Go Logo! A Handbook to the Art of Global Branding

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Much is changing in the science of branding.

But the art of branding—and the key roles

that creatives and visual language play—has

become even more important in bringing

brands to life. The natural audience for this

book includes creatives, marketing execu-

tives, and any organization seeking to stay

competitive in a media-saturated world.

But branding, of both the societal and com-

mercial persuasion varieties, plays such a

major (and often controversial) role in our

global and local lives today that understand-

ing how and why it all works should interest

just about everyone. Besides, there are lots

of pictures.

Go Logo! A Handbook to the Art of Global

Branding posits that all successful, emo-

tionally centered brands fall into one of

two general classifications: commercial

persuasion branding (Coke Is It) or societal

persuasion branding (any “ism” you can

think of). But disciplined creativity is criti-

cal in both kinds of branding—and in the

context in which all the threads of this book

come together. Just how important a factor

is it, actually? Is it really as critical in societal

persuasion branding as it is in commercial

persuasion branding? What are the personal

characteristics of a successful creative brand

warrior? Are good creatives born or made?

And what are the key determinants that will

most likely shape a successful career?

Go Logo! is also in part a memoir with

stories from a lifetime—stories from grow-

ing up in a time of great historical signifi-

cance and about why I believe history has

shaped my career. Global brand warriors

today face far more complex challenges

than when I first chose my creative tools to

B

ack in the 1960s, a close friend of mine, a solidly left-brained Procter & Gamble

executive, said he would love to write a book, if only he had something to

write about. We both laughed. I understood what he meant. My right-brained,

creative journey had just started, and I wasn’t too clear about where I wanted it

to go. It took another forty-odd years—some of them exceedingly odd—but my

journey is complete. I’ve seen a lot and done a lot, and a look back is often the best way

to look ahead.

Introduction

Why this Book now?

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Safeway logo

(Design: Bright Strategic Design & Branding)

Swedish Socialist Party logo

(Design: Estudio Mariscal)

join the branding battles. And that is why

one of my primary reasons for writing this

book is to provide guidance to up-and-

coming warriors.

During my half century as a brand warrior,

I have been fortunate to work with many

notable brands. Sometimes, it was just for

one project; at other times, it was for many

years. As I reflected on the assembly of

this book, I concluded that there was one

overarching hypothesis I could apply to all

of them. Essentially, all successful branding

depends on creatively appealing to the tar-

get audiences’ hardwired need for personal

identities. Sounds all too simple, but think

about it this way: The unconscious choices

we all make from a menu of branded soci-

etal and commercial belief systems consti-

tute the emotional core of our lives—and

motivate most of the actions we take.

Successful brands have to address these

needs. The best ones learn how to dig down

below the level of consciousness to exploit

those hidden hopes and fears: “Who am I?

Where and how do I fit into the society I

live in?” This is as much a science as it is

an art. But once the visual triggers to the

consumer’s subconscious desires have been

identified, the brand stewards and consul-

tants can begin to develop appropriate cre-

ative communications tools—and proprietary

visual languages.

To get below the surface of consciousness,

where most decisions are initially made, I

propose that it is always best to observe

my golden rule of branding: Understand

through discipline; compel through imagina-

tion. The best brand warriors discipline

their creativity to the point where they

can focus like a laser beam on audiences’

emotional needs.

I suggest that disciplined creativity is the one

irreplaceable tool you need in your brand-

ing toolbox.

– Mac Cato

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Ancient warrior helmet

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