Check out these videos….

Red Bull Heli

Red Bull Aviation

Torc Series

What do you think about these “branding” efforts?

From Harvard Business School Working Knowledge : Professor Clayton Christensen

This blog post hits on so many high points of marketing and new product development, I do not know where to begin.  Check out the ideas of “hiring a milkshake” and the market research that was done to determine the drivers for purchase (no pun intended).  Be sure to check out the video embedded into the text.

Milkshake Marketing

Also check out the comments about the Greatest Tool ever, the Milwaukee Sawzall “Milwaukee Electric Tool Corp. has cornered the market on reciprocating saws with its trademarked Sawzall, which does the job of helping consumers safely saw through pretty much anything. Its Hole-Hawg drills, which make big holes between studs and joists, are also quite popular. The company’s other tools, which rely on the Milwaukee brand, are not nearly as celebrated.

“The word ‘Milwaukee’ doesn’t give you any market whatsoever,” Christensen says.”

From Fast Company

In our discussions of branding, we talk about the connection to emotions.  The following article about Jennifer Aaker’s work at Stanford is quite interesting.

What do you think?   Is there a strong connection between brand and happiness?

Corporate Pursuit of Happiness

Thanks Lane.

From Crain’s Chicago Business Today

Manny’s Restaurant Growth Strategy Manny’s new move video.

“Low” risk way to grow.  Famous brand growth.  Getting more people to Try the product.

Will it work as well as “Home Run Pizza”?

Thanks TK

Life and Awesomeness of Steve Jobs Check out 1984 Super Bowl Ad

Playboy Interview Tidbits Check out Video of iMac Intro

Is Steve Jobs worthy of such tribute?  Why?

From Fast Company

A wonderful, brief, and straight forward article on three words  (steps?) to Branding

$100K Free Branding Advice

What do you think?  Can it be this “simple”?  Maybe, but is that easy?

From Fast Company

An interesting read  User-Lead Innovation Can’t Create Breakthroughs

It could be “harmful” to listen to users.  Apple and Ikea agree.   From our class, we could also say Toyota agrees.

From the article ” The user is king. It’s a phrase that’s repeated over and over again as a mantra: Companies must become user-centric. But there’s a problem: It doesn’t work. Here’s the truth: Great brands lead users, not the other way around.”

What do you think?

Thanks for the suggestion Luke.

Toyota — Devil’s Advocate

From the article “The “devil’s advocate” approach to vehicle design is a key element of the new Toyota. Under the plan, the company gives engineers four extra weeks to tear down and evaluate new vehicles. The goal is to use the car in ways the owner’s manual doesn’t even consider.”

How well will this work?  Why or Why not?

Thanks for the Update TK

Apple Loses Ground

This article has some nice pie charts that clearly shows that Apple is losing share to Android.  However, the App Store is still very strong.  ”Simple” market share may not be enough to describe success in this market.  Apple OS– 25%,  Android OS 29%

Which do YOU prefer, and why?  Why will prevail?  How will RIM compete?

Thanks JiJu

Toyota OK

However, it may take years for the brand to recover.  Why is the US government jump on Toyota so fast?  Why were so many people convinced that Toyota was at fault?

From Fast Company

Groupon Ads

One of the comments to this posting is that because it is the Super Bowl, the ads are meant to be a bit “out there” however, bad taste is bad taste.

What do you think?

From AP/MSNBC

Super Bowl Ads worth $3 Million

Aways interesting and the focus of discussion in our marketing classes are the TV ads.   Is there an ROI or ROMI  (Return on Marketing Investment)?  What do you think?

I am looking forward to the beer ad battle.  Go MillerCoors!  Craft beers may be a focus.

Beer Ad Article

Thank you Aaron

Target Marketing where customers make $2/day?  P&G looks at the long term and learns how to expand markets, even where income is exteremely low.   They learn from the markets that helps them elsewhere.  Patience, and continuous learning.

P&G $2/Day

What else did you learn from the article?

Thank you Lucas

Honda Losing Momentum

According Lucas  ”Here is a good article for your website about Honda, their product strategy and it losing momentum in a market that is becoming increasingly competitive.”

What do you think?

Thanks Ann

Motorola has split into two brands Mobile and Solutions — Consumer and Non-Consumer

Motorola Clarifies Branding Videos and Article Check out the article and videos.

What do you think?  Will this be a waste of time and money for Motorola?  Are they clearly differentiated?  What do you think their motivation really is?

Thank you Christine for recommending this blog post.

This blog article (not extensively researched, but interesting nonetheless) talks about strong university brands.

http://fblog.futurebrand.com/top-global-university-brands-the-power-of-brand-marketing/

What do you think of Chris’ assessment?  Do you agree?  What can we learn from this?

Hint: Perception is reality — maybe?

From Fast Company

Apple’s Obsession with Details

The article linked above talks about Apple’s obsession with design as evidenced by its patent applications.  Often, people cannot express WHY they like something, or WHAT it is that they like, however they KNOW it just works or feels “right”.  I submit that “it” is the result of “design”.

Do you include DESIGN (industrial, ergonomic, visual, innovative)  in your new product development process?

What other types of DESIGN should we be including?

What do you think?

Thank you Jason

From: The New York Times

With our choices for entertainment and “content consumption” being ever wider, and the traditional venues for advertising becoming increasingly less effective, advertisers are looking for more places to place TARGETED ads.

Product Placement in Music Videos

Are you seeing more of this?  Are you tolerant of this?  Do you expect this?   Will you pay more for no ads?

From HBR

Brand Report Card

This article looks quite good; I will be reading it in detail.  The summary has some excellent information.  From the summary, “Tuck School professor Kevin Lane Keller lays out the ten characteristics that the strongest brands share. He starts with the relationship of the brand to the customer: The strongest brands excel at delivering the benefits customers truly desire, he says. They stay relevant to customers over time. Pricing truly reflects consumers’ perceptions of value. Keller then moves on to consider marketing strategy and implementation: Strong brands are properly positioned. The brand stays consistent. Sub-brands relate to one another in an orderly way within a portfolio of brands.”

What do you think?  Good read?

Do you think that BRAND is growing in importance as I do, or, is this not something that all managers need to pay attention to?