The Marketing Dialog forwards the conversation between marketing research and marketing with the purpose of enhancing and strengthening the industry.

Marketers devote a lot of time and energy to understanding and defining what their brand stands for.  We agonize over making our brand distinct and different (better) than the competition.  We want to be "known for" something that our target audience values, so that they can choose to purchase our brand and be willing to pay a premium to do so.

One of the most important - and challenging - requirements for maintaining a strong, successful brand is consistency.  That consistency comes from being absolutely crystal-clear about your brand definition, what your brand stands for, your value proposition and ultimately your brand personality.  (Or "persona" to use today's buzz word!)

2011 saw a lot of marketing campaigns spectacularly ‘fail’ for what seem now, obvious reasons, but as the man said, if we don’t learn from the past, we are apt to repeat it in the future.

Eggnog. Fruitcake. Candy canes.  Stockings hung by the fire with care.

 The competition to define the ultimate in-flight experience in a tweet for the "Qantas Luxury" competition was supposed to build good will and customer engagement.

So, what doesn’t naturally go together?  I know the first things that come to mind are oil and water, Kim Kardashian and her current (or former) husband, Justin Beiber and paternity suits, but how about a biggie – drinking and driving?