The Infinite Asset

In The Infinite Asset, Sam Hill and Chris Lederer unveil an ingenious strategy-the Brand Portfolio Approach-that exponentially increases the value of brands by exploding them beyond the boundaries of their division or even their parent company. The authors argue that a company's brand portfolio must reflect how the target customer actually views the brand; it must encompass every brand-whether the company owns it or not-that affects the buying decision.

Based on thirty years of consulting experience and extensive research across industries, the authors introduce a breakthrough 3-D mapping tool-the brand portfolio molecule-that lets managers visualize all elements of a brand and how they interact to create new value. Compelling case studies apply the model to the brand strategies of companies including 3M, Cadillac, Miller Beer, and Yahoo!. In addition, a comprehensive set of implementation tools guide marketers in using the model to:

• identify the "lead brand" in the eyes of the customer
• find and fill product holes
• decide whether to extend, prune, or reposition a brand
• arrive at the right number of brands
• determine how and when to use a corporate brand as an umbrella
• allocate marketing funds most effectively
• trace brand value using informative metrics
• convert brand equity into shareholder value and more

Contents

Foreword: by Kevin Lane Keller

Part 1: Understanding the Brand Portfolio

Chapter 1: Brands, New Value Creation and Competitive Advantage

Chapter 2: Elements of the New Model

Chapter 3: The Molecule in Detail

Chapter 4: Portfolio Dynamics

Chapter 5: How Brand Portfolios Differ

Part 2: Optimizing the Brand Portfolio

Chapter 6: Measuring Success

Chapter 7: Toolkit: Extensions

Chapter 8: Toolkit: Repositioning

Chapter 9: Toolkit: Pruning

Chapter 10: Toolkit: Over-Branding

Chapter 11: Toolkit: Co-Branding

Chapter 12: Toolkit: Amalgamation

Chapter 13: Toolkit: Partitioning

Chapter 14: Toolkit: Scaling

Chapter 15: Using the Tools

Part 3: Implementing Brand Portfolio Management

Chapter 16: Brand Portfolio Management-the 3m Case

Chapter 17: Overcoming Organizational Resistance

Chapter 18: Lessons Learned in the Trenches

Chapter 19: The Implications of Infinity

Afterword: About the Research

Notes

Acknowledgments

Index