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Brand

Ad Testing Via New Facebook Application

The Ad Battle application for Facebook is a new app that’s getting a lot of buzz lately.  The Ad Battle app was created by Buddy Media and Jason Culbertson of Atmosphere BBDO.  It’s been compared to the popular Hot or Not website by Advertising Age, and it gives Facebook members the ability to compare two randomly displayed ads then vote on which one they think is better.  Once a person votes, the voting results to date are displayed to see if he or she voted with the majority or not, and then that person can move on and vote on the next pair of ads.  Users can also upload their own ads to add to the voting mix.

Albeit, Ad Battle is far from an exact science, and most users at this early stage are ad industry insiders, but the potential is huge.  The basic concept could be applied in so many ways to create a social web buzz, to test ad concepts, to rate ad performance, and more.  [Read more…] about Ad Testing Via New Facebook Application

Burger King Whopper Bar Aims to Redefine the Brand

burger-king-the-kingWhen you think of Burger King, do you think of cheap, greasy, fast food?  Burger King hopes to change that perception with the new BK Whopper Bar where the tagline, “have it your way,” is being taken to a whole new level.

The first of what will become a chain of BK Whopper Bars opened at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida this month (check out the pictures from the Orlando Sentinel theme park blog here).  According to the press release, the new bars are intended to take the “fast food” brand image out and replace it with a more gourmet appeal:

“Elevating the HAVE IT YOUR WAY® brand promise to new heights, the WHOPPER™ Bar restaurant embodies the power of personal choice by offering guests a customizable, premium and indulgent WHOPPER®-based menu.”

But wait, there is more to this brand re-definition than just dressing up the interior ambiance of a traditional Burger King location.  Here is more from the press release: [Read more…] about Burger King Whopper Bar Aims to Redefine the Brand

Continental and United Airlines Merger Brings New Brand and Logo – Sort Of

This week, Continental Airlines and United Airlines announced a planned merger creating the largest airline.  While the two airlines claim their routes barely overlap and the merger should be completed by the end of 2010, the Chairman of the U.S. House Transportation Committee, Congressman Jim Oberstar has asked the U.S. Justice Department to block the merger.  While we wait for the merger to be approved by antitrust regulators and shareholders (and let’s face it — it’s unlikely the merger won’t happen), consumers can already see some of the effects of the merger with a new brand identity and logo — sort of.

First, a snippet about the new brand from the merger press release:

The holding company for the new entity will be named United Continental Holdings, Inc. and the name of the airline will be United Airlines. The marketing brand will be a combination of the brands of both companies. Aircraft will have the Continental livery, logo and colors with the United name, and the announcement campaign slogan will be “Let’s Fly Together.”

Next, a peak at the new logo, which combines the United name with the old Continental icon:

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Finally, a look at the new airplanes that look very similar to the old Continental planes with the United name replacing the Continental name.

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What do you think of the interim branding solution?  Love it or hate it? Would a complete rebrand with a new name and logo unrelated to either of the previous brands have been a better choice?

Of course, it’s still quite possible that a complete rebranding will happen in the year or so following the merger completion, so the question is whether the Continental and United brands have enough value to warrant keeping either.  Would consumers lament the loss of either brand?  It’s doubtful.

Truth be told, both brands carry a lot of negative baggage (no pun intended), and a complete rebranding could be just the ticket this company needs (again, no pun intended … well, maybe a little).

What do you think?  Leave a comment and share your thoughts.

Images: UnitedContinentalMerger.com

BP – Flooded in Oil Rather than ‘Beyond Petroleum’

bp_beyond_petroleumFor years, BP has used the “Beyond Petroleum” tagline to massage the perception of the BP brand as being one that stands for so much more than oil.  While the company has been accused of greenwashing by using that tagline, given that almost all of its revenue comes from oil-related activities, the tagline did succeed in differentiating the brand from the Exxon’s of the world.  Remember, marketing and branding is all about perceptions.  Right?

But what happens when events prove those perceptions were fabricated?

BP never claimed it wasn’t in the oil business with the Beyond Petroleum tagline, but the company did attempt to position its brand as the antithesis of big oil companies that care only about profits regardless of the negative effects their products and businesses have on the environment.

Until April 2010, BP managed to protect its brand positioning as the oil company that puts the environment first, despite previous problems.  But can BP retain that positioning now that the company caused one of the biggest oil spills in history off the coast of Louisiana?

Probably not.  However, there is more to this story than brand positioning.  Do consumers truly care where their gasoline, etc. comes from?  Will they drive out of their way to find a non-BP gas station?

Certainly, consumers care, but the truth of the matter is that there is little difference in consumers’ minds about oil company brand positioning.  All of those companies are grouped together, for the most part, in consumers’ minds.

Therefore, BP will undoubtedly survive, but it’s highly likely (and suggested) that BP go through a rebranding.  Beyond Petroleum won’t get the job done anymore.  The more interesting question from a branding perspective is whether or not there is a brand message and position that truly could differentiate an oil company from its competitors — something that would make consumers pay more than the excessive prices they already pay and make them want to drive out of their way to find a gas station that offers fuel from a specific company.

What do you think?  Can it be done?  Leave a comment and let’s discuss!

Image: Flickr

Kululua Airlines Creative Rebranding Generates Global Online Buzz

South African airline Kululua Airlines recently turned to its internal creative team for a rebranding initiative that has drawn global attention and spread across the social Web thanks to bloggers and Twitter users.  Not only did Kululua Airlines’ creative team decide to change the color of the company’s planes to fluorescent green, but they also decided to turn the planes into flying blueprints.

Under the rebranding, the new planes carry the name Flying 101 on their sides along with labels depicting where the various parts of the plane are and what they’re called. Check out the pictures below.  I’d like the seat by the black box please.

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The online buzz for the new Flying 101 planes started before the actual planes began flying, and now people are spotting them in the sky and talking about the fueling both online and offline buzz.  The rebranding is fun but it also doesn’t take itself too seriously (e.g., the labels on the plane include the “mile high club initiation chamber”), making it perfect fodder for a viral conversation.

There is no doubt that the redesigned planes are attention-getting and memorable.  What remains to be seen is if the onboard experience matches the expectations for the brand that the new planes create.  In other words, the planes are different, will the Kululua Airlines experience be different, too, or will it be the same as any other airline?  Afterall, one of the labels on the plane does show where “Kululua Fans” can be found within the planes.  It’s up to Kululua Airlines to make sure they can keep those fans and add new ones.

So what do you think?  Is the new Kululua Airlines rebranding initiative a good long term strategy or a short term tactic that will fizzle out sooner rather than later?  Take the poll below and share your opinion. If you can’t see the poll, follow this link to take it.

 

Wikipedia Kills MSN Encarta

msn_encartaMicrosoft announced this week that it is shutting down its MSN Encarta websites around the world (except Japan).  Why?  Wikipedia.

Remember not so long ago when MSN Encarta was so often bundled in with other software and hardware purchases (think tax software in the U.S.)?  There was a time when getting MSN Encarta for free was a big perk.  Today, not so much.

According to a report by HitWise, MSN Encarta websites get less than 2% of all online encyclopedia searches while Wikipedia gets 97% (Encyclopedia.com gets the rest).  Not even Microsoft can compete with Wikipedia.

It’s interesting to me that Wikipedia, which is so often criticized for inaccuracies, bias, and so on, can be so dominant.  Even Google has tried to compete with Google Knol, but alas, Wikipedia remains strong.  Can you think of another brand that retains so much power despite its highly publicized faults?  One could argue that U.S. auto manufacturers would be an example, but recent events in that industry show sub-par performance will only get your brand so far. [Read more…] about Wikipedia Kills MSN Encarta