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‘Twas the night before deadline and all through the shop. Every creature was stirring…
We know what you’re thinking…”Uh oh, not another holiday letter.” Just read it. Please.
Think of it as our little tribute to 2009. Cheers!
brand development
Posted by Kim Brater
on December 22, 2009
Agency Life, Brand Leadership, Brand Strategy, Business Strategy, Culture, Marketing / 8 Comments
Agency Life, Brand Leadership, Brand Strategy, Business Strategy, Culture, Marketing / 8 Comments
Posted by Kim Brater
on March 13, 2009
Brand Strategy, Marketers, Our Community, Portland / 3 Comments
Brand Strategy, Marketers, Our Community, Portland / 3 Comments
Wondering how Portland will push through the down economy and grow stronger in the future? Mayor Sam Adams spoke with creative industry folk at the PAF event on March 10. He outlined his Sustainable Economic Development Strategy that details a five year plan to promote economic growth and job creation for our fair city. There are lofty goals including building the most sustainable economy in the U.S. and creating 10,000 new jobs. To do so, we (the businesses of Portland) must be leaders in sustainable job growth, sustainable way of life and inclusive prosperity that doesn’t leave anyone out from reaping benefit to growth.
Recognizing the strength of creative services industry and the subset that includes marketing, advertising, design, and interactive shops, he told those in attendance that he would travel to help local businesses grow and help gain focus on local firms pitching clients outside the city and region. He and his team are also working diligently to aid in bringing new business headquarters to Portland (read – new clients).
Currently the Mayor and his team are working on a “creative capacity” project strategy to be delivered in April. Based on what he explained, this strategy does not include creative firms and is mostly the arts (due to lack of funding and the need to stabilize the arts). However, the plan is to partner with Portland’s creative services industry to aid in – what many have longed to hear – developing a brand strategy for the City of Portland. He followed by emphasizing that the goal is to be strategic, not simply develop a logo or a look.
Our Mayor seems to get the benefit of brand development. But, it leaves me wondering, why not include the creative service industry folks in the planning now? To deliver on the brand, it’s got to be infused into and aligned with all functional areas of our city and needs to be a part of the strategy now, not simply a piece of the delivery. Just as a private sector organization must align its business and brand strategies in order to deliver on the brand promise throughout the organization, so too should government entities align city strategies and brand. If not, our fair city may miss the boat and wind up with just a logo and a look and another campaign.
Posted by Kim Brater
on February 26, 2009
Brand Position, Brand Strategy, Creative View / 6 Comments
Brand Position, Brand Strategy, Creative View / 6 Comments
New versus old packaging.
How about a little brand to go with that morning juice? Tropicana felt the squeeze (well their parent PepsiCo did) after launching a new brand look to juice packaging only to call “do-over” after customers and other industry experts cried foul. Forget that the design was generic and that it was hard to really “see” on the store shelf (I admit I walked right by them), what about being true to the brand? Tropicana has positioned itself around ”fresh” – the iconic image of an orange, of picking the orange off the tree and getting that taste right into the consumer’s mouth. The orange with a straw tells it all. Was PepsiCo jumping on the “bargain” bandwagon by strategically trying to genericize the packaging? Probably not. But it does seem like the bigger picture of the brand position was lost. While the execs at PepsiCo may have spent millions to develop the new and now pulled package design, at least they shouldn’t cry over spilled juice. The Tropicana brand has stood the test of time and it’s still fresh.
Business leaders listen up. Tough times call for tough love and your organization needs that tough love now more than ever. If you have tightened your belt, frozen spending or even (gasp) cut marketing entirely, that may not be the best strategy to get you through. Focusing on your organization’s brand promise and delivering on that promise in every internal and external interaction people have with your company should be at the top of your list.
One book that helps link the benefits of aligning business and brand strategies is Building the Brand Driven Business by Davis and Dunn. The authors detail the importance of brand and offer key steps to build a brand to drive long-term growth. Companies must live their brand and the CEO leads the charge. Internally, every operational area must commit to the brand and align business and department strategies with the brand. Employees must embrace the brand so they understand how their day-to-day role fits in to the bigger picture, helping them become brand ambassadors. And, externally the brand must be delivered consistently through all customer experiences. Brand consistency – a brand that truly delivers – builds brand evangelists.
This book is a practical overview that will help business leaders and marketing professionals communicate on common ground for brand development that fosters business growth.