We work across many industries, each with their own brand challenges, but it can also be interesting to look beyond the sector for a fresh perspective.
That’s why I was interested when I heard a successful restaurateur had some tasty tips for the real estate industry.
The Power of Storytelling and Imagination
As a brand designer working in Melbourne, I constantly search for inspiration, unique experiences and creativity that keeps my mind fresh and active. In a world where we are so used to our routines, financial concerns and limited daily time, I see it important for everyone to sit down and re-evaluate what they are really doing everyday. As we go about our busy days, with everything we have and everything we have to do, we are often blinded to the wonderful things around us.
A feel-good Burger Brand
South African fast food brand Wimpy Burgers have come-up with a promotional brand gesture that has both underscored their inclusive positioning and created a real buzz. The story goes that Wimpy wanted to let visually impaired people know they offered braille menus. So to spread the word they created braille burgers that blind people could actually read.
In 2011, Twitter’s influence in shaping brand reputations continued but most content was driven by the public. This year, Twitter’s new Facebook-style brand pages promise to provide more opportunities for brands to customise and highlight content.
This also creates opportunities for brands to take Twitter parties to whole new level as HP and Intel showed us this week.
We always say you either get branding or you don’t. There is no real middle ground. It was therefore a pleasure to visit our mate Lester Marshall from the Coffin Bay Oyster Farm just before Christmas. Lester farms oysters in Australia’s premium seafood area on the Eyre Peninsula. Internationally recognised for their quality, flavour and size, Coffin Bay is South Australia’s most famous oyster growing location. This is largely because the waterways surrounding Coffin Bay are constantly being nourished from the nutrient-rich seawater and up welling from the Southern Ocean. It is a remarkable area, amazing oysters and Lester is doing his best to tell the world about it.
The Pulling Power of Brand Rituals
To be successful, all brands must develop a culture that builds-upon their differentiated proposition with all they do each and every day. Brands able to create unique and engaging ‘rituals’ performed by their people create an indisputable brand property to leverage in the battle to win customers and their loyalty.
We Love Pop-Up Retail
There’s something about retail experiences popping-up in spaces that were previously public thoroughfares that creates an irresistible energy and attraction. The right offer, appearing magically in the path of the right consumer with the right brand proposition and brand identity creates a dissonance for consumers that is both compelling and inspiring. ‘Snackbox’, a shipping container turned modern canteen has recently popped-up in New York’s Times Square.
Masters of Stunning Retail Brand Design
As retail brands go, AESOP have built a formidable reputation on the back of their stunning store designs, and the latest installation on display within Hong Kong’s I.T Hysan One flagship store continues the theme.
A friend of mine was trying to purchase a new smart phone. With great anticipation of acquiring a new gadget (that he had to have), the experience soon soured as he became confused and then frustrated. Eventually, he just gave up and left without buying.
This made me think, instead of making the choice easier, are some brands actually over-complicating the buying experience and causing decision fatigue?
Check the ‘fanwagen T1′ and ‘fanwagen Beetle’
In a great piece of complimentary brand leverage, Volkswagen in the Netherlands have created an integrated marketing campaign by hooking up with the facebook brand. The fanwagens are one-off, facebook-themed vehicles produced by Volkswagen of the Netherlands. This great piece of brand communications was created as part of an integrated advertising campaign undertaken by Volkswagen in the Netherlands. More than 33,000 people got involved in the competition, voting online for which model they wished to be built, and entering to be the lucky winner of the final, limited edition fanwagen vehicle. (More detail and pics after the jump).
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