One of my old colleagues just started a new gig at Padilla. He posted a photo to Instagram of his desk, but the quote on the screen of his laptop caught my eye. I found it on the Joe Smith website.

The quote stood out to me for a few reasons. I’ve heard different variations of this before and have been working on a lot of rebranding projects recently, so maybe it is just a right quote at the right time.

It’s true that brands provide context and meaning and purpose for the products they create. Think about it, how often do we say we’ll, “Google it” when in reality we mean we’ll search online for it. Or, “I’ll have a Coke.” when we really just need a soda. The tools and products a company uses or creates are not what makes a brand. A brand is something bigger, something more influential, something more powerful.

Here’s to creating something memorable.