Packaged, wrapped and slightly opinionated

What Lies Beneath

2012-04-12T15:17:00.004+01:00

Emotion led purchasing. Probably the most important aspect of branding that brand managers continue to overlook!

Research, whether it be various types of quant or qual will say a brand can and will be successful if it understands the right price point, functional benefits, brand awareness and lifestyle impact. All valid points and marketing will focus on, and plan against each criteria.

Often we talk about emotion led purchasing having no measurability, intangibility and driven directly from our subconscious. It is for this reason that marketing do not invest the necessary time and understanding into emotions. Marketing often express themselves as left brain creatives which in most instances could not be further from the truth, The desire of marketing to have facts and figures to validate their instincts roots them firmly in right brain territory. Emotion within brands is therefore difficult for them to embrace – although to be fair we have made inroads, provenance (a sense of belonging) and heritage (a sense of trust) are now high on any brand pyramid.

Brandhouse the main advocates of emotional engagement directly linking to consumer engagement state;

“The power of emotion in driving brand choice is not about consumers; it’s about people. Emotion is at the root of all human behaviour. To truly influence people’s purchase intent emotion needs to sit right at the heart of your strategy. This isn’t about making nice ads, it’s much more fundamental than that. If you can make your brand more emotive, and if you can leverage that emotion, it will give you the ultimate competitive advantage.“

How do we bring emotional truth into the minds of marketing?

Innovation in its purest sense is emotion led. We create, change and invent because we are affected by emotions. All Marketers should be focussed on innovation and this gives every opportunity to therefore be focussed on emotion led purchasing. Here are some examples that show how brands can be highly successful and long lasting when they are driven from a desire to be emotionally engaging;

In 1978, while vacuuming his home, James Dyson realized his bag vacuum cleaner was constantly losing suction power. He noticed how dust quickly clogged the pores of the bag and blocked the airflow, so that suction dropped rapidly. He set to work to solve this problem. 5 years and 5,127 prototypes later, the world's first cyclonic bagless vacuum cleaner arrived.

In the early 1970s, Anita Roddick (then Anita Perilli) visited a shop selling naturally-scented soaps and lotions called The Body Shop. The Berkeley Body Shop run by Peggy Short and Jane Saunders used natural ingredients, and helped to employ and train immigrant women.The natural, environmentally-minded and intimate cosmetics shop inspired Anita Roddick to open her own shop in the UK in 1976. In 1987, Roddick purchased the naming rights from the original Body Shop.

In the 1930's while studying microbiology at the Medical School of Kyoto University, Dr. Minoru Shirota adopted the philosophy that intestinal health leads to a long life and set out to find certain lactic acid bacteria that could help fight harmful bacteria in the body. At this point in history, health care was expensive and many people lost their lives to infectious diseases caused by poor nutrition. Thinking of a way that people would be motivated to ingest probiotics every day and be spared from suffering and disease, Dr. Shirota had the brilliant idea to pair the "friendly bacteria" with a delicious flavorful mixture that everyone would want to drink every day. To this day Yakult is still a category leader.

P&G wanted to create a perfect potato chip to address consumer complaints about broken and stale chips, and air in the bags. After many years and multiple researchers the mighty Pringle was born.

Four examples of what happens when you put emotion at the heart of your activity.

Most companies will have emotion hidden deep within their brands, you just need an open minded marketing team and a great creative agency to unlock the potential. Make emotion led purchasing your main focus for the year ahead.

Visionary Sight - Can you see it?

2012-04-05T16:46:00.015+01:00

A visionary can envision the future, are you a visionary?

If the answer is no, then I would question why not?

And if the answer is yes then I’d say prove it – show me your innovation.

I mentioned Visionary Sight, as being an integral belief in my Bitesize Brand Philosophy.

Visionary sight is about using all aspects of sight;

Hindsight: The ability to reflect and learn from the past

Insight: The ability to interpret and respond to the present

Foresight: The ability to predict and prepare for the future

Most marketers are routed firmly in the world of insights – a term used to express the future but really only reflects the next 18 months, which in brand terms is the ‘present’.

All the insights gathered will form the action plan (after a big brainstorming session and stringent internal sign off of course). As with any action plan there needs to be a residing growth plan. Charts documenting post war consumer spending trends against consumption, high street performance in real terms, rising GDP all populate the growth plan for the next 18 months. Lastly comes the assumption that your future is about protecting your market share and to be slightly more innovative than the competitor set. This creates a brand cycle focused on churning out the same proliferation of line extensions and copycats designs to win a few market share percentage points. Good job and well done.

What is Visionary sight?

Visionary sight is probably too deep to cover in its entirety but here is a condensed version.

Visionary sight makes an assumption that you want to be a category leader, preferably in a new category.

Hindsight
Is there provenance, heritage and authenticity that can be extracted within your brand.
Do you have a story to tell.
Do you have untapped manufacturing capabilities that would enable you to innovate with or without CAPEX.

Insight
Where are the gaps in the market.
Semiotics can help to form an understanding of your brand.
Get your tone of voice correct, here and now, without innovation it’s important that your communication starts the ‘visionary’ process so that when you actually have brand relevance you will have already made inroads.

Foresight

Plan for where your brand needs to get to in 3 years, no not 18 months, it takes nearly that long to do recipe formulation or pack re-designs think further ahead.

What will be the zeitgeist in 3 years and therefore the social and economic impact
How will we interact with brands and what will ignite our senses
What role will technology play and how will we buy brands
How will you influence my lifestyle and what function will you perform

How will language change over time

Much to contemplate and digest, but remember anyone can apply visionary sight if you want to.

Are Pearlfisher Bulletproof?

2012-04-02T10:36:00.003+01:00

Here is your second installment of the much anticipated packaging showcase.

The purpose of this segment is to not only show what I believe to be wonderful and well executed creative but to also bring agencies to the foreground.
March was all about Mayday and Lewis Moberly, arguably two agencies who still believe in the craft of the industry.

April is about the dynamism of design. Bulletproof and Pearlfisher have energy and belief in abundance.
These agencies know they are good and are not scared to shout it from the rooftops.

Strategically seminal, creatively devastating, fiercely independent... we are Bulletproof

We believe great ideas change the world.

It is a heart felt belief in the power of design to improve, shape and influence positive, tangible change. We think with our hearts and solve business problems creatively with our heads. We believe that people make the difference and together we can be the best, brightest and creatively brilliant agency on the planet.

We are designers and this is what we do. Our design connects strong brand truths with powerful desire. Our aim is to create a better future by design and in doing so have impact. Now and forever.

Linguistics - The spaghetti junction for Brands

2012-03-27T09:54:00.003+01:00

The right brand name can be the difference between success and failure.

A great piece of innovation will be successful whatever it might be named just look at the Dyson bagless vacuum cleaner. A much better invention than the name suggests or inspires.

I’m talking about brands on the peripherals, that have a good product but not necessarily the relevance and differentiation within their category. Brand positioning and naming throughout the portfolio all become paramount to the ongoing commercial success.

This is where linguistics can help. Many Marketers do not give this area of study a second glance yet it can help define your greatest asset and prepare the foundations for a local brand going global. In the words of Al Ries ‘A brand is nothing more than a name. In time, the unique idea or concept of your company or product disappears. All that's left is the difference between your brand name and the brand names of your competitors.’

Two forward thinking companies Lexicon and Interbrand have provided some linguistic insights to get you started on the right path;

Steer clear of English names as globally they can be hard to pronounce and/or translate strangely. Look to other languages, words deriving from Latin have greater global appeal.

If there isn’t a real world name that suits, invent one or coin two words together.

The sound of letters can convey associated attributes, be sure your brand name evokes the right emotion for the product/service. eg

“R” for motion

“S” for smooth or sleak

“Z” for speed or precision

Sound symbolism will also affect the way brand names are perceived. Letters like “T” and “K” are obstruents and perceived as harder and sharper; “C” and “N” are sonorants, much softer and smoother.

The CV syllable (a single consonant followed by a vowel) is the very basis of pronunciation in the world’s language. Syllable structure: two perfect syllables, each consisting of a consonant (C) and a vowel (V). The resulting prosodic shape of this name (CVCV) is the universally preferred shape for words in all languages.

This may be confusing so here is a link to read more…

http://www.lexiconbranding.com/BrandNamingProcess/Anatomy/Zima/

If you have a Brand, Sub brand or variant to name it might be time to think about some of the above. Thomas F. Shutte expressed it best when he said” The trouble with marketing is that it’s definitions are not explicit enough, people use the same word with different meanings” Now is the time to make your Brand ownable with a word that conveys and expresses the product/service, the brand personality and the lifestyle of your brand. I have a Dyson at home but I call it the Hoover.

Bitesize Brand Philosophy

2012-03-22T15:30:00.007Z

A few weeks back I started to document bite size pieces of my continually evolving brand philosophy. I should however have taken heed of Julius Pringles who said 'Once you pop you can't stop'.

Understand the Zeitgeist

If you know how your consumer is feeling and is likely to feel over the next few years you have a better chance of positioning your brand correctly. In the midst of a recession for example, your brand may be a great comforter, mood lifter or family staple. Understanding where your brand currently sits and what role it can play will help drive your brand strategy.

Lead don't follow

Category leaders will always be successful, followers are one step behind. If you currently follow, innovate and move direction.

Use all aspects of visionary sight.

Brands owners should look to the past, present and future to remain relevant.

Hindsight: The ability to reflect and learn from the past
Insight: The ability to interpret and respond to the present
Foresight: The ability to predict and prepare for the future

Create a category

Innovation should be the short, medium and long term strategy.

Don't namesake
Linguistics tell us that it's all in a name, be it real-world, invented or coined. Whether you are creating a Brand or Sub-brand, Global or Local, you must harness what will become your most important asset. Create differentiation, convey emotion and ultimately own your brand and category.

Spring Clean

Marketers usually inherit a complex structure of proliferated brands, sub brands and variants. Clear Brand Architecture is paramount for concise brand positioning that a diverse consumer base can understand. Consumers should be able to navigate your portfolio and easily understand function, value, aspiration, lifestyle and so on. Reduce the complexity and focus on products that have relevance.

Look good

Graphic and Structural design is inexpensive when you factor in the ROI you can achieve. The long term benefits can far outweigh the cost of a short term integrated Ad Campaign. Start at the beginning and get your product working. Don't sell 'fresh air'.

Be clean
Design is all about being clean, crisp, single minded, transparent and ownable. A muddled product will leave the consumer confused about where you fit into their lives. Refresh your brand, focus the brand position and then be consistent.

Consistency

A successful brand will inherently become part of a consumer lifestyle. This doesn't mean that they will invest time in understanding your brand and likewise do not assume that non purchasers know of your brands existence. Gaining brand awareness, recall and recognition requires your brand to be consistent. For example, if your brand colour is Red 186, then don't allow your portfolio to have 14 different shades of red. Always create a set of Brand guidelines.

Embrace your past

Research has proven time and time again that authenticity, provenance and heritage will help sell your product. Explore your brand and find it's belonging.

Ignite the senses

In a world where the consumer is ever more inquisitive your product needs to engage the senses. What does your product sound, feel, taste, smell and look like. All of these touch points can add extra equity into your brand. Explore the senses, be innovative!

Connect emotionally

If you ignite the senses then this will stimulate an emotional response. If your brand can evoke an emotion then loyalty and goodwill will follow. Goodwill in the digital age is more powerful than any Advertising Campaign.

Speak Clearly
Centralise your 'Tone of Voice'. What you say, how you express it and the mediums you use will all shape the perception of your brand. It's therefore imperative your brand personality is closely and consistently managed internally and externally.

Brand is business,

A business sells brands. It is therefore important to eradicate silo marketing teams. Whether the company sells individual brands or the product is the corporate identity, every person in that supply chain must understand what the brand represents. Project your identity in all directions not just your consumer base.

Remove negative influences

Brands need energy and purpose. When you quit smoking or go on a diet we are told to remove negative influencers. This is the same with branding, use creatives who want your business, procure printers that push the boundaries, engage the sales team to live your brand.

Don't be conventional
Typical Quant and Qual research forces the consumer to act in a perceived way and therefore the answer to your question is either forced or false. Look to alternative means of research like Semiotics, Linguistics, Brandstorms and Neuromarketing OR bypass research and trust your marketer skills and the skills of the agency who have invested their lives in understanding brands.

Best behaviour

Be consistent in how you act, consumers will embrace certain values about your brand. Great reputations will allow your brand to transcend multiple categories. Remember bad behaviour can also destroy the reputation.

Reason to believe

Who are you, what do you offer, how have you differentiated and why do I care?

It's Mayday for Moberly

2012-03-12T15:45:00.011Z

Brands should be clean, crisp and clarified.

They should convey a rich past intertwined with a youthful and spritely energy.

Lets be clear about the territory it owns and where it derives from.
The identity should effortlessly flow across all consumer touch points and engage emotionally.

Most of all it should be simple and single minded.

I'm not the only person to appreciate simplicity.

This is the first of a regular feature that showcases what I believe to be great and timeless design. I will pick a duo of agencies each month and display what's fabulous from within their portfolios.

Mayday

definingdreamingdramatisingbrands...

eatingbreathinglivingbrands...

Lewis Moberly

When it comes to brand the customer holds the cards. They choose to invite your brand into their life; they dictate what happens when it's there.

Look again at your brand.

Do you see what they see?

Do you feel what they feel?

We delve deep into the enigmatic bond between man and brand. Revealing the emotional drivers. Guiding the brand to fulfil its promise.

Cheer - Is there a reason?

2012-03-05T09:47:00.006Z

My last few design reviews haven't been very positive. Twinings didn't have the twinkle, Jordan's wasn't jaw dropping, Pipers wasn't playing and M Savers was all out of favours.

There is now reason to smile, a reason to cheer.

Landor Associates have completed the redesign for Cheer Detergent, a Proctor & Gamble brand sold in the USA and Canada. The 3rd new design in 4 years launched in the summer of 2011.

I'm now a father and at the age of 31 have come to realise that you have to wash your clothes, and wash them more than once a month. From my detailed understanding cleaning detergents, powders and liquids serve 2 or maybe 3 purposes; To clean, to protect colour and to help the environment by working at cooler temperatures.

It is very refreshing therefore to see a brand embrace a core purpose of its category. Cheer have aligned their positioning to focus on colour with the strapline 'Stay Colourful' and a media campaign called 'We dig colour'
"We dig color. It’s our passion. It’s our reason for being. We love every gorgeous shade. What’s not to love? Color is a language that speaks without words. It can scream without raising its voice. Color can unite us and it also can set us apart in a sea of sameness. It’s a tool that shows the world who we really are. Color is beautiful and striking and vibrant and all sorts of other words that mean awesome to look at. It is a powerful and precious thing. We dig color because it makes the world, well, more colorful."

I love brands that are clean, crisp, single minded, transparent and ownable.
Landor have perfectly executed all of these points. The structure is dynamic, yet highly finessed which enables the modern label to sit comfortably in pride of place, a move on from the previous structure that was rooted in 'bulk buy' territory. The dark navy creates a secondary tier to reinforce the importance of colour and pulls your eye direct and centre to the label.

The tear drop has been replaced by a droplet which stands upright and proud, it is no longer drooping off to the right, which I always felt evoked emotional cues such as sadness and pain.

The colour gamut/chart is a common sight in the design industry, it is a stroke of genius however to make it perfectly relevant and given a new meaning in the eye of the consumer. I would expect an array of so many colours to create a messy kaleidoscope of design but they work in unison with the typeface. The typeface needed to be simplistic, printing navy on white keeps it clean and slanting the letter 'e' has made it ownable. I believe that by incorporating the colour chart Cheer will now be perceived as the category experts for colour.

My only concern is how it prints in four colours - do you lose the vibrancy of colour?

The rest of the range is a succession of disappointments.
The 'Free & Gentle' should be softer and more feminine but Landor are way off the mark, the white bottle with white out logo is too recessive and too off brand. It really pains me when logo colors change across the range. The logo is navy on white not white out of light blue. Which is exactly the same issue I have with the 'For Darks' bottle which now has white out on mid tone blue.
The powder carton is back on brand with the core range but the execution doesn't live up to it's bottle counterpart. The droplet doesn't sit comfortably in a square box.

Overall this is such a great redesign. I hope the consumer see's this as an everyday brand, the design is so polished that there is a chance an assumption will be made that it is only for your best clobber and not day to day smalls.

Hip Hip Hooray, Hip Hip Hooray, Hip Hip Hooray

PantoneLIVE™

2012-03-01T15:31:00.004Z

I had an exclusive invite to the PantoneLive launch at Kings Place, London.

PantoneLIVE™, a cloud-based color service that provides instant access to essential brand color standards. PantoneLIVE is the first service under the Pantone Digital Business Unit, a newly created division of X-Rite that is the byproduct of Pantone’s expertise as the world’s color authority and X-Rite’s color science and technology leadership.

PantoneLIVE™ is a partnership of some of the industries major players, X-rite, Esko, Pantone and Sun Chemicals. Keynote speakers included;

Thomas J.Vacchiano Jr, CEO X-Rite,

Carsten Knudsen, CEO Esko

Rudi Lenz, CEO Sun Chemicals.

In amongst all the technical jargon and new world promises was a session by the Creative Director of Firmenich, Steven van der Kruit. He absolutely stole the show with his passion, insight and creative knowledge. Steven specializes in global trends and is said to be among the top 10 global Trend Visionaries. He finds impulses from markets, shopping centers, street and nightlife in Amsterdam, London, Sydney, Shanghai and New York and is involved in hundreds of Innovation projects around the globe.

Steven is a regular contributor to the Pantone colour of the year.

I got a sneaky impression that he believes 2013 will be a variation of blue and he digressed that whilst 2011 was about hope, 2012 needs to Dream.

The Face of Semiotics at the Boot Shaped Peninsula

2012-02-28T15:53:00.011Z

Semiotics and Qualitative studies tells us that consumers will have preconceived ideas about your brand based on their cultural surroundings, beliefs, attitudes and perceptions. What you believe your brand represents may differ to how it is received. As you can imagine it is therefore a mine field to try to establish how your brand should be designed and developed to get exactly the right category positioning.

It is not surprising then that a lot of brands play safe and follow the market leader, whether it be brand colours, imagery, signals or style. Subconsciously consumers do measure your brands against the top brands, usually the brands with the highest recall value.

Whilst looking on Design Week at the branding for new pizzeria chain Baffito’s I came across the strangest discovery and most absurd category signpost ever. A signpost that represents provenance, authenticity and heritage....

Can I introduce the mighty Moustache.

Globally as consumers we still like to typecast and pigeon hole. It seems that the Pizza category as a majority are happy to use the fat jovial chef with the handlebar moustache to represent all thats good about Pizza and the boot shape peninsula of Italy. We as a consumer buy into this. Even Baffitos with their contemporary design have kept the facial hair.

Surprisingly a few food brands that don't make pizza also appreciate the brand benefits of using the Moustache. Who'd have thought it.

check our Upton's Fanstaches

Forget Movember these brands are sporting the moustache all year round.
What other strange and wonderful category signposts are out there?

Looks like this fourth year student Alex Westgate may have noted the power of the Moustache too. Look at his wonderful conceptual work for a soda brand.

Stephen Wildish, a freelance illustrator, has created a wonderful identity for Money Runner, a 7 piece funk band.

I was in a bookshop last week (06/3/12) and came across this book by Stephen Clarke.

Nivea Soft - Limited Edition

2012-02-22T14:53:00.004Z

In one of my blogs last year I championed the use of Limited Edition packaging. In summary i wrote -

'Limited editions allow your brand to be free, to pull down the economic gloom and change the mood of the consumer. Limited editions by their very nature are engaging, quirky and full of story telling. They have very little brand architect to maintain, minimal colour retention and confined only by the canvas they belong too. A designer and marketers dream at a fraction of the cost of both Ad campaigns and Brand redesigns.'

This summer in the UK we are scheduled to have a flood of limited edition packaging.
During the Great British Summer many brands will have union flags, sporting icons, diamond jubilee souvenirs and football memorabilia spawned across their packs.
It is great to see that iconic brand Nivea is launching 3 limited edition packs this summer under a completely different guise. When your brand is 100 years of age I guess you can set your own agenda...how refreshing.

We are told that 'The light-hearted and colourful design, which features springs birds, adds to the feeling of the season, sunny cheerfulness and warmth and echoes with the brand’s attitude of making life beautiful.'

The packs have been designed by the fashion designer Nicola De Main in conjunction with design agency Bulletproof.
“Initially we thought it would be quite a challenge to find an up-and-coming fashion designer to work with us on the Nivea Soft limited edition packaging range, but then we found Nicola de Main whose designs were the perfect fit with the brand. Nicola was a delight to work with and it was serendipity that she was already a Nivea Soft consumer. We are extremely happy with the result that Nicola and our design team have created and look forward to seeing it on the shelves,” says Kellie Chapple, client services director at Bulletproof.

I like the designs, they feel tranquil and calming, perfect for a sub brand called 'soft'. Well I like the birds and butterflies I can't quite comprehend the remaining design, this definitely looks out of sync. The third design appears more aggressive and a use of a deeper darker blue is no where near as feminine.
Overall as a handbag accessory or dresser table brand you want the product to give you an uplift and these limited edition packs do this nicely. I hope more global brands like Nivea embrace limited edition.

P.S
This isn't the first partnership between the brand and a fashion designer. Nivea had previously linked up with both Josep Font and Manish Arora for similar projects.

DBA Design Effectiveness Awards 2012

2012-02-17T11:37:00.009Z

So another year, another awards ceremony.
Last night we found out the winners and losers of the Design Effectiveness Awards 2012.

Raymond Turner, the chairman of the awards tell us that 'The DBA's Design Effectiveness Awards continue to be the only award, acknowledged internationally, that recognises the contribution design makes to business, government and society."

Photo's courtesy of Andrew Brankenbury

I really buy into what these awards represent, design does play a pivotal role in the success of a company, be it corporate branding, packaging design or advertising campaigns. To win a DBA Design Effectiveness Award you have to prove in collaboration with your clients that the design has impacted on revenue. The awards recognise the amazing ROI design can bring.

I wanted to take a closer look at the gold medal winners for packaging design.
Are there any trends that have resonated well with the judges and ultimately with the consumer simply by the nature of how you win an award. There were 12 gold medal winners in total, I have picked 5 of my favourites.

It is clear that 2012 has shown a clear and transparent trend. There is an almost scientific approach to making successful packaging.

Step 1 - Bold block colour backgrounds using either ink or product (via clear substrates).

Step 2 - Ownable and clear typeface

Step 3 - Brand reinforcement and messaging, using either a market leader statement, provenance and authenticity- 'The Best Breakfast', 'Original Butter Company since 1886', 'Fruit. bottled'.

Step 4 - Simple and clear illustrations, kept to a minimum.

None of these designs overwork what they represent, none claim to be low in fat, organic, reduced sugar, good for the environment or low in price. They will be easily detectable on shelf and are simple and uncluttered in their execution. I think they are worthy winners, well done Pearlfisher, Elmwood, B&B Studios and Ziggurat Brands, plus many more.

The grand prix winners were Smith and Milton for their corporate branding - Every Day Matters for Legal and General. We are told that this work has directly increased their share price 465% faster than the rest of the market.

JORDANS Cereal- Animal Magic?

2012-02-08T10:27:00.006Z

I was highly critical of the recent redesign for the Jordans Cereal range by 1HQ (read the article here).
The full marketing comms is now underway with the launch of their £2.5m TV Ad campaign,supported by an integrated digital and PR programme.

How does the TV commercial compare to the packaging redesign?

The advert, based around characters called the Hedgerow heroes, is charming and does reinforce the wildlife message. Jordan's Cereal are being very single minded with the consumer on their 10% habitat promise, which is very commendable. It feels like the right tone for the advert, unlike the packaging which I had such an issue with.

It still surprises me to this day how Advertising Agencies, this time Grey London, continue to make animals talk. The UK is supposedly the hub of creativity yet always fall back on the same fail safes. It is no different to the constant FMCG products that are sprouting legs and arms and swinging across our TV sets or actors running around in furry caricature costumes. It's a major step back by Grey's, who were also responsible for the magnificent, 'Hard and Fast' with Vinnie Jones for the British Heart Foundation.

My main disappointment of the advert is that I feel they have missed a massive marketing coup to pull on the emotional heartstrings of the great british public. I currently have snow and sleet in my town, a notoriously difficult time for our wildlife, yet the advertising campaign is centered on the joyous and relaxing summertime. I was left to feel that the animals in the campaign are actually having a fabulous time even at the height of their anxiety. I would have either delayed the ad until spring or given it a darker feel to reinforce the message by Carol Welch, Marketing Director “We have a uniquely compelling story to tell as the only cereal brand in the UK whose farmers dedicate 10% of their farmland to wildlife habitats, so that birds, bees and butterflies can thrive,”.

I'm very keen to see how we as a consumer reacts to the entire messaging of the Jordan's brand. The marketing team seem to have a clear vision and it will be fascinating to see if the consumer buys into the CSR credentials of the brand.

Will the brand gain more market share?
Should brands like Alpen and Dorset Cereals be worried?

As an added extra the Jordan's website has a selection of Out-takes billed as "If you’ve seen our new TV ads, then you know that our Hedgerow stars are really at home on the screen. But they don’t always get things right first time. Take a sneak peak behind-the-scenes at the wild out-takes from the filming of our latest TV ads"
The first time I remember seeing this concept was by Disney Pixar on the closing credits of Toy Story. At the time I found this ground breaking and ever since have always had a soft spot for spoof out-takes. The short clips by Jordan's do work and bring a very light heated feel to the campaign. it's a shame the out-takes are better than the main advert.

Probably the best blog in the world

2012-02-06T16:05:00.003Z

Thinking about the future of brands immediately took me back to the past.

In a world of digital tv, smart phones and the internet it amazes me how the power of a slogan is still as important, defining and relevant now as it has always been. It might be argued that in a world of globalisation a strapline has never been more apparent and therefore more important. A great slogan will transcend any nationality or localisation.

Why is this? the slogan is merely a few lines that represent the brand.

I went to a conference once where the slogan was referred to as the 'Noble Purpose'. Elevating the use and the meaning of the slogan within a company is important. The role of the slogan is to raise brand awareness, a memorable and relevant slogan will do this in abundance.

Thinking about how companies use their slogan led me to explore some uses past and present.

A slogan is great for generating brand recall, it is the slogan that sticks in the consumers mind.
How do you get a consumer to remember a set of four random initials?
The worlds local bank

The slogan can also make a simple and direct statement that removes every other competitor from the category.
Beanz Meanz Heinz

If you have a point of difference the slogan is a great platform to shout about it.
Say goodbye to the Bag

Many companies use it to enforce the fact they are a category leader, invaluable in the consumer mindset.
The Real Thing
The Worlds Favourite Airline

The slogan can easily create a set of aspirations
The Best a Man Can Get
Diamonds are forever

Or represent your value offer
Every little helps
Saving you money everyday

Reinforce your service offering

When it absolutely, positively has to be there overnight

We’re No. 2. We Try Harder

Sometimes if a slogan is unique and backed up by a great campaign a company can generate income via other sources

Simples!

Bud- Weis - er

The worlds leading brands know what their slogans represent and we as a consumer buy into their proposition. Well thought out and consistent slogans that are reinforced through multiple campaigns will improve brand recall and brand recognition. A slogan will be just as important as a Logo, they should work in tandem.
They're Grrreat

Morrisons M Savers - 25% up, down or inconsistent?

2012-01-31T09:34:00.009Z

Every Sunday I follow a ritualistic process. Eat, food shopping, coffee, read the paper. `

During the food shopping I will spend more time reviewing the packaging than actually putting goods in my trolley, it's an obsession I can't help it.

My names.... and I'm a packaging-aholic.

Readers of this blog know that I have an issue with the new Morrisons M Saver range.
I wanted to give the range a possible reprieve and review it in it's entirety now it is prominent in store.
Most of the previous yellow and green packaging is now gone and we are left with M Savers in all it's glory.

I have mentioned a couple of times, Asda and Pavillion Garden, that a truly great design would not have changing executions dependent on the variant. It was therefore shocking to see the variation on shelf to what we had seen on Dieline.

Look at the four products below, each different.

Lasagne has Photography.
Orange Juice has an illustration of the product.
Baby Wipes has a fun illustration to capture the nature of the category.
Thick Sausages has neither photography nor illustration.

I can hear you saying thats fine because they have applied different rules dependent on the over-arching category, substrate, environment and so on - but unfortunately that isn't the case.

Lets look at some scenarios;

1) Sausages do not have imagery because it is a clear substrate so you can see the product, so why would you put an illustration on the packaging? The same is true of apples but the label clearly has illustrations of apples.

2) Sausages are in the chilled section so we applied a more natural approach. The same is true of cooked ham but this has an illustration based on a ham sandwich.

3) Lasagne is in the frozen fridges so needs extra standout using photography. The same is true of Fish Fingers but these have illustrations of the product not photography.

4) The baby wipes are targeting mums and children so need extra fun and engagement. I get this but why then have fromage frais with illustration of a pot and spoon.

Coley Porter Bell tell me that sales are up 25%, thats great, I shop at Morrisons, it's the heartbeat of my town, so I want them to do well.
Here are some questions to consider, particularly as I put my hat in the ring that it wouldn't sell as well as the old design;

Are sales up because anything is better than the yellow and green of old?

Are sales up because of advertising and in store promotions?

Are sales up because Morrisons on comparison has the lowest percentage of OL sales vs overall sales and this can only go in one direction?

Are sales actually down? previous range accounted for 300 products, M Savers now has 400, this should be natural growth of 33% not 25%.

Just to put into context my viewpoint, the wife, who does most of the shopping, prefers this new design unequivocally, and she is the primary target market.

Pipers Crisps Co- Are we singing to the same tune?

2012-01-27T14:58:00.006Z

Can you guess which of the below brands has just been redesigned?

Ok, if you are struggling i'll give you a clue...

"They were looking to reinforce the perception as the tastiest crisp brand in Britain by discovering what makes the brand unique."

Still not sure...

"They differentiated the brand, drawing out the unique, quirky elements that that make brand recognisable and distinctive."

One last Clue

"They wanted to make it easier for the loyal consumer to select their favourite flavour, and allowing standout that encourages new consumers to buy the brand"

Pipers Crisps, now known as Pipers Crisp Co. has just completed their packaging redesign through design agency BrandOpus. I actually like the subtle name change and do agree with Paul Taylor, BrandOpus creative director, when he says, ‘The “crisp” element was very generic so changing it to “crisp co.” gave it a bit more of an idea of what the brand was about.’ But moving back to the point in question.

Can you guess which of the below brands has just been redesigned?

When an agency is tasked to undertake a redesign there should be a distinct research stage. Within this stage there should be a review of the competitor set. This enables the agency to review where the brand does or could differentiate. What brand positioning the competitors occupy. How will the rebrand align the packaging with the market vision, in this case"looking to reinforce the perception of Pipers as the tastiest crisp brand in Britain by discovering what makes the brand unique"

This product does not differentiate in the slightest. Pipers Crisps Co quite clearly just want to be in the mix. They have no desire to be a market leader, any market share will suffice.

If we dissect the design everything that works is already being utilised by competitors and everything that is unique doesn't.

The colour ways clearly work, Tyrells, Burts Chips and Kettle already have them, although it's funny that Walkers, the market leader, doesn't - think blue for Cheese and Onion.

The strong type in clean and bold colours helps navigation, this is all Burt's and Kettle use on their packs so is a good indication it works. I would question the position of the 'Made by Farmers' text, it occupies the sub brand location between brand and variant. I personally would drop the 'Trade Mark' at the top of the design and move this text here. I'm not sure that 'Made by farmers" is a very good brand positioning anyhow so they should have left this off completely. Other brands focus on the fact that they use British potatoes, hand cook the product, use only natural ingredients or keep British farms in business. I'm not sure consumers associate the art of crisp making with farmers, Pipers are making the same mistake as Jordans Cereal. Does a working farm with muddy fields, pigs, cows and hens evoke the write emotion when tucking into a bag of fresh and finest crisps? Has the farmer washed his hands after collecting eggs, mucking out the pens or miliking the cows?

The flavour origin such as 'Lye Cross Cheddar and Onion' is a new take on Burt's Chips 'Made in Devon', this will add provenance and help create parity with the competitor set, not differentiation but parity.

The Piper logo could become iconic, there is a natural energy about it, it reminds me of Johnnie Walker.

I would have preferred him not to be in a field, anywhere but a field. Is it about the piper or about being made by farmers? they are not the same thing and the design conflicts because of this dual message. I would have based the design around the use of the Piper. Who is he? where does he come from? how does it represent the brand? This design lends itself to a silhouette of a farmer not a piper.

If you blink you will miss this design on shelf, so many brands are not innovative, unique or up for a fight. What happened to brands that wanted to be no.1 or no.2 in the marketplace instead of settling for scraps.

Pavillion Garden - Herbal remedy?

2012-01-26T09:40:00.001Z

It would seem coincidental that not long after critiquing the new Twinings rebrand we have a new herbal tea offering by the UK's leading independent coffee roaster, Mathew Algie.

The brand is called Pavillion Gardens, the reason behind the name we are told is that 'Matthew Algie Esq. first began blending tea consignments in 1864, proudly packing them for Victorian Tea Pavilions.
I have a problem with the name on a few levels. The use of 'Pavillion' is quite clearly an attempt to create instant brand provenance and the use of 'Garden' to enforce organic and natural connotations. This all feels too contrived for my liking and straight from the beginners book of branding. More importantly the name will lack brand recall by the consumer which could be disastrous.

In the previous herbal tea review I mentioned that "Clipper have made green tea more accessible, yet in what must be a strategic move, Twinings have pushed herbal tea further into occasional and cultured drinking.". Pavillion Garden has a look that isn't too distant from Clippar but emotionally it is firmly in the Twinnings camp, segregating the category even further into elitism.

There are two environments i'd like you to consider. The first is the retailer. It is here where Pavillion Gardens will have the variants lined up in their branding glory. At point of purchase I do agree that the design has a quaint yet endearing quality which will attract the consumer to the aisle. In the consumer cupboard at home when only one variant has been purchased the design may just be a little too quirky, isolated and misunderstood.

One Darney Road, the agency behind the work, do need to be commended simply for the sheer effort in differentiating each variant with a unique illustration. They have chosen an individual teapot for each of the 10 teas rounded off with decorative foliage and wildlife that adds to the depth of 'magic'. I actually find the teapots very pretentious and would have preferred a single teapot to represent the entire brand, thereby using just the foliage and wildlife to bring the brand to life. This would have added an extra layer of consumer recognition but also allowed each variant to breath more naturally.
(assuming you have to use wildlife, this is a dangerous position to communicate to consumers, see my review of Jordans Cereal to see how you can get this very wrong).

The colours used throughout the range are soft and welcoming but I worry that they are not far enough apart. This worry is confounded by the fact that the variant roundel is small, lazy and offers no help to the consumer in navigating the range, it reminds me of a Powerpoint presentation, however harsh that may sound.

The top of the pack in general feels like an after thought. I get the impression that the agency put all their success down to the illustrative aspect of the pack. The logo doesn't fit with the style, the font is all wrong and I can't help but feel it gives the impression of being mis-registered. I would categorically never change the logo colour to match the variant, the logo holds most of the brand promise. Semiotics will tell you that colours represent emotions and connections, how can a consumer subconsciously understand what you are and what you represent when they see you as pink, orange, green, blue and even more so when off pack when it becomes black.

The packs have a theme that the logo, variant descriptor and illustration are the same tone of colour, I have noticed that some variants have had to make subtle adjustments, such as liquorice and peppermint, to accommodate the two contrasting flavours.
I mentioned on a previous post that 'A truly great execution would not have these inconsistencies'

Overall, the new brand has appeal but I would be surprised if it takes any market share from Clippar or Twinings. Consumers of Clippar will believe that Pavillion Garden is a choice alternative to Twinings and consumers of Twinings will believe that Pavillion Garden is a choice alternative to Clippar. This is what happens when you don't find a point of difference and relevant voice, you end up sitting on the fence.

Asda Smart Price - Smarter way to spend your money?

2012-01-20T15:47:00.003Z

Earlier in the month I reviewed the much anticipated M Savers range by Coley Porter Bell.
Coincidentally another large retailer with the help of another prestigious design agency are also relaunching their value range.

Step forward Asda Smart Price by Elmwood.

My immediate reaction is that both Asda and Elmwood understand the role that a value range should play. In another article 'Is there any value in brands' I expressed that 'Supermarkets very rarely show their own brands in advertising but by talking price I believe they subconsciously drive consumers towards their value ranges.' Asda currently have their 10% price promise and I would defy you not to see the Smart Price range jumping back at you. There is a direct correlation between the Master brand promise and the value range.

Moving onto the design, we see that it is more of an evolution than a rebrand, the colour ways remain and the architecture is very much keeping with the previous design. The major change being the creation of a new logo.

I feel that this is the right step for the brandmark, moving away from the italic to a bold and clearly defined font. The logo feels like it is in keeping with the zeitgeist of our time. During global recession it's important to create clarity and distinction in the market place. Consumers will immediately understand the value proposition of this commodity brand and what it represents. Asda are backing up their price guarantee further with this rebrand. I do have an issue with the choice of two greens, one being cold and the other warm. I know they are still trying to create a parent and sub brand tier but the greens are too close to do anything other than conflict. This is the same issue I had with the Twinings redesign.

Because the hierarchy of pack and colours are generally consistent across the entire range, the consumer knows where to look and how to navigate the aisles, a big plus for a value proposition. The pack has a nice balance between being seen on shelf but not causing undue embarassment in the consumer trolley.

From a supply chain perspective Elmwood could have and should have been smarter with the number of colours used, although the range portfolio of colours is low enough to run back to back printing. I can also see some inconsistencies in the use of a serving suggestion - the multipack dip selection has photography whilst the mint sauce doesn't. A truly great execution would not have these inconsistencies and for that Elmwood needs to be marked down.

I personally would make that Asda 1-0 Morrisons, Elmwood 1- 0 Coley Porter Bell.

03/02/12
Here's value for you. Asda have introduced the 7p VAlentines Card

Is there Value in Brands?

2012-01-18T11:16:00.008Z

Can supermarket value ranges ever be a brand and should they try?

Let me start by explaining my thoughts on what constitutes being a brand.

A brand is effectively your business, business is the first letter of the branding acronym and essentially the most important. The company should be able to live the brand promise and thereby focus all the attention to a common goal. The brand is the business after all.

The consumer as a result should be able to recognise the brand and it's promise through the design, messaging, price, function and external engagement such as tv advertising and internet sites. I'm a strong believer that brands should contract their category and offer a single minded solution, the consumer will identify with any extra benefits and added value you give them, resulting in much needed brand equity but also category leadership, not to be confused with being the market leader.

What about companies that have multiple brands? The aim here is to ensure that each brand functions as a single business (that happens to use the same supply chain as other brands within the organisation). Where most companies go wrong is that they they also use the same sales, NPD, and insight teams who live the company and not the brand. The brand will naturally erode when this happens (there will be a follow up article on this point).

What about supermarkets?

Supermarkets are essentially distributors of products and therefore distributors of brands. That is only part true, they are primarily distributors of their own brands given that 60% of the product stocked is their own label. Supermarkets operate on a Master brand structure. Every product carries the retailer logo and then sub branded accordingly(exception being Aldi).

With 1000's of products covering 3 price points - premium, mid-range and value and a multitude of categories how can we engage with the individual brands? We can't, it's impossible! The retailers have sub branded so much that you can actually buy 6 different types of Tesco Lasagne including Finest, Light Choices and Value.

The retailers also know this when they advertise which is why the brand is represented as the service. Consumers pick a retailer based on location, price, quality of goods, service and overall experience. Advertising campaigns are always about promoting the service brand to make location less of an issue and price and experience more so.

In these advertising campaigns supermarkets very rarely show their own brand but by talking price I believe they subconsciously drive consumers towards their value ranges. It is no surprise therefore to see value ranges closely matching the Master brand colours. Value is blue and red, Basics is orange, Smart Price is green and white. The key purpose to associate low prices with the Master brand. It is in part this reason that left me confused by the M Savers rebrand that doesn't link back to the Morrisons Master brand in any way at all. Value ranges operate as consumer commodities. It does not excite or increase shopper experience but offer a price function. The range should be easy to navigate around store and be clearly noticed on shelf.

Morrisons and Coley Porter Bell have tried to create a brand with the M Savers range but why and for what reason. If Retailers put all their marketing spend behind the Master brand where will the spend come to highlight the functions and benefits of the M Savers range now that the M Savers brand is separate from the Morrisons Master brand. Whilst Tesco, Asda and Sainsbury's continue to enforce their own overarching Master brands this marketing spend will always dwarf that of the M Savers range. Morrisons will either therefore have a new range that gets very little marketing spend or a marketing spend that is divided between the Master brand and that of the disparate sub brands of M Savers and M Kitchen etc. The brand will of course sell because brand awareness is present simply by the fact that it will be on shelf at every Morrisons store, it would have sold better however if it had been designed in green and yellow and introduced the word Morrisons instead of the 'M' roundel.

I believe that the supermarket retailers should contract their brands to only cover 3 offerings, premium, healthy and low price, only then can they really start to create brands and put clear and concise promises against these brands OR one step further and create brands within each category, this needs to be an all or nothing approach not disparate like Morrisons. The resulting Master brand would not be so eroded and so generically sold across so many platforms. A large part of consumer purchase is on shelf brand awareness, if they added engagement and equity, profits could go through the roof. Aldi currently rebrand each consumer offering differently such as the brands Belmont biscuits and Diplomat tea. There is much to be admired in this approach and does conform to my ethos but there are still many pitfalls so again will warrant a follow up article.

let me know your thoughts.

Packaged, wrapped and slightly opinionated

Twinings - green with envy?

2012-01-13T11:53:00.011Z

Earlier in the week I spoke about Jordan's cereal redesigning in time for a January launch and it seems another health brand is trying to follow suit. BrandOpus have finished the new packaging for the Twinings Green tea range.

As a green tea drinker I have recently changed brand from Twinings to Clipper, this was a price decision based on my assumption that neither brand afforded me any greater health benefits so why not save a few pennies. Clipper are currently on market trend with their packaging using a quirky illustration style, territory the

M Savers range has tried to copy, whilst also pushing their Fairtrade credentials. Twinings on the other hand are aspirational, authentic and rooted in quality, have they managed to pull this off with their rebrand?

I so want to say yes but under close inspection it hasn't succeeded.

The gold brand mark, royal stamp and deep green on the top of the pack work beautifully, creating a real sense of occasion. A fresh evolution on the previous static banner design. The product feels natural and healthy exuded by the green now flowing around the Twinings holding device.

Moving downwards the design erodes and becomes conflicting. The light green is clinical and cold in direct contrast to the warm golds and greens at the top of the pack. The architecture of the pack is all wrong. For a consumer with a split second to decipher your brand I still believe the product should read - Brand, Sub brand and variant. This new design has the variant over-arching the sub brand, to the point where the sub brand changes size and position throughout the 4 variants.I would have Twinings, Green Tea, variant ie Jasmine.
I guess there'll be a few Jasmine lovers who end up with Mango and Lychee. I do however like the choice of font, it gives a sense of ethnicity.

The imagery for the pack leaves me slightly bewildered. This will have something to do with the fact that BrandOpus commissioned a fashion illustrator, Tobie Giddio for the imagery. The product shots are now somewhat abstract and a loose representation of the ingredients within. I feel that agencies do our industry a disservice when we commission outside sources. We are supposedly the masters of packaging yet go to others when we really want to get creative..not a good signal to send. The consumer will have no idea that these designs were commissioned and will not engage with Twinings because of this, they will however care that they have no idea what the product is.

So all in all we have a pack with confusing architecture, abstract imagery and conflicting colour ways. I feel that the design will keep existing customers but may struggle to entice new customers into the category. Clipper have made green tea more accessible yet in what must be a strategic move, Twinings have pushed herbal tea further into occasional and cultured drinking.

Check out my review on a new Herbal tea brand called Pavillion Garden

Jordans Cereal- Field of dreams?

2012-01-11T14:17:00.010Z

It’s January.
A time to clear the pantry of all those sugary delights, sign up to expensive gym membership and cut down on booze and fags.The British community has a four week surge of energy and optimism closely followed by 11 months of couch potato-itis.

It is therefore not surprising that Jordans, the cereal brand, have redesigned their packaging in time for a January Launch.

In a world of healthy cereal that covers such staples as muesli, granola and porridge oats, Jordans are trying to have a ‘point of difference’ a reason to purchase. They do this through a 10% land commitment to wildlife habitats. This seems to be their brand promise, so much so that the logo states ‘Caring for the British countryside’. Whilst very commendable and also very single minded in a crowded market, it feels like strange ground to flog so heavily. Dorset Cereal states that they are honest, tasty and real and Alpen ‘the original swiss recipe’ so whilst Jordan are doing good behind the scenes I’m not sure I would base my entire refresh around getting this communication into the minds of the consumers, could a flash not have sufficed.

It has been billed as a new packaging identity and range design I would call it nothing more than a brand refresh.1HQ, the creative agency behind the refresh have stated “Jordans’ Countryside Commitment puts the brand in a unique position – cereals that are good for you, and good for the British Countryside. Birds, bees and butterflies all benefit from new habitats in the 10% of land that farmers actively manage as part of the Conservation GradeTM scheme. The previous pack designs had started to hint at these nature credentials, but in a very understated way. We have created a much more holistic design with the whole pack telling the story. The mill has been moved to a more fitting abundant landscape and the mill itself has been renovated to incorporate a water wheel which avoids the past confusion. We have used texture and depth of colour to add richness and taste appeal, and the foreground illustration of wild flowers and oats tells the Conservation GradeTM story, combined with the butterfly window delivering real honesty.’

My fundamental problem with this new design…it feels like it should be in the pet or garden aisle of a supermarket, the design cues make me think of both bird and lawn seed, sometimes on their own or occasionally as a combined offering. Buy lawn seed that is also good for the birds oh and it’s butterfly friendly too.

Heres my reasoning.

The logo in black and white isn’t very foody or taste appealing, long term it also isn’t very ownable, add in the brand promise of being good to the countryside and if I was to do research in isolation against this brandmark I would get responses such as weed killer, fertilizer, lawn seed and many more ‘Family Fortune’ responses. Moving down the pack you would therefore think it would soften and focus on being appetizing and tasty. This doesn’t materailse, the remainder of the pack is a panoramic horizon of the countryside with a field and prominent flowers in the foreground…are we sure it’s not fertiliser. The design is then nicely finished with a butterfly shape cut out to expose the product within. When has a butterfly been synonymous with breakfast cereal, is there a piece of semiotics out there I’ve missed. In previous blogs I’ve championed the use of substrate and product to do more, so I can’t be too critical of the FOP cut out, yet muesli is hardly worth showing, Dorset Cereals have also fallen into this trap of showing us the wonderful wheat, dried fruit and nutty bits. Note to Cereal manufacturers, this product looks like hamster food, I would strongly advise using a wonderful photographic shot with the ‘serving suggestion’ text hidden nicely away.

Heres what I do like, and It’s not an extensive list. I like the use of rich colours , they feel very wintery and evoke warm emotions. This won’t be ownable by the brand however so my favourite part is easily replicable. I also like the side panels more than the FOP, which can never be good.

My gut feeling is that the agency have allowed the marketers too much say in a direction that isn’t right for a crowded category. Whilst Weetabix talk about ‘Fuel for big days’ for the whole family, Jordans are busy promoting the countryside to a consumer set that is prodominently inner city urbanites. Does the consumer even really understand this message more than the green wholegrain banner of Nestle? My money would say that they don’t and that the average consumer believes the juggernaut that is Nestle is better for the environment than Jordans.

A strong branding rule states that you should contract your category where possible but don’t reposition your category to be sold directly from B&Q and Wickes. That might be a marketing step too far.

08/2/12
See what I think of the new TV commercial and whether it received a warmer reception than the packaging.

M Savers - Value for Money?

2012-01-09T14:13:00.012Z

Morrisons and Coley Porter Bell (CPB) have almost finished the largest rebrand of 2011. The purpose of the rebrand is to increase market share of their own label offering, presumably both in house and from the other major Mults.

Included in the rebrand is a new name; M Savers, not to be confused with Superdrug Savers.
I presume this has been done to clearly communicate the brand message, but it is nothing more than a distraction on the packaging and a new buzz word floating around head office.

We are told that 'The new designs confidently express the Morrisons brand with an iconic charcoal grey roundel bearing the letter M in white'. There is nothing iconic when you have just created it. To be iconic it must be instantly recognisable, which to do so would need to be yellow and green.
We know however that this would add two extra colours to the packaging, a big no no for value packaging.

Dieline states this is a Beautiful example of a two color packaging for a value product line!
I presume they therefore are counting grey and the main spot. Not all of the packaging will come in a white substrate (look at the fairy cakes below) so instantly we need to add a white. there will also be a black for the barcode and eyemark. Now if the rest of the range will not be made from CMYK and a spot per packaging that will be 350 colours added to your supply chain complexity and a big pat on the back from Sun Chemicals. I would guess all these pieces are on average anywhere between 3 and 4 colours. This would explain why we now have an 'Iconic' grey roundall. I'm very surprised CPB have created a range introducing over 350 colours when the existing has a total portfolio of 2 core colours.

Moving onto the illustration I have reservations. This style is very now, something which value ranges don't necessarily chase, the reason being is that when this trend finishes and is no longer cool, it's very expensive to change. I feel that Morrisons are already behind, this style has been around for sometime and roll-out is scheduled over the next 18 months. Even one of the Mult already does this style....
Packaging will have moved direction before the range has even been fully implemented.

I can tell that Morrisons have done a lot of research about what we as a consumer wants.
CPB state "Research shows that consumers are often ashamed to be seen with them. But with the economy stalled for the foreseeable future, value ranges will be competing on more than just price. We wondered why shouldn’t entry level products have some charm and engagement?”
The problem with research is that it is based around the questions asked, ask the wrong questions and it doesn't matter if the answer is right.

My personal opinion is that i'm never ashamed of the basic print on value ranges i'm ashamed of the block colour and it's always been block white that makes me go most red. So whilst the design is quirky on some levels it still going to be hidden at the bottom of my trolley, albeit not as obvious as the yellow and green of current.

Question: Does the M Savers Bitter look charming or cheap?

I'm going to put my hat in the ring and say that this new design will perform worse than what is currently on shelf. For a range of products that is all about price it's important to get noticed, something that the existing design does in abundance.

16/1/12

Since going to press I have been back into store and can confirm my worst fears, the new brand does disappear into the background. Now is the best time to review the packaging as it currently sits alongside the old yellow and green design, which for all it's flaws does stand out on shelf. Another point worth noting is that some of the packs struggle for relevant imagery. I saw kitchen towels with an electronic mixing bowl, nappies using a dog and jam victoria sponge using just raspberries on pack. I think the consumer is going to struggle to navigate the aisles for the M Savers range and even when located the consumer may not be clear as to what the packaging represents. Most decisions are made in the blink of an eye.

I have written a secondary follow up blog to help explain the strong viewpoint expressed here. Check it out and let me know what you think.

Is there Value in Brands

21/1/12

Asda have now redesigned their value range see how it compares to the Morrisons M Savers range

Smarter way to spend you money

31/1/12

Now that the full range is in store I've reviewed whether this has made a difference to my viewpoint.

25% up, down or inconsistent

You've been Tango'd

2012-01-04T08:36:00.005Z

The guys in Essex will be happy as too will Britvic, the makers of our favourite soft drink, theres even a mobile phone network slightly gleaming. Pantone have announced the Pantone colour of the year for 2012.

For those that aren't familiar with this event, Each year Pantone, our colour bible, will declare a particular "Colour of the Year". The colour is chosen to purportedly connect with the zeitgeist.

2011

"In times of stress, we need something to lift our spirits. Honeysuckle is a captivating, stimulating color that gets the adrenaline going – perfect to ward off the blues.

2010 was just as uplifiting,

Turquoise inspires thoughts of soothing, tropical waters and a comforting escape from the everyday troubles of the world, while at the same time restoring our sense of wellbeing.

One more for you, back in 2009,

In a time of economic uncertainty and political change, optimism is paramount and no other color expresses hope and reassurance more than yellow.

"The color yellow exemplifies the warmth and nurturing quality of the sun, properties we as humans are naturally drawn to for reassurance. Mimosa also speaks to enlightenment, as it is a hue that sparks imagination and innovation.”

So what does our future hold for 2012, what do our friends at Pantone believe we need in 2012?

Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute has issued a press release.

Tangerine Tango, a spirited reddish orange, continues to provide the energy boost we need to recharge and move forward. Sophisticated but at the same time dramatic and seductive, Tangerine Tango is an orange with a lot of depth to it. Reminiscent of the radiant shadings of a sunset, Tangerine Tango marries the vivaciousness and adrenaline rush of red with the friendliness and warmth of yellow, to form a high-visibility, magnetic hue that emanates heat and energy.”

I for one am happy with the choice for this year. In a strange twist of fate i'm not a big fruit lover nor an avid orange eater but in my desire to get fit and healthy in 2012 I purchased a bag of fruit yesterday morning. Can you guess what it was? yep a bag of Tangerines.

I think the futures bright, the futures Orange

26/03/12
Clever Collaboration
Pantone and Sephora have collaborated to launch a make up range focussing on the Pantone colour of the year. This marks the first in a what will surely be an annual agreement. Previously pantone had only really produced Cups and Mugs etc but this signifies a licensing agreement that could have a huge impact on our daily lives. I can see the commerciality of Pantone reaching further afield than just cups and make-up.

What's your branding acronym

2011-12-20T12:30:00.008Z

Yesterday I surfed the net and could not stop reading. I came across hard copy reports in the office that I read front to back. I even found reports via the internet that I printed out to read on the way home. It was only when I woke up this morning that I realised that everything I read talked about the same topic...Brands.

Before I digress into my findings I would recommend yesterdays reading list, all 250 pages worth.

The Grocer -

Top Products Survey 2011: Heroes and Hurdles

Family Brands -

Now in its third year, the nationwide consumer study explores which of the UK’s brands are seen to promote and support family values.

JKR Design Gazette-

Champions of Design - Free Thinking

Back in the day a brand was just a product with a associated name, so that we could distinguish between baked beans, plum tomatoes and suet pudding....not anymore,

The word brand seems to encompass everything you are and do, it has become your entire identity and the personality of that identity. The tone of voice, a catchphrase, the packaging that holds the product. Point of purchase, a logo, a colour or structure.The uniform of the staff members. how they say hello and goodbye. Online presence, your facebook page, what you tweet. Your refund policy, quality control, price point. What your commercials say and do, which famous celeb endorses these commercials, even when you air your commercial. If we take it to the extreme your brand can even own Santa Claus (Coca- Cola), trademark a smell (Chanel No.5) or even invent a new meaning for a word (tweet by Twitter).

So now we know that a brand means more than it used to why not create an acronym of the word to give it greater substance. I thought this would be easy but not all brands wish to be aspirational or desirable which I thought would be nailed on words for A and D respectively...drum roll please

Business, Reputation, Accessibility, Needs, Design, Strategy

Heres my thinking

Business

A brand is now so far reaching and at the forefront of what you do that it has actually become your business. When we talk brand we talk business.

McDonalds simplified their logo, refit their restaurants, created new healthier menu's and produced advertising based on people engaging with them. The purpose to reposition their brand perception amongst the fast food loving community of the great british isles. The sole marketing purpose of changing the fortunes of the UK arm of McDonalds, who have come under stiff competition from the perceived healthier options such as Subway.

Reputation

They take an age to build but a moment to destroy. Premier foods have had a disastrous time of late including a profit warning, Tesco delist, change of directorate, commodity price rises across of the sector and loss of a pie contract to name but a few. As a consumer we don't care, we aren't aware that Premier own Hovis, Mr Kipling and Bisto, why would we? But dare to have a quality issue like they have and serious lasting damage can be caused. When news broke that two children were rushed to hospital due to potential botulism poisoning after eating one of its brands, a Lloyd Grossman curry sauce, Premier were forced at speed to not only save the brand but all 40 within their portfolio. We as a consumer do now take an interest in what brands they make. Quality and reputation go hand in hand and without either you will have no brand, well not one that we will purchase.

Accessibility

It's now more important than ever that you get your consumers to interact with your brand, both socially and economically. Do you have enough presence? can you be seen online? are you targeting the correct demographic? do the right retailers stock your goods? The easier you make it for your consumers to find you the more successful your brand will be. That doesn't mean throw money in the wrong direction, establishing growth in the right markets at the right pace is a trick in itself.

M&S have just rediscovered how to be accessible, they had a good grounding with a store in every town centre but have focussed hard on rediscovering who they are, encompassed by using celebs such as the X-Factor stars, Take That and Twiggy. M&S have finished as the top brand for families in a nationwide survey for 2011, I'd say that was strong recognition for who they are.

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Needs

If you're an established brand you must evolve to ensure your are hitting the needs of your consumer in our ever changing modern world. If you are starting out it is imperative that you understand if there is a need for your brand at all. What makes you different, unique and relevant today! If there is no demand then it is pointless creating any kind of supply. Innocent smoothies hit the market at exactly the right time for the health conscious 5 a day society. They are now synonymous with all things smoothie this enables them to price point highly yet remain the leading brand, their reputation proceeds them. NPD and marketing should be at the top of any list to ensure consumers needs are met. A quick look at the Innocent portfolio will show you that this brand has everything covered.

Design

Appeal and recognition are at the heart of every brand on the market, get the design right and the brand has a very strong chance of being successful. Color, structure and content all tell us something about who you are and what you represent. The area between functionality and emotion is now blurring and research will tell you varying facts but what remains true is the consumer wants to feel like you want them to buy your brand and that you will be grateful for their purchase. Experience, engagement, special offers we buy into the whole piece. Great brands stay with you for a lifetime, brands such as Coca-cola, Kodak, Apple and Levi's. I recently saw the below image of big brands paying design homage to a british institution, Selfridges..how inspiring.

Strategy

If the acronym starts with business then it makes sense to end with strategy, given this is what drives your business at any given time. As with reputation, strategy is a potential hot potato that can have wonderful or disastrous results on the brand depending on whether you have it spot on or miles off. Although the beauty of strategy is that you can change it at any given time. Most companies will have a whole array of people who think they know strategy more than the next. The truth is that great brands sell themselves, it's the sub standard brands that need the most strategic input.
I will never forget the ROM bar, a chocolate bar failing in the hearts of the the Romanian public, the marketing strategy - pretend that the Americans have saved the day and rebrand the design to have the stars and stripes of the USA Flag, then when you have a renewed guile of patriotism and national pride change the bar back, then sit back and watch as you brand once again becomes the most popular in the market.

A wonderful piece of engagement strategy is the The Smirnoff Nightlife Exchange Project.
The bold goal of inspiring 10 million people in 50 countries to discover, share and swap their most original nightlife experiences all intertwined with facebook, nightclubs and networking, such a strong brand positioning for an alcoholic brand.

So there is my acronym

BRANDS
Business, Reputation, Accessibility, Needs, Design, Strategy

Do you agree?

Packaged, wrapped and slightly opinionated.

Huntsman enter the Rugby Super league

2011-12-16T10:54:00.007Z

Now I don't want to seem like a one trick pony and write about similar products twice in a row but it is Christmas and therefore booze is important, is it not?

Earlier this week it was Stella Artois and today I turn my attentions to the No.2 bitter brand Tetley's, owned by Carlsberg UK.

Most marketers will look back on history and find a point of reference that they can clamp onto, and heres theres.....Paul Davies, director of brands at Carlsberg UK says "The Huntsman signifies quality and heritage. In many ways he never went away - but he is now back: front and centre again where he belongs.”

Now to be fair they did use the Huntsman for over 50 years so it is a significant part of the brand - but heres where I get confused. Back in 2000 at the height of the anti hunt movement Tetley's dropped its traditional huntsman logo and all marketing focussed around Rugby league, so much so that they had a rugby ball logo, sponsored the Leeds Rhino and the subsequent Super league they play in.

To move a brand away from upper class elitism (however tongue in cheek) and move into northern grass roots territory is fine but surely there is no way back when you decide to change your mind, are we as a consumer that forgiving???

To a point maybe we are if they had truly gone back to the Huntsman we know and love, the one where he has a cheeky face and a wry smile. I always thought that he could be your Grandad who won a few grand on a scratch card and forced his way up into upper class, the sort of stuff that feels aspirational yet warm and cosy. That however is not the case. The new logo has a Faceless man (although he does resemble Patrick Moore) in a potato print silhouette with a regimented type, a simplified version of the old rugby ball. The brand logo now has everything prim and proper, like a well ironed equestrian jacket. The brand now belongs even further up the elitist chain, yes it will retain existing consumers but i'll watch closely about the new wave of Bitter drinkers particularly when Bombardier and the No.1 Brand John Smith still serve the working class Britain, the crux of Bitter drinkers.

Taking all that to one side I really like the design for 'Original Bitter' it feels clean and the lines are well polished. wpaPINFOLD use the brand colours well and create a British twinge, everything feels fresh and the product has a sense of warmth . The consumer can easily work through the architecture of the pack, I like the signature stamp of approval that finishes the Can nicely.

I'm very disappointed with the Smooth Flow variant, everything that worked on Original now no longer works. The flowing lines completely violate the brand mark and off kilt the signature, it feels like a kaleidoscope of design..have we entered the twilight zone. I think the design budget had run dry when they got into this secondary variant, which is a shame as there is a shimmer of light associated with the 'Original' despite my reservation for the new approach.

I therefore love one design and hate another, isn't that what is great about design, it's so subjective.

I'm sure there must be pages and pages of research for Tetley's new position and packaging, research i'd love to see but for now the results will be proven by whether the top line increases, we are judged on the immediate after all.

19th December 2011
Since launching this review of Tetley's I mentioned that they'd be judged on top line increases. I have just picked up The Grocer Top Products Survey 2011and I can confirm that Tetley's Smooth Flow is up 22% thanks to both promotional activity and packaging refresh...there you have it.

Packaged, wrapped and slightly opinionated

Under the Christmas Star

2011-12-12T09:11:00.002Z

Back in August I mentioned that a great way to keep your brand fresh during a recession is through limited edition packaging. Limited editions allow your brand to be free, to pull down the economic gloom and change the mood of the consumer. I somewhat suggested that this is by far a cheaper alternative than packaging rebrands or above the line activity.

Stella Artois have chosen to do limited edition this Christmas but also add on the whole shebang with a strong
media campaign and Christmas album giveaway. Not really my point but who wants to listen to me anyhow!

I bet you'd much rather listen to the Western Marketing Director, James Watson as found on
Talking Retail

“Stella Artois is the quintessential Christmas beer and this year’s limited edition, eye-catching festive packaging truly captures the spirit of the celebratory season. Stella Artois is renowned for its discerning and pioneering brand activity, and this combination of exclusive packaging, high-profile advertising support and the innovative album download will ensure that Stella Artois is the top choice for beer consumers this Christmas.”

So onto the packaging.

Whilst I love the concept of 'Originally Crafted for Christmas' I feel that they have travelled deep into Budweiser territory. Anheuser-Busch must be either extremely flattered or a little peeved.

Stella Artois are now quite famous for being a little different and it is therefore no surprise that the packaging isn't overtly Christmas, Stella Artois takes its first name from the Latin for star and this is the premise for the packaging.

There is a rule within packaging that you don't touch on religious connotations even if it is 'Named after the Christmas star' - the bottom of the Can shows angel wings and a star (of bethlehem) which is a little too literal and leaves me feeling slightly uneasy - have Stella crossed the invisible line?

More alarmingly,when I first saw this in Tesco I didn't immediately understand that it was limited edition, which I believe is paramount to brand integrity, particularly when you have an entire gondola end staring back at you.

If the consumer cannot understand what they are looking at you risk diluting the Brand long term - maybe that is the reason for the above the line spend.....