I have a fondness for TV series that make me laugh and also make me ponder.

“How I Met Your Mother” is one of those shows where I can watch an episode over and over and get something new and hilarious each time.

The recent one I watched had a lot to do with branding. In this episode, one of the four main characters works for a big corporation that is merging with another company and rebranding. The rebrand was meant to solidify the newly merged companies spot in the marketplace and a new skyscraper was to be designed and built for the rebranding purposes.

Funny enough there were two types of branding being considered for the building’s design that summarizes a lot of what I’m going to talk about.

One was from an architectural firm called Sven, which had the ‘younger’ and ‘hotter’ design…the building design was in the shape of a T-Rex that breathed fire (and this was basically the same design the company pitched to everyone).

And then you had the design by Ted, the other main character of the show, and his design was what was considered more iconic and classic, and it fit with company’s mission statement.

There was some back and forth on what one to go with, but inevitably the powers that be went for iconic, even after Barney insisted, they go for the T-Rex design.

Which brings me to the question…what is better when it comes to branding? The One-Hit Wonder or The Iconic?

With branding there are so many avenues to go and if you’re a new startup, company, consultancy, or agency that is trying to make a name for yourself, this is one of the most important pieces to get right.

But how do you create a memorable brand with so many others in your market? Is it possible to be original or are you just going to launch and fall short of creating an impression?

Based on the show, we have the two:

1)     The One-Hit Wonder

2)     The Iconic

Neither way is bad, but both have a different intention from the beginning, and both have positives and negatives.

Let’s start with the One-Hit Wonder.

You may know them from music…the one-hit wonders like “Macarena,” and “Tainted Love,” or even the good ole “I’m Too Sexy.” We can’t seem to get them out of our head when we hear them again, but there’s something funny that happens when we do here them. We remember the song title and the lyrics, but many times forget the artist(s) that sang them.

This isn’t always the case with brands. These ‘come out of nowhere’ brands can absolutely be disruptive in capturing audiences’ attention and by tapping into the wallets of a ready and willing buyer. And many times, we don’t forget the brands name (like we do in music).

So if you’re a brand that is looking to reap the rewards of short term gains, then branding like this may be the way to go.

However, if you haven’t thought about where you want to be down the road 3 to 5 years, this is where the one-hit wonder type of branding can be problematic. It’s extremely difficult to get passed that ‘wow factor’ of the one hit wonder, making it difficult to top it with new innovations and product offerings.

— Gerber tried to do it with create ‘single snacks’ of baby food for adults (uhm, gross).

— Cheeze-Its tried to do it with Cheeze-It flavored lip glass (even more gross than Gerber singles).

— Harley-Davidson even tried to come out with their own cologne (I mean come on…motocycles + outdoors = cologne? Yeah, no…just no).

The good news is with one-hit wonders you will capitalize on the market immediately and if you’re up for the challenge of reinvention, then you could turn into a long withstanding brand eventually. You may just have to ride out the wave and stick with a singular product line for a while.

Iconic Branding For Long Term Wins?

Now that me preface this with one simple fact…iconic branding is not the easiest way to start a brand or to rebrand.

It takes a substantial amount of visionary thinking and soul searching.

Yes, I said it – soul searching. Because iconic branding is engrained in long term thinking.

The idea isn’t to impress the public…the idea is to impact the public and that’s how you set out to build your brand.

It’s about the mission, not about the maverick.

And…it’s all about building around what your audience and customers want AND need, therefore creating loyalty.

Brands like Coca Cola, Apple, Nike and Chick-Fil-A are all what I would consider iconic brands.

With iconic branding you consider two things. The core values of the company as a whole, and then position that with the overall end goal and reverse engineer from there.

Here’s a good example of what I mean:

The purpose of Company X is to bring forth the best innovation in the XYZ industry for our ABC clients and to continue to do so over the next decade.

• You can see the company’s goal is to bring forth the best innovation…
• For the XYZ industry…
• So their ABC clients can benefit from it…
• And they are planning to do this for the next decade…

Essentially, we reverse engineer with the end in mind so we can pace our brand to create multiple wins over time. There’s a longevity to iconic.

The downside to iconic branding is very similar to the positives. It takes a lot of thought and time. And sometimes you have to build and rebuild as you go. If you’re not into long-term, then it’s definitely not the way to go.

There you have it – two different ways to look and think about your brand and if you’re feeling stuck in anyway, let me leave you with something one of my mentors said to me…

“Just build something you are proud of.”

Danielle Fitzpatrick Clark is lovingly referred to as America’s Favorite Digital Disruptor. She doesn’t just live, breath, and sleep digital marketing, she embodies the constant shifts and pivots needed to create long-lasting businesses in the online space.

Her company Influence Builder is all about bringing the human element to the online tech and digital space. Specifically focused on helping the lesser-known experts and thought leaders, Influence Builder shows them how to break out of the noise, create powerful platforms, and thriving businesses so they can spread their mission and message to the world. This is the bridge where disruptors disrupt and build with authentic influence.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Danielle Fitzpatrick Clark is lovingly referred to as America’s Favorite Digital Disruptor. She doesn’t just live, breath, and sleep digital marketing, she embodies the constant shifts and pivots needed to create long-lasting businesses in the online space.

Her company Influence Builder is all about bringing the human element to the online tech and digital space. Specifically focused on helping the lesser-known experts and thought leaders, Influence Builder shows them how to break out of the noise, create powerful platforms, and thriving businesses so they can spread their mission and message to the world. This is the bridge where disruptors disrupt and build with authentic influence.