14 BRAND REAL TH E F O R G OT T E N D I S C I P L I N E O F BR AND I NG Branding is a strategic discipline. It should influence how people behave-- both customers and employees. It's not magic. It's not happenstance. And it's certainly not guesswork. It requires purposeful conduct. Real branding is something managers do to create value by delivering branded experiences that meet or exceed people's expectations. It is an important act of business strategy. In fact, though branding is rarely described as such in business management curriculum, good brand strategies guide mission-critical de- cisions in capital investment, human resources, research, product develop- ment, and operations management. Simplification is an important aspect of branding discipline. Brands excel when they simplify the way we think about value-producing behavior.