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Listen "Turn Your Single Product Brand into an Authentic Corporate Identity"
Episode Synopsis
Is your brand imprisoned by a single product?
Don’t worry…we know someone on the inside who can help you escape. Some guy with an insane plan and a blueprint of the prison facility tattooed all over his body.
Once you’re out you’ll be on the run, wanted by the Feds—and of course, you’ll be caught up in a steamy love triangle.
But don’t worry…we’re gonna get you out of here.
Let’s Try This Again.
All right.
Now that Prison Break’s out of my system…let me properly introduce this month’s branding topic, along with the overarching question.
If your company finds itself branded all around ONE product, how does it pivot away from that?
Should it?
If so, then how does a company with a Johnny-One-Note product line rebrand itself so that people see a unified, authentic, corporate identity that stands behind all of its products?
To anchor this in a real-world case study, how does a company like Axon, (formerly Taser International, the company known for building Tasers comes to mind…) steer away from being overly defined by one product in the first place?
Tough questions…but if you feel like one product or service has put your brand in prison, here’s our thoughts on making a break for it.
https://youtu.be/lgof12A0QPw
Before You Rebrand
Count the cost.
Rebranding your entire organization is a huge endeavor, so before you go down that road, think broadly and strategically. Consider the big picture of your brand, your products, and where you might be heading.
A little more about Taser International, which dominated the market for Tasers and then, (surprise, surprise), became singularly identified with selling Tasers. While Taser had other products, breaking out of the one-product prison came at a price — rebranding their entire organization as Axon Enterprises, a supplier of body cams, drones, and all kinds of law enforcement accessories.
While we can chalk up Axon as a success story — one of a challenging, but necessary rebrand from a single product brand to a broader corporate identity — consider them an exception.
They’re also a good case study of why establishing your organizational brand clearly, purposefully, and early on can give you a sense of where you want to go beyond one product.
Brand Like an Extended Family
If your company houses multiple products, define your brand in a way that allows it to house all of those products in a cohesive, authentic, and yet recognizable way.
Piece of cake, right?
We grant that it’s not a trivial undertaking. But if your company houses multiple products, developing your brand into one that can lend full support and identification with all those products is well-worth the thought and planning.
When it works, it’s pretty phenomenal.
If you think of companies like Apple or Nike, you see that this strategy of an overarching, organizational brand is one that drives demand for all the products they sell. Sure, the products themselves have their own brands, many with their own unique identities. But they all carry traits of the overarching corporate identity.
They’re all part of the family.
For a fun analogy, you can think of a household brand as similar to the royal families that ruled England in an unbroken dynasty. Every member of the family shared a recognizable surname, not to mention a set of colors, a legacy, and a distinct family crest. While some of those royal families had to rebrand themselves (I’ll tell you about how the Windors of Windsor Castle weren’t really the Windsors some other time), the concept of a royal family name leads me to another situation — one where companies and brands need to be careful because the single product is a person.
When Everything’s in A Name
You’ve probably heard of Dave Ramsey. If you haven't, he's a financial guy who became a household name for his advice about getting out of debt. He’s also known for Financial Peace University. But while his main thing,
Don’t worry…we know someone on the inside who can help you escape. Some guy with an insane plan and a blueprint of the prison facility tattooed all over his body.
Once you’re out you’ll be on the run, wanted by the Feds—and of course, you’ll be caught up in a steamy love triangle.
But don’t worry…we’re gonna get you out of here.
Let’s Try This Again.
All right.
Now that Prison Break’s out of my system…let me properly introduce this month’s branding topic, along with the overarching question.
If your company finds itself branded all around ONE product, how does it pivot away from that?
Should it?
If so, then how does a company with a Johnny-One-Note product line rebrand itself so that people see a unified, authentic, corporate identity that stands behind all of its products?
To anchor this in a real-world case study, how does a company like Axon, (formerly Taser International, the company known for building Tasers comes to mind…) steer away from being overly defined by one product in the first place?
Tough questions…but if you feel like one product or service has put your brand in prison, here’s our thoughts on making a break for it.
https://youtu.be/lgof12A0QPw
Before You Rebrand
Count the cost.
Rebranding your entire organization is a huge endeavor, so before you go down that road, think broadly and strategically. Consider the big picture of your brand, your products, and where you might be heading.
A little more about Taser International, which dominated the market for Tasers and then, (surprise, surprise), became singularly identified with selling Tasers. While Taser had other products, breaking out of the one-product prison came at a price — rebranding their entire organization as Axon Enterprises, a supplier of body cams, drones, and all kinds of law enforcement accessories.
While we can chalk up Axon as a success story — one of a challenging, but necessary rebrand from a single product brand to a broader corporate identity — consider them an exception.
They’re also a good case study of why establishing your organizational brand clearly, purposefully, and early on can give you a sense of where you want to go beyond one product.
Brand Like an Extended Family
If your company houses multiple products, define your brand in a way that allows it to house all of those products in a cohesive, authentic, and yet recognizable way.
Piece of cake, right?
We grant that it’s not a trivial undertaking. But if your company houses multiple products, developing your brand into one that can lend full support and identification with all those products is well-worth the thought and planning.
When it works, it’s pretty phenomenal.
If you think of companies like Apple or Nike, you see that this strategy of an overarching, organizational brand is one that drives demand for all the products they sell. Sure, the products themselves have their own brands, many with their own unique identities. But they all carry traits of the overarching corporate identity.
They’re all part of the family.
For a fun analogy, you can think of a household brand as similar to the royal families that ruled England in an unbroken dynasty. Every member of the family shared a recognizable surname, not to mention a set of colors, a legacy, and a distinct family crest. While some of those royal families had to rebrand themselves (I’ll tell you about how the Windors of Windsor Castle weren’t really the Windsors some other time), the concept of a royal family name leads me to another situation — one where companies and brands need to be careful because the single product is a person.
When Everything’s in A Name
You’ve probably heard of Dave Ramsey. If you haven't, he's a financial guy who became a household name for his advice about getting out of debt. He’s also known for Financial Peace University. But while his main thing,
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15/03/2023
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