Brand Strategy articles from July 2006

Brand Strategy archives from July 2006

LEADER: Exchanging times.
July 17, 2006... In the last few hours, some 'friends' have offered me the chance to install software in the Ukraine, obtain a genuine degree without any study and stop my hair loss right now. This is despite the fact that I have no technological experience,...

Marketing: Salmonella scare.(chocolate contaminated with salmonella)(Brief article)
July 17, 2006... Cadbury has withdrawn more than a million bars of chocolate which may have been contaminated with salmonella. It has pulled its advertising and sponsorship idents as a result. The world's biggest confectionery group has also warned it will...

Marketing: BA investigated by regulators.(British Airways investigation)(Brief article)
July 17, 2006... British Airways (BA) is being investigated by US and UK regulators for allegedly fixing the cost of ticket prices and fuel surcharges on long- haul flights to and from the UK. The company claims that other airlines are also being examined,...

Marketing: Lack of transparency in marketing.
July 17, 2006... The Consumers International lobby group has accused Europe's top pharmaceutical firms of using unscrupulous marketing practices. The group's report claims many drugmakers demonstrate a lack of transparency in their marketing and 18 out of 20...

Marketing: New toothpaste.
July 17, 2006... Procter & Gamble is reportedly investing $100m (#54m) into the launch of its new toothpaste: Crest Pro-Health. This is the brand's biggest launch since Crest with fluoride in the 1960s. The Pro-Health toothpaste aims to overtake...

Marketing: Wal-Mart credit card.(Wal-Mart launch Credit Card in China)(Brief article)
July 17, 2006... Wal-Mart is advancing plans to launch its own credit card in China, where it operates 57 stores. The Wal-Mart card would be issued by Chinese lender Shenzhen Development Bank and would be the first of its kind to be issued by a foreign retailer...

Marketing: Coca-Cola news.(Coca-Cola shut down its UK online music service)(Cokefridge vending machines introduction)(Brief article)
July 17, 2006... Coca-Cola has shut down its UK online music service, Mycokemusic, after losing market share to iTunes. Apple and Coke are now believed to be working together on a music initiative. Meanwhile, Coke may extend trials of its Cokefridge vending...

Marketing: Rio Ferdinand builds his brand.(Rio Ferdinand brought in sports agency Pitch PR)(Brief article)
July 17, 2006... England and Manchester United footballer Rio Ferdinand has brought in sports agency Pitch PR to build his brand outside of the game. He is already co-owner of a TV production company and record label. Pitch's first task was to launch TV...

Marketing: New online payments system.
July 17, 2006... Google is taking on Ebay with a new online payments system to rival the ubiquitous Paypal. Google Checkout will initially be available in the US and will allow online merchants to sell through their Google advertising. Copyright: Centaur...

Marketing: Nokia and Siemens mobile merger.(Brief article)
July 17, 2006... Nokia and Siemens have merged to create one of the biggest players in the mobile industry. While no money was exchanged in the deal, analysts value the business at #17bn. This deal is likely to spur more consolidation among companies such as...

Marketing: David Beckham signs up for Motorola.(Brief article)
July 17, 2006... David Beckham has signed up as the global brand ambassador for Motorola in a three-year deal. Beckham will initially appear in campaigns targeting the Asian market, including advertising and retail promotions. Motorola will also have rights to...

Launches and rebrands: MySpace UK-specific website.
July 17, 2006... Social networking site MySpace has launched a UK-specific website to push its brand into Europe. It's hoping to attract more users by linking up with phone operators who will deliver mobile content. The website, bought by News Corporation for...

Launches and rebrands: BMW financial products.(Brief article)
July 17, 2006... BMW is offering credit cards, insurance and savings products in the UK for the first time. It has partnered up with American Express to launch co-branded BMW and Mini credit cards. It has also joined forces with Newcastle Building Society to...

Financial: Google sells Baidu stake.(Brief article)
July 17, 2006... Google has sold its 2.6% stake in China's biggest internet search firm Baidu. Google bought the shares in its stronger Chinese rival for just $5m (#2.7m) last year and has sold it for more than $60m (#33m). It says it now wants to focus on...

Financial: World's largest steel company.
July 17, 2006... Luxembourg's Arcelor has agreed to be bought by Mittal Steel for E27bn (#18.6bn), ending a five-month takeover struggle. The merger - the steel industry's biggest - creates the world's largest steel company, Arcelor Mittal, three times...

Financial: J and J to buy Pfizer's consumer health business.(Johnson and Johnson buys Pfizer's consumer health products business )(Brief article)
July 17, 2006... Johnson & Johnson (J&J) is buying Pfizer's consumer health products business for $16.6bn (#9bn). It outbid GlaxoSmithKline and rivals by paying almost double analyst' valuations for the unit, which had $3.88bn (#2.10bn) in sales last year....

Financial: Polo Ralph Lauren profit.
July 17, 2006... Polo Ralph Lauren has reported quarter profit of $62.5m (#35m), almost triple the figure from the same period last year. Sales rose eight per cent to $971.6m (#534m), as stronger retail and wholesale sales offset weaker licensing revenue....

Financial: Virgin Atlantic profits have doubled.
July 17, 2006... Virgin Atlantic's pre-tax profits have more than doubled to #41.6m, boosted by sales of business class tickets. Revenues at Sir Richard Branson's airline were up 17% on the year before at #1.9bn. Copyright: Centaur Communications Ltd....

Numbers: US top advertisers.
July 17, 2006... Procter & Gamble, General Motors and Time Warner have retained their respective first, second and third place rankings among the US' top advertisers in 2005, according to AdAge. The first two brands leapt the $4bn (#2.3bn) mark for the first...

Numbers: Fairtrade sales up.
July 17, 2006... Global sales of fairtrade products grew by more than a third last year to reach #758m, according to the Fairtrade Labelling Organisation. More than 300 new companies signed up last year; 508 producers in 58 countries are now certified. ...

Numbers: The world's most digital homes.
July 17, 2006... Taiwanese and Korean consumers have the world's most digital homes, according to research firm Parks Associates. Houses in the US, Canada, Japan, and Australia are also technologically advanced. Copyright: Centaur Communications Ltd. and...

APPOINTMENT: Gillette.(appointment of Mark Leckie )(Brief article)
July 17, 2006... Mark Leckie has been promoted to group president of Gillette and will report directly to Procter & Gamble's (P&G) chief executive AG Lafley. Leckie, formerly president of Gillette's Duracell and Braun divisions, will take over much of the...

APPOINTMENT: Kraft Foods.(appointment of Irene Rosenfeld)(Brief article)
July 17, 2006... Kraft Foods has named a former employee, Irene Rosenfeld, as the company's new chief executive officer. She replaces Roger Diromedi who, in agreement with Kraft's board, decided to step down. Rosenfeld joins from PepsiCo where she served as...

APPOINTMENT: Microsoft.(appointment of Jeff Bell )(Brief article)
July 17, 2006... Microsoft has appointed Jeff Bell as its new corporate vice president of global marketing for its interactive entertainment division, which includes Xbox and Games for Windows. Bell joins from DaimlerChrysler where most recently he served as...

APPOINTMENT: Walt Disney.
July 17, 2006... Walt Disney Co has appointed John Pepper, a former Procter & Gamble chief executive, as its new chairman. He will take up his position at the beginning of 2007 and replaces Senator George Mitchell. Copyright: Centaur Communications Ltd....

Trendspotter: Closing the gap.
July 17, 2006... Sisters are doing it for themselves say Sarah Carter and Georgia Challis We are having fewer children, divorce rates are high and invariably the kids stay living with mum while dad moves out. Nearly a quarter of all dependent children in...

Brand Stunt of the Month: Your point of view.('Your Point of View' campaign)(Brief article)
July 17, 2006... Claudine Baker looks through HSBC's window and discovers a diorama It isn't often that banks get called fun. But HSBC has been treating New York shoppers to theatrical displays. Live actors have been performing in three different branch...

Opinion - Adrian Furnham: Brandspeaking to you directly.
July 17, 2006... Adrian Furnham, professor of psychology at University College London, takes a lighthearted but incisive look inside the minds of marketers Are marketers, as part of the nature of their job, prone to particular stresses and strains that...

Opinion - Matti Kuorehjarvi: Running low on pocket space.(Digital music reshaped the world)
July 17, 2006... Matti Kuorehjarvi, global director of marketing, Nokia, explains why convergence is so important and how mobiles will rule the music market Digital music has completely reshaped the world's music buying and listening habits. Consider...

BRAND THERAPY - WATERFORD CRYSTAL: Crystal clear branding.(Waterford Crystal sales )(Financial report)
July 17, 2006... For the third year running, luxury tableware group Waterford Wedgwood has reported a loss. Pre-tax losses for the year to 31 March 2006 were #130m, which follows a deficit of #168m the previous year. The group now owns four major brands:...

Global trends watch - Online purchasing: Reaping the rewards.
July 17, 2006... Spending online has never been so rewarding. Claudine Baker looks at the emergence of cashback businesses in the French market and asks if this phenomenon will be widespread It's often said that you have to spend money to make money, and...

Profile - Mike Ashton: Hilton's unreserved man.
July 17, 2006... Ruth Mortimer discovers that the senior vice president of marketing at Hilton International, Mike Ashton, is thrilled by a challenge. With 75,000 staff to keep in tow, you need guts and enthusiasm Mike Ashton, senior vice president of...

Q&A - Mike Ashton: Hilton's quality controller.
July 17, 2006... Mike Ashton describes how he puts the balance back into people's lives through the Hilton experience and the brand's move towards the resort- style hotel RM: The two Hilton brands - Hilton US and Hilton International - have just come...

CASE STUDY - WINNIE THE POOH: About a bear.
July 17, 2006... The brand has changed dramatically from its humble literary origins to the mammoth merchandising industry it sustains today. Kate Walsh ponders how Disney will take Winnie the Pooh to the next level Winnie the Pooh is a lot like American...

CASE STUDY - WINNIE THE POOH: Case number BC022365.(Stephen Slesinger Inc sued Disney)
July 17, 2006... In 1930, Stephen Slesinger, a US literary agent, bought the North American merchandising rights for Winnie the Pooh from the author, AA Milne. It's been reported that Slesinger paid $1,000 (#543) for these rights. When he died in 1953, his...

CONSUMPTION: Sale or return.(Company overview)
July 17, 2006... Auction websites such as Ebay and thriving hire-purchase start-ups are giving consumers wider choice than ever before. Morag Cuddeford Jones asks if brand owners risk falling behind In the Dark Ages, a pig and two chickens could get you a...

CONSUMPTION: Case study - Easy to eBay in the land of the free.
July 17, 2006... While it's becoming common to see small start-ups using Ebay's mechanism to sell goods on the secondary market, few big name brands have taken the opportunity. American electrical retailer CompUSA, however, has decided to shelve its own...

CONSUMPTION: Why the secondary market matters.(Ebay global markets)(Brief article)
July 17, 2006... * Ebay is the world's biggest online auction site with 180 million registered traders and a turnover of $44bn (#24bn). * This represents only 5% of the estimated available auction market. * Over #4bn of trading is likely to be...

CASE STUDY - MARKETING CAPABILITY: Blend for flexibility.
July 17, 2006... As part of an occasional series on improving marketing capability, Ruth Mortimer listens in at the Marketing Excellence Forum to discover how brands are using 'blended learning' techniques Marketing capability is one of the hottest topics...

BRAND PAPERS - INNOVATION: Practice makes perfect.(Company overview)
July 17, 2006... Tim Jones, principal at Innovaro, provides a few best-practice case studies for brands who want to learn innovative techniques and grow their businesses Innovation is now undeniably mainstream and everyone wants more of it. It has moved...

BRAND PAPERS - CULTURAL MARKETING: Culture versus country.
July 17, 2006... Brands targeting women need to look to complex cultural traits rather than obvious national stereotypes, says Daniel Dumoulin Society has become feminised and brands must now address this issue. This is perhaps most resonant in the...

BRAND PAPERS - EXPERIENCE ECONOMY: Getting organised.
July 17, 2006... Ralph Ardill offers some analysis and advice on what it will take for brands to survive and thrive in the complex global 'experience economy' You've probably noticed we're living in the 'experience economy'. There's hardly a business I...

BRAND PAPERS - ASIAN MARKETING: East meets west.
July 17, 2006... Identifying the needs of the collective holds the key to breaking the often-misunderstood Asian market, says Charles Wigley The notion that, without knowing it, we all see the world through our own cultural lens is a fascinating one. As...

BOOK REVIEW: Scorecard your brand.(Book review)
July 17, 2006... Strategic Performance Management - Leveraging and measuring your intangible value driver By Bernard Marr Published by Butterworth Heinemann, price #29.99 Robert Craven, author of Kick-Start Your Business and Customer is King,...

BOOK REVIEW: Robert Craven also recommends.(Book review)
July 17, 2006... Managing The Professional Service Firm By David Maister Simon & Schuster (1997) Maister is ahead of the game when it comes to talking to professional service firms about how to grow their businesses. Spend one hour with this...

From the bookshelf of Tracey Randell, sales and marketing, Gulf Air.(Not on the Label: What Really Goes into the Food on Your Plate?)(Brief article)(Book review)
July 17, 2006... Not on the label: What really goes into the food on your plate? By Felicity Lawrence This book, written by The Guardian's consumer affairs correspondent, tackles the politics involved in 21st-century global food production, focusing...

RESEARCH - CORPORATE STRATEGY: Are brands on the corporate agenda?
July 17, 2006... We all know that brands are important but how far have they climbed up the corporate agenda - have they really reached the boardroom yet? Consultants have been preaching for a long time that a successful brand is one of the most, if not the...

RESEARCH - REGULATORY CULTURE: The assault on pleasure.(Statistical table)
July 17, 2006... Too many people own second homes, consume cheap air fares and warm up the planet. And far too many of us are eating too much chocolate. Sectors such as fast food, spirits, tourism and automotive are now the focus of so much social and...

RESEARCH - MARKETING TOBACCO: Give us a cigarette break.
July 17, 2006... It's a legal product but national, regional and international laws are in place to control its use; health warnings across half its packaging scream out its link to horrific diseases and death. Lobby groups exist to pressure governments and...

RESEARCH - B2B MARKETING: When B2B is hard to be.
July 17, 2006... Are business customers affected by marketing as much as the man on the street? It appears so, according to a survey by BRMB about the impact of business-to-business (B2B) marketing. Four-fifths of decision makers claim they have been...

Brand stats: July/August.(Face creams)(Brief article)
July 17, 2006... Market focus Face creams The vast majority - around 85% - of women are users of face creams and lotions but product usage levels peak at different ages. For example, in Britain, 15-19 year-olds are twice as likely to be product users as...