10 most important books on brand strategy
Books, books, books, it’s my favorite way of learning new stuff. Reading books can really help you get in the right mindset. If you read anything, start with the books below.
If you want to get a little ‘sample’ for each book, in this video I read little snippets from each book and take you through the right order of reading them.
Here’s the top 10
1. How brands grow
A game-changer for me. This book by Byron Sharp debunks some serious branding myths. It is a myth-busting book, in the tradition of classic scientific discoveries. Unlike most business books it's based on extensive data, on real-world buying. That also makes it a bit harder to read sometimes but it’s a must-read. Check out the podcast episode with Byron Sharp here.
Buy How brands grow by Byron Sharp.
2. Eat your greens
Eat Your Greens is inspired by the genuine advances in marketing science. It challenges us to change the way we think, by taking the huge body of knowledge gained from data and technology and applying the best evidence-based thinking to the practice of marketing and communications. Read my review here if you want to learn more.
Check out Eat your Greens
3. Thinking fast & slow by Daniel Kahneman
Kahneman’s research and book was instrumental for behavioral science. Understanding our thinking into ‘system 1’ and ‘system 2’ thinking gives us a whole new perspective to look at brands. How we make decisions is not as rational as we’d like to think. A book filled with really interesting examples about the human mind and our biases.
Get Thinking fast & slow by Daniel Kahneman
4. Decoded, the science behind why we buy by Phil Barden
A great book on behavioral science and neuroscience. Decoded shows the value of branding on the most primary level of humans. Check out the review here. Also did a podcast episode with Phil Barden, listen to that here.
Get Decoded by Phil Barden
4. Building distinctive brand assets
A scientific approach to branding and is essential reading for those who have wondered if (or have been told) it's time for a change. Check out the podcast episode I did with Jenni Romaniuk here.
Buy Building distinctive brand assets by Jenni Romaniuk
5. Good strategy, bad strategy by Richard P. Rumelt
Not on brand strategy in specific, it’s a great primer on what ‘strategy’ actually means. Understanding that strategy is about risk, resources and creating a guiding policy to a well defined solution. The book is full of great examples from military, government and business.
Buy Good strategy, bad strategy by Richard Rumelt
6. The Halo effect by Phil Rosenzweig.
Brand strategy is about helping companies be succesful. The reality is, often times, we do not recognize what drives that succes. Way to often we misinterpret what is driving the succes. This is especiallly true for brand strategy, where there are a lot of ‘holy grails’ such as differentiation that misguide the true factors of succes.
Buy The Halo effect by Phil Rosenzweig
8. Alchemy: The Surprising Power of Ideas That Don't Make Sense
A surprisingly rational book if you think about it, Alchemy describes the difference between nonsense and ‘non-sense’ in a beautifully elegant way. It’s a nice distraction from all the scientists trying to make sense of the world in an economic sense. Go check it out!
Buy Alchemy by Rory Sutherland
9. Delusions of brandeur by Ryan Wallman
A slightly ironic, mostly hilarious take on today’s Gary V style marketing guru’s, Delusions of grandeur is a short yet very insightful little book filled with nuggets.
Buy Delusions of brandeur by Ryan Wallman
10. Building brand experiences by Darren Coleman
Brand strategy is only as powerful as the execution that comes after. And what better way to build a brand then focussing on the total brand ‘experience’? Darren Coleman gives us a hands-on, practical overview of setting up a brand experience environment. I also had a podcast conversation with Darren, you can find that here.
Buy Building brand experiences by Darren Coleman
