Millennials, now in positions of influence across markets, have redefined the design look and feel of B2B branding. What is the millennial aesthetic, and could it help your business connect more powerfully with today’s stakeholders? Let’s dive into understanding this fascinating design trend and what it could mean for your next B2B brand…
Brand positioning. It was a concept pioneered by branding legends Jack Trout and Al Ries in the 1960s. Today, it’s the essential foundation on which comprehensive B2B marketing plans are based—from print campaigns to digital engagement, from sales outreach to recruitment efforts, and from content strategy to customer journey mapping.
Brand positioning defines…
The ironic thing about your brand’s image is that you can’t actually see it. Image as it relates to your brand is a metaphor, an idea meant to conjure up the assured sense of truth that comes with witnessing something concrete (and hopefully positive) with your own eyes. Your customers can’t see loyalty, trust, or any other quality, but an effective brand strategy can help them make the connection. First though, you’ll need to learn to see these qualities yourself.
Brand behavior defines how a brand engages stakeholders in day-to-day interactions and moments, bringing the company’s values, personality and promises to life for customers, investors, partners and/or employees. It’s the brand strategy in action at the moment people make important decisions like whether to invest in the business, consider/buy…
Technology has been a business game-changer at every level—revolutionizing customer experiences, enabling groundbreaking innovations and accelerating the speed of business. Technology giants are expanding their reach while companies with decidedly non-tech histories (like Maersk and even McDonald’s) have reinvented themselves to excel in the digital era.
As a result, B2B tech…
For decades, law firms went to market with relatively conventional messages that did little to create compelling impressions in the minds of their audiences, let alone lasting ones. To a large extent, their strategies succeeded nonetheless—thanks to the strength of their benches, their personal networks and the knowledge that big companies had big budgets…
Businesses rely on brand to set them apart, connect with people, and inspire loyalty in everyone from employees to investors. But in a fast-moving world, it’s easy for parts of a brand story to lose their relevance, or for visuals to no longer reflect a company’s evolving value to customers. Sometimes a…
A comprehensive brand audit — an analysis of the current state of a brand and its position in the marketplace — is the foundation of any new brand or rebranding initiative. By determining the strengths and weaknesses of a brand in relation to its market and competitors, the audit helps navigate a clear path to a differentiated…
Thornton Tomasetti, a well-respected, global structural engineering firm, found itself at a critical turning point. After years of strategic acquisitions and organic growth, it offered a broad and integrated portfolio of services, including protective design, testing and analysis, and even artificial intelligence. However, the company’s CEO knew that its reputation in the market…
As we like to put it, “Ideas move people, and people move business.” Engaged talent matters. Businesses with high-performing teams—people who are both skilled and adaptive, personally committed and professionally accountable—enjoy a clear edge over competitors. But for employers, the post-pandemic War for Talent is here. And per Forbes, it’s…
We live in skeptical times. Poll after poll tells us that trust in institutions – and the information they promulgate – is at an all-time low. Before making major purchasing decisions in this environment, B2B decision makers want to see data on performance, projected cost/benefit, environmental impact, customer satisfaction, and more. As importantly, they want…
The need for powerful storytelling has become a common refrain among marketers as they think about how to better connect with audiences. With ever-increasing opportunities for brands and audiences to interact digitally, marketers know they need to find ways to cut through the noise and engage with audiences at a deeper level – and video…
The lowest common denominator (LCD) can be defined as “the broadest or most widely applicable requirement or circumstance.” It’s often difficult to acknowledge, but LCD can be a valuable tool for marketers when selecting what format their online advertisements should take. Larger ad sizes allow for more images and more text for the viewer…
Me-too brands just don’t cut it anymore in the professional services arena. This whitepaper examines best practices for creating a distinctive and compelling brand position in professional services.
Dear Google, Apple, Adobe and Microsoft,
You may not know me, but I was created with great care and purpose. Every image, hue and letter. I am special. I have meaning.
I live in hearts and minds, in words and actions, in websites and ad campaigns and brochures. But frequently, I live in Word and…
From a business perspective, few things are as critical to get right as a major merger or acquisition — and few things are as challenging.
On the long list of considerations during M&A activity, merger branding is one of the most crucial. Not getting the brand right is a key reason that, according to…
Successful brands start with honest self-assessment — which may be hard to come by in a large company or an entrenched corporate culture. Enlisting the aid of an outside brand strategist can help, providing a clear-eyed window into the company’s strengths and weaknesses and offering agnostic, professional solutions.
But as in any relationship…
Frank Sinatra is quoted as saying, “Orange is the happiest color.” And he isn’t alone in thinking that, as brands often choose to incorporate orange into their logos as a way of infusing a sense of fun, cheeriness, warm exuberance, and approachability.
Indeed, it is energetic and positive, uplifting and cheerful. The color orange…