No matter what product you sell or what service you offer there are millions of examples of once prominent and admired brands that have fallen or even disappeared, especially in hard times like right now. Nevertheless, there are also a number of brands that have managed to come back successfully in recent years. Old Spice, for example, one of my favorite brand stories about how a grandpa deodorant becomes one of the sexiest brands overnight!

Too often it seems that businesses view marketing as the advertising and promotions that they run. This is a narrow view of the function, and can result in devastating consequences to the amount of business that is conducted.