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More copies of this ISBNThis title in other editionsOBD: Obsessive Branding Disorder: The Business of Illusion and the Illusion of Businessby Lucas Conley
Synopses & ReviewsPublisher Comments:The world is more branded than ever before: Americans encounter anywhere between 3,000 and 5,000 ads a day. Increasingly, brands vie for our attention from insidious angles that target our emotional responses (scent, taste, sound, and touch). In an ever-faster, more competitive global landscape fueled both by the rise of cheaper, foreign brands and by so-called house-brands (the eponymous brands of Wal-Mart, Target, and the like), American companies are in a mad dash to keep up. Branding, or identity-making, has begun to replace the research and development of yore. From the fertile crescent of branding (Cincinnati), to the laboratories of sensory specialists (musicologists and "noses"), Lucas Conley takes us on a long-overdue journey through the strange culture that is our own. As hilarious as it is frightening, Conley's investigation into the phenomenon of rampant commercialism (often backed by little substance), offers an illuminating portrait of an age of obsession. Review:"Journalist Conley examines the implications of brand-centric marketing in an incisive investigation that illustrates how defenseless consumers are against advertising — on any given day, they are assaulted by 3,000 to 5,000 ads and branding stratagems that subtly dictate every aspect of their lives. Harnessing scientific innovations, branding has become increasing insidious — whether it is the Xbox audio logo or Southwest Airlines' incorporation of the 'fasten seatbelt' sound in their marketing campaign — consumers are being conditioned to think in brands. Beyond ad creep and product placement in entertainment programming, viral and word of mouth (WOM) marketing now make even personal recommendations suspect. According to Conley, 1% of American children and 7% of mothers are compensated for participating in WOM marketing. Even social policy is being corrupted — the author asserts that public branding initiatives such as post-Katrina New Orleans' allocation of public funds toward refurbishing its Mardi Gras City image rather than addressing its safety issues shifts resources away from problem-solving in favor of perception. Conley's perspective on branding's encroachment into social areas is as alarming as it is stimulating. (June)" Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.) Review:"It's all funny, but it's also scary." Very Short List Review:"There's nothing more powerful in business than a truly original idea or a new product that kicks butt — innovations that speak for themselves. But most companies have neither original ideas nor exciting products — which is why they rely on increasingly desperate marketing tactics to attract attention. Lucas Conley offers a stinging and hilarious take on a world in which brands have gotten out of hand. Business is simply too important for us to put up with the scourge of obsessive branding disorder. This book is the cure for what ails us." William Taylor, founding editor of Fast Company Magazine and coauthor of Mavericks at Work Review:"The disease is real. Here's a cure." Douglas Rushkoff, author of Get Back in the Box Review:"Contrary to what most marketers would have you believe, better branding is not always the answer. Lucas Conley brilliantly examines our branding obsessed age and offers an urgent call for a return to innovation, authenticity and quality every business should heed." Rohit Bhargava, SVP, Ogilvy Digital Strategy & Marketing and author of Personality Not Included Review:"Lucas Conley has exposed how the ubiquity of advertising assaults us in today's always-on society. While products and innovation suffer, the cacophony grows. As both a parent and a media critic this is the most important book I've read on the dangers of our brand-obsessed culture. We all have a responsibility to read this book." Andrew Keen, author of The Cult of the Amateur: How Today's Internet is Killing Our Culture Synopsis:What inspires a mother in Connecticut to let an online casino name her child? Or a neuroscientist in Washington to probe subjects' brainwaves on behalf of a brand of bathroom cleaner? Or private companies and universities around the world to patent more than one-fifth of our DNA? The answer: Obsessive Branding Disorder. Blending whip-smart analysis with colorful reportage and humor, Obsessive Branding Disorder diagnoses the conditions that have created OBD (a disorder first defined by author Lucas Conley in the pages of Fast Company), states the scope, costs, and nature of the crisis for business and the culture, and tells amazing inside stories that show the damage these hucksters create. The book also distinguishes what is true and useful about branding as a business strategy, from what is distracting and destructive. In the bestselling tradition of The Wal-Mart Effect, The Long Tail, No Logo, and other books about business and culture, Obsessive Branding Disorder is hip, contrarian, funny, and deeply informed. About the AuthorLucas Conley is a staff writer at Fast Company. He began his career at the Atlantic Monthly. His work has also appeared in The Boston Globe and ESPN: The Magazine. He lives in New Mexico. This is his first book. What Our Readers Are SayingBe the first to add a comment for a chance to win!Product Details
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