John isnt just a music man; he is a marketing man-thats what has propelled him to phenomenal heights of success and made him a household name. When we study Johns career, we begin to realize that marketing may be one of the most misunderstood words in the common business vernacular. Its often equated with selling or adver- tising when actually its about creating, changing, or evolving a product into something that people will buy.

Simply put-selling is getting people to buy what you produce, but marketing is about producing what people will want to buy. Sometimes marketers are accused of manipulating people by trying to persuade them in some way. John would probably agree, but with one caveat-recognition of precisely who is being manipulated in the marketing process. Marketing is not about a marketer manipulating consumers; its about understanding consumers well enough to let them manipulate the marketer to pro- duce what will sell more easily.

Walking the fine line of what "more pure" artists would consider selling out, Elton John is a great example of what it takes to create a complete brand, as youll see in this chapter. His career has flourished because of his understanding of what consumers want, his ability to create what his fans will buy, and his willingness to compromise between artistic purity and commercial appeal. As you see Johns branding story unfold, youll see how his success provides lessons on:

• Adopting a marketing rather than a sales orientation

• Developing transgenerational brand appeal

• Developing both the functional and emotional elements of the brand to create a unified message and image in the market

• Understanding how brand attributes work together to drive positioning and "heart share"

• Creating brand personality and promise that connect with fans

• Changing a brand image when it becomes irrelevant to fans or no longer represents the promise

• Understanding how the image of the CEO or spokesperson affects the image of the brand of the product and the company.

John probably could have been very successful as a classical pianist. He had the natural talent and the training for it, but he chose a career in rock and roll, which is perhaps one of his most revealing marketing

lessons. He understood that being successful in the classical record- ings arena probably meant sales of a few hundred thousand records, while success in the pop music market meant larger, mass audiences, more market impact, and bigger bucks-over $200 million and rising for