Synonymity

"Do you have any chapstick?"

"Put it on a post-it for me."

"Will you TiVo my program?"

"I need a band-aid."

"Google it."

Five phrases that you may utter on any given day. What do you mean when you say them?

These are examples of incredible branding. Chap Stick is not the only lip moisturizer in a tube, Post-it does not manufacture all the sticky notes in the world, TiVo is not the only way to record a TV show, Band-Aid is not the sole distributor of adhesive-backed bandages, and Google is not the only search engine on the web. So why do we insert the brand names in place of the item in question, or, in the cases of Google and TiVo, use a brand name as a verb?

Some brand names are so well advertised that they become synonymous with the items or services they sell. This is the ultimate, sublime goal of every facet of marketing: to be so ubiquitous that your name can replace nouns (or verbs). 

Do you have any lip balm? Put it on a sticky note. Can you record my program? I need a bandage. Do an online search.

So, business owners, if you believe you can get by without a logo or tagline; if you think hiring design and marketing professionals to brand your company is an unnecessary expense; if you forego advertising and good design to save a few bucks: you should reconsider your budgetary priorities. Unless you aren't interested in growing or being successful. If that's the case, you're already on the right track.

-AJ