Brain Blink: That jacket is hurting your brand

Christopher Skinner of AdAge conducted an experiment. He searched the phrases "winter jacket" and "Gore-Tex jacket" on Google and found that there was "hardly a website or ad campaign that communicates any information other than lower prices" for the jackets. Lowering prices is not a brand strategy that builds differentiation – any brand can lower a price. Powerful brands, such as Apple, focus on the emotional aspects of design, imagination and creativity rather than price. Skinner reminds communicators to "tell a story and make a connection with consumers that leads them to feel good about the brand and the experience of purchasing the product."

Idea: What emotional story can you tell about your brand or product that makes it a funny, thrilling, or touching part of Valentine's Day, the Summer Olympics, or summer vacations in a newsworthy way?

[Special thanks to Brooke Hovey, CW/Austin]