Monthly Archives: February 2012

To All You Brands Out There

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Specifically the ones that don’t take branding seriously:

Branding matters, a lot, no matter how big or small your business, even if you have 6 Likes on your Facebook page. Remember, every single time your business is represented in relation to your customers and the general public, whether it be a Tweet, a sale or an ad, it all affects your brand image. And not only can your brand image affect your sales and reputation, but it can affect the entire future of your business.

Your brand isn’t necessarily defined by you; it’s defined by consumers, and the way they perceive your business. And that perception partially comes from what you have put out into the ether. Influencing that perception occurs in a number of ways, from the content of your website, to your logo, to your advertising, especially the experiences customers have with your company. All of these things (among others) contribute to your brand’s identity.

If you own a small business, do not make the mistake of thinking this kind of neurotic concern for brand development only applies to large, global brands. It’s just as important to your business, especially if you’re in the early stages of brand development. Every “branding moment” matters, regardless of how minuscule some moments may seem to you. By “branding moment,” I mean, every opportunity your business has to influence or support your brand in the public eye. And the outcome of every moment applies a plus or minus to your branding scoreboard.

So take it seriously. After all, this is your business. A business you’ve probably made sacrifices for, a business that puts food on your table, and provides for your family… You probably put a lot of care into every aspect. Don’t leave branding out of it.

- Andrew

Click for photo source.

The Sport of Love… and Placement

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A tear-jerker of a Lifetime movie of the week, maybe Bravo’s latest gathering of domesticated and disturbing housewives or some classic TLC Kate (minus John) Plus 8… I couldn’t figure out what the heck (hey, we like to be family friendly at ADwërks, so I’ll leave out the expletives) my husband, Nate, would be doing watching anything but a television channel about, with, around, named after or related to sports.

You can walk into a room and wonder a lot of things about what your significant other may be doing, but grab a glance of the screen to see a life-size teddy bear, then you bear the burden of wonder and worry. So I ask him what he’s watching.

His answer: ESPN.

ESPN! ESPN? I wait a few seconds and listen to learn more about the life-size teddy bear (which in the wrong situation, could be creepier than a crew of clowns) that the voice-over espouses would bring joy to your wife, girlfriend or FWB when she receives the gift of an over-priced, over-stuffed toy for Valentine’s Day, even serving as a stand-in when your man cannot be there. (I don’t know what it says about a guy that he can be replaced by a 54-inch polyester carnivore. He may need a gift of a gym membership.)

Seconds later, a 20-something woman kicks her footed feet up to the camera, proclaiming what every girl must dream of getting from her fella, leopard print footed pajamas, courtesy of PajamaGram. It’s then Nate waxes poetic about every type of teddy, Puritan-teddy ala PajamaGram and floral confection available for last minute ordering, and he sheepishly admits he visited each of their websites.

It made me realize, roses may be red, but the true color of Valentine’s Day must be green. For advertisers, for the love of the game means the game of placement. We talk about knowing your audience, understanding your target, comprehending your competitor, but none of it matters if it goes where no one you want to see, sees it. Somewhere along the lines, the makers of mail order teddy bears, pajamas and flowers figured this out. They also figured out it doesn’t matter if women don’t want to lounge around in pajamas with ears and tails. They just need to get to the guys with copy laced with racy double entendres. While I find the fashion of the hoodie footie jammies horrifying, Nate describes the horror movie plot line that becomes real life around Valentine’s Day shopping. A fear these companies learned to master and conquer (like a valiant hero of any host of Katherine Heigel rom-coms) with perfect placement.

Now if only the Real Housewives could show me the perfect procrastinator’s gift.

DISCLAIMER: After reading this, Nate wanted to be sure no one thought he “actually bought any of that crap.”

- Jolene

What’s In A Name

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Celebrities name their children after fruit, colors, numbers and even cities. (Or in the case of one psuedo-celebrity, Press. Yes, Press, for all the attention she allegedly did and will receive.) Us common-folk laugh at birth certificates filled with words more commonly used on spelling flash cards for first graders. But the stand-out-in-the-crowd naming mentality does not start or stop with preschoolers hounded by the paparazzi.

These superlative skills also flood companies and products. Want something in HD, you get your pick of makeup, movies or sunglasses. Then there’s extreme (or EXTREME or even X-TREME) for games, pop or memory cards. And the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show introduced ultra – ultrabooks, ultracomputers and ultratelevisions.

Add to all of this, 3-D and ultimate, and you get the Ultra Ultimate Extreme HD 3-D phone, television, computer, apple, car or pajama jeans (ok, that may be a little extreme).

But it begs the question – Does an avalanche of adjectives actually help sell a product by moving it into the sphere of talked-about-ness, or does it end up disappointing? Does a name in itself create credibility, or cause chaos in an already overwhelmed marketplace?

Maybe in the end it’s not what’s in a name, but what’s in the product itself. If we sell people on exaggerated expectations, we often end up with disappointed consumers. So if a name brings with it the showmanship of an Elton John costume, but also delivers, it does the consumer some good by delivering what it promises. But when we brand an object outside of its personality and label it for headlines and not accuracy, well, it ends up like a 72-day Kardashian wedding, a lot of talk and even more gifts that should be returned.

And then there’s the guy who named his sons Winner and Loser. Names hold power, but the product (or the person) holds even more. As for naming children, she may not be a celebrity outside of her own yard, but we named our pug Mayhem Awesome. Unfortunately, as our furniture proves, she did not over-hype her name.

- Jolene

“Adjective” Photo by Procsilas Moscas, “Mayhem” photo by Jolene Loetscher

Branding & A Kennedy Half Dollar

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There’s a little sandwich shop not far from the office called Whiffer’s. It’s been there forever and as far as I can tell it only has one employee and that’s Whiffer. She owns the place, makes the sandwiches and soups and provides the witty banter as she makes your lunch. Whiffer has been running that little shop longer than I’ve been in Sioux Falls, and she is quite a character with a voice that reminds you of an aging Katherine Hepburn circa On Golden Pond.

It’s a quirky little joint on North Minnesota Avenue, on the cusp between a rough neighborhood and the industrial area surrounding Sioux Falls Regional Airport. The sign by the door says “Open 11 to 3ish.” As far as I know the extent of her advertising is the weathered old sign in front of the small converted house. And if you approach from the south the sign is hidden by a bush, from the north it’s obscured by a hill and some traffic signs.

But there are a few things you can always count on at Whiffer’s – a big overstuffed sandwich, great cookies and brownies and the cost of your meal will always be rounded to the nearest quarter of a dollar. And here’s where a little bit of branding genius comes in. When you get your change, Whiffer will hand you a Kennedy half dollar.

When was the last time you were given a 50-cent piece? For me, other than Whiffer, I think the last person to give me a Kennedy half dollar was my grandmother on my eighth birthday. A Kennedy half dollar was special. You saved them carefully in your piggy-bank along with the two-dollar bills and wheat pennies; they weren’t the kind of thing you spent willy-nilly. My wife still has her little ceramic bank full of them.

Now days, when I get a quarter, nickel or dime, I put it in the ashtray of the car as fodder for the parking meters. But the meters won’t take a 50-cent piece, so I set it on my desk. I’ve begun to collect quite a few Kennedy half dollars, and every time I look at one, or pick it up and toss it in the air, I think of Whiffer. And then I know what I’m doing for lunch.

I asked her about the Kennedy half dollars the other day and she told me when she requests them from the bank, they have to go back into the vault to get her the coins. This is not a decision she makes lightly. She likes the smile those half dollars put on her customers’ faces. She likes that she’s unique. And you know what, I think it’s pretty damn smart of that old gal. She’s turned an unusual piece of U.S. currency into her calling card, and that seems to me like some pretty shrewd branding.

Seriously, when was the last time you were handed a Kennedy half dollar?

- Jim Mathis

Realism – REMARKABLE ADVERTISING – Idealism

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Realism VS Idealism – In regard to philosophy, it’s an age old conflict – a constant struggle for balance between the imaginative child (idealist) and the pragmatic adult (realist). But it applies to advertising too. Advertising is comprised of these two contradictory concepts. Creativity meets business. And good advertising finds a balance between the two.

There are pros and cons to being an idealist, and being a realist. As an idealist, you can let your imagination and romantic dreams of grandeur soar without limits, unbound. But that child-like sense of wonder can sometimes result in all fluff, and no real action.  You aim high, sometimes so high, that you don’t attain anything, and you crash and burn. The realist is practical, accepts the reality of limits, and works within them. But the realist may run the risk of, not running any risks. And without taking risks, boundaries remain unbroken. You may be able to grasp what you’re reaching for, but it’s only at an average height, and your accomplishments may be lukewarm at best.

Among the many ways advertising can be considered bad, or so-so, failure to push boundaries is one of them. Remaining overly pragmatic will get you nowhere. If you stop taking risks, you stop learning. If you never push the limits, you’ll never create innovative work. However, creativity needs discipline. It needs a rational, yet open-minded voice to tell it what’s good and what’s bad. Otherwise, you’ll ending up with something like this Lincoln Auto Insurance ad, and no one wants that.

So, how do we do innovative work, without crashing and burning? First of all, that’s probably why the Creative Department is separate from the Account Department. But more than that, we must be realistic about our idealism (never-mind the paradox). Good advertising finds a balance between the two. It creates remarkable work, (or as my advertising professor used to say, “big-sky ideas”) that the agency can be proud of, and at the same time, it benefits the client in some way. With the realist on your left shoulder and the idealist on your right, try to give each an equal opportunity to be heard. And if you strive to approach each situation with this balance in mind, then you are on your way to creating remarkable advertising.

- Andrew