Archive for the 'Technology' Category
Q&A with Myspace SVP of Communications Rosabel Tao
An exclusive interview with Rosabel Tao of Myspace.. Ms. Tao led a discussion on brand relevancy at the Liquid Brand Summit, held March 1 in Palo Alto. View photos of the Summit here.
ABOUT ROSABEL
Rosabel Tao is an accomplished corporate communications strategist with two decades of experience creating integrated, multi-disciplinary communications programs and building communications organizations from the ground up. She’s worked with a broad portfolio of companies in a full range of growth stages-from global brands to start-ups, including of Bank of America, Microsoft, HP, Levi Strauss, Safeway and Spot Runner.
Q: As brands evolve, so do their audiences. What are some tactics companies use to ensure brands remain aligned with their core audiences or adapt to new audiences as market forces change?
A: First, brands need to be very clear about who their desired target audience is and focus on serving that audience. This is more difficult than it sounds – I’ve seen many companies try to be all things to all people for fear of not capturing everyone who could possibly want their product/service. Oftentimes, this results in an offering that is too broad to appeal deeply to any one audience and prevents the brand from truly taking root. It’s best to build a core, loyal audience first and expand from there.
Disneyland, for example, has historically catered to families with children. Over time, the theme park has added new rides and shows and expanded some of its marketing to appeal to a broader audience, but at the heart, it continues to remain true to its core demographic.
Starbucks is an example of a company that built a loyal core audience for its coffee drinks and the experience of its stores. There was period of time when it expanded very quickly and got into music, food, ice cream, merchandise and more – and it lost focus of its core customer and started losing marketshare to a wide array of competitors. Since then, it has recommitted itself to its heritage of coffee and the store experience.
Q: If brand relevancy is partly based on perceptions (i.e. the perception of the market, media, customers and partners), what do think are some of the main challenges to managing customer perception? Can you give one or two specific examples of brands that have been successful or unsuccessful in changing and/or managing perception with regard to brand relevancy?
A: The challenge is that many factors influence customers’ perception of a brand, some of which are controllable and some of which aren’t. What is controllable is the direct experience they have with the company, such as quality of the product and customer service. What is not controllable is what they hear about the product – from their peers, the marketplace, press, blogs, etc. While these factors cannot be controlled, they can be influenced. Sometimes a brand that is in a stagnant or challenged state can be turned around with a game changing “moment in time” that in essence, acts like a defibrillator. This is a gamble, but it can work IF it is followed up with a longer term, sustained approach that delivers on a new promise.
John McCain’s selection of Sarah Palin as his vice presidential candidate wasn’t enough to win the election. But one’s loss is another’s gain . . . Saturday Night Live became hot again with Tina Fey’s skewering portrayal of Palin. Fey’s first Palin sketch became NBC.com’s most watched viral video (at that time) with 5.7 million views by the following Wednesday and the October 18, 2008, show had the best ratings of any SNL show since 1994.
Last year, when Conan O’Brien was being pushed aside for Jay Leno, he published a heartfelt manifesto to the “People of the Earth” that immediately cast him as the underdog hero, rallied his supporters and swayed a lot other people – particularly younger audiences – to Team Coco.
Time Warner attempted to change its old media perception with its merger with AOL. The marriage of those brands didn’t ultimately work out so well but AOL’s acquisition of HuffPost might.
Q: Technology plays an important role in helping brands to create unique customer experiences that build brand relevance and loyalty. For example, the ability of a brand to customize a customer experience based on their specific likes, dislikes, needs and desires. Can you give one or two specific examples of brands that have used technology and the digital experience to build brand relevancy with their customers?
A: I’m a big fan of the Pepsi Refresh Project. I’m sure everyone knows the story, but in 2010, they opted out of airing a TV ad during the Superbowl and announced they would create contests to give away millions of dollars in grants to fund good ideas that make the world a better place. They conducted an amazing viral campaign that spread like wildfire – and the campaign continues to feed itself through technology – contestants submit their ideas online, the approved ideas are publicly posted online where people vote for their favorites and contestants have to use social media, mobiles apps and texting to rally votes for their cause – thereby exponentially spreading the Pepsi brand.
Another good example of a company that has leveraged technology very well to establish brand loyalty and relevancy is Amazon. Amazon started as an online book seller and expanded its core offering to many other e-commerce categories to meet the growing needs of their audience. With its use of technology to personalize the shopping experience (i.e., recommendations engine, public customer reviews, etc.), along with competitive pricing and superior customer service – it made e-commerce a serious competitor to bricks and mortar stores and was a major force in shifting the dynamics of retail sales forever.
Myspace recently relaunched as a social entertainment destination for Gen Y – which is entertainment with a social media layer. It’s using technology to create a rich, highly personalized experience for people to discover content and connect with other fans who share similar interests. Users actually personalize the experience for themselves by expressing interests, sharing tastes and knowledge around particular topics, and scouting out up-and-coming subcultures.
WATCH FOR MORE FROM THE LIQUID BRAND SUMMIT 2011
We’ll soon be publishing more content from the Liquid Brand Summit, including additional video interviews with our expert session leaders, as well as key findings from the Summit’s 10 sessions.
Also, check out this year’s top tech brands, as named by the the Liquid Brand Impact Report 2011.
For more on brand transformation, visit Liquid Agency.
No commentsLiquid Agency’s industrial design work is honored by IDEA 2009.
We’ve definitely won our share of design awards over the years: Our work has been honored in many design competitions for projects that have included identity, packaging, publications, environments, retail merchandising, and interactive design. That said, we’re particularly proud of the recognition we received at the IDEA 2009 competition…and in this one we only achieved “finalist” status.
The IDEA awards program. For those of you who don’t know, the IDEA (International Design Excellence Awards) program has been honoring design excellence since 1980 – and is considered one of the most prestigious design competitions in the world – recognizing design excellence in product design, ecodesign, interaction design, packaging, and concepts. Out of 1631 entries from countries all over the world, this year’s jury, an international cross-section of design leaders led by Andrew Hartman, Philips Design’s design director, selected 349 finalists.Liquid’s work was entered in the competition by our client – Olive – with whom we collaborated in the designed of two products, the Opus 4 and the Melody 2. Although we did not walk away with the top honors, we’re super excited about making the finalist list. After all, this is the very first time we’ve entered an industrial design competition…and the IDEA program is probably the toughest one in the world – so, being a finalist is something to brag about, especially when you consider that we were competing with companies like Samsung, Apple and HP – and that other finalists included Intel, NVIDIA, and Pioneer!
Liquid Agency has worked closely with Oliver Bergmann, Olive’s founder and CEO, to develop his company’s brand from the very beginning. Our involvement started with the design of the brand identity, the website, the packaging and the marketing materials…and has grown to include the industrial design and the user interface. With Liquid’s help, Olive has created products that achieve a harmonious balance between sound clarity and aesthetically striking design. As a consequence, Olive has developed a cult following among music enthusiasts and has earned the “Editor’s Choice” title from numerous national and international publications including Sound & Vision, Digital Trends, and PC Magazine. Olive’s products are frequently featured in magazines that range from Forbes to Wired, from RollingStone to Business Week.
“We’re proud to have played a part in Olive’s success,” said Alfredo Muccino, Chief Creative Officer and co-founder of Liquid Agency. “Olive’s role in the music industry has been to champion the quality of the music experience, and that has included paying attention to details in the form and function of the products, as well as the sound. We’ve appreciated being part of the design teams that have developed such amazing products. Being a finalist in IDEA 2009 is a great honor, and an affirmation that our dedication to excellent design is recognized at the very highest levels.”The Opus 4 can store up to 6,000 CDs worth of music – which you can enjoy in true hi-fi quality – a far cry from the compromised sound of MP3s. Essentially, Olive is committed to offering all the convenience of digital technology without compromising any of the sound quality – therefore delivering the best possible music experience. Made with heavy gauge aluminum that eliminates vibration and operating noise, the design of the Opus 4 includes a color touch screen located in a unique angled front which allows for better access and visibility. The top of the system features a distinctive silkscreened typographic pattern made of words representing a variety of musical genres, which adds an elegant detail to the already sophisticated form factor. The Melody 2 is a player that connects to the Opus 4 wirelessly extending the music experience to any room in the house, and its design language echoes that of the Opus 4. To take a peek at the winners of the IDEA competition and the other finalists, click here.
No commentsThe Plastiki Expedition: An amazing adventure for a great cause.
During a meeting with HP we learned that they were involved with The Plastiki Expedition – and we hoped very much that we’d have an opportunity to work on the initiative. After all, this is about a nautical adventure and our name is Liquid! Lucky for us, a few weeks later we got the call, and we’ve not been able to get it off our minds since. In fact, I have been personally more excited about this project than anything else I’ve done in the last 20 years….and I’m not alone – our staff thinks this is a super cool project. It is really nice to have the whole studio inspired and energized.
What is the Plastiki Expedition?
Inspired by the famed 1947 Kon-tiki expedition, The Plastiki Expedition is a journey that will cross the Pacific to create awareness about the plastic mess that is polluting our oceans. The adventure is the brainchild of David de Rothschild, a dashing, easy-going Brit who has made it his life’s ambition to bring environmental issues to the surface, and inspire people to get involved and make a difference. David (and a small crew of adventurers, scientists and creatives) will sail from San Francisco to Sydney in a journey that will take around three months. By the way….David told us that he’s not ultimately interested in villifying plastics – instead, he’d rather inspire people to think about how we use, dispose, and reuse plastics – and develop positive solutions.
Sustainability floats this boat.
The Plastiki is a boat made out of reclaimed plastic bottles. The 60 ft. Catamaran was designed in collaboration with Architecture for Humanity and it’s made of a new material: srPET – which is essentially, ground-up plastics melted down and remade into a woven fabric, similar to carbon fiber (except that it can be melted down and re-made into the material again). The boat also features 12,500 actual soda bottles that are used for buoyancy. The masts are made out of reclaimed aluminum irrigation pipes. Even the ropes are made from recycled plastics.
Cool technology on board.
On board The Plastiki one finds lots of amazing technology: Our client – HP – is the official technology partner, and has provided all of the computer equipment that will be used for navigation, communication and scientific data collection and processing. And that’s just the start: There is a bird’s eye view camera capturing the activity on deck; a trailing turbine generating energy; solar panels harvesting the sun’s rays; wind turbines generating energy through wind power; a hydroponic garden where the crew can grow some of its food; and much more. The boat is a perfect example of the cross-section of technology and sustainability.
What’s Liquid’s role?
We’ve been asked to help evolve the current site in order to create a more dynamic and more valuable experience for site visitors. We’re exploring how to include dynamically updated content that will provide updates on all sorts of data collected during the voyage. Once the boat sets sail, visitors will be able to track its progress through Google Maps; take a look through the WebCam; check out the crew’s vital stats; and potentially experience the weather conditions through an augmented reality application. We’re also thinking about tracking energy generation though the built-in solar power units and the trailing turbine…and all sorts of other geeky stuff. Additionally, we’re exploring ways to leverage social media and allow people who are interested in the Plastiki’s adventures to chat with the crew, ask David some questions, and participate in on-going dialogues about how to make a difference.
What’s next?
We’ll share the work as soon as it gets launched…and in the case of The Plastiki, launch is meant quite literally. The boat currently set to launch from San Francisco towards the end of February 2010. We’ll keep you posted. In the meanwhile check out the site: www.theplastiki.com and follow the crew’s adventures. Also, if you want to get a closer look, you may want to visit the Plastiki Mission Control at Pier 45 in Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco (next to the Musee Mecanique) …but, most importantly, remember to do your part and think about ways to reduce the amount of plastics that you and your family use, recycle as much as you can, and do not contribute to plastic garbage!
Alfredo Muccino to speak at GlobalShop09.
Alfredo Muccino, Liquid Agency’s CCO, is scheduled to deliver a seminar about using technology to drive sales at retail.
GlobalShop is the largest annual tradeshow of its kind in the world, featuring more than 800 exhibitors of fixtures, digital signage, visual merchandising and in-store marketing products. GlobalShop’s conference program which has hosted more than 50,000 attendees features experts in store design and shopper marketing…and Alfredo Muccino, the Chief Creative Officer is amongst the speakers at this year’s conference.
As part of GlobalShop 09, Alfredo will be delivering a presentation on March 24th at The Sands Expo in Las Vegas titled “Technology, Brands and Retail: The New Landscape”. The one hour seminar will address the many different ways that brands are leveraging technology to make a bigger impact at retail. Using real case studies and current examples, Alfredo will explore how savvy brands are connecting with customers online and in-store using new technologies—ranging from social media to mobile devices. The presentation will focus on how brand managers and retailers can leverage the opportunities inherent in this new marketing landscape to create traffic, drive sales and build more loyalty from customers.
Last year Alfredo delivered a seminar on “Building Brands at Retail”, which was very well received and was attended by over 300 retail professionals, including retailers, brand marketers, creative agencies and merchandising fabricators.
Due to the difficult economic landscape, everyone expects that attendance at this year’s show will not be as high as last year’s event – however the folks that will attend will be the ones that are serious about their business. According to Alfredo, “The retail industry is being gravely affected by the economic downturn, and every brand and every retailer is interested in ways to drive sales. This seminar will help people understand how they can leverage technology to do just that – and do it cost-effectively”.
For more information visit www.globalshop.com
No commentsThe Liquid Brand Breakfast
On Tuesday, June 17 a crowd of brand marketers from a broad range of tech companies attended the Liquid Brand Breakfast featuring Tim and Ben Bajarin from Creative Strategies, who shared their insight about the future of mobile technology. The event is invitation-only and it was attended by senior branding and marketing execs from Adobe, Cadence, Nvidia, Intel, and other respected tech companies.
Tim and Ben Bajarin are from Creative Strategies – one of the most respected analyst and consulting firms in the valley.
Tim is the elder of the two and the President of the company – and he started the morning by giving us his perspective on the state of Silicon Valley. The good news is that – according to Tim – Silicon Valley is poised to remain the leading source of innovation on the globe. This is due not just to the culture that has been created in the valley, but also because of the infrastructure that has been built here over the last 25 years. And the next wave of innovation is all about mobility.
Ben is Tim’s son – although you would not be able to tell by the way he looks. He provided us with an in-depth evaluation of where mobile technology is heading – and offered the attendees with very valuable insights around the branding challenges and opportunities ahead. His presentation included some interesting examples demonstrating how companies can create brand experiences that are valuable and non-intrusive through mobile technology.
The presentation included a lively Q&A session where attendees where able to ask very specific questions about issues relevant to their companies or their interests. It was obvious by the nature of the questions that this topic was quite timely for all that attended.
To learn more about Tim and Ben Bajarin, please visit Creative Strategies.com. They are fascinating individuals who work with leading tech firms helping them stay ahead of trends.
Also, they’ve provided us with a PDF of their presentation, and you can download that right here.
To learn more about the Liquid Brand Breakfast and get on our invite list, please click on this link and we’ll be glad to let you know when we organize the next one.
As a note, I’d like to thank Ron Gonzales of Presencia Technology for being our sponsor at the Capital Club. To learn more about Presencia and the services it offers to its clients, please visit PresenciaInvestments.com
Lastly, if you have any comments about the topic of Mobile Technology and how brands can leverage it to reach their audiences in relevant ways, please respond to this blog – and we’ll be glad to keep the conversation going.
Don’t forget to check out our pictures from the event as well!
No commentsWhat happens at CES…
What happens at CES…does not stay in Las Vegas.
This year’s show attracted more than 130,000 attendees. The city of Las Vegas was inundated with techno-geeks from all over the world, showing off their new products and drooling over the latest gadgets. Getting a cab was a nightmare…and every restaurant was booked.
But all of this tells us that the technology sector is healthy – and people’s appetite for tech products is still strong.
The convention floor featured venerable tech brands alongside newcomers that are giving established brands a run for their money.
The level of activity – from deal-making to entertainment were as hectic as ever, with each company vying for attention in a very crowded environment. Standing out at CES is no easy feat.
We’re putting together our annual CES Report, with photos of booths and other branding activities that we observed while cruising the show floor. So, stay tuned…and we’ll post it on our site over the next few days.
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