Brands That Suck

We've all thought it: "Wouldn't it be great to work on a brand like _________?"

Life would be so good then. We'd do killer strategies, use the latest technologies, craft award-winning creative and be set for life.

Meanwhile we slave over a brand that is terminally uncool, providing laxative-induced relief to senior citizens.

There's just no getting around it -- some brands suck. In fact, entire categories of brands can sometimes suck. Sucky work. Sucky reputation. Sucky prospects. Suck, suck, suck!

Sucky like...well...oh...wait a minute. Every sucky brand category I can think of has at least one example of good work.

I thought about cars advertising which is rife with by-the-book boring campaigns and still we have Mini and the original Saturn work. Or I think about the disclosure-as-copy world of pharmaceuticals and we still have Viagra. Even the sure-you-can-buy-this-house world of banking had those crazy folks at Washington Mutual.

Makes you wonder if brands suck or people do.

There's no doubt that no single person or even agency has enough clout to make a bad brand good. But your humble host ofThe BeanCast is reminded today that willingness to break the mold and reach your audience in new and meaningful ways is never limited by the product you sell.