The Brand Architecture Behind Audemars Piguet x Swatch
The criticism was predictable. A revered luxury watchmaker partners with Swatch, introduces a colorful US $400 pocket watch, and collectors immediately worry about dilution. But the Audemars Piguet x Swatch Royal Pop Collection is not ...
The Difference Between Positioning And Messaging
Alongside category design, messaging, storytelling, and thought leadership, positioning is where your company claims its strategic seat within the market’s mental map—and, when engineered deliberately, this seat is one competitors cannot easily take. When business ...
Why Iconic Brands Need To Earn Permission To Change
Ferrari’s recent introduction of the Luce, its first fully electric four-door model, has sparked exactly the kind of controversy one might expect from an iconic brand. Just as the Jaguar rebrand did, and many others ...
Why Great Products Fail Without Market Engineering
Each year, research firms such as CB Insights analyze why both startups and new products from mature companies fail. On average, about 80 percent of VC-backed startups fail (and those are the best of the startup ...
Visual Strategy Is Sales Strategy
Visual communication is now one of the primary ways buyers judge credibility, understand value, compare options, and decide whether a brand deserves attention. In a market crowded with claims, strong visual assets make value tangible. ...
Why Website Performance Is A Brand Experience Issue
Think about the last time you stared at a loading spinner. The irritation arrives quickly. You count to three, sigh, and hit the back button. You do not think about server latency, database queries, image ...
Why Brand Strategy Needs A Simulator Now
Most mid-market leaders are not short on ideas. They are short on confidence. They are being asked to move faster with less certainty, make bigger bets with less room for error, and separate useful AI-enabled ...
How Financial Engineering Destroys Brand Value
Claire’s, the tween accessory retailer, is in turnaround mode. Again. Claire’s is hoping to pierce the boredom barrier among its target audience of not-yet-teenage girls. The Wall Street Journal wrote a glowing review of Claire’s ...
How Under Armour Forgot The First Rule Of Brand Strategy
Never confuse the customer. Once, at an advertising agency meeting with our IHG client, one of the agencies admitted that their commercials for Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express were confusing. The stated benefits for ...
Brands Must Take The Risk Out Of Buying
The recessionary mindset we see in society and the marketplace is a significant reset of aspirations and expectations, but it is not the explanation for everything. It is, however, a big shift in how consumers ...