When we're talking about brand, we're talking about what does the brand stand for. And when we're talking about approval, we're talking about whether or not I approve of what the brand stands for.

The Starbucks brand has shifted over time from being a specialty brand to being more of a mass brand. There is a gap at the top of the market.

The Trump brand is complicated because it conflates a personal brand with a corporate brand. That means that the Trump persona affects the corporate reputation in a more direct way than, say, Richard Branson's actions affect Virgin.

Instant, soluble coffee has long been the unspeakable wasteland of the coffee business. Conventional wisdom would be that no premium brand should go near it. But Howard Schultz's vision from day one has been to bring quality coffee to the mass market.

Brand preferences and consumption levels in emerging markets such as China, India and Brazil tend to be more fluid. Consumer research is therefore critical to aid marketers trying to cement brand preferences early on as these economies develop.

If you have market power like Nike, you can set terms that are much tougher because athletes value the endorsement of Nike - it means as much to them as it does to the company.