September 2006
Brand Strategy's Trends and News for September
Welcome to the eighth of our monthly newsletters!
Ruth Mortimer, editor (ruth.mortimer@centaur.co.uk) recommends…..
CUSTOMER-CREATED CHEVROLET
Customer-created content has been hot for a while. But as with all things, it seems the people involved are getting younger and younger. Chevrolet has been getting students to create its Super Bowl ad. Have the kids done good?:
More...........................................................................................................................
RELATIONSHIP ON THE ROCKS?
CRM is not the ‘sexiest’ business discipline. But it can yield results and focusing on understanding customers can never be a bad thing. But too many companies fail to strategically link their leads, case histories and systems. McKinsey explains where the relationship is falling apart:
More... (free registration needed)
........................................................................................................................
JUST (DON’T) DO IT
One of the strangest branding disputes in a long time has come to an end. Global sportswear giant Nike settled a case brought by local London council Hackney for intellectual property infringement. The council’s name and logo were used by Nike on a sportswear range sold worldwide. What’s next - Reebok creating the East End Local Swimming Pool range?
More...More...........................................................................................................................
SECOND LIFE BECOMES FIRST FOR EDUCATION
Brands have been going crazy for online virtual reality world Second Life (SL) for some time. But now Harvard Law School is launching a new course for people to take within SL - it isn’t the first class inside the game but when even prestigious education brands are doing it, shouldn’t you be there?
More...........................................................................................................................
GET YOUR HEAD AROUND THIS
Brands are always thinking of intellectual property rights. But the mind of Philip K Dick is on display as a ‘bot’ or automaton that has been fed with the late author’s words and comes out with new content. But is this copyright infringement at its most extreme - stealing someone’s brain? Make your own mind up:
More...More...........................................................................................................................
Morag Cuddeford Jones, contributing editor, (morag.cuddeford@centaur.co.uk) recommends….
BURBERRY VS “THE CHAVROLET”
Fashion house Burberry scored another own goal in its battle of wills with the UK's underclass, commonly termed 'chavs'. A seaside town in the south of England painted one of its quirky tuk-tuk taxis in the company's famous beige plaid, which earned it the moniker ‘The Chavrolet’. Despite legal warnings from Burberry to remove the plaid design, the story has spread across the UK - creating more unwanted associations for the upmarket brand.
More...More...........................................................................................................................
APPLE TAKES A BITE OUT OF DISNEY
Steve Jobs' appointment to the Disney board is already bearing fruit in the
form of brand synergies. In one of two major developments, Disney and Apple have confirmed that Disney films will be made available for download in their entirety onto Apple's Video iPods. As a result, Apple has modified its technology and iTunes service, allowing users to stream songs, photos and films from their computers to their televisions via set-top boxes.
More...........................................................................................................................
DON’T SKIP THE ADS!
International media group WPP and personal video recorder company TiVO have signed a deal to allow consumers access to infomercial-type ads without missing any of their pre-recorded programmes. The ads will appear as 'TiVO tags' on screen during the programmes, and can be viewed by clicking through the tag to more information. The deal is not said to be large-scale, accessing only five million of the 115m households in the US.
More...........................................................................................................................
Maeve Hosea, feature writer, (maeve.hosea@centaur.co.uk) recommends...
BRANDS CAPITALISE ON MONOPOLY
In the US, the classic Monopoly board game is being given a contemporary twist by game maker Hasbro. It is introducing branded tokens from brands such as McDonalds, Starbucks and Toyota. In the new edition Monopoly Here and Now, players can be represented by a miniature version of a Toyota Prius hybrid car, an order of McDonald's French fries, a New Balance running shoe, a cup of Starbucks coffee or a Motorola Razr mobile phone.
More...More...........................................................................................................................
LUXURY BRANDS BEWARE: SKINNY IS NOT PREMIUM
Spain's top fashion show has turned away a mass of models on the grounds they are too skinny. The Association of Fashion Designers of Spain believes that 30% of catwalk models have a low body mass index. It said it wanted models at the show, which runs from September 18-22 to project "an image of beauty and health" and shed a gaunt, emaciated look.
Brands beware of the fashion police.
More...........................................................................................................................
A GIFT FOR LAZY CONSUMERS
Dutch website Cadeaucode, which launched last week, lets present givers send gifts by text message. An interested giver goes to the company's website, enters the recipient's phone number and a message, pays by credit card, and a message containing a unique gift code is immediately sent to the recipient. The gift voucher is instantly redeemable online.
More...More...........................................................................................................................
Claudine Baker, feature writer, (claudine.baker@centaur.co.uk) recommends…
AGE SEGMENTATION…?
Are you marketing to people using different technologies based on their age? Do you think younger consumers love viral ads while their parents are more comfortable with traditional TV? Strategy Analytics say that you have it all wrong and it’s time to segment correctly:
More...More...........................................................................................................................
FORD DRIVES NEW CHANGES
Carmaker Ford has offered all its 75,000 unionised US staff a redundancy and early retirement package as it attempts to cut jobs and stem its recent losses. Two more executives have also stepped down. As Toyota tops the satisfaction poll for American buyers, does patriotic purchasing really still exist?
More...More...More...........................................................................................................................
THE FASHIONISTAS FIGHT IT OUT
Fashion week sponsor Canon launched its ‘The Other Side of Fashion’ exhibition this week, showcasing photos taken by fashionistas for the benefit of the Red Cross. This is the third year of its photography project but fellow Japanese company Nikon is now following the same fashion-focused strategy, sponsoring a contestant on TV show Project Runway. Can two brands follow fashion or will it dilute the message?
More...More...........................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................
Also from Brand Strategy magazine this month…
Simon Thompson, European marketing director for Motorola is calling consumers:
More...Sega might have slumped in the console market but it’s back and ready to play in the games publishing industry:
More...Kevin Lewis, vice president of global business development at Philips Consumer Electronics identifies a new ‘ecosystem’ for brands:
More...........................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................
........................................................................................................................