If your brand name is hard to pronounce or requires an explanation, it adds friction for the consumer. According to Wondery's founder, now is the time to rebrand if you're still early, as the cost of lost brand equity is minimal.

A highly entertaining character can become so popular that consumers remember the character ("Captain Risky") but not the brand ("Budget Direct"). The goal is to create characters who are inextricably linked to the brand, not bigger than it.

Instead of hiding a brand's perceived flaw, the most effective strategy is to embrace it and reframe it as a unique advantage. For example, Mischief turned streaming service Tubi's lack of prestige originals into a compelling "buffet of rabbit holes."

The 'pratfall effect' suggests that admitting a weakness can increase appeal. For brands, this works best when the admitted flaw cleverly emphasizes a core strength. For example, Buckley's cough syrup's 'It tastes awful. And it works' campaign uses its bad taste to signal its powerful efficacy.

Marketers must distinguish between two types of surprise. 'Short O' surprises are fleeting narrative twists that grab attention. 'Long O' surprises fundamentally reframe the brand or category (e.g., HSBC's 'Banking the Homeless' program), creating a lasting shift in perception and consideration.

The "All in the names" campaign playfully contrasts confusing names like "chicken fingers" with the brand's straightforward name. This reinforces their core promise of simplicity and being exactly what they sound like—the easiest place to book hotels, which proved to be a game-changing creative strategy.

Recognizing the brand name itself was a barrier, JCPenney ran high-fashion ads with QR codes but no logo. This forced consumers to judge the clothes on their merit first, circumventing negative preconceptions and creating a surprise that changed perceptions.

Instead of making direct, often unbelievable claims about quality or trust, use humor. The positive feeling from being amused creates a 'halo effect' that transfers to all other brand metrics. Ads are a powerful medium for demonstrating wit, which is more effective than claiming hard-to-prove attributes.

You can't erase a brand-damaging event like a public controversy. The solution is not to address it directly but to create so many new, positive associations for your audience that the negative event shrinks into irrelevance over time. You fix the brand by addition, not subtraction.