BSP 112: Twist by Julie Cottineau

Julie Cottineau, author of Twist: How Fresh Perspectives Build
Breakthrough
Brands, wrote the book with the purpose of teaching
business owners and
executives how to give their brands a fresh
look and sound, while standing out in
a crowded marketplace.
Cottineau says she wanted the book to be about
branding advice
anyone can use to build their business instead of
branding
theories. She states that clients tell her their main
problem involves marketing, but
she tells them marketing isn’t the
problem – it’s not having the right brand story
and not standing
out. As a result, Cottineau’s first question to clients is “what
is
your story?” and adds the most important component of their
story is who do
they want their brand to appeal to. Who is their
target audience? Too broad a
message, she says, ends up diluting
the brand and fails to connect entirely.
Cottineau also talks about
“brand blinders,” which she defines as doing the
same thing every
competitor is doing. She argues that many c-suite executives
spend
a lot of time thinking about the categories they are in and
the
competition and not enough time thinking about adding the
‘twist’ that will
make them stand out. What’s unique about this
book, Cottineau says, is “we’re
not teaching you what you should
know, we’re actually helping you do it.” Learn more about your ad
choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices