Brand Rewired: Connecting Intellectual Property, Branding, and Creativity Strategy

Chapter 3. Designing in IP

Now that we have captured your attention as to why it is important in developing branding campaigns to consider intellectual property, we begin by stating the obvious.

We have consistently found in our research that intellectual property is generally not considered at the outset of creating a branding or marketing campaign. Occasionally it may be considered midstream, but it is most often considered at the end of the creative process as a "clearance" by legal rather than as a strategic advantage.

For clarification, in this book the term brand or branding defines all aspects of messaging used to build or reinforce the power of the brand. When we suggest designing IP into a branding campaign, it means into the creative process used to create any messaging, programs, or campaigns related to the consumer belief in the brand, whether it is a new or existing brand.

	We have worked hard to create a culture where intellectual property strategy is a part of the overall business thinking. It is easy for a company to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on a branding campaign only to find it can't be protected or at least not to the extent desired. At Yahoo! we turn that process on its head and build in a team of professionals who understand that we are a company of intellectual assets and that there must be a clear strategy behind everything we do.
	--J. Scott Evans, Senior Legal Director, Global Brands and Trademarks, Yahoo!

Intellectual property strategy should ...