Pentium was once one of the most recognized technology brands in the world. Scion was Toyota’s most successful attempt to reach a new generation of buyers.
Neither failed because of a bad launch, a weak product, or a flawed strategy. Both were killed by something far more insidious: a long sequence of individually rational decisions that nobody stopped to question. In both cases, the organizations involved misunderstood the same fundamental principle — brands do not fail because they are poorly conceived. They fail because their meaning is not actively managed.
