A truly smart brand...

When shopping in-person at Indigo yesterday, I bought the latest in my series of (insert topic here) For Dummies books.

This one is iPad For Dummies, purchased to help me get the most out of my new 'essential business tool / really cool toy' – it really depends on who in my family you ask!

In the early days of Glue, I bought several of the books to help me learn about and run the business: Consulting for Dummies, Accounting for Dummies and Managing Business Change for Dummies. Since then, I've picked up several others – iPod & iTunes for Dummies and iMovie '09 & iDVD '09 for Dummies – to help me exploit specific new technological tools.

What really impresses me about 'For Dummies' books are their consistency:

• Packaging – the books are easy to spot on the store's shelf (helps me buy 'em), and each one is to distinguish from another on my bookshelf (helps me use 'em).
• Organization – each book follows a standard format (e.g., Contents at a Glance, Table of Contents, 'The Part of Tens', road-sign icons, detailed index), so I know what to expect and where to find stuff.
• Tonality – all the Dummies books I own have the same folksy language that's occasionally laced with gentle puns, but always very clear in delivering its message, making me feel comfortable when learning.

In writing this post, I've just discovered that there's a FREE For Dummies online reference library of articles and instructional videos on a vast number of topics, ranging from the six-step 'How to Unclog a Drain with a Plunger' (illustrated with still photos!), to 'How to Create Smart CD Playlists in iTunes' that includes helpful screen shots. Heck, you don't even have to buy this company's stuff to learn things!

Overall, I believe For Dummies books exemplify effective branding: they make a clear and relevant promise ('A Reference for the Rest of Us', now apparently updated to 'Making Everything Easier') and then repeatedly deliver on that promise.

Now that's smart business!