Brand Strategy articles from February 2003

Brand Strategy archives from February 2003

The role of brands in high performance marketing. (Leader).
February 1, 2003... Marketing is the primary driver of long-term value creation in any business. Indeed new research into 6,000 companies by PA Consulting Group shows that competitive differentiation has on average 2.86 times more impact than operational...

A time for politically-charged branding. (Leader).
February 1, 2003... There's really only one story at the moment. Even businesses and their brands can't ignore the increasing inevitability of war. Last week the FTSE-100 index had an unprecedentedly bad time, falling to a seven-year low after the longest...

Coca-Cola. (Products).(new energy drink )(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Coca-Cola is trialling a new energy drink, BPM Energy, in Ireland. The drink targets men in their late teens and if it is successful, may be rolled out across the UK. It has two variants: the green BPM Hydrate and the purple BPM Focus. The new...

Red Bull. (Products).(new sugar-free soft drink )(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Red Bull has created a sugar-free version of its energy drink. The new variant has only eight calories as opposed to the standard 112 and is differentiated from its sister product through a lighter blue colour scheme. GlaxoSmithKline is also...

Flextech. (Products).(new Freeview digital TV channel)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Flextech has launched its Freeview digital TV channel, Ftn. The service carries a mix of homegrown programmes such as The World's Deadliest Gangs, presented by UK music star Goldie and imported content like US talk show Ricki Lake.

McDonald. (Products).(to offer organic produce )(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Fast food chain McDonald's is planning to sell organic produce in its restaurants. The chain will offer organic milk cartons with its meals to meet consumer demand for healthier options. The move follows the company's announcement of its...

Sports Loyalty Card (SLC). (Products).(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... A new football loyalty scheme, Sports Loyalty Card (SLC), has been launched to offer football fans rewards from retail partners. The initiative goes head-to-head with Teamcard, the only previous football loyalty scheme, which counts Chelsea...

Masterfoods. (Products).(new candy bars )(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Masterfoods is launching a snack bar called Bisc&, which features a biscuit base covered by either a Mars Bar, Twix, Bounty or M&M flavoured topping. The brand is already on sale in 20 European markets and its February UK debut will be...

Tesco. (Products).(teams with Cable & Wireless )(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Tesco has signed a deal with Cable & Wireless to offer a new fixed-line phone service from early summer 2003 called Tesco Telecom. The company promises to dispense with lock-in contracts and provide supermarket-style offers on call charges....

Levi's. (Marketing).(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Levi's has created a marketing campaign for its new Type 1 jeans. The campaign includes cinema, TV, press, posters and digital ads as well as point-of-purchase material in 270 Levi's stores and 4,ooo other clothing outlets in Europe. The TV and...

The Royal Bank of Scotland. (Marketing).(marketing agreement with Saatchi & Saatchi)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... The Royal Bank of Scotland's 10m [pounds sterling] retail business account has been won by Saatchi & Saatchi. The bank originally began a review of its business, then held by Faulds Advertising, last May but did not appoint an agency at that...

UEFA. (Marketing).(Canon sponsors Union of European Football Associations)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... International football body UEFA has announced that imaging technology brand Canon has become an official sponsor of the Euro 2004 football tournament. Canon joins confirmed sponsors Carlsberg, McDonald's, Coca-Cola and JVC.

Abbey National. (Marketing).(marketing campaign with Martin Kemp)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Abbey National is running a new marketing campaign starring actor and former pop star Martin Kemp. The ads from Euro RSCG Wnek Gosper keep to the theme of the brand's strapline: `Because life's complicated enough.'

Diary.(Brief Article)(Calendar)
February 1, 2003... Consumer Insight Masterclass Cafe Royal London 20 February 2003 Sessions from Dr Nazar Azoz, research and insight general manager at United Biscuits, Sue Stent, head of insights at HBOS and Professor Gerald Zaltman from the Harvard Business...

EMAP. (Appointments).(Tom Moloney )(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Publishing house EMAP has promoted Tom Moloney from chief operating officer to group chief executive.

Marks & Spencer has appointed Alice Avis as director of marketing and e-commerce. (Appointments).(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Marks & Spencer has appointed Alice Avis as director of marketing and e-commerce. Avis reports directly to chief executive Roger Holmes but will not have a position on the company's board. Avis was previously global brand director for Johnnie...

Mike Moran has been appointed to worldwide marketing and strategy director for Thames Water. (Appointments).
February 1, 2003... Mike Moran has been appointed to worldwide marketing and strategy director for Thames Water. Moran was Previously UK commercial director for Toyota and is succeeded by Paul Philpott, Toyota's marketing director.

Ofcom. (Appointments).(Stephen Carter)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Stephen Carter, the former UK head of cable service NTL has been appointed as chief executive of Ofcom.

Co-Operative Financial Services has appointed Craig Shannon as executive director of marketing. (Appointments).(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Co-Operative Financial Services has appointed Craig Shannon as executive director of marketing, responsible for the whole Co-op financial brand portfolio, including the Co-op bank and internet bank Smile.

Burger King UK. (Appointments).(Paul Reynish)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Paul Reynish has been appointed as head of marketing for Burger King UK. Reynish replaces Anna Joseph. (See page 8).

Cancer Research UK. (Marketing).(will endorse Nivea suncare products)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... The charity Cancer Research UK has agreed to endorse Nivea suncare products. It is the first time a UK cancer charity has linked with a cosmetics business for a joint campaign on sun protection. The initiative sees the charity's logo appearing...

Velvet. (Marketing).(marketing campaign)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Toilet tissue brand Velvet has launched a 15m [pounds sterling] TV, poster and press marketing campaign. The ads, created by Publicis, encourage consumers to think of toilet paper as a personal care product. Velvet is currently the UK's number...

Cereal Partners UK. (Marketing).(marketing effort promotes cereal bars)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Cereal Partners UK--a joint venture between FMCG company Nestle and US food group General Mills--has launched a new TV ad campaign for its Nesquik, Cheerios and Golden Grahams Cereal and Milk Bars. The new cereal bars are aimed at kids who need...

Procter & Gamble. (Financial).(plans to reach sales targets through acquisitions)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Procter & Gamble has indicated that it aims to make up a quarter of its long-term sales targets from acquisitions. The company's president AG Lafley claims that the company is keen to boost its turnover by 4-6%, and acquisitions could add at...

Royal Mail. (Financial).(staff getting let go)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Royal Mail has announced that it is axing around 100 staff in a restructure of its sales and marketing divisions in a move designed to save costs and simplify the departments. It hopes to make the changes through voluntary redundancies and...

Martin Sorrell, chief executive of WPP, says that his ad network will change its business focus from traditional advertising to disciplines such as market research and direct mail. (Financial).(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Martin Sorrell, chief executive of WPP, says that his ad network will change its business focus from traditional advertising to disciplines such as market research and direct mail. Sorrell, who was speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos,...

Boots. (Financial).(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Boots, the UK chemist chain, has released its best prefestive financial figures for 10 years. Sales of the chemist's own cosmetic range No. 7 hit 3.5m [pounds sterling] and the company's healthcare arm saw an 8.3% rise in sales. The figures...

Amazon. (Financial).(posts a profit)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Web retailer Amazon has posted its second global profit with sales of $3.93bn (2.42bn [pounds sterling]) for 2002, up 26% from $3.12bn (1.9bn [pounds sterling]) a year earlier. It is the first-time that the company's UK arm has reached...

The DDB network and German agency Jung Von Matt have been hired to handle travel operator TUIs 100m [pounds sterling] pan-European ad account. (International).(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... The DDB network and German agency Jung Von Matt have been hired to handle travel operator TUIs 100m [pounds sterling] pan-European ad account. BMP DDB will now handle ads for the Thomson and Lunn Poly brands in the UK.

Coca-Cola. (International).(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Coca-Cola has launched a new campaign in the US based on the brand's `Real' tagline. One ad shows actress Penelope Cruz drinking Coke and then belching in a `real' rather than demure film star manner. Other celebrities such as Courtney Cox also...

Gulf Air. (International).(plans low-cost airline)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Abu Dhabi-based airline operator Gulf Air has announced plans to launch a low-cost airline. The carrier serves Bahrain, United Arab Emirates and Qatar and recently approved a three-year recovery plan which includes a $238m (147m [pounds...

General Motors. (International).(developing Cadillac Sixteen engine)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... General Motors is preparing to take on the niche ultra-luxury car brands such as Rolls Royce with its new 1000 horsepower engine Cadillac Sixteen. The new vehicle will cost around 135,000 [pounds sterling], making it one of the most expensive...

Schadenfreude and the dark world of the new consumer: we can't get enough of the dark side of entertainment--it's a symptom of tougher times ahead. (Trendspotter).(top ten companies by press coverage)
February 1, 2003... Remember the nineties? Remember trends like Soft Lad, Tenderness and the craze of caring for little Tamagotchis? Seems a long time ago now, doesn't it? It started with reality TV shows appealing to the voyeur inside us all. Then Big...

If I got my hands on South West Trains ... I'd pull the communication cord says Jeremy Dale, brand marketing director at Orange who endures the service each day. (In an Ideal World).(Editorial)
February 1, 2003... I think South West Trains (SWT) has a tremendous opportunity staring it in the face. It has its most valuable customers interacting with the brand every single working day for a significant period of time. It could be using this time to build...

Turn on, tune in, drop out with Radio Luxembourg: Morag Cuddeford Jones on what caused the demise of an English broadcast radio station that launched thousands of bands. (That Was the Brand That Was).
February 1, 2003... Radio Luxembourg began life in an obscure duchy, sandwiched between France, Belgium and Germany, but it was responsible for creating pop radio as we know it. Many of the UK's best loved broadcasting personalities owe their careers to the...

Crazy colourful decor coming to a bar near you. (Brand Stunt of the Month).(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... The paint manufacturing industry is not known for its innovative marketing--often about as interesting as watching the product dry. But Crown Paints has decided to break the mould and created a bar in Manchester's trendy St Anne's Square. ...

Brand mot.(can Laura Ashley regain heights of its heyday?)
February 1, 2003... Following poor post-Christmas sales results, and the news that the chain is to drop 35 outlets in continental Europe, analysts are asking if Laura Ashley can ever regain the giddy heights of its seventies heyday. Famous for floaty florals and...

Supermarket sweepstake: if Asda becomes Safeway's successor, Morag Cuddeford Jones asks if there are hidden benefits for the sector. (News Analysis).
February 1, 2003... In the growing feeding frenzy surrounding the Safeway buy-out, analysts are hedging their bets on Wal-Mart's Asda brand becoming victorious. But, can the incoming Asda brand depend on the loyalty of Safeway customers, or will its competitors...

Anti-American brands cash in on political statements: an Islamic cola brand is capitalising on anti-American sentiment among consumers but is this a short-term money spinner? Ruth Mortimer discovers that not all Muslim brands are benefiting from this political situation. (News Analysis).
February 1, 2003... Its red and white packaging mimics the most famous soft drink in the world; it even tastes like cola, but it's far from the real thing. Mecca-Cola soft drink launched recently in France as a Coca-Cola substitute in an attempt to capitalise on...

Geese shift positioning: Fiona Gilmore looks to the future, to a world which is as dominated by European and Asian brands as American ones. (Opinion).(Editorial)
February 1, 2003... "In the latest league table of the world's most valuable brands it was announced that for the first time a Chinese brand, TCL, was listed alongside Vodafone, Samsung, Nokia, VW, Sony, Microsoft and IBM. Corporate governance, social contract,...

Managing agency ties: with experience on both sides of the fence, Simonds-Gooding shares his top tips on nurturing client and agency relationships. (Opinion).
February 1, 2003... Few things in business excite me more than seeing a top rate advertising or design company in tune with its client. We at the client end deal in statistics, we're spreadsheet warriors. Join these skills to those of an agency charged with...

Charge your glasses for Britvic's Marsden: Andrew Marsden's first love may be wine but as marketing director of Britvic he takes the responsibility of marketing soft drinks very seriously. Elen Lewis finds out how he copes as a "strong number two" to Coke. (Andrew Marsden).
February 1, 2003... If it wasn't for Andrew Marsden, the UK would not have been introduced to the culinary delights of canned red kidney beans. More importantly, we would never had sampled Ninja Turtle spaghetti shapes. There'd be no Lea & Perrins cooking sauces,...

Could DVD kill the video star? JVC TVs and stereos adorn living rooms worldwide. Morag Cuddeford Jones asks if the Japanese company can hold its own against market leader Sony, or if it's just becoming part of the furniture. (JVC).
February 1, 2003... For a brand as ubiquitous as JVC, it is not surprising to discover that it has just celebrated its 75th anniversary. While it may seem like a relic from the stone age in technology years, it is in fact one of the younger kids on the block....

Fool's gold for marketers? Brand extensions have been a popular way to leverage brand equity for years, but times are changing as brands move towards a period of consolidation. Ruth Mortimer assesses what makes brand stretching successful. (Brand Extensions).
February 1, 2003... Remember when brands had boundaries? The days before motorcycle brand Harley-Davidson launched its range of wine-coolers and fragrances? And long before Maxim magazine created its own hair dye range for men. It seems that there is nowhere that...

Smirnoff's cool extension: Smirnoff Ice survived a saturated alcopop market and has gone from strength to strength gaining popularity on the back of its parent brand. Ruth Mortimer finds out what makes the drink so appealing. (Case Study: Smirnoff Ice).
February 1, 2003... They don't make brand extensions more successful. Smirnoff Ice sold 4.7 million, nine-litre cases in the last year. It has a presence in 28 countries and some suggest that it is so successful that it has begun to overshadow its parent brand,...

Smokescreens and mirrors: are tobacco and corporate social responsibility mutually exclusive? If marketing to kids is a no-go area, how do tobacco companies propose to get new recruits? Elen Lewis investigates the paradoxical nature of the industry. (Special Report: tobacco).
February 1, 2003... It is one of several business sectors that can be resolutely relied on to represent the corporate scum of the earth. The nuclear, arms and tobacco industries encapsulate all that is evil about capitalism, all that is exploitative about the...

The British tobacco habit: Philip Greenslade highlights some of the insights on British smokers from the TGI Great Britain survey. (Special Report: tobacco).
February 1, 2003... Women still make up the majority of smokers in Britain, as the first chart shows. Over 52% of the 13.3 million smokers are the fairer sex. Nevertheless, there has been a gradual decline in the number of women smokers over the last 20 years. In...

Elastic brands: how far can you stretch the idea of `brand'? Simon AnhoLt argues that marketing can bring added value to any area of human endeavour including international relations. (Brand Papers).
February 1, 2003... At a time when branding is coming under a good deal of public scrutiny, it makes sense to ask what the limits of branding might be. There is a tendency for people to use the word in a carefree way for anything connected with public...

Innovate or die: Mick Williamson suggests that new product development and innovation could be helped by a new form of market research which siezes the higher ground and analyses consumer's emotions. (Brand Papers).
February 1, 2003... In order to keep ahead, most blue chip companies have adopted the mantra: `innovate or die!' The more cautious businesses aim for a major launch once a year. Those who see innovation as lifeblood achieve a strike rate that seems closer to once...

Music to marketer's ears: Rob Hanlon reveals that record companies and their artists have become more receptive to using their music in ad campaigns but warns that a synergy between brand and band is essential. (Brand Papers).
February 1, 2003... With record companies and non-music brands increasingly targeting similar consumers, there is a growing recognition that there are considerable mutual benefits to be gained from integrating major artists and their recordings into marketing...

Moscow mules and DIY: Clive Woodger offers insights and advice on working as a brand design consultant in the growing Russian retail market. Emulating the consumer-driven West is not always the best route to take. (Brand Papers).
February 1, 2003... As brand design consultants, we help create perceptions that make a brand reality. Working internationally is about dealing with your own perceptions, experiencing local reality and readjusting accordingly. Having worked in Moscow since 1998 it...

Branding on a fine line: trust and transparency is key. Kevin Thomson encourages marketers to create clear brand objectives to build on the communication between staff and the delivery of the brand promise. (Brand Papers).
February 1, 2003... The last 20 years have seen businesses talk about `brand vision, missions and values'. But it is time for this hype and marketing jargon to be replaced with reality, truth and trust. A wave of corporate scandals has left employees questioning...

Bright lights and big smells: Susan Storor sheds light on the difficult legal area of registering colours and smells. A scent or specific shade of colour must be clearly defined and branded in order to obtain a trade mark. (Brand Papers).
February 1, 2003... The ability to register non-traditional trade marks such as smells and colours was thought to have been settled with the harmonisation of European trade mark law in 1989. But both national and community trade mark registries have since grappled...

SMEs--a small to medium effort. (Trends).(small and medium enterprises )
February 1, 2003... * The UK's small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are adopting cavalier attitudes to brand development and protection, according to research commissioned by British Gas. It discovered that only 3% of SMEs conducted market research on brand names,...

Banking on blind faith. (Trends).(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... * Heading into 2003 after the festive season, consumers of financial services have considerably more faith in their own finances than that of the economy, according to the first in a series of quarterly reports from Ernst & Young. The Retail...

Heading for fairer weather. (Trends).(Marketing budgets for 2003 are likely to rise)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... * Marketing budgets for 2003 are likely to rise, according to the IPA's Bellwether Report for Q4. The overall increase in marketing spend is projected to be the largest since Q4 2000, with twice as many companies reporting higher budgets than...

Football fever in the Asia Pacific. (Research).
February 1, 2003... The World Cup generated a surge of interest in international football in the Asia Pacific market, according to a report by Taylor Nelson Sofres Sport (TNSSPORT). The survey found that eight out of 10 of the countries in the region put football...

Marketing expenditures report reveals unexpected trends. (Research).
February 1, 2003... * It's all a bit of a shock. After months of media reports about the economic downturn in the US and UK, a new study reveals that marketing expenditure has actually risen in these countries in the period 2001-2003. The Marketing Expenditure...

Researching the 4th dimension. (Research).(culture's impact on consumer behavior)
February 1, 2003... * By generating a brand history in the context of consumers' own lives, it is possible to understand where brands have been successful. It is only recently that the market research industry has highlighted culture as a specific tool to study...

What's in a number? (Last Word).(CEO compensation packages up)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... According to Reuters, CEO compensation packages in 1980 were 42 times that of the average worker. By 2000, that multiple had risen to 531. Source: www.pbs.org/wsw

Global village idiot. (Last Word).(Gerber baby food in Africa)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... When Gerber started selling baby food in Africa, it used the same packaging as in the US, with the beautiful Caucasian baby on the label. Later it learned that in Africa, companies routinely put pictures on the label of what's inside, since...

Blowing hot and cold in the retail sector. (Last Word).(Marks & Spencer)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Marks & Spencer's reversal of fortune seems complete. Media monitor PressWatch reveals that it has topped the 2002 list of most positive coverage in the UK press. Not bad for a company that, the year before, was treated worse than Enron in the...

The monthly brand brain-drain. (Last Word).(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... February's prize for jaw-dropping publicity madness goes to 96.4FM BRMB. In a bid to drum up column inches the Capital Group-owned Birmingham radio station ran a competition inviting members of the public to sit for as long as they could on...

Advertising futures: a structural adjustment is undermining advertising's long-term growth meaning consumers need more win-win situations.
February 1, 2003... "Mass aggregating media, on which advertising is based, are no longer functioning because consumers are getting editorial control through technology." With statements like this (from HHCL/Red Cell chairman Lee Daley) there's an ongoing debate:...