Can you guess which is the greatest feat of brand storytelling?

In my (surely unpopular) opinion, it is the 𝑬𝒊𝒇𝒇𝒆𝒍 𝑻𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓 𝒂𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒖𝒍𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒔𝒚𝒎𝒃𝒐𝒍 𝒐𝒇 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆. What fascinates me is how a massive monochromatic iron structure has become a symbol of love, an emotion usually equated with bright colours and soft textures.

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When it was inaugurated in 1889, the Eiffel Tower was roundly criticised as a ghastly creation. It was not considered a shining example of architecture by any measure, and Gustave Eiffel had to save his creation by making it useful for scientific purposes. Even today, its design resembles the ubiquitous high-voltage transmission towers. The bird’s eye views of Paris from the balconies of the tower and the twinkling lights are breathtaking but not unique.

So how did the Eiffel Tower become the ultimate symbol of love and an icon of France?

𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗳 𝗕𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴.

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For building a strong brand story, you need to do two things:
a) Identify the right set of brand associations
b) Tell the story consistently.

✅ 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀: The Eiffel Tower is in the middle of Paris, considered to be the most romantic city in the world. Due to its height and location, it is frequently visible in the backdrop of movies, photographs, and paintings. The Halo Effect has worked for Eiffel Tower.

✅ 𝗔𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗲𝗿𝘀: Visitor traffic to Eiffel Tower exploded in 1980s and 1990s. I can correlate it with more and more Hollywood movies featuring Eiffel Tower prominently.

✅ 𝗨𝗻𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗽𝘂𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝘁𝘆: The French flag was flown from its summit upon its inauguration. During World War I, its radio station intercepted critical German communications, leading to a victorious counter-attack.

✅ 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝗾𝘂𝗲 𝗗𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻: You have to give it to Gustave Eiffel. He gave it a unique shape that is perfect for creative merchandise – keychains, hats, pencils, bottles, Lego, candies, and a lot more.

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𝑪𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒚 𝒊𝒏 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒚𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒕 𝒔𝒂𝒖𝒄𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒃𝒓𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈. The Eiffel Tower does not need Meta or Google ads to acquire visitors. In fact, it has such a strong pull that it is now the primary reason for tourists to visit France. It is a brand story that will endure for decades to come.

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This article was first published on LinkedIn in November 2025. Link here.