As business owners and brand managers, we all have a vision of what we want our audience to experience and feel about our company and product. Positive impression is always celebrated. Criticism is hard to hear and we want to get past it as quickly as possible. How did you handle the most recent criticism? Did you approach it as a single unique issue or is there a strategy in place to remedy the impact?
Read MoreTopics: Branding, Marketing, Design, Business Management
Being in the ad business I can’t help but watch TV ads with a critical eye. Who is the target? What is the brand? Does it have the emotional tug to convert a sale? In short, is it effective? I try to figure out the brand or company the ad is for before they reveal it. Some companies do a great job branding their ads and others leave you wondering – do they really know their audience, what company/brand was that for? I have found myself wondering when the product advertised is for women if the ad was created by a man, because they totally missed the USP and audience pain motivator.
Read MoreTopics: Advertising, Branding, Marketing, SEO
You can’t create a great package if you don’t know how design works. And you can’t create a great package if you don’t know how packaging affects your consumer. There are 3 key responses that a package design need to get to achieve retail success: visual, rational and emotional.
Read MoreTopics: Branding, Packaging Design
We've had a number of calls lately from companies in the marijuana industry now blossoming in the Colorado, Washington and California areas. One thing that strikes me are many of these people just opening their doors and expecting customers. That may be true to start, but what's going to make them come back OR even be aware of you in the first place? Competition will grow as happens with every business and few will establish a brand that dominates, a brand value coveted by all.
Read MoreTopics: Branding, Marketing, Packaging Design
A company's brand needs to establish a lasting connection with consumers and differentiate their products from competitors' offerings. Unfortunately, many companies don't realize the value of branding and are unsure of how they can make their branding work for them, or even how to build a brand. By following these few branding tips, a you can take your brand from boring to brilliant.
Visual consistency is key to building and maintaining a strong brand. Coca Cola has used the same red and script logo for decades. All it takes is seeing a small portion of one letter against a field of red to bring the brand to mind. Having that level of recognition takes a consistant effort over a long period of time. When done correctly customers will associate your logo with the impression you have consistantly pushed out through all marketing efforts.
Read MoreTopics: Branding, Packaging Design, Design
This is a question not often asked. Usually I am explaining why SEO is necessary. Ranking in search engines takes time and effort. Giving a specific time to optimize is different for every website. Results build over time and take 6-9 months to see significant change in rankings.
The first step is to is to select moderately competitive keywords. Performing Google research of keywords that you are considering will provide insight to the search levels, value and opportunity of improving your ranking with them. Not all keywords are created equal. Keyword marketing is highly competitive even for highly specialized markets. Those words and phrases that are relevant for your product or service do not all produce the same amount of traffic. Including geo reference, city name, can make help your ranking in local searches quicker.
Read MoreTopics: Website Design, SEO
In the last couple of decades, the businesses all over the world have witnessed a tremendous growth email marketing platforms. As such, countries previously qualified as “poor” are now seen as future economic powerhouses. Nations such as India, Nigeria, Brazil, Indonesia, and China are just a few that have attained immense economic growth because of various online marketing strategies. Naturally, the rise of previously less-developed nations has prompted the use of “technological” mediums to conduct business activities.
Read MoreTopics: Marketing, Inbound Marketing, Direct Mail, Email Marketing