What is the importance of co-branding and how should it be used? Watch this brief video to learn a few quick tips from Metropolis.
Brand Ambassadors — Build Your Army
October 20th, 2010
It doesn’t take much effort to get noticed, but it does take some.
Your last experience with a brand is your last impression of that brand. How friendly is that UPS driver? How helpful was the phone support person from Verizon? Was the Apple store sales rep helpful and genuine? I used to work for a print shop that made deliveries. The delivery guy didn’t really know his way around town, but he had the biggest smile and was always upbeat. Consequently, the customers loved him.
Brand Differentiation
Most people know that differentiating your brand is extremely important, but some may overlook customer service as the vehicle for achieving this. When I experience great customer service, I remember it. Don’t you? I tell my friends, I tell strangers via Twitter, and my brand perception is affected. This weekend, I had a wonderful experience with The Hawthorne Hotel in Salem, MA. On Saturday, I tweeted that I was looking for restaurant suggestions in Salem for that night. Someone under the hotel’s name tweeted me back. The conversation resumed over the phone and even though they were booked solid that night, she said she would get us a table. She even gave me the phone number of the hostess’ station and the hostess’ name. When we got into town, I called the station. Sure enough, she said she knew I was coming. We had maybe a 10-minute wait in their comfortable lobby before we were seated. Keep in mind, October is Salem’s busiest month of the year. The atmosphere and food were excellent, but more importantly, I felt like a movie star — getting into a packed restaurant all because someone cared enough to reach out to me on Twitter. Was it a lot of work on her part? Not really, but the Hawthorne Hotel has made me a fan for life.
Toot Your Own Horn
It is important to let people know the great things that you and your team are doing. Companies do amazing things all the time and I don’t think they talk about it enough. Twitter, Facebook, company blogs and news pages are perfect vehicles to tell these brief but relatable stories. Years ago, when we were rebranding Holly Cleaners in Newton, a “high-end” dry cleaning company, we started digging for some news (desperately hoping that a dry cleaner would have something interesting to say). They brought up a story about a customer’s wedding dress. About a week before the wedding, they had the customer’s dress laid out on a table to be dry cleaned and a ceiling fixture crashed down on top of the dress. They called the bride-to-be and explained the catastrophe, but assured her that she would have a new dress on her wedding day. They then proceeded to hire a well-known dress designer to rebuild the dress using much nicer materials than the original. The customer ended up with an amazing dress in time for her wedding – at no charge of course. Our jaws dropped — why hadn’t they broadcast this story before?
You Don’t Ask, You Don’t Get
Ask your customers for recommendations or to participate in your online discussions. At Metropolis, we use the launch of a project as a perfect way to recap with the client. We write a press release and ask for the client’s input. We also ask for some kind of quote to put in the release. Point existing and potential customers to your blog posts and ask for their input. Engage with them on their own blogs and other social media sites too.
Reach Out, Grow Your Network
Once you identify who you should be marketing to, talk with them. Join discussion groups on LinkedIn and offer helpful advice. Network in person and connect people. As long as you’re personable and genuinely helpful, you’ll be remembered in a positive light. The more active you are, the more memorable you become (simple advertising — right?) The larger your network, the more valuable it will be when you need it. You may not have a newsletter that you’re sending out right now, but you should still be collecting names for your database. Don’t wait until you actually need a network to start growing it.
Communication and networking takes time, but it’s worth it. Spend some time with your online community and start building your army of brand advocates now!
Guess Who’s Trying Too Hard To Be Cool?
August 17th, 2009
What is it with brands trying to manufacture cool these days? You couldn’t exactly do it in 5th grade, why do you think you can do it now?
Recently, Pizza Hut has tried it with sort-of changing their name to “The Hut”, Radioshack did the same move by sort-of rebranding to “The Shack” (I say sort-of because officially both companies denied a full name change), and Microsoft’s leaked retail concept is heavily Apple store inspired.
What do all of these examples have in common? They are trying to manufacture cool. After all, when did you ever think of these brands as cool? Pizza Hut dining experience cool? Please.
We’ve been seeing that most of the feedback from these examples has been negative. It’s easy to say they are mistakes, because its clear that the brand is trying too hard. The advertising spin and copycat models that try to cover up real problems are so transparent it hurts. Relax. You don’t have to be a cutting edge company to be cool. Look at office supply company W.B. Mason. How can you do it?
1. Have Genuine Passion
No one likes a company that does something half-assed. Be passionate about what you do, even if its selling paper-clips, and do it fanatically well. Chances are, your community is just as passionate as you are.
2. Know Your Brand
Passion usually doesn’t show up in companies that don’t have a solid knowledge of who they are, what they do, and how they fit in to the marketplace. Pizza Hut and Radioshack both come to mind. Know exactly who you are, what you do, and own your spot with meaningful value.
3. Have Fun
I always love brands that poke a little fun at themselves, and aren’t afraid to lighten up. Being cool is being relaxed and not trying too hard.
In short: Be genuine, have passion, know your brand, and don’t be afraid to have fun.
PS. Have you seen the very cool offer from Metropolis to help keep your brand coolness in check? Click here.
Does Your Brand Have the Power of a Super Villain?
May 18th, 2009
Everyone needs a brand. Super villains decidedly stand out as brand identity czars. Identities are created that are memorable and recognizable in various formats.
As a basic handbook, you can’t beat Neil Zawacki’s manual, “The Villain’s Guide to Better Living.” It covers such important topics as how to choose an appropriate lair, how to motivate your minions, and even resume writing tips. Aside from the obviously practical advice in this book, many of the topics help define the villain’s personal brand by building on every aspect of their image.
When proper planning isn’t done, you can end up more like the aptly named Mystery Men – unclear on who they are, and what they do.
Last year during the writer’s strike, Joss Whedon seized the down-time (anyone have any down-time right now?) to write a personal pet-project of his own, “Dr. Horrible’s Sing-A-Long Blog”. We see Dr. Horrible work on his evil laugh, and try to get respect from not only the evil community itself, but from his potential love-interest.
http://www.hulu.com/embed/Z4kt7M5Uta51JuIDJV6HeQ
It’s interesting that even though Dr. Horrible is a “bad guy”, he is branded with “good guy” colors (all white). And the hero Dr. Hammer, who turns out to be arrogant and selfish, wears all black. (Other good villain colors are red, and sometimes neon green).
The design of a villain’s costume, logo, and calling card must all be truly evil and impressive. Memorable icons and graphics, contrasting colors, and occasional flair are key to create a powerful brand. Additionally, allies such as business partners and organizations will help give your own brand additional power.
Help your brand to take over the world by:
1) Defining your brand identity
2) Applying your brand to your marketing strategy (evil or not)
3) Listening to your audience and respond to their reaction
PS. Who’s your favorite or most feared super villain?
Are Your Branding Strategies and Website Design on the Same Page?
May 14th, 2009
Prospects and even current clients judge your website when making a buying decision. It could be their first impression or their information source for your news. If your website doesn’t match your brand and marketing strategy, you may be losing customers.
Put your website to a test to see if it matches your messaging. Here’s how:
- Does your latest sales/marketing brochure design (or even your business card) match your website design? Are the colors the same? Are the fonts the same? How about dots versus dashes between phone numbers? Do they convey a consistent message about your company, product/services?
- Ask someone who is unfamiliar with your company/product to read your homepage and reply with a quick summary of your messaging and how to contact you. Was this person able to easily identify your targeted message, reach you and receive a reply?
- Ask a salesperson or company spokesperson to use your homepage and present it’s content to you as if you know nothing about the company. Does the homepage really match your elevator pitch and have a compelling call-to-action?
- Make a list of 5 adjectives that describe your targeted audience. If your list includes young, hip, trendy, swank… be sure to have contempo images and slick technology like Flash animation.
In summary, everything you put in front of a customer should have a consistent message. Every ad, every brochure, your website, corporate identity elements, etc. An integrated campaign works wonders when designed professionally by a single designer or agency.
Content is king. Keeping your website updated with fresh, high-quality, informative content positions you as an expert in your field. People want to do business with experts. Moreover, keep your information current. An outdated news page makes one wonder if you are still in business. New content also provides protein for search engine spiders.
A website that is designed with all of your marketing activities in mind will reinforce trust in your capabilities, increases sales and build your brand online.
PS. Don’t have time to put your website to the test? I’ll do it for you. Send me your url.
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