Tom Asacker is a good exponent of short, sharp blogging, fitting his self-description as provocateur. His entry Mae West on performance provoked me. Especially this sentiment:
A brand is NOT a promise. It’s a performance. So let’s stop all of the brand ranting and get down to brass tacks.
I keep hearing that mantra that “a brand is a promise” and it’s never really worked for me. I’ve always been left a bit confused, thinking “is it?”. The idea of brand as performance certainly engages me more. And it fits my view that brands are social creations, things that are created between people moment-by-moment.
My additional thought: great performances are not simply delivered by a performer but result from some kind of chemistry with the audience. Indeed, the audience is a player too. I am passionate about using Improv work in business because it captures the value of spontaneous performance in organisation.