I’m not quite sure what it means when you call yourself “The Chuck Norris of Branding,” as John Morgan does. But if you’re looking for a dose of marketing knowledge laced with a bit of aggression, you’ll find it in his book, Brand Against the Machine: How to Build Your Brand, Cut Through the Marketing Noise and Stand Out From The Competition.
Morgan does something in this book that I haven’t really seen lately in all the recent marketing books I’ve reviewed: He starts by focusing on the reader and the reader’s brand. Yes, there’s plenty of advice about engaging with the audience, but it seems clear what Morgan is saying: You control your brand, not consumers. And you have the power to keep it focused, relevant, and ready to reach the right customers.
With that perspective, he then goes on to outline exactly how to manage a brand in 2011 through traditional media, the web, social media, word of mouth, and other means. There’s nothing really groundbreaking here, but Brand Against the Machine written in a no-nonsense method that can really appeal to entrepreneurs who have a business but can’t wrap their head around what it means to be a brand.
Special thanks to Wiley for providing me with a review copy.
