August 31, 2007
Brand Naming v. Brand Extensions: Survival of the Funniest?
As a naming consultant, developing product names for brand extensions is a topic that I've written about before... and it's a strategy that is often necessary for a brand to continue growing.
The recent news that Guinness is diversifying into red beer with the launch of their new Guinness Red drink is a perfect example of this kind of brand extension.
For 250 years, Guinness has meant black and white. It's a black beer with a white froth. Now, parent company Diageo is pushing the brand in directions never been before... offering us Guinness bread and even your own froth maker called a "surger."
Some drinkers are not impressed... the World of Beer grumbles, "Guinness is stout, plain and simple. Not some Kilkenny knock off, not a weird looking creation which, judging by the photo published online at The Sun, boasts tomato juice as an ingredient, but stout. The black stuff. Period." Yet, other beer bloggers can hardly wait for the weekend to try it.
What's up? Extending a brand name, no matter how old and powerful and well loved it is, is something marketers feel compelled to do.
Even Guinness can't rest on its laurels... it has to offer extensions to customers or be swept away in a tide of microbrews and light beers into the ever smaller space of a niche brand name.
TD Clark's excellent article on the subject talks about how newer brands, like Crocs shoes, are already creating new brand names out of old ones. The Crocs brand is now offering apparel consumers "Crosslite rt" or "relaxed technology" shoes. This is aggressive brand naming at its finest, given the relative newness of the Crocs brand name.
Similarly, Mars is offering us a Starburst Drink... you remember Starburst fruit chews, right? By the way, this is an awful line extension, I think, and is doomed to fail. And current TV is using brand extension strategies to "expand its web presence and increase its marketing efforts."
Technorati Tags: Guinness, Diageo, World of Beer, TDClark, Crocs, Mars, StarburstDrink, Brand Naming, BrandExtensions.
Posted by William Lozito at 8:04 AM
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August 20, 2007
Product Line Extensions - The Awful and the Brilliant
When I saw an ad for Crisco Extra Virgin Olive Oil, I cringed.
I couldn't think of a more inappropriate or awful product line extension.
The Crisco brand connotes:
- Deep frying
- Fat
- Grease
- Clogged arteries
- Everything else that extra virgin olive oil is not
What were the people at P&G thinking? I'm convinced that someone at P&G let this out the door when deep down they knew better.
For more on inappropriate line extensions, check out Laura Ries' blog on Hellman's Mayonnaise versus Kraft's Miracle Whip.
Now for a brilliant line extension.
What could be more natural than a rum from Tommy Bahama?
- Tommy Bahama by virtue of its name says warm, relaxed and a casual environment
- The leading rum brand, Bacardi, is produced in the Bahamas
- Additionally, what could be more natural than wearing Tommy Bahama clothing while sipping rum in the Bahamas or the Caribbean, the birthplace of rum dating back to the 17th century?
Crisco Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Awful.
Tommy Bahama Rum. Brilliant.
Technorati Tags: Product Line Extensions, Crisco, Crisco Olive Oil, Tommy Bahama, Tommy Bahama Rum, P & G, Bacardi, Brand Names.
Posted by William Lozito at 9:44 AM
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May 23, 2007
Formica is Now a New Zealand Brand Name
Fascinating news that Formica Corporation has been sold to a New Zealand company. Formica has joined Xerox and Dumpster in the popular lexicon as a genericized brand name.
Like most people, I was under the impression that Formica was a type of laminated plastic, that lost its status as a trademarkable brand name.
I was interested to see that Cerberus was part of the sale of this legendary and quintessentially American brand name, which has been defined by Webster’s New World Dictionary as “a trademark for a laminated, heat-resistant thermosetting plastic used for table and sink tops.''
Formica has been around since 1913 when a young engineer created it for use as electrical insulation, and the name comes from the fact that the stuff can be used instead of mica, literally “for mica.”
Formica's product nomenclature includes VirrVarr, Atomic Orange and Aqua Boomerang. These are names left over from the fifties and I am interested to see what happens what New Zealanders and neighboring Australians make of them. And I wonder how “VirrVarr” will translate overseas.
I’m not sure we should be selling anything with the word Atomic, and Atomic Orange seems like a fairly agressive product name. But that would depend on the category and target market.
How about an Atomic Orange energy drink?
Of course the word boomerang may ring false with some Australians—or else it may be taken as a tribute to where boomerangs come from.
Technorati Tags: Formica, Genericized, Trademark, VirrVarr, Atomic Orange, Product Names, Branding
Posted by William Lozito at 8:25 AM
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May 18, 2007
To Masterbrand or Sub-brand? That is the Question
One of the oldest debates in branding is whether you introduce a new product under the existing parent brand or create a sub-brand name. Some marketing consultants essentially say that sub-brands don't work. That seems like an over-simplification to me, as well as not a universal truth.
Toyota is extending its Prius sub-brand for its hybrid vehicles, removing the Toyota moniker, and, in effect, creating a new parent brand. Does Toyota know what they're doing? I think so.
In the consumer's mind, I believe, Prius equals hybrid, green and good. Therefore, I think its wise that Toyota's new hybrid models, which we'll start to see in 2009, will be called Prius A, Prius B and Prius C.
However, I think the A, B and C nomenclature is a mistake. Anyone that's received a grade in school would much prefer to get an A than a C. And what happens when Toyota introduces its sixth Prius model? Would you want a Prius F?
If you've read this far, I've fooled you. The Prius A, B and C are only internal code names, once again demonstrating that Toyota knows what they're doing.
As you're probably aware by now, AT&T, which, a few months ago, was acquired by much bigger SBC Communications, which renamed itself AT&T despite its much larger size. That "was a bit like France marching into Brussels and renaming itself Belgium," said Stephanie Mehta of Fortune, in her article yesterday, Meet the new AT&T.
Although controversial, AT&T did away with the very well known and probably much hipper Cingular name. I predict that long-term, the Cingular brand will reemerge in some place in some way, like many other zombie brands.
Technorati Tags: Toyota, AT&T, Brand Naming, Prius, SBC Communications, Branding Strategy, Cingular, Masterbrand, Sub-brand
Posted by William Lozito at 9:40 AM
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May 17, 2007
Crumpler Wants To Be A Naming Company
If voters compare candidates like boxes of cornflakes, do photographers shop for camera bags the way they’d buy real estate?
Crumpler seems to think so, given the fact that they produce a “Million Dollar Home” line of camera bags. These range from the 1 Million Dollar Home to the 7 Million Dollar Home—and there’s a Brazillion Dollar Home, as well.
As with homes, the higher numbers reflect greater square footage. The Brazillion Dollar home holds two SLR cameras and a laptop, with straps for your tripod. The Sherpa required to carry all of that is not included in the $280 price, however.
As a recent review of the 4 Million Dollar Home points out, Crumpler is known for its unique product naming schemes. And rightly so. “Crumpler” is a counter-intuitive name for a company that manufactures bags for fragile equipment. The last thing you want your camera or laptop to undergo is crumpling.
But that’s as nothing to the names of the bags themselves. In addition to the Million Dollar Home series, there’s:
- the Bucket series
- the Bundle series
- the Customary and Sinking Barge (a name even less reassuring than “Crumpler”)
- the Whickey and Cox (sounds like a pub, doesn't it?)
- the Karachi Outpost
- the Keystone
And that’s just in camera bags. There’s also:
- a book (or beer) bag called the Hoax
- laptop bags called the Salary Sacrifice and the Dreadful Embarrassment
- a traveling bag called the Status Belly
- a cell phone/accessory bag called the HooJah
The product descriptions are, if anything, crazier than the names. Which seems to be a big part of why they’re popular as far away as Kota Kinabalu.
It seems Crumpler uses different product names for its bags in Europe, which could get confusing. In England the bags go by completely different but equally outrageous names:
- Pretty Boy
- The Daily
- The Warm Shower
- Stripper Ripper
Maybe Crumpler employees all have a secret aspiration to work for naming companies. They certainly out-name competitors like Tamrac and Lowepro. Not that “Cyber Pro” and “Velocity” (Tamrac) are bad names; neither are “Vertex” and “Road Runner” (Lowepro).
But none of them are as memorably funky as the names of the Crumpler bags.
Technorati Tags: Crumpler, Million Dollar Home, Naming Company, Bag Names, Product Naming, Creative Names, Naming Schemes, Tamrac, Lowepro
Posted by Diane Prange at 9:14 AM
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May 15, 2007
AMD New Phenom Brand Name
AMD’s new brand name for its next generation dual and quad core desktop processors is set to be Phenom, as in “Phenomenal” and not “Phenomenon.”
Phenom is what we refer to as a clipping. That is, phenom was clipped from the word phenomenal. With most of the English language trademarked, clipping of existing words is becoming a more common naming technique.
A potential downside in this instance is that Phenom may not be instantly pronounceable and require us to think about how it's pronounced. However, with time and money, the pronunciation of Phenom should become easier.
AMD plans on dropping the “64” add-on and they will make up AMD’s high-end product line: the Athlon X2 will stay awhile longer while the stand-alone Athlon brand is gone and the Sempron (single-core) will compete against the Celeron.
The Phenom brand name is a “metaphor for the company’s expectation for the chips,” which are set to compete against market dominator Intel. Phenom chips will be the ultra-pricey, ultra-powerful chips set to take advantage of the demands of Windows Vista.
Technorati Tags: AMD, Intel, Phenom Chip, Brand Architecture, Processor Names, New Brand Name, Phenom
Posted by William Lozito at 7:43 AM
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May 8, 2007
Microsoft Windows Live Hotmail: Do Too Many Big Names Spoil the Brand?
The news of the launch of Windows Live Hotmail, the rebranding of MSN Hotmail, was no surprise.
Like the writer at the SunbeltBLOG I am not much of a fan of Microsoft’s product naming nomenclature, and in other posts I have looked into the Windows Live Hotmail brand name—the best part of it is “Hotmail,” as Microsoft overuses Live.
A New York Times article on Saturday about the troubles suffered by merged FedEx and Kinko’s best describes the trouble many people will probably have with the Microsoft Windows Live Hotmail brand name.
Kinko’s was once known for its laid back culture, while FedEx is known for its clipped efficiency. It is hard for a store to be known as both laid back and super-efficient, the two corporate brews just do no mix. FedEx Kinko’s is thus having some hard times despite the obvious synergy in their business offerings.
Hotmail is one of the oldest online mail services that I know of, a logical base for Microsoft which wants to use it to catch up with Gmail and Yahoo, but by forcing not only the Microsoft name but the Windows name as well as the Live name next to it, it is hard to feel a sense of authenticity.
I think this was named by committee. You know what they say about naming by committee. When trying to name a horse, you end up with a camel.
Does the Windows Live brand name really have the same longevity and equity as the Hotmail name?
I suppose that the success of this name is intertwined with the success of the Windows Live platform of services. If I were a Microsoft/Hotmail user, I might feel funny using my new Vista to access Microsoft Windows Live Hotmail.
In the meantime, it is still good to see Hotmail alive (which takes its name from the acronym HTML.)
Technorati Tags: Windows Live Hotmail, MSN Hotmail, Microsoft Nomenclature, FedEx Kinko’s, Brand Name, Rebranding
Posted by William Lozito at 9:01 AM
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April 27, 2007
Durable Disney to Drop Buena Vista Brand Name
Walt Disney is set to change the Buena Vista brand name to Disney in an effort to “simplify the company's marketing and reduce costs.”
Disney wants to focus on their core brands: Disney, ESPN and ABC. Two months ago, Disney CEO Robert Iger changed Touchstone Television production company to ABC Television Studio and Buena Vista Games to Disney Interactive Studios.
The Buena Vista name has plenty of brand equity: it dates from 1953 and is taken from the street name in Burbank, CA where the Disney brothers created a studio and corporate headquarters for film distribution.
Interestingly, the Pixar, Touchstone and Mirimax studio names, which are also owned by Disney, will stay, possibly because there is strong brand equity and differentiation among these: the Pixar name is synonymous with animation, Touchstone with big budget, mainstream films, and Mirimax with art house.
Iger believes that the Disney brand is a “durable brand” and can easily be stretched over even more of its businesses to create a strong brand architecture.
I support this move by Disney: today’s consumers are aware that Disney is more than Mickey Mouse and Orlando. And as one analyst pointed out, most people are not even aware that Buena Vista is owned by Disney, I agree with that as well. It seems crazy for the average moviegoer to watch a Disney film under the impression that it has been distributed by another company.
Technorati Tags: Disney, Buena Vista, Brand Name, ABC Television Studio, Disney Interactive Studios, Brand Architecture
Posted by William Lozito at 1:25 PM
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April 3, 2007
New Luxury Brand Name from Hyundai?
It seems that Hyundai is serious about building a new premium brand to sell alongside its own marquee, reports Noah Joseph at Autoblog. The recent introduction of the Genesis concept car seems to be a sign of things to come.
This, of course, is similar to Toyota creating the premium Lexus brand name expanding its brand architecture, just as Nissan accomplished with Infiniti and Honda with Acura.
I think what we're really seeing here is the beginning of a shift in consumers' perceived quality of the Hyundai brand. For some time, the Hyundai name has lived on the fringe and was associated with economy. Taking cues from the formula Toyota and Honda made successful, I think this is the right direction for Hyundai. The difference? They're doing it much faster.
Hyundai is well aware that there are incredible challenges in its way. First of all, it seems as if Hyundai has to give its dealers lessons in how to sell luxury cars as opposed to “value” cars. And an article in the Washington Post points out that Hyundai has a long way to go in the U.S., where its cars are still considered “cheap."
It also does not help that Chung Mong Koo, the company’s chairman, was caught embezzling the equivalent of $73.8 million from the company.
Nevertheless, Hyundai has pitted its Veracruz vs. the Lexus RX350 and their overall product line keeps getting kudus for its quality, not least from JD power and Associates, who ranked the brand third in the U.S. for overall quality. On the other hand, the same company put Hyundai among the 7 car brand names (Jaguar, Jeep, Hyundai, Kia, Land Rover, Saab and Suzuki) with the worst reputations in the business among consumers last year.
Hyundai is the official vehicle of the 2010 Soccer World Cup in South Africa and I can say with confidence that the advertisers there have been told to expect a new high-end premium brand name from Hyundai. This will be a huge platform on which to launch a super-premium brand for Hyundai.
Technorati Tags: Hyundai, Genesis Concept Car, Luxury Brand Name, Automotive Naming
Posted by William Lozito at 10:33 AM
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March 28, 2007
Brand Naming: Chevrolet Resurrecting a Nomad?
Chevy seems to be set to revive the Nomad brand name for a new 2009 crossover vehicle whose lines do seem to hearken back to the famous 2-door surfer wagon of the 1950s.
It would be an interesting replacement for the Uplander and would be marketed as a counterpoint to the GMC Acadia. This would also be the latest GM car to utilize the Lambda chassis, after the Saturn Outlook, the GMC Acadia and the Buick Enclave. These names could be a foundation for a very unique brand architecture system.
The Inside Line blog was told from industry sources that Chevy’s flirtation with the Nomad brand name is yet another example of “what’s old is new again” but some people say that we should not hold our breaths, that the brand name is not even “on radar the screen.”
I like the idea of a reawakening of the “Nomad” name, even if it is yet another "zombie brand", which I wrote about on March 24th.
By the way, Read Daniel Gross' insightful articles on zombie brands in Slate magazine here.
The original car may be from a few generations ago but I recognize it from old movies and Nomad does have a catchy ring to it.
The name makes sense, as well, because as far as I can see, it is loyal to its original marquee by being, at heart, a 2-door wagon. It also fits into the automotive trend to bring back favorite brand names from the past, like Taurus and Escort.
The name also fits with the GM brand name “Acadia”: rugged Acadia was the site of the permanent French settlement of North America and hardy Acadians lived a quasi-nomadic and studiously neutral life during the conflicts between the French and British.
Technorati Tags: Brand Architecture, Nomad, Chevrolet, Brand Naming, Zombie Brand, Daniel Gross, GMC Acadia, Automotive Names
Posted by William Lozito at 11:49 AM
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February 9, 2007
Hotmail Brand Name Gets to Live
Richard Sim, Senior Product manager at Windows Live, has announced on his blog yesterday that Microsoft has chosen to keep the Hotmail brand name, incorporating it into its mail application as Windows Live Hotmail rather than Windows Live Mail.
The Hotmail brand name, which was acquired by Microsoft in 1998 and has been in jeopardy for a while thanks to its “historical association with spam problems,” still holds considerable equity among consumers. Most technology are pleased with this move, which will coincide with product improvements to Hotmail.
Mr. Sim said, "By adopting the name 'Windows Live Hotmail,' we believe we're bringing together the best of both worlds - new and old. We're able to offer the great new technology that Windows Live has to offer while also bringing the emotional connection many existing and loyal users have with Hotmail."
Microsoft has made a few product naming mistakes in the past, but I must agree that this is a good move.
The Hotmail name is really synonymous with web-based mail and doing away with it would cause unnecessary confusion for the millions of users of the service. The fact the Microsoft has held on to it for so long has made the brand one of the good things we associate with Microsoft - making the service better (more competitive with Gmail and Yahoo) would be more than welcomed.
To read more about the Windows Live Brand Architecture, check out our September 22nd blog post, Brand Naming: Is Microsoft's "Live" Dead?
Technorati Tags: Microsoft, Hotmail, Windows Live Mail, Windows Live Hotmail, Product Name, Brand Architecture
Posted by William Lozito at 8:17 AM
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February 5, 2007
Ford Truck Naming Is Super Duty
It seems to me that the trend in luxury car naming is toward developing an alpha-numeric brand architecture - that much is certain. But not so much when it comes to the naming of pickup trucks, where it may be that the inverse is true.
In the automotive industry, there is one brand name that stands tall: the mighty Ford F-Series, the best selling vehicle in the United States, the most awarded truck in auto history and sales leader in category for 29 years. The brand name was introduced in 1948 and since then over 32 million of these trucks have been sold worldwide, with one sold in the U.S. every 21 seconds.
Is this the triumph of alpha-numeric naming in the field?
Well, Toyota has an answer for that as does Dodge, who are both offering revamped versions of the Tundra and Ram respectively, leading to a panic stricken news reports last week that predict trouble down the road for this stalwart.
The Super Bowl spots yesterday for the brand name were nothing less than the initiation of a fight to hold the number one position in the U.S.
One option is to think up a new theme song for the truck. The other, Ford has discovered, is to get serious about product naming. Look at the top 10 cars in the U.S. for 2006. You’ll recognize names like “Silverado“ and "Ram.”
The Toyota Tundra sticks in your mind, too, even if it isn't in the Top Ten (Toyota has the Camry and the Corolla up there). The top of the list is the F-Series, which will be depending on a revamp of its equally boringly named “Super Duty” extension to keep itself up there.
Rather than do away with the equity around the F-Series, Ford has focused their naming on the extensions within the range. The Super Duty represents 40% of the F-Series line, and it has some interesting extensions built in, including the “King Ranch” and the “Lariat Tough-Luxury.”
On top of that, there is the FX2 Harley-Davidson SuperCrew specialty model. These names, all introduced within the last few years, I think, are far more evocative of what the truck is about and their success will drive the truck’s sales.
Superior naming strategies and co-branding deals with companies like Harley-Davidson might just keep Ford on top.
Technorati Tags: F-Series, Ford, Truck Names, Brand Naming, Brand Architecture, Alpha-numeric, Silverado, Ram, Tundra, Super Duty, King Ranch, Lariat Tough-Luxury
Posted by William Lozito at 9:59 AM
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January 29, 2007
The Alphabet Soup of Auto Brand Names
Any of us who have purchased a car have probably needed a scorecard to figure out some of the alphanumeric nomenclature.
There’s the...
- Mercedes C, E, and S classes
- Mazda 3 and Mazda 6
- BMW 3, 5, and 7 series
- Honda Civic GX NGV
- SAAB 9-2, 9-3, 9-5, 9-7X
Need I say more?
An article on auto brand naming that makes some sense of the auto brand name architecture appeared in a recent issue of Top Gear NZ.
The writer drew on Strategic Name Development's proprietary consonant research for auto names to determine the inherent associations consumers have with each consonant letter. I think you'll find the article interesting and eye-opening.
Technorati Tags: Cars, Automobiles, Nomenclature, Mercedes, Mazda, BMW, Honda, SAAB
Posted by William Lozito at 1:34 PM
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January 21, 2007
A Brief History of AT&T Brand Architecture
Steven Colbert has a very funny explanation for the evolution of the serious business of AT&T’s brand architecture.
The video clip speaks for itself. Enjoy.
Technorati Tags: AT&T, Cingular, Cellular, Mobile
Posted by William Lozito at 12:08 PM
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January 15, 2007
Brand Names as Logos: Apple, Cross, Kiss and Swoosh
Michael Simon on Spymac has a tantalizing post up that posits we are about to see a brand naming shift from “i” to “” as in iPhone, Life, Work, Chat, and DVD. Even iPod will go to iPod. The post picks up on the fact that Apple has dropped “Computer” from its company name, “presumably to put more attention on its music and mobile initiatives.”
Simon may or may not be correct but one thing is certain: that the Apple logo already carries a great deal of weight in Apple’s brand architecture, which is becoming confusing to some people. It leads me to think about the challenges involved in taking it a step further and integrating logo development with product naming.
Apple’s products, if they go this route, will most likely be referred to in the press is “Apple ____” as in “Apple Life, Apple DVD.” This draws attention to the hugely powerful Apple brand name. But the visual branding of these product names will be Life and DVD.
Think the Red Cross, whose brand name is simply its logo. The recent decision to include a Red Crystal symbol for Israel’s admission to the Red Cross, and the ensuing bitter debate, illustrates just how deeply and irrevocably the logo-brand association is to this very well known name. In this case, Israel wanted a Red Star of David to offset the obviously Christian “cross” of “Red Cross,” a symbol taken from the Swiss flag which in turns takes it origins from the crucifix.
Nike and Apple have cerainly capitalized on the awareness of their respective logos by collectively taking the logo-branding approach even further with the Nike + iPod product (Nike-designed workout software for an iPod). The Nike swoosh and the Apple logo combine to tell you exactly what you're getting.
Another piece of news shows how counting on people to recognize a symbol may carry risks. Yesterday the post office announced a “love stamp” that features the ubiquitous Hershey Kiss with the word “Love” over it. The CEO of Hershey’s stated that “The Hershey®’s Kisses® brand is an enduring symbol of love, affection and sharing, recognized world over for its distinct shape, classic silver foil and unmistakable plume."
Hershey's also says that the With Love and Kisses stamp reinforces the passion and emotional connection consumers have with the iconic Hershey’s Kisses Brand. I hope people around the world are able to recognize the image on that stamp...if you send a Valentine to a person unfamiliar with the candy, it will look like you are sending them an image of Mount Blanc with a “kisses” flag on top, which might not be a good thing.
Apple, Hershey's and Nike make the (probably correct) assumption that we are all so familiar with their products and their logos that we will immediately “get it” when we see them. Makes marketing sense, I think.
Technorati Tags: Apple, Nike+, Brand Architecture, Logo Branding, Red Cross, Swoosh, Hershey's Kiss, With Love And Kisses, Icon
Posted by William Lozito at 9:40 AM
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December 7, 2006
Links du Jour 12-07-06
Strong CPG Company Names as Masterbrands - This is a great article which discusses CPG brand names that are deemed masterbrands, which means it has to be available across at least three different categories and marketed with the same name, or name derivative, in all three categories. The article also points out how company names are often used as masterbrand endorsements:
- Nestlé has extended its 'Nes' derivative, or prefix, into various different areas such as Nestea, Nesquick and Nestum
- The Sunlight brand name exists across five personal and home care categories, with the Sun derivative being present in another five
- Brands such as Garnier or Elvive are very rarely seen without the company brand name, L'Oreal, appearing before them
Widgets and Protecting Your Brand - Great post. Widgets and brand names are heading on a collision course, writes Dare Obasanjo. The problem? Widgets open up a security risk on people who have personal data protected by a username and password. When things get phishy, who’s at fault: the widget designer or the protected site?
Gwen Stefani Takes L.A.M.B. To Loftier Pasture - Gwen's lending her name to a new perfume like so many other stars have. It might actually be interesting. Stefani seems to be a fashion maven, her L.A.M.B brand is attaching her name to bags, sneakers and watches. By the way, L.A.M.B. is an acronym for “Love Angel Music Baby.”
A Name to Remember: the Wii, by Nintendo - Dave Magliano analyzes the Nintendo brand name, and the Nintendo Wii. Read this post. It's extremely insightful. Magliano says the Nintendo name was synonymous with gaming itself. Playing Nintendo was what you did, even if you owned a Sega Genesis. Today, PlayStation is video gaming, just like Nintendo was long ago.
While so much has been made of Nintendo's interesting choice of names with the Wii, what has been lost is the Nintendo brand. But, Dave says, by leaving the Nintendo name behind - Wii is just Wii, not Nintendo Wii. Nintendo's Wii advertising does not even mention Nintendo at all, not even a Nintendo logo. Hmmm...doesn't that marketing strategy remind you of a new little gadget called the Zune (by Microsoft?)
Technorati Tags: Gwen Stefani, L.A.M.B., Masterbrand Strategy, Nestlé, Widgets, Dave Magliano, Nintendo Wii, Nintendo Brand, Gaming
Posted by William Lozito at 10:43 AM
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November 20, 2006
Branding: Yahoo! Peanut Butter
Michael Parekh's wrote a great post on his blog Saturday, giving some very insightful observations on Yahoo!'s multiple overlapping services, and other "Yahoo 2.0" considerations. It's a great read... and might make you start craving a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
The news is all about the The Wall Street Journal story on Yahoo!’s amusingly named “Peanut Butter Manifesto”, penned by a senior executive which is an insight into the strife that has beset that Internet giant. Brad Garlinghouse, the writer of manifesto memo, claims that Yahoo! is trying be all things to everybody, and thus has spread itself too thin over a variety of business ventures.
Jim Benson suggests that when “life gives you peanut butter, make peanut butter cookies", and that Yahoo! has "open sourced their business strategy." Matt Asay at AC/OS has an excellent post up entitled “Yahoo! High in Fat”. Maybe so, but analysts remain bullish on Yahoo!, even if things are a little sticky over there.
Technorati Tags: Yahoo!, Yahoo 2.0, Peanut Butter Manifesto
Posted by William Lozito at 8:12 AM
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October 24, 2006
Links du Jour 10-24-06
Toyota Auris springs into action - The bloggers at Auto Park say the new name is an amalgamation of “Aygo” (the name of their smallest offering) and “Yaris” (slightly bigger model). The Japanese Cars Watch blog, on the other hand, claims the word is Latin for “good taste”. In fact, the name comes from the Latin word for gold which is “Aurum”.
Toyota has changed this to Auris to keep it consistent with the brand architecture led by the Avensis and Yaris brands. It is also the successor to the Corolla brand name, which seems to be on the way out after 40 years and 30 million sales.
Mad Ave Goes Soft - The Mog Beta blog has an in-depth discussion about a recent Forbes article that outlines the ways in which pornography has infiltrated modern advertising and brand name building. Names and promotional efforts that were once considered sleazy have gone mainstream.
"Stars" like Jenna Jameson are now being associated with clean cut brand names like Adidas. Mainstream clothing brands are creating yet sleazier sites and names to attract an ever edgier customer base.
The record store that wouldn't die - On August 22nd, I wrote about the longevity of certain brands like London Fog and Tower Records and it looks as if reports regarding Tower’s death have been greatly exaggerated.
It seems like an unnamed consortium of investors is intent on keeping the legendary 80s brand name alive in a smaller version. Grant Robinson is sceptical, however, about the brand name’s chances for success. I’m hoping for the best. Are you?
Technorati Tags: Toyota, Aygo, Yaris, Auris, Tower Records
Posted by William Lozito at 10:16 AM
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September 8, 2006
Links du Jour 09-08-06
Nokia just announced the company will change its naming nomenclature, following Motorola's lead. Nokia is going to embrace brand names rather than alphanumeric naming in future cell phones after seeing the success of brand names developed by competitors like LG’s Chocolate and Motorola’s RAZR.
I have written extensively about Motorola’s naming strategy, from its treatment of vowels to its transition from RAZR to SCPL. I think Nokia is making a good move, as long as they included brand name research.
It looks like Federated Department Stores senses the unhappiness many customers feel about the loss of beloved brand names like Marshall Field’s to their Macy’s brand, a subject I have written about a few times.
Federated is now trying to win over the hearts and minds of customers to the Macy’s brand name, in what they're calling their "biggest advertising campaign ever to support the re-branding.” I think they have their work cut out for them: some company names are hard to forget. But, time will tell.
How should Katie sign off each newscast? Here’s your chance to contribute to Katie Couric’s recent debut: figure out a good sign-off tagline for her and send it in to CBS. Cronkite’s was “And that’s the way it is”, Murrow’s was “Good Night and Good Luck”, Dan Rather’s was “Courage”…what will Couric's be?
Readers of the Adfreak blog have some pretty interesting thoughts. Can you think of some creative sign-off taglines?
Technorati Tags: Nokia, Motorola, Alphanumeric Naming, Macy's, Marshall Field's, Federated Department Stores, Katie Couric, Edward Murrow, Walter Cronkite
Posted by William Lozito at 8:37 AM
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September 2, 2006
Links du Jour 09-02-06
Don't They Have a Pill You Can Take? - Finally, somebody has felt my pain over the Yahoo campaign.
The ads we get on the site are sort of random, from a very confused big guy telling us "My Son Is Always Looking at His Yahoo" to a perky woman saying "I Have The Most Popular Yahoo on Campus."
What, exactly, is being suggested here? I'm at a loss, but it gives me a creepy feeling every time I log in, and creeping out your customers just can't be good for the product name. I am thinking seriously of getting Gmail just to avoid these weird ads. Stop the madness, Yahoo!
Men. Who Are We? - The fact is, most of today's marketing is not reaching us. Darryl Ohrt at Brandflakes leads us to a very nice article on