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Are running shoes a sham?

Mar 8, 2010 7:12pm

If you spend in the neighborhood of $100 per pair of running shoes like I do, you may find the following statement by Dr. Daniel Lieberman, a professor of biological anthropology at Harvard University, disconcerting: “A lot of foot and knee injuries that are currently plaguing us are actually caused by...

BMW uncovers its brand essence: joy

Mar 2, 2010 4:42am

For years, BMW was “The Ultimate Driving Machine.” Recent ads feature the tagline, “Sheer Driving Pleasure.” Now, BMW is … joy. Why the change? As discussed in a previous post, strong brands are founded on single intangible attributes, ones that connect emotionally with consumers. These days, BMW’s tangibles (its engineering, technology, performance) can quickly...

Olympic scorecard: how to judge ambush marketing

Feb 23, 2010 5:30am

For the organizers of the Winter Olympics, the pressure is on. They are fighting to defend their sponsors against ambush marketing at the Games. (Ambush marketers attempt to attach their brand to a major event without paying for the right to do so.) As the Vancouver Organizing Committee (VANOC) states...

Ambush marketing: dirty play at the Olympics?

Feb 17, 2010 5:30am

Some of the most heated competition at the Winter Games is taking place off the ice. Official Olympic sponsors McDonald’s and AT&T are charging rivals Subway and Verizon with unsportsmanlike conduct. In Verizon’s current TV spot, two speed skaters race while the announcer asks, “What does it...

P&G brands … itself?

Feb 13, 2010 12:03pm

Procter & Gamble, the inventor and best known practitioner of brand management, is finally getting around to branding itself. In its first-ever corporate campaign, 17 of P&G’s brands are featured under its singular umbrella. In partnership with the U.S. Olympic Committee, P&G is running two new TV spots and an accompanying...

And the winner is … Google

Feb 8, 2010 5:49am

In its Super Bowl commercial, Google tells an engaging little story of romance with simplicity and elegance. Appropriately, it uses keywords and search results only. Its logo is onscreen almost the entire time, while it demonstrates several of its features and benefits. It effectively offsets Bing’s recent efforts at malignment. Not only...

Advertising’s swimsuit competition: the Super Bowl

Feb 5, 2010 8:42am

Let’s be honest. This week, when we chat online or around the water cooler about the Super Bowl commercials, we will not be judging them based upon which are most effective at doing what they are supposed to be doing, which is actually selling something. Instead, we will talk about which spots...

The branding of electricity

Feb 2, 2010 9:48am

Electricity is a commodity. And therefore, it sells on price alone. But in 1998, local electric cooperatives from around the country, all of which operate independently, got together to distinguish the electricity they serve from that served by investor-owned utilities. A brand was born. The catalyst: energy deregulation. Since the late 1990s, many...

The rise of community bank brands

Jan 25, 2010 9:55am

The customers of George Bailey’s “wonderful old building and loan” rallied to defend it from the money-grubbing Mr. Potter in It’s A Wonderful Life. Although the circumstances are different, small banks across the country are attempting to arouse the same kind of passionate community support. Hoping to attract consumers angry and...

Warning: Your brand is being commoditized!

Jan 20, 2010 5:00am

Remember the old days when coffee was a commodity? We may be headed there again. Starbucks, with its expansion in 1987, revolutionized how we drink and think about coffee. It convinced us to buy whole beans instead of grounds. It familiarized us with espresso, cappuccino and latte. It introduced us to...