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“9 Criteria for Brand Essence” Deck
Uncovering & Articulating Essence
- 9 criteria for brand essence
- Why “trusted” isn’t the brand essence
- 7 common branding workshop pitfalls
- Patagonia: They also sell clothes.
- Why so few brands get it right
- Why intangibles are the more sustainable competitive advantages
- To inspire loyalty, ask why, not how.
- You say tomato. I say Fox’s Fine Gourmet Ketchup.
- Warning: Your brand is being commoditized!
- Brand essence by every other name
- For brand authenticity, look inside.
- Table-stake attributes do not differentiate brands.
Simplicity & Effectiveness of Messaging
Other Popular Posts
- What every non-marketer should know about branding
- When to hire vs. when to outsource
- Do artisan brands lose their fans when sold to conglomerates?
- So who is “the world’s greatest insurance spokesperson in the world?”
- Does Geico’s multi-concept strategy work?
- BMW uncovers its brand essence: joy
- P&G brands … itself?
Industry News
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Category Archives: retail
Chipotle takes a stand
It isn’t easy standing for something. For a brand, taking a strong position may attract some customers while repelling others. It may mean being satisfied with a niché. Benetton, for example, has long taken a controversial stand on social issues in its marketing. Its new campaign, “Unhate,” invites the world’s leaders and inhabitants to oppose the “culture of hatred.” Another apparel-maker, Patagonia, vigorously supports environmentalism. Whatever most fast-food restaurants stand for, it isn’t healthy eating, despite their token salads and fruit cups. Chipotle is an exception within the category. According to a post at SustainableBusiness.com, Chipotle “pioneered the use of … Continue reading
Posted in advertising, authenticity, brand essence, cause marketing, health care, retail, strategy
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Best Buy’s smart Super Bowl play
A few weeks from now, the Super Bowl commercials featuring dogs, babies, sex and celebrities will blur together. Was it Doritos or Bud Light? My nominee for most likely to succeed in the long run is Best Buy’s spot. (Watch it below.) Best Buy borrowed equity from the innovators of smartphone technology, a strategy likely to appeal to its tech-savvy customers. Geek celebrities who implied their endorsements, included: Philippe Kahn, creator of one of the first camera phones Ray Kurzweil, the inventor of text-to-speech Neil Papworth, the person who sent the world’s first SMS message Paul and David Bettner, creators … Continue reading
Posted in advertising, retail, social media, strategy
6 Comments
Chobani starts Greek war, wakes giants
Usually, niché players are satisfied to pull small shares away from the category leaders. And usually, category leaders overlook the incursions. Only rarely does the niché grow to challenge the entire category, but this is exactly the case with yogurt. Until recently, yogurt sales in the U.S. have been dominated by Dannon and Yoplait. Now, Greek-style yogurt, hardly a presence four years ago, dominates. And New York-based Chobani is the niché-turned-category leader, having launched only four years ago. Greek company, Fage, also led the revolution. It began importing its product in 2000 and opened its U.S. plant in 2008. Thicker … Continue reading
Posted in advertising, retail, strategy
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Most popular posts of 2011
This month BrandSTOKE is three-years-old. At the upper end of the toddler years, it enjoys improved motor and language skills. Though still developing emotionally, BrandSTOKE is growing more confident while exploring its environment. Thank you for continuing to subscribe, read and comment. If you have any suggestions for improving the blog, please let me know. In celebration of reaching this milestone, here’s a list of some of the most popular posts as well as a few personal favorites from the last twelve months: 12 most poplar posts of 2011: Pandora and the certainty of commoditization 7 common branding workshop pitfalls … Continue reading
Posted in advertising, art direction & design, authenticity, brand essence, budgeting, copywriting, health care, identity, loyalty, packaging, promotion, public relations, research, retail, roi, simplicity, social media, standards, strategy
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Target vs. Walmart: Whose shoppers are more manic?
It’s that time of year again — time to model obsessive shopping behavior. Time for shopaholics to be portrayed as heroes. Time for Target’s 2-Day Sale Lady. Played by comedienne Maria Bamford for the past two years, the 2-Day Sale Lady is back and itching to “win” Black Friday. Watch a sample TV spot below and the whole series here. Now, Walmart is copying Target’s raving OCD approach with its own unhinged shopper. See its price-guarantee spot below and more Black Friday commercials here. To me, the commercials serve as a good reminder to shop online.
Posted in advertising, retail
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Repost: Patagonia, they also sell clothes
I’m taking a short break from BrandSTOKE. In the meantime, here’s a reprint of a popular post: There are brands and then there are affinity brands. The difference? Community. You don’t just experience an affinity brand. Your identity is enmeshed with it. You are a proud member of the club. “Cult Brands aren’t just companies with products or services to sell,” says BJ Bueno, co-author of The Power of Cult Branding: How 9 Magnetic Brands Turned Customers into Loyal Followers. “To many of their followers, they are a living, breathing surrogate family filled with like-minded individuals.” Few brands exemplify affinity … Continue reading
Posted in brand essence, budgeting, cause marketing, loyalty, mass media, promotion, retail, social media
4 Comments