Getting into the homes when consumers are there is somewhat predictable behavior, but what they are going to be doing while they are home is another matter. Entertainment is a large part of any culture, and Blockbuster can assume a top-of-mind strategy to effectively get consumers to consider at-home entertainment. The advertising strategy pushes delivery possibilities of the product, but also the overall idea that you can get “movies today.” Magazines as a media can be used creatively by not using a single message once, but multiple times in an issue. This can get a little expensive, but it’ll last a while- most people don’t discard their magazines immediately, or the pass them along to others to look at. But, if you consistently read a certain message and see a certain character pushing ideas, than the probability of consumers to develop a compartment for that message and image is much higher. If the image and the message are consistent and relevant than it simply makes more sense.

If you were driving down the road and you saw this bus, chances are you would immediately notice its unique color scheme. Next, and quickly you may also start trying to figure out what is was for, so out of place, and being playing an association game with yourself. That’ exactly what you want to do with branding and company image. Add a couple more elements of the brand platform to the bus, some text a logo, our mascot, and you just created a mobile billboard that many people will see and remember. Remember that Wiener Mobile? I have always had a secret goal to ride inside of that thing, and I could never forget it- especially the first time I saw it driving down the Columbia Basin in Oregon. It was beautiful. But, you can see how effective color and image can be when developing retrieval cues for consumers at any given time.

What I like to do when developing a brand is to get all the components of the platform together on a document that serves as a reference for other designers, and executives/directors that like to be involved in the process of brand management- including advertising and promotions. It’s a great reference for discussion about branding and focuses the image that any company wishes to portray. What you want to consider are the elements that a recognizeable brand consists of.

Color        Images and Photos       Typography Instructions        Copywriting        Design        Compelling Idea

Once you come to a decision about what all the pieces are then the fun begins with branding- the implementation. Everything that the company does that needs to communicate its relevant offering and objectives should revolve around the brands image. A good metaphor for this can be the way our solar system of variable planets revolve around the sun. At the certain of your company would be the brand, and the planets would be functions of the business that reflect the light and gravity that the brand offers. Anything from packaging to internal communications, advertising and media selections, or consumer decisions and purchase behaviors. There are many more applications for the brand, and the influences on the product are many. My suggestion is to decide how to differentiate and identify yourself, create a brand platform that can be applied to any facet of business (both internal and eternal), and make sure that it has the ability to stay relevant- and, if the future looks to change drastically, make sure that the brand considers its adaptive capabilities and innovative attributes to change with the times.