Simply Speaking: Brand Gestalt – going beyond positioning

In many ways, a brand is an illusion. It exists in our unconscious and in our feelings. But that - by itself - is powerful. These connections in the mind add real value to the products and to our lives. Wearing a fake Rolex will give us less pleasure than wearing the real thing. Take the Nike swoosh off a sneaker and it loses its magic. Why? Because value gets created in the mind. It must have emotional value to you. In this way, brands can add real value, beyond their physical product attributes. It is not water, it is Evian! (Representational image via Unsplash)

Gestalt refers to how the brain prefers to seek out the whole of something, rather than the individual parts. Brand Gestalt represents the whole of the brand – it’s the complete picture.

Simply Speaking: BBC at 100 – A hundred years with lessons for all

The BBC remains the world’s largest public service broadcaster with a total staff count of over 22,000, operating in over 70 countries. Its mission, laid down by Royal Charter, is to “act in the public interest,” champion impartiality, and “inform, educate and entertain.” (Image via Unsplash)

The BBC’s global spread, cultural impact and soft-power are undeniable. But the century-old media brand is up against a new world.

Simply Speaking: The Psychology of remembering, forgetting, knowledge and common sense

A brand’s positioning merges with other things we know or have experienced. We chatter about this with other people and share our thoughts. Its attitudes become organized. Its values become established. (Representational image: Dan Farrell via Unsplash)

What we remember, why we remember and more interestingly – why we forget. After all, a brand is memory.

Simply Speaking: Brands Need Editors. Here’s Why.

Stories serve as fundamental ingredients in allowing people to create a shared sense of being. Shared stories lead to shared values which in turn leads to a shared world view. This calls for attention to the goings on in the world as an Editor would give it. (Representational image Mayur Deshpande via Unsplash) 

The rise of brand journalism signals an exciting time in media, and it shows no signs of slowing down.