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Seth Godin on the difference between a logo and a brand

October 20, 2023

As Seth Godin puts it in the clip below:

“If Nike opened a hotel, I think we would be able to guess pretty accurately what it would be like. If Hyatt came out with sneakers, we’d have no clue what they’d be like. That’s because Hyatt doesn’t have a brand—they have a logo.”

He continues:

“What it means to have a brand is you’ve made a promise to people. They have expectations. It’s a shorthand. And if that is distinct, you’ve earned something. If it’s not distinct, admit you make a commodity and you’re trying to charge just a little bit extra for peace of mind. The problem that Hyatt, Hilton, Marriott, and the rest have is sort by price. Because if I go online now to find a hotel, it’s really simple. Why would I pay $200 extra? I don’t. The value of a brand is how much extra I am paying above the substitute. And if I’m not paying extra, you don’t have a brand.”

This seems to be Warren Buffet’s definition of a brand too. Apple has one of the best brands in the world, and he explains the value of this brand loyalty in a pretty unique way:

“If you’re an Apple user and somebody offers you $10,000, but the only proviso is they’ll take away your iPhone and you’ll never be able to buy another, you’re not going to take it. If they tell you if you buy another Ford car, they’ll give you $10,000 not to do that, you’ll take the $10,000 and you’ll buy a Chevy instead.”

Ford and Chevy have logos. Apple has a brand.