The Ultimate Brand Champion – Hugh Hefner

Brand champions can be extremely powerful, and this week, I wrote an article that was published on the Yahoo! Advertising Blog about the ultimate brand champion – Hugh Hefner.

Here is a snippet from the article:

There is perhaps no other brand in the world which has been so closely aligned with a single person as Playboy has been with Hugh Hefner for over half a century. And there is no arguing the influence that a visible brand champion who truly lives and breathes a brand can have on the success (or failure) of that brand.

You can follow the link to learn more about brand champions and Hugh Hefner as the ultimate brand champion, and you can get my book, Building Brand Value the Playboy Way, for more information about branding lessons you can learn from Playboy.

Who do you think is the ultimate brand champion?  Leave a comment and share your thoughts!

Building Brand Value the Playboy Way Review

Mary Emma Allen of b5media’s HomeBizNotes.com blog published a review of my latest book, Building Brand Value the Playboy Way, last week, which I’d like to share with you.

You can read the full review here!

Dan Schawbel Interviews Susan Gunelius about Hugh Hefner, Playboy and Harry Potter

This week, I answered some questions posed to me by Dan Schawbel of Personal Branding Blog about my new book, Building Brand Value the Playboy Way, and my book about the Harry Potter brand, Harry Potter: The Story of a Global Business Phenomenon.

You can read the full interview on Dan’s blog and learn how Hugh Hefner, Playboy and Harry Potter are connected in terms of branding strategy.

Bet you never thought you’d hear that Playboy and Harry Potter can be compared to each other!

Here’s a brief excerpt from the interview:

Dan Schawbel: What branding lessons can we learn from Playboy and Harry Potter?

Susan Gunelius: I think the biggest similarity between the Playboy and Harry Potter brands is the importance of having a brand champion and brand guardian at the helm. Both Playboy and Harry Potter have two of the strongest brand champions and advocates leading the way — Hugh Hefner and J.K. Rowling. Both resolutely defend their brands just as much as they promote them.

Read the rest here.

Building Brand Value the Playboy Way – Now Available in Book Stores and Online

My new book, Building Brand Value the Playboy Way, was released this month through Palgrave Macmillan.  It’s available through online book sellers such as Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Borders as well as in stores.

This was an incredibly interesting story to research and to tell.  You can read an excerpt here.

If you have a chance to read it, stop back by and let me know what you think or leave a review on Amazon and share your thoughts.

Part 2 – Susan Gunelius Talks About the Playboy Brand and Her New Book

Part 2 of my interview with Anna Farmery at The Engaging Brand is now available for you to listen to.  During the interview, Anna and I discuss my new book, which is coming out in the U.K. in September 2009 and in the U.S. in October 2009, Building Brand Value the Playboy Way. 

If you want a sneak peak inside the book’s content or just want to hear more about the Playboy brand and Hugh Hefner as the ultimate brand champion. visit the post announcing the interview on The Engaging Brand, which also provides a synopsis of the interview, or go directly to the The Engaging Brand podcast page and select the blue ’Play’ button near the center of the page on the left side.

If you missed Part 1 of the interview, you can get the details and links here.

Susan Gunelius Talks About the Playboy Brand and Her New Book

My latest interview with Anna Farmery at The Engaging Brand is now available for you to listen to.  During the interview, Anna and I discuss my new book, which is coming out in the U.K. in September 2009 and in the U.S. in October 2009, Building Brand Value the Playboy Way. 

If you want a sneak peak inside the book’s content or just want to hear more about the Playboy brand and Hugh Hefner as the ultimate brand champion. visit the post announcing the interview on The Engaging Brand, which also provides a synopsis of the interview, or go directly to the The Engaging Brand podcast page and select the blue ’Play’ button near the center of the page on the left side.

Cover of ‘Building Brand Value the Playboy Way Released’

The cover of my new book, Building Brand Value the Playboy Way, to be published by Palgrave Macmillan this fall, was finalized today.  Here it is…

What do you think?