Thumbs up for Nestlé…

Nestlé, the world’s largest food company, is a brand with real causes…It is planning to hire 20.000 young Europeans to help the rising unemployment in Europe.  It is hoping to set an example for other companies to follow, beginning with their 63.000 suppliers.  Considering the 5.6 million young people who are officially unemployed in the EU, Nestlé is boosting its social responsibility with its helping hand.

Better without words...

Some facts are just better stated without words...Lipton tea and FedEx's outdoors' campaigns use no words to pass their message.  Eyecatching, original and persuasive!

 

Can you follow their example for your campaigns?

 

 

 



Stand out with characters...

Hello to all. I will begin with the "American alphabet" letter brands as promised in my previous post.  So, let's see how many of you recognized all brands:

a: All
b: Bubblicious
C: Campbell's
D: Dawn
E: Eggo
F: Fritos
G: Gatorade
H: Hebrew National
I: Icee
J: Jell-O
K: Kool-Aid
L: Lysol
m: M & M's
N: Nilla Wafers
O: Oreo
P: Pez
Q: Q-tips
R: Reese's
S: Starburst
T: Tide
U: Uncle Ben's
V: V-8
W: Wisk 
X: Xtra
y: York
Z: Zest

Another tip you can follow to make your brands recognizable through time is to accompany your brand with a character.  Some historic characters that have been representing their brands for years now are the following:

Pancake mix and syrup's Aunt Jenima (created in 1893)
Michelin tires' Michelin (created in 1898)
Kellog's Frosted Flakes' Tony the Tiger (1951)
Starkist tuna's Charlie (1961)
Pillsbury foods' Pillsbury doughboy (1969)
AFLAC insurance's Afflac duck (2000)
GEICO insurance's Gecko (2002)

 What character are you adding to your brand?

What’s behind the “American alphabet”?

 

The “American alphabet” is a renowned piece of artwork by Heidi Cody, an artist and cultural anthropologist, which reflects the sequence of cognition, as well as the power of brand awareness.  Each letter of her alphabet represents a recognizable consumer brand based on the letter shape/font type and color combinations.  According to the sequence of cognition, shapes are recognized firstly, then colors and finally form, e.g. content.

So, what consumer brands lie behind each letter of this alphabet? What is your overall brand awareness?  Answers will be given on the next post.

A positive view of life through a drink

In the midst of the worldwide, economic turmoil and general mishappenings, people have to search for reasons to smile, to hope for, to be happy.  Some companies have had the marketing power to still reflect that optimism through their campaigns, effectively sustaining at the same time their brand awareness.

So, look at things differently, positively.  Drink happiness…

Could Facebook be losing grounds?

 

A Pew Research Center report reflects a migrating enthusiasm and trend of teenagers away from Facebook and towards Twitter and Instagram.  According to the report, 94% of teens still use Facebook despite their complaints.  However, they view Facebook as a rather “stressful” community, having to be under their parents’ watchful eye, as 70% of teens say that they are Facebook friends with their parents.     

Successful and popular brands, like Facebook, can also have their loss of share at one point.  This allows competitors, like Twitter and Instagram, to gain winning grounds and increase their share.  This is how the competitive game goes. 

Always be alert and close to your customers.  There is only a fine line between your direct competitor and yourself…

Secrets of successful selling…

It’s not easy being a salesperson.  According to Jerold Panas, the secret of successful selling lies in integrity.  You have to sell with integrity.  You have to sell what the buyer wants to buy and not what you want to sell…You also have to listen!  Do not magnify the art of babbling.  Shine some spotlight on the buyer; let him/her do more talking than you.  He/she will be more likely to buy then.  If you do most of the talking you are increasing the chances of the buyer to disagree with what you are saying and lead yourself to a defeat with a lost sale.

Good luck with your sales!