Brandproofing: What is it?

What is Brandproofing?

Well, if soundproofing is the process of keeping sound in and not letting any escape, I figured Brandproofing would be the right term for the art of keeping the components of a brand contained securely as its vehicle (the business) rumbles on.

Why does a brand need to be contained and what causes it to escape?

A brand is the sum of interactions between a business and its stakeholders. A business can control and influence the nature of those interactions through branding, but control is liable to slip as the busyness of business gets underway.

A tremendous amount of effort goes into the ideation and planning of a brand. Founders, marketing teams and agencies spend months deliberating over the details, wrapping up the perfect formula to achieve set goals, only to find it unravelling with passing years as performance takes priority over perception and positioning. This is particularly true of small companies where owners get bogged down with working in the business rather than on it.

The consequence is inconsistency. Tone, design, messaging, feel, sound, approach, attitude — all these things become scattered, perhaps subtly at first but as the great lexicographer, Samuel Johnson once said in different words: The diminutive chains of habit are seldom felt until they are too strong to be broken. A brand can seep from a business like air from tyres. The car rolls on until the driver and its passengers realise there’s nothing left. All of a sudden…