Recently I heard a story about a man in Syria who ran a successful advertising agency. When ISIS took over his city, business quickly dried up.

One night he was awakened by a loud knock at his front door. When he opened the door, a group of ISIS agents were there and told him to get into their car. Needless to say he was concerned and expected the worst. Terrorists usually don’t pay social calls in the middle of the night.

After arriving at their headquarters, he was put in a room. Two men entered and gave him a laptop. He was instructed to design a logo for the new ISIS News Service. Obviously unable to refuse, he sat down and did what they asked. The men were so pleased with the results that they wanted him to head their marketing efforts. They would provide him with money, a house, a gun, and a car. The next day, the man and his family fled Syria.

As a marketing professional, how could I not find this story fascinating? Despite being completely opposed to our developed, marketing-driven Western culture, here is an organization that still recognizes the need for solid branding to sell their ideaology.

How is your company or organization’s branding? Is your logo easily identifiable with your brand? Does it reflect the nature of what you do or the culture of your business?