Sometimes when a relationship is feeling a little stale all it takes is a fun night out or a weekend getaway to reinvigorate it. Other times it requires digging deeper or letting go. The same is true when it comes to our relationships with brands. Brands need to stay relevant to keep the flame alive.
Everything in Advertising
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When date night isn’t enough. »
May 23, 2013Categories: Advertising, Audience Messages, Brand, Brand Identity, Brand Positioning, Brand Research, Brand Strategy, Branding, communications, communications strategy, Design, Design Thinking, Experience Design, Graphic Design, Influence, Marketing, Messaging, Positioning, Rebranding, Strategy, User Experience Tags: date night, relationships 0 Comments -
Remember: You’re the Expert »
May 16, 2013It’s our job to remind our clients how important we are to their success.
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Eliminating the Do-Over Dance »
April 30, 2013Admit it. There have been times when your design solution has missed the mark in the client’s eyes. It happens to talented designers all the time. But it shouldn’t. Successful design is about solving a problem. Period. If your design has missed the mark it’s because you didn’t understand the problem. It’s possible or likely
Categories: Advertising, Audience Messages, Brand, Brand Identity, Brand Positioning, Brand Research, Brand Strategy, Branding, communications, communications strategy, Design, Design Thinking, Experience Design, Graphic Design, Influence, Marketing, Messaging, Positioning, Rebranding, Strategy, User Experience 0 Comments -
Mister, is that your real hair? »
April 3, 2013I’m often amazed by the lack of questions adults are prepared to ask. When you hear kids – in school, at play, in public — questions pour out of them. Insightful, innocent, embarrassing, risky questions. “Mommy, why does that man smell so bad?” “Mr., how much did your cool car cost?” “Why does that switch
Categories: Advertising, Audience Messages, Brand, Brand Identity, Brand Positioning, Brand Research, Brand Strategy, Branding, communications, communications strategy, Design, Design Thinking, Experience Design, Graphic Design, Influence, Marketing, Messaging, Positioning, Rebranding, Strategy 0 Comments -
Kicking Butt or Getting Your Butt Kicked? Got a Strategy? »
February 25, 2013Instead of the usual ask and show and tell and quote, I took a step back and asked the president what he thought a new logo and website were going to do to solve his problem. When he didn’t have a clear answer we were able to discuss the real challenge at hand: Why should people care about his products? This conversation let him see that I was genuinely interested in helping him and not there to fill an order.
Categories: Advertising, Audience Messages, Brand, Brand Identity, Brand Positioning, Brand Research, Brand Strategy, Branding, communications, communications strategy, Design, Design Thinking, Experience Design, Graphic Design, Influence, Marketing, Messaging, Positioning, Rebranding, Strategy 0 Comments -
Ouch! That Hurts. Brand Strategy Can Soothe the Pain. »
January 29, 2013Sometimes the truth hurts. Like the time I had to tell a client that what was keeping their company from achieving their goals was an inferiority complex. It wasn’t my opinion. It was what the brand strategy process revealed. Here’s the story: Who: A large architectural firm celebrating 25 years in business decided the
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Catching Up on Some Brand Strategy Topics »
December 27, 2012The holiday break is a great time for me to weed files, make lists and goals for the new year, and catch up on the articles and blogs I bookmarked and never got around to reading. Here are a few worth sharing. Happy New Year! Six Ways to Screw Up a Brand by Peter Leeds,
Categories: Advertising, Audience Messages, Brand, Brand Identity, Brand Positioning, Brand Strategy, Branding, communications, communications strategy, Design, Design Thinking, Experience Design, Graphic Design, Influence, Marketing, Messaging, Positioning, Rebranding, Strategy, User Experience 0 Comments -
Clients Love White Space. Brand Strategy Helps You Find It. »
December 21, 2012If you’d rather read this post than listen to me: Designers appreciate the importance of balancing white space — or negative space – with non-white (or positive) space. Too little, the page will be cluttered and typically difficult to read. Too much and the work will look incomplete. You know that the right amount of
Categories: Advertising, Audience Messages, Brand, Brand Identity, Brand Positioning, Brand Research, Brand Strategy, Branding, communications, communications strategy, Design, Design Thinking, Experience Design, Graphic Design, Influence, Marketing, Messaging, Positioning, Rebranding, Strategy Tags: Apple, marketplace, negative space, positive space, white space 0 Comments -
What says comfort more than apple pie? »
November 23, 2012The new commercials that communicate the Americana Furniture rebrand of comfort.
Categories: Advertising, Audience Messages, Brand, Brand Identity, Brand Positioning, Brand Research, Brand Strategy, Branding, communications, communications strategy, Design, Experience Design, Graphic Design, Influence, Marketing, Messaging, Positioning, Rebranding, Strategy, User Experience Tags: Americana Furniture, commericals, furniture, rebrand, TV TV spots 0 Comments -
“We Think” is Not a Strategy. »
October 29, 2012Clients don’t care about what we think. They care about what we know. Applying strategy into your design process assures your clients that you are not bringing your own biases, opinions or desires to the assignment.
Categories: Advertising, Brand, Brand Strategy, Design, Experience Design, Graphic Design, Influence, Marketing, Messaging Tags: business challenges, clients, communications, communications strategy 0 Comments