Smells like Play-Doh Perfume

This week’s BrandWeek issue has an article about the best and worst brand extensions of 2006. After reading the article, it becomes clear that many people in the business need to take MK487 with Professor Fournier. Play-Doh Perfume? Chicken Soup for the Soul Pet Food? I mean when you see this you have to think about if the company even used any sort of evaluation criteria to select a proper brand extension. Let’s try to evaluate Play-Doh Perfume with three criteria:

Size of Jump- Enormous
Consistency w/ Brand- Not at All
Relevance to Target Market- Unfortunately, kids aren’t the most hygienic beings.

One of the brand extensions that were praised was a Vera Wang Suite at the Halekulani Hotel. The association of luxury that Vera Wang has built over the years is an appropriate match to the luxury hotel. Another appropriate brand extension was the line of Red Cross radios, each with a hand crank, a cell phone charger and a siren. These emergency radios are closely linked with the American Red Cross’ message. As discussed in class, it is important to analyze the possible extensions through different criteria such as Size of Jump and Relevance. Trying to milk your brand only hurts the brand and deteriorates its meaning.

-Jose Diaz