Whether you own a marketing firm, consulting firm or the rights to your own product, read all the brand management publications you can get your hands on to ensure you keep up with the latest developments, research, trends and advice to help your business thrive. Gaining strength through knowledge will help you make even more sound business decisions, enter negotiations with the upper hand and improve your profit margin.

Branding publications provide effective resources for learning about breaking industry news, best practices, case studies and more. As you search for the publications that provide you with the most value, consider the following sources:

1. Stay current on news, trends and events with brand management magazines.

2. Read a brand management journal when you need in-depth research.

3. Use other branding publications to your advantage.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Subscribe to or bookmark your favorite brand marketing magazine

A brand magazine or marketing management magazine can provide you with quick access to facts, figures, advice and tips to help you build and improve your business.

I recommend: Bookmark or subscribe to Brandweek, a brand publication devoted to providing the latest breaking marketing industry news, analysis and commentary. A subscription will get you 45 issues, including the annual Superbrands issue. Order a one-year subscription to Marketing Management, a magazine geared toward senior-level executives, that focuses on planning and implementing marketing strategy. Topics in the year's six issues include brand management, benchmarking and experience engineering.

Use brand management journals to study issues in greater depth

A brand or marketing management journal will prove useful when you want to dig deeper into a particular aspect of the industry.

I recommend: Order the Journal of Brand Management, a bi-monthly publication on brand strategy. The journal couples cutting-edge analysis and the latest thinking from industry leaders. Read the Journal of Marketing Management, the official journal of the Academy of Marketing. You can access this double-blind, peer-reviewed journal via subscription or by purchasing brand management articles individually on a pay-per-view basis. Order the Journal of Product & Brand Management for access to international research targeting cutting-edge product and brand management/pricing. All the journal's articles undergo a double-blind review to ensure their relevance and quality.

Explore other brand management publications for quick answers

Whether you only want to read white papers, reports or newsletters, you'll find plenty of brand publications to keep you busy.

I recommend: Download the latest edition from BBDO Consulting's Insights publications--Brand management with its finger on the pulse.The publication stresses the importance of brand-oriented business management, since faster moving product cycles necessitate continuity to ensure a particular brand's sustainable high profile. Read the white paper located at brandchannel.com titled Brand Valuation: The financial value of brands.This brand management publication discusses evidence of brand value by looking at the balance sheet and their social value, different approaches to brand valuation including research-based and financially-driven approaches, applications for brand valuation and the financial uses of brand valuation. Subscribe to the BuildingBrands newsletter titled Shared Learning. Each newsletter you receive will focus on a different topic in the branding industry. By ordering the newsletter, you'll also get a free copy of the "Seven Steps to Brand-Led Marketing" delivered to your email inbox. The publication hits on the steps you need to take to successfully market your business.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Besides using branding magazines for research and staying informed, search through them to find networking opportunities and forums that open even more doors for learning and sharing techniques and advice among your peers.