What started as a fatherly trip to the mall with my daughter and one of her friends will end with a couple of blog posts, at least.
I don’t spend a lot of time in malls, so when I do, I’m typically on brand alert.
You could probably count on one hand the number
—Ellen Sluder, Director at CoreBrand, LLC
Working in the brand strategy industry for the past eight years has irrevocably changed the way I view the world. It is nearly impossible for me to hear a company name, see their logo, or view their marketing messages without a critical eye. But I never really imagined the
Brad VanAuken of The Blake Project and Branding Strategy Insider Blog wrote an interesting post about Branding Clichés And Hollow Claims:
“It seems that every good idea, every admirable quality, at some point gets overused and eventually becomes a cliché. Some qualities become so popular that every organization aspires to possess them or at
My post from a couple of days ago, commenting on Chick-fil-A’s EAT MOR CHIKIN slogan and the associated Cow Campaign and advertisements, neglected to discuss an issue — one so important — that I’m compelled to raise it now, as it appears to have disturbed my otherwise healthy cognitive system.
It has disturbed me as much as one of my amphibian-loving
Welcome to another edition of AlphaWatch. In addition to the prominent use of capital letter G on the front of these energy drink cans, the last line on them reads:
"IT’S GAZZU!! HEY, GIMME A G."
I thought that Gatorade’s "What is G?" question already had been answered here?
Matt Kucharski, Senior Vice President, Padilla Speer Beardsley
It looks like Forbes was right when it reported in late 2010 that 2011 would be a year of mergers and acquisitions. We’ve seen a significant number of clients announcing mergers with and acquisitions of both competitors and complementary players, and while the motivations are varied &ndash
Just so you know, it about pushed me over the edge to have a blog post title with no capitalization. Not even one letter. In other words, all minuscules, no majuscules. It doesn’t seem right — to me anyway, as a trademark type.
Just like the first letter in the first word of a
We’ve noticed and commented on a variety of branding techniques and trends over the past couple of years:
—Aaron Keller, Capsule
How do you feel when you’re being a bit indulgent? Guilty, perhaps. Sometimes it’s just something small, something you can enjoy without too much of an afterthought. The whipped cream atop your favorite coffee house (low fat) drink might be one of those treats. It is for me.
But recently I’ve noticed
—David Mitchel, Norton Mitchel Marketing
Budweiser, the self-proclaimed King of Beers, announced a marketing initiative this week to broaden its appeal to drinkers ages 21-30. Although Budweiser is an immensely popular global brand, it has had difficulty in the United States market in recent years. In the US, Budweiser sales volume was down 9% in 2009 and it appears the brand is on track to lose about 9% again in 2010. As a means of comparison, the whole US beer market fell 2% in 2009. In 1988, Budweiser had a 26% share of the beer market in the USA. Today, Budweiser only has a 9.3% share. In particular, Budweiser is most concerned about its lack of popularity amongst young drinkers. According to its own data, 4 out of 10 drinkers in their mid 20s have never tried the beer. These factors make now a quality time for the Budweiser brand to revitalize. However, based on the plans that Budweiser has divulged, I do not believe that they will be effective in changing the perception of the brand amongst young adults and generating greater market share.
Budweiser’s marketing initiative will begin in earnest with “Budweiser National Happy Hour” on Wednesday, September 29. Free samples of Budweiser will be available at various bars across the nation. The logistics of this plan already have been criticized in the mass media. While criticism of logistics is certainly valid from a brand management perspective, it does not take into consideration the larger strategic flaws in the plan. Free sampling can be a way to build brand awareness and develop positive brand beliefs. However, marketing is a mix of elements and all elements of the mix must work harmoniously together for success. In the case of Budweiser, this will not occur.
Besides the National Happy Hour event, Budweiser plans to promote the brand through their Facebook presence and video advertising, much of it on television. They are taking a multi channel promotional approach, which is positive. Budweiser will use its Facebook page to give free beers to those celebrating a birthday (22nd birthday and up) and display photo albums of those celebrating with Budweiser on their birthday. A quick visit to Budweiser’s Facebook page shows that Budweiser isn’t likely to impress most of the young audience. Their primary profile picture displays 2 Budweiser bottles on ice and the slogan of this campaign “Grab Some Buds”. The imagery is nothing new, which is disappointing because a key component to revitalizing a brand is repositioning. Using imagery that places Budweiser in a new context would be a welcome change. Also, the slogan for this campaign is “Grab Some Buds”. There is nothing memorable about this slogan. It is about as boring as it gets. Meanwhile, the first video ad is available both on Budweiser’s home page and the Facebook page. This video ad is likely to be perceived as rather stale by young adults because it uses undifferentiated imagery. It will not break through the clutter, which is the goal of all advertising.Continue Reading Budweiser: Not The King of Generation Y