About 10 years ago, REI made me so stinking mad that I swore I’d never grace their check-out again. A brand-advocate no more, I huffed my outraged “customer-no-service” story to everyone that cared to listen. Their offense? They made me pay for return shipping on a few items that didn’t fit. And worse, because I […]
Look, it’s really simple. If your brand doesn’t have a chicken sandwich as part of its merchandise offering, you might as well just close your doors. Soon, every brand will be judged on the quality, availability and deliciousness of their own chicken sandwich. Think of it as a new arms race. Or in this case, […]
Brands who act more human—who are relatable and have a personality that people genuinely like—are the ones who are winning today. How human is your brand? Does it act and behave like a person would, or does it come across as a cold and boring company? There’s a trick that we use when defining a […]
New Year’s resolutions? Okay, let’s look at mine for a second: only drink wine on the weekend, cut-back on refined sugar, hit the gym. It’s likely they’ll turn out to be: hit the wine and cut back on the gym…but it’s good to have a plan. Whatever our resolutions might be it’s a positive step […]
Imagine if John Lennon and Paul McCartney wrote great songs, with story, melody and the right words. Then imagine that they went into the studio, recorded an “okay” take, called it a day and went to the pub. The point is, if your marketing efforts aren’t delivering the results you’re looking for, maybe you should […]
They’re like a frustrating older sibling. They get all the attention, and they get away with pretty much everything. They’re incredibly well-liked, and it seems like everyone aspires to be them. (Is it obvious that I’m a middle child?) Regardless of how you feel about them, Patagonia is one of the most impressive brands out […]
Are you thirsty for better creative? You don’t necessarily need to dump everything and go back to the well for a complete redesign. Sometimes all you need is a refreshing splash of H2O . Water? No, not that kind H2O . This kind of H2O … Hierarchy.Hygiene.Organization. How can these three elements invigorate your design? […]
Critiquing a catalog can be overwhelming. Maybe you’re so close to your brand that it’s hard to maintain objectivity. Maybe your focus is merchandise, so product presentation is most important to you. Maybe you’re not a Creative Director, so reviewing work is intimidating. (We can’t all be Creative Directors.) (I’m not a Creative Director.) There […]
#Campaign CheatSheet As brands jump on the hashtag brand-wagon, one wonders if the effort truly makes a difference to the bottom line. Short answer? Absolutely. But, have some brands experienced major fails at achieving an ROI? Absolutely. Does it take a lot of effort and resources to get it right? Absolutely. Why even bother? Campaigns […]
