End Noise

There are a multitude of articles written about the death of the brands, including this one in Wired. I've been thinking about it and I think that brands aren't dying and, in fact, will become more and more important. Brands function well as being the initial reason to purchase one of their products. If I want a new pair of jeans, my natural instinct is to go to AG jeans. I have worn them in the past and I like the way they look and feel. If I go to a jeans store, I will try those on initially and if they still look good and feel good, I will buy them. To me that is what brands are about. They satisfy the initial impulse when I am shopping and they are my first choice in a sea of options. Since with every passing day, there are more options (for example in the case of jeans, there are new designers that emerge daily), it could be argued that brands are more important. They reduce the confusion and allow me to narrow my focus. I think this is the power of the brand.

If, however, the brand's product fails, the brand is diminished and I will go somewhere else. Since there are so many choices, it means that brands have to focus more and more on quality, since if they disappoint me just once I may be gone forever.