press release

“Great brands aren’t created, they’re distilled,” says Bill Rossiter, CEO of strategic branding firm Interrupt in Toledo, Ohio. More than a catch phrase, this mantra explains the deep-dive process Interrupt employs to help building product and home improvement companies define a differentiated path to purchase. “It’s the secret sauce of a brand’s success, helping companies ensure sustained market position and profit performance,” said Rossiter.

Similar to distilling a fine liquor, a brand distillery takes in many inputs: industry influences, customer purchase journey, a company’s strength and gaps – and then boils it down to the pure essence of a unique differentiator for that brand. According to Rossiter, “a brand distillery process helps companies drive a more impactful customer experience with the brand.” The comprehensive process distills the brand’s core messages, leaving only the points that set them apart from their competitors. “Just like humans, 99.9% of a company’s DNA is the same as those around it. It’s our job to find the .1% that will make the brand uniquely different,” said Rossiter, whose book DIVERGE – Stand Out in a Sea of Sameness details this concept.

Interrupt had been using this brand philosophy for years but coined the phrase “a brand distillery” to describe Interrupt’s unique distillation process. Rossiter first shared this branded process outwardly in September of 2017 when he led a panel discussion on the Next Generation of Marketing at the Hanley Wood Multi Family Executive (MFE) Conference. And Interrupt has since been helping brands succeed in their market with their new brand distillery approach.

For example, last year Interrupt took their client Masco Cabinetry through the brand distillery process to help them develop a new offering to reach kitchen designers and create stronger loyalty and brand preference. The process started with a market assessment and Interrupt’s Brand DNA workshop to help define the brand’s reason to exist. The process led to a unique brand position and visual roadmap which commercialized into audience messaging and engagement tools.

For Masco, distilling meant truly understanding the designer’s friction points and providing support to simplify their day-to-day interactions — and close more high-end kitchen projects. The process resulted in the introduction of “One Two One Cabinetry,” a designer-exclusive brand. The unique cabinet brand has caught the eye of many kitchen and bath dealers and their designers.

Interrupt has used this process with many Fortune 1000 brands, helping them find their brand uniqueness as an important lever in their ability to continually outperform the market. As Rossiter stated, “After all, a brand is truly successful only when it delivers extraordinary business results.”