I have compiled a short list of commonly used branding terms that we use regularly when interacting with clients.
Brand
A brand is a collection of perceptions in the mind of the consumer resulting from their experience of a product, service or company. A brand has functional and emotional elements which create a relationship between customers and the organisation, product or service.
Brand Architecture
The method by which an organisation structures and names the brands within its portfolio. There are three main types of brand architecture system:
> monolithic – where the corporate name is used on all products and services offered by the company
> endorsed – where all sub-brands are linked to the corporate brand by means of either a verbal or visual endorsement
> freestanding – where the corporate brand operates merely as a holding company, and each product or service is individually branded for its target market.
Brand Audit
A comprehensive examination of all aspects of a brand to assess its health, uncover its sources of equity and suggest ways to improve and leverage that equity.
Brand Attributes
The functional and emotional associations which are assigned to a brand by its customers and prospects. Brand attributes can have different degrees of relevance and importance to different customer segments, markets and cultures.
Brand Champion
Internal and external advocates of the brand empowered with the task of spreading the brand’s vision and values and promoting its purpose within an organisation.
Brand Commitment
The degree to which a customer is committed to a given brand based on the likelihood of them re-purchasing in the future. This indicates the degree to which a brand’s customer franchise is protected from competitors.
Brand Equity
The value someone places on an organisation, product or service brand, based on everything that the person thinks, feels and knows about the brand.
Brand Essence
The distillation of a brand’s intrinsic characteristics into a succinct core concept.
Brand Experience
The means by which a brand is created in the mind of a stakeholder. Experiences can be influenced by personal contact, retail environments, advertising, products, services, websites etc. Some are uncontrolled eg word of mouth. Strong brands arise from consistent experiences which combine to form a clear, differentiated overall brand experience.
Brand Extension
Leveraging the values of the brand to take it into new markets or sectors.
Brand Identity
The outward expression of the brand, including its name and visual appearance. The brand’s identity is its fundamental means of consumer recognition and differentiation from competitors.
Brand Management
This involves ongoing management of the functional and emotional experiences of the brand. These can range from exposure to products, packaging and price – to the customer experience of marketing activities and interaction with people.
Brand Personality
Includes all the tangible and intangible traits of a brand, say beliefs, values, prejudices, features, interests, and heritage. A brand personality makes it unique. It describes a brand in terms of human characteristics. It is seen as a valuable factor in increasing brand engagement and brand attachment, in much the same way as people relate and bind to other people.
Brand Platform
The Brand Platform consists of the following elements:
> Brand Vision - The brand’s guiding insight into its world.
> Brand Mission - How the brand will act on its insight.
> Brand Values - The code by which the brand lives. The brand values act as a benchmark to measure behaviors and performance.
> Brand Personality - The brand’s personality traits (See also definition for Brand Personality).
> Brand Tone of Voice - How the brand speaks to its audiences.
Brand Positioning
The distinctive position that a brand adopts in its competitive environment to ensure that individuals in its target market can tell the brand apart from others. Positioning involves the careful manipulation of every element of the marketing mix.
Brand Strategy
A ‘big picture’ plan for the systematic development of a brand to enable it to meet its agreed objectives. The strategy should be rooted in the brand’s vision and driven by the principles of differentiation and competitive advantage.
Brand Tone of Voice
How the brand speaks to its audiences.
Brand Valuation
The process of identifying and measuring the economic benefit that derives from brand ownership.
Brand Values
The code by which the brand lives. The brand values act as a benchmark to measure behaviours and performance.
Brand Vision
A concise statement of what a brand means to its owners and their intent for its future direction.
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
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Friday, December 19, 2008
Friday, November 28, 2008
Motor City brands on the road to oblivion?
The crisis meeting of the ‘Big Three’ US car manufacturers last week in Washington served to indicate how a global financial crisis can impact some of the biggest brand names on the planet and highlight their flaws, the majority of which are management induced.
The behaviour of company leaders can have a profound effect on public and employee brand perceptions. From a public perspective the respective leaders of the Big Three, once sworn enemies in the marketplace, are now seen suitably humbled going cap in hand to Washington in a last ditch attempt to persuade the Democrats to take pity on them and rescue a US industry that is basically bankrupt. Here they are, desperate for a bailout, secure in the knowledge that no bank anywhere in the world will lend them money. Why the reluctance to bail them out? Because they have comprehensively proved themselves incapable of managing their companies and creating products that will sell. Yet the fact that so many employees are involved and such an infrastructure of suppliers are reliant on the Big Three surviving, will ensure a bail out happens. You wait and see. Hopefully it will come with conditions attached and hopefully with an external management group in control, preferably Japanese, Korean or even Indian. Sadly all auto manufacturers will now be treated with extra caution by the banks, which will only make life harder for everyone.
Oh how the Japanese and Koreans must be excited at the prospect of damaged or failed US competitors. The M&A guys must also be excited by the potential opportunities, though the challenge of trying to make something out of such a monumental mess is probably too daunting for them.
The Big Three leaders impressed no-one on the day by flying to Washington in their private jets. Are they so arrogant that they didn’t realise how this may turn public opinion against them? Maybe they just don’t care. Where were their spin doctors?
No one in their right minds would ever believe that US$25 billion split three ways will rescue the three biggest US car manufacturers. No way will it turn around management attitudes, never mind magically produce new, smaller and greener cars and new production lines to make them. And who will bail out the dealerships? Chances are that if the $25 billion bail out magically happens, there will be no dealerships left to sell the ‘new’ cars.
Management were ill prepared to recognise and respond to change. Is it a case that the industry is a dinosaur that needs to die in order for a new and leaner one to replace it, one more appropriate to the needs of customers and the environment? What do the Japanese, German and Korean brands think of all this? How will they respond? Is this the big chance of all time to strengthen their brands and take the US market by storm? You bet.
What has not been considered so far is the damage inflicted on the Ford, GM and Chrysler brands. Let’s face it, the brands are forever tarnished, except in the eyes of the fanatical brand loyalists, whose numbers will inevitably decline. Those people who were at the point of purchasing one of their cars before the crisis set in are hardly likely to do so in the near future. Would you? Who wants to buy a car from a bankrupt car manufacturer with an uncertain future?
There is one hell of a job in the offering for a brand turnaround specialist. The most likely scenario, and this is only my view, is the emergence in the US of a new generation of smaller, leaner, smarter start-up auto brands with a focus on small, fuel efficient cars and trucks. Perhaps they may even be bought out and badged Ford, GM and Chrysler. Or are they more likely to be badged Toyota, Hyundai or BMW? Coming soon to a dealership near you...
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
The behaviour of company leaders can have a profound effect on public and employee brand perceptions. From a public perspective the respective leaders of the Big Three, once sworn enemies in the marketplace, are now seen suitably humbled going cap in hand to Washington in a last ditch attempt to persuade the Democrats to take pity on them and rescue a US industry that is basically bankrupt. Here they are, desperate for a bailout, secure in the knowledge that no bank anywhere in the world will lend them money. Why the reluctance to bail them out? Because they have comprehensively proved themselves incapable of managing their companies and creating products that will sell. Yet the fact that so many employees are involved and such an infrastructure of suppliers are reliant on the Big Three surviving, will ensure a bail out happens. You wait and see. Hopefully it will come with conditions attached and hopefully with an external management group in control, preferably Japanese, Korean or even Indian. Sadly all auto manufacturers will now be treated with extra caution by the banks, which will only make life harder for everyone.
Oh how the Japanese and Koreans must be excited at the prospect of damaged or failed US competitors. The M&A guys must also be excited by the potential opportunities, though the challenge of trying to make something out of such a monumental mess is probably too daunting for them.
The Big Three leaders impressed no-one on the day by flying to Washington in their private jets. Are they so arrogant that they didn’t realise how this may turn public opinion against them? Maybe they just don’t care. Where were their spin doctors?
No one in their right minds would ever believe that US$25 billion split three ways will rescue the three biggest US car manufacturers. No way will it turn around management attitudes, never mind magically produce new, smaller and greener cars and new production lines to make them. And who will bail out the dealerships? Chances are that if the $25 billion bail out magically happens, there will be no dealerships left to sell the ‘new’ cars.
Management were ill prepared to recognise and respond to change. Is it a case that the industry is a dinosaur that needs to die in order for a new and leaner one to replace it, one more appropriate to the needs of customers and the environment? What do the Japanese, German and Korean brands think of all this? How will they respond? Is this the big chance of all time to strengthen their brands and take the US market by storm? You bet.
What has not been considered so far is the damage inflicted on the Ford, GM and Chrysler brands. Let’s face it, the brands are forever tarnished, except in the eyes of the fanatical brand loyalists, whose numbers will inevitably decline. Those people who were at the point of purchasing one of their cars before the crisis set in are hardly likely to do so in the near future. Would you? Who wants to buy a car from a bankrupt car manufacturer with an uncertain future?
There is one hell of a job in the offering for a brand turnaround specialist. The most likely scenario, and this is only my view, is the emergence in the US of a new generation of smaller, leaner, smarter start-up auto brands with a focus on small, fuel efficient cars and trucks. Perhaps they may even be bought out and badged Ford, GM and Chrysler. Or are they more likely to be badged Toyota, Hyundai or BMW? Coming soon to a dealership near you...
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
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Friday, November 21, 2008
Showroom models caught in a brand trap
The quickest way you can destroy the integrity of your brand is to promise one thing while behaving in a way that is totally contrary to this promise. General Motors is experiencing the biggest crisis in its history, which will either see it die in the next few months or be bailed out by the US government. Ford and Chrysler are not far behind and will be eagerly awaiting the outcome. As far as they are concerned one less competitor will give them a market advantage, but on the other hand, if the bail out money goes to GM, will there be any left to guarantee a future for Ford and Chrysler? One possible scenario will be that a Chinese company will buy them, in similar fashion to the purchase of MG in the United Kingdom; or Land Rover and Jaguar by Indian auto giant Tata.
Back to the brand. GM is to be admired for investing heavily in its Volt electric vehicle, hailed as a ‘response to today’s and tomorrow’s energy and environmental challenges’. Here we are witnessing an attempt at a brand makeover – the rebirth of the GM brand as a caring, environmentally focused, world conscious car manufacturer at the forefront of a new era in automotive trasportation. This beggars belief however when you visit the GM website with an array of vehicles that definitely don’t look as though they have economy in mind – dominated by Hummers, Cadillac Escalades, GMC Yukons, Chevrolet Suburbans – a whole fleet of monster gas guzzlers and polluters that would have those nice chaps at Top Gear in the UK slashing their wrists. What were they thinking? Did they think it would go on forever? Surely there must have been one tree hugger in the product development division brave enough to suggest enough is enough?
As regards brand naming – General Motors’ dual values of the moment make the ‘General’ part of the name rather appropriate. Quite ironic really. GM’s Holden Division here in Australia, while having a more balanced model offering, still persists in churning out V8s to satisfy the petrol heads. And guess what? In the Sydney Morning Herald on 19 November is the headline ‘GM Holden to halve car production’. Chilling stuff, particularly for the poor people on the production line and their families.
GM Holden is to be criticised for not having sufficient foresight and not responding fast enough to changing conditions, particularly in the knowledge that it takes a long time to design, test and gain approval for new vehicles and change production lines.
As far as the GM Holden brand is concerned, it doesn’t alter the fact that it can’t be taken too seriously in these troubled times having a Volt on display in one showroom and a Hummer in the next. A conflict of brand values perhaps?
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
Back to the brand. GM is to be admired for investing heavily in its Volt electric vehicle, hailed as a ‘response to today’s and tomorrow’s energy and environmental challenges’. Here we are witnessing an attempt at a brand makeover – the rebirth of the GM brand as a caring, environmentally focused, world conscious car manufacturer at the forefront of a new era in automotive trasportation. This beggars belief however when you visit the GM website with an array of vehicles that definitely don’t look as though they have economy in mind – dominated by Hummers, Cadillac Escalades, GMC Yukons, Chevrolet Suburbans – a whole fleet of monster gas guzzlers and polluters that would have those nice chaps at Top Gear in the UK slashing their wrists. What were they thinking? Did they think it would go on forever? Surely there must have been one tree hugger in the product development division brave enough to suggest enough is enough?
As regards brand naming – General Motors’ dual values of the moment make the ‘General’ part of the name rather appropriate. Quite ironic really. GM’s Holden Division here in Australia, while having a more balanced model offering, still persists in churning out V8s to satisfy the petrol heads. And guess what? In the Sydney Morning Herald on 19 November is the headline ‘GM Holden to halve car production’. Chilling stuff, particularly for the poor people on the production line and their families.
GM Holden is to be criticised for not having sufficient foresight and not responding fast enough to changing conditions, particularly in the knowledge that it takes a long time to design, test and gain approval for new vehicles and change production lines.
As far as the GM Holden brand is concerned, it doesn’t alter the fact that it can’t be taken too seriously in these troubled times having a Volt on display in one showroom and a Hummer in the next. A conflict of brand values perhaps?
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
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Wednesday, November 05, 2008
Conspiracy theory - the Democrats did it
I think we’re all sick and tired of reading about the latest round of retrenchments from around the traps. Give us a break. We’ve had enough. Yes, it’s the recession we had to have etc etc, but let’s put it behind us, learn from it and move on.
But just before we do...
Here’s a final round up of the latest Australian stats, before Obama wins the elections, a miraculous overnight turnaround happens and the conspiracy theory guys start to suggest that the economic slump was perpetrated by the Democrats.
Data from ANZ suggests that the number of job advertisements – newspapers and internet – dropped by 5.9% in October. Compared to October 2007, the total number of advertisements was 9.8% lower.
A special survey by the Australian Industry Group asked 303 companies their views:
The bad:
60% of companies said the crisis had negatively affected their business
55% saying they expected production to fall as a result
53% claim employment prospects have worsened.
60% said sales had fallen as a result of the crisis
64% said new orders had been hit
56% said their capital investment plans have been negatively affected by the crisis
The really bad:
40% are planning to reduce employment
40% are revising their business plans
38% are planning to cut costs
28% are planning to reduce investment
25% are planning to reduce production
10% are cutting back on R&D spending
So that’s enough of that. Things are now getting better. Our troubles are over. Markets are improving. So we can all go out and buy that new car that’s been hanging around on the docks for the past few months and make that cheeky offer on the repossessed holiday home on Avoca Beach.
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
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But just before we do...
Here’s a final round up of the latest Australian stats, before Obama wins the elections, a miraculous overnight turnaround happens and the conspiracy theory guys start to suggest that the economic slump was perpetrated by the Democrats.
Data from ANZ suggests that the number of job advertisements – newspapers and internet – dropped by 5.9% in October. Compared to October 2007, the total number of advertisements was 9.8% lower.
A special survey by the Australian Industry Group asked 303 companies their views:
The bad:
60% of companies said the crisis had negatively affected their business
55% saying they expected production to fall as a result
53% claim employment prospects have worsened.
60% said sales had fallen as a result of the crisis
64% said new orders had been hit
56% said their capital investment plans have been negatively affected by the crisis
The really bad:
40% are planning to reduce employment
40% are revising their business plans
38% are planning to cut costs
28% are planning to reduce investment
25% are planning to reduce production
10% are cutting back on R&D spending
So that’s enough of that. Things are now getting better. Our troubles are over. Markets are improving. So we can all go out and buy that new car that’s been hanging around on the docks for the past few months and make that cheeky offer on the repossessed holiday home on Avoca Beach.
Oh and more importantly, before you do any of this, of utmost importance is that you call Heywood Innovation and get your brand strengthened and ready for the good times ahead. Will branding be on Obama’s agenda I wonder? Kevin take note.
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
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Tuesday, November 04, 2008
Death of a legend
22 October 2008
At its peak Chrysler was a brand of legendary status. This year the motoring legend is destined to fall from grace and get tossed on the brand scrapheap by private equity.
Herein lies the story of yet another monumental hi-octane blunder fuelled by private equity greed and incompetency. Cerberus – the private equity owner of Chrysler since 2007 looks certain to offload its investment. Described as ‘this terrible mistake’ by a former CEO of American Motors, the purchase from Daimler only last year was widely seen as an ill considered move. Even the transfer of ownership to Daimler in 1998 – an uncomfortable liaison that spawned DaimlerChrysler Motors Company LLC – had many motoring scribes scratching their heads. Auto manufacturer madness.
Here are some interesting facts – Daimler bought Chrysler for US$37 billion, then spent billions more trying to keep it afloat. Cerberus Capital bought Chrysler back from the Germans for US$7.4 billion! Bet the Daimler shareholders were mighty pleased. Perhaps the Daimler brand value took just a slight dip after waving goodbye to US$30+ billion?
So what price will Cerberus now get in this financially battered market? General Motors is seen as the favoured suitor which is presently scavenging in the ruins looking for tasty morsels. Not that General Motors is without its own problems, with estimated debts of US$300 billion – which makes Daimler’s US$30+ billion loss look almost acceptable. All victims of a consumer society once fixated on ‘big is beautiful’ and now too slow to respond to environmental concerns and a global shift to smaller and more economical vehicles – cars that were great for the 1980s but dinosaurs today. Global warming and public sentiment sealed their fate.
So what value is put on the Chrysler brand now? Apparently precious little. Peter DeLorenzo, a former auto ad exec commented “After you get Chrysler, you take Jeep and the minivans, and get rid of the rest”. It seems that in order to restore brand strength and sales of the legendary GM Hummer (down 47.3% this year) all GM needs to do is to align it with Jeep ‘a brand with worldwide appeal’ (sales down 26% this year). What do you end up with? You get two brands with declining sales – one being the most despised and environmentally unfriendly auto brand of them all, sold alongside an honest and reputable ‘fun 4WD lifestyle vehicle’ albeit with a distant military heritage. Guess which brand will tarnish the other? You think Hummer will revitalise, or will Jeep’s brand suffer after the initial showroom frenzy and PR spin die down and everyone checks the sales figures? I’ll leave it up to you to figure that one out. What will all those loyal baby boomer brand diehards, who grew up with the ‘classic’ Chryslers think of these well heeled, smart talking, suntanned, quick buck merchants from Cerberus? Do we need to mention gun laws here? I guess here’s another brand going down the toilet big time, that’s likely to get its ass shot off or run over before it does so.
Chrysler brand RIP. 1925-2008
STOP PRESS 27 October
Chrysler has announced it is to cut 25% of its white collar workforce.
Daimler has announced it is to suspend production for one month after unveiling a big fall in profits.
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
At its peak Chrysler was a brand of legendary status. This year the motoring legend is destined to fall from grace and get tossed on the brand scrapheap by private equity.
Herein lies the story of yet another monumental hi-octane blunder fuelled by private equity greed and incompetency. Cerberus – the private equity owner of Chrysler since 2007 looks certain to offload its investment. Described as ‘this terrible mistake’ by a former CEO of American Motors, the purchase from Daimler only last year was widely seen as an ill considered move. Even the transfer of ownership to Daimler in 1998 – an uncomfortable liaison that spawned DaimlerChrysler Motors Company LLC – had many motoring scribes scratching their heads. Auto manufacturer madness.Here are some interesting facts – Daimler bought Chrysler for US$37 billion, then spent billions more trying to keep it afloat. Cerberus Capital bought Chrysler back from the Germans for US$7.4 billion! Bet the Daimler shareholders were mighty pleased. Perhaps the Daimler brand value took just a slight dip after waving goodbye to US$30+ billion?
So what price will Cerberus now get in this financially battered market? General Motors is seen as the favoured suitor which is presently scavenging in the ruins looking for tasty morsels. Not that General Motors is without its own problems, with estimated debts of US$300 billion – which makes Daimler’s US$30+ billion loss look almost acceptable. All victims of a consumer society once fixated on ‘big is beautiful’ and now too slow to respond to environmental concerns and a global shift to smaller and more economical vehicles – cars that were great for the 1980s but dinosaurs today. Global warming and public sentiment sealed their fate.
So what value is put on the Chrysler brand now? Apparently precious little. Peter DeLorenzo, a former auto ad exec commented “After you get Chrysler, you take Jeep and the minivans, and get rid of the rest”. It seems that in order to restore brand strength and sales of the legendary GM Hummer (down 47.3% this year) all GM needs to do is to align it with Jeep ‘a brand with worldwide appeal’ (sales down 26% this year). What do you end up with? You get two brands with declining sales – one being the most despised and environmentally unfriendly auto brand of them all, sold alongside an honest and reputable ‘fun 4WD lifestyle vehicle’ albeit with a distant military heritage. Guess which brand will tarnish the other? You think Hummer will revitalise, or will Jeep’s brand suffer after the initial showroom frenzy and PR spin die down and everyone checks the sales figures? I’ll leave it up to you to figure that one out. What will all those loyal baby boomer brand diehards, who grew up with the ‘classic’ Chryslers think of these well heeled, smart talking, suntanned, quick buck merchants from Cerberus? Do we need to mention gun laws here? I guess here’s another brand going down the toilet big time, that’s likely to get its ass shot off or run over before it does so.
Chrysler brand RIP. 1925-2008
STOP PRESS 27 October
Chrysler has announced it is to cut 25% of its white collar workforce.
Daimler has announced it is to suspend production for one month after unveiling a big fall in profits.
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
Thursday, October 09, 2008
9 important brand considerations – and how to avoid those sleepless nights!
If you're responsible for the ownership or management of your organisation's brand I wouldn't blame you if you admitted to having a few sleepless nights worrying about what might go wrong next. Let's admit it, there is plenty that can go wrong.
> Trying to make communications read and look as though they come from the same company
> Imminent merger discussions no-one bothered to tell you about
> Getting every department to use the same font on correspondence
> Having a website that looks as though it belongs to someone else
> Employee induction packs that aren't painting the same picture as the interviewers
> Internal sign system that isn't pointing visitors in the right direction
> Corporate profile that's five years out of date
> Powerpoint presentation that the student on work experience put together
> Company mission and vision that no-one can remember
> Advertising agency that charges like a wounded bull
> Staff who look as though they need a good dose of motivation
> Company procedures that don't exist
> Designer who is claiming copyright ownership of the company logo
> The discovery of five different sets of stationery templates circulating internally
> New product launch that marketing wasn't advised of
> Awkward questions on future vision from the media that the Chairman couldn't answer
> Launch of the new product name overseas that didn't translate too well
> The sales team's business cards with the company URL missing
> The three senior executives who resigned all in the same week
> Customer complaints that just increased 200% in one month
> Newspaper ads that use exactly the same headline as a competitor's ad last month
> The pirated software your in-house designer has been using
> New receptionist with tattoos and body piercing that someone hired...
Many of the brand assignments my own company is commissioned for are ones where an existing brand needs rectifying, needs updating or is subject to internal or external change. Companies are getting particularly wise to the fact that, in addition to customers, an underperforming brand can impact considerably on employees and the potential to attract and retain top talent.
I thought it would be useful to touch on a few things that warrant consideration.
1/. Future vision. Does the leader have a vision for the future which everyone within the organisation is inspired by… or is the ship rudderless, off course and without GPS to guide it?
2/. Who owns your brand? Have you negotiated with your designer to hand over copyright, and have you trademarked it?
3/. Do you have control of your organisation's communications? Do they look the same? Do they speak with the same voice? Does anyone check spelling and grammar? Are templates and guidelines available?
4/. Are written HR procedures available for interviewing job candidates? Is there an induction pack explaining the organisation's brand, what it means and the role employees play in its success? Are training and company procedures included in it?
5/. When was the present corporate identity introduced? Does it build an accurate and positive perception of what the organisation is, does and believes in?
6/. Likewise, do communications in print, online, DVD and video build an accurate perception of the organisation's brand? Do they include strong messages to influence your audiences?
7/. Does your organisation have sub brands? If so, do they competently support the main brand? Are they consistent with the parent brand if that is the intention?
8/. Has the organisation's brand been audited within the last 12 months? Are you aware of all applications that are visually branded eg stationery, brochures, Powerpoint presentations etc? How consistent and relevant are they?
9/. When was the last time the organisation's website was updated? Does it contain out-of-date information that may render the organisation legally liable?
These are just a few considerations. Our experience is that there are many more. If you need advice to overcome your branding challenges check us out at www.heywood.com.au
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
> Trying to make communications read and look as though they come from the same company
> Imminent merger discussions no-one bothered to tell you about
> Getting every department to use the same font on correspondence
> Having a website that looks as though it belongs to someone else
> Employee induction packs that aren't painting the same picture as the interviewers
> Internal sign system that isn't pointing visitors in the right direction
> Corporate profile that's five years out of date
> Powerpoint presentation that the student on work experience put together
> Company mission and vision that no-one can remember
> Advertising agency that charges like a wounded bull
> Staff who look as though they need a good dose of motivation
> Company procedures that don't exist
> Designer who is claiming copyright ownership of the company logo
> The discovery of five different sets of stationery templates circulating internally
> New product launch that marketing wasn't advised of
> Awkward questions on future vision from the media that the Chairman couldn't answer
> Launch of the new product name overseas that didn't translate too well
> The sales team's business cards with the company URL missing
> The three senior executives who resigned all in the same week
> Customer complaints that just increased 200% in one month
> Newspaper ads that use exactly the same headline as a competitor's ad last month
> The pirated software your in-house designer has been using
> New receptionist with tattoos and body piercing that someone hired...
Many of the brand assignments my own company is commissioned for are ones where an existing brand needs rectifying, needs updating or is subject to internal or external change. Companies are getting particularly wise to the fact that, in addition to customers, an underperforming brand can impact considerably on employees and the potential to attract and retain top talent.
I thought it would be useful to touch on a few things that warrant consideration.
1/. Future vision. Does the leader have a vision for the future which everyone within the organisation is inspired by… or is the ship rudderless, off course and without GPS to guide it?
2/. Who owns your brand? Have you negotiated with your designer to hand over copyright, and have you trademarked it?
3/. Do you have control of your organisation's communications? Do they look the same? Do they speak with the same voice? Does anyone check spelling and grammar? Are templates and guidelines available?
4/. Are written HR procedures available for interviewing job candidates? Is there an induction pack explaining the organisation's brand, what it means and the role employees play in its success? Are training and company procedures included in it?
5/. When was the present corporate identity introduced? Does it build an accurate and positive perception of what the organisation is, does and believes in?
6/. Likewise, do communications in print, online, DVD and video build an accurate perception of the organisation's brand? Do they include strong messages to influence your audiences?
7/. Does your organisation have sub brands? If so, do they competently support the main brand? Are they consistent with the parent brand if that is the intention?
8/. Has the organisation's brand been audited within the last 12 months? Are you aware of all applications that are visually branded eg stationery, brochures, Powerpoint presentations etc? How consistent and relevant are they?
9/. When was the last time the organisation's website was updated? Does it contain out-of-date information that may render the organisation legally liable?
These are just a few considerations. Our experience is that there are many more. If you need advice to overcome your branding challenges check us out at www.heywood.com.au
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Online advertising bonanza
Ofcom, the independent regulator and competition authority for the UK communications industries, has announced in its annual report that mainstream TV advertising is no longer the medium of choice in the UK. Spending on online advertising has overtaken TV. Online grew 40% last year to A$6 billion, accounting for 19 percent of all advertising, in an industry that is worth A$109 billion. The report also states that in a comparison of the period from 2002 to 2007 the time spent on computers by the British public increased 400%, representing 24 minutes a day per person. Mobile phone time increased 200%. By comparison, Australia’s online advertising market grew 61.5 per cent in 2006 with the full year spend just topping the $1 billion milestone. Way to go.
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
Friday, August 29, 2008
Functional and emotional benefits of brands
Brands can evoke strong rational and emotional responses in those who come into contact with them. This translates as ‘a powerfully held set of brand beliefs’. To be successful brands must create a relationship with key audiences by meeting both functional and emotional expectations at all points of interaction. The brands consumers choose can reinforce their self-image and generate social acceptance... think iPhone, Absolut, Prius. A consumer will pay a premium for a brand that can help them make a social statement. Brands can also put people in touch with likeminded individuals... think Harley Davidson.
Car manufacturers are experts at combining the rational and emotional. BMW and Mercedes for example, are all about build quality and engineering excellence. BMW however focuses on performance while Mercedes focuses on reliability. They have built brand strength by leveraging their functional excellence into an emotional resonance in the minds of consumers. How do they do this? BMW transforms performance into a form of emotional aggression. Mercedes translates reliability into a form of emotional reassurance.
These functional and emotional associations which are assigned to a brand by its customers and prospects are known as brand attributes. Brand attributes can be either negative or positive, and can have different degrees of relevance and importance to different customer segments, markets and cultures.
Identifiable product features are referred to as ‘functional benefits’. Some brands are easily differentiated by their functional benefits. Where functional benefits aren’t easily identifiable or differentiated, marketers often rely on ‘emotional benefits’. Let’s look at an example.
You’re a middle manager and you need a new car. Your first considerations are likely to be based upon functional benefits: reasonable performance, 2.0 litre engine, fuel economy, reliability, four doors, golf clubs must fit in the boot, must have an iPod connector, must fit in your garage etc. You have a choice of around 12 Japanese, French, German, English and Italian cars. All look much the same, have near identical specifications and capabilities and will meet your requirements admirably. Six of these cars are priced below $40,000, five are priced below $50,000 and the BMW is $65,000.
How can the BMW brand command a premium price level when on paper it has almost identical specifications and performance as the other less expensive cars? The difference lies not in superior functional benefits but in the emotional and self-expressive benefit of having a clearly identifiable high performance luxury brand that will sit in your driveway and be the envy of neighbours and friends.
When owners drive their BMW, they are rewarding themselves with an emotionally engaging experience that satisfies their desire to be part of an elite group of drivers and owners that seek something different and better.
Emotional benefits are often closely linked with self-expressive benefits. For example, does it feel better to buy a recognised and proven brand of baked beans or the No Frills generic brand? It feels better to buy the proven brand even if it has been proven that the contents of both are identical. Doesn’t it?
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
Car manufacturers are experts at combining the rational and emotional. BMW and Mercedes for example, are all about build quality and engineering excellence. BMW however focuses on performance while Mercedes focuses on reliability. They have built brand strength by leveraging their functional excellence into an emotional resonance in the minds of consumers. How do they do this? BMW transforms performance into a form of emotional aggression. Mercedes translates reliability into a form of emotional reassurance.
These functional and emotional associations which are assigned to a brand by its customers and prospects are known as brand attributes. Brand attributes can be either negative or positive, and can have different degrees of relevance and importance to different customer segments, markets and cultures.
Identifiable product features are referred to as ‘functional benefits’. Some brands are easily differentiated by their functional benefits. Where functional benefits aren’t easily identifiable or differentiated, marketers often rely on ‘emotional benefits’. Let’s look at an example.
You’re a middle manager and you need a new car. Your first considerations are likely to be based upon functional benefits: reasonable performance, 2.0 litre engine, fuel economy, reliability, four doors, golf clubs must fit in the boot, must have an iPod connector, must fit in your garage etc. You have a choice of around 12 Japanese, French, German, English and Italian cars. All look much the same, have near identical specifications and capabilities and will meet your requirements admirably. Six of these cars are priced below $40,000, five are priced below $50,000 and the BMW is $65,000.
How can the BMW brand command a premium price level when on paper it has almost identical specifications and performance as the other less expensive cars? The difference lies not in superior functional benefits but in the emotional and self-expressive benefit of having a clearly identifiable high performance luxury brand that will sit in your driveway and be the envy of neighbours and friends.
When owners drive their BMW, they are rewarding themselves with an emotionally engaging experience that satisfies their desire to be part of an elite group of drivers and owners that seek something different and better.
Emotional benefits are often closely linked with self-expressive benefits. For example, does it feel better to buy a recognised and proven brand of baked beans or the No Frills generic brand? It feels better to buy the proven brand even if it has been proven that the contents of both are identical. Doesn’t it?
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Qantas brand takes a dive
Four recent safety incidents within 10 days have tested the strength of the Qantas brand, an airline that for many years has maintained a peerless safety record. The integrity of its brand has suffered by reports that essential servicing has been transferred overseas as part of a company-wide cost cutting exercise. The airline is now subject to a Civil Aviation Safety Authority investigation. This comes at a trying time for Qantas as it waves farewell to long standing chief Geoff Dixon, who tried to assure shareholders and passengers that there are no ‘systemic problems’ and reinforced that the vast majority of servicing is completed in Australia. Passengers belief systems need more than this from the lips of an outgoing chief, who was once heralded as the vision and voice of Qantas. Statements by engineering boss David Cox reported in the media that ‘some such incidents are just part of running a major airline’ have served to cast further doubt on the strength of the brand and the competency of its guardians. Sadly the damage seems to be done and Qantas must now try very hard to repair the damage and wait for a new chief with a new strategy to rescue the brand. This comes at a time when media articles question the brand’s ‘Australianism’ and diminishing emotional connection with Australians and particularly Australian travellers. For here is a brand that based its values on ‘safe flying’. Sadly its bottom line obsession at a time of high fuel costs has eroded employee commitment, damaged belief in the brand and diminished customer loyalty. The ‘perception of ‘high value service delivery’ has been lost to competitors such as Singapore Airlines who have seized the baton and are way ahead. Qantas now needs a lot more than the recently redrawn kangaroo and italicised lettering in its logo to regain brand altitude, recover its bottom line and respect for its brand. I strongly recommend that now is the time for Qantas to go back to its roots, redefine its Australian values, identify real differentiators, analyse its competitors’ brands and create a strategy that will win back the hearts and minds of its customers.
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
‘Country of Origin’ impacts on brand preferences
A brand’s ‘country of origin’ can have a profound effect on the perception of a brand, particularly in the case of consumer products.
It can differentiate a brand and create strong and enduring relationships. ‘Made in Japan’ remains a strong guarantee of quality and innovation, harking back to the huge inroads made by the likes of Sony in the 1960s which helped put post-war Japan firmly on the map as a world leader in electronics, and Honda as it started to cripple the innovation-shy British motorcycle industry. It represented a firm stab in the back for the traditional qualities associated with ‘Made in England’ from the 1960s to the 1990s - the heyday of brands like Robertson, the epitome of British transistor radios, and so many British auto brands - Alvis, Austin, Hillman, Lagonda, Morris, Riley, Sunbeam, Wolseley and so many more.
Sadly like most product offerings ‘Made in Japan’ seems to now be increasingly replaced by ‘Made in China’, with automobile brands like Toyota, Honda and Mazda perhaps the only unbreakable aspect of Japanese automobile design, technology and manufacturing superiority... but for how long?
The ‘Made in Japan’ brand has very definite and very positive associations. ‘Made in England' (or is it 'Made in the United Kingdom'?) has no definite associations any more – perhaps it all got lost somewhere ‘midst the EEC confusion. Some brands however will always be strongly associated with England - Purdey shotguns, Barbour outdoor clothing, and Dunhill. They maintain an unbreakable and exclusive perception of tradition and quality, in the same way that Glenffidich will never be matched by any Japanese or Chinese whisky brand. I was going to include Jaguar but that now resides in Indian hands at Tata after a period of ownership with those gents at Ford in good old US of A, now in deep financial distress. So who knows what that has done for buyers’ perception of the once quintessentially English Jaguar brand!
‘Made in Germany’ symbolises precision and reliability. Products from German auto manufacturers Mercedes Benz, Audi, BMW and Porsche benefit from these positive perceptions. They seem unbreakable and have withstood the onslaught of the Japanese engineers, designers and technologists.
Having been born in England where the majority of the nation still seems to harbour some mistrust, bordering on dislike, for the French (something to do with Napoleon, Trafalgar and France’s inability to play decent football) I recollect no strong perceptions of ‘Made in France’. Brilliant Citroens DS19s and rubbish Renaults were the only products I remember from the 1960s until the introduction of fashionable and filthy smelling cigarettes and the bizarre suggestion that the French are good lovers! Not exactly cut through stuff. Even the wines are not that great (thank you Australian wine industry).
Brand Italy seems to score better. Luxury goods brands like Armani and Prada, sublime supercars like Ferrari and Maserati, ace soccer teams, designers and the beauty of Italian architecture and countryside conjure up very positive impressions of Italy, the Italian people and their enviable lifestyle. So, here’s a question. Does the country brand influence its product brands or vice versa? Was Italy such a great place until Enzo Ferrari and Giorgio Armani came along?
With the advent of global media, it can take only one incident to capture the minds of global audiences and reduce centuries of brand goodwill to nought. China’s recent exploits in Tibet are a PR nightmare. The lead paint on Chinese toys succeeded in crashing their exports and instilled a hard-to-shift perception of ‘cheap, nasty and dangerous’. The US interference in Iraq, aggravated by the global economic downturn, has severely dented perceptions of its standing as an economic power house and global peace keeper. Zimbabwe is no longer perceived as a viable holiday destination.
As ambassadors of their ‘country of origin’, airlines can gain very definite benefits by aligning their brand strategy with that of the nation. Good examples of this are Alitalia which just flew in the Pope to Australia, British Airways, Swiss Airlines etc. Airlines do not have to have the country of origin’s name present, as in Qantas which is undeniably the airline of Australia.
‘Country of origin’ can have a very definite impact on consumer perceptions and buying decisions. It should be considered however as only one component of a brand’s ability to achieve and sustain long term success.
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
It can differentiate a brand and create strong and enduring relationships. ‘Made in Japan’ remains a strong guarantee of quality and innovation, harking back to the huge inroads made by the likes of Sony in the 1960s which helped put post-war Japan firmly on the map as a world leader in electronics, and Honda as it started to cripple the innovation-shy British motorcycle industry. It represented a firm stab in the back for the traditional qualities associated with ‘Made in England’ from the 1960s to the 1990s - the heyday of brands like Robertson, the epitome of British transistor radios, and so many British auto brands - Alvis, Austin, Hillman, Lagonda, Morris, Riley, Sunbeam, Wolseley and so many more.
Sadly like most product offerings ‘Made in Japan’ seems to now be increasingly replaced by ‘Made in China’, with automobile brands like Toyota, Honda and Mazda perhaps the only unbreakable aspect of Japanese automobile design, technology and manufacturing superiority... but for how long?
The ‘Made in Japan’ brand has very definite and very positive associations. ‘Made in England' (or is it 'Made in the United Kingdom'?) has no definite associations any more – perhaps it all got lost somewhere ‘midst the EEC confusion. Some brands however will always be strongly associated with England - Purdey shotguns, Barbour outdoor clothing, and Dunhill. They maintain an unbreakable and exclusive perception of tradition and quality, in the same way that Glenffidich will never be matched by any Japanese or Chinese whisky brand. I was going to include Jaguar but that now resides in Indian hands at Tata after a period of ownership with those gents at Ford in good old US of A, now in deep financial distress. So who knows what that has done for buyers’ perception of the once quintessentially English Jaguar brand!
‘Made in Germany’ symbolises precision and reliability. Products from German auto manufacturers Mercedes Benz, Audi, BMW and Porsche benefit from these positive perceptions. They seem unbreakable and have withstood the onslaught of the Japanese engineers, designers and technologists.
Having been born in England where the majority of the nation still seems to harbour some mistrust, bordering on dislike, for the French (something to do with Napoleon, Trafalgar and France’s inability to play decent football) I recollect no strong perceptions of ‘Made in France’. Brilliant Citroens DS19s and rubbish Renaults were the only products I remember from the 1960s until the introduction of fashionable and filthy smelling cigarettes and the bizarre suggestion that the French are good lovers! Not exactly cut through stuff. Even the wines are not that great (thank you Australian wine industry).
Brand Italy seems to score better. Luxury goods brands like Armani and Prada, sublime supercars like Ferrari and Maserati, ace soccer teams, designers and the beauty of Italian architecture and countryside conjure up very positive impressions of Italy, the Italian people and their enviable lifestyle. So, here’s a question. Does the country brand influence its product brands or vice versa? Was Italy such a great place until Enzo Ferrari and Giorgio Armani came along?
With the advent of global media, it can take only one incident to capture the minds of global audiences and reduce centuries of brand goodwill to nought. China’s recent exploits in Tibet are a PR nightmare. The lead paint on Chinese toys succeeded in crashing their exports and instilled a hard-to-shift perception of ‘cheap, nasty and dangerous’. The US interference in Iraq, aggravated by the global economic downturn, has severely dented perceptions of its standing as an economic power house and global peace keeper. Zimbabwe is no longer perceived as a viable holiday destination.
As ambassadors of their ‘country of origin’, airlines can gain very definite benefits by aligning their brand strategy with that of the nation. Good examples of this are Alitalia which just flew in the Pope to Australia, British Airways, Swiss Airlines etc. Airlines do not have to have the country of origin’s name present, as in Qantas which is undeniably the airline of Australia.
‘Country of origin’ can have a very definite impact on consumer perceptions and buying decisions. It should be considered however as only one component of a brand’s ability to achieve and sustain long term success.
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Branding gets sexy and goes to the theatre
Branding is becoming increasingly experiential. At its extreme it is co-ordinated theatre ie dramatic material rehearsed and performed to entertain an audience and provide them with an experience they will never forget – in the hope that they will think well of you and want more.
In the good old days of corporate identity, before branding and web sites came along, a designer's life was much simpler – clients were merely concerned with sourcing a nice looking logo and some colours to display on their stationery and brochures and on the side of a few white vans. Things have now changed in this brand centric world. New car launches for example are full-on theatre. Bright lights on chromed logos, video extravaganzas of ecstatic couples cruising the Great Ocean Road or the New Jersey Turnpike, or Brad Pitt lookalikes speeding around the Nurburgring circuit scoring admiring glances from classy debs in the pit lane. At the launch, lovely pouting Tokohama girls in body-hugging lycra hug the bodies of the latest Tokohama Nicra Turbo Largesse, with multi-coloured smoke swirling gently over the logo infested carpet, while the latest hit single by boy wonder group smelicat echoes around the silver foil wrapped warehouse that looks like a set from the latest Alien movie.
Algonquin Maynard the car designer, resplendent in designer suit and no tie, addresses the crowd and glorifies the curves and creases and titanium gear knob and their role in the branded look he has planned for the entire model range. All to build interest in the new car and its enhanced performance figures and new gizmos (not forgetting its frugality and new-found sympathies with the environment), but also to show the world what the brand is capable of achieving. How it can get inside the minds of new car buyers while they salivate at the prospect of ownership, thrill to the 200kph video and caress the fake wood and lycra. Podcasts extol the virtues, auto blogs spread like a virus with carefully placed articles. A new Turbo Largesse men's fragrance is seen in leading department stores. Ex racing car drivers with racing suits adorned with the maker's logo are shown easing themselves confidently into the driving seat.
The motoring press likewise are entertained at carefully selected eateries where CEOs proclaim how sensational the new model is, its prowess on the road, in the showroom, in company sales figures and its sensational fit with the company's brand values. Marquees appear in city centres and at shopping centres where models strut their stuff alongside cars resplendent in the latest designer shades of 'superstar mink' and 'generation yellow'. A limited addition all-black U2 model is offered at extra cost. Videos of the car performing amazing feats adorn the website. Direct mail saturates the nation. Top Gear features Jeremy Clarkson test driving one while towing a caravan across the Simpson Desert. He has high praise for the gear knob and waxes lyrical on the choice of seat fabric. Car sales momentarily halt while the viewing nation takes stock and brand values are questioned. Meanwhile online marketing jams our in-boxes. Buses sail past with car and models adorning their sides. TV ads slide in between repeat showings of Biggest Loser. Homer Simpson is seen driving a car that looks ever so much like a Tokohama Nicra Turbo Largesse. Double page newspaper ads eclipse articles warning of stock market collapses. Whole fleets are loaned to leading AFL and cricket teams. Tokohama dealerships go into overdrive with hot air balloons, sausage sizzles, Tokohama burgers and local celebrities. Obligation free test drives are everywhere, sadly without the models.
Competitors, galvanised into action, scurry around seeking pitches from brand communication companies (aka advertising agencies) to devise Tokohama-beating campaign extravaganzas, initiatives to further build brand value... and source even prettier models.
The car buying public has never had so many people working so hard to manipulate their perception of the car and the company behind it. Brand creators have a myriad opportunities at their fingertips to inspire and manipulate these perceptions. Exciting isn't it? Me, I'll just stick to the lycra.
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
In the good old days of corporate identity, before branding and web sites came along, a designer's life was much simpler – clients were merely concerned with sourcing a nice looking logo and some colours to display on their stationery and brochures and on the side of a few white vans. Things have now changed in this brand centric world. New car launches for example are full-on theatre. Bright lights on chromed logos, video extravaganzas of ecstatic couples cruising the Great Ocean Road or the New Jersey Turnpike, or Brad Pitt lookalikes speeding around the Nurburgring circuit scoring admiring glances from classy debs in the pit lane. At the launch, lovely pouting Tokohama girls in body-hugging lycra hug the bodies of the latest Tokohama Nicra Turbo Largesse, with multi-coloured smoke swirling gently over the logo infested carpet, while the latest hit single by boy wonder group smelicat echoes around the silver foil wrapped warehouse that looks like a set from the latest Alien movie.
Algonquin Maynard the car designer, resplendent in designer suit and no tie, addresses the crowd and glorifies the curves and creases and titanium gear knob and their role in the branded look he has planned for the entire model range. All to build interest in the new car and its enhanced performance figures and new gizmos (not forgetting its frugality and new-found sympathies with the environment), but also to show the world what the brand is capable of achieving. How it can get inside the minds of new car buyers while they salivate at the prospect of ownership, thrill to the 200kph video and caress the fake wood and lycra. Podcasts extol the virtues, auto blogs spread like a virus with carefully placed articles. A new Turbo Largesse men's fragrance is seen in leading department stores. Ex racing car drivers with racing suits adorned with the maker's logo are shown easing themselves confidently into the driving seat.
The motoring press likewise are entertained at carefully selected eateries where CEOs proclaim how sensational the new model is, its prowess on the road, in the showroom, in company sales figures and its sensational fit with the company's brand values. Marquees appear in city centres and at shopping centres where models strut their stuff alongside cars resplendent in the latest designer shades of 'superstar mink' and 'generation yellow'. A limited addition all-black U2 model is offered at extra cost. Videos of the car performing amazing feats adorn the website. Direct mail saturates the nation. Top Gear features Jeremy Clarkson test driving one while towing a caravan across the Simpson Desert. He has high praise for the gear knob and waxes lyrical on the choice of seat fabric. Car sales momentarily halt while the viewing nation takes stock and brand values are questioned. Meanwhile online marketing jams our in-boxes. Buses sail past with car and models adorning their sides. TV ads slide in between repeat showings of Biggest Loser. Homer Simpson is seen driving a car that looks ever so much like a Tokohama Nicra Turbo Largesse. Double page newspaper ads eclipse articles warning of stock market collapses. Whole fleets are loaned to leading AFL and cricket teams. Tokohama dealerships go into overdrive with hot air balloons, sausage sizzles, Tokohama burgers and local celebrities. Obligation free test drives are everywhere, sadly without the models.
Competitors, galvanised into action, scurry around seeking pitches from brand communication companies (aka advertising agencies) to devise Tokohama-beating campaign extravaganzas, initiatives to further build brand value... and source even prettier models.
The car buying public has never had so many people working so hard to manipulate their perception of the car and the company behind it. Brand creators have a myriad opportunities at their fingertips to inspire and manipulate these perceptions. Exciting isn't it? Me, I'll just stick to the lycra.
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
Friday, May 30, 2008
Boosting Australian Creativity
I believe government has a long way to go to actively and effectively promote design to industry. I remember well the heady days of Thatcherism in the UK and, despite considerable animosity, the influence she wielded in gaining acceptance and support for the concept that design and industry must be united. This resulted in a huge boost to industry and improved the perception of UK-based companies in Europe and indeed the world, and stimulated the UK design renaissance through the 80s and 90s. Australia has yet to witness such a boldly-delivered initiative.
Through a joint venture relationship Heywood Innovation has in Singapore, I have met with IE Singapore, the equivalent to Austrade in Australia, whose role is to build awareness and advise companies of the need for strong and appropriate branding particularly for export. The contrast with Austrade is remarkable. Underpinned by an active workshop series, Singapore-based companies are offered around a 50% offset for any brand development work carried out by qualified branding agencies. This is a huge incentive for emerging companies to think more seriously on the prospects of lifting their game and setting their sights on export achievements. Austrade leaves this task to individual companies with little or no active support or advice, ultimately costing them dearly when trying to penetrate overseas markets with weak and ill conceived brands inappropriate for the markets they have targeted. Many innovative ideas coming out of Australia have failed because of poor brand perception and communication, relying on feeble home-grown promotional efforts lacking professional input.
Government needs to consider educating business on the benefits of creativity particularly in digital media, which inspires many arguments for a more effective rollout of broadband. The recently introduced legislation that allows listed companies to provide their annual reports online is a great step in the right direction and an admirable cost saving and environmental gesture, which sadly did not even register on the green groups’ radar. This initiative however is not enforced for Government agencies who continue to focus on and produce printed documents.
Ultimate creativity does not necessarily guarantee a job or take up by industry. Creative courses in universities and colleges need to better align talent with business. Over a 20 year period the situation has not changed. There are fundamental flaws in the experience students have in these institutions which disadvantages them considerably from understanding the way business works and how their talents can be aligned with business needs. As an employer of talent I regularly witness educational institutions churning out students ill equipped to be employed in the creative industry, an industry where low salaries and low respect are rife as a consequence – the long road to being accepted as a serious profession. The inability for most design graduates to write a simple business letter or understand basic business principles flabbergasts me.
It would be good to see industry-sponsored design awards that are fit for purpose in industry not purely for the sake of creativity.
The value of good design and communication has dropped substantially in the last few years fuelled by continuous cost cutting that inevitably increases our clients’ performance bonuses and their belief that new technologies make creative work faster and easier and therefore less expensive. There is sadly too much emphasis on ‘honing the process’ than on promoting and having confidence in the commercial benefits of good design that can inspire and influence partnerships with industry. Educating companies - particularly SMEs - on the long term value of their brands is a hard one but an essential one.
Australia has a wealth of creative talent, much of which is under-utilised. Making a determined attempt to improve education, offer creative advice to industry, build respect and stimulate large corporates and SMEs to invest in design is achievable. It requires open debate and continuing communication... and an inspired government.
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
Through a joint venture relationship Heywood Innovation has in Singapore, I have met with IE Singapore, the equivalent to Austrade in Australia, whose role is to build awareness and advise companies of the need for strong and appropriate branding particularly for export. The contrast with Austrade is remarkable. Underpinned by an active workshop series, Singapore-based companies are offered around a 50% offset for any brand development work carried out by qualified branding agencies. This is a huge incentive for emerging companies to think more seriously on the prospects of lifting their game and setting their sights on export achievements. Austrade leaves this task to individual companies with little or no active support or advice, ultimately costing them dearly when trying to penetrate overseas markets with weak and ill conceived brands inappropriate for the markets they have targeted. Many innovative ideas coming out of Australia have failed because of poor brand perception and communication, relying on feeble home-grown promotional efforts lacking professional input.
Government needs to consider educating business on the benefits of creativity particularly in digital media, which inspires many arguments for a more effective rollout of broadband. The recently introduced legislation that allows listed companies to provide their annual reports online is a great step in the right direction and an admirable cost saving and environmental gesture, which sadly did not even register on the green groups’ radar. This initiative however is not enforced for Government agencies who continue to focus on and produce printed documents.
Ultimate creativity does not necessarily guarantee a job or take up by industry. Creative courses in universities and colleges need to better align talent with business. Over a 20 year period the situation has not changed. There are fundamental flaws in the experience students have in these institutions which disadvantages them considerably from understanding the way business works and how their talents can be aligned with business needs. As an employer of talent I regularly witness educational institutions churning out students ill equipped to be employed in the creative industry, an industry where low salaries and low respect are rife as a consequence – the long road to being accepted as a serious profession. The inability for most design graduates to write a simple business letter or understand basic business principles flabbergasts me.
It would be good to see industry-sponsored design awards that are fit for purpose in industry not purely for the sake of creativity.
The value of good design and communication has dropped substantially in the last few years fuelled by continuous cost cutting that inevitably increases our clients’ performance bonuses and their belief that new technologies make creative work faster and easier and therefore less expensive. There is sadly too much emphasis on ‘honing the process’ than on promoting and having confidence in the commercial benefits of good design that can inspire and influence partnerships with industry. Educating companies - particularly SMEs - on the long term value of their brands is a hard one but an essential one.
Australia has a wealth of creative talent, much of which is under-utilised. Making a determined attempt to improve education, offer creative advice to industry, build respect and stimulate large corporates and SMEs to invest in design is achievable. It requires open debate and continuing communication... and an inspired government.
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
Friday, May 16, 2008
Are you a brand fanatic?
What causes people to become so attached to brands? The answer lies in their ability to promote a lifestyle, a way of thinking, and the opportunity to be part of a like-minded community. Strong brands meet emotional needs as well as physical ones. Some people believe that a relationship with a brand can be as fulfilling as one with another person. But I'm not too sure about that. What do you think? Is your partner your No.1 brand?
What would the devotees of iPods, Harley Davidsons and mySpace think? iPod owners would not swap their beloved device for another MP3 player even if there was a significant price difference. iPods claimed this market with an incredibly strong brand which had very specific attributes. Other MP3 players may do the same, perhaps even more, but owning an iPod means something very special. An iPod is an iPod, where others are mere MP3 players. It owns the category. There is only one iPod, in the same way Hoover and Biro once owned their own categories.
You make a statement when you ride a Harley. You only have to sit on the saddle to immediately gain a sense of freedom and rebel-rouser status - you become taller, bigger and more capable as a person. You become one with the machine, a member of an elite group of like minded individuals - a brotherhood of followers. Followers who are so fanatical they tattoo the brand in their own flesh – the brand literally becomes a brand! There is no other motorcycle like a Harley. No riding experience is like that of a Harley. There may be several Japanese look-a-likes out there but they sure as hell don't ride like a Harley. So ownership delivers a unique riding experience while the 'mind trip' satisfies the emotional need to express your individualism and make a statement, while satisfying the need to connect with others who share the same beliefs and lifestyle desires. One of the major strengths of the Harley Davidson brand is its determination to involve all its stakeholders, from customers to employees, suppliers, and the community at large. Employee loyalty has added amazing strength to the Harley Davidson brand. Strength from the inside out, where each employee lives and breathes the brand and is a brand ambassador, in many cases for life.
MySpace satisfies that sense of community. The capacity in us to communicate and interact with other people and prove to ourselves that we are not alone in the world. The MySpace brand has immense value basically because of the traffic it has generated and its 'sticky' nature where members are unlikely to drift away to competitor sites. It has satisfied a desire.
What brand are you fanatical about, and why? What lengths would you go to to defend that brand and what it stands for?
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
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What would the devotees of iPods, Harley Davidsons and mySpace think? iPod owners would not swap their beloved device for another MP3 player even if there was a significant price difference. iPods claimed this market with an incredibly strong brand which had very specific attributes. Other MP3 players may do the same, perhaps even more, but owning an iPod means something very special. An iPod is an iPod, where others are mere MP3 players. It owns the category. There is only one iPod, in the same way Hoover and Biro once owned their own categories.
You make a statement when you ride a Harley. You only have to sit on the saddle to immediately gain a sense of freedom and rebel-rouser status - you become taller, bigger and more capable as a person. You become one with the machine, a member of an elite group of like minded individuals - a brotherhood of followers. Followers who are so fanatical they tattoo the brand in their own flesh – the brand literally becomes a brand! There is no other motorcycle like a Harley. No riding experience is like that of a Harley. There may be several Japanese look-a-likes out there but they sure as hell don't ride like a Harley. So ownership delivers a unique riding experience while the 'mind trip' satisfies the emotional need to express your individualism and make a statement, while satisfying the need to connect with others who share the same beliefs and lifestyle desires. One of the major strengths of the Harley Davidson brand is its determination to involve all its stakeholders, from customers to employees, suppliers, and the community at large. Employee loyalty has added amazing strength to the Harley Davidson brand. Strength from the inside out, where each employee lives and breathes the brand and is a brand ambassador, in many cases for life.
MySpace satisfies that sense of community. The capacity in us to communicate and interact with other people and prove to ourselves that we are not alone in the world. The MySpace brand has immense value basically because of the traffic it has generated and its 'sticky' nature where members are unlikely to drift away to competitor sites. It has satisfied a desire.
What brand are you fanatical about, and why? What lengths would you go to to defend that brand and what it stands for?
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Brand Leadership
What you need to do to achieve it.
After nearly twenty years in the business, I’ve acquired a pretty good understanding of the requirements for a successful brand. Sadly there are many out there who still believe a design make-over will fix all their organisation’s problems, change any negative perceptions and bring untold wealth and success. This may happen in 5% of the cases, but for the other 95% in the real world here is some advice on getting the basics right.
As the owner of a successful Australian branding and communications business I’ve experienced many situations that constantly emphasise how essential a strong brand is to an organisation’s success. Thankfully we encounter many organisations who share this belief and are eager to further their understanding of what branding is and what it can achieve for them.
One of the more exciting aspects of the business I am in is the daily reinforcement that no two companies are alike and no two companies encounter exactly the same challenges and opportunities.
Discover the real you
The first stage in any branding project is to understand what your present brand is, what it is capable of becoming and what it can achieve. This differs significantly from organisation to organisation depending on whether it is an established corporate or new market entrant, its understanding and commitment to the brand, its history, whether is is B2B or B2C, its products etc etc. This requires determined research to gain information, statistics and insight on the organisation, its customers, employees, products and services, competitors and the markets in which it operates. This information is sourced from desk research and face-to-face meetings with key stakeholders and those who are influenced by the brand. Some years ago we introduced a custom-developed facilitated process called TeamPlan that we employ to enormous effect to focus group thinking, ‘cut through the clutter’, develop ideas and enable both teams to take ownership of the brand’s direction. All of this is complemented with an audit of the brand and the way the brand is communicated externally and internally.
Essentially this provides: accurate information on the organisation’s present situation, helps gain insight to what can be achieved and ensures the branding team head in the right direction.
Determine what you hope to become and to achieve
Essential to the success of a corporate brand is a powerful vision for the future. Some companies have a powerful leader with a powerful and motivating vision, others struggle along day-to-day with little understanding of where they are heading and why. Without a powerful vision there are no clear objectives for the brand to work towards and no identifiable goals to achieve. An essential early stage in brand development is to engage with company leaders to create, manage and implement long term vision for their brands. This vision then influences what the brand has to achieve and the methods to achieve it. The vision is then brought to life by visualising it and creating innovative ways of communicating it to your audiences.
Essentially this helps to: gain an understanding of how the organisation sees its future and its industry, identify opportunities and threats that might impair the vision, discover your organisation’s core assets and competencies and generate a powerful and passionate story that permeates the organisation.
The most important brand element – your name
A name is the one element in branding that you hope never to change. It is precious and must be protected. It must reflect the personality of the organisation and its core brand values. In a world inundated with names, they must be differentiated from competitors and be truly memorable. It is not easy to create new names and hope that they have not already been registered and that there will be a URL available. Many common names in the English language have already been taken and there are only so many Latin-based permutations left. The opening up of global markets means that the organisation’s name and those of products and services must transcend cultural and linguistic barriers. Many companies in Singapore with Chinese names for example are having to think hard about how to adapt or change their name in order for it to be understood, be readily accepted and able to trade successfully in other countries. Names should be registered as a trademark to protect your rights.
Essentially you should consider: making your name distinctive and different, ensuring it is easily pronounced and understood by your key audiences and has no negative connotations in other cultures and languages and registering it to protect your intellectual property rights.
Getting to the heart of your brand
Deep within every brand lies a quality, a belief, a differentiator that is central to its success, the one thing that drives your business forward, that competitors cannot match. Some call it ‘brand essence’. Why is it essential to identify this driver of the brand? To be successful a brand needs to be differentiated from all others and hold a perception in the minds of its audiences that it is the only one that can satisfy their needs. Ideally their perception should be based on one clear and endearing aspect of the brand that stands head and shoulders above those of all competitors.
Essentially you need to identify: one clear and endearing aspect of your brand to help differentiate the brand and build a positive perception of it in your audiences’ minds.
A long term investment with interest
Corporate branding doesn’t happen overnight. Expect a rebranding exercise to take anywhere from several months to several years. Organisations need to make themselves comfortable with the fact that they are unlikely to gain the total benefits of a new brand within 12 months. Look at it more as a minimum 2-3 year programme to establish the brand, ensure it addresses the objectives of the organisation’s future vision, nurture it, gain feedback, refine it and monitor its performance. Brands never stand still. They grow and must respond to ongoing external and internal forces. Adjustment and refinement are a necessity and must be built into any branding program. Put in place guidelines to ensure that the agreed direction is followed and the brand is consistently applied.
Essentially you need to be aware that results don’t happen overnight, that performance must be monitored and tested and that adjust and refinement are inevitable.
Branding begins on the inside
If the people on the inside don’t understand and respect your brand, how do you expect the people on the outside to? Employees, managers and executives all play a part in the creation of your brand. They must be consulted right from the start and made aware of the company’s vision and how the brand must be developed around it. It is crucial that they appreciate the very important role they play in its development and its success. They need to be excited, engaged and inspired to live the brand. Without their support and involvement the brand has little chance of success.
Essentially this means involving employees from start to finish, keeping them informed, getting them to live the brand and appointing brand champions.
Powerful and persuasive communications
Investment in a new brand will be compromised if you do not tell people about it. Obvious huh! Tell them what it means, the vision that it represents, what its values are and the promise that it makes to its employees and customers. Craft a consistent ‘look & feel’ for all communications that is distinctive and brings life to the brand. Create a distinctive language style and vocabulary that enhances and distinguishes all forms of communications – corporate, marketing, internal and investor. Consistency of newly branded communications is critical right from the start, to ensure that key messages create the same impression and tell the same story, regardless of the media employed. The task is to create the same perception of the organisation with all of audiences.
Essentially requirements are to create a distinctive, recognisable and consistently applied visual style supported by a unique brand language and a written style. Ensure the communications style can adapt to various audiences.
Express the brand
First impressions are important. Lasting ones even more so. To attract attention and influence its audiences a brand must look good, be differentiated from others and be consistently applied – from business cards, brochures, packaging, vehicle livery, recruitment advertising to your website. And everything in between. Remember however that brand applications are not all visual. If you own a health spa network for example, you want customers to be greeted by a distinctive fragrance, one they will savour and one they will remember regardless of location. Remember that people are affected not only by what they see, what they read, what they hear, what they smell, but also by what they touch. This is multi-sensory branding that takes into account all the senses.
Essential considerations are that first impressions count, consistency is important and you must appeal to more than just what people see and read
Measure and monitor your brand’s performance
Most things in life need ongoing care and attention. A new brand is no exception. Its performance must be regularly monitored and assessed against predetermined performance criteria. Once launched it needs ongoing attention, direction and refinement. You need to ensure it is performing and that you are receiving a return on your investment. Without measurement there is no accountability, and without accountability, brands, products, processes and people cannot be improved. Key aspects of the brand that need to be measure are the level of understanding and appreciation by your employees, how and to what extent it is influencing your audiences and its Influence on sales performance. And much more.
Essential considerations are that brands need constant refinement and that without measurement they are unlikely to improve.
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
After nearly twenty years in the business, I’ve acquired a pretty good understanding of the requirements for a successful brand. Sadly there are many out there who still believe a design make-over will fix all their organisation’s problems, change any negative perceptions and bring untold wealth and success. This may happen in 5% of the cases, but for the other 95% in the real world here is some advice on getting the basics right.
As the owner of a successful Australian branding and communications business I’ve experienced many situations that constantly emphasise how essential a strong brand is to an organisation’s success. Thankfully we encounter many organisations who share this belief and are eager to further their understanding of what branding is and what it can achieve for them.
One of the more exciting aspects of the business I am in is the daily reinforcement that no two companies are alike and no two companies encounter exactly the same challenges and opportunities.
Discover the real you
The first stage in any branding project is to understand what your present brand is, what it is capable of becoming and what it can achieve. This differs significantly from organisation to organisation depending on whether it is an established corporate or new market entrant, its understanding and commitment to the brand, its history, whether is is B2B or B2C, its products etc etc. This requires determined research to gain information, statistics and insight on the organisation, its customers, employees, products and services, competitors and the markets in which it operates. This information is sourced from desk research and face-to-face meetings with key stakeholders and those who are influenced by the brand. Some years ago we introduced a custom-developed facilitated process called TeamPlan that we employ to enormous effect to focus group thinking, ‘cut through the clutter’, develop ideas and enable both teams to take ownership of the brand’s direction. All of this is complemented with an audit of the brand and the way the brand is communicated externally and internally.
Essentially this provides: accurate information on the organisation’s present situation, helps gain insight to what can be achieved and ensures the branding team head in the right direction.
Determine what you hope to become and to achieve
Essential to the success of a corporate brand is a powerful vision for the future. Some companies have a powerful leader with a powerful and motivating vision, others struggle along day-to-day with little understanding of where they are heading and why. Without a powerful vision there are no clear objectives for the brand to work towards and no identifiable goals to achieve. An essential early stage in brand development is to engage with company leaders to create, manage and implement long term vision for their brands. This vision then influences what the brand has to achieve and the methods to achieve it. The vision is then brought to life by visualising it and creating innovative ways of communicating it to your audiences.
Essentially this helps to: gain an understanding of how the organisation sees its future and its industry, identify opportunities and threats that might impair the vision, discover your organisation’s core assets and competencies and generate a powerful and passionate story that permeates the organisation.
The most important brand element – your name
A name is the one element in branding that you hope never to change. It is precious and must be protected. It must reflect the personality of the organisation and its core brand values. In a world inundated with names, they must be differentiated from competitors and be truly memorable. It is not easy to create new names and hope that they have not already been registered and that there will be a URL available. Many common names in the English language have already been taken and there are only so many Latin-based permutations left. The opening up of global markets means that the organisation’s name and those of products and services must transcend cultural and linguistic barriers. Many companies in Singapore with Chinese names for example are having to think hard about how to adapt or change their name in order for it to be understood, be readily accepted and able to trade successfully in other countries. Names should be registered as a trademark to protect your rights.
Essentially you should consider: making your name distinctive and different, ensuring it is easily pronounced and understood by your key audiences and has no negative connotations in other cultures and languages and registering it to protect your intellectual property rights.
Getting to the heart of your brand
Deep within every brand lies a quality, a belief, a differentiator that is central to its success, the one thing that drives your business forward, that competitors cannot match. Some call it ‘brand essence’. Why is it essential to identify this driver of the brand? To be successful a brand needs to be differentiated from all others and hold a perception in the minds of its audiences that it is the only one that can satisfy their needs. Ideally their perception should be based on one clear and endearing aspect of the brand that stands head and shoulders above those of all competitors.
Essentially you need to identify: one clear and endearing aspect of your brand to help differentiate the brand and build a positive perception of it in your audiences’ minds.
A long term investment with interest
Corporate branding doesn’t happen overnight. Expect a rebranding exercise to take anywhere from several months to several years. Organisations need to make themselves comfortable with the fact that they are unlikely to gain the total benefits of a new brand within 12 months. Look at it more as a minimum 2-3 year programme to establish the brand, ensure it addresses the objectives of the organisation’s future vision, nurture it, gain feedback, refine it and monitor its performance. Brands never stand still. They grow and must respond to ongoing external and internal forces. Adjustment and refinement are a necessity and must be built into any branding program. Put in place guidelines to ensure that the agreed direction is followed and the brand is consistently applied.
Essentially you need to be aware that results don’t happen overnight, that performance must be monitored and tested and that adjust and refinement are inevitable.
Branding begins on the inside
If the people on the inside don’t understand and respect your brand, how do you expect the people on the outside to? Employees, managers and executives all play a part in the creation of your brand. They must be consulted right from the start and made aware of the company’s vision and how the brand must be developed around it. It is crucial that they appreciate the very important role they play in its development and its success. They need to be excited, engaged and inspired to live the brand. Without their support and involvement the brand has little chance of success.
Essentially this means involving employees from start to finish, keeping them informed, getting them to live the brand and appointing brand champions.
Powerful and persuasive communications
Investment in a new brand will be compromised if you do not tell people about it. Obvious huh! Tell them what it means, the vision that it represents, what its values are and the promise that it makes to its employees and customers. Craft a consistent ‘look & feel’ for all communications that is distinctive and brings life to the brand. Create a distinctive language style and vocabulary that enhances and distinguishes all forms of communications – corporate, marketing, internal and investor. Consistency of newly branded communications is critical right from the start, to ensure that key messages create the same impression and tell the same story, regardless of the media employed. The task is to create the same perception of the organisation with all of audiences.
Essentially requirements are to create a distinctive, recognisable and consistently applied visual style supported by a unique brand language and a written style. Ensure the communications style can adapt to various audiences.
Express the brand
First impressions are important. Lasting ones even more so. To attract attention and influence its audiences a brand must look good, be differentiated from others and be consistently applied – from business cards, brochures, packaging, vehicle livery, recruitment advertising to your website. And everything in between. Remember however that brand applications are not all visual. If you own a health spa network for example, you want customers to be greeted by a distinctive fragrance, one they will savour and one they will remember regardless of location. Remember that people are affected not only by what they see, what they read, what they hear, what they smell, but also by what they touch. This is multi-sensory branding that takes into account all the senses.
Essential considerations are that first impressions count, consistency is important and you must appeal to more than just what people see and read
Measure and monitor your brand’s performance
Most things in life need ongoing care and attention. A new brand is no exception. Its performance must be regularly monitored and assessed against predetermined performance criteria. Once launched it needs ongoing attention, direction and refinement. You need to ensure it is performing and that you are receiving a return on your investment. Without measurement there is no accountability, and without accountability, brands, products, processes and people cannot be improved. Key aspects of the brand that need to be measure are the level of understanding and appreciation by your employees, how and to what extent it is influencing your audiences and its Influence on sales performance. And much more.
Essential considerations are that brands need constant refinement and that without measurement they are unlikely to improve.
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
Friday, April 18, 2008
What's in a Name?
Where brands are concerned, the brand name is the single most important identifier. It is intimately linked with the company’s operations and, as business perceptions are built around it, it comes to embody many emotional aspects as well.
An organisation or product name fulfils a number of functions:
> identifies the organisation or product
> distinguishes it from its competitors
> positions the organisation or product in relation to others
> provides a ready means of identification
> provides a visible, coherent recognisable identity to which employees, customers and investors can relate
> suggests quality, authority and integrity
> functions as a legal property
> communicates the company’s philosophies, personality, culture and products
The selection of a new name, or revision of an existing one, needs to be rigorously challenged to determine its effectiveness and relevance to the company’s activities and target market.
A name must be:
> appealing to customers
> appropriate to the company’s products and services
> memorable
> distinctive
> pronounceable
> legally protectable
There are seven categories of names:
> descriptive
> people & places
> associative
> non-related
> coined/abstract
> abbreviated
> alpha/numeric
Brand names are often accompanied by a positioning statement.
The positioning statement delivers a quick, concise and meaningful message to a potential consumer which complements the brand name and visual identity and helps consumers to understand the personality of the brand. Positioning statements are generally drawn from one of five categories:
> what you are
> what you do
> how you do it
> who you are
> why you do it
There are 5 basic phases in developing a name:
1. Conduct a communications audit of the company’s overall business, branding and communications objectives.
2. Develop a full naming brief.
3. Explore directions and themes and undertake initial name generation.
4. Short-listing, legal searches, and detailed testing of preferred names including multi-language applications, if applicable.
5. Legal registration of the selected name.
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
An organisation or product name fulfils a number of functions:
> identifies the organisation or product
> distinguishes it from its competitors
> positions the organisation or product in relation to others
> provides a ready means of identification
> provides a visible, coherent recognisable identity to which employees, customers and investors can relate
> suggests quality, authority and integrity
> functions as a legal property
> communicates the company’s philosophies, personality, culture and products
The selection of a new name, or revision of an existing one, needs to be rigorously challenged to determine its effectiveness and relevance to the company’s activities and target market.
A name must be:
> appealing to customers
> appropriate to the company’s products and services
> memorable
> distinctive
> pronounceable
> legally protectable
There are seven categories of names:
> descriptive
> people & places
> associative
> non-related
> coined/abstract
> abbreviated
> alpha/numeric
Brand names are often accompanied by a positioning statement.
The positioning statement delivers a quick, concise and meaningful message to a potential consumer which complements the brand name and visual identity and helps consumers to understand the personality of the brand. Positioning statements are generally drawn from one of five categories:
> what you are
> what you do
> how you do it
> who you are
> why you do it
There are 5 basic phases in developing a name:
1. Conduct a communications audit of the company’s overall business, branding and communications objectives.
2. Develop a full naming brief.
3. Explore directions and themes and undertake initial name generation.
4. Short-listing, legal searches, and detailed testing of preferred names including multi-language applications, if applicable.
5. Legal registration of the selected name.
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
View some of Heywood’s work on www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
Monday, April 14, 2008
More than just a Logo
Integral to a company’s brand are its logo and corporate identity. But a brand is far more than just that.
A brand is the articulation of a company’s promise. It represents the sum of the associations, beliefs and experiences that a person holds in their mind about an organisation, product or service.
The brand image is determined by what people perceive, based on experience of the company’s activities, products, personnel and environment. It is affected by advertising, product quality, media, word of mouth and direct contact with the organisation.
“A brand is about heart, values, vision and mission. It is expressed by every person in the organisation and in every dealing employees, clients, customers, suppliers and others have with the organisation.”
Branding is not a new concept, however the process of growing, managing and exploiting a brand for commercial success is something which is still not well understood by many companies.
Today, a strong brand strategy and execution are recognised tools of business planning and are integral to successful marketing.
The power of a brand lies in its ability to influence purchasing behaviour. We live in a consumer-driven society where consumers find themselves having to choose between products and services that, in many cases, actually differ very little in terms of what they offer and how they are priced. Brands help make consumer’s choices easier. Consumers are increasingly choosing to buy from companies whose values are most consistent with their own. It is a known fact that people will pay a premium for a brand they relate to.
Effective branding pre-sells your product or service
“Marketing is branding. The essence of the marketing process is building brands in the minds of consumers.”
Branding must do more than identify. In an increasingly competitive marketplace it is essential to have a unique and distinctive brand to maximise communication and sales potential. The brand must strategically position and communicate your corporate purpose to distinguish your business, products or services in a market inundated by inappropriate, predictable, impersonal and poorly designed brands.
In recent years brands have become a key element of companies’ valuations with brand-related intangible assets accounting for up to 60% of a company’s value.
There are many reasons for an organisation to develop a new brand or re-develop an existing one. Several of the main influencers are:
Business has changed
> Technology changes
> Emerging trends
> New competitors
> New markets
> New legislation
> Change in business practice
The organisation has changed
> New leader
> New vision
> New corporate goals
> Restructuring
> Merger or takeover
A desire to change
> New business launch
> Move into new area of business
> Privatisation or deregulation
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
tony@heywood.com.au
www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
A brand is the articulation of a company’s promise. It represents the sum of the associations, beliefs and experiences that a person holds in their mind about an organisation, product or service.
The brand image is determined by what people perceive, based on experience of the company’s activities, products, personnel and environment. It is affected by advertising, product quality, media, word of mouth and direct contact with the organisation.
“A brand is about heart, values, vision and mission. It is expressed by every person in the organisation and in every dealing employees, clients, customers, suppliers and others have with the organisation.”
Branding is not a new concept, however the process of growing, managing and exploiting a brand for commercial success is something which is still not well understood by many companies.
Today, a strong brand strategy and execution are recognised tools of business planning and are integral to successful marketing.
The power of a brand lies in its ability to influence purchasing behaviour. We live in a consumer-driven society where consumers find themselves having to choose between products and services that, in many cases, actually differ very little in terms of what they offer and how they are priced. Brands help make consumer’s choices easier. Consumers are increasingly choosing to buy from companies whose values are most consistent with their own. It is a known fact that people will pay a premium for a brand they relate to.
Effective branding pre-sells your product or service
“Marketing is branding. The essence of the marketing process is building brands in the minds of consumers.”
Branding must do more than identify. In an increasingly competitive marketplace it is essential to have a unique and distinctive brand to maximise communication and sales potential. The brand must strategically position and communicate your corporate purpose to distinguish your business, products or services in a market inundated by inappropriate, predictable, impersonal and poorly designed brands.
In recent years brands have become a key element of companies’ valuations with brand-related intangible assets accounting for up to 60% of a company’s value.
There are many reasons for an organisation to develop a new brand or re-develop an existing one. Several of the main influencers are:
Business has changed
> Technology changes
> Emerging trends
> New competitors
> New markets
> New legislation
> Change in business practice
The organisation has changed
> New leader
> New vision
> New corporate goals
> Restructuring
> Merger or takeover
A desire to change
> New business launch
> Move into new area of business
> Privatisation or deregulation
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
tony@heywood.com.au
www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
Friday, April 04, 2008
Taking Brands into New Markets
Despite the spectre of recession rearing its ugly head in the US and beyond, this is unliklely to deter a huge number of companies around the world forging ahead with expansion plans into new markets. To boldly go where untold wealth and success is in the offering.
So what are the likely scenarios driving the desire to venture further afield?
Opening up a new office in another part of your country or further afield? Made the decision to take your products overseas? Increasing competition in your home market making it necessary to establish a presence further afield? Export agency telling you it’s the right time and the right place? Appointing new overseas representatives to open up new markets? New joint venture looking attractive?
All of a sudden your company is faced with new challenges and new opportunities. New business culture. New people culture. New sales techniques. New documentation. New language considerations. Local staff to recruit. New packaging laws. New trademark considerations. More accountants’ and lawyers’ fees. All very challenging but nothing you can’t cope with, providing you have the necessary resources at hand.
But how will your brand cope with this? Unfortunately all too many companies get caught up with the excitement, allocate a team to move the opportunity forward and pay scant regard to the ability of their brand to go the distance and meet the new challenges.
Ask yourself these questions
Is there a similar name to yours already operating in the new market? Will your name be understood? There are many unfortunate examples of names that didn’t translate too well outside their home market. Several Japanese car manufacturers in previous years didn’t do their homework on overseas market consumer tastes when introducing new models such as Town Cube, Bongo Friendee and Cedric.
How will new consumers perceive your brand? Your way of doing things? The colour of your logo? The business etiquette of your executives? The imagery on your packaging? The faces you feature in your advertising? The content of your website? It took you many years of careful trial and error to establish your brand in its home market – what makes you think it’s going to be an overnight success in new ones?
The further the distance your brand travels, the more consideration and flexibility it must have to adapt and succeed in new environments.
Most brands start small, driven by visionary entrepreneurs seeking to make their presence known in local markets. Once this is achieved, new plans for growth and diversity begin to influence the need for brand change. However, what made your brand a success in your first location may not necessarily guarantee a duplication of success in a second. Perhaps the innovation that made your brand a household name locally is now faced with equally innovative competition in the new markets. Perhaps you now need more than innovation to capture the minds and hearts of new consumers?
Too many emerging companies have been seduced by the view that ‘what works in one country will work in another’. I see too many cases of inflated advertising and marketing budgets cranking out new collateral in an attempt to force headway into the market when the brand is just not appropriate for that market. This is not the way to achieve results from your brand.
Venturing into new locations and new markets is high risk. Considerable investment in time, money and effort is at stake. You have the finance organised. Your sales team are primed with market intelligence. A road show has been organised. Meetings with distributors have been arranged. A new office has been secured. Stock control and product distribution has been arranged. An advertising agency has been commissioned. Additional back office processing is in place.
But has the brand been reviewed? Why take the risk that it will not support your new objectives?
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
tony@heywood.com.au
www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
So what are the likely scenarios driving the desire to venture further afield?
Opening up a new office in another part of your country or further afield? Made the decision to take your products overseas? Increasing competition in your home market making it necessary to establish a presence further afield? Export agency telling you it’s the right time and the right place? Appointing new overseas representatives to open up new markets? New joint venture looking attractive?
All of a sudden your company is faced with new challenges and new opportunities. New business culture. New people culture. New sales techniques. New documentation. New language considerations. Local staff to recruit. New packaging laws. New trademark considerations. More accountants’ and lawyers’ fees. All very challenging but nothing you can’t cope with, providing you have the necessary resources at hand.
But how will your brand cope with this? Unfortunately all too many companies get caught up with the excitement, allocate a team to move the opportunity forward and pay scant regard to the ability of their brand to go the distance and meet the new challenges.
Ask yourself these questions
Is there a similar name to yours already operating in the new market? Will your name be understood? There are many unfortunate examples of names that didn’t translate too well outside their home market. Several Japanese car manufacturers in previous years didn’t do their homework on overseas market consumer tastes when introducing new models such as Town Cube, Bongo Friendee and Cedric.
How will new consumers perceive your brand? Your way of doing things? The colour of your logo? The business etiquette of your executives? The imagery on your packaging? The faces you feature in your advertising? The content of your website? It took you many years of careful trial and error to establish your brand in its home market – what makes you think it’s going to be an overnight success in new ones?
The further the distance your brand travels, the more consideration and flexibility it must have to adapt and succeed in new environments.
Most brands start small, driven by visionary entrepreneurs seeking to make their presence known in local markets. Once this is achieved, new plans for growth and diversity begin to influence the need for brand change. However, what made your brand a success in your first location may not necessarily guarantee a duplication of success in a second. Perhaps the innovation that made your brand a household name locally is now faced with equally innovative competition in the new markets. Perhaps you now need more than innovation to capture the minds and hearts of new consumers?
Too many emerging companies have been seduced by the view that ‘what works in one country will work in another’. I see too many cases of inflated advertising and marketing budgets cranking out new collateral in an attempt to force headway into the market when the brand is just not appropriate for that market. This is not the way to achieve results from your brand.
Venturing into new locations and new markets is high risk. Considerable investment in time, money and effort is at stake. You have the finance organised. Your sales team are primed with market intelligence. A road show has been organised. Meetings with distributors have been arranged. A new office has been secured. Stock control and product distribution has been arranged. An advertising agency has been commissioned. Additional back office processing is in place.
But has the brand been reviewed? Why take the risk that it will not support your new objectives?
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
tony@heywood.com.au
www.heywood.com.au
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Thursday, March 27, 2008
Brand Blunders
Having conducted many brand naming assignments over the years I understand the need to thoroughly research names and their intended application, particularly if they are to represent a company or its products and services beyond the market from which they originated. Here the name is at the mercy of different languages, customs, behaviours, superstitions and folklore. Sometimes it's just the absence of common sense. Sometimes it's a calculated gamble by the company to avoid paying what can be significant fees for naming and language research and trademark checks. It's one thing to avoid infringing someone else's copyright, it's another to prevent you and your products being ridiculed.
See what you think...
Listed below are selected brand-related blunders sourced from various websites...
The name Coca-Cola rendered phonetically in Chinese can sound like the words for 'bite the wax tadpole' or 'female horse stuffed with wax'.
Electrolux managed to successfully sell its vacuum cleaners in the UK with the advertising slogan 'Nothing sucks like an Electrolux'!
'Come alive with the Pepsi Generation' in Taiwan loosely translates as 'Pepsi brings your ancestors back from the grave'.
Car manufacturers seem to feature prominently in the blunder stakes...
Why did Honda name their small car Jazz? In Asian markets it was known as Fit which they were to release as the Fitta in European markets. Sadly 'fitta' is a crude reference to female genitalia in Swedish and Norwegian.
The Chevrolet Nova wouldn't sell too well in Latin America, probably because its name 'no va' in Spanish means 'won't go'. It was also alleged that the Ford Pinto in Brazil was soon renamed Corcel when it was discovered that 'pinto' translates as 'tiny male genitals'.
Daihatsu named one of their less successful models Town Cube,
Mazda Bongo Friendee Auto Free Top didn't make very many friends.
Honda has a StepWGN and a Comfortable Runabout Vehicle.
Isuzu Bighorn was rather suggestive.
The Rolls Royce Silver Shadow was almost named Silver Mist, which translates as 'organic fertiliser' in German.
And the car that has now achieved icon status in Australia, the Nissan Cedric (not far behind the Leyland P76).
Daihatsu's Opti Aerodown Beex was quite a mouthful.
But the award goes to... the Subaru Sambar Dias II Picnic-Car Astonish.
US brewer Coors lost out in Spain where its 'Turn it Loose' campaign came out as 'get diarrhea'.
There is a drink called SARS sold in New Zealand.
In Poland Osram translates as 'I'll shit (on something)'.
A Japanese top guitar band was named Thee Michelle Gun Elephant.
Standard Oil Company renamed itself Esso in the US and Enco everywhere else in the world, until its Japanese colleagues confided that 'enco' translates as 'stalled car'.
There is a chocolate bar in Germany called 'Zit'.
People of Spanish origin in Australia are quite amused by the Mitsubishi Pajero which translates as a vulgar term for a masturbating man.
On packaging for a Rowenta iron - 'Do not iron clothes on body'.
In Spanish speaking markets Parker Pen intended to use the slogan 'it won't stain your pocket and embarrass you'. This was translated as 'it won't stain your pocket and get you pregnant'.
Jolly Green Giant in Arabic means 'intimidating green ogre'.
The name Gerber, of baby food fame, means 'to vomit' in French.
There is a brand of cigarettes in Malawi called 'Life'.
A French soft drink is called Sic.
There is a Japanese sports drink called Pokari Sweat.
The US appetite-suppressant candy in the 70s/80s called Ayds.
A children's cough medicine from Boots had on its label 'Do not drive a car or operate machinery'.
In China the old Kentucky Fried Chicken slogan 'finger licking good' translates as 'eat your fingers off'.
Puffs tissues from the USA tried to sell its product in Germany only to be told that its name translates as whorehouse.
Schweppes Tonic water in Italy got translated as Schweppes Toilet Water.
When Sharwoods launched its cooking sauce brand 'Bundh' it didn't realise that 'bundh' in Punjabi has the English meaning 'arse'.
A famous drug company marketed a new remedy in the United Arab Emirates. To avoid any mistakes they used pictures. The first picture was of someone not looking too well, the next picture showed the person taking the medication and the last picture showed them looking well. Oh dear, what they forgot is that people in that part of the world read from right to left!
Bacardi concocted a fruity drink with the name 'Pavian' to suggest French chic ... but 'Pavian' means 'baboon' in German.
I guess this all points to having the good sense to thoroughly research industries, markets, countries, cultures and languages and to choose your naming consultants well. They have a big job to do. And it isn't getting any easier out there.
Happy naming.
Tony Heywood
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
tony@heywood.com.au
www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
See what you think...
Listed below are selected brand-related blunders sourced from various websites...
The name Coca-Cola rendered phonetically in Chinese can sound like the words for 'bite the wax tadpole' or 'female horse stuffed with wax'.
Electrolux managed to successfully sell its vacuum cleaners in the UK with the advertising slogan 'Nothing sucks like an Electrolux'!
'Come alive with the Pepsi Generation' in Taiwan loosely translates as 'Pepsi brings your ancestors back from the grave'.
Car manufacturers seem to feature prominently in the blunder stakes...
Why did Honda name their small car Jazz? In Asian markets it was known as Fit which they were to release as the Fitta in European markets. Sadly 'fitta' is a crude reference to female genitalia in Swedish and Norwegian.
The Chevrolet Nova wouldn't sell too well in Latin America, probably because its name 'no va' in Spanish means 'won't go'. It was also alleged that the Ford Pinto in Brazil was soon renamed Corcel when it was discovered that 'pinto' translates as 'tiny male genitals'.
Daihatsu named one of their less successful models Town Cube,
Mazda Bongo Friendee Auto Free Top didn't make very many friends.
Honda has a StepWGN and a Comfortable Runabout Vehicle.
Isuzu Bighorn was rather suggestive.
The Rolls Royce Silver Shadow was almost named Silver Mist, which translates as 'organic fertiliser' in German.
And the car that has now achieved icon status in Australia, the Nissan Cedric (not far behind the Leyland P76).
Daihatsu's Opti Aerodown Beex was quite a mouthful.
But the award goes to... the Subaru Sambar Dias II Picnic-Car Astonish.
US brewer Coors lost out in Spain where its 'Turn it Loose' campaign came out as 'get diarrhea'.
There is a drink called SARS sold in New Zealand.
In Poland Osram translates as 'I'll shit (on something)'.
A Japanese top guitar band was named Thee Michelle Gun Elephant.
Standard Oil Company renamed itself Esso in the US and Enco everywhere else in the world, until its Japanese colleagues confided that 'enco' translates as 'stalled car'.
There is a chocolate bar in Germany called 'Zit'.
People of Spanish origin in Australia are quite amused by the Mitsubishi Pajero which translates as a vulgar term for a masturbating man.
On packaging for a Rowenta iron - 'Do not iron clothes on body'.
In Spanish speaking markets Parker Pen intended to use the slogan 'it won't stain your pocket and embarrass you'. This was translated as 'it won't stain your pocket and get you pregnant'.
Jolly Green Giant in Arabic means 'intimidating green ogre'.
The name Gerber, of baby food fame, means 'to vomit' in French.
There is a brand of cigarettes in Malawi called 'Life'.
A French soft drink is called Sic.
There is a Japanese sports drink called Pokari Sweat.
The US appetite-suppressant candy in the 70s/80s called Ayds.
A children's cough medicine from Boots had on its label 'Do not drive a car or operate machinery'.
In China the old Kentucky Fried Chicken slogan 'finger licking good' translates as 'eat your fingers off'.
Puffs tissues from the USA tried to sell its product in Germany only to be told that its name translates as whorehouse.
Schweppes Tonic water in Italy got translated as Schweppes Toilet Water.
When Sharwoods launched its cooking sauce brand 'Bundh' it didn't realise that 'bundh' in Punjabi has the English meaning 'arse'.
A famous drug company marketed a new remedy in the United Arab Emirates. To avoid any mistakes they used pictures. The first picture was of someone not looking too well, the next picture showed the person taking the medication and the last picture showed them looking well. Oh dear, what they forgot is that people in that part of the world read from right to left!
Bacardi concocted a fruity drink with the name 'Pavian' to suggest French chic ... but 'Pavian' means 'baboon' in German.
I guess this all points to having the good sense to thoroughly research industries, markets, countries, cultures and languages and to choose your naming consultants well. They have a big job to do. And it isn't getting any easier out there.
Happy naming.
Tony Heywood
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
tony@heywood.com.au
www.heywood.com.au
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Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Photos are a Brand's Best Friend
Copy writers will have a fit. They'll choke on their toast and marmalade, spit chips, fall off the bus and miss their deadline. They won't like it but I'm going to say it anyway. In the 1 to 3 seconds a designer has available to capture the attention of a magazine reader, direct mail recipient or TV addict, a picture can create an impression on that person far faster and more comprehensively than words can. Extend that to 10 seconds and I may have to pay up on the $10 bet. Get the designer and copy writer to work together to combine a great photo with a great headline and you're on the road to success.
Let's talk about photographs. As far as photo libraries are concerned, the photos they offer tend to fall into two categories – predictable and inspired, mostly because they have to cater for a wide range of tastes and applications. Slowly but surely the typical 'americanised' shots from the big agencies are becoming more universal in their appeal. Photo libraries are big business. The impending sale price of Getty is rumoured to be $1.5 billion. Photo libraries got wise in the '90s to the fact that talented photographers see the opportunity to shoot for a photo library to be far easier and more secure financially than the heart breaking routine of touting portfolios around creative agencies hoping for the big shoot to appear.
When we talk about branding we're essentially talking about the ability to create an impression OR put another way, the ability to create within a person a positive perception of a product, service, individual or organisation. Photography plays a key role in achieving this. Branding is also about differentiation. Being able to make something or someone stand out in the crowd. Giving them an unfair advantage over competitors. To achieve this you have to appeal to one or more of the five senses - sight, hearing, smell, touch and taste. Although there are several creative agencies out there extolling the virtues of experiential branding and brand theatre, the two senses that brand communicators rely on are sight and hearing. Take websites for example. we look at them and read them, therefore graphics and words are vital. We also listen to them when audio files are played. Therefore the human voice and music can command our attention and influence our understanding and appreciation.
The visual sense is the most important. Static images, moving images and words. As far as moving images are concerned, broadband and the rise of sites like YouTube have revolutionised the way video is regarded and consumed online. Quality is an issue and will be until ultra high speed web access is achieved.
Photography is used quite differently. And here is where video directors will hate me, but I'm going to say it anyway. Video does not rely on getting every second's worth of tape perfect. Photographers however strive to get every single image as perfect as possible. Content, composition, lighting, colour balance, visual effects obtained later in Photoshop and more. Photography today integrates creative talent with technical mastery. Canon's latest top end professional SLR boasting 21.1 megapixels is not for the faint hearted.
So where's all this leading? As part of the brand development process, your brand consultant/designer will consider the creation of a portfolio of images in a recognisable and consistent style that you can 'own' as a key component of brand expression. When these photos are regularly featured in communications and marketing materials, audiences will begin to recognise their style and increasingly associate them with your brand.
Sporting goods manufacturers, automobile manufacturers and fashion houses for example devote huge attention to detail when commissioning photographs which exude the absolute essence of the sporting lifestyle, the SUV pounding across the desert or the stylish black suit on the catwalk model. As far as branding goes, we're not talking about the content so much as the recognisable style of the photo. If the name was covered up would you still recognise it as Nike, Toyota and Boss?
It is important therefore that you identify the brand values that the photos must project before the designer or art director embarks on a photo library search or prepares a brief for a photographer. Failure to do so will devalue your brand and make life difficult for your copy writer. And we don't want that now do we?
Photographing people is especially difficult, demanding a fine balance between creative talent, people skills and technical mastery. Few photographers have this balance. Check out Paul Simcock at www.paulsimcock.com – one of San Francisco's finest when it comes to delivering on tough brand building assignments. We show some of his fine photos here on this post.
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
tony@heywood.com.au
www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
Let's talk about photographs. As far as photo libraries are concerned, the photos they offer tend to fall into two categories – predictable and inspired, mostly because they have to cater for a wide range of tastes and applications. Slowly but surely the typical 'americanised' shots from the big agencies are becoming more universal in their appeal. Photo libraries are big business. The impending sale price of Getty is rumoured to be $1.5 billion. Photo libraries got wise in the '90s to the fact that talented photographers see the opportunity to shoot for a photo library to be far easier and more secure financially than the heart breaking routine of touting portfolios around creative agencies hoping for the big shoot to appear.
When we talk about branding we're essentially talking about the ability to create an impression OR put another way, the ability to create within a person a positive perception of a product, service, individual or organisation. Photography plays a key role in achieving this. Branding is also about differentiation. Being able to make something or someone stand out in the crowd. Giving them an unfair advantage over competitors. To achieve this you have to appeal to one or more of the five senses - sight, hearing, smell, touch and taste. Although there are several creative agencies out there extolling the virtues of experiential branding and brand theatre, the two senses that brand communicators rely on are sight and hearing. Take websites for example. we look at them and read them, therefore graphics and words are vital. We also listen to them when audio files are played. Therefore the human voice and music can command our attention and influence our understanding and appreciation.
The visual sense is the most important. Static images, moving images and words. As far as moving images are concerned, broadband and the rise of sites like YouTube have revolutionised the way video is regarded and consumed online. Quality is an issue and will be until ultra high speed web access is achieved.
Photography is used quite differently. And here is where video directors will hate me, but I'm going to say it anyway. Video does not rely on getting every second's worth of tape perfect. Photographers however strive to get every single image as perfect as possible. Content, composition, lighting, colour balance, visual effects obtained later in Photoshop and more. Photography today integrates creative talent with technical mastery. Canon's latest top end professional SLR boasting 21.1 megapixels is not for the faint hearted.
So where's all this leading? As part of the brand development process, your brand consultant/designer will consider the creation of a portfolio of images in a recognisable and consistent style that you can 'own' as a key component of brand expression. When these photos are regularly featured in communications and marketing materials, audiences will begin to recognise their style and increasingly associate them with your brand.
Sporting goods manufacturers, automobile manufacturers and fashion houses for example devote huge attention to detail when commissioning photographs which exude the absolute essence of the sporting lifestyle, the SUV pounding across the desert or the stylish black suit on the catwalk model. As far as branding goes, we're not talking about the content so much as the recognisable style of the photo. If the name was covered up would you still recognise it as Nike, Toyota and Boss?
It is important therefore that you identify the brand values that the photos must project before the designer or art director embarks on a photo library search or prepares a brief for a photographer. Failure to do so will devalue your brand and make life difficult for your copy writer. And we don't want that now do we?
Photographing people is especially difficult, demanding a fine balance between creative talent, people skills and technical mastery. Few photographers have this balance. Check out Paul Simcock at www.paulsimcock.com – one of San Francisco's finest when it comes to delivering on tough brand building assignments. We show some of his fine photos here on this post.
Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
tony@heywood.com.au
www.heywood.com.au
Share on Facebook
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