HN Books @HNBooksMonth

The best books of Hacker News.

Hacker News Comments on
The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding

Al Ries, Laura Ries · 3 HN comments
HN Books has aggregated all Hacker News stories and comments that mention "The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding" by Al Ries, Laura Ries.
View on Amazon [↗]
HN Books may receive an affiliate commission when you make purchases on sites after clicking through links on this page.
Amazon Summary
This marketing classic has been expanded to include new commentary, new illustrations, and a bonus book: The 11 Immutable Laws of Internet Branding Smart and accessible, The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding is the definitive text on branding, pairing anecdotes about some of the best brands in the world, like Rolex, Volvo, and Heineken, with the signature savvy of marketing gurus Al and Laura Ries. Combining The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding and The 11 Immutable Laws of Internet Branding, this book proclaims that the only way to stand out in today's marketplace is to build your product or service into a brand—and provides the step-by-step instructions you need to do so. The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding also tackles one of the most challenging marketing problems today: branding on the Web. The Rieses divulge the controversial and counterintuitive strategies and secrets that both small and large companies have used to establish internet brands. The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding is the essential primer on building a category-dominating, world-class brand.
HN Books Rankings

Hacker News Stories and Comments

All the comments and stories posted to Hacker News that reference this book.
A couple that might be worth considering:

https://www.amazon.com/22-Immutable-Laws-Branding/dp/0060007...

https://www.amazon.com/Positioning-Battle-Your-Mind-Annivers...

https://www.amazon.com/Differentiate-Die-Survival-Killer-Com...

https://www.amazon.com/What-Sticks-Advertising-Guarantee-Suc...

https://www.amazon.com/Made-Stick-Ideas-Survive-Others/dp/14...

wellthisisgreat
Thank you! How did you like 22 immutable laws? I saw it recommended elsewhere too.
mindcrime
It's been a while (several years) since I read it, so my memory of specifics is kinda fuzzy. But I recall a generally favorable impression of it. Enough that I'll probably go back and re-read it at some point.
Wrong, very wrong. Generic names say that you are generic, not special.

Al Ries[0] describes this as the "The Law of Generic": a brand dilutes itself when it tries to refer to a generic category because it doesn't distinguish itself from competition. He gives 2 examples. There was a company making biscuits that called themselves National Biscuits Company. They abbreviated that to Nabisco and became a brand. There was a company making electrical appliances that used to call themselves General Electric Company. They abbreviated that to GE and became a brand.

[0] https://www.amazon.com/22-Immutable-Laws-Branding/dp/0060007...

eightturn
Tell that to Nuts.com, Diapers.com, Rover.com, Soap.com, Fabric.com, PoolTables.com....
zachrose
This is my first time hearing about all of those. The only one I remember is Pets.com.
xapata
That hypothesis is difficult to falsify and therefore difficult to believe. Can you give an example company that can serve as a proxy for the counterfactual National Biscuit Company that never changed its name?
diego_moita
> Can you give an example company that can serve as a proxy for the counterfactual National Biscuit Company that never changed its name?

If I could then it would be an evidence that the thesis is false. Look around, among most successful sites and companies in the world which one as a clearly generic name?

bildung
Minnesota Mining and Manifacturing (3M)?

Industrial Business Machines (IBM)?

xapata
No, the other way. A company that kept the long name and thereby failed. Specifically because of the bad brand and not for other reasons.
xapata
Name one that kept the generic name and failed because if it.

An alternative explanation is that large companies like to copy each other, not because it's a good idea, but simply because they're afraid to be different. Most people like to conform.

All very true. Also a very good, practical and easy read:

"The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding" http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0060007737/

HN Books is an independent project and is not operated by Y Combinator or Amazon.com.
~ yaj@
;laksdfhjdhksalkfj more things
yahnd.com ~ Privacy Policy ~
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.