walker Smith
President
Yankelovich + Partners
Co-author of Coming to Concurrence: Addressable Attitudes and The New Model for Marketing Productivity
Automobiles are the archetypal product of all consumer interest, the perfect category to discuss 21st-century branding and business strategy. The “cowboy way” is an equally as perfect metaphor to engage you in the story . . . courage and good judgment. Hughes and Jeanes impressively point out that if everybody’s thinkin’ the same way . . . then somebody ain’t thinkin’ at all. A truly engaging book.
Watts Wacker
Co-author of
The 500-Year Delta: What Happens after What Comes Next
and
The Deviant’s Advantage: How to Use Free Ideas to
Create Mass Markets
Branding Iron is an in-depth analysis of how to incorporate branding into what you build, and not just slap a pretend image on what you’ve already got. Filled with stories that that make the point—with specifics—this book captures the good and the bad. Where things went wrong and where things went right. Everyone from advertising to engineering should read this book!
Alan Weber
President
Marketing Analytics Group
Author of Data-Driven Business Models
Adjunct Professor, Kansas University
Using a compelling narrative, the authors teach us that there is no more important business endeavor than building brands. By showing that branding is not simply an activity for marketing communications after the product is developed, Branding Iron teaches marketers in all industries and cultures how to convince others in the organization why branding must be everyone’s responsibility throughout the product lifecycle.
Roy Young
Vice President
MarketingProfs
Co-Author of Marketing Champions
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