Language: What's all the buzz about the word "branding" ?

Here's how to rebrand yourself as not being an idiot: don't buy this book!

From time to time, certain words get used so much in public discourse that they attain the unenviable status of true buzzwords. In my opinion, this is what has happened with the word(s) brand/branding. With the ongoing discussion about the City of Laredo's image and how to improve it, branding has become the favorite buzzword of many. I was thinking this just the other day when I found myself using the term and wondered if I should write rebranding or re-branding. Well, that goes to show just how buzzwords can sneak up on you.

Personally, I remember a couple of years ago after Obama's election that there was much talk about how the republican brand had been damaged. Even back then, I was already thinking "what's going on"? More recently, it has crept into the everyday vocabulary of advertising and marketing  to become one of the most over-used buzzwords around today. There's even talk involving people's personal brand. This probably means the same as someone's reputation. With that in mind, if a city's brand is actually it's reputation, then you can't just pay somebody to give you a new one, it has to be earned.