Home Strategic Brand Positioning The History of Branding

Approximately 4,000 years ago, man began branding animals. Branding of animals, introduced to the “New World” in 1541, became common practice by 1865. In the beginning of the 19th Century, industrialization moved production of household items to centralized factories. When shipping products, factories would brand their name or insignia onto the barrels used for shipping. Later in the 19th Century, the advent of packaged goods (Soap, Cereal, Gum, etc.) signaled the transition of brand markings simply conveying the origin of a product to conveying a message of quality assurance to the consumer.

By the 1940’s, branding evolved beyond visual iconography and promises of quality. Marketers began to understand and act upon the knowledge that customers choose to buy the brand versus buying the product, and customers develop “relationships” with a brand.

However, the reality of branding is that your brand does not belong to you. A company can actively manage their brand, but in actuality your brand belongs to a relationship that exists in the minds and hearts of your customers, prospects and employees.