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2016 Design Trends

2016 Design Trends

2016 Design Trends: Observations and Thoughts “As long as the work is appropriate, distinctive, and (ideally) emotive, you won’t go far wrong. Trends come and go, again and again. If you try to avoid what’s popular today, you’ll probably find yourself creating something that was popular ten or twenty years ago. Stick to the brief, and only show your best ideas to the client.” – David Airey, Graphic Designer Aware and Informed Disclaimer: As designers, we take trends seriously. Not to follow, but to ensure we are acutely aware of the trends that are shaping the world we live and design in....
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Today’s CMO: What It Takes to Drive Growth

Today’s CMO: What It Takes to Drive Growth

We work with CMOs every day, developing strategy and positioning businesses to enable growth and build brand strength from within their organizations. We have seen a role shift for CMOs over the past few years and have deep empathy for these leaders as they look to keep pace with an ever changing set of skills – more complex and more digital by the day. Because we have a front row seat of today’s CMO, we see more and more of our clients responsible for delivering both top line revenue and profit. CMOs are not only expected to keep pace with the changing digital landscape, but also...
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Female CEOs We Admire and Why

Female CEOs We Admire and Why

The Gender Gap It’s no secret that gender disparities and inequalities still exist. And gender inequality in the workplace today goes beyond the pay gap. The wage gap has narrowed to less than 5%, but this isn’t enough. 59% of women still feel like they have fewer opportunities because of their gender. 88% of women say they feel as though they are addressed differently than male colleagues. And only 4.2% of CEOs in America’s fortune 500 are women. And as a company with two female CEOs, we are acutely aware of this and believe in closing this gap. We thought it a fit time to celebrate some of...
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Building the Business Case for your Rebrand Project

Building the Business Case for your Rebrand Project

Recognizing the Need for a Change Why build a business case for your rebrand? You know when your business needs one. There are lots of warning signs that indicate the need for a new brand. Whether it’s new, high-performing competition, an outdated look and feel, uninspired employees, dropping engagement and productivity within the workplace, trouble recruiting or retaining top talent, or a brand that’s simply fallen behind its own positioning, you need a change. Often those in HR and marketing are the first to notice the need for a change. The current brand is just no longer doing the work...
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Brand Strategy: What is the Role of B2B Branding?

Brand Strategy: What is the Role of B2B Branding?

What is the role of B2B branding? How is it different from sales and marketing? Why should B2B enterprises be adopting purpose-driven brand strategies? What benefits will they accrue by adapting themselves to the changing requirements of the Purpose Economy? It’s no longer business-as-usual in the B2B marketplace. Long-held beliefs are giving way to new opportunities. Many of the reliable tools of the past are no longer as effective as they used to be. All of this is prompting more and more B2B leaders to explore the idea of transforming their businesses into purpose-driven enterprises....
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Why Investing in Brand Enables Growth for Professional Services

Why Investing in Brand Enables Growth for Professional Services

Professional service companies, categorized as mid-market, might be looking towards 2017 with a bit of trepidation. According to the National Center for the Middle Market 3Q 2016 Indicator, business growth has been identified as a top challenge for these firms. And mid-market or not, business growth is a real challenge for every sector of professional services in today’s hyper-competitive economy. The Role of Brand in Professional Services Even when personal brands are strong, as they often are for professional services, an overarching brand is necessary. Your brand is your firm’s most...
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Co-Founders On Brand Strategy Today

Co-Founders On Brand Strategy Today

Co-founders, Bella Banbury and Tracy Lloyd, weigh in on what matters in brand strategy today. It’s important to remember that, in the end, the age-old question is always the same. Client needs all come down to “How do we differentiate our brand?” It’s just the way people ask the question and the way we answer the question that evolves. Here’s what we’ve been seeing more specifically in the market: 1.Heightened attention around data security: Since 2016 was all about using data, now it’s all about safely storing and accessing that data. Gartner predicts that by 2018, 50% of business ethics...
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Why Millennials Love These Brands

Why Millennials Love These Brands

Millennials: Center Stage for Brands Millennials now represent the largest group of consumers within the U.S., and thriving brands today are highly aware of this. When millennials are wielding over $170 billion per year in purchasing power, there’s no ignoring this group of consumers. Brands don’t win over millennials easily. In fact, in many ways, they hold higher expectations of the businesses they work for, the brands they buy from, and pledge loyalty to. Big Demands Millennials stand at the forefront of technology – demanding that brands offer more efficiency, innovation,...
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Why Lack of Internal Alignment May Be Holding Back Your Business

Why Lack of Internal Alignment May Be Holding Back Your Business

When Internal Alignment Is Holding Back Your Business The sky’s the limit. The future is full of opportunities. Until internal alignment becomes a dark cloud that prevents your business aspirations from being realized. What happens when the brand is ready to grow and thrive, but there is no internal alignment from leadership about where the business is going? Nothing. The brand is paralyzed by competing visions and nothing happens. And a lack of decision making due to misaligned leadership is a problem that will hold up your business. Strategy Without Alignment A brand strategy is hard work...
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How Creative Design Brings Strategy to Life for Businesses

How Creative Design Brings Strategy to Life for Businesses

Embarking on a brand strategy project is an investment. We know it takes dedication, time, resources, planning, and a collaborative, open mindset. And in order to get true value from a strategy project, businesses have to be able to clearly explain the strategy, its meaning, and its value to people across their organization. This is where the power of creative design comes into play. Powerful Strategy Isn’t Just a Deck A strategy that simply sits in a presentation deck with a small group of people holds no real value for your business – no matter how smart the strategy is. It needs to come...
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Brand Narrative is a Necessary Part of Brand Strategy

Brand Narrative is a Necessary Part of Brand Strategy

Here we explore the brand narrative as a key element of brand strategy, by explaining what constitutes a brand narrative, demonstrating how it supports the overall brand strategy, and showing the brand scenarios which call for a strong brand narrative. What is a brand narrative? A brand narrative is a central building block of a meaningful brand strategy. It is built upon the insights and information gleaned during the kickoff process, with a particular focus on the business-related shifts the brand seeks to make. A brand narrative contains five elements: Truths – four to five high-level...
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Why These Brands Are On Their Best Digital Brand Behavior

Why These Brands Are On Their Best Digital Brand Behavior

All Brands Need Digital Brand behavior is what brings brand strategy to life. And today, brands that aren’t focusing on digital brand behavior can’t compete. Digitization is becoming the main pathway for consumer journeys across all industries. And the number of digital touch-points for brands is increasing by 20% annually. So digital is an integral part of the overall brand experience. And the brands with the best digital brand behavior are thriving for a reason. Digital Brand Behavior That We Love 1. Tell a powerful digital brand story: GE Through story telling, GE invites consumers and...
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Six Steps to Improving Brand Behavior

Six Steps to Improving Brand Behavior

On Your Best Brand Behavior Whether it’s B2B or B2C, brands need to be on their best behavior at all times. There’s nowhere to hide in this digital world when a brand misbehaves. A poor customer service experience, an offensive remark from a CEO, a bad workplace reputation, a lack of transparency, or lies, are types of brand behavior that create a lasting (and widespread) impression. When business suffers, often, a business can trace it back to a misstep in the brand’s behavior. And though it’s easy to revamp the website or roll-out workplace training as a quick fix, the real challenge...
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Law Firm Branding Project: Launching with Impact

Law Firm Branding Project: Launching with Impact

A law firm branding project isn’t just about the strategy or the creative – it’s about getting the law firm ready, aligned, and joined together behind the change. A new brand is an opportunity to build excitement and momentum around the future of your law firm. And the launch plays a large role in this. But launching a global law firm brand and figuring out how you are going to share it with the people who matter to your business is no small task. Here are some tips for launching your new brand: Although pushing your new website live is often the symbol of a new launch, there’s a lot of...
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Overcome Startup Competition in a Crowded Eco-system

Overcome Startup Competition in a Crowded Eco-system

Startup Competition is fierce Startup competition is tough. People used to think that consumers have mind-space for only three brands in any given category: the leader, the challenger, and the one other company lucky enough (or hard-working enough) to be noticed and considered. The rule of three may still be true, but the sheer proliferation of brands flooding a truly congested sector can starve every brand for oxygen and make it difficult for any brand to stand out. We deal with a lot of clients in crowded, complex categories and ecosystems: technology companies, software companies,...
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