Great brands are about more than marketing

Imagine you’re an Apple employee in 1997.  It’s over a decade since Steve Jobs was ousted from his position as CEO. You know you’re part of a team with “good people”.  But, despite strong “brand loyalty” and “millions of dollars of investment in research and development”, Apple feels like it’s “standing still” and the business you love is being described as the “failure story of wall street”.  [quotes]

And, now, Jobs is back.  And, he’s describing Apple’s core values: “We believe that people with passion can change the world!”

In this short video, he talks about the Apple he’s come back to, and gives a primer on the power of core values to create great brands like Nike.  He’s talking about marketing and introducing an ad campaign.

But, great brands, like Apple are about more than marketing!  And, Jobs knew that.

Great brands capture the imagination of people inside and out and then they deliver.

What are your core values? It’s a question that has been asked before.  It’s a question worth asking again.

How do you describe who you are and what you stand for? As an institution? As a CEO? As a leadership team? And, how do you translate that into an experience for employees and customers? 

Thanks to Lisa Barone for the inspiration.

Tags: Authenticity, Brand, Creating meaning, Engagement, Leadership, Lisa Barone