# Notes on brands that grow - Bjorn Laku

> Practical writing on brand, growth and measurement - one note per playbook stage.

Official page: https://www.bjornlaku.com/notes/ · RSS: https://www.bjornlaku.com/notes/feed.xml · JSON Feed: https://www.bjornlaku.com/notes/feed.json · Last updated: 2026-10-30

By Bjorn Laku, Director & CMO, Cashbook Finance, London.

1. **Diagnose - [Clarity before activity: start brand work with the commercial objective](https://www.bjornlaku.com/notes/clarity-before-activity/)** ([Markdown](https://www.bjornlaku.com/notes/clarity-before-activity.md))
   Most brand work starts with a channel or a campaign. It should start with one sentence about the commercial objective - here is how to write it, and why it changes everything that follows.
2. **Position - [Positioning in one sentence: the test every brand should pass](https://www.bjornlaku.com/notes/positioning-in-one-sentence/)** ([Markdown](https://www.bjornlaku.com/notes/positioning-in-one-sentence.md))
   If a customer cannot explain what makes you different in one sentence, your brand is working harder than it needs to. A practical way to sharpen positioning - and keep every channel telling the same story.
3. **Activate - [Building trust in a low-trust category: brand lessons from specialist finance](https://www.bjornlaku.com/notes/trust-in-specialist-finance/)** ([Markdown](https://www.bjornlaku.com/notes/trust-in-specialist-finance.md))
   In business finance, the brand's real job is to reduce doubt. Five lessons on turning clarity, proof and direct access into a growth engine for a specialist lender.
4. **Measure - [Data before opinion: measuring brand in a performance-led business](https://www.bjornlaku.com/notes/data-before-opinion/)** ([Markdown](https://www.bjornlaku.com/notes/data-before-opinion.md))
   Brand is often treated as unmeasurable and performance as the only thing that counts. Both views cost money. A practical framework for measuring brand as a growth engine.