1. The shift from Policing to Alignment
Branding is no longer about a ‘great logo’ or a static design. Instead, it is more important to make sure all communications are aligned with the values of the brand. This, in turn, allows brands to be dynamic and flexible and yet maintain the essence of what brand stands for. 2. The need for Coherence & Consistency Brands are stepping out from the marketing department, and infusing into the entire company. In a constantly changing world it’s all about dynamic brands, that are flexible enough to adapt to environment, yet stay true to the brand’s core. It’s about the importance of purpose that helps the brand to stay true to it's values and make their business decisions in align with those. It’s about brands having a consistent core and coherent story. Like Claire Holmes (The Head of Strategy at Lambie-Nairn), said ‘To reach brand nirvana you have to allow for ultimate creativity within the brand while making sure that people can still recognise who you are’. |
On Friday we had an opportunity to learn from three Superheroes of Branding: Robert Jones (Head of New Thinking at Wolff Olins), Ian Micallef (Experience Strategist at FITCH), and Rose Bentley (Global Head of Business Development at Wolff Olins).
The Brand Me session was about creating judgements and building confidence about yourself. Because to learn means to improve, we spend the whole day building up our personalities, exploring who we are and what we can do. We used a famous Butterfly Model, that allowed us to analyse three important dimensions for the future career: 1) What's your 'superpower'? 2) What employees/investors want and need? 3) What they can get from it? Sell yourself! |
Photo credit: Ian Micallef
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But undoubtedly, you can (and should) learn about yourself from others. What do they think of you? Do they know your strengths? Can they see your weaknesses? As Robert Jones later evaluated: ‘Build on your strengths, don't try to eliminate weaknesses.’ Here are the results that I've got from the task, what my classmates think of me. So why not to add it to a New Year's resolution? :) As Ian mentioned during the session, it is important to have an ambition that will keep you going towards your goal, and a passion in order not to lose it half way through. So, set a clear goal, be creative and rigorous, and go for it! |
Designed by Two Nguyen
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David Bowie was a legend, a brand, an idol… He inspired millions and surely will continue to do so.
David Bowie was born on January 8, 1947. His musical talent was already existed during his studies at the school, where he sang in the choir. Later he bought a record collection of American artists of those years and started playing the guitar and piano. When he was 15 years old, Bowie formed his first band, playing rock 'n' roll at local weddings. The group was known as the Konrads. A year later, David dropped out of college and told his parents of his intention to become a pop star. A musician for nearly fifty years, has been one of the most striking and original representatives of pop culture, trying himself in a variety of genres from techno to jazz. Bowie's first major success has happened in 1975 with the single "Fame" and the album Young Americans. Several years later, his "Berlin Trilogy" hit the top five British charts, and the single "Ashes to Ashes" and the album Scary Monsters in the early '80s brought him fame and recognition. |
The Star Wars: The Force Awakens - was expected to be the biggest movie release of the year.
Although Star Wars takes place in a galaxy far, far away, the movie franchise has become a massive cultural phenomenon down here on earth. Whether it be Star Wars-branded mac & cheese, coffee cups or comic books, we see Star Wars-branded items everywhere—even in the years when there’s no new movie being released! The films have influenced authors, songwriters, producers, marketers and artists, turning Star Wars into the undeniably powerful franchise that it is today. Unsurprisingly, all the buzz created around the movie forces me to come and check it by myself. The expectations were high, although previous six parts left unseen by me, I absolutely loved this one. So book your ticket if you haven't done this already, and enjoy. |
Russia is already using many nation branding techniques. It has hired a Western PR agency to attempt to manage perceptions of Russia’s leadership and national image; it has engaged in ‘Church diplomacy’, a form of diaspora mobilization in pursuit of nation branding goals; and it has established an English language TV channel called ‘Russia Today’, to put across a Russian perspective on world events. However, one technique that has possibly been under-used to date by Russia is the promotion of Russian branded exports to help build a more multi-dimensional image of Russia, beyond the grim and intimidating Cold War stereotype that probably persists in the minds of many people in the West. Russians are attracted to foreign products, believing them to be higher quality. Italy means fashion, Germany represents reliability, and France stands for romance. Yet many Russians also suspect foreigners of dumping inferior goods into Russia. Local goods, especially foods and beverages, are often preferred by Russians, given their belief that these Russian products are more authentic and given their loyalty to Russian companies. At the same time, they often doubt the quality of these same domestic brands. These conflicting perspectives put Russian customers, and those companies marketing to them, in a complex situation. How to sort this mix of beliefs? |
First, non-Russian brands in Russia may be most successful when they operate in luxury categories, such as automobiles, fashion, beauty, hospitality, and watches. Most-searched for luxury brands in Russia were all non-Russian brands—BMW, Audi, Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Hilton, Sheraton, Rolex, Swarovski, and Bulgari. Second, Russian companies have tried to capture the high perceived value of western consumer goods by giving their products or companies foreign sounding names. For example, in the early 2000s, the big Russian home products retailer “TechnoSila” introduced a successful home appliance brand called “Bork” and registered the brand in Germany,which allowed the company the legal right to market it as a “German product.” Similarly, a Russian shoe company, took an Italian name “Carlo Pazolini” and registered the brand in Italy. No doubt, there are many opportunities that can be and must be adopted in Russia in order to build up successful branding practices. |
An exciting collaboration with MA Graphic Communication students from NUA took us on both challenging and rewarding journey, where the final point of presentation has happened today.
Our Client was The Restoration Trust, a new player in the market of charity and cultural therapy. The main objective was to take a brand into a new level through the right communication channels, put an emphasis on the present strengths, and establish a direction for future growth. Not an easy thing to do in a couple of weeks, right? Working side by side with ‘creative minds’ inspired our Brand Leaders to be bold and confident, which in turn, came up as an excellent presentations and pitches. In order to build a strong brand identity and direct The Restoration Trust’s vision, teams came up with great rules to follow:
During the collaboration, our teams have learned many important lessons, and for sure there are more to come. |
New logo and name proposed by team C
New name and website design proposed by team A
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“My startup enables smart-phones to interact with images & audio, in advertising, film & TV. Think product placement on steroids, with everything on screen branded and accessible via your phone. So if someone wants to buy Tom Cruise's leather jacket or the sofa he is sitting on in his latest blockbuster, all you have to do is point and click”. Alex Ross
Meenkee is a cutting edge method of connecting customers to products presented in films, TV and ads. And is a perfect example of exciting disruptive technology – something which could have a huge impact on and change the market. It was developed by Alex Ross, a PhD student from University of East Anglia, and his fabulous team: George Vogiatzis, Marco Fiocco, Noa Garcia and Oliver Woodford. |
Here's a selfie in case you guys become an innovation stars :)
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Brian Boylan is the chairman of the Wolff Olins, and a legendary figure in the world of creativity, business and art.
It all started as an idea of ‘changing life’, a life of yours and other people. And all the way through, Brian stayed true to his main principle: “Bold. Simple. True”. Which he interpreted as to move forward your idea, make it understandable, and don't pretend, be genuine. During the masterclass, interesting topic was raised about ‘The connection between ideas and forms’. Even the brightest idea is useless without a form or the right way of expressing it. The same with form - if you have a nice design with nothing behind, it is just a design, nothing more. So in order to create the true experience, which is demanded by customers, it is necessary to have both. No compromises allowed. |
But what is an idea behind? A timeless discussion has been raised about which is better: One Big idea or Many small patterns?
On the one hand, it is necessary to have a purpose, an identity that people will understand and subscribe to or even enact it. That will provide a vision and a direction for the future growth. On the other hand, one of the main challenges now is technology and empowerment of individual ‘uncorporate’ corporation. That is the corporation that no longer being defined by the rules of such, but by the rules of individuals. Today the challenge of branding is to define the importance of rules, the limits of change, and then prescribe systems that permit change. As simple as that :) |
A couple of days ago I had an opportunity to visit one of the most successful branding consultancies in London (according to me) called FITCH. I also was lucky enough to interview Varya Karaulchshikova, who is a Senior Client Manager there, about changing brand practices and trends that are shaping the creative industry.
So here are some of my findings:
P.S. Here's some more thoughts about the future of branding http://gu.com/p/4bjg2/sbl |