Do You Deliver (on your Brand Promise)?

We recently vacationed at the Monte Carlo hotel on the Las Vegas strip.

Their web site and advertising lead us to think WOW, this will be a swank hotel brimming with glamour. We even dared hope for a touch of the real Monte Carlo, with its famous casino, grand prix, etc.

Fact is, the Monte Carlo is a thoroughly generic hotel with no link to Monte Carlo other than its name.

The headlining entertainer is the thoroughly generic Lance Burton. The premier restaurant is a thoroughly generic steakhouse called "The Brand." The menu gets a little "French-er" at Andre's Restaurant & Lounge, but other restaurants include Diablo's Cantina, a pseudo-Irish pub, a Subway, a McDonald's and a Starbucks.

There were no references to Monte Carlo's famed art, architecture, design or culture anywhere.

For all of its "Monte Carlo-ness," the place could have been called "Vegas Bob's."

Once upon a time, big marketers could spend big bucks to make a mediocre product or service successful.

Thanks to social media, however, the power of big spending on advertising and promotion is declining. Social media sites like Yelp are allowing more and more prospects to get the real story.

The bad news for the Monte Carlo is good news for entrepreneurs. If your marketing and promotion reflect who you are, and if you've positioned yourself properly, bigger competitors won't be able to win your customers just because they out-spend you.

Instead, when your prospects check you (and your big spending competitor) out in social media, they'll find that you (and NOT your big spending competitor) are the real deal.

It's always been important to have your brand aligned with who you are as a company.

Now that the truth of your brand can be checked out by anyone with access to the Internet, it's more important than ever.