January 12, 2016

Agency Blog

The Cow Story

Imagine, if you will, a friendly neighborhood stop sign. Maybe it’s the stop sign leading out of the neighborhood in which you live. Now imagine that there is a cow standing at that stop sign.
You pull your car along side the brown bovine, mostly confused, but sort of chuckling inside. You realize there is no cow pasture for miles! The poor beast is incredibly lost.

You notice, on the hide of the hind quarter is a dark circle, bearing stylized A within. It clicks!

That cow belongs to Farmer Anderson.

Now is decision time:

If you like ol’ Farmer Anderson, you may pick up your phone, call him up and wait on the farmer. You think Maybe I can just keep the cow from wandering into the road. Not likely, but it’s a good thought.

But you know, Ol’ Man Anderson is kinda a curmudgeonly guy. As a member of the city council, you recall he voted to raise property taxes last year. You drive off, thinking viciously, How does unfair taxation feel, Councilman?

But what if Ol’ Man Anderson is a hated man in your city? He allowed the waste water disposal plant to dump into the creek running behind your home. You quickly realign your car to play a lethal game of auto cow tipping. You load the cow-turned-beef onto the roof of you car and cancel your yoga appointment, instead choosing to drive the cow to the local meat market.

Now you’re enjoying steaks and hamburger every night, courtesy of the Ol’ Man Anderson and Bessie the cow.

The moral of the story:
Your brand is not the logo mark. It’s the emotional response of your customers when they see that mark or hear your name.