Zag: The #1 Strategy of High-Performance Brands

By: Marty Neumeier

If you are a marketer, you must read this book.

Not only it will provide great insights but it’s also easy to read.

It was recommended by Chris Do, who is one of the leading voices nowadays in Design and Marketing.

The book is filled with creative wisdom.

Flow: 5/5
Actionability: 4/5
Mindset: 5/5

Some of My Highlights:

“But today’s real competition… comes from the extreme clutter of the marketplace.”

“In 2005 alone, 195,000 book titles were published, adding to the four million already in print.”

“This has led to a reported 3,000 marketing messages per day, per person…”

“…the newest barriers to competition are the mental walls that customers erect to keep out clutter.”

“The only word that comes close is ‘reputation’.”

“…what’s the definition of branding? Briefly, it’s a company’s effort to build lasting value by delighting customers.”

“However, successful zags usually test poorly with consumers before they’re launched.”

“In perceptual theory, the difference between THERE and NOT THERE is known as figure and ground, or positive and negative space.”

“Everyone designs who devises courses of action aimed at changing existing situations into preferred ones.” – Herbert Simon

“All design relies on heuristic thinking more than algorithmic thinking – meaning that there is no set path, no mathematical formula, for reaching your goal.”

“True vision can’t be imposed on a company – it has to grow from the shared purpose and passion of its people.”

“The biggest winner is not the brand that’s first into the marketplace, but the one that’s first into people’s minds.” – Al Ries

“Below number three, however, it usually makes more sense to start a new category than to ballet the top three incumbents.”

“Remember, a zag s not merely differentiation, but RADICAL differentiation.”

“The rule of thumb is simple: if adding an element to your brand brings you into competition with a stronger competitor, think twice.”

“The quickest way to a zag s look at what competitors do, then do something different.”

“For example, when Southwest says, ‘You’re now free to move about the country,’ they’re simply translating their trueline into a more polished form.”

“Best practices are usually common practices.”

“The best way to start choosing and influencing your touchpoints is by mapping your customer’s journey from awareness to brand loyalty.”

“The key is to craft those experiences so they create delight for the people who determine the meaning and value of your brand – your customers.”

“As adman David Ogilvy famously observed, ‘Any damn fool can put on a deal, but it takes a genius, faith, and perseverance to create a brand.”

“Customer want choice, but they really want it AMONG brands, not WITHIN brands.”

“Since brands are defined by customers, not companies, customers in one culture may have a different view of a product or company than customers in another culture.”

“‘As provocative as it sounds,’ said CEO Helmut Panke of BMW, ‘the biggest task in brandbuilding is being able to say ‘no”.”