A Real Life Illustration in Brand Value

There are a lot of naysayers out there who think that branding is a "soft" marketing tactic, with no real tangible or measurable benefits. To them I say: take a look at the superstar cities.

What is a superstar city? Wharton real estate professor Joseph Gyourko defines them as the highly-sought-after, ultra-expensive, chic places to live. They are your New York Cities, Londons, Shanghais, and Bangalores. They are centers of culture and decadence, driving trends and defining what the rest of the world will be thinking tomorrow. How does this illustrate the value of branding?

All around the world (the U.S. in particular), the economy is slumping. World stock markets are drooping, taking real estate values with them. And the superstar cities? They seem to be immune. Despite all this, they are able to maintain and even increase their property values. They are luxury brands.

We see the same in hard goods—the luxury brand is always able to charge more. Of course, professional centers like Wall St. help keep these cities afloat financially, but it is all part of an intertwined mashup of economy, style, and personality that make up these brands. If these cities can ride out rough times by way of their brand, maybe some savvy businesses can too.