BRAND DESIGN

But what if the real issue lies deeper? How do you

know whether it's the core brand itself that needs to

be re-evaluated?

Most of the time when clients engage us, they really

do need exactly what they ask for and have thoroughly

evaluated the deeper issues. But sometimes we're

approached with creative requests when some of the

underlying, strategic issues haven't been fully

addressed for one reason or another.

For instance:

• A division of a global technology company seeks to

better position itself with a new name and logo, yet

hasn't resolved some key brand issues (e.g. articulating

its mission, scaling the business in

response to growth and addressing negative

customer perceptions).

• A retail-focused service company wants to enter a

consumer product category and has asked for a

packaging design - yet the brand has virtually no

awareness among end consumers.

When to Re-evaluate the Brand

big and small fall into these categories -

including market-oriented, highly successful brands.

Often tight time-frames and profit targets are part of

the reason.

That's why part of our responsibility to you - the client

- is to ensure we do a thorough, high-level assessment

of your needs from the moment you engage us

as your potential partner - as quickly and efficiently

as possible. Our collaborative and modular work

approach, in addition to our diverse skill set and tool

kit enable us to partner with you to

identify the true "point of pain" to ensure we recommend

the right approach to solve the actual problem.

Our clients come to us because they're looking to create a stronger

connection with their customers or other key audiences. They're usually

looking to fix or improve something about the brand that's no longer working

effectively. Often they're concerned about a specific marketing communications

tool that isn't performing as it should be - e.g. a weak website, a dated

logo, packaging that doesn't stand out, or an ineffective collateral system.

So what are the signs that your problem is a "brand thing"? Well, our clients often ask what we look for, so

we thought we'd share some of our insights. We've put together a Top 10 list for you to contemplate. Some

situations are clear red flags, while others are a bit more subtle.

1. Your sales and marketing people are producing their own marketing tools or selling pieces. If

corporate-produced materials exist, they're not always used. You may feel that you are over-communicating,

but under-delivering. As a result, brand consistency is suffering.

2. Your brand's marketing tools don't seem to express what the brand truly stands for.

3. You worry that the brand may be losing its external appeal that in earlier days felt much stronger.

Perhaps it's simply become dated.

4. Brand awareness is low among your target audience. The target market has a hard time

explaining what you do when asked.

5. You want to attract a different market segment than you've targeted before (e.g. a younger clientele,

more established firms, international vs. domestic).

6. Your business is expanding into a different type of product or service area than you've been in

before (e.g. a company expands vertically along the value chain).

7. You've recently acquired or merged with another company and have two or more brands that don't

clearly make sense from the perspective of prospects, customers, investors or other key audiences.

8. You've recently had a senior management change - e.g. a new CEO with different objectives for

future growth.

BRAND STRATEGY

9. The competitive terrain around you has become more intense recently and it's become increasingly

difficult to differentiate yourself from others even though you believe your offering is superior.

10. You do not have a formally documented brand strategy - the brand has always been conveyed

verbally or in pieces through your employees. This has created challenges with both employee

communications and in working with external consultants (ad/pr agencies, design firms, etc).

If you're experiencing one or more of these situations, we urge you to consider the broader implications for

your brand before you try to "fix" any problematic marketing vehicles. "Fixing" them now may only lead to

the need to fix them again later down the track when the brand is brought under better control. And you

know what that means: anxiety and a waste of your precious marketing dollars.

If you're interested in creating truly integrated marketing communications, we hope you'll give us a call and

offer us the chance to partner with you to diagnose and solve your challenges. With our careful and

thoughtful approach, we pledge to earn your confidence that our brand and design solutions will effectively

address your business objectives and audience needs and make the best use of your marketing dollars.

Ultimately, our goal is to help you develop the most direct route to the right answer.

Although highly customizable, Tobanelli's

brand strategy services are organized into the

following categories (NOTE: clients come to us asking

for either individual pieces or a total solution):

Brand Strategy Research

Current/Future State Analysis

• Evaluating the current brand assets and ideal future

state with this unique, proven and affordable brand

evaluation tool. This tool is designed to help our

clients structure a self-led process for facilitating

discussion and reaching consensus about strategic

brand asset needs, setting short / long-term goals

and transforming ideas into action.

•This process can also be facilitated.

Consensus-Building

•Facilitating round-table brand discussions with

client teams to resolve any number of brand issues

and move towards agreement on how to resolve the

issues, set short / long-term goals and, ultimately,

transform issues into action.

• This process may or may not include a

Current/Future State Analysis

Interviews and Surveys

• Conducting one-on-one interviews (internal and

external), focus groups (external), market research

surveys (external)

Competitive Analysis

• Evaluating client and competitive assets in the areas

of collateral, web, advertising, and packaging, as well

as overall messaging and positioning to identify areas

of opportunity for improving brand perceptions.

Positioning Analysis

•Creating perceptual maps that illustrate the

competitive space and market opportunities

Retail Audit

• Evaluating competitors' packaging and/or merchandising

efforts in the retail environment

Brand Strategy Services

Target Market Profile

• Segmenting the audience and identifying key

rational and emotional drivers

Operational Gap Analysis

• Identifying the operational obstacles and solutions

necessary for strategy implementation

Brand Strategy Deliverables

Brand Strategy - refining the existing brand strategy

by developing a revitalized positioning, attributes and

personality for a corporate, organization, product or

service brand.

• Positioning = the brand's unique selling proposition

that differentiates it in the marketplace

• Attributes = the distillation of the brand's values

and character

• Personality = the brand's visual and editorial tone

and manner

Brand Architecture - documenting how a family of

brands interrelate with each other and the corporate

brand

Naming Systems - developing name creation workbooks

and supporting philosophy

Packaging Design Firm

Studio GT&P is a graphic design firm based in Foligno, Italy. Work includes: packaging, printed marketing collateral, web sites, corporate identities, visual brand strategies and interactive presentations. Lo Studio grafico GT&P è un'agenzia di graphic design che si occupa di grafica pubblicitaria, realizzazione marchi e loghi, immagine coordinata, siti web, depliant, cataloghi, brochure e marchi.
interactive digital design, web design, macromedia flash, shockwave, macromedia shockwave, flash design, website, Interactive CD-ROM, consulting, branding, interface design, animation, website development, 3D animation, interactive, media, flash, creative, design, services, multimedia, internet, new media, advertising, graphic, 3D, presentation, print, artist conception, strategic, strategy, tobanelli, gianluigi tobanelli, foligno, italy, umbria, perugia, corporate identity, visual communication, graphic design, annual reports, corporate collateral, award winning, identity systems, packaging, typography, logos, art, graphic art, letterhead, business card,Packaging Design Firm, brochures, printed material design, design studio, publications, marketing, illustration, catalogue, brochure, packaging design, digital design, graphics, mailing, direct marketing, logo design, sito internet, creatività, grafica, servizi grafici, sviluppo siti internet, pubblicità, communication, comunicazione, immagine coordinata, stampa, catalogo, depliant, label, etichetta, confezione, display, espositore, floor stand, stampati, marchio, biglietti da visita, consulenza, 3D design, logotipo, studio grafico, marchie e loghi

"Look and Feel"
The overall impression created and maintained over time by the consistent presentation of the brand in the prescribed manner and in appropriate contexts.
Brand
The sum of all the characteristics, tangible and intangible, that make the offer unique.
Brand Equity
The value of the brand in its holistic sense to its owners as a corporate asset.
Brand Essence
The distillation of a brand's intrinsic characteristics into a succinct core concept.
Brand Extension
A new product or service that is related to an existing brand, but that offers a different benefit and/or appeals to a different target segment.
Brand Harmonization
The synchronization of all elements of brand identity, across a line of products or services and/or across geographic markets.
Brand Identity
The outward manifestation of the essence of a corporate brand, product brand, service brand or branded environment.
Brand Identity Equities
The value of specific elements of identification (e.g., name, symbol or colors) to the brands owners.

Packaging Design Firm
Brand Positioning
The specific niche in which the brand defines itself as occupying in the competitive environment. Positioning addresses differentiating brand attributes, user benefits and target segments, singly or in combination.
Brand Revitalization
A major overhaul of a brand, starting with its positioning and proceeding through creative regeneration of the brand identity.
Branded Environment
The graphic system of identification as applied to three-dimensional physical space.
Branding
The process by which both a brand and brand identity are developed.
Co-Brand
Use of two or more strong brands in relation to a common offer. Typically, but not always, the brands are given equal emphasis. Examples: Chevron and McDonalds, Visa and Citibank.
Corporate Brand
The gestalt of the organization, including its philosophy and culture as well as its physical characteristics.
Corporate Image
Application of the term image to specific types of offers.
Descriptor
A term used with a brand name to communicate an informational attribute (e.g., variant, function, occasion or target segment) about a specific offer.
Digital Branding
Using digital media to create, build, manage and revitalize the relationships between a brand and its audiences.
Endorsement
Use of the parent brand identity to support and add credibility to an allied offer. Implies subordinate emphasis of the parent to a sub-brand, though relative emphasis will vary case-by-case.
Enhanced Descriptor
An evocative word that may or may not be trademarked, but which differentiates the offer in a proprietary way.
Generic Descriptor
A simple, descriptive term with clear meaning, and which can be executed in regional languages.
Identity
Two meanings, both valid: 1) The sum of all the characteristics, tangible and intangible, that make the offer unique. 2) The elements of brand identification (e.g., the name, symbol and colors) by which an offer can be identified.
Image
Perceptions of the features, tangible and intangible, that characterize a brand.
Information Architecture
The process of creating clarity and human understanding through the organization of information. From a software development point of view, Information Architecture is the organizational structure of the application and data as it is reflected in the user interface.

Packaging Design Firm
Ingredient Brand
A strong brand that is used and promoted as a key part of a host brand.
Interactive Branding
Process of developing Web sites and other interactive products, including strategy development, structural design and graphic design.
Line Extension
A new variation of a product or service sharing the same essential characteristics as the parent, but offering a new benefit, such as flavor, size, package type, etc.
Logo
The terms "mark", "logo" and "identifier" are general terms for a symbol or wordmark.
Nomenclature System
The names of individual entities within a group of companies (or families of products or services) organized systematically to reflect the relationships among the entities. The term "nomenclature system" encompasses modifiers, descriptors, endorsements, etc., as well as names.
Parent Brand
A strong brand that has the capacity to: 1) stand alone to represent a core product or service; 2) support allied products/services by sharing its brand identity, directly or through endorsement
Positioning Statement
A concise written statement of the positioning concept, conveying the essential features of the brand and its niche.
Product Brand
Two meanings, both valid: 1) The gestalt of the brand, including its emotional and cultural associations as well as its physical features. 2) The graphic system of identification as applied to a single product or service or a family of products/services.
Service Brand
A brand representing a specific service or family of services.
Sub-Brand
A product or service that has a persona and brand values that separate it from the parent brand. A product or service that has its own brand identity, which is proprietary and can be trademarked.
Symbol
A "symbol" is an abstract sign to represent the brand.

Packaging Design Firm
Typography
The typestyle specified for brand communications other than the basic brand signature. Typography is often an existing font, but may also be a modified font or custom-designed font.
Verbal Identity
The brand name and other verbal elements (e.g., descriptor or tag-line) of the brand signature.
Visual Identity
The symbol, colors, formats and other visual elements of the brand signature.
Wordmark
A "wordmark" is the stylized treatment of the brand name and serves the same functional purpose as a symbol.

— The power of a brand — through successful creation of a positive image — to shift demand and change customer behavior.
Brand Identity
— The visible elements that can be used to identify a brand (name, logotype, symbol, product configuration, service offering and packaging).
Brand Image
— The complete bundle of thoughts a customer has in his or her mind about a company, product or service developed through communications and experience, including the distinguishing "human" characteristics of a brand personality (e.g., warm and friendly, strong and reliable).
Brand Promise
— A statement of the enduring, relevant and distinctive benefits customers associate with a product, service or company.
Brand Strategy
— Long-term plan for the brand including a determination of key audiences and an understanding of what those audiences need to know about the brand and experience.
Communications Audit
— A formal examination of an organization's visual and verbal communications practices.
Communications Plan
— A company's communications goals and objectives, and the messages and vehicles that will be used to meet them.
Corporate Identity
— The visible elements (name, logotypes, symbols, signs, offices, factories, advertising, trucks, packaging, letterhead, business cards, etc.) which can be used to identify a company.

Packaging Design Firm
Corporate Image
— The perception that people have of a company, based on a combination of various communications and personal experience.
Corporate Mission
— Defines why the organization exists, its core values and intent, and serves to unite organizational behavior.
Culture and Style
— Distinctive attributes and competitive advantages relating to organizational beliefs, values and traits; how the organization behaves as it uniquely goes about its business.
Image Attributes
— Help define the tone, manner, personality and style of a brand, often the differentiating factor between similar products and services.
Image Criteria
— The desired "personality" attributes of a company, product or service that guide name and design development.
Logotype
— A unique group of letterforms that represent the corporate brand. IBM, Nuveen and GAP feature logotypes as their primary form of identity.
Message
— The information (facts, strengths, culture/style and future direction) that is most relevant to priority audiences and serve as major content points for all communications.
Name Direction
— Creative concepts and approaches that guide name generation.
Name Generation
— Creative development of a comprehensive yet focused list of names that address specific image and functional criteria.

Packaging Design Firm
Naming
— The strategic and creative discipline of developing the most appropriate word or words to identify an organization, product or service.
Nomenclature System
— Method for associating divisions, subsidiaries, brands, etc. with the parent company.
Positioning Statement
— Provides the underlying platform for communications, reflecting the company's/brand's value proposition. Address:
1. definition — how the company defines its business or how the brand defines its competitive set; who we are and what we do;
2. differentiation — what makes the company/brand special; how we do it; and
3. deliverables — benefit delivered to its customers.
Symbol
— A non-typographic element of an abstract or representational nature. Texaco, Apple and Continental Airlines feature graphic symbols as an important form of their identity.

Packaging Design Firm
Visual Communications System
— A planned method of identification including the use of a company's name, logotype, color palette and secondary typography; a company's graphic "look and feel," applied to a wide cross-section of media to create a cohesive brand presence.

corporate identity