New Brand World [Hardcover]

Bedbury, who headed advertising and marketing divisions for Nike and Starbucks during their phenomenal growth, coaches on establishing a memorable brand in this appealing, well-organized guide. Observing consumers overwhelmed by countless choices, he argues that now's the time to build a brand that evokes trust from its customers. "Unless your brand stands for something, it stands for nothing," he declares, as he explains methods for companies big and small to articulate their essence and ethos (their "genetic code" in Bedbury's catchy parlance) to core customers, potential customers and employees. The inside stories on Nike and Starbucks constitute the bulk, but Bedbury elaborates his belief that "the brand is the sum total of everything a company does" with lively anecdotes from the experiences of Harley-Davidson, Microsoft and others. To Bedbury, brands have not only a genetic code but also karma. As strongly as he emphasizes the need to develop growth strategies that spring organically from a brand's core, he also believes that successful brands respect or meet customers' emotional needs. The histories of his companies have provided Bedbury with much material about a company's relationship to its community, and he's especially cogent on stewardship of a brand once it's established and growing, highlighting questions of leadership and responsibility to the world beyond the office. He calls for advertising and marketing that will inspire rather than merely inform (… la "Just Do It"). In the course of explaining his eight principles, Bedbury reminds aspiring industry leaders to pay attention to simplicity, relevance and innovation while counseling them to focus patiently on the long run. (On sale Mar. 4)Forecast: Bedbury's connection to Nike and Starbucks will generate interest in his firsthand knowledge of those success stories on his author tour. His unpretentious, experience-based guidelines should gain good word-of-mouth in the business world. While his approach will be too New Age for some, detractors can't argue with his success.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Senior vice president at Starbucks in the mid-1990s, Bedbury should know all about branding. Here are his secrets.
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Bedbury, a brand consultant who has held marketing and strategic positions for major corporations, offers a firsthand analysis of brands: how to develop their full potential and build lasting value. The authors' goal is to serve as a catalyst for improving the way businesses interact with the world around them. Branding is about taking something common and improving it in ways that make it more valuable and meaningful (for example, coffee as Starbuck's sells it). Branding principles that are developed include how to define and protect your own brand's DNA, how to establish lasting emotional ties with your customers that transcend your product or service, how to become a protagonist for something timeless and valuable, and how to make your brand values pervasive in your organization. The authors also stress the importance of companies, especially large companies, to becoming good corporate citizens and call on them to "use your superhuman powers for good." This book contains valuable insight into brand management. Mary Whaley
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

No company can succeed without a great product or service, but in today's competitive market it also needs a brand. Transcending the tangible aspects of a commodity and nurturing a brand to build a deeper and more enduring emotional connection with customers has become one of the most critical and complex challenges facing businesses today, whether they are multinational corporations or small, local enterprises.

How did a company like Nike use "Just Do It" to launch its way to success and become part of global culture? How did Starbucks reinvent a familiar 900-year-old product and change the way people drink coffee around the world? In A New Brand World Scott Bedbury, who was at the heart of both companies as they became two of the greatest branding success stories of our time, explains how to apply the principles that grew these companies more than fivefold and established their trademarks as leaders in their categories.

With fascinating anecdotes from his own in-the-trenches experience and dozens of case studies (including companies like Harley-Davidson, Guinness, the Gap, and Disney), Bedbury offers practical, battle-tested advice and an analysis of why some brands succeed where others fail. A New Brand World will show any business-whether a Fortune 500 corporation or a neighborhood store-how it can begin to realize its full brand potential and build lasting value.

Inspiring, visionary, and witty, A New Brand World will become the key book for building brands in the twenty-first-century economy.

Scott Bedbury was Senior Vice President of Marketing at Starbucks from 1995 to 1998. Prior to that he spent seven years as head of advertising for Nike, where he launched the "Bo Knows" and "Just Do It" campaigns. He is currently an independent brand consultant and a speaker for the Leigh Bureau.

Stephen Fenichell is the author of Plastic: The Making of A Synthetic Century and Other People's Money. His articles have appeared in New York, Men's Journal, GQ, Lear's, Spy, Connoisseur, Condé-Nast Traveler, and Wired.