In most organizations, big and small, the answer is obvious: “Marketing owns the brand.” But is Marketing—a creative, yet left brain-leaning and over-tasked department—really up for the job?

Before we get into it, we need to define a couple of terms. According to the Dictionary of Brand (yes, there is such a thing), brand is “a person’s perception of a product, service, experience or organization.”

Marty Neumeier, author of The Brand Gap, starts with what a brand isn’t. A brand isn’t a logo, a corporate identity or even a product. A brand is:

“A person’s gut feeling about a product, service, or company”…”When enough individuals arrive at the same gut feeling, a company can be said to have a brand. In other words, a brand is not what you say it is. It’s what THEY say it is.”

This, of course, is terrible news for most businesses who thought Marketing was taking care of everything and that it was all quantifiable…Turns out it’s not, and worse, they (the customers) are in control of it!

Almost as vague a term in most people’s minds as brand is Marketing which is “the process of developing, promoting, selling, and distributing a product or service.” The truth is Marketing is responsible for many of business’ day to day activities: research, advertising, promoting, events, press releases, newsletters, copywriting, graphic design, handouts, education, website, product packaging and more.

One of the biggest complaints of Marketing is that it often offers the customer “scientific mumbo jumbo”: features, benefits, statistics and graphs. What’s missing is the lighter side of product development—getting past the spreadsheets and giving the customer a reason to like the product or service on an emotional level. A good example is the popularity of the iPod and why we’re not all going out and buying Microsoft Zunes.

But Marketing has a tough job. Company executives often expect Marketing to control every part of the brand as if it were all in their control. “Marketing owns the brand” and is almost always the first to be criticized for any failures related to it.

Unfortunately, this misunderstanding of the brand along with exclusive ownership of it creates a lot of problems for a business. First, a successful company is one where each and every employee contributes to designing a superb customer experience. A brand is built from every touchpoint that comes in contact with the customer. A touchpoint is everything from a logo to a support call, making all employees participants in the formation of the brand. To push all the responsibility over to Marketing is well…irresponsible. In short, everyone in the company should have brand awareness.

Secondly, if a brand is a “gut feeling” perhaps it requires leadership that is more in tune with the customer experience and their emotional responses to the product or service. This is not a numbers-driven individual but rather someone who is receptive to how customers perceive the company and their products. From inside the company, this would be someone who comes from a related background (design, psychology, etc.) and who has access to the chief stakeholders.

This could also be someone from outside the company such as a brand agency or contractor. The point is it requires a dedicated person with a different perspective and insight into the customer experience who can directly influence the course of the brand.

Doesn’t Marketing already do this? Maybe, but what percentage of Marketing’s job is actually dedicated to the task of maintaining the integrity of the brand? It’s the classic situation of missing the trees for the forest. The misconception is that because Marketing is directly involved in so many touchpoints (editorial, packaging, advertising, etc.), they know the brand. Again, a brand is something that lives in the minds of the customer, so this doesn’t automatically qualify them.

In conclusion, Marketing alone shouldn’t (and can’t) own the brand. It requires the participation of the entire company to build and maintain a successful brand. It also requires a dedicated person with focus on the customer experience who is receptive to the customer’s emotional responses, desires and inclinations. Without a focus on the customer experience, it’s just all “features and benefits.”