Comments on: Wanna Start a Cult?

By: Why the Visceral Reaction to Questioning Social Media? « BrandieYoung's Weblog

Thu, 03 Dec 2009 04:10:03 +0000

[...] and specifically built by brands, such as Apple or Harley Davidson (I wrote a post about it here) – that makes people believe they are part of a small tribe with a unique common dominator the [...]

By: Social Networking, Housing Bubble and More in just 15 minutes | Internet Real Estate Success

Fri, 10 Apr 2009 17:05:31 +0000

[...] Wanna Start a Cult? [...]

By: Wanna Start a Cult? « BrandieYoung’s Weblog

Wanna Start a Cult? « BrandieYoung’s Weblog — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 16:07:38 +0000

[...] Read the rest here … [...]

By: Brandie Young

Brandie Young — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 15:50:33 +0000

Mark – Thanks for the recommendation on the read.

Aaron – I appreciate your visiting and insightful comments. (Little does he know, but Aaron is one of my fav marketers)

Missy – I agree, AG is a fantastic community – of which I am honored to be a part. That said, I don’t think it can be consudered a cult brand…

Barry – Where have you been hiding? I love reading that your focus is consumer-centric. That will be a strong differentiator. Keep it up!

By: Barry Cunningham

Barry Cunningham — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 03:49:43 +0000

brandie,

we decided we wanted to create a brand both nationally and locally. We felt that real estate was comprised of so many who were faceless by their decision to be a group rather than individuals.

What built our brand was the decision to take a stand, regardless of what people thought, and staying true to our core beliefs.

You know from your background what I am talking about when so many to this day in real estate don’t understand this.

There has to be something unique about whatever brand you are desiring to stamp out otherwise you’re just another generic box of cereal on the shelf.

We are finding on a daily basis, by continuing to push the envelope and be different that the consumer WANTS to be associated with something different.

One of the amazing byproducts of social media is that we can be Coke, we can be Nike…but we can choose to compete by being ourselves.

By: Missy Caulk

Missy Caulk — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 02:19:46 +0000

You said, “don’t believe a service provider can replicate, including that feeling of belonging to a special group, movement or cause. When people go through something together, it’s like there’s mutual suffering together, or a mutual unique situation they share.”

…and this is a community. Good or bad.

By: Aaron Strout

Aaron Strout — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 17:57:24 +0000

Brandie – great post (and thanks for the shout out). This is an increasingly important topic as companies try and figure out whether their brands are “community” worthy. My argument is that all brands are worthy, it’s more a matter of whether or not they are willing to ratchet the focus up to more of a “lifestyle” or “industry” level vs. trying to get people excited about their individual products.

Best,
Aaron | @aaronstrout