Brand—Space

5
SECTION TWO
Branding
What is branding, brands and brand identities. A brief history
and overview of the subject, looking at brand value, perceptions
and communication methods.
Branding as a tool has evolved massively since
the industrial revolution. Originally it was used
to brand (literally, to burn) cattle with a hot iron,
as a means of identification, from one farmer to
the next. It was the first use of marking goods as
defined by The Oxford American Dictionary in
1980: ‘a trade mark, goods of a particular make’.
The book Brands and Branding by the Economist
(2009) explores the question ‘What is a brand?’
In Chapter 1 (pp.13-25), comparing two definitions,
one being the above from Oxford American
and the other from half a decade earlier in 1934
from The Pocket Oxford Dictionary of Current
English which defines a brand as: ‘burning or
smouldering wood, torch, sword’, ‘Stamp…
impress indelibly’ and the author Tom Blackett
notes how these definitions demonstrate how
over 50 years the main use for the word brand
now has a ‘commercial application’. 3
All definitions still refer to branding as a
method of impression, but today meaning an
impression in our minds – how brands shape our
perception of them. Usually over a period
of time, the most well known brands today have
been icons of popular culture and society for
decades and haven’t just appeared over night,
for example Bass pale ale with it’s instantly
recognisable red triangle. It’s been around for
over a century and is truly iconic, as it was the
first ever-registered trademark in the UK back
in 1876. 4
3
Clifton, R. and Ahmad,
S. (2009) Brands and
branding. 2nd ed.]. ed.
London: Profile.
4
Bass pale ale trademark
https://www.ipo.gov.uk/
tmcase/Results/1/
Fig. 2.1 Bass Logo