**this post is from an article formerly featured on the Cult Status Website**

 Have you ever seen yourself or your group as a brand?
I’m not asking you to compare your art to Campbells Soup. Rather, I’m asking you to think long and hard about why you listen to the music that you choose to listen to. Seriously. Think about it. Sure, it resonates with you. It engages your mind and your heart at the same time to produce feelings of joy, sorrow, anger, angst, euphoria, whatever. Now picture a song/group/composer/etc. that you started out liking, but quickly grew to dislike. Why did that happen? Was it because it got over-played, over-hyped, over-commercialized, or overlooked? It’s the same music that once meant something positive, but now has negative connotations.

Now look at Coca-Cola. Was the first thing you pictured the color red? Perhaps the snap, fizz, and pouring of a Coke can? Maybe the sweet, effervescent taste? Does it make you think of Santa, Christmas and/or classic Americana? What does Exxon or Halliburton make you feel?

Don’t see a parallel yet?

Marty Neumeier, author of The Brand Gap, opens his book by establishing several things a brand isn’t. It is not something hatched by people pulling 6-digit incomes in a tower, nor is it a logo or set of graphic standards. Instead, it is the customer’s “gut feeling” about your company. We are not born perceiving certain things about Coca-Cola, Apple, or BMW. Rather, we encounter a consistent message, set of images, associations, behaviors, and feelings. This builds trust in these companies. In the case of Exxon, a simple miscalculation of an employee tarnished the image of the brand for years. Same with Halliburton. Regardless of political stance, I bet the first thing you think of when you hear that name is not “Innovative” or “Reliable” as their website may suggest, so much as “Bush, Cheney, Oil, Middle East, War, Iraq, Greed, etc.” These are two great examples of how corporate intent does not equal public opinion. It also shows that there are many things outside your control that can change public opinion.

Let’s transpose this to the music world.

Your choice of venue, your style of dress, your promotional materials, your merchandise, your recordings, your hair, your frequency of performance, etc. all create a perception -which may or may not be the one you want. This perception will either help you or hurt you. Michael Jackson, Madonna, The Beatles, and Frank Sinatra are shining examples of what happens when one mixes a certain level of talent with a consistent message. Ms. Spears, however, is not what I would call a well-managed brand.

Okay, so this is all good and well for multi-million dollar record deals, but what’s it mean to the garage band, the community orchestra, and the jazz ensemble? The idea still applies. Every choice you make effects your perception, from your level of artistic credibility, to the venues you play, to audience attendance, to the type and price of your merchandise, to the packaging of your album.

What message are you sending your audience?

How are they hearing it?
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Article written by Alex Sobieski, Principal and CEO of Cult Status. (8-1-2007)
www.getcultstatus.com