About a week ago, I was lamenting The Problem With Branding. Then, a few days later, Cliff Allen posted a brilliant comment on the said entry:
Those of us who work independently sometimes think we need to focus on doing one thing so we can have one “brand image.� Instead of thinking about all the different things I do for clients, I prefer to look at my overall “mission� or “purpose� (which you’ve written about before).
Although I’ve worked in technology, advertising, media, and other areas, there is a common thread to what I do: help business people communicate better. While this may sound very broad, it also excludes many activities that I don’t do.
Some of my clients have worried about not having a single brand image, so I try to help them see how their core value can be applied to multiple target markets (i.e., multiple revenue streams). General Electric is a good example of a company whose brand means many things to many people. GE makes light bulbs, jet engines, locomotives, medical equipment, and thousands of other products—all under the GE brand.
Whether we’re GE or an individual, we need to look for ways to turn our core value into benefits for customers, clients, and the other people around us.
Cliff’s comment made me realise that my initial thoughts on specialisation aren’t silly or crazy.
It is possible to develop a brand — and still explore various areas of products and services. But, the key element is finding “one’s core value.”
Thanks, Cliff. You gave me another way of looking at this “branding” thing, which was bugging me a bit at one stage. 
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My favourite definition of brand is:
“What is your promise to your customers?”
I find it focuses my efforts and allows a broad range of ways to express that promise.
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Jon, thanks for sharing. It’s definitely worth thinking about. BTW, nice blog. I’m definitely checking it out again (subbed to it already).
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