Brands aren’t marketing expenses.
It’s time for the perception of creating creating a brand as a marketing activity to change: a successfully executed brand doesn’t necessarily represent the product; it is the product.
Obviously many factors contribute to a buyer’s decision, but a powerful brand can become the product. People don’t buy coffee at Starbucks – they buy Starbucks at Starbucks.
If we don’t think of brand-management as a marketing expense, what kind of expense is it? Operational? Cost of Goods Sold?