I was recently asked to develop a course on branding. There are plenty of books about the topic, but for my students' primary text, I wanted something like a conventional textbook--something that could give a good overview of the field and also offer deep dives into specific areas like brand valuation.
I didn't find many titles that met my criteria. Most of the more popular books feel a little slapdash, a little "branding for dummies". This is one of the few that has the grativas and breadth I wanted.
Ordinarily, I'd have rated this anthology a bit higher, but it has one significant shortcoming: it was published in 2007, and most of the articles were penned well before that. As a result, the authors don't consider social media (Facebook didn't open to the public until 2006), apps, or mobile (the iPhone arrived in 2007), and for better or worse, it's impossible to discuss any facet of the business world--especially branding--without those topics front and center.
To be truly useful, The Kellogg School needs to ask its authors to update their articles in light of the last 12 years, or it ought to publish a follow-up edition with entirely new content. As it is, much of this book feels obsolete.