Branding Explained with James Rubart

Branding matters. Even my grandson, at the tender age of six, understood that.

One day while lunching at our favorite fast-food restaurant, a text alerted my lunch buddy and I that a package awaited at our house. My mind whirled, wondering what we’d ordered that now rested on the front steps. We picked up the pace to finish our lunch and refill our beverages that we might head home to rescue the package.

 As we pulled up in front of our house, my grandson pointed through the mini-van windows to the medium-sized box pushed up against the front door. “Look, it’s from Wal-mart.”

 By now I’d surmised the package might contain Pop’s new coffee maker, but I couldn’t remember from where he’d ordered the replacement for our decade-plus-a-few-years-old appliance. With the vehicle safely stopped and shifted into park, I squinted up the sidewalk.

Dylan's announcement jogged the pieces of the recent purchase into place. Pop had indeed ordered the brew machine from Wal-mart.

We hopped out and the youngster scampered ahead as I called after him, “How did you know that?”

“The logo, Gram. It’s the Wal-Mart logo.” The smart young lad tapped the box. “See, the Wal-Mart logo.” He scooped up the box and waited for me to open the door.

Somehow this grandson who sees few commercials as his family’s television viewing derives from online, commercial-free sources was familiar enough with the Wal-Mart logo that he correctly, and immediately, identified it from some thirty feet away. I’d say that’s an effective branding story.

Like retail department stores, car manufacturers, and eating establishments, authors need branding, too. While we might understand, mostly, the WHY of branding for authors, huge questions loom about the HOW and the WHEN and the WHERE and especially the HOW.

On January 28 via Zoom, James L. Rubart will present “Author Branding Explained.” This two-hour chapter meeting will give us the tools to tackle the sometimes daunting, often confusing world of branding. 

The best-selling, Christy Hall of Fame, Carol, INSPY, and RT Book Reviews award winning author of ten novels loves to send readers on mind-bending spiritual journeys that they'll remember months after they finish one of his stories. He’s the co-author of the time traveling detective series, The True Lies of Rembrandt Stone, as well as an audiobook narrator. He lives with his amazing wife on a small lake in eastern Washington. Learn more about James on his website or connect with him on Facebook.

We'll see you on January 28.