Which Web Trends Are Working in 2021?
When it comes to marketing and branding a firm, there are many ways a branding and design agency can help you make radical and effective changes, but one that may often be overlooked is the name.
Twitter Gives Brands Best Practice Dos and Don’ts
Making social media work for your brand can be a challenge for marketing teams as they fight to keep on top of the latest trends, but Twitter has released a report that helps shed some light on how social media users perceive brands on the popular platform. Twitter’s #RealTalk report involved an analysis of 5,000 unprompted tweets about brands from 1 June 2020 to 1 March 2021, to identify distinct shifts and trends in attitudes about how brands behave on its platform, as well as a survey of thousands of Twitter users in eight different countries. Some of the highlights include: Same tweets, different day – Twitter’s survey showed respondents a variety of tweets from various ‘prominent’ brands but removed any identifiable names and logos, but only a third of respondents were able to select the brand that tweeted it from a list of five options. No jokes – Around half of all respondents believe that brands relied on humour too much on Twitter, and feel that ‘brands that rely on humour and jokes can feel outdated today.’ Posting on current events – Only 7 per cent of global respondents said marketers should not tweet about social and cultural issues (56 per cent agreed they could, while 37 per cent think they should). Looking ahead, the advice in the report says: “Distinction is everything a brand needs to succeed on Twitter. It’s time to revisit what seems right for your brand, not just what topics are trending, or what other people are jumping in on.” If you’re looking for a creative agency in Manchester, talk to us today.
Three Startup Branding Failures And The Lessons Learned
The positive aspect of startup culture is that every failure has a lesson to teach, and here are three of the most important lessons to learn.
Stick Or Twist? Should You Rebrand When Expanding?
Companies and brands that are successful will feel the desire to expand, but when exploring new product areas and industries to expand into, there is often a dilemma to navigate for both a business and the branding and design agency they work with. Should a company take a risk with their existing successful brand with the hope that the existing name value will help boost the company, or should you spin off the new endeavour and potentially have two successful brands but would essentially have to start from scratch with branding and marketing. In other words, much like the popular card game Pontoon, should you stick or twist? Here are some examples of companies that have faced this dilemma, with rather fascinating results. Twist: Quikster By Netflix Netflix is known far more these days as a content producer and streaming video service, but its initial success came by completely disrupting video and DVD rentals, providing a broader and much less antagonistic service compared to Blockbuster that it wiped the latter out entirely. In 2011, the conquering Netflix faced something of a dilemma; its streaming video service was taking off, but what was to be done with the DVD rental service that was increasingly being phased out? Their answer, mocked at the time and savagely criticised to this day, was to split the company in two, with the DVD rentals being provided by Quikster with no connection between the accounts of both services. It was hopeless and seen as a cynical attempt to kill off the lower-margin side of the business quicker, and was reversed at the end of 2011. In the end, Netflix learned that the best barometer of change was customer behaviours, rather than trying to force their new direction. Stick: Colgate Kitchen Entreés So infamously wrongheaded that some believe it to be an urban myth, Colgate Kitchen Entreés was a set of ready meals that were part of a brand extension exercise that went very very wrong. Colgate is associated with minty fresh breath and so unless these ready meals were intended to clean the consumer’s teeth like a dog chew, it led to buyers being exceptionally turned off by the idea. Twist: Edsel Adding an extra brand to a car company is not always the worst idea. Toyota created the luxury brand Lexus for that purpose, as did Nissan with Infiniti, both of which have seen success courting a market that might have been put off by the cheaper brand associations of both parent brands. Ford had already had success in this regard, with its base level Ford cars, mid-range Mercury line and high-end Lincoln. One of the big problems with the Edsel, therefore, was where it actually fit in the market, with its prices around the same as the Mercury line, its advanced features infamously breaking and its styling famously terrible, particularly the vertical grille that became its trademark. Stick: New Coke Much has been written on the 79-day disaster that was New Coke, where Coca-Cola dramatically reformulated their drink and faced widespread backlash for it, but there is a chance it could have succeeded had they sold it as a new brand aimed at the younger market. After Coca-Cola Classic was reintroduced, New Coke had a successful marketing campaign featuring Max Headroom, so there is a chance that New Coke could have succeeded had it not replaced the original drink.
What Are The Best Branding Trends Of 2022?
Here are some popular themes that have emerged so far this year.
Champions League Branding Honours Russian Landmarks
UEFA spends a lot of time and money thinking about its branding for each season, and this year is no exception. To honour the 2022 UEFA Champions League Final at the Gazprom Arena in Saint Petersburg, designers have come up with an image that has been inspired by Russian landmarks and artists. “Working on a piece for the UEFA Champions League final was a creative challenge, as it had to capture the revolutionary spirit of Saint Petersburg that is hidden behind the classical facades of the city and include modern landmarks of the city, together with its more recognisable buildings, built centuries ago,” Maksim Zhestkov, who created the Suprematism-inspired design, stated. The branding reflects the 20th Century abstract art development known for its straight lines and geometry. “This influential art movement is also tightly connected with the city that hosted the first-ever Suprematist exhibition in 1915,” he commented. UEFA’s new imagery, which was inspired by Russian artists Wassily and Kazimir Malevich, features references to Saint Petersburg’s famous bridges; the Scarlet Sails; the Bronze Horseman monument; and Saint Isaac’s Cathedral. The Lakhta Center, which overlooks the Gazprom Arena, is also included in the design. The branding will be displayed around the Russian city until the final takes place on May 28th 2022 at the impressive arena. With capacity for more than 60,000 spectators, it is expected thousands of fans from all over the world will flock to St Petersburg for this special event. For a branding agency in Manchester that can transform your latest campaign, get in touch with us today.