Branding innovation

Readers of this blog know that there are numerous types of innovation in addition to product innovation and process innovation. These additional types all describe where the innovation occurs in a business. One of these types is branding innovation. One critical question when choosing a brand name for a new offering (company perspective) is this one: Do we choose a new name or do we extend our existing brand name?

Anybody who is a fan of Al Ries will tend to go for a new name. Consumers buy brands not the companies behind the brands. Looks like Michael Dell supports this view as well: Dell will purchase Alienware Corp, a high-end PC producer popular with gamers. Rather than extend the Dell brand to include this high-end space, Dell has decided to keep Alienware and its brands separate. Al Ries will be applauding this move!

So we know what type of innovation it is: branding innovation, but is it an incremental innovation or is it a radical one? I'd say it lies more at the radical end of things, so you can expect that there will be some resistance to this within Dell. This decision is going to have to face Dell's "radical innovation antibodies," for want of a better phrase.

One of the great things about learning the "theory" of innovation is that it really does help people foresee and possibly overcome these problems as they implement innovations.









innovation management in Asia