volume 2, 2011 - Anthem Worldwide

SIGHTINGS
VOLUME 2, 2011
IN THIS ISSUE
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MARKETING
BRANDED CITIES
Lavasa at night: The city
in India will be entirely
developed and governed by a
private corporation.
Cities Branding For
Economic Development
We live in a branded culture and see branding
applied to all manner of people, places, and
things. Here we focus on place: cities that are
applying the basics of branding to accomplish
their goals—whether that be to attract
investment or human capital or to draw more
tourists. From India and China to Russia and the
UK, we see cities taking different approaches to
brand development to improve each city’s overall
“brand” image.
We found Lavasa, for example, a new urban
planning project that will be the first city in
India to be developed and governed entirely by
a private corporation. The city has been built on
the principles of New Urbanism, which include
creating highly livable spaces, to “work, learn,
and play in harmony with nature.” The long-term
plan for Lavasa is ambitious:
…Lavasa will eventually house more
than 300,000 people in five distinct
“towns.” It will also have a world-class
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SIGHTINGS 2011
medical campus, luxury hotels, boarding
schools, sports academies, a Nick Faldo–
designed golf course, a space camp,
and, its developers hope, animation
and film studios, software-development
companies, biotech labs, and law and
architectural firms—in short, all of the
knowledge industries at the heart of the
“new India.”
Given the corporate governing structure of this
city, it makes sense that its planners would
approach the development much like a business
project, starting with the brand. Partnering with
U.S. branding firm Landor, they developed the
brand idea of “Life in Full” which was designed
to convey a complete experience, in harmony
with nature. The name itself is designed to evoke
feelings of fulfillment and freedom. In developing
this highly optimistic and aspirational brand
image for Lavasa, the city planners hope to
attract residents, investors, and tourists alike
who seek a better way of life with a focus on
sustainability and peaceful co-existence.
China provides similar examples of cities that
are being built or rebuilt to attract investments
MARKETING
from around the world and improve the overall
experience in the city. For the 2010 World
Exhibition in Shanghai, the government tore down
and rebuilt large areas with the tagline “Better
City, Better Life.” U.S. real estate development
and investment firm Gale International is seeking
to capitalize on this trend of urban improvement
in China by marketing “cities in a box” to Chinese
government officials. Literally turning a city
into a product emphasizes the need to consider
fundamental elements of branding as it relates to
the city such as naming, creating a differentiated
positioning, and the overall brand experience.
The first successful model of this type of city
development is found in South Korea:
Songdo International Business District,
[is] a $35 billion city being built from
scratch on a man-made island off the
coast of South Korea. At completion
(currently scheduled for 2015), it will be
roughly the size of downtown Boston, with
65,000 residents.
Songdo International
Business District, a city built
from scratch on a man-made
island off the coast of South
Korea, hopes to attract
multinational firms and
expatriates to its locale.
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SIGHTINGS 2011
Songdo has successfully become a destination
for multinational firms and expatriate employees.
It will likely be a matter of time before we see
these sorts of prototype communities spreading
throughout China.
Similarly, in 2010 Russia made a splash when
they announced to the world their ambitious plan
to build a leading science and technology hub
outside of Moscow (modeled off of Silicon Valley)
known as the Skolkovo Innovation Centre. The goal
of developing this new “Science City” is twofold:
to attract the best human capital and to develop
new technology and innovations to compete
globally. In August 2010, the city planners
announced MIR LLC and SPN Ogilvy Public
Relations as the winners of the tender to develop
the brand for the innovation centre. Given the
importance of this initiative, it will be interesting
to track how Skolkovo builds its brand image to
effectively deliver on these goals.
Finally, London and Moscow have recently
rebranded themselves in a more traditional sense,
MARKETING
LEFT: London hopes to step
out of the shadow of the
economic downturn and
reveal its true personality.
RIGHT: Architect Nicholas
Pereslegina and designer
Alexander Pershikova created
the “Surprise + Smile”
branding in an attempt to
lighten up the city’s image
and appeal to a younger
crowd.
with designs of vibrant colors and taglines. In
London, the mayor announced a public tender in
August 2009 over which many prominent design
firms competed. London’s main motivations for
rebranding were a desire to disassociate itself
with the financial turmoil of recent years, to
prepare for the upcoming 2012 Olympics, and
to “tidy up” their communications by unifying
the messages from the disparate promotional
organizations (i.e., Visit London, Think London,
Study London, and Film London). Saffron Brand
Consultants, led by industry guru Wally Ollins,
won the business and recently relaunched the
new London brand. The rebranding is a cheeky,
vibrant execution with messaging that effectively
captures the spirit of the city. According to
Saffron’s website:
The brand expresses the quirky,
understated, confident, self-deprecating
style that anyone who knows London will
recognise.
While not officially sanctioned by the government,
architect Nicholas Pereslegina and designer
Alexander Pershikova recently launched a rebrand
for Moscow which appears to be an attempt to
lighten up the city’s overall image while appealing
to a younger crowd. The “Wow Moscow” branding
incorporates emoticons to convey excitement and
wonder, while giving a nod to the proliferation
of texting and new language patterns that have
emerged as a result. The tagline “Surprise +
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SIGHTINGS 2011
Smile” further conveys the positive energy and
playful nature of the brand.
These examples from India, China, Russia and
the UK all demonstrate the need to consider the
“brand experience” in each city and show how
municipal governments have used the city’s
brand to help achieve their economic and social
goals. Consider your own city and think about
its personality, voice and overall look and feel.
What does your city promise? Is it delivering on its
promise? How does it use its image or brand to
accomplish its goals? Marketers can learn from
these examples and the cities’ savvy application
of branding fundamentals to improve the overall
“brand” image for residents, tourists, and
investors alike.
MARKETING
BACK TO THE PAST
Old is made new again
The past is often mined by the fashion and
entertainment industries for creative inspiration,
taking something familiar or classic and updating
it for the current marketplace. For example, the
skinny jean, while currently popular, is not new.
There have been numerous updates on the tight or
skinny jean since the ’50s. Or consider the recent
slate of TV and movie remakes recently released
or in-the-works: Hawaii Five-0, 90210, Charlie’s
Angels, Karate Kid, Arthur, and Footloose.
Nostalgia is becoming a goldmine for the
consumer packaged goods world, as well.
Similar to the fashion and entertainment fields,
companies are reviving “old” products with
modern twists. For example, Hasbro has brought
back the popular View-Master toy as a cutting
Hasbro’s My3D is reminiscent of the View-Master
of the late 1930s and just one of the modern day
interpretation of classic products.
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SIGHTINGS 2011
edge gadget, the My3D 360 viewer. It snaps onto
your iPhone or iPod Touch and creates a 3D visual
environment. Another example is Instagram.
Leveraging the instant camera craze from the
’70s, they have created an app for your iPhone
that uses filters to convert the style of any picture
into a stunning photo that is fun and easy to
share with family and friends.
Another route to the past is not so much an
update but a direct throwback to yesteryear.
Brands like Tide and Tootsie Roll are using
packaging or advertising from their archives to
play up the retro vibe. Tide is showcasing vintage
packaging and print ads in Target stores. Tootsie
Roll has been smartly targeting tweens and their
parents on the Disney channel with the classic
Owl Tootsie Pop commercial from the ’70s.
MARKETING
After seeing successes with the reintroduction of its retro Pepsi
and Mountain Dew designs and recipes, Pepsi announced the
products would become a permanent addition to its product line.
Signs are pointing to the fact that this is not a
passing fad, that nostalgia branding may be
here to stay. Back in 2009, Pepsi and Mountain
Dew introduced “throwbacks” as limited time
only products. They featured packaging from the
’80s and the original sugar formulation replacing
the current high fructose corn syrup. Their
ongoing success has led the company to recently
announce that both items will become permanent
products. Following suit, Doritos, which offered a
retro package early this year that quickly soldout,
has decided to make it a permanent item with
’80s packaging and a reformulation.
In addition, the trend is extending beyond food
and home care products. In February, Nike
introduced an Air Jordan 13 Retro Playoff sneaker
based on the original from 1998. Similarly, Forty
Seven Brand, licensor of Major League Baseball,
is launching nostalgia apparel for all 30
baseball clubs.
So why is nostalgia resonating with consumers?
The answer is twofold. First, the past speaks
directly to a product’s or brand’s heritage, and
heritage is one way for a brand to demonstrate
authenticity or “realness.” These products or
brands are tried and true, have withstood the test
of time, and have earned consumer trust. Second,
for Generation X and Boomers, nostalgia brings
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SIGHTINGS 2011
up potent memories and emotions. It harkens
back to a simpler time with fond childhood
recollections that evoke strong emotions of
comfort.
Whether it’s reaching back to the past to
refashion old products for current sensibilities or
“retro”-fitting current products to evoke the past,
brands are finding that “old” can be relevant
and compelling. Nostalgia has become a great
shorthand to create an instant trusting and
emotional connection with consumers, making the
old new again.
MARKETING
MAKE IT MATTER
Connecting With Millennials
Their generation is optimistic, aspiring and
skeptical. They’re moving at an unimaginable
pace—absorbing knowledge, making an infinite
amount of connections and sharing information
rapidly through their networks. They have
grown up in a world where, with the help of the
Internet, Christmas shopping could be done
in the comforts of their own beds and sending
mail takes a matter of seconds. The Millennial
generation, those born between 1977 and 1994,
are characteristically candid and confident—
unafraid to call a spade a spade. As such, they
seek in their brands what they see in themselves:
real, transparent and genuine voices. They are a
force to be reckoned with, changing the modern
marketplace and searching for meaning in a fast
paced environment. To appeal to this mass, you
need to be sure that there is meaning behind
what you do—whether it comes through your
product, your business model or your culture—so
that Millennials can truly rally behind and build
an intangible connection with your brand.
Why do they seek this meaning? Because the
meaning of the “American Dream” itself has
seen drastic change with this generation. Where
prosperity and success were previously linked
to material wealth, they are now growing more
and more concerned with personal fulfillment.
Surely the domestic and global events that have
occurred in the backdrop of this group’s rise and
development have effected this change. From the
Dot-com bubble to the housing boom and bust,
from the War on Terrorism to the Global Financial
Crisis, Millennials have faced the toughest
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SIGHTINGS 2011
economic climate in recent times. Unemployment
rates for those in their early 20’s have risen to
nearly 20%. To Millennials, success now comes in
the form of reaching personal goals and building
real emotional connections—they seek meaning.
And according to Glenn Heimstra of Futurist.com,
it’s unlikely that this value shift will reverse even
once the economy rebounds. With this in mind,
it’s not enough that businesses offer material
offerings—there must be a real emotional
element for Millennials to embrace, as well.
You should care about this cohort because
Millennials are a connected force. They have
networks of hundreds and the tools to spread
information like wildfire. They have influencing
power and are unafraid to express their honest
opinions. Just look at the social media sites
popular amongst Millennials like Twitter, for
which the average user has 126 followers. Or
even Yelp, whose users are free to rant or rave
FAST FACTS: MILLENNIALS
• Children of the Baby Boomer
generation, born between 1977 and
1994 (ages 17-34 in 2011)
• Millennials make up 23% of the
United States population
• New York, Los Angeles, Chicago,
Dallas and Houston have the largest
population of Millennials
• A diverse generation: Only three in five
Millennials are non-Hispanic whites
MARKETING
Joe Gebbia, Brian Chesky
and Nathan Blecharczyk
took the initiative to
create AirBnB after finding
there was a need for
more accommodations
in San Francisco
when conferences and
conventions came to town.
about local businesses. Businesses who can
successfully build solid, meaningful relationships
with Millennials have the opportunity to turn their
young followers into their brand ambassadors
given these connected communication mediums.
In fact, a study released by public relations
firm, Edelman, found that globally at least 80%
of Millennials have “taken action on behalf
of a brand they trust—including sharing
brand experiences with others, joining online
communities, and posting reviews online.”
were fully booked. Realizing this was a common
problem facing many travelers, they created this
community marketplace for travelers to find shortterm hosts. It’s a prime example showing that
if businesses fail to understand and act on the
needs and problems of consumers, they should be
sure that Millennials—despite their youth—have
the capability to take the bull by the horns and
come to the rescue.
Some companies are answering the call of
Millennials and providing them the connections
they’re looking for. Whole Foods is one where
the focus on product has led to a brand that
Millennials can trust, supplying fair trade items
and sourcing from local producers. They have
even become more transparent with their “Whole
Foods Market Responsibly Farmed” seal and the
wild-caught seafood sustainability rating system,
showing the best options and which to avoid in
their stores.
And if you don’t connect with them, they’ll just
find a way to do it themselves. If there is a need
to be met, Millennials—a skilled and confident
group of go-getters—are perfectly adept and
willing to find a way to meet it themselves. Their
generation has bred some of the most successful
ventures of recent times, and it doesn’t stop with
Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook. Joe Gebbia and
Brian Chesky, founders of AirBnB, first offered
up their San Francisco loft when they found that
visitors to a nearby conference had trouble finding Toms is a great example of a business model that
resonates with Millennials. Millennials have been
a place to stay, as all the hotels in the area
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SIGHTINGS 2011
MARKETING
shown to be more socially aware than previous
generations, and businesses can benefit from
partnering with them on social causes. With the
goal of placing a pair of shoes in need for every
shoe purchased by its customers, Toms and its
One for One business model has been able to
connect with Millennials in this way, appealing
to those hoping to take their dollar further and
be part of a social movement. (Read about
Toms’ recent expansion into eyewear, officially
transforming from a shoe company to a One
for One company in “How Far Can the Brand
Stretch?”.)
Some businesses are also creating cultures in
their companies that will attract Millennials. Take
a look at how Method has brought some fun to the
lackluster soap and laundry detergent categories
and you’ll see that much of that has to do with
their culture where being “weird” is embraced
and individual personalities can be expressed.
Even Andrew Mason, founder of group buying
website Groupon, is bringing “meaning” into
his culture and business dealings, choosing his
business partners based on if they are “genuine
and real.”
So while the immense purchasing power of the
Baby Boomer generation is well deserving of
attention, the growing force of the Millennial
generation should not be ignored. They’ve
grown up in a very different environment and
are placing more value on the intangibles than
their predecessors. They’ve proven themselves
to have substantial influence in our society and
if you don’t connect with them soon, there’s no
guarantee they’ll wait around for you to do so.
They’ll just go and create a brand of their own.
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SIGHTINGS 2011
Toms encourages its consumers to take photos of how they wear
their Toms and post them on their website. After seeing teens sport
their shoes at proms and brides and grooms wear them on their
special day, Toms came out with a formal line including shoes
made with grosgrain materials and even glitter.
MARKETING
THE ZEAL FOR ‘REAL’
In authenticity we trust
The marketplace today requires a “realness”
or authenticity to be in every brand. Different
forces have shaped this requirement: lack of
trust in institutions built-up over time, informed
consumers that are marketing-speak wary and
weary, economic pressures that necessitate value
justification and an empowered consumer base
with communication vehicles that can expose
falsehoods.
The dictionary definition of authentic is genuine,
real, true, original. For brands, there are different
ways to demonstrate or communicate this
“realness.”
When one first thinks of an authentic brand,
they often think of a brand with heritage or a
story like Ben & Jerry’s ice cream or Virgin. Or
realness can come from a specific source such
as Evian water which is solely collected from
an aquifer in the northern French Alps. Another
common association with authenticity is around
craftsmanship or technique. For example, Peet’s
Coffee hand-roasts its coffee in small batches.
Realness can also come from brands that look
beyond profits and that have strong beliefs
or missions. Consider Clif Bar, which has a
quintuple bottom line: planet, community, people,
business, and brands. For brands that play in
these spaces, authenticity is built in.
For those brands that don’t have realness built in,
how do they bridge the gap to be true and real?
Here are some key considerations, some familiar
and some new, to building trust and authenticity.
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SIGHTINGS 2011
Ben & Jerry’s recent marketing campaign focuses on its roots,
reminding consumers of its history and its accomplishments since
its first shop opened in 1978.
Consistent brand messaging across all touch
points is crucial. Imagine if you called, emailed
or texted Geico and the customer service
representative was serious and rude? That would
totally throw you off based on the humorous TV
commercials. How would you now trust that they’ll
save you money, have you covered, and have your
interests at heart?
In our highly connected world, brands must be
completely honest and transparent in words and
actions. Take for example, Burt’s Bees, a personal
care company that clearly states on their website
MARKETING
that they are striving to be 100% natural. They
even helped to create The Natural Standard for
Personal Care Products. Yet, they admit that
currently only half their line is 100% natural.
This transparency is extended to packaging where
they include a graphic bar indicating exactly what
percentage of each product is natural. It’s okay
not to be perfect, as long as you are honest.
Another reality of the current environment is
that real communication is two-way. Brands
need to embrace what is consumer generated.
Case in point, the Domino’s Pizza turnaround.
The company took to heart consumer comments
and completely revamped its nearly 50-year-old
pizza recipe. Along the way, Domino’s continued
to engage consumers (and employees) through
the transformation. Ads showcased the company
ultimately turning around their harshest critics
with the new recipe. The “real” approach
and better product boosted sales well beyond
expectations.
At the end of the day, it’s about trust. Trust is
the first building block to creating a relationship
between a brand and its consumers. Realness
or authenticity helps to build that trust and
in today’s marketplace is crucial for brand
development and growth.
Burt’s Bees admits that not all their products are 100% natural
and goes as far as to print on each of its products the actual
percentage of natural ingredients.
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SIGHTINGS 2011
INNOVATION
HOW FAR CAN A
BRAND STRETCH?
Start with Credibility &
Permission
Moleskine stretches its brand
to include everything for
the “modern-day nomad,”
including laptop cases, pens,
and reading lights.
In today’s tough marketplace, we are seeing
more and more brands trying to grow through
stretching their equities, sometimes pushing
the envelope and challenging consumers’
perceptions of what the brand is all about. These
days consumers generally accept the concept
of a lifestyle brand that effectively stretches,
and we frequently see big brands like Ralph
Lauren, Quicksilver, or Patagonia stretching to
provide their target consumers with the newest
accessory or product to suit his or her lifestyle.
Another example of a well-known brand with
broad stretch is Arm & Hammer. From a humble
start as a baking soda brand, the company
leveraged its potent ingredient to stretch into
kitty litter, oral hygiene, fabric care, and more.
But how far is too far? In looking at the factors
that allow a brand to stretch, marketers can start
with two key questions:
1.Where does the brand’s credibility lie?
2.Where does the consumer give you permission
to stretch?
Several examples demonstrate how brands have
leveraged their credibility to enter new markets
and where their consumers have effectively
granted them permission to stretch.
Moleskine, the makers of the legendary notebooks,
has recently launched a reading collection
that includes reading glasses, a portable and
rechargeable booklight, and an e-reader and
book stand. According to their website, these
products are
…designed to complete the kit for the
modern-day nomad who loves travelling,
writing and reading.
Moleskine has embraced their consumer and
come to know him, understanding his lifestyle
and behaviors, thus anticipating a wider range of
needs and providing solutions for more situations.
The Toms brand has taken its mission-based
one-for-one (“one person buys, one person is
helped”) business model and has shifted from a
shoe company to a much broader platform, most
recently expanding to eyewear. The brand anchors
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SIGHTINGS 2011
INNOVATION
Skinny Cow expands
its brand of guilt-free
indulgence from frozen
novelties to candy.
on the goal of trying to improve as many lives as
possible, which ultimately delivers a powerful
emotional benefit for the consumers buying and
a powerful functional benefit the people in need
on the receiving end. This broader social mission
platform could in theory be applied to a near
endless list of everyday products, but for now the
brand is focusing on the highest impact needs
that are also operationally feasible. Based on
Toms’ success and the credibility the company
has gained with its consumers, the question for
this brand is not about where they can stretch,
but how they’ll be able to keep up operationally to
deliver on their mission as they continue to grow.
e-reader, the Kindle. From the Kindle, Amazon
quickly went on to extend the e-reader capability
into online media, offering MP3 downloads and
streaming videos on demand to compete with the
likes of iTunes and Netflix. Finally, Amazon has a
successful B2B offering, which leverages its core
competencies into other services, such as hosting
and cloud computing. This unprecedented brand
stretch leverages Amazon’s unmatched capability
of providing secure, online transactions. It’s
Amazon’s easy-to-use and reliable online
platform, which has built incredible trust and
loyalty among its consumers, that has ultimately
allowed the brand to be much more than just an
online bookseller.
Although we’re talking about a trademarked
whole grain and sesame blend and not an online
transaction capability like Amazon, Kashi has
leveraged a core product feature to extend well
beyond its initial product offerings. While Kashi
has successfully grown into a broader lifestyle
brand that supports a healthy, natural lifestyle,
the brand has stayed true to its start throughout
its stretching. Their tagline “Seven whole grains
The Skinny Cow brand provides another example
on a mission” has been very powerful in its
of a brand that has anchored on a key benefit— simplicity. Given the health benefits of grains and
indulgent, guilt-free treats—and recently
the market’s appetite for health and wellness
stretched into new categories. The brand started solutions, this simple notion of creating a wide
with indulgent, good-for-you frozen novelties and range of good-for-you products with their famous
has extended its expertise to now offer multiple
grain medley has allowed the brand to effectively
products with the same benefit in the candy aisle. stretch throughout the grocery store.
With the ever growing obesity rate in the U.S. and
American consumers’ insatiable sweet tooth, this From these examples we see that brands typically
anchor in one of three areas to stretch their
benefit will likely fuel Skinny Cow’s innovation
brands into new categories: consumer target
pipeline for some time to come.
(Moleskine), benefit (Toms, Skinny Cow), or
The Amazon.com brand has come a long way
features and attributes (Amazon, Kashi). Stronger
since its beginnings as an online bookseller. The brands utilize two or more of these aspects to tie
first step was to reach beyond just selling books
their portfolio together. But before considering
to become the largest online retailer of all goods - which anchor to use to stretch your brand,
the complete source from A-Z. Miraculously, at the always begin the discussion with credibility and
same time the company was also able to expand permission—what are the limits of your brand’s
their expertise in books to redefine “bookstore”
relationship with its target consumer, and what
again, launching the first widely accepted
will your consumer allow you to do?
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SIGHTINGS 2011
INNOVATION
RETHINK
REINVENTION
Making it happen through micro-funding
Some believe great innovations are those
that re-invent business models. Think Apple
with iPod coupled with iTunes to redefine the
music industry. Think FedEx evolving how
communication gets delivered around the world.
Think Amazon changing the way we acquire and
read books. Another current thought surrounding
innovation is that great ideas come from holistic
thinking and associating different, unrelated
things—if I take this from here and marry it with
that from there, eureka! Steve Jobs even said,
“Creativity is connecting things.” For example,
Harvard Business Review reported back in 2009
how eBay founder, Pierre Omidyar, created this
groundbreaking platform—by being enthralled
with the creation of new markets, understanding
his fiancée’s desire to buy hard-to-find Pez
dispensers, and witnessing how ineffective
old classified ads were in helping to solve this
problem. Voilà! A great new business idea, and
how we buy has been forever changed.
We’re seeing this reinvention of business models
and this behavior of association taking place with
the marrying of “the power of crowds” and the
old axiom “take small steps.” The combination
is leading to the reinvention of everything from
music creation and promotion, funding of the
arts, and allocation of college scholarship
funds. All of these examples demonstrate how to
reinvent the distribution of capital to get out from
under the thumb of more powerful or ambiguous
institutions, all through accessing crowds to take
back the power.
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP:
Micro-funding projects on My
Music Company, Kickstarter
and ScholarMatch.
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SIGHTINGS 2011
Kiva.org paved the way with its unique microloan approach, seeking out investors to provide
small investments to make a big impact. The
trend now takes a slightly different angle—it’s
micro-funding, which breaks a larger investment
up into smaller chunks and then recruits a large
number of people so the dollars add up. President
Obama’s 2008 campaign was a leader in this
type of financing; 49% of his funds were made
INNOVATION
in the amount of $200 or less. This approach is
unique in that it also doesn’t represent your usual
exchange. Those who participate tend to get value
from the personal connection they are making
through the investment itself, and thus don’t
require as much in return. Just having a unique
product from a Kickstarter project and helping
an artist bring their idea to fruition is thank you
enough for some.
My Major Company (MMC) is another company
reinventing the music industry. MMC allows
normal folk to invest in a new band, providing the
micro-funds to raise sufficient cash to get a band
started. With the funding, bands record their
songs through MMC, which is an actual label,
get distribution, and can potentially even go on
tour. The revenue from music sales, concerts, and
merchandise gets divided among the investors,
MMC, and the artist themselves. And we aren’t
talking chump change. One investor in France
turned $6,850 investment into $150,000. The
benefit here is not just for the bands, it’s also
for the music industry as a whole since music
companies can’t afford to fund as many acts as
they once used to.
Kickstarter.com provides the venue for creatives
to land benefactors to help them bring their vision
to life. People can “pledge” money to “creative
projects” and if the project gets fully funded,
the project owner is off and running. If they can
pitch their projects successfully, they get cash to
bring their idea into the world, as well as moral
support from all those ponying up the cash who
want them to succeed. What do the funders get in
return? Rewards as determined by the creators,
which can be anything from the product being
created to benefits to experiences. And if the
project isn’t 100% funded, you aren’t out any
cash. They’ve created a system that is rightly lowrisk, taking away any barriers to participation.
Finally, ScholarMatch is a program based in San
Francisco, California that was started by Dave
16
SIGHTINGS 2011
Eggers of A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering
Genius fame. Inspired by both Kiva and
Kickstarter, he’s borrowing this funding model
to help kids get to college. ScholarMatch helps
connect college-ready kids to those willing to
invest in their future. The needs vary from $3,000
to $10,000 and sometimes more. Seeing so many
talented, eager, worthy, in-need young people
on the site packs quite an impact and is very
motivating.
What can marketers learn from this? Think
revolution. Think borrow and build. Think new
ways to do the same thing, just better. Innovation
is about seeking inspiration from outside,
combining ideas from elsewhere, and trying to
create new models and ways to solve consumer
problems or meet their needs and desires. These
are prime examples that the world today never
stands still. There are way too many empowering
tools to have the status quo stay the status quo
for long.
INNOVATION
CONTAINED QUARTERS
Smitten, an ice cream
shop housed in a shipping
container, is the first
business to open on the twoblock “Proxy” project in the
Hayes Valley neighborhood of
San Francisco.
For Dine, Play or Stay
Innovative thinking happens when you remove
constraints. Over the past few years we’ve
observed the rise of pop-up shops, which removed
the constraints of long-term leases and large
inventories. An interesting take on this theme
of late has been the use of shipping containers,
repurposed to be temporary accommodations and
retail or food vendor spaces. This trend shows
what can happen when you mix sustainable
thinking and remove the constraints of traditional
bricks and mortar foundations. The results speak
for themselves—truly beautiful, unexpected
innovations.
instant ice cream machine named “Kelvin” in
place of the traditional ice cream freezer.
Smitten will be in good company soon. The
complete Proxy project is projected to be
a “vibrant focal point for commerce and
community” and is planned to include a
beer garden by nearby German restaurant
Suppenküche, an outpost of the ever popular
Pizzeria Delfina, Ritual Coffee Roasters, 4505
Meats, and an art gallery.
San Francisco is not alone. The repurposed
shipping containers are popping up globally. In
One of the best examples of urban planning with
containers is the project in San Francisco’s Hayes
Valley called “Proxy” developed by architecture
firm Envelope A+D, based in Oakland, CA. We had
the pleasure of attending the launch of the first
business to open in this two block complex, an ice
cream shop called Smitten.
Smitten is a truly innovative business: steel
instead of bricks and mortar, iPads in place
of cash registers, and a liquid nitrogen based
17
SIGHTINGS 2011
In Texas’ Cinco Camp, containers serve as a boutique hotel with
minimal impact on the surrounding environment.
INNOVATION
Swedish architecture firm
Jagnefalt Milton envisioned
a city rolling on preexisting
railroad tracks where mobile
buildings would house local
businesses.
Londrina, Brazil, we found another example, this
time a car dealer. The franchisee of an Asian
car assembler used ten containers to create
part of the building’s façade, which will contain
sales and service operations. Not only do the
highly functional looking containers give a nod
to the imported nature of the product and create
considerable word of mouth marketing for the
company, they are also sustainable in that they
can be taken down and recycled or reassembled in
a new location.
Deep in the heart of Texas, we found Cinco Camp,
a boutique hotel constructed out of five 8’x10’
shipping containers and designed to blend into
the environment to have the least impact on
the land.
These temporary spaces are truly growing in
acceptance and execution. According to Urban
Space Management Ltd in the UK, their Container
City product “…offer(s) an alternative solution to
traditional space provision. [The containers] are
ideal for office and workspace, live-work and keyworker housing.” Their website features a wide
array of work/space creations
(www.containercity.com).
18
SIGHTINGS 2011
Finally, a container concept by Swedish
architecture firm Jagnefalt Milton recently
won third prize in the Norwegian master plan
competition for the city of Åndalsnes. The
proposal envisioned a city rolling on wheels,
utilizing preexisting railroad tracks and creating
mobile buildings to house local business and
services including a hotel, a public bath house,
and a concert hall. The stunning photography also
went a long way to bring the concept to life.
The temporary nature of these structures and
the ultimate mobility of these venues challenge
our perceptions of space, our relationship with
the environment, and the usual constraints of
construction and the immobility of structures.
Is there an advantage to having a traditional
foundation, solidly staked into the ground, or are
portable structures the wave of the future?
DESIGN
DESIGN
BEYOND
THE SHELF
A look at design beyond
packaging and how it’s
being used to blur the lines
between form and function.
19
SIGHTINGS 2011
DESIGN
BEAUTIFUL &
PURPOSEFUL
Bringing numbers to life
Browsing your favorite blog recently, you may
have run into some visually stunning graphics
visualizing the data referenced in the writing.
Information graphics, or infographics, which use
visuals to present data and knowledge instead of
relying solely on numbers and words, are nothing
new of course. Open up a newspaper from years
ago or today and you’ll find them in the form of
bar graphs and pie charts. Maybe you took the
subway recently and used a color-coded map to
get you on the right route to your destination.
Despite not being new, infographics are popping
up more and more today and are being used to
show everything from the spread of diabetes in
the United States to explaining the complex dream
layers of the film Inception. But why now?
Our society has made leaps and bounds in
making information more accessible to the
average person. Thanks to the Internet we’re now
able to generate infinite amounts of information
in just seconds (or tenths of seconds as Google
likes to measure for us), making information
overload a problem in our society. Bing’s recent
marketing campaign even tried to position the
search engine as the “Cure for Search Overload
Syndrome.” Infographics help solve this problem
by making it easier to show a multitude of
complex facts and figures in a single, easy to read
graphic that leverages visuals instead of words
to communicate information. It’s also undeniable
that we’ve become a quicker society. And
because—as David McCandless, author of the
book Information is Beautiful points out—sight is
our quickest sense, we’ve embraced infographics.
By presenting data visually, they’re helping us
absorb more data faster than ever before.
An infographic created by GOOD and Hyperakt, in partnership with
University of Phoenix, uses color and impactful juxtapositions to show
the gap between the educational requirements of the current job
market and the reality of educational attainment in the United States.
20
SIGHTINGS 2011
Another reason we may be seeing the proliferation
of infographics is the rise in availability of
data visualization tools. The website Wordle
makes it easy to create word clouds showing
DESIGN
the frequency of words that appear in a body
of text. Google’s Public Data Explorer provides
various demographic and economic datasets that
users can choose to create their own compelling
infographics. So, you can even try it yourself.
If you do decide to enter the world of infographics,
remember that while they may be beautiful to
look at, infographics still serve a very functional
purpose. Keep these five tips in mind to make sure
your infographic is effective.
When creating infographics...
1. Make it visually appealing
This one is self-explanatory. As McCandless
puts it, “We’re all visualizers. We’re all
demanding a visual aspect to our
information.”
2. Make it impactful at first glance
Effective infographics will use visual
elements to emphasize size differences,
trends and movements that give viewers
quick takeaways.
3. Show patterns and connections
One of the great strengths of infographics
is its ability to aggregate information and
reveal patterns and connections that could
otherwise be overlooked when presented in
plain numbers and words.
4. Show relativity vS. absoluteness
The current unemployment rate is
noteworthy, but compare it to the rate a
decade ago and it becomes meaningful.
5. Help viewers draw intended
conclusions
VisualEconomics’ infographic shows the dramatic rise of the
unemployment rate in the United States over the 2000-2009 period.
21
SIGHTINGS 2011
Having many stunning bar graphics and
pie charts is great, but if they don’t get the
viewer to where you need them, they haven’t
served their purpose.
DESIGN
LIQUID
PRECISION
If color patterns follow trends then why not shapes and
forms? Could it be that power brand Apple is driving
the easing of rectangle edges on many of today’s
electronic gadgets? Historically, form was said to
follow function, but with today’s super materials and
manufacturing capabilities, forms are able to almost
defy function and simply demonstrate or exploit what
is capable with a medium.
Enter the liquid form. Metals, resins, and polymers
have the ability to transform from liquid to solid.
Recently, some clever artists and designers have been
manipulating this unique feature to make functional
items that appear as liquid but work as solids in their
tasks. Liquid tables for contemporary environments,
retail display fixtures for LVMH and even sunglasses
that visually defy logic but perform just the same
as geometric counterparts. Who knows what will
materialize next.
When Forms Defy Function
A
(A) A store window display from Louis Vuitton places a purse on a
pedestal that appears to be melting.
(B) A concept table designed by John Nouanesing called “Paint or Die
But Love Me.”
(C) Anna Ter Haar designed a pair of sunglasses for a Klavers van
Engelen fashion show that used the melting effect.
B
C
22
SIGHTINGS 2011
SEE & BE SEEN
SIGHTINGS OF INTERESTING TIDBITS
UPDATES ON OUR
TRENDS FOR 2011
LOCAL: A PLACE UNLIKE ANY OTHER
Amy Cortese, author of Locavesting: The revolution in local investing
and how to profit from it, hopes to spread the idea of investing
in local businesses, bringing the world of capitalism—­­­so often
associated with Wall Street—closer to Main Street.
NO FREE TV
YouTube will be joining the ranks of Netflix and Apple with the
unveiling of its movie rental service. Over 3,000 movies will be
available for streaming on its website.
SMALL IS BIG AGAIN
WHEN PRICE IS NO OBJECT
With all the focus on cheap-chic and value
over the last decade, it’s good to see that
luxury has not gone out of style. Consider
Renova’s multi-color, extra soft, designer
toilet paper made of 100% virgin pulp. This
soft, colorful toilet paper may just convince
you to pick up a roll for $3. While you’re in the
spending mood, you can also consider picking
up a bottle of Lambda’s ultra premium olive
oil—a 100mL bottle runs for a mere $185.
Staples and Kohl’s will be rolling out smaller stores as they
expand. Kohl’s will be reducing store sizes to be better suited for
densely populated areas while also reacting to increasing online
shopping and the need for more efficient operations. Staples
hopes to build on its “one size does not fit all” model, building
stores with varying square footage. Meanwhile, Best Buy will be
subleasing space at its stores to downsize and capture cost savings.
LIFE, LIBERTY, AND THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS
Old Navy encourages consumers to “Put on your happy life” in its
recent campaign while Unilever’s HB Ice Cream brand in Ireland wants
to spread moments of happiness with its delicious frozen novelties.
WE, THE ORDINARY PEOPLE
Amanda Hocking began as a self-publisher, uploading her pananormalromance books just last spring on Amazon. Hocking became an instant
hit—her books reached the Amazon Kindle e-book best-seller list and
soon after she was able to score $2 million for her next four books.
QR CODES IN PLACES WE NEVER THOUGHT
After sighting them in our local window displays last quarter, QR codes once
again came on our radar in ways we never thought they would. John Fluevog
printed QR codes directly onto its recent collection of clog shoes, directing those
who scanned them to a video of how the shoes were made. Diesel has been
integrating QR codes into their social media campaign by allowing visitors to
their shelves to “like” them on Facebook instantly. For the artist in all of us,
Barcode Gallery will create custom QR codes and frame them into artful pieces.
QR codes appear to be easily applied, but the jury is still out on user adoption.
23
SIGHTINGS 2011
HOWARD SCHULTZ & ONWARD
Howard Schultz made an appearance at the Commonwealth Club in San
Francisco earlier this Spring to share some insight on where Starbucks
is heading in the future and to promote his recent book, Onward: How
Starbucks Fought for Its Life Without Losing Its Soul. Schultz noted China,
mobile payments, and Health & Wellness as huge areas of opportunity
and when asked about the primary driver behind his decision making,
Schultz credited simply—“love.”
Anthem Worldwide, the brand development division of Schawk,
Inc., is an integrated global network that provides innovative
solutions to articulate, unify and manage brand impact. Anthem
creates compelling brand experiences by aligning its strategic,
creative and executional talent worldwide with the business needs
of companies seeking a competitive advantage. Anthem offers a
full range of branding and design services. For more information
on Anthem, please visit http://www.anthemww.com.
Contact:
Kathy Oneto, Vice President, Brand Strategy
[email protected]
24
SIGHTINGS 2011
© 2011 Schawk, Inc. All Rights Reserved. No part of this work
may be reproduced in any form without written permission from
the copyright holder. Schawk is a registered trademark of Schawk,
Inc. The Anthem logo is a trademark of Schawk, Inc. All other
trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
WORKS CITEd:
http://www.jwtintelligence.com/2011/05/brands-attempt-lure-gen-nostalgia/.
BRANDED CITIES
Bruce Horovitz, “Pepsi, Frito-Lay capitalize on fond thoughts of the good ol’ days,” USA TODAY,
March 11, 2011, http://www.usatoday.com/money/advertising/2011-03-11-1Athrowback11_ST_N.
htm.
Andrew E. Kramer, “Russia Plans a Science City Modeled on Silicon Valley,” The New York Times,
April 10, 2010, http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/11/business/global/11russia.html.
Ayman Sarhan, “MoscOw, Rebranded,” Marketing 3.0 (blog), May, 2011, http://advertiser-inarabia.blogspot.com/2011/05/moscow-rebranded.html.
Branwell Johnson, “Mayor of London seeks agencies for city branding,” MarketingWeek,
August 4, 2009, http://www.marketingweek.co.uk/mayor-of-london-seeks-agencies-for-citybranding/3003066.article.
Hasbro, My3D, http://www.hasbro.com/hasbromy3d/en_US/.
James Scott, “my3D iPhone/iPod/ 3D Viewer,” GeekAlerts (blog), May 26, 2011, http://www.
geekalerts.com/my3d-iphoneipod-3d-viewer/.
Tim Nudd, “P&G Selling Tide, Bounce, Downy in Funky Retro Packaging,” AdWeek, May 17, 2011,
http://www.adweek.com/adfreak/pg-selling-tide-bounce-downy-funky-retro-packaging-131705.
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Greg Lindsay, “Now Coming out of Chinese Factories: Cities in a Box,” AdAgeGlobal, June 13, 2011,
http://adage.com/article/global-news/coming-chinese-factories-cities-a-box/228086/.
Jeremy Kahn, “India Invents a City,” The Atlantic, July/August 2011, http://www.theatlantic.com/
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HOW FAR CAN A BRAND STRETCH?
“4 luxury brand extensions,” Influxinsights (blog), January 16, 2007, http://influxinsights.
com/2007/style/4-luxury-brand-extensions/.
Derrick Daye, “Exploring Brand Extension,” Branding Strategy Insider (blog), April 14, 2007, http://
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Fred Gerantabee, “Building a Brand with User Experience: How Technology-fueled Experiences Have
Defined the Next Generation of Household Names,” Interbrand (blog), June 4, 2010, http://blog.
interbrand.com/blog/post/2010/06/04/Building-a-Brand-with-User-Experience-How-Technologyfueled-Experiences-Have-Defined-the-Next-Generation-of-Household-Names.aspx.
Jack Neff, “Study: When It Comes to Value Perception, Amazon Tops Brands in U.S. and Globally,”
AdvertisingAge, March 14, 2011, http://adage.com/article/news/millward-brown-study-amazontops-global-brand-rankings/149393/.
Moleskine, “Moleskine Reading Collection,” last modified May 24, 2011, http://www.moleskine.
com/about_us/news/reading_collection.php.
Patagonia, “Patagonia Company Information: Our Reason for Being,” http://www.patagonia.com/
us/patagonia.go?assetid=2047&ln=140.
Shirley Brady, “Special K Publishes Book With ‘Third Meal’ Suggestions,” BrandChannel (blog),
April 20, 2011, http://www.brandchannel.com/home/post/2011/04/20/Special-K-Book.aspx.
TOMS, “TOMS One for One Movement for Eyewear,” http://www.toms.com/eyewear/our-movement.
RETHINK REINVENTION
The Campaign Finance Institute, 2008.
Douglas McGray, “Education is in Crisis. Let’s clone Dave Eggers,” San Francisco Magazine, May
2011.
Dyer, Jeffery H., Hal B. Gregersen, and Clayton M. Christensen, “The Innovator’s DNA,” Harvard
Business Review, December 2009.
Kickstarter, http://www.kickstarter.com.
Fareed Zakaria, “Restoring the American Dream: How to Innovate,” CNN GPS, June 5, 2011.
Thomas K. Grose, “I’m with the Band,” Time Magazine, February 28, 2011.
CONTAINED QUARTERS
“Unique Vacation Rental Deep in the Heart of Texas,” Boutique Homes Dispatches (blog), http://
www.boutique-homes.com/dispatches/unique-vacation-rental-deep-in-the-heart-of-texas/.
Architizer, “AUTOBOX,” http://www.architizer.com/en_us/projects/pictures/autobox/13276/100773/.
Daisy Chow, “Proxy,” Tablehopper (blog), http://www.tablehopper.com/hardhat/proxy/.
DesignAddict, “Rolling buildings on rails,” DesignAddict (blog), http://www.designaddict.com/
design_addict/blog/index.cfm/2010/12/30/Rolling-buildings-on-rails.
EnvelopA+D, “Proxy,” http://www.envelopead.com/proj_octaviakl.html.
Urban Space Management, “Container City,” http://www.containercity.com/home.html.
MAKE IT MATTER
“Most Innovative Companies: Groupon,” Fast Company, 2011, http://www.fastcompany.com/mostinnovative-companies/2011/profile/groupon.php.
50 Most Innovative Companies
Airbnb, “About Airbnb,” http://www.airbnb.com.
Edelman, “New Study Shows That for Millennials, Taking Action on Behalf of Brands is a
Core Value,” 8095 Global Study, October 14, 2010, http://www.edelman.com/news/ShowOne.
asp?ID=261.
Judith Warner, “The Why-Worry Generation,” NYTimes.com, May 28, 2010, http://www.nytimes.
com/2010/05/30/magazine/30fob-wwln-t.html.
Matt Carmichael, “Where the Millennials Are,” AdAge Stat, http://adage.com/article/adagestat/
advertising-age-finds-cities-millennials/149347/.
Meghan Casserly, “The New Pay Gap: Boomers, Gen-X and Millennials,” Forbes (blog), January
5, 2011, http://blogs.forbes.com/meghancasserly/2011/01/05/the-new-pay-gap-boomersmillennials-salary-recession-raise/.
THE ZEAL FOR ‘REAL’
Carrie Griffith, “Top 10 IMC campaigns of 2010 (Part 1),” Vitamin IMC (blog), December 20, 2010,
http://www.vitaminimc.com/2010/12/top-10-imc-campaigns-of-2010-part-1/.
Sam Oches, “Domino’s Pizza Reinvention Gains Huge Sales,” QSR Magazine, August 2010, http://
www.qsrmagazine.com/menu-innovations/many-acts-domino-s-pizza.
BEAUTIFUL & PURPOSEFUL
David McCandless, “The beauty of data visualization,” TED Global 2010, July 2010, http://www.ted.
com/talks/lang/eng/david_mccandless_the_beauty_of_data_visualization.html.
Liz Dwyer, “Infographic: Educating the Workforce of the Future,” GOOD Education, May 9, 2011,
http://www.good.is/post/infographic-educating-the-workforce-of-the-future/.
Visual Economics, “A Decade of Unemployment,” http://www.visualeconomics.com/a-decade-ofunemployment/.
LIQUID PRECISION
“Sunglasses,” Anna Ter Haar’s Portfolio, http://www.annaterhaar.nl/2008/09/klavers-van-engelenfall-winter-2008-2009/.
“Paint Drip Table by John Nouanesing,” Bless This Stuff (blog), http://www.blessthisstuff.com/
stuff/living/tables/paint-drip-table-by-john-nouanesing/.
SEE & BE SEEN
“Kohl’s focusing on smaller stores, looking at all options for new headquarters,” Chain Store Age,
May 12, 2011, http://www.chainstoreage.com/article/kohl%E2%80%99s-focusing-smaller-storeslooking-all-options-new-headquarters.
“Locavesting”: Capitalism for Main Street,” Reuters Wealth, June 7, 2011, http://blogs.reuters.
com/reuters-wealth/2011/06/07/locavesting-capitalism-for-main-street/.
Bandtwagon, “Diesel QR Codes by the @FullsixGroup #solomo,” http://bandtwagon.com/diesel-qrcodes-by-the-fullsixgroup-solomo.
Barcode Gallery, http://www.barcodegallery.com/.
Hemant Patel, “YouTube Unveils 3,000 Full-Fledge Movie Offerings, Challenging Netflix,” May
11, 2011, http://news.ebrandz.com/miscellaneous/2011/4036-youtube-unveils-3000-full-fledgemovie-offerings-challenging-netflix-.html.
Lambda, Ultra Premium Extra Virgin Olive Oil, http://www.speironcompany.com/Flash/lambda.swf.
Marketing Daily, “Staples Plans On Smaller Stores; Adds Cell Phones,” Marketing Daily, June 24,
2011, http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=153062
Renova, http://www.renovaonline.net/you_iuk.html.
BACK TO THE PAST
Aaron Baar, “Brands attempt to lure Gen X with nostalgia,” JWT Intelligence (blog), May 16, 2011,
25
SIGHTINGS 2011
Strawberry Saroyan, “Storyseller,” NYTimes.com, June 17, 2011, http://www.nytimes.
com/2011/06/19/magazine/amanda-hocking-storyseller.html.