Contact:
LDM (at) MerriamAssociates.com
(917) 596-8011
Yesterday, GM announced yet more recalls that brought the total number of vehicle call-backs to an all-time record. The damage to an already hurting brand–see “Switchgate”–is incalculable. The idea of a “new GM” is taking a beating. Toyota suffered similar negative press several years ago, but the strength of its brand, built over decades, helped …
GM Smashes Its U.S. Recall Record and the Idea of a “New GM” Read More »
Jonah Goldberg has an excellent analysis of candidate brands in “Jeb, Hillary and the curse of tarnished political brands” published in the Los Angeles Times. It will be interesting to see which old brand from decades past people will choose–the Clinton brand or Bush brand–or is it time for a totally new political brand.
I was interviewed by NBC Sports about Richard Sherman’s brand value after his rant following the Seahawk’s victory in the 2014 NFC Championship Game. Did Sherman destroy his brand with his boorish tirade or did he turn golden? Opinion is evenly split between those who decry his poor sportsmanship and those who think his antics …
Sports Hangover: Talking Richard Sherman’s Brand on NBC Sports Read More »
Working with Everbrand, we helped rebrand a revolutionary technology for corporate knowledge management: Auros. Writing with Jeff Moffa, Vice President for Knowledge Systems at Auros, we wrote this article for Manufacturing.net: What happens when your company experts retire or move to another company, taking your corporate knowledge with them?
Why is the Redskins team name suddenly a huge controversy? If it is racist, why wasn’t there a huge outcry back in the 1960s? Why has it taken decades for the eternal victim class to make this an issue in 2013? Truly, this is another example of people with nothing better to do suddenly throwing …
The Chevy Volt is the brand failure of today, selling far few cars than that famous bomb Ford Edsel did in the 1950’s and 1960’s. In fact, compared to the Chevy Volt, the Ford Edsel was a blockbuster. 116,000 Ford Edsels sold in three years 55,000 Chevy Volts sold in three years Ford sold …
Chevy Volt Beats Ford Edsel as World-Class Brand Failure Read More »
In celebration of the release of World War Z, here is a run down of the best and worst named zombie movies: Best 1. Night of the Living Dead Not only the best zombie movie, but the best named zombie movie. It has the wit of juxtaposition with living vs. dead and the ominous promise …
Brand-jacking is when an existing brand is co-opted and used to promote something else. That is exactly what opponents of genetically modified foods are doing with the Monsanto brand.They’ve grabbed the bumper of Monsanto and are skitching on its reputation to bring attention and understanding to their message. As a kid growing up in Chicago, …
Brand-Jacking: A Political Cause Skitches on the Monsanto Brand Read More »
As a mother and entrepreneur, getting the balance right isn’t always easy. This article talks about working from home trying to focus and balancing home and kids. While I don’t get to work from home much–client projects have me working for all the heck over the place–keeping all the plates spinning can be a challenge. …
CBS Moneywatch: Merriam Entrepreneur Interview in Time for Mother’s Day Read More »
Congratulations to my client, the Association of Consultants to Nonprofits on their new Web site. It’s always a pleasure to work with Chicagoans, especially those who appreciate good web site writing, visitor experience and good SEO. Visit the site here.