Understand that in the Information Age, people are investments, not costs. Don't scale functions that dilute the key metrics. Finally, Clement Mok, chief creative officer of Sapient, entertained the audience with a digressive discourse on the importance of branding. He stated his intention straightforwardly to convince CFOs that brand marketing deserves continuous infusions of money. Brand is experienced, owned by the customer and not by the company.
Brand is cognitive shorthand that helps customers make decisions in a crowded marketplace.
Branding is relationship building. While it may not be quite correct to say that Mok lost his audience, he fell somewhat short of converting this audience of CFOs into fans of brands. Introducing him, Forbes Rich Karlgaard had said that even during its worst periods, Apple Computer had the best marketing communications in the industry, and Mok was the man responsible for them. The flip side of that coin, of course, is that the best marketing communications in the industry couldn't keep Apple from its worst periods. Mok sat on the dais, his eyes closed as though in meditation, and offered no reply.