Store as brand space

This combines three things I'm pretty passionate about...

1. Innovation

2. Japan

3. Retail

Guess you could say the three fit together........just check out this great example from Adidas in Tokyo. Fantastic example of a brand that's using their retail space as an opportunity to provide a branded encounter. They've set up the store as a run club first, place-to-buy-stuff second. By doing so, they're creating a unique brand experience for Adidas that gives their fans another reason to stay loyal and keep returning over and over. Love it.

Full story + more pics here: http://weekenderjapan.com/?p=15968

Brands Engaging Youth

Shift? Advertising to Entertainment - stop interrupting what they're interested in & start being what they're interested in.

10 tips:

1. Create an experience....an interaction.
2. Audience co-creation + ownership. Don’t take yourself too seriously.
3. Make sharing between tribe members easy. Allow them to help create the story.
4. Use humour. Enterain.
5. Be authentic. Everytime.
6. Be transparent. Everytime.
7. Consistency across all touchpoints. Don't give it all away up front.
8. Enable belonging. Teens are tribe-centric.
9. Add something useful.
10. Don’t assume anything. Trust + respect get earned by being relevant.

Optimism as a brand thought (p.s. it rocks).

Every morning I drive to work. And nearly every morning I travel behind a bus with a huge ad for pepsi max on the back. Admittedly I can't remember the exact words but I know how it makes me feel. Positive. Optimistic. Energised. Now, being the cynical marketer that I am, I have to admit that this reaction surprised me. But it's a reaction I have continued to have over consecutive viewings which makes me think that it's (gasp!) likely that I actually really like and engage with the message.

It got me curious so I started to wonder....in the current economic climate is there more of a role for brands to take the lead and champion hope, positivity and optimism? I think yes. Obviously any strategy needs to align with the values and objectives for the brand but (as recent charity advertising previously mentioned on my blog may have found out) the current doom & gloom is not the time to reinforce hopelessness or helplessness.

Above are some other examples (local & international) which I think point to the "optimism" trend. Obviously taken to fuller or lesser degrees but certainly all operating from a territory that reinforces positivity, can-do and glass-half-full. Again, another special mention to Pepsi.... loved what they did during the Obama election. Couldn't care less if they were riding on his coat-tails. I love the work (example above) and think it bloody works a treat.

Circus 4.0

Never has Cirque De Soleil ever left me feeling less than inspired and amazed.

Each time it comes to Sydney my husband and I go and see it, and ever time I'm left thinking how the hell are they going to improve on that for next time? It is such a curiosity - the costumes, the story ideas, the music, the performances!

I think this is one of the most amazing brands to hit the face of our planet.

It's Circus 4.0.

I think there are some great learnings for brands of all types:

.....story is powerful and compelling

.....the audience is encouraged and invited to participate

......engagemet across every touchpoint

.....a creative and artistic masterpiece = attention to detail

.....raises the bar on itself each time = truly original

.....gets me talking, makes me inspired, an experience to be shared

.....truly entertaining

.....truly "smashproof" as a brand

.....drives repeat purchase!

B2B I.T Marketing Gets Creative

This is one of the most genius ideas I've seen coming out of the B2B I.T Industry.....in an industry where marketing is typically branded as "boring", I think this idea is simple and really fresh.

It was founded on a piece of insight being that everyone has an "IT Horror Story"......mine is trashing a major essay right before I was due to hand it in back in my uni days.....remembering it still makes me feel ill!....what's yours??

check out: http://www.trueittales.com/

I. LOVE. UNIQLO.

....for their visual merchandising.
....for their product.
....for being innovative (check out their partnership with Pantone)
....for making their store space, their brand space.
....for creating a brand experience.

....for infusing design + creativity into their product design