Corporate Eye

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Susan Gunelius

Susan Gunelius

Which Web Browser Brand Identity is Superior?

The competition among Web browsers has taken some interesting turns over the past few years, with players like Mozilla’s Firefox and Google Chrome taking a chunk out of Microsoft’s Internet Explorer market share.  Additionally, Mac users have more options than ever making Safari less popular.

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While the features and functions of these Web browsers are likely to be debated for years to come, I started to wonder which has the best brand identity.  Certainly, Internet Explorer has history on its side, but Chrome has the power of Google behind it.  Firefox is known for add-ons and has become a relationship brand more so than any of its competitors.

But what do we think of each brand’s logo?  Which do you think is best in terms of communicating the brand image?  Which is simply designed the best?

Take the poll below and leave a comment to share your opinions.  Which Web browser is getting its brand identity right, including its logo?

Beer and Comfort Foods Top Consumer Satisfaction Index

hersheysThe quarterly American Customer Satisfaction Index was released this week and the economy is clearly still having a significant effect on consumers’ feelings about products and brands.  Some of the top categories in the study are:

  • Soft drink companies with a score of 85 out of 100.
  • Beer manufacturers with a score of 84 out of 100.
  • Food companies with a score of 83 out of 100 (candy and chocolate companies ranked highest in this category).

It’s not surprising that during difficult economic times, people turn to comfort foods and brands, as well as alcohol.  These are fairly common behaviors, and food, soft drink and beer companies are likely to capitalize on those behaviors.  The question is whether or not the high satisfaction numbers will continue when the economy eventually recovers.

On the flip side, cigarette manufacturers saw a 7.7% drop in satisfaction scores from the previous year to just 72.  It’s suggested that the drop is directly related to higher taxes imposed by the U.S. government on tobacco products, and it’s unlikely those taxes are going to change anytime soon.  Truth be told, I think there are far more factors that caused the satisfaction index to drop for cigarette manufacturers, but this post is neither the time nor place to debate smoking.

Looking at these statistics one might say, “okay, Americans are fat drunks who are mad that cigarettes cost so much — not a big revelation.”  Perhaps there is some truth in that statement, but is that so wrong?

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to drink a Diet Coke and eat a candy bar.

Image: Flickr

Obama and the Revitalization of Brand USA

obama_hope_posterIn the fifth annual Country Brand Index report released by FutureBrand, where countries are ranked similarly to how retail brands are ranked, the United States took the top spot for the first time.  The index is determined using survey results from approximately 3,000 business and leisure travelers from nine countries.

According to the results of the study, the United States took the top spot in the following areas:

  • The place most people want to visit whether for the first time or again.
  • The place most people want to do business with.
  • The ideal place for shopping.
  • The ideal place to find quality products.

According to the study, the boost in sentiment toward Brand USA can be attributed largely to President Barack Obama thanks to his inclusive brand strategy, global messages and global popularity.  According to FutureBrand, it’s the ‘Obama Effect’.

The top 10 countries in the 2009 Country Brand Index are:

  1. United States
  2. Canada
  3. Australia
  4. New Zealand
  5. France
  6. Italy
  7. Japan
  8. Britain
  9. Germany
  10. Spain

Another interesting piece of information found in the report tells us that the United Arab Emirates, China, Vietnam, Croatia, South Africa, and India are poised to become major tourist destinations in the next five years.

It’s interesting to look at countries as brands, similar to retail brands.  Not only do the brand images of countries affect industries like travel, but they also affect politics and business. In fact, it could be argued that when it comes to branding, politics and business are extremely similar.

What do you think?

Image: Flickr

Nikon, Twitter and Ashton Kutcher Launch New Social Media Marketing Campaign

ashton_kutcher_demi_mooreLet’s face it.  People love celebrities, and celebrities who have active Twitter accounts — those who truly use them to engage with their fans, can attract huge followings.

Ashton Kutcher is a celebrity from television, film, and of course, he’s married to Demi Moore.  He’s also a Twitter celebrity (check out his Twitter page here).  He tweets frequently and about all aspects of his life.  His followers love him for it, and he made no secret of his attempt to be the first Twitter user with 1 million followers.  Today, he has nearly 4 million followers.

That’s an audience that Nikon wants to connect with.

Ashton Kutcher has been appearing in Nikon television commercials for awhile now, so when Nikon had the idea to hold a video creation contest where people were asked to make 140-second commercials with its Nikon D5000 camera. what better way to drum up some hype for the promotion than involving Ashton Kutcher and his 4 million followers on Twitter?

Kutcher tweeted about the contest as did a few other celebrities Nikon added to the celebrity mix backing the promotion.  Ultimately, those  tweets about the Nikon promotion could be seen by a potential audience of their over 6.5 million combined followers — with just a single tweet by 4 celebrities.

I’ve actually witnessed celebrities working their magic and increasing their Twitter followers rapidly and in huge numbers.  I’ve witnessed celebrities drive widespread awareness via Twitter for charities and boost donations.  Brands like Nikon are recognizing that while celebrity endorsements on television commercials and in print ads might not be as effective as they were years ago, celebrity brand advocates who engage large numbers of consumers through Twitter just might be a goldmine.

What do you think?  Is the Nikon and Ashton Kutcher promotion the start of a new trend of celebrity endorsements of brands via Twitter?

Image: Flickr

Continental Airlines Teams up with Winstar Interactive to Display Third-Party Ads on Continental.com

We all know that airlines are struggling financially.  Apparently, charging passengers for baggage, taking away meals, and adding all kinds of fees isn’t enough even though fuel costs have fallen significantly from a year ago.  Still, those airline companies are feeling a pinch.  What to do … what to do?

Never fear!  Naturally, someone came up with a way to bring in some revenue.  Don’t worry, you won’t be charged for the oxygen you use while onboard.  Although, don’t rule it out.

Continental Airlines hopes to make some money by displaying third-party ads on its Web site.  The company is teaming up with Winstar Interactive to monetize its site through ads that will complement the site and feed into the travel/buying mode of Continental.com visitors. But what does this say about the Continental brand?

What say you?  Brilliant or pathetic?

What do you think of Continental.com’s strategy to sell ad space to third party advertisers?

I wonder what’s next.  Selling ad space on the inside and outside of airplanes like ads on subway trains and buses?  Or maybe flight attendants should wear uniforms covered in sponsors logos like NASCAR drivers?  Should I be charging for these ideas?

How do you think airlines should try to bring in additional revenue?  Leave a comment and share your thoughts.  Don’t be afraid to think out of the box.  When they bait you like this, it’s hard to resist.

News Corp Wants to Block Google

newscorpRupert Murdoch and News Corp came out swinging this week with eyes on Google.  It’s not a secret that News Corp has been struggling along with many traditional news organizations.  It’s just easier to hop online and get the latest news than it is to pull out a newspaper where you’ll only find news that’s already old.  News Corp has been losing ad revenue, and earlier this year Murdoch announced the potential for News Corp to charge people to access news on its Web site in the future — a move that flies in the face of the future of communications and information sharing.

Now, Murdoch wants to ban all News Corp content from Google search results claiming that Google is violating fair use laws by republishing titles and snippets without permission.  My first reaction to this was to actually laugh out loud.  I’m just glad I wasn’t drinking or eating at that moment or I could have been in serious trouble.  Again, News Corp is failing to see the long term evolution of information sharing and communications.  Blocking content from online searches is the equivalent of keeping your company’s phone number unlisted decades ago.  It’s laughable.

Of course, one can speculate that Murdoch would be happy to allow Google to republish its content titles and snippets in return for a fee.  No one has come out and said that yet (as far as I know, correct me if I’m wrong), but I think it’s safe to assume that’s what’s coming.

The problem with this strategy for Murdoch and News Corp?  I doubt Google cares.  Not only that, but I doubt many consumers care either.

Instead of embracing new forms of communication and information sharing and finding a new business model that will actually work for the next 10 years, Murdoch and News Corp are relying on a bullying tactic.  Actually, it’s more like a tantrum (“we’re losing, so we don’t want to play with you anymore”).  Unfortunately, it’s not going to work and it certainly doesn’t put the News Corp brand in a positive position.

Your thoughts?

Image: Flickr