creative showcase
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creative showcase
In a world where everything is available,good branding is the only way to standout. But what is good branding? There arejust about as many dierent denitions orbranding as there are brand consultants,but the common thread through them all is the importance o what others say aboutyour brand.A brand is a concept that a companydevelops, but i it’s a successul brand thestory continues to be told by the customers.It’s something they take with them, and make their own.
Heart and soul
Take Harley Davidson, or example.They’ve created a brand that attracts avidans. (Would anyone tattoo your brand on their body?) And it’s aected the way thecompany listens to its customers. Whileother companies employ market researchcompanies, Harley Davidson sta membersjoin Harley Owner Groups, or HOGs, to seewhat’s the word on the street.The company has not only savedon market research, they’ve saved onadvertising as well. A strong brand createsits own community—something that’s vital ina world o media ragmentation.But it wasn’t always like that. Harley-Davidson stared down bankruptcy twice in the our decades since 1960. Like many otherAmerican businesses in the 1970s and 1980s,Harley Davidson was having its lunch eatenby aster, cheaper and more innovativemotorcycle brands rom Japan. In contrast,Harleys seemed old and unwieldy.When it’s impossible to compete headon, it’s time to think about dierentiation.And with a heritage stretching back to 1903, there was a lot o unique brand material todraw rom.In a 1997 article in
Strategy + Business Magazine
, Harley Davidson’s vice presidentor business development, Clyde Fessier,described the company strategy as “to turnlet when [competitors] turn right. ‘Let’s be the alternative and do the things they can’tdo’.” This has become a kind o mantra orHarley Davidson—and its advice that manyKiwi businesses should heed.Harley Davidson’s turnaround mixed abig vision—reviving the glory days o thepast, and recreating the Harley Davidsondream o riding bikes and having un—withmeticulous attention to detail. That has led to a wealth o Harley Davidson-brandedmerchandise, including leather-cladBarbie dolls and a Harley Davidsonburger restaurant.
Change the world
But where do great brands come rom in therst place? The most amous brands in theworld—Coca-Cola, McDonalds, Starbucks,Google—came rom the unique vision o anindividual who wanted to change the world.They’re all now big corporations with bigmarketing departments, and big decisions to ace.Should we let our brand adapt to its localmarkets, or insist on the same look, eel andbrand values everywhere?I a customer makes a tribute ad andposts it on YouTube, do we embrace it, eveni it doesn’t meet our brand standards, or dowe send them a cease-and-desist letter?I the marketing team on the other sideo the world want to tweak the campaign dowe add in the local colour or keep it global?When times change, and the natureo our product changes (think o GeneralElectric, which has very little to do withelectricity any more), what stays the same?
Stay true to you
Actually, that last question is a little easier toanswer. What stays the same, is the brand.Companies that last have a purpose beyondjust a product or a bottom line. The secreto lasting brands is to identiy that essence, that passion that drove the brand’s ounding,and express it as clearly as you can, visually,verbally and most importantly through theexperience o each customer.In the ollowing pages you’ll discover theprinciples o branding used by some o thiscountry’s top branding practitioners. They allcome rom design backgrounds, and so thenished product is beautiul, exciting visualdesign. But you’ll see the process goes wellbeyond a pretty logo and nice packaging.Branding starts with the heart—yours rst, then your customer’s. Let them own yourbrand, tell your stories, make them theirs.
What’s your brand?
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