"Judo Brand Marketing"

Monday's Wall Street Journal had a very interesting article written by Professor Ross Petty of Babson University (a fine university located in the berg of my alma mater in Waltham, MA). He's coined a term called "Judo brand marketing," taken from the core philosophies of Judo which involve using an opponent's size and momentum to one's advantage. The marketing ramifications are very similar: using a larger, more established brand to propel your own. Dr. Petty goes on to discuss the ways that this can be accomplished and how to stay on the right side of the law when doing so.

Some of the techniques involve using logos and brand marks alongside your own, copycat branding (see my article on Me-Too Brands), and compatible and comparative marketing, among others. All of this is very interesting and are, frankly, fiendishly clever marketing tactics. At the same time, however, these are very dangerous--something Dr. Petty states outright.

If you are going to make use of someone else's brand in your own marketing, you're treading in some very dangerous waters. The obvious pitfalls include copyright infringement and misuse. Other dangers include tying your own brand to something that you cannot control. What if the other firm goes under? Or has some PR nightmare descend on them? All of these are risks one assumes when implementing these tactics. But, like any other strategy, the risks are commensurate with the potential rewards.