Label Managers vs. Brand Managers

In a recent Brandweek editorial column, Jack Gordon, CEO of AcuPOLL Research, made some astute points in the 'the decline of brands' debate. The most poignant being …

What we might be seeing, in fact, is the decline of branding, not brands. The proliferation of line extensions, and the resulting effect of 'line-advertising;' the fact that over two-thirds of many brand budgets are now spent on consumer and trade promotions; and, reliance of many brands of 15-second ads has led to the creation of labels, not brands. [SOURCE: Brandweek | "Is it the Decline of Brands or the Decline of Branding?" | Dec. 6, 2004]

Have too many of us marketers become label managers and not brand managers?

Hmm ... that’s a great question to ask ourselves.