Devoted to branding and building and protecting brands

John Edwards’ and Rudy Giuliani’s decisions to pull out of the market, uh, I mean presidential race, brings to mind some things the Jack and Suzy Welch said recently about leaders.  Effective commanders-in-chief and chief executives share attributes in common.  The same might be said of successful brands.  So I will say it:

1.    Authenticity.  Trustworthy leaders and trustworthy brands live up to their brand (read: reputation) promises. For a leader, or a product to “lead”, it can never be doubted (for a cautionary tale, see George W. Bush).  
2.    Vision.  Not typically associated with products, per se, but this is about having the talent for making a case: “Here’s how and why what we’re doing is the right thing and will make you better off than you were before we did it” (again, unfortunately, see Dubya).  Stay with me here: Brands that are perceived as visionary are those that the market sees as truly inspired -- a significant improvement in the buyer’s life. Apple’s products, hybrid cars, etc., come to mind.
3.    Talent scout.  This is the knack of spotting and hiring extraordinary talent.  It’s fundamental and essential among senior-level people and senior-level aspirants.  As far as brands are concerned, the attributes suggest products that engage buyers and users on a higher level.  These are the so-called “cult” products and brands such as BMW and Harley-Davidson motorcycles, most things hawked by Steve Jobs, and many luxury goods (Chanel, etc,).
4.    Resilience.  Gotta be very careful here with your brand.  The capacity to bounce back after a knock-down, such as a product recall, is not the same thing as just learning from your mistakes, as most successful U.S. presidents have always done, or getting up off he canvas and wading back into the bout.  The lesson for brand management: when there’s a quality issue, you can’t get out there fast enough with the bad news and the recall announcement.  See Intel.  Strong brands are resilient, however.  But there’s a limit.
5.    Around-the-corner radar.  In brand management: an intuitive, instinctive feel for the market and how customers behold your offerings. In CEOs and marketing honchos: the ability to move quickly with the right strategies and tactics because you know what needs to be done. You feel it.
6.    Execution. Commanders-in-chief, C-level leaders and leading brands must keep their respective promises.  Managing crises, the next product, or delivering satisfaction amounts to the same thing: living up to expectations.