Quote

Strategy and timing are the Himalayas of marketing. Everything else is the Catskills.

Al Ries

Change background

T
T
T

Change font

TAGS & TOPICS

Al Ries
Age: 97
Born: 1926
Born: November 14
Author
Economist
Atlanta
Georgia
Advertising
Strategy
Else
Everything
Himalayas
Timing
Marketing

More quotes by Al Ries

Image
Positioning is how you differentiate yourself in the mind of the prospect. That is, you position the product in the mind of the prospect.
Al Ries
Image
A successful branding program is based on the concept of singularity. It creates in the mind of the prospect the perception that there is no product on the market quite like your product.
Al Ries
Image
Good things happen when you narrow your focus.
Al Ries
Image
The crucial ingredient in the success of any brand is its claim to authenticity.
Al Ries
Image
To get into the consumer's mind, you have to sacrifice. You have to reduce the essence of your brand to a single thought or attribute. An attribute that nobody else already owns in your category.
Al Ries
Image
Everyone is interested in what‘s new. Few people are interested in what‘s better.
Al Ries
Image
The essence of positioning is sacrifice. You must be willing to give up something in order to establish that unique position.
Al Ries
Image
The next generation product almost never comes from the previous generation.
Al Ries
Image
The best way to make news is to announce a new category, not a new product.
Al Ries
Image
THE LAW OF THE CONTRACTION: A brand becomes stronger when you narrow its focus.
Al Ries
Image
The Internet is the ultimate in brand-centered buying.
Al Ries
Image
It's the first company to build the mental position that has the upper hand, not the first company to make the product. IBM didn't invent the computer Sperry Rand did. But IBM was the first to build the computer position in the prospect's mind.
Al Ries
Image
The real barrier (to building a brand) is the human mind. It normally takes decades to build a brand because it takes decades to penetrate the gray matter in between your ears.
Al Ries
Image
If you can build a powerful brand, you will have a powerful marketing program. If you CAN'T then all the advertising, fancy packaging, sales promotion and public relations in the world won't help you achieve your objective.
Al Ries
Image
Positioning is not what you do to a product. Positioning is what you do to the mind of the prospect.
Al Ries
Image
Only brand names register in the mind... What you should generally do is take a regular word and use it out of context to connote the primary attribute of your brand.
Al Ries
Image
Successful brands get into the mind slowly. A blurb in a magazine. A mention in a newspaper. A comment from a friend. A display in a retail store. After a slow buildup, people become convinced that they have known about the brand forever.
Al Ries
Image
Today, communication itself is the problem. We have become the world's first overcommunicated society. Each year we send more and receive less.
Al Ries
Image
Advertising is the way great brands get to be great brands.
Al Ries
Image
Changing the direction of a large company is like trying to turn an aircraft carrier. It takes a mile before anything happens. And if it was a wrong turn, getting back on course takes even longer.
Al Ries