In an episode of the great TV series The West Wing, a former staffer had written a tell-all book that included some stories that were totally fabricated. The media loved interviewing the author who gladly repeated his false claims on every show to sell more book. Most of the remaining White House staffers thought it was a minor story from a low-level assistant getting his 15 minutes of fame and thought the best course of action was to ignore it. One lone presidential advisor was outraged and wanted to fight back. He wanted to aggressively counter every false story with the facts and ruin the author’s credibility. Finally, near the end of the episode, the President asked the aide why he was so bothered by what everyone else thought was insignificant. He said, “I just don’t think we should be so cavalier with the truth.”

Brands, and those responsible for building brands, should feel the same way. Brands have to be built upon a foundation of truth. Destination branding is not the place to be aspirational. A community should not brand itself as the biggest and greatest of something simply because they have a long-term goal to achieve it years down the road. The general public will not hold back on sharing its thoughts on how the community doesn’t live up to what it claims to be. That’s a branding fail.

I don’t think it happens as much as it once did. By now most people know the importance of basing a brand strategy on good research. That’s only part of the story. Smaller untruths or exaggerations will nibble away at a brand’s credibility. We see it happen all the time. For example, every tourism office needs to mention their dining, shopping, arts and other things on its website and visitor guide. It’s in marketer’s DNA to want to enthusiastically sell their community’s assets. Just use caution with over-the-top claims about world-class this and epic that, and never say you have something for everyone. Save the superlatives for what your destination truly is the best at. Rest easy knowing it doesn’t have to be the best at everything. Before making a huge claim, ask “can we really deliver on this promise?” In other words, don’t be cavalier with the truth.

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