Brand consulting heats up as economy cools down

As the economy -- and dot com market in particular -- continues to melt down, people are still asking "what happened?" The dot com's were burning up -- now they're melting down. But the dot com crash hasn't hurt everyone. In fact, it's actually helped one sector in particular: branding consultants who predicted that building technology instead of brand loyalty was the crucial mistake.

Why? Simple. "While all of the digital darlings invested heavily in technology and finance, none of them figured out how to build their brands," which is what top branding expert Rob Frankel predicted a year ago in his book, "The Revenge of Brand X: How to Build a Big Time Brand on the Web or Anywhere Else."

Frankel believes that if a brand is to be successful, it has to be able to turn users into evangelists. "That's what makes the web so powerful," he cracks, "people on the web are just waiting for something to tell their friends about."

And Frankel knows about turning users into evangelists for brands he's created and re-vitalized. Since the crash, CEO's and start-ups alike have used The Revenge of Brand X to help them avoid corporate meltdown. Publications such as the Washington Post, Los Angeles Times and MEDIAWEEK consult with Frankel as to how branding can still save the once-mighty dot com names and launch new ones. ABC, FOX and Lifetime TV come to Rob seeking the best strategies for building businesses on and off the web.

Frankel's approach to branding is as unique as his "Obnoxious Bobbing Head" known to thousands on the web at his web site, robfrankel.com. Unlike most branding theorists, Frankel insists that branding is the most misunderstood concept in marketing, usually passed off by designers and advertising agencies who believe a brand is little more than a logo on a business card. "That's the first mistake they make," he adds, "brands aren't for you; they're for everyone else who don't know you!"

Frankel's Prime Directive states "Branding is not about getting your prospects to choose you over your competition; it's about getting your prospects to see you as the only solution to their problem."

"The Revenge of Brand X: How to build a Big Time Brand on the web or anywhere else." is on sale exclusively at http://www.therevengeofbrandx.com

Rob Frankel may be contacted, praised or berated via http://www.robfrankel.com or 1-888-ROBFRANKEL