In one of the most original books of its kind ever written, Patrick Hanlon explains how the most powerful brands create a community of believers around the brand, revealing the seven components that will help every company and marketer capture the public imagination -- and seize a bigger slice of the pie.
What is the magic glue that adheres consumers to Google, Mini Cooper, and Oprah, but not to others? Why do many brands with great product innovation, perfect locations, terrific customer experiences, even breakthrough advertising fail to get the same visceral traction in the marketplace that brands like Apple, Starbucks, or Nike have? After years of working with famous brands like Absolut, Ford Motor Company, LEGO, Disney, Montblanc, Sara Lee, and others, Patrick Hanlon, senior advertising executive and founder of Thinktopia, decided to find the answers. His search revealed seven definable assets that together construct the belief system that lies behind every successful brand, whether it's a product, service, city, personality, social cause, or movement.
In Primal branding, Hanlon explores those seven components, known as the primal code, and shows how to use and combine them to create a community of believers in which the consumer develops a powerful emotional attachment to the brand. These techniques work for everyone involved in creating and selling an image -- from marketing managers to social advocates to business leaders seeking to increase customer preference for new or existing products. Primal branding presents a world of new possibility for everyone trying to spark public appeal -- and the opportunity to move from being just another product on the shelf to becoming a desired and necessary part of the culture.
"A crash course in branding. It's so easy to understand, I felt myself saying 'of course.' It's exactly what many companies should be doing, but are not."
—Christian Korbes, Senior Director, LEGO Central Europe
"What do Starbucks, Apple, the Marine Corps, and Cesar Chavez have in common? They create what Hanlon calls 'a culture of belief.' Primal branding cracks the code of these cultures -- and offers a fascinating look at why people respond so ferociously to them. Whether you're leading an advertising agency, a Fortune 500 company, a middle school, or a political movement, you need to read this book."
—Dan Pink, author of When: The Scientific Secrets to Perfect Timing
"Primalbranding is untraditional, it's emotional, and it's depth rather than breadth."
—Dave Williams, VP Consumer Centricity, Best Buy
"The seven factors of Primalbranding provide a structure by which all types of entities from companies to countries to religions can create a unique identity. Everyone involved with creating and managing an image should understand these factors."
—Michael J. Houston, Interim Dean, Carlson School of Management, University of Minnesota
