Branding and Brand Strategy for Growing Companies
Branding for Restless Companies and Driven Entrepreneurs
“My attitude is that if you push me towards something that you think is a weakness, then I will turn that perceived weakness into a strength.” Michael Jordan Athletes are survivors. They tend to be the fittest. But how do you speak to them? That was the challenge I was faced with…. This dictated the …
It’s called “Breathe.” A new short video by Gary Ravenscroft. Growing up in New York City (Brooklyn, then Queens, then Long Island and Finally Manhattan), there is one quality I associate with NYC: Resilience. That “we-won’t take-sh*t-from-anyone” attitude which is a great quality [for anyone who’s in your corner] to have). It was this quality …
Finally, a video (shown below) that answers that age-old question, “How is Design Like Underwear?” Good design and branding (as well as social media and user experiences) do their job best when they fulfill their roles without calling attention to themselves, just like good underwear. Not Too Tight. Not Too Loose. Answer these questions: Ever …
“Money goes in, but it never comes out….” That was uttered by Kevin “Mr. Wonderful” O’Leary from Shark Tank speaking about a pitch with brand failure written all over it. I’ve got to say when Mr. Wonderful is not slaying pitches with his “tough love” negotiation tactics, Kevin has some excellent one-liners. Is Your Brand …
“No matter what people tell you, words and ideas can change the world.” Robin Williams Robin Williams was a master of the spoken word, taking unlikely words/meanings/concepts and pairing them together to unleash new views and ideas to inspire and amuse us all. With his recent passing, I was, like many, shocked by his sudden …
Sir Richard Branson knows a thing or two about brand elevation and rising above the noise. In his own words, he wrote, “The key to generating loyalty and rising above the general noise seems to be all about creating an authentic voice.” Brand Elevation and Rising Above the Noise Nine strategic and tactical mistakes can …
When did Typography Get Sexy? Who would watch a paper-letter animation video about the history of fonts and typography? Well, over 840,000 people. Not only that, over 17,990 viewers “liked” it. It’s the product of a talented young designer from Canada named Ben Barrett-Forrest. The video is made up of: 291 Paper Letters 2,454 Photographs, …
“If you’re trying to persuade people to do something, or buy something, it seems to me you should use their language, the language they use every day, the language in which they think.” David Ogilvy, the Father of Advertising ___________________________________ This is the first of two articles on this brand.If you’re looking for the video …
The most effective brand differentiation examples share one pattern: they identified exactly what every competitor in their category was doing and owned the emotional territory nobody else had claimed. Botanical Bakery tripled sales two years in a row (a 900% increase in 24 months) by rejecting the “elegant and muted” shortbread category norm and going …
Improvised and sung from the heart, this video will change how you see the world and how it sees you. I’d seen one too many people I care about victimized by mind-numbing cliches, tired taglines and empty pitches. After all, how many had to be hurt before anyone did something? Too many. It Wasn’t the …
Steve Jobs said, “A small team of A+ players can run circles around a giant team of B and C players.” The same is true of ideas: “A few A+ ideas can run circles around a giant team of B and C ideas.” How many B and C ideas are promoted daily? Per one report, …
It’s been said, “There are four basic food groups: milk chocolate, dark chocolate, really dark chocolate, and chocolate truffles.” Gulping Down the Entire History of the World? New York Times’ bestselling author Sarah Vowell wrote, “Just the other day, I was in my neighborhood Starbucks, waiting for the post office to open. I was enjoying …
“In most people’s vocabularies, design means veneer. It’s interior decorating. It’s the fabric of the curtains and the sofa. But to me, nothing could be further from the meaning of design.” Steve Jobs This co-op is one of the largest consumer co-ops in the United States and based in Western Wisconsin. And the last thing …
It’s Apple’s annual World Wide Developers Conference. So when I heard a new language was being introduced, I had high hopes. I figured it was divine intervention. But those hopes were short-lived. It seems this year’s focus is on software, not hardware. Did This Apple Fall That Far from the Tree? Adam and Eve aside, …
Seth Godin on naming: “Innovation involves making something that hasn’t been made before, and one way to signal that you’re doing something new is to give it a new name. But often, the new name gets in the way of people experiencing what you have to offer.” The other night, a friend (a fellow music …
Dirty Harry didn’t build a “lucky brand.” Yet he instinctively gave us the most important question in branding. In one scene, Clint Eastwood’s iconic detective forces a split-second decision — not with a sales pitch, not with a tagline, but with a single question that cuts through everything: “Do I feel lucky?” That question has haunted …
“Our job is to wake up the consumers. If we become predictable, that’s not waking them up.” Phil Knight, Nike founder How much of an advantage would working at Nike give you in future endeavors? How much more insight to grow a brand? Or create the next great startup? Over a more-than-25 year career at …
Let me state this for the record: This selfie was not planned. Let me also state for the record: I do not smoke nor do I ride a motorbike. But I do do my own stunts. Comparing this to Ellen DeGeneres’ Oscar selfie (an inevitable comparison that many will make), my selfie has no Hollywood …
When they said, “See the guy in the back,” I wondered what the hell I had just gotten myself into…. A Little Coke Goes a Long Way Minding my own business, I was innocently walking down the street yesterday morning when I saw the above sign. I immediately popped out my iPhone and shot this …
At 1:59, Peggy Olson of Mad Men rewrote the game: “If you can’t tell the difference between which part’s the idea and which part’s the execution of the idea, you’re of no use to me.” While Mad Men, in its final season, is keeping fans on the edge of their seats, no character has seen …
Witness the emotional meltdown this guy experienced after witnessing this latest Slideshare presentation. The response on Slideshare and the Twitterverse to this newest post has been incredibly wild, going from “gross headline” to “best title of the year.” In just 24 hours, over 6,000 people gobbled up this newest presentation tweeting all variety of comments …
Some periods of life are better than others. As good as Hollywood makes teenage life look, those of us who survived it know that it’s hyped up much more than it actually is. So, in light of that, I created this new Slideshare presentation on branding from the viewpoint of someone who’s been there and …
Through bloodshot and bleary eyes, he muttered, “Whoa dude. This is g-o-o-d stuff…” I’ll explain. We’re Just a Rock ‘n Roll Brand Being a subscriber to Copyblogger, I look forward to the articles they publish which are often insightful and thought-provoking. I am (and have been) a fan of Demian Farnworth since before he became …
“My doctor told me I had to stop throwing intimate dinners for four unless there are three other people.” Orson Welles “Cookie cutters are for baking, not branding.” Yours truly Food’s About Passion. So is Branding. In the below video, I unveil how I took a small company in Napa Valley producing a “traditional product” …
The Oscars is a fascinating study in branding. It is highly viewed worldwide (somewhere between 42 million viewers and 1 billion viewers, depending on who you listen to). Highly criticized (put under the microscope like few annual TV events). And highly leveraged by brands everywhere (one report put the gift bag that each attendee receives …
