This week the retail giant Old Navy launches its first campaign specifically targeting men. While previous ads have featured men’s clothing through a broad family advertising appeal, they are trying a new tactic speaking directly to the 25- to 35-year-old male target.

Adage reports that the new campaign “pokes fun at men’s fashion with “Supar Tool,” an overly metrosexual man and “Corporado,” a corporate cowboy type.” The campaign introduces the characters through videos to be distributed on YouTube and Facebook, while print ads will run in publications including Maxim. Mobile elements will include a game, style-finder, video gallery, store locator and coupons. http://adage.com/article/news/navy-targets-campaign-men/228051/

You may also recall recently a predominantly female driven advertising push for weight-loss turned to males during NBA and NHL playoffs with Weight Watchers unveiling its male targeted campaign featuring the “Beer Cheat Sheet”. It’s commercials about weight loss come about as the company claims to have seen a dramatic spike in male interest.

And about a year ago we posted this blog http://www.brandiron.net/what-gets-your-attention on the Dockers ad targeting “real men” who “wear the pants.”

So why the big push for male targeted advertising? According to Adage “The timing for a men’s apparel push is right.” According to NPD, the men’s apparel market was up 3.3% in 2010, ahead of the overall apparel category, which was up 1.9%. And for the three months ending in February, the men’s apparel category was up 12% compared to the same period a year ago.

Do you think about your value proposition and how it is helping your business?  According to a recent survey by Marketing Experiments only 10% of businesses are considered to have a strong, unique value proposition and an overwhelming 30% have no real value proposition.

Considering how important value propositions are in every process of business plans and branding this is startling and makes us wonder how you can set yourself apart and captivate your audience.

Paul Cheney, a blogger for Marketingsherpa Blog offers some important advice on these issues and how to distinguish yourself among competition.  He notes how in the movie “Elf,” Buddy, played by Will Ferrell, believes a storefront sign boasting “The World’s Best Cup of Coffee.” We as consumers know not to believe such a claim so, the issue many companies are faced with is creating a value prop that is believable and different from competitors.

Cheney says that a value prop will not be determined it is discovered. This involves a certain shift in thinking and can be created with the implementation of these steps.

1.)    Why buy from you over your competitor?

2.)    Compare what you are saying with what your competitor is saying, if your competitor can say the same thing about their products and business without lying then you do not have a strong value proposition.

3.)    Your value proposition must be instantly credible, use a statistic with as much specific information as possible.

4.)    You need to be able to test your value proposition by making it visible in every step of your sales process.

Check out the full article below…

http://sherpablog.marketingsherpa.com/marketing/marketing-optimization-value-proposition/#comments

What’s Your Favorite Color?

Most of us have a favorite color, all of us know what color our mother thinks looks best on us (and which colors look horrid) and consciously or not we all associate certain feelings with certain colors:

Orange – energetic, excited and hungry (wonder why Weight Watchers used the Orange Monster as a brand character? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=49WjrRJ_DLw)

Blue – calm and serene

Red – intense emotions either of love or anger

Yellow – cheerful and happy

Green – free, fresh and natural

Our eyes absorb light, convert it into a form of energy and allow us to see color. The way that people feel or react to certain colors, or why they choose to favor one color over the next, alludes to how it makes them feel. Scientists have studied this energy for years to understand how certain colors affect our moods, health, and thought-process. And it’s a good thing they have because color has the ability to condition an action, for example (and for effect), consumer buying habits. In layman’s terms, the color of a product or a brand can encourage or dissuade a sale.

Let’s do a quick mind test. Think of a brand for each of these colors:

1. Red
2. Yellow
3. Blue
4. Green

Now, think of a color for each of these brands:

1. Pepsi
2. Campbell’s soup
3. McDonalds
4. Gap

I bet that when you pictured each brand you immediately knew how you felt about that brand, if you liked it or not. In some cases, you may have remembered the last time you enjoyed a warm bowl of tomato soup or how you could really go for a cool refreshing soda right about now.

The color of a logo, website, package, etc. is the first impression that is remembered and registered by consumers. It will be the color associated to the brand. If the color sends the right message and invokes the right feeling to a consumer, the company may encourage a sale and a brand ambassador. There’s good reason why brand management is occasionally referred to as the study of science and art. To have a successful, lasting brand, it takes more than listening to the customer, it takes understanding their emotions and how those emotions trigger their purchasing decisions.

So the next time someone asks you what your favorite color is, know that they may actually be reading a little farther into your personality.

Re-branding can be just the shot of adrenaline your company needs to stay competitive, relevant and modern. Adapting to the times – and presenting yourself in the best light possible can lead to big changes in the way your target audience perceives your company.

We wanted to show you some recent samples of our re-branding work. The examples below different greatly in industry, but share one important trait: they all felt their current brands were holding them back from reaching their full potentials.

CapitalValue Advisors
CapitalValue Advisors, sometimes known to their clients as CVA, wanted to integrate a standalone icon with their type treatment. In the future, they wanted the ability to use only the icon, but in the meantime, did not want to alienate clients and prospects who knew them as their full name, CapitalValue Advisors.

Forensic Laboratories
Forensic Laboratories has made great strides in their business in recent history. To capitalize on their business growth and increased national and local attention, Forensic Laboratories needed an updated brand to communicate not only where there are – but where they were headed: the best drug testing laboratory in the U.S. and industry leader in accuracy, technology and expertise.

MPEG LA
As the world’s leader in independent intellectual property patent pools, MPEG LA needed to communicate their leadership within the industry. One thing the client wanted to preserve was the red/green/black color scheme of their old logo.
The icon, which can be a stand-alone identity piece, symbolically communicates the value MPEG LA brings to its patent users and holders: making something great from the combination of many pieces.

Contact us today if your company needs to address its brand – whether visually (as demonstrated above), readdressing your sales, marketing and operations process, or leveraging the value of your current brand to drive more revenue.

Written by Josh Barker, Brand Manager

Brand Iron believes that as a company we should be not only be proactive with our clients but with our community as well. On Thursday April 16th, I participated along side some of Denver top creative professionals at “The Student Review.” The Review is a design-portfolio review for students from regional colleges and universities co-hosted by Art Directors Club of Denver and AIGA Colorado. This year’s event is focused on students ready to benefit from creative input and only open to juniors and seniors. The Review put advanced design students in front of specially invited Denver Advertising and Design professionals for invaluable feedback on their books. The Review was a great way for Brand Iron to give back to the design community! This participation also gave us a chance to survey the state of the entry-level designers from the area schools, and make connections with emerging talent. I saw some great work coming out for the local design programs and the event also awarded scholarships to the best portfolios. If you are a student be sure to be on the look out for this event next year, it is a great chance to meet face-to-face with industry professionals.

Written by Andrew Hoffman

When in a service industry of any kind, the state of the economy can take a large toll on a company’s profitability. Lately, the economic downturn has forced many companies to cut budgets, freeze spending, initiate layoffs, or worse – close their doors. When speaking to many of our clients, partners and friends, it seems that many people are either suffering or prospering – there truly is a balance of good and bad right now.

However, it is difficult to ignore all of the negative media coverage regarding the current economic state. The media’s redundant message of “doom and gloom” eventually convinces us all that we must surrender and give in to the recession that is upon us.

Brand Iron disagrees.

As a company, we’re opting to not participate in the recession this year. Yes, you heard it here first. Brand Iron is not giving in to the “doom and gloom.” We challenge you to do the same.

Many companies are focusing on the positives and the new opportunities that this changing business landscape has opened up. For example, in an industry (luxury travel) where economic woes can take a gigantic toll on profitability Carnival Cruise Lines is saying “we will not go quietly into the night” and await the inevitable. Carnival continues to make strides towards out-of-the-box, interactive advertising.

I’m sure we have all seen the commercial with the large beach ball floating around downtown Dallas. That commercial was an extremely effective way for Carnival to catch the attention of the business-class professional on their lunch break. Throw a gigantic beach ball onto a bustling street full of unhappy professionals and see what happens – attention, positive feedback and enjoyment, that’s what.

Today, I came across an article about Carnival’s latest attempt at interactive advertising. They’ve managed to take advantage of the empty street-level office spaces in the Houston, Baltimore, Los Angeles, New York and D.C. areas by installing “virtual aquariums” for all to interact with.

Picture this, you’re walking down a cold city sidewalk on your lunch break when you look to your right – no longer is there an empty office space with a broker’s contact information in the window. No, you now see a 12-foot digital aquarium. Not only is this virtual aquarium engaging, it’s interactive. In five easy steps, you can use your cell phone to design a personalized fish to appear instantly in that very same window. This is an example of a company seeing an opportunity that may not have presented itself before the downturn in the economy. This is brand evolution and adaptation at its best. If there are three pearls of wisdom that we should all recognize after this economic downturn, they would be: never stay static, always engage new ways of marketing, and consistently separate yourselves from the competition.

Written by Nicole Salerno, Junior Brand Wrangler

At lunch the other day at the Blue Bonnet Café in Denver, Colorado (not a client by the way), this very warm and friendly gentleman approached me and my guest at lunch. Gary was his name and he expressed his true desire to make sure we were having a great lunch and if we needed anything, please let him know. He also communicated his sincere thanks for coming in today and eating at his restaurant. This isn’t a once and awhile occurrence, Gary does this all the time, making sure all his guests are treated well and taking care of. I eat there regularly and Gary is always there taking great care of his guests. Gary is an example of a true brand champion. He exudes customer service and appreciation of the people that come to dine in his restaurant. Whether you run a restaurant, a one-person company or a multi-billion dollar company, we can all learn from his approach to leading and “riding” for his brand. We can all get out in front of our clients and communicate our brand’s value and what it stands for. Customers enjoy hearing from brand champions. Let’s all lead our teams as brand champions to communicate and deliver our company’s value. “Hats Off” to Gary and his restaurant, the Blue Bonnet Café, in Denver, Colorado.

Written by Michael Doyle, President of Brand Iron

The first thought that comes to mind when you hear the term “Search Engine Optimization” (SEO) or “Search Engine Marketing” (SEM), is improving your website page ranking on search engines such as Google or Yahoo. Actually, page rank is just the tip of the iceberg, SEO encompasses a wide variety of tasks that improve a website’s search engine presence.

Unfortunately, the famous line from the popular 90s baseball film, Field of Dreams, “If you build it, they will come” does not work when it comes to building a website. You need to define your website goals, which coincide with your business goals, and define how you are going to convert those goals on your website.

After the goals are defined, you need a website that is designed and programmed to be “SEO-friendly.” SEO-friendly sites are W3C web standard complaint, use proper document markup, and separate structure from presentation and behavior (we will go into this in more detail in my next blog entry). Brand Iron’s web development team designs and develops SEO-friendly websites on a daily basis.

After your goals are defined and your site is designed and developed, you need to ask the question, “who is your target market?” The answer to this question is easier than you may think…the individual you want to find your website most frequently is the individual who is searching for you! This sounds obvious, but trust me, more often than not, when people implement SEO they are solely focused on a higher page rank and are neglecting the most important target market, someone who is already looking for their company.

A 2007 survey by the internet data firm, comScore, found that 60% of consumers use the web as their first tool of reference to search for local businesses and 60% of those searchers make a purchase from the business’ website. A study by AOL and Henley Centre, a UK market research firm, states that 73% of survey respondents use a search engine as an important source of information when considering a product or service. This is a higher percentage than personal recommendations, TV and print media.

In order to have a successful online presence, you need a successful SEO/SEM campaign. Brand Iron’s “Web-O-Nanza” program is the perfect solution for your website. We map out your website’s primary and secondary goals, and come up with a solution to convert these goals into revenue via your website. We build SEO-friendly websites that target individuals who want to see your website.

Brand Iron is known for forging brands and driving revenue, now with our “Web-O-Nanza” program, we drive web traffic that also drives revenue. Contact Brand Iron today and we will “build a website that will make them come.”

Written By Andrew Hoffman, Design Bandit

I think we can all agree that after going through this past year, it is certainly time for a “New Start” for the New Year. We could all use a fresh start for the economy, housing, banking, government and business. As it applies to your business, if you aren’t prepared and proactive to the challenges that are certain to arise, you will be left behind.

I can’t tell you how many times I have heard recently from our partners, clients, prospects, leads, etc. that people are “just waiting to see what happens”. Unfortunately, most who take this “wait and see approach” end up losing time and results.

With things being tight and people and businesses being guarded with resources, it’s a more competitive landscape than ever before. People and companies are struggling and the weak are getting ravaged. Are you positioning yourself and your company to be as competitive as possible? Now is the time to take advantage of the current economic situation and propel yourself to be the leader in your field.

Since it is the beginning of the New Year, it is time to make a “New Start”.

Revenue
Let’s start the thing that most people and companies are in need of: Revenue. Have you evaluated your lead generation activities? Are you doing enough to fill your pipeline? Are you utilizing online marketing, networking, partnering, calling and mailings to get people to say “yes” to meetings or walking through the doors of your business?

Sales
Do you know what it is going to take to get prospects to convert to clients? Do you know what it is going to take to move them off the dime? Are you asking for the business?

Brand Positioning
Do you have the right message? …a strong call to action? … positioning that separates you from the competition? Do you understand not just why you are as good as the competition, but why you are better than the competition? Why should someone purchase you, your product or service over the competition?

Are you being pro-active and creating enough opportunities for you to reach your goals and objectives? Are you doing enough marketing and sales activities to make the numbers work in your favor?

If you can’t answer “yes” to all of these questions, it is probably time to get off the dime and make the New Year a “New Start” to reaching your goals and objectives. Brand Iron can help you develop proactive goals for 2009 and a roadmap of what it is going to take to get you there.

It’s time to get started and map out a plan to succeed in this New Year.

Written by Michael Doyle, Brand Iron President

It’s true, for a relatively cheap investment anyone can “design” with the same tools as a professional designer. However, there are countless reasons why you should work with a professional designer, such as; quality, dependability, and experience. Designers seem to be a dime a dozen, but there are a few qualities that set good designers apart from the herd.

1. Passion – This is the real weapon of a good designer, it cannot be imitated. A real designer is passionate about his/her craft; it is not just a job or a career but a lifestyle. Regardless of what you might say, first and foremost a graphic designer is an artist. Artistic intuition cannot be taught, passion cannot be taught; you either have it or you don’t and that is why not everyone can be a designer. Brand Iron is proud to have a passionate design staff that creates passionate work day-in and day-out for our clients.
2. Don’t just re-design, but re-align – You may have heard this in the past, “it’s outdated, your website needs to be re-designed.” There is more to it. Not only does it need to be redesigned, but realigned with the brand. Good design transcends technology, trends and must be aligned with your brand; something that I’m sure you’re neighbor’s 9th grader probably is not capable of.
3. Evolve – A lot of designers think that they get a degree and they’re set for the rest of their lives. Sorry to break it to you but it doesn’t work like that; the design industry is constantly evolving, the technology is constantly changing and in order to create successful design a designer must be constantly evolve with the industry. A degree is a good start, but it takes continuous research and learning, determination, attention to detail and hard work to be a successful designer.

As a business owner you should not expect anything less than what was mentioned above, and if you are, you are literally gambling with your livelihood. Perception is everything, and your brand needs to be perceived as the best. Quality branding is what Brand Iron does best; we forge brands and drive revenue.

Written by Andrew Hoffman