Brand Inception—This Is Reality.

“It begins with the simplest form of an idea in order for it to grow naturally in the mind.”—Eames of “Inception” (played by Tom Hardy)

For anyone who truly knows me, knows at least one truth: I am a die-hard “Inception” fan. Not only have I placed it on the unofficial list of the most influential and innovative movie concepts of all-time (O.K., perhaps at least since “The Matrix“), but have found an application for it for a variety of settings—even branding.

Tom Hardy, as Eames in “Inception”.

The other day, as I sat and watched “Inception” for only the umpteenth time, I was reminded of Eames’ line quoted above, had an Aha! Moment, and yelled out to no one in particular: “Yes! Start from the basics!” Successful branding comes to those who conceptualize a strong, yet simple idea, built from the inside out; the fundamental idea, is known to Brandiacs as the brand essence—the company’s internal belief of itself.

The essence need not be a thesis of gargantuan proportions. Instead, here the principles of K.I.S.S. apply. For example, some of the most noted brands have limited their essence to no more than five words: Nike: Authentic Athletic Performance, Hallmark: Caring Shared, Disney: Fun Family Entertainment. Revisiting the “Inception” plot for a moment (and ignoring the intended ambiguity of its’ ending), the accomplishments of the movies’ heist could be attributed to the simplicity of the core concept, summed up in two words: Emotional connection. Easy. Basic. Pithy.

There is an end game to the simplicity: ultimately the brand wants to perform an inception of it’s own by projecting a certain image to the masses to provide validity to its’ essence. This of course is all in the hopes of converting those once mere acquaintances of the brand into advocates, aficionados, and believers. It’s simple. It’s sensible. And this is reality.