Brand strategy is now part of the mainstream of destination and place marketing. But for small destinations brand management can seem too complex. Or the stories that they develop look too similar to other places, and so don’t do enough to enhance the destination’s attractiveness. But there is one simple and effective technique any destination … Continue reading
Comedy can help us see things that we’re usually blind to, or that we simply prefer to ignore. As put by writer Mary Hirsch, “Humour is a rubber sword – it allows you to make a point without drawing blood.” The ad industry, for all its foibles, often manages to laugh at itself. And in … Continue reading
The advent of digital media and changes in consumer expectations mean that brands now have to think in terms of the story they want to tell rather than just positioning themselves. This post examines the shift from positioning to story, provides an overview of brand storytelling, and exemplifies this through looking at how the Scotch … Continue reading
The 2012 post Can the Commonwealth Bank’s “Can” beat the other big four banks reviewed the authenticity of the brand promises of the major banks. This made the case that Commbank’s superior technical systems could allow it to credibly build its “Can” positioning to stake out brand leadership amongst the big four. As outlined in … Continue reading
According to Roy Morgan’s February 2013 Consumer Banking in Australia Customer Satisfaction Report, the Commonwealth Bank – for the first time since April 2000 – attained the highest customer satisfaction rating of the big four banks. This achievement adds further support to the case made previously on this blog that the authenticity of its “Can” … Continue reading
Despite its questionable launch strategy the Commonwealth Bank’s new “Can” brand positioning may have the ability to stake out a real point of difference that will leave its competitors behind. Australia’s ‘big four’ banks have traditionally been perceived by consumers as a largely undifferentiated group of institutions. A group that has also be seen as … Continue reading
You would be hard pressed to find a mid to senior marketer that isn’t an advocate of the customer-centric view of marketing. It has after all been the dominant marketing paradigm of the past 30 plus years, ingrained in every marketing text and preached by industry leaders. With the identification and fulfilment of category specific … Continue reading
During a recent Sunday family lunch my nine year-old daughter made the matter-of-fact statement “You know, Coles is better than Woolworths”. Given the speed at which her attention shifts this comment could have been both the start and end of this particular topic. But as it piqued my curiousity I had to ask “Why”; fully … Continue reading
As part of what some commentators are calling the biggest reinvention in the history of US retailing, JC Penney – a century old US mid-market department store chain – is challenging some of the fundamentals of mass market retailing. A bold move that could ultimately change some of the basic rules of the industry. Targeting … Continue reading
