Ask HN: Without Googling. How do you define Branding?

Ive had someone tell me its "one idea per web site, max." I disagree, and published all my ideas in once place with a consistent quirky / insane flavor, and thought that was in service of Branding.

What to big brands like General Electric, General Motors, General Mills even mean? How about a small, focused, meaningful brand like Red Bull? KFC? Which are identities you can connect with on a human level and which are remote gods one can only curse in helpless fury?

Brand = Personality.

Substitute the latter for the former and everything will make sense.

Personality is the basis for how you talk (copywriting), how you dress (design), and how you act (business conduct / PR).

Your company’s personality should match the personality of the person/company that your target audience wishes to be.

The act of using your product is an expression of your customers’ own personalities.

Branding is about embodying the ideals that your customers wish to express.

As an innovation consultant, Branding for me is the soul of the product.

Robinhood is officially a case study in the fragility of brand.

It took them 7 years to build up confidence in their platform.

It took them 1 day to switch from "by the people" to "against the people"

An identity for a product or service which sets it apart from the competition.

The “face” of your business.