The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding

I just finished reading The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding on my kindle. The authors, Al Ries and Laura Ries delivered some very important points and warnings about self-destructive business trends. "Becoming all things to all people" and the basic loss of focus on what made your company so prosperous in the first place, is a common theme throughout the book. The concepts of narrowing your brand's focus, creating a new product category and the benefits/limitations of selling online were unlike anything I've read so far. Interesting to note the book was published in 2004, but I still found much of the information valuable for today. It gave me a more clear perspective on what it really means for a business to "dare to be different" or "stand out in the crowd". You may find yourself skimming certain chapters later on in the book, but it's still a good read.

Method Designing

I came across an interesting article from Package Design Magazine called Design as Theater. It's basically about incorporating personality into brands that will personally and emotionally connect with consumers. Based on what I've read so far from other sources, it seems like the idea of giving brands a personality has been understood and practiced for quite a few years. However, this particular article explains the actual method of putting these ideas into practice. Check it out at http://www.packagedesignmag.com/content/design-theater?page=0%2C0