Poor Irene Beard. She is in a pickle, and she needs our help. A strong believer in brand, Beard is starting a new company and asked us for help getting people to take away what she wants them to about her company’s brand. Beard’s question brings up some interesting concepts regarding brands, their origins, their evolution, and their existence for organizations today.  Before we get into any of that, it is essential to remember that your brand is a tactic. It communicates the value you provide customers. Brand is a tool in your toolkit that can adjust your strategy and deliver the experience that wins over the hearts and minds of customers and keeps them coming back for more.  Today, branding is all about the value you provide customers. What that value is varies by organization. Some brands offer value by doing one thing really well. Others deliver value in several areas.  The success of your brand isn’t whether it provides one value or many; success depends on understanding what your customers value and delivering that.  In this episode, we explore the areas of value a brand usually provides and what an organization can do to ensure that their brand delivers the right ones to customers.  Are you “in a pickle” at your company, too? Tells us about here and we might feature your pickle on an episode of the podcast.  Here are some other key moments in the discussion: 01:34  We discuss Beard’s business pickle and why branding is an excellent focus for anyone in business today. 03:23  Ryan explains how he appreciates that Beard is already on the right path by concerning herself what customer think, because that is key for branding. 08:00  We believe in frameworks to organize thinking, and begin the discussion about ours, which has four parts. 15:42  Colin shares a story about spending way too much on athletic shoes given the level of play of his ten-year-old on the pitch, and how branding made it happen.  19:55 We explore brands that have done a good job with branding and why, as well as the differences one should expect in brand strategy depending upon the type of brand it is.  27:33  We get into the practical takeaways for Beard, and anyone else struggling in this area, to get the right branding for her new company.  _________________________________________________________________ Did you know we have a YouTube Channel too? Check it out here. Follow Colin on LinkedIn HERE.