One of the things brand strategists run up against from time to time is the issue of so-called “re-branding.” Most of the time what’s actually being requested is a brand makeover: a trim, a little freshening up, but nothing much more than a few cosmetic improvements. Every so often though, there’s a request for something [...]
I heard on the radio recently that the National Pork Board has implemented a five year strategic plan that among other things, calls for a new slogan. There’s going to be transitional advertising until March 2011 when the new brand materials will be unveiled. My initial reaction was, why? If there is anyone out there [...]
This past week, a few of us here in the copywriting bullpen got into a discussion on the state of advertising. It was Angela T., our social media “Buzz Builder” who started it, calling to our attention a set of banners on the Spirit Airlines website. The banners were attempting to find humor in the [...]
I love clean, uncluttered design and I make no excuses for that preference. If you are a lover of cramming everything onto the page that you think your audience might possibly, just may potentially want to see, then my personal style isn’t for you. When I interviewed at CM, the work in my portfolio reflected [...]
I think the main reason more companies don’t put a priority on brand building is because they see it as just another line item in a marketing budget: just another expenditure, one that won’t have any measurable impact on the bottom line. The reality is that brands are more than just the sum total of [...]
My favorite television show has come to an end. Yep, I’m a Lostie through and through. I’ve spent HOURS on Lostpedia and 4815162342, HOURS looking for Easter eggs, and HOURS debating theories. And while it’s likely that the debate over what this or that means will continue for, well, forever, one thing is clear: Target [...]
We ad people spend a lot of time thinking about audiences. Most of us, as we design our tactics, try to appeal to the broadest audiences we can. Lately though, I’ve been reminded that the extremely targeted tactic can be quite effective too. Case in point, two television ads I recently came across. The first, [...]
When most people think about branding, they think about it in terms of outside communications. But branding can be powerful internally too, as a communications tool, but also as an organizational tool. All of us know from working within our own organizations that even the best employees can lose focus, forgetting the ultimate purposes behind [...]
Earlier this month within the span of 24 hours, I heard two things that when taken together, create a snapshot of the changing behaviors in the way we search for information. First, I heard someone ask for a phone book so that she could look up a phone number. I remember thinking at the time, [...]
The bridge is out! I’m not normally a big fan of Bud ads, but the sight of a whole town of people forming a human bridge to see a semi of Bud safely across a river was pretty funny. I’m Mark Sanchez. Mark wants the women watching the Super Bowl to hear his heartbeat. What [...]
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