Most brands never make it past “good brand” status.
And honestly? That’s fine. A good brand can run a profitable business for decades. But if you’re here reading this, you’re probably aiming higher—you want to create something that becomes a cultural touchstone, a category-defining force.
After studying hundreds of brands at every stage of development, I’ve discovered something crucial: Great brands don’t just do the same things as good brands, but better. They fundamentally transcend what they deliver across four core pillars.
Here’s how to get to great brand status—and why most brands never make the leap.
The 4 Pillars Every Great Brand Masters.
In my research (which forms part of my upcoming book), I found that every great brand excels across these four dimensions. But here’s the key: they don’t just meet expectations in each area, they transcend the 4 pillars.
1. Product: From Good to Category King
Good brands offer reliable products that consistently meet customer expectations. They deliver quality, solve problems effectively, and maintain standards that keep customers coming back.
Great brands define their entire category, becoming the standard against which all competitors are measured. Great brands don’t just meet expectations—they establish what those expectations should be in the first place.
Think about how we ask for a Kleenex instead of a tissue, or how Apple redefined what a smartphone should be with the first iPhone. When your product becomes the benchmark—the thing competitors are measured against instead of the other way around—you’ve achieved product greatness.
Example: Dyson didn’t just make a slightly better vacuum cleaner. James Dyson revolutionized the entire category by solving the fundamental problem of suction loss. After 5,127 prototypes and years of rejection, he created a product so category-defining that competitors still measure themselves against it decades later.
2. Story: From Compelling to Cultural
Good brands have clear, compelling stories that differentiate them from competitors. They communicate their unique value proposition effectively and connect with their target audience.
Great brands create stories that become part of the cultural landscape. Their narratives extend beyond the product category and become reference points in broader conversations. You’ve defined a category through your story, and it stands out in the cultural understanding.
Example: Nike evolved from telling compelling stories about athletic performance to creating cultural movements. “Just Do It” isn’t just a tagline about shoes—it’s a philosophy that has permeated culture far beyond sports. When non-athletes who have never purchased your products still reference your brand narrative, you’ve achieved story greatness.
The difference: Good brand stories make you want to buy the product. Great brand stories make you want to be part of something bigger.
3. Experience: From Satisfying to Transformative
Good brands provide experiences that meet customer expectations through smooth transactions and helpful service.
Great brands understand that a brand isn’t just about the product—it’s about every single touchpoint. In the digital age, this means everything from online interactions to when the package shows up at your front door, from pop-up experiences to customer service calls. Every aspect matters.
Great brands create experiences so transformative that they change how customers see themselves or their world. They don’t just satisfy needs—they create moments that alter perspective and identity.
Example: Starbucks didn’t just serve satisfying coffee with good service. They transformed the everyday coffee experience into a “third place” between home and work—altering how an entire generation thinks about a commodity beverage. They created an entirely new expectation of what role coffee plays in daily life.
4. Consistency: From Reliable to Canonical
Good brands maintain reliable consistency across touchpoints—their product quality, customer service, and messaging stay dependably uniform.
Great brands establish such definitive consistency that they create universal expectations. This is why it’s called branding, not marketing. Every single piece must be consistent—from operations to the employees you hire, from the music in your store to your digital presence.
Example: The Four Seasons doesn’t just deliver consistent luxury service to its guests. It has established such canonical consistency that “Four Seasons service” has become shorthand for exceptional attention to detail across industries. People who have never stayed at their hotels still understand what “Four Seasons quality” means.
The Variable of Time: Why Time Is Your Secret Weapon
Here’s what most people miss about building a great brand: the variable of time is everything.
It’s inconvenient to think in terms of decades, not days. But that’s exactly what separates great brands from good ones. Great brands understand that they need patience to chip away at these four pillars every single day, consistently, over the years, in order to transform their 4 pillars from good to great.
You can’t force greatness through intention alone. You can’t simply decide to become culturally relevant or category-defining—these statuses are earned through relentless focus, patient execution, and thousands of consistent actions over time.
Great brands aren’t built overnight. They’re built over decades through countless refinements and an unwavering commitment to excellence across all four dimensions.
If you want to level up your brand and how you show up on socials DM me to get 15% off my Social Media Masterclass OR to be added to my July cohort where I work with 12 experts to improve their brand and socials over 6 weeks.
xx,
Camille