First Post: My color branding definitions

I'll get this thing rolling in a way that any ex-philosophy major can appreciate: my own definitions of "color" branding.

Green: Environmentally, sustainable, Eco-conscious etc... any branding attempt that applies some area of the environmental movement to a product, service or company. I view Green branding as a good thing overall, I think the trend is helping companies become environmental leaders and requires them to be open and transparent (as there is nothing that and environmentalist loves more than digging up dirt on companies). Most attempts to "green" brand a company, unfortunately, fall short. It isn't enough to tell me your company is "enviornmentally conscious" you better have the facts to back it up. I'll attempt to highlight some companies that do this well.

Blue: Although I am completing stealing this term from Adam Werbach (let's say I am re-appropriating it, not stealing, it makes me sound like a friendlier person.) "Blue" branding is the next step in the process. Blue Branding is where an agency and client partnership changes the way a company does business, for the better. The easiest example off the top of my head is the pedigree and TBWA/Chiat/Day dogs rule campaign http://www.dogsrule.com/ in which Pedigree took the extra step to improve the lives of their employees and their pups by allowing pets at work, and helping to get pets adopted among other things. Blue branding is next level thought-leader branding. It should be the ultimate goal for an agency and I will try to post examples when I find them.

Black: These branding attempts are, unfortunately, going to be the easiest to find. "Black" branding is my new term for "green washing" or a way to label companies that make branding attempts that I feel are untruthful, racist, sexist, outlandish, or inappropriate. Black branding is what puts people in the advertising industry at the level of used-care salespeople and lawyers in the minds of 90% of the public. These branding attempts need to be called out into the public square, put in stocks, and drawn and quartered if they don't cease and desist. If we, as an industry, ever want to achieve positive change we need to distance ourselves from these aganecies and companies. Ill do my best to call them out when I see em.

I'll use these definitions to tag my posts, giving me a way to categorize them. I hope this will make everything clearer for everyone.