What do you think?
Rate this book
Obsessed: Building a Brand People Love from Day One
The 2020 Porchlight Marketing & Sales Book of the YearThe cofounder and chief branding officer of Red Antler, the branding and marketing company for startups and new ventures, explains how hot new brands like Casper, Allbirds, Sweetgreen, and Everlane build devoted fan followings right out of the gate.We're in the midst of a startup revolution, with new brands popping up every day, taking over our Instagram feeds and vying for our affection. Every category is up for grabs, and traditional brands are seeing their businesses erode as hundreds of small companies encroach on their territory, each hoping to become the next runaway success. But it's not enough to have a great idea, or a cool logo. Emily Heyward founded Red Antler, the Brooklyn based brand and marketing company, to help entrepreneurs embed brand as a driver of business success from the beginning. In Obsessed, Heyward outlines the new principles of what it takes to build and launch a brand that has people queuing up to buy it on opening day. She takes you behind the scenes of the creation of some of today's hottest new brands, showing • How Casper was able to upend the mattress industry by building a beloved brand where none had existed before • How the dating app Hinge won a fanatical user base and great word-of-mouth with the promise that the app was "designed to be deleted" • Why luggage startup Away, now valued at $1.4 billion, could build their brand around love of travel by launching with just one product--a hard-shell carry-on suitcase--rather than a whole range of luggage offerings.Whether you're starting a new business, launching a new product line, or looking to refresh a brand for a new generation of customers, Obsessed shows you why the old rules of brand-building no longer apply, and what really works for today's customers.
238 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 9, 2020
373 people are currently reading
2148 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 81 reviews
August 31, 2020
Listened to the audiobook. I’ve followed Red Antler for 6 years and have greatly enjoyed seeing the various campaigns and brands of which they’ve been a part. I’ve even seen Emily Heyward speak, so was very excited for this book. I will say that the branding messages seemed to fall flat and the book was just not that interesting. There were a few good pieces of wisdom here and there, but I would ultimately not recommend this book.
June 13, 2021
Fresh perspective and tangible examples of companies who realize, to quote the book, “Brand is not something you create then move on. Brand is a living, breathing thing.” It is imperative that a company's brand is woven into every facet of their business, and consumers are adept at detecting/researching fakes.
Gems:
Ch 2
--“If you build a brand that stands for affordability alone, anyone can come along, be five dollars cheaper, and you’re done.”
--Convenience is affordability’s equally boring cousin.
Ch 3
--“Choose What You Pay” sales from Everlane (jeans) where they show what area of the company the money will go to
--Spotify creates a community among anonymous users with its statistics
--Communities form around a shared expression of ideals
--“Minimum viable products” rarely work for brands trying to break the rules with a consumer product.”
Ch 7
--“It’s more important these days to have rich and varied layers for storytelling versus one symbol that says it all.” It’s rare for consumers to see a logo out of context.
Conclusion
--“Millennials are simply the generation who came of age at a time when consumers were able to demand far more from the business with whom they choose to engage.”
Gems:
Ch 2
--“If you build a brand that stands for affordability alone, anyone can come along, be five dollars cheaper, and you’re done.”
--Convenience is affordability’s equally boring cousin.
Ch 3
--“Choose What You Pay” sales from Everlane (jeans) where they show what area of the company the money will go to
--Spotify creates a community among anonymous users with its statistics
--Communities form around a shared expression of ideals
--“Minimum viable products” rarely work for brands trying to break the rules with a consumer product.”
Ch 7
--“It’s more important these days to have rich and varied layers for storytelling versus one symbol that says it all.” It’s rare for consumers to see a logo out of context.
Conclusion
--“Millennials are simply the generation who came of age at a time when consumers were able to demand far more from the business with whom they choose to engage.”
December 28, 2021
Interesting stories but overall not very useful. Lots of specific stories about brands, lots of brand name dropping. Hard to apply these ideas to a different business. Felt more like a business memoir.
March 20, 2022
I am not a marketer, but I do run a very small business and was interested to learn tactics to make my business grow. Overall, I feel like I got some useful information, but this book was not as helpful as I wanted it to be. I enjoyed the beginning portion of the book where she talked about naming your business, establishing internal values, and deciding the problem your business was going to solve. These points were helpful for me, and I will continue to think about them as I grow my business.
Since the description markets a 'behind the scenes look' into the building of great companies, I expected a bit more information than what we got. How much money does a Red Antler campaign cost? Has she helped businesses that failed, and what brand-related factors led to these failures? (The way she presents it, it seems like Red Antler has a 100% success rate with businesses that take their advice.) Perhaps this is information that Heyward can't/won't share, but it would be interesting to learn more about. At the midway point, I felt like I was being subjected to an elaborate ad for Casper rather than understanding *how* Red Antler made Casper a successful brand.
I have the feeling that this book was written more for marketers running uninspired campaigns for yogurt than people like me, which is fine. I just wish Heyward added more concrete steps into her book than she did.
3 stars!
🌟🌟🌟
Since the description markets a 'behind the scenes look' into the building of great companies, I expected a bit more information than what we got. How much money does a Red Antler campaign cost? Has she helped businesses that failed, and what brand-related factors led to these failures? (The way she presents it, it seems like Red Antler has a 100% success rate with businesses that take their advice.) Perhaps this is information that Heyward can't/won't share, but it would be interesting to learn more about. At the midway point, I felt like I was being subjected to an elaborate ad for Casper rather than understanding *how* Red Antler made Casper a successful brand.
I have the feeling that this book was written more for marketers running uninspired campaigns for yogurt than people like me, which is fine. I just wish Heyward added more concrete steps into her book than she did.
3 stars!
🌟🌟🌟
February 16, 2022
It’s not bad in any way, but it wasn’t what I expected. This book is geared towards businesses building a brand and not content creators like I’d hoped. Still, there was some good information I took from it, but it’s all things I’ve heard before on free podcasts about building a brand or an online presence. I’d say skip it if you’ve already been seeking info, strategies and skills for awhile. It’s recycled information.
March 15, 2021
It was ok. Some insights to reinforce. Maybe useful exercises for me and my cofounder to do are the brand strategy exercise and the why test.
June 14, 2025
Informative, readable, inspirational — overall enjoyed!
October 17, 2023
A must read for anyone looking to build or revamp a brand. So many interesting case studies and valuable information presented in storytelling that makes it easy to keep turning pages.
April 10, 2022
I thoroughly enjoyed this book about branding.
This is not a statement I thought I would ever say. However, it was fascinating and useful. I definitely recommend.
This is not a statement I thought I would ever say. However, it was fascinating and useful. I definitely recommend.
February 6, 2025
I loved all the examples of actual brands and how they applied different values, psychology and tactics to differentiate themselves! I'll probably read again in the future!
November 8, 2021
Makes you think. A lot. Consider it a 101 on brand building. Does not disappoint.
April 13, 2024
This book was not worth the time to read it. The author just rambles on about successful brands in recent history. She makes no attempt to connect these brands, explain consistent successful principles, or teach the reader anything.
She had a brief section talking about creating a unique brand identify by combining two adjectives. I liked this idea. She claimed that Casper uses the adjectives “innovative” and “cuddly”. I intend to explore this idea more.
The book feels like it has no purpose. The author just writes from her stream of consciousness about successful brands. She sometimes has to justify why contradictory branding principles were both successful. It felt like the author added no value to the stories of these companies.
Don’t read this book. It’s a waste of time.
She had a brief section talking about creating a unique brand identify by combining two adjectives. I liked this idea. She claimed that Casper uses the adjectives “innovative” and “cuddly”. I intend to explore this idea more.
The book feels like it has no purpose. The author just writes from her stream of consciousness about successful brands. She sometimes has to justify why contradictory branding principles were both successful. It felt like the author added no value to the stories of these companies.
Don’t read this book. It’s a waste of time.
February 11, 2022
While I did enjoy this book, it is more of a long-form collection of case studies rather than a manual for how to implement a brand marketing campaign. I found the first three chapters to be the most valuable, and thereafter it devolves into what I would only describe as a specific brand love fest. That's fine, it is well written and a fun little read.
Worth picking up if you are thinking of running a company based around a purpose-driven brand initiative. Don't expect a step by step guide for how to do that.
Worth picking up if you are thinking of running a company based around a purpose-driven brand initiative. Don't expect a step by step guide for how to do that.
March 15, 2020
Just like the label (blurb) says, you can certainly learn a lot about modern branding by reading all the examples here. Well written, interesting and useful for many. Not revolutionary, but very practical.
July 4, 2024
Starts well, but becomes more of an advert for all the brands the agency have helped than telling us anything useful. No real practical insights that I wasn’t already aware of. Tells us about things rather than explaining practically how to do them.
October 27, 2021
Read the first 4-5 chapters, quickly skimmed the rest. Semi-helpful info in the chapters I read, but this had no business being an entire book. Way too repetitive, should have been an essay.
December 9, 2024
Long time since I started this book. But that was because it was so incredibly lengthy and full of noise.
The title suggests that after reading this book you will have a clear idea of how to build a brand people are obsessed with. But you will not learn that from this book. Because it’s based on nothing. Or at least it’s nog clear what the exact strategy is to build a brand that people become obsessed over. No theoretical framework or whatsoever.
Sure if you are looking for interesting examples of brands that have succeeded in getting people obsessed with their brand this book is perfect. As it is literally filled with examples, after examples, after examples. Just a lot of noise and no clear input as to how you actually build a brand people get obsessed with. It is a lot of why and very little to no how. A clear indication to me that the author is not interested in actually sharing knowledge that is valuable. To me it feels like a very poorly executed sales pitch why you should work with the branding agency the author started.
An example is the title of chapter 8; “make it personal.”
In my opinion to create a message and a story about branding that is actually useful for readers, the title of this chapter should be one of the principles in a plan; “How to create a brand that people are obsessed with.” And I don’t know, actually tell people how to do it maybe. This chapter should have started with some research based facts why personality is important for brands. Followed by personal experience of the author and a couple SHORT example that are to the point and concise.
Instead this chapter is build out of personal information, waaaaaaay to much text and very lengthy examples that can easily be summarized.
In my opinion there are books on branding that are significantly better. Like on an another planet level better. Such as building story brands.
The title suggests that after reading this book you will have a clear idea of how to build a brand people are obsessed with. But you will not learn that from this book. Because it’s based on nothing. Or at least it’s nog clear what the exact strategy is to build a brand that people become obsessed over. No theoretical framework or whatsoever.
Sure if you are looking for interesting examples of brands that have succeeded in getting people obsessed with their brand this book is perfect. As it is literally filled with examples, after examples, after examples. Just a lot of noise and no clear input as to how you actually build a brand people get obsessed with. It is a lot of why and very little to no how. A clear indication to me that the author is not interested in actually sharing knowledge that is valuable. To me it feels like a very poorly executed sales pitch why you should work with the branding agency the author started.
An example is the title of chapter 8; “make it personal.”
In my opinion to create a message and a story about branding that is actually useful for readers, the title of this chapter should be one of the principles in a plan; “How to create a brand that people are obsessed with.” And I don’t know, actually tell people how to do it maybe. This chapter should have started with some research based facts why personality is important for brands. Followed by personal experience of the author and a couple SHORT example that are to the point and concise.
Instead this chapter is build out of personal information, waaaaaaay to much text and very lengthy examples that can easily be summarized.
In my opinion there are books on branding that are significantly better. Like on an another planet level better. Such as building story brands.
October 29, 2022
"When people choose which brands to love," Emily Heyward says in her book 'Obsessed,' "they’re choosing which part of themselves they want to convey to the world."
Branding is a tricky beast - its a combination of functional mechanics and emotional messaging - and Heyward uses a variety of case studies from her own work as a branding strategist. Having modern companies shown in context of their brand journey helps illustrate many of the concepts in this book, giving the reader a more concrete understanding of the concepts than the theoretical branding whitewash that's thrown around so much nowadays.
The author brings you continually back to the most important (and overlooked) parts of branding - the problem you solve, and the emotional connection people have with the identity of solving that problem.
"What beloved brands do successfully is make it about the consumer, not themselves." This is, in my experience, easy to forget when you are heads-down nose-to-the-grindstone and so involved in your work that you forget about the end user. "When you ground yourself in your consumers and why you exist for them," she says, "branding becomes an act of generosity instead of an act of self-congratulation."
This is, counterintuitively, what makes brands successful - when they take the focus off themselves, and shine the spotlight on their greatest advocates.
Branding is a tricky beast - its a combination of functional mechanics and emotional messaging - and Heyward uses a variety of case studies from her own work as a branding strategist. Having modern companies shown in context of their brand journey helps illustrate many of the concepts in this book, giving the reader a more concrete understanding of the concepts than the theoretical branding whitewash that's thrown around so much nowadays.
The author brings you continually back to the most important (and overlooked) parts of branding - the problem you solve, and the emotional connection people have with the identity of solving that problem.
"What beloved brands do successfully is make it about the consumer, not themselves." This is, in my experience, easy to forget when you are heads-down nose-to-the-grindstone and so involved in your work that you forget about the end user. "When you ground yourself in your consumers and why you exist for them," she says, "branding becomes an act of generosity instead of an act of self-congratulation."
This is, counterintuitively, what makes brands successful - when they take the focus off themselves, and shine the spotlight on their greatest advocates.
June 17, 2021
I am not a marketer by trade but have grown increasingly curious about how branding has evolved over time. Emily et al have done a masterful job of explaining how branding has changed over time by using concrete examples of companies that have dug deep to build products and services in a deliberate and meaningful way. I especially enjoy hearing some of the misconceptions from Red Antler's clients/prospective clients since many of us tend to gravitate towards old-school branding tactics.
As an aspiring entrepreneur, Obsessed left me with a great deal to reflect on. In my industry of financial services, marketing and branding is a major weakness as many financial professionals are allergic to more right-brain concepts like branding and marketing.
Emily challenged me to think more deeply about what I stand for and the message I want to send to my target customer. It's not easy but the rewards, as her examples show, massively outweigh the struggle of effectively communicating your company's values and mission.
Highly recommend!
As an aspiring entrepreneur, Obsessed left me with a great deal to reflect on. In my industry of financial services, marketing and branding is a major weakness as many financial professionals are allergic to more right-brain concepts like branding and marketing.
Emily challenged me to think more deeply about what I stand for and the message I want to send to my target customer. It's not easy but the rewards, as her examples show, massively outweigh the struggle of effectively communicating your company's values and mission.
Highly recommend!
September 22, 2021
Bir kaç gündür sesli kitap olarak dinlemekteyim.
Öncelikle ben reklamcı falan değilim bu alanda da çalışmıyorum. Yeni kurduğum iş ile ilgili fayda sağlamak üzere bu tip kitapları dinliyorum/okuyorum. Bu konuda okuduğum bir çok kitaptan sonra bu kitapla karşılaşmam biraz az not vermeme neden olmuş olabilir diye belirteyim. Okunurluk ve akış açısından başarılı olsa da kendi adıma fayda sağlayamadım. Dağınık ve tekrarlayan hikayeler arasında orada burada bilgi kırıntılarına rastladığım için biraz düşük not verdim. Konuya tamamen yabancı veya konunun tam içindeki birileri daha farklı değerlendirebilir.
Kitap özetle "Çevreye duyarlı ürünler geliştirin, markanızın altını en başından doldurun ve bitti diye düşünmeyin, marka yaratma ve geliştirme firmanın başından bulunduğu ana sürekli devam eden bir süreçtir. Bu süreçte markanızın temsil ettiği değerleri taşıyan kişilerle çalışın." diyor.
Kalan kısmı çoğunlukla Emily Heyward'ın çalıştığı firmaların peşpeşe gelen reklam filmi veya "marka dosyaları"nın ve hazırlama süreçlerinin üst üste konup kitap haline getirilmiş hali.
Öncelikle ben reklamcı falan değilim bu alanda da çalışmıyorum. Yeni kurduğum iş ile ilgili fayda sağlamak üzere bu tip kitapları dinliyorum/okuyorum. Bu konuda okuduğum bir çok kitaptan sonra bu kitapla karşılaşmam biraz az not vermeme neden olmuş olabilir diye belirteyim. Okunurluk ve akış açısından başarılı olsa da kendi adıma fayda sağlayamadım. Dağınık ve tekrarlayan hikayeler arasında orada burada bilgi kırıntılarına rastladığım için biraz düşük not verdim. Konuya tamamen yabancı veya konunun tam içindeki birileri daha farklı değerlendirebilir.
Kitap özetle "Çevreye duyarlı ürünler geliştirin, markanızın altını en başından doldurun ve bitti diye düşünmeyin, marka yaratma ve geliştirme firmanın başından bulunduğu ana sürekli devam eden bir süreçtir. Bu süreçte markanızın temsil ettiği değerleri taşıyan kişilerle çalışın." diyor.
Kalan kısmı çoğunlukla Emily Heyward'ın çalıştığı firmaların peşpeşe gelen reklam filmi veya "marka dosyaları"nın ve hazırlama süreçlerinin üst üste konup kitap haline getirilmiş hali.
June 16, 2020
As a lifelong avid consumer, I thought I largely knew what went into creating an appealing brand. After reading this book, it’s clear to me that, like almost everyone else, I have a lot of personal experience with brands but not much actual understanding of what makes a brand successful in the short and long term. Heyward imparts insights she’s amassed over years creating the brand identities of some of the most successful direct-to-consumer startups. Everyone hoping to launch, grow, and/or maintain a brand will greatly benefit from her strategies. And for those of us who aren’t in the industry, this book is a whip smart, well-written, funny, engaging, and illuminating insider look into how companies connect with consumers now. Can’t recommend Obsessed more highly.
August 16, 2020
Don't be a dick. Care about humans.
I got the most value out of chapter 1 (Defining the Problem). Carving your idea into the fundamental human problem your product could solve was eye opening. Having a practical frame work with the "why test" (and the joy of reaching "because we're going to die") has made defining the problem so much easier. It really got my out of my own way.
The rest of the chapters had good nuggets, yet were innate to how I've been viewing and executing on brand work. Now I'm just glad I'm not the only one that seeks brands to be better to humans. It's been a reassuring ride to see much of what Emily's outlined are what I've kept in mind since the beginning for my own project.
I got the most value out of chapter 1 (Defining the Problem). Carving your idea into the fundamental human problem your product could solve was eye opening. Having a practical frame work with the "why test" (and the joy of reaching "because we're going to die") has made defining the problem so much easier. It really got my out of my own way.
The rest of the chapters had good nuggets, yet were innate to how I've been viewing and executing on brand work. Now I'm just glad I'm not the only one that seeks brands to be better to humans. It's been a reassuring ride to see much of what Emily's outlined are what I've kept in mind since the beginning for my own project.
November 9, 2022
Had some interesting insights into various popular companies and their strategies for growth and connecting to people. It was very narrative with some actionable steps but otherwise it's more just ideas about what to do. Some of the ideas are relatively common sense when it comes to building a brand but other times the author focused on some counter intuitive points with evidence as to why brands were able to succeed. You would really need a big budget to actually pull any of these off though. If you are some small entrepreneur it will be nice to keep these things in mind but very hard to really put into practice without a team or the investment capital to hire a consultancy firm like Red Antler.
Read
October 16, 2020Some good and inspiring stuff in the first couple of chapters, then a bunch of case studies that reinforced her points. They mostly had to do with retail (physical or online) brands. It wasn’t life-changing but reinforced lots of stuff I knew from 20+ years of seeking to work in and build companies that fitted Guy Kawasaki’s Rules for Revolutionaries mould (I.e. be bold, do well by doing good)
This might be a good shortcut for people just getting started. Encouraging to know the approach is still current.
This might be a good shortcut for people just getting started. Encouraging to know the approach is still current.
September 7, 2020
Really well-written & love her tone of voice. Think everything she's doing is incredible. 3 stars is a completely personal rating in that I've read SO much about various start-ups & also come from the advertising/branding world, so most of this stuff I already know. However, for those interested in the building blocks of how to create a start up in this day and age, I very much recommend this read.
November 25, 2021
As the owner of a creative agency myself, I enjoy consuming content from founders and agency owners. I found this book to be equal parts affirming my process and helping me expand it. I really enjoyed the case studies for their clients and how they were examples of the principles Heyward was teaching.
Her teaching style and tone are relatable and easy to understand.
I hope I can be like Emily when I grow up.
Her teaching style and tone are relatable and easy to understand.
I hope I can be like Emily when I grow up.
February 22, 2022
Author makes a compelling case that brand needs to be firmly in place and we’ll thought through before starting your business.
Step by step walks you through what goes into creating a brand. No shortcuts here, you’ll need to put in the work, but lots of good examples from popular D2C brands.
Some of the chapters the point is made more clearly than others, and for this I docked a star.
Book will serve as a roadmap for adding clarity of focus to our company this year.
Step by step walks you through what goes into creating a brand. No shortcuts here, you’ll need to put in the work, but lots of good examples from popular D2C brands.
Some of the chapters the point is made more clearly than others, and for this I docked a star.
Book will serve as a roadmap for adding clarity of focus to our company this year.
May 7, 2022
This book is a great and enjoyable read for anyone interested in or working in marketing. Additionally, it would be a fun read for students in their last year of school considering a career in marketing! It is well written and well researched. The book contains some delightful stories about how a brand starts and how marketers brainstorm to create taglines that will resonate with their potential clients.
March 7, 2023
I don't work in brand marketing, but have always been curious about how a brand is built, especially in this age when it seems like new brands are popping up constantly!
I really enjoyed this book. I liked Heyward's succinct writing and the brief summary at the end of every chapter. I especially liked the 'case studies' of various brands that were included throughout the book (Casper, Airbnb, Allbirds). Definitely recommend, especially if you're interested in marketing and branding!
I really enjoyed this book. I liked Heyward's succinct writing and the brief summary at the end of every chapter. I especially liked the 'case studies' of various brands that were included throughout the book (Casper, Airbnb, Allbirds). Definitely recommend, especially if you're interested in marketing and branding!
November 12, 2023
Nauseating to read. Such a horrible writing style which feels like it's a post on twitter for the majority of the book... Ham fisted with tons of random disjointed political messaging and talking points which make 0 sense regarding the topic.
It's clear she has some valuable knowledge but 90% of it is just rehashed information. My estimation of Seth Godin dropped dramatically considering his glowing review is what made me pick it up to begin with!
It's clear she has some valuable knowledge but 90% of it is just rehashed information. My estimation of Seth Godin dropped dramatically considering his glowing review is what made me pick it up to begin with!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 81 reviews