Are You Too Precious About Your Own Branding?

Here’s a shot taken waiting at the bar of the Springbok Pub. A watering hole of renown, if not quite of the latest in decor, next to the railway line along from Newlands rugby stadium, just the other side from Cape Town’s wonderful cricket amphitheatre.

It was the day the local team won through to the big final.

If Skyfall is to be believed, a 50-yr old Macallan is the favourite whisky of James Bond. Sadly nothing remotely of that ilk is on offer at this place, locally known as Bok Town. Probably best, for the wallet.

What strikes you looking at the optics is one prominent, large bottle of quaffing scotch, Famous Grouse (coincidentally, a stablemate of Macallan). Whilst not my first choice for an everyday tipple (Jameson is the winner for me there) the bottle is terrific. For those on a smartphone, here’s a closer look.

It’s not only the largest bottle on display, it also has a unique label. The name of the bar is cheekily swapped in for where ‘Grouse’ normally follows ‘Famous’.

It’s a great piece of personalisation.

It reminded me of a b2b Sales parallel. In our world, I’ve sat through countless presentations where on every slide sits the overly large logo of the hopeful vendor. With Proposals, response to tender docs and the like, you also see the branding writ large on a cover sheet, and even repeated page after page on footers.

Are your such pieces similarly afflicted?

If so, change it.

I remember as a cubrep plastering a doc with the prospect’s name – where my corporate’s name usually would appear – to much praise around the salesfloor.

Don’t be too precious about your wonderful employer’s idents.

It’s about your prospect. Not you.

And after all, if a global outfit peddling distilled grain can individualise to this extent, then surely so can you.

And a month later, a post-script. UK tv ads (in the run-up to crimble yuletide shopping madness) suggested you could even have your own personalisation.