Blog

By Category


Swedish Bedding Brand Trumps US Election Ad Stakes.

Clever Brand Campaign Creative Cuts-through. Swedish mattress and bedding brand SOVA released a timely ad to leverage the currency of the US election. The very clever ad features a montage made from items of their bedding range that create a portrait of President Trump. Combining…

Read more »

KFC brand adjusts for Coronavirus

Time for a brand strategy re-calibration. If I read one more coronavirus article stating how we’re all going to need to adjust to the new normal I’ll punch myself in the face. But like it or loath it, for brands of every shape and size…

Read more »

Leading CMOs prioritise Brand Strategy in the pandemic

Recent survey finds that more than a third of marketers see brand strategy as most important amid uncertain times. The Annual CMO Spend Survey 2020-2021 research provides detailed insight into how top marketers are adjusting their budget and marketing investment plans due to Covid-19. Amongst…

Read more »

Branding Lost In Translation

IKEA prove that even the branding experts occasionally stuff-up. They say to err is human, and the branding folks at IKEA Bahrain have given us a refreshing reminder of how true that really is. IKEA as a global brand has a reputation for being well…

Read more »

Nike’s Bold Anti-Racism Stance Proves Problematic

A timely lesson for brands with a social conscience. Global sportswear brand, Nike recently took a public stance to condemn racism, seeking to tap into the social tinderbox inflaming North America and spreading around the world. Adapting their iconic tagline, Nike created a campaign around;…

Read more »

ESPN Jordan Ad reminds us of the power of lateral thinking.

When was the last time your brand thinking came from left field? The say; ‘Necessity is the mother of all invention’, and for many brands things have never been more ‘necessary’ than they are now. Budgets are tight, consumer behavior is shifting, the world is…

Read more »

Heinz Ketchup Puzzle – brilliant brand relevance

Branding Inspiration from Big Red. As so many people around the world become stir-crazy from self isolation, Heinz has come-up with with an inspired brand gesture. The Heinz Ketchup Puzzle has 570 pieces, each the exact same colour of Heinz’s tomato sauce. Heinz is giving…

Read more »

A Brand Chat with Geoff Quinlan, Racing Queensland CCO.

Geoff Quinlan in previous roles as Tournament Director, Brisbane International 2017 with Sieger Grigor Dimitrov and Finalist Kei Nishikori – Pat Rafter Arena – Brisbane – QLD – Australia – 8 January 2017. © Juergen Hasenkopf The one thing I’ve learned about branding is… be…

Read more »

The 6 steps to managing your brand through coronavirus-19.

Now is not the time for your brand to batten down the hatches. For any brand born since the Great Depression, the current global pandemic is creating an environment of challenges and chaos never seen before. The extent, speed and impact of these changes have…

Read more »

The Future of Retail Branding for 2020 & Beyond

The changing face of consumer behavior raises a red flag for retail brands. When I think back even just a decade ago, the demands of retail customers were not so different from the decades before. Essentially most retailers could add a functional web site and…

Read more »

Doritos ‘No Logo’ ad misses the point.

Doritos Clever Thinking Only Outsmarts Themselves. Doritos is set to launch an ‘anti-ad’ campaign to appeal to Gen Z, who is research tells us are averse to traditional advertising tactics. The snack food brand plans to ditch its logo, replacing it with a recognizable triangle…

Read more »

Why heuristic bias is bad for your brand

A highbrow challenge for brands of every description. As defined by Wikipedia; A heuristic technique is any approach to problem solving or self-discovery that employs a practical method, not guaranteed to be optimal, perfect, or rational, but instead sufficient for reaching an immediate goal. When…

Read more »

French’s Mustard reminds us of the power of crazy.

When it comes to branding, standing out is tougher than it ever has been. Compared to a decade ago, there are many more brands doing more things to differentiate and stand out in the market. The challenge for brand managers, owners and marketers is to…

Read more »

Reinventing the wheel – A brilliant brand strategy

The new product innovation set to disrupt the passenger tire category. We much more often hear from clients; “We’re not reinventing the wheel here”. We hear it so often it’s almost become a default starting point for approaching branding projects; ‘How do we get growth…

Read more »

Microcations – the latest trend hitting the travel category.

The Microcation is officially a trend Being driven predominantly by millennials, the microcation is a short getaway that is gaining popularity fast. Research from the U.S. (The 2019 Vacation Confidence Index* released by Allianz Global Assistance) has shown that 72% of millennials, 69% of Gen…

Read more »

Convenience stores; The hidden fast food player.

Consumer trend breathes new life into the Servo pie. Anyone who owns or manages a cafe, restaurant or fast food business knows how tough the market is. Over the last decade the way people eat has changed dramatically with out of home eating (including delivery)…

Read more »

Say ‘hi’ to our catalogue design for Cammino.

Our first catalogue design for Cammino marries product with brand story telling. Cammino is a local footwear brand who marries Italian artisan shoe making with contemporary design to create their signature ballet flats. Camminos are an everyday luxury for tired feet, to suit every mood,…

Read more »

The Impossible Whopper – A brave new fast food frontier.

One small bite for man but one big bite for meat free mankind. Recently Burger King and Impossible foods announce the launch of the Impossible Whopper – a meat free twin to the global burger brand’s hero product. For those who’ve been watching the meat…

Read more »

A Guide to marketing to Gen Z

For as long as I’ve been working in branding, I can’t remember a target audience our clients felt they knew as little about as Gen Z. To be fair, part of this confusion comes from a lack of clarity around the age bracket Gen Z…

Read more »

A Passionate & Unapologetic Defense of Brand Marketing for B2B Growth

A strong case for the growth power of B2B brand marketing. Over the summer break I caught up on some reading (the best part of six months worth of recommended articles sitting in my email Inbox). One of those articles was sent to me by…

Read more »

Holiday SEO Infographic

Check out if you’re naughty or nice this silly season Our friends at Milkwhale have put together a neat little checklist for your SEO over the Christmas break. Designed for the northern hemisphere, we’re sweating it out down under rather than bunkering down to avoid…

Read more »

Adidas inspired by London Underground design

You can now wear the iconic London Tube symbol on your shoes thanks to a new collaboration between Transport for London (TfL) and adidas: adidas x TfL Inspired by the design of the London Underground, there are now limited edition adidas trainers dedicated to each…

Read more »

Carnaby Street Rhapsody

  Although it’s still only October, Carnaby Street, located in the heart of London, has already unveiled its 2018 festive light display, with another amazing and creative design. It is always exciting to see what fashionable Carnaby Street will do. The theme tends to be …

Read more »

Good brand advice is not expensive if you can recognize its value.

The Value of Good Advice. Recently I re-read Confessions of the Pricing Man by Hermann Simon, arguably the best book ever written on the subject of pricing. I’ve always seen the subject of pricing as directly connected to branding. As Simon says: “People have asked…

Read more »

Infographic: What you need to know about SEO in 2018

Key insights to help you with your SEO strategy. The rules for SEO are constantly changing. Thanks to our friends at seotribunal.com this handy infographic will help you stay abreast of some of the most important facts about SEO. Key insights from the infographic; Google…

Read more »

Only 1 in 5 marketers see brand as their most important objective

Study suggests most Australian businesses are not recognising the value of brand. A new Deloitte study of 300 marketing professionals found that most believe that digital and social media are the best channels for building a brand. This is despite strong evidence that shows brands…

Read more »

Sberbank’s Neighbourhood Campaign – A clever piece of bank branding

 Building a commercial banking brand connected to community value The best brand campaigns are those that connect a product or service with a need (conscious or unconscious) in a way that paints a vivid picture of a mutually beneficial outcome. In the case of this…

Read more »

Short film; a brilliant brand storytelling asset

The Power of Brand Storytelling on Film. Goodwin & Goodwin are a creative sign company based in North London. They recently worked with film makers; Reuben Armstrong and Jamie Neale to create a short promotional film about their business. In this short film we get…

Read more »

Infographic: 55 website marketing insights for small businesses

Valuable intel for every small business owner If you’re a small business owner, our friends at Milkwhale have compiled a nifty infographic that tells you all you need to know about websites. Beyond some of the basic stats, why SEO is important for small businesses…

Read more »

A legal imperative to rebrand and differentiate

It’s been a busy month for new business in Truly Deeply, which we’re all loving. Lots of new clients, new projects and interesting branding challenges for us to tackle. But one new business meeting in particular stands out at the moment, not because the size…

Read more »

Skol and the art of brand reputation recovery.

When Brands get it Wrong. It never ceases to amaze me the way in which brand-consumer relationships continue to play-out in the same way as regular human relationships. This is no-where more apparent than when brands get it wrong. And there’s no doubt brands do…

Read more »

Level Crossings: The Easter Strategy

You might be wondering why I have chosen to write this blog, on Easter Monday of all days, about level crossings. Bear with me, there’s a point, I promise. As you can imagine the removal of level crossings is a big operation. I may be…

Read more »

Is the Old-Fashioned Flyer Doing a Steven Bradbury?

Today’s post is an article written by Brandhook, good friends of ours and the sharpest brand research and insights agency around. Two mornings in a row, I have been handed direct advertising materials at Richmond station.  One for Uber Eats and another for Pet Circle;…

Read more »

Food Delivery Vs Supermarkets – Woolworths CEO first to get the UberEats threat in Australia.

The Ultra-Convenience Consumer Trend Disrupting… Everything. So much has been written about Amazon’s launch into the Australian retail market (we wrote about it ourselves recently) that it has created its own ecosystem of disruptive buzz. There’s no doubt a business the size of Amazon with…

Read more »

Happy Client testimonials are the best marketing strategy.

Nothing like being schooled on marketing by our own clients. Talking with a client this week he replayed of a conversation he’d had with another client I’d introduced him to. “You’ve gotta get that guy to shoot a testimonial video for you” he said, “he’s…

Read more »

5 Strategies for brands marketing to Gen Z

Is Gen Z the toughest consumer group to market to yet? The answer to that question depends on the brand, it’s product and mindset. With each new generation of consumers, established brands find themselves challenged to connect with a new collective mindset. However, there are…

Read more »

Old branding lesson in a new world from Tiffany & Co.

Don’t throw the marketing baby out with the bathwater. This recent ad for Tiffany & Co. reminded me of the power of media placement. As the brand world continues to evolve and become more complex, it’s useful to keep in mind that some of the…

Read more »

Westfield’s OneMarket platform shapes up against Amazon

Westfield acts to level the playing field in this increasingly Amazon dominated marketplace. The world of retail has been shaken by the emergence of Amazon as the world’s leading platform like no other development in my 25 years of branding. If retailers aren’t kept awake…

Read more »

Our Public Sector Week branding and event activation design

A big, bold brand for an event for big ideas IPAA Victoria Public Sector Week 2017 is the only event that brings together the entire Victorian public sector in one location to drive fresh thinking and a create a better future for all Victorians. The…

Read more »

KFCs Halloween brand gesture a huge hit in the US

KFC Creates a Halloween Costume of their Iconic Colonel Sanders. Over the last two decades, fast food retail brand KFC have invested in an increasingly focused manner on bringing their founder Colonel Harland Sanders into the branding spotlight. They have reprised his image and locked-it…

Read more »

Tips for Bloggers – Micro Brand Influencers

If there’s one brand trend we’ve seen explode over the last five years it’s the role of micro-influencers. Typically bloggers (but also instagrammers, facebookers and Twitterers), micro influencers stand at the center of a community, attracted and bound by a shared interest. These influencers produce…

Read more »

The 6 Golden Rules of successful experiential brand marketing

Experiential Marketing for Brands There’s as much mystery around experiential marketing for brands as there is interest and curiosity. Whether you’re planning a pop-up or a mobile brand taste, experiential can be a very effective way to engage consumers with your brand.  How much will…

Read more »

Email still best for brand offers but it must be relevant and informative

Key insights from Adobe’s third annual consumer email survey, essential reading for brand marketers. The survey shows that email significantly trumps direct mail, mobile apps and social media as the best way to deliver offers to consumers. However, there is still a great degree of…

Read more »

Why Chobani founder Hamdi Ulukaya believes Australia is the perfect place to create global food brands

Australians are in the prime position to make food and brands that will resonate around the world, the founder of American yoghurt success story Chobani says. Just ten years ago in 2007, Turkish migrant Hamdi Ulukaya bought a disused Kraft Food factory in New York…

Read more »

The 7 Golden Rules for Marketing to Chinese tourists in Australia

A growing tourism market with rich potential. There’s never been a better time to dust off your Mandarin textbook and shake the dust off of your Chinese New Year Dragon, because the number of Chinese visitors to Australia continues to grow rapidly and opportunities abound.…

Read more »

KFC brings back The Colonel with H.A.R.L.A.N.D. the drive-through robot

Capturing the spirit of the KFC brand personality. KFC recently launched H.A.R.L.A.N.D. (Human Assisted Robotic Linguistic Animatronic Networked Device) He is a robot created to take drive-thru orders in order to celebrate National Fried Chicken Day. So firstly – yes; National Fried Chicken Day is…

Read more »

8 Strategies for Australian Retailers to take on Amazon

Head of Salmat eCommerce, Ben Popplestone recently attended the Magento Imagine 2017 event in Las Vegas which brought together 2500 eCommerce experts from 45 countries to discuss the latest in online retail.  A hot topic at the event was the expansion of Amazon into new…

Read more »

What P.T. Barnum taught me about branding

Of Show Business & Branding A good mate of mine sent me an email this morning with a link to the trailer of The Greatest Showman, the first feature film of her great friend Michael Gracey. She was proud as punch and so she should…

Read more »

3 Types of Challenger Brand Strategy

Today’s guest article has been penned by the very smart people at eatbigfish. eatbigfish is a strategic brand consultancy with a single focus: challenger thinking and behaviour. Founded by Adam Morgan after he wrote Eating the Big Fish – the book that popularised the term ‘challenger…

Read more »

Emotive Branding – KFC finds it’s Romantic Side

For Mother’s day 2017, KFC US released a romance novella called Tender Wings of Desire. Interestingly, Mother’s Day is KFC’s best-performing day of sales in the year (sometimes truth is stranger than fiction). The book features Harland Sanders as the story’s love interest and seeks…

Read more »

Political Incorrectness and Brand Differentiation

Can Political Incorrectness ever be a valid brand communication strategy? OK, so this may be skirting the boundaries of sensitivity and taste, but sometimes the most interesting strategies are found where others fear to tread. When it comes to political correctness, most clients want to…

Read more »

Three Ways Retailers Are Scaring Away Ready-to-Buy Customers

The way customers buy has changed I recently read a great article on Curalate by Jarred Shelley, Head of Content Strategy that captured one of the great challenges fro retail brands in today’s ever-changed marketplace. The article talks through a shopping experience that is reflective…

Read more »

How to Choose the Right Branding Agency.

A Guide to Choosing the Right Branding Agency. So you’ve worked-out the business benefits from branding, re-branding or designing new packaging for your business, products or services. You’ve worked through the business imperative, budgets and brief, now comes the tough task of sorting through all…

Read more »

Marketing with meaning: Creating brand connections

As a marketeer I have recently started to notice the increase in meaningful marketing and the extent to which brands are seeking to create meaningful experiences that consumers can connect with and move people emotionally. Thank goodness, a change has been in the air for…

Read more »

Why brands need to pick a side and face the consequences

Today’s guest article has been penned by the very smart people at eatbigfish. eatbigfish is a strategic brand consultancy with a single focus: challenger thinking and behaviour. Founded by Adam Morgan after he wrote Eating the Big Fish – the book that popularised the term ‘challenger…

Read more »

Is your male marketing off pitch?

Linx brand connects with the 21st Century Man One of the most significant trends for any brand marketing to males under 30 is the blurring and fragmentation of what it means to be a man in the 21st Century. Long held stereotypes of muscular, masculine,…

Read more »

The Rising Need for Brands to Change and Expand Competitive Sets

Today’s post is an article written by Brandhook, good friends of ours and the sharpest brand research and insights agency around. At BrandHook we talk about the 7 ways consumer behaviour has changed but after attending last week’s Mumbrella Retail & Marketing Summit it was…

Read more »

One in a Billion – Adidas aims for a new China market

Interesting times for brands as the Chinese market evolves. Global sports brand adidas have launched a new and noteworthy ad campaign aimed at the Chinese market. The last two decades are choc-a-block with beautifully shot, inspiringly heart-racing ads from all of the brands in this…

Read more »

The Trump Effect – When Consumers Say One Thing and Do Another

Today’s post is an article written by Brandhook, good friends of ours and the sharpest brand research and insights agency around. As we all know, recently Donald Trump was elected President of the United States of America, defying nearly every prediction and pre-poll. In the lead…

Read more »

Branding, invisible gorillas and the art of standing out

How much are consumers really noticing your brand? In 2004 Christopher Chabris and Daniel Simons shared the Ig Nobel Prize in Psychology, awarded for ‘achievements that first make people laugh, and then make them think’, for the experiment they completed at Harvard that inspired The…

Read more »