Pantone, Inc. is best known as the source of industry-standard references for color. The brand primarily targets design professionals. It is fair to say that Pantone revolutionized the graphic arts industry by allowing designers and printers to categorize and replicate color, accurately, anywhere in the world, by referring to uniform color palettes.

Recently, though, Pantone has begun to branch out, addressing a new audience: consumers. Pantone Universe is a new, multifaceted sub-brand that makes Pantone color the centerpiece of everything it does, from the Pantone Universe magazine to a line of themed products ranging from eyewear and jewelry to kitchen gadgets and more.

In recent years, corporate brands in financial services businesses, both retail-facing and B2B, have become a major factor in the attraction and retention of clients, talent, partners and capital. In this industry it has not always been so, but in today’s crowded, highly competitive global marketplace, a strong brand can be a major source of advantage. Corporate brand salience has become particularly important in service industries, where economic value is delivered through intangibles and offerings are often seen as interchangeable.

Why have corporate brands come to matter so much in financial services? Much of the answer to this question lies in the growing understanding among corporate executives of what brands actually are and how they add value.

Garnering attention in the media recently is the logo created for the Nuclear Security Summit, hosted by President Obama in Washington, DC last week. A theory popularized by a FOX News segment, but also running rampant across various newspapers and blogs, claims that the logo echoes the Islamic crescent moon and star symbol.

We found it interesting that Harvard Business School published an article this week touting the benefits of integrating financial and non-financial (social responsibility and sustainability) information into one corporate report, a method referred to as One Report. This idea echoes BrandLogic’s method of 360 Degree Reporting, which our president Hampton Bridwell wrote about previously in this 2007 article.

The days when the biggest rivalries among colleges and universities were fought on the gridiron and in the gymnasium are gone. Today, the main clashes take place within the admissions arena, where schools are locked in intense competition for the best and brightest students.

Schools employ many strategies to win these battles, but none are more effective, especially over the long term, than projecting the right image, or brand identity, to prospective students and their families, as well as faculty, academic journals, high school counselors, donors, alumni, government officials and other important audiences. Properly conceived and communicated, an identity can be self-perpetuating by bringing to the school the students, faculty, grants, corporate sponsors, and alumni giving needed for the institution to achieve and expand upon its most ambitious goals.

This is part three of an ongoing series.
The myth behind global brands: why local culture still matters

What we’re hearing: You can have a global brand, but you need to make sure you localize it. Many companies are able to take a brand campaign or tagline and run with it worldwide; however, they find that the same creative or messaging is not always effectual or appropriate in every country.

Innovation is perhaps the most overused word in B2B marketing. Whether it’s information technology, medical devices, industrial equipment or professional services, we find brand-builders returning over and over again to innovation as the core promise that will set their company or product apart from the rest of the pack.

But does being perceived as an innovator truly drive brand preference and ultimately purchase decisions? In this article, we focus on what we’ve discovered about the meaning and relevance of innovation to B2B buyers and how marketers can infuse these learnings into their brand-building efforts.

A March 8 article in Advertising Age featured a quote from Denis Riney, EVP Marketing at BrandLogic, on Toyota’s tarnished brand following the automaker’s recent product recall due to faulty braking mechanisms.

In our 3^rd episode of BAMcast, we discuss tone of voice, how to best manage it and its importance to a seamless brand identity. You can listen here or subscribe via iTunes. If you have questions, comments or ideas for an upcoming show, leave a comment here or send us feedback to bamcast@brandlogic.com

Podcast: Download (31.9MB)

This is part three of an ongoing series.
Employees say: involve me more, train me less

What we’re hearing: Involving employees, through online communities, in the process of creating, managing and building brands is becoming standard practice among leading-edge marketers (and their compatriots in the human resources function).