Recently I came across the latest development of the Saks Fifth Ave brand identity visual language, and it was a great reminder for all brands to actively review all touch points to maximize the leverage opportunities you have for your brand communications.
Sometimes, different is the Only Answer
In our lives as brand strategists and designers we spend alot of time and energy helping our clients gain clarity about what their brand proposition should be in the market and how it should look and behave from every perspective to establish the reputation and differentiation their businesses deserve. Occasionally we come across a situation that by necessity demands of us to think outside the box. Whether the project comes with some curly restrictions, an unusually small budget, or a strange but irresistible communication opportunity, it’s often those very demands that set us looking in new directions for answers to the project’s brand communication challenges.
A Cut-through Brand Experience
NGO Solidarités International and creative agency BDDP marked the occasion of World Water Day with this innovative ambient display in the heart of Paris. These Aquascript water messages, designed to build awareness about the dangers of unclean drinking water globally, turned heads for a week in the City of Light.
The Rising Tide of Brand Strategy Speak
It seems the brand and marketing industries are no more immune to the rising tide of ‘business speak’ than any other industry. Over the last year I’ve collected examples from around our brand agency and the web and researched the trends to bring you a list of my favorites. The good news is I think you’ll find them as imaginative and entertaining as they are informative.
The Power of Blank Canvases
Recently we wrote about the power of blank canvases to provide businesses of all sizes with a marketing advantage. We used the example of retailers, who religiously cover the windows of their newly-leased stores with newspaper rather than recognising the potential of that property as a powerful brand canvas.
On the weekend I passed a local retailer-to-be who had possibly read our article, but definitely seen the opportunity. I snapped a pic of their windows which show that whilst doing something is better than doing nothing with your marketing – sometimes it isn’t a whole lot better.
‘Who? What? Who?’ the windows shout out to the passing traffic. ‘Very good questions’ shout back the traffic to the vacant store, ‘but we were hoping you could tell us.’ Read the rest of this entry »
