Beyond the Logo: How Brands Can Build Thematic Distinctness

In our recent webinar on thematic distinctness, we asked two simple poll questions that reveal a lot about the state of content marketing today:

• If your logo was removed, would your content still be recognizable?
  60% of attendees admitted they were not at all confident their brand would stand on its own.
  
  
• What’s harder—defining a theme or applying it consistently?
  52% said application is the bigger struggle.

That gap between knowing what makes you distinct and actually bringing it to life was the heart of our conversation with Franklin Parrish, Senior Director, Brand Marketing and Creative Services at Kaiser Permanente, Mid-Atlantic, and Jenn Eldin, Head of Content Marketing at Bank of America.

Here are the takeaways that rose to the top:

1. Distinctness Starts With Audience Relevance

“The first principle of thematic distinctness is being recognizable to your audience… That distinctness has a lot to do with relevance to your audience’s needs and resonance with their emotional value drivers.” — Franklin Parrish

Distinctness isn’t about flashy campaigns. It’s about becoming the obvious choice—because your content reflects what people need and the emotions they care about.

2. Value That Only Your Brand Can Offer

“How can you add real value in a way that only your brand can? … If you find ways to capture what’s unique about your brand, and do it through a lens of what adds value for your audiences, that’s how you stand out.” — Jenn Eldin

Bank of America’s Better Money Habits Champions program does exactly that—showcasing employees who volunteer to teach financial education in their communities. By putting real people at the center, the brand creates stories no competitor can duplicate.

3. Emotion Is the Real Differentiator

“Health and money are universal concerns… they’re core to our sense of security and optimism. We’re not selling products. We’re selling feelings. These are states of mind we’re dealing with.” — Franklin Parrish

“Although financial services is not known for being in the business of human emotions, I would almost beg to differ. Money can be tactical, but how do you deal with the psychology behind the decisions you make around money? The human emotion piece of it is a way we can stand out in what we’re creating.” — Jenn Eldin

Technical advice rarely breaks through on its own. Themes rooted in emotional resonance—optimism, security, trust—are what make content memorable.

4. Consistency Is Built Through Small Signals

“Is your brand an em dash brand or not? Even small style choices become part of a brand’s personality that audiences subconsciously recognize.” — Franklin Parrish

“What’s the video version of your em dash? Maybe it’s a consistent way you use overlays or color treatments that make a piece instantly recognizable.” — Jenn Eldin

From punctuation to production choices, repeatable signals—visual, tonal, or stylistic—are what train your audience to recognize your brand, even without a logo.

Why It Matters

The data from our polls tells the story: most brands know what distinctness means, but few are confident they’re applying it well. Distinctness happens through repetition, audience relevance, emotional storytelling, and consistent signals that make your brand unmistakable—even when the logo is gone. And in a world flooded with generative AI content, thematic clarity becomes the best defense. 

“Sometimes it’s not about what you say, but how you say it. The creative approach is as important as the topic itself.” — Jenn Eldin

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Published August 22, 2025