Brands began as marks burned onto rumps of rawhide.
Many brands are still that today, and, often enough, even less than that:
just marks minus the life they were imprinted on.

The most successful brands step beyond the boundaries imposed by design.

Even in intellectual property law a brand is no longer just mark or a unit of design.

In fact, a brand is as much about a logo or mark, as a marriage is about a wedding.

Logos and weddings represent nothing more than beginnings.
Whereas brands and marriages represent the continuum. They represent relationship.

Today's brand, is exactly that: a relationship.
And all good relationships are built on communication.

The moment a brand leaves the chapel of design and crosses the threshold into communication,
it stops looking in the mirror and saying, "I, brand."

It instead begins looking at you, the consumer and says "Us, brand."


copyright 2006 Gavin Barrett All rights reserved