Brand identity is the special blend of positioning and personality that gives a product or service its unique character in the mind of the consumer. It has never been easy to establish and maintain a strong identity, and now, with the fracturing of conventional media, mounting consumer distrust, and an unprecedented proliferation of new brands, it's more difficult than ever.

Written by a successful branding and marketing communications expert, Building Brand Identity provides managers with proven, practical steps for overcoming obstacles and developing a comprehensive strategy for winning the "brand wars."

Drawing on his work with Bank of America, Hunt-Wesson, DHL Worldwide Express, South-western Bell Yellow Pages, and other high-profile clients, Lynn Upshaw equips you with cutting-edge techniques for building and managing a formidable brand identity in today's cluttered and confusing global marketplace, including how to:

• Perform customer analysis and zero in on your markets using the latest individual-oriented targeting strategies
• Identify brand assets and leverage them to build a stronger, more enduring brand identity
• Position your product or service using a versatile new approach that is clearly superior to traditional thinking and product positioning
• Create an irresistible strategic brand personality that will differentiate and elevate your brand above the competition
• Capitalize on the exciting new branding possibilities provided by state-of-the-art communications platforms, including interactive marketing
• And much more

Throughout Building Brand Identity, Upshaw helps bring abstract concepts to life with literally hundreds of timely, real-world examples taken from a wide range of industries. Especially helpful are five in-depth case histories in which he carefully reconstructs the steps taken by marketplace winners Disney, Nike, Southwestern Bell, Procter & Gamble, and Saturn to turn their brands into household names. And he explains why Burger King is only now beginning to give McDonald's a serious run for its money.

Building Brand Identity supplies you with all the knowledge and tools you need to build and maintain a successful brand identity in even the most hostile marketplace. This is a book that belongs in the survival kit of every marketing manager, product manager, advertising executive, and public relations professional, as well as on the desk of every CEO.

Advance praise for Building Brand Identity . . .

"Lynn Upshaw has created a masterpiece for stewards of the great consumer brands of our time. Not since Procter & Gamble first created the brand management system in 1947 with Tide detergent has there been such a seminal contribution to consumer marketing. Building Brand Identity is a consummate roadmap for both the marketing practitioner and the academic. This is a must read for any marketing professional who hopes to create or sustain a vibrant and healthy brand in today's cluttered and competitive marketplace. This is one of those rare books which will make a real difference. Pass it by at your own peril." —Peter Sealey Former Senior Vice President, Global Marketing, the Coca-Cola Company Haas School of Business, University of California at Berkeley

"Lynn Upshaw's book is a rare business book that is both highly readable and informative. Chock full of examples, he provides practical guidelines to those who would build brand identities that will work in the marketplace." —David Aaker Author, Managing Brand Equity and Developing Business Strategies

"Many years ago, during the World's Fair held in New York City, one of the exhibitors handed out a button that read, 'I have seen the future.' After reading Lynn Upshaw's amazing new book, I dusted off my old button. If you're in business—and plan to stay in business—you really don't have a choice. You must read this book." —Jerry Della Femina

"The writing is superb . . . enormously engaging. I am particularly smitten by the breadth of examples. . . . Extremely practical, immediately useful on the job."—Charles Schewe Coauthor of The Portable MBA in Marketing

"Lynn Upshaw has written a thorough, realistic, and well-documented volume that affirms the lasting power of advertising and offers practical advice every marketing manager and advertising executive should take to heart. Building Brand Identity's greatest value is its constant stress on understanding and addressing the attitudes, desires, and aspirations of the consumer. Upshaw's many, vivid examples demonstrate, time and again, that the consumer's need—rather than the marketer's intuition—is the key to successful advertising in today's challenging marketplace."—Herbert M. Baum Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Quaker State Corporation, and former President Campbell Soup Company, North and South America

"There is likely no concern greater in the 1990s than the establishment, development, and care of brands. Upshaw's approach is clear, concise, filled with examples and, above all, geared to the new, information-rich marketplace in which brands exist. It's a must for any marketer or marketing organization."—Don E. Schultz Professor of Integrated Marketing Communications Medill School of Journalism, Northwestern University