Understanding Brands through Music
An analogy that articulates the uniqueness of brands and why strong brands stand the test of time
Brands are much like Ragas in Indian Classical music. There are 1000s of Ragas in Indian Classical music, 100 or so that have stood the test of time and are regularly taught and played.
Allow me to get a bit nerdy about the concept.
Ragas are scales of musical notes and each defines which notes are played while ascending the scale and which are played while descending the scale. There are a few additional rules to each Raga. There is the most important note (vaadi) and the second most important note (samvaadi). Then there are notes that are not to played in that scale (varjit). Other nuances are also defined such as which notes can and cannot be played in sequence while ascending or descending the scale. Finally there is the time of the day (prahar: one of eight 3-hour slots in the 24 hour day) that the raga is to be played in and the mood/emotion that it embodies.
All ragas are made up of a subset of the same 12 notes that are universal to almost all forms of music globally, yet each raga can be identified uniquely when you listen to a melody composed in it. There are ragas that use the exact same notes, but sounds completely different.
One of the best ways to understand a Raga is through its Lakshan Geet, a composition comprised of lyrics that define these rules and a melody that applies these rules while singing the lyrics. Consider this the Brand Book of the Raga.
Most industries, verticals, technologies, etc. are crowded with competitors, each using some variation or subset of features to define their value proposition. But how do you stand out? That’s where the brand comes in. 1000s come and go, but a handful stand the test of time.