A brand legacy, or core idea, is often overlooked by marketing practitioners and can impact the current perception of an organization. Through years of message layering, if the core idea of the organization conflicts with its image today, the customers may be confused. Considering the position of the oganization on the `brand radar', three possible strategies can be provided for consideration: Embrace, discard, or reinvent the brand. The future of a brand's legacy will, therefore, depend on an organization's next move.

The fourth quarter is the planning season, a time for developing next year's marketing plan. Although, we often aspire to make dramatic changes in the following year, the final version of our plan typically mirrors remnants from the previous year. In some instances, we feel a sense of obligation to complete unfinished business or to carry forward those past initiatives that delivered positive results. These cumulative efforts, whether consciously or unconsciously, help solidify the basis of your organization's brand legacy. Why do you suppose this is important?

My neighbor owned a local Italian restaurant; they served authentic food and were especially well-known for their mouth-watering pizzas. Each night of the week they were busy with people standing in line for a table. Their brand legacy was a combination of mama's old-fashion recipes (she was from Sicily) and the restaurant's interior design resembled a comfortable Italian home. Soon, Roundtable, Domino's, and an assortment of Pizza firms inundated the local area and offered speedy service over authenticity. Feeling the pressure of competition, Mama strayed from her winning brand proposition (traditional Italian food) to mimic the competition. Today, the once time-honored cuisine and Sicilian ambiance (experience) has been replaced with video games and a service counter. Any remnant of Mama's legacy has disappeared and so with it, a differentiated brand.

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