The Finch Post

If you feed a finch fontina…

If you feed a Finch fontina, that will make us think about how much we like cheese. If we think about how much we like cheese, we’ll be reminded of one of life’s delectable treasures: Kraft Macaroni & Cheese. If we’re reminded of Kraft Macaroni & Cheese, we’ll picture the happy arcs that adorned our faces as children while consuming Kraft Macaroni & Cheese, and how it mirrored those golden crescents of goodness. Picturing when we were children will make us think of other things we liked to do as kids, such as watching Saturday morning cartoons. Thinking of watching Saturday morning cartoons will make us remember the commercials we used to see during those broadcasts, including the one with the girl who changes the name of Kraft Macaroni & Cheese to Kraft Cheese & Macaroni because “it’s the cheesiest.” Thinking of changing the name of Kraft Macaroni & Cheese will make us recall Kraft’s proclamation last August to divide into two companies and choose a new name for one of them.

Kraft has worked its wholesome wizardry on us for more than a century, ever since dairy dynamo James L. Kraft started a wholesale door-to-door cheese business in 1905. As a company, it’s as iconic a brand as you get. It’s no wonder, therefore, that there’s considerable interest in Kraft Foods’ recent report that they had made good on their intent to divide into two companies by announcing the name for their new subsidiary, Mondalez International.

The current buzz surrounding Mondalez is not about Kraft's decision to split into one North American grocery business and one global snack foods business, however, but the name of the new company itself. While shareholders overwhelmingly approved the name, others were not as supportive. When Kraft first announced it was considering the name, The New York Post ran a one-world headline asking “MONDEWHAAAAT?” 

Is all this noise surrounding the name really warranted? For brand naming professionals, sometimes referred to as onomasticians, name is everything. Certainly, a brand’s name offers yet another point of consumer influence—both conscious and unconscious. Names that evoke positive imagery and warm feelings will likely win greater consumer trial than ones that conjure up negative impressions.

Lexicon, the company behind such recognizable brand names as the BlackBerry, PowerBook, Dasani, and The Swiffer, has conducted exhaustive and pivotal trials on how people perceive sounds when removed from meaning. Their studies revealed that among both English and non-English speakers, “C,” “V,” and “P” sounds are regarded as expressive and happy. Hence, The Swiffer. The company picked the sounds they wanted to use first and then developed the brand name from there. 

Mondalez, on the other hand, was named through a very different convention. It was coined in an internal contest by two Kraft employees. The name is a mash-up of the words for “world” and “delicious” in Latin and several other Romance languages. It’s supposed to connote “delicious world.”

When asked to comment on the name, Allen P. Adamson, managing director at Landor Associates, avoided expressing an opinion. Instead he congratulated Kraft on how swiftly they were able to find a name and deal with all of the associated trademark and legal challenges such things face these days.

Unlike Landor, we Finches don’t ever shy away from sharing our opinion on current branding discussions. The fact of the matter is, for Kraft’s purpose, Mondalez is a perfectly serviceable name. As a consumer brand, we might take a different stand, but Mondalez was never intended to be that. The name itself will be largely invisible to most consumers.

So what will really change for the consumer? On the packages of well-known snack food brands such as Oreo, Cadbury, Trident Gum, Tang, and Ritz Crackers, the manufactured and distributed by credit will read (in small print) “Mondalez International Incorporated” instead of “Kraft Foods Incorporated.” Despite the nice ring “Mondalez Macaroni & Cheese, Please” has, grocery brands such as Philadelphia Cream Cheese, Velveeta, Oscar Mayer, and yes, Kraft Macaroni & Cheese will remain under the Kraft Foods label.

Bottom line: Consumer brand names are crucially important as they are largely the first point of influence companies have with potential customers. Company names for businesses with many well-known branded products on the other hand, while still significant, are not the bee’s cheese...er, knees.

Brewing Brand Unity

Sports fans speak stats. Ultra-devout Trekkies (and the more refined “Trekkers”) talk Klingon. Spaniards sing in Spanish.

Shared language, regardless of the group to which you belong, is a pivotal ingredient in community-building. From social media “tweets” instead of posts, to “super sizing” McDonalds, brands have long capitalized on the allegiance-inspiring power of collective vernacular.

One of the best examples of this can be found in the world of coffee consumption. Although Starbuck’s original intent might not have been to create a consumer sub-culture, that’s exactly what the coffee bean baron did in 1971 when it introduced short (8oz) and tall (12oz) cup sizes to the world. Now with even more sizes and combinations from which to choose, Starbuck’s devotees can celebrate their caffeinated vernacular when ordering their skinny half-foam half-soy decaf vanilla lattes—their equivalent of a secret handshake.

As smart a strategy as shared language is for building a consumer fan base, however, it does provide spectacular comedic source material for those on the outside, as this short clip shows. Enjoy!

 

Gremlins in the Gears?

If the 1984 blockbuster Gremlins taught us one thing, it’s that mischievous doppelgängers sprouting up all over the place can be a very bad thing. Unfortunately, many businesses are also being tormented by corporate clones. Similar business environments give rise to look-alikes, resulting in interchangeable products and companies.

Take office supply stores for example. You generally have three major chains competing with one another: Staples, Office Depot, and OfficeMax. Do consumers really see any difference between those three chains? Perhaps marginal ones, but that’s hardly something after which to model yourself. Brand loyalty doesn’t exist. What will drive consumers to these stores will be things like location (e.g., Staples is around the corner from me while Office Depot is several blocks away) or sales (e.g., I have a coupon to OfficeMax so I’ll go there today).

The problem with this approach is that it makes you nonessential. If you ceased to exist, no one would feel much of a void. That’s why companies that compete in comparable environments and thus have developed similar traits MUST aggressively differentiate themselves from the rest of the pack. Branding is much more than logos and slogans. It’s a research-fueled, strategic system of not only distinguishing yourself from your competitors, but enhancing your relevance to and emotional impact on consumers. 

So don’t market yourself like a Mogwai. Cute as he may be, no brand should try to emulate Gizmo. Stand apart from the competition. Build your brand through sound strategy and you’ll become an essential part of your customers’ lives.

Brand Ho!

We all know that hundreds of millions of years ago, we crawled out of the prehistoric muck to walk on land. Less well known is the fact that at one stage in their evolution, whales did so as well (although, in their case, they probably waddled like sea lions and, like sea lions, almost certainly never wandered too far from the water). Eventually they returned permanently to the ocean and lost their land limbs.

The question is why on earth are we telling you about whale evolution in a branding blog? The answer is simple. Evolution, whether in nature or in branding, doesn’t always follow a straight line, but sometimes reverses course.

Successful brands are those that keep pace with their intended consumers so that they remain relevant. What’s old (undesirable) today can become old school (trendy) tomorrow.  In the blink of an eye your “progressive” approach may no longer resonate, while tactics that you thought ran out of steam long ago suddenly receive new surges of life. That’s why you should constantly test and re-test your assumptions.

Take BlackBerry for example. With the increasing popularity of consumer-focused Android and iOS devices, the brand shifted their focus away from corporate customers and attempted to compete in the consumer-oriented market. In late March, Research in Motion (RIM), the maker of BlackBerry, announced that the brand would return to its roots, focusing solely on products that can be used productively in and out of the workplace to help boost workflow. “We can’t do everything ourselves, but we can do what we’re good at,” Thorsten Hein, CEO of RIM said in explanation.

Business and nature are both unpredictable, but survival in either depends on how swiftly one can adapt…and adapt back if research shows it’s necessary.

Brand Durability

How One Brand Danced its Way Back into Our Hearts

What’s old is new again! Or so it seems. Everywhere one turns, one’s bound to encounter pop culture reincarnations. The movie 21 Jump Street released March 16, 2012 was adapted from the 1987-1991 television series of the same name. 50’s fashion trends like full skirts and bustier dresses have been making a comeback, made popular by celebrities such as Katy Perry. Instagram, which we wrote about last week, gained popularity as a photo sharing site because it offered fun filters such as 1977—one designed to age the image to make it look like it came from the seventies. Even restaurants like our client, Seafood Shanty, which has just been rebranded and relaunched after a 20 year hiatus, show the growing trend to revive gone but not forgotten brands.

In the wake of Dick Clark’s death, there has been renewed interest in American Bandstand, which debuted in Philadelphia in 1952 simply as Bandstand. One show that was heavily influenced and inspired by American Bandstand also was a Philadelphia production—Dancin’ On Air.

On March 31, 2012, Dancin’ On Air made a comeback in Philadelphia—21 years after its last broadcast in 1987.

We asked Gary Schafkopf, one of the Executive Producers, and Anita Forman, former regular dancer on the original series and now current Assistant Producer, about the enduring power of the show’s brand. Here’s what they had to say:

 

FB: What drew you to this project, resurrecting Dancin’ On Air?

GS: I remembered coming home from school and watching the original Dancin' On Air. The show was so popular with my generation that the opportunity to work side by side with the legendary original producer, Michael Nise, and bring it back with a new generation was one that I could not resist.

AF: How could I not?  Back in the 80’s, being on Dancin’ On Air was the time of my life! How many people get a chance to return to the best part of their past? Plus, my Dancin’ On Air family drew me in! Mike Nise, our TV Dad, is a wonderful man.  He still refers to us—the original dancers from the 80's show, as "his kids" even though many of us are older now than he was back then. You should see the looks on peoples’ faces when a bunch of us former "regulars" (of all races) go out to dinner with Mike and we all call him “Dad!” It’s just a pleasure to work with him. It was a no brainer. Plus, I always believed in the show, one that had and has only good things to offer to youth.

 

FB: What do you feel accounts for the brand’s longevity?

GS: Dancin’ On Air was on for approximately ten years. Later, when it went national, it was renamed Dance Party USA. Combined, both shows aired over 3,000 episodes and created strong viewing habits with a huge audience. Its basic premise is watching interesting characters interact with each other. Eventually these characters connect with the home viewer. People loved that connection and it was easy to gain the support to bring the show back.

AF: Kids love music and love to dance. They always will. No matter what else in the world changes, that will always remain the same. The show offered a chance for regular kids of all sizes, races, and dance ability to be on TV—it was a big draw. It was about regular kids watching regular kids, getting to know our dancers, seeing what they wear, and who’s dancing with whom week to week. It also offered our viewers and fans of the show a chance to appear on the show themselves. And, of course, viewers were drawn to our special guests.

 

FB: Both of you spoke about the show’s ability to connect with its demographic. That it not only spoke to them, but was about them—“regular kids watching regular kids.” Is that the secret? Is there a recipe for imbuing a brand with consumer resonance? Why is one brand forgotten while another remains forever alive for us?

GS: Quality! If the brand has quality, whether it's a food item or a TV show, people will not forget it and keep it alive.

AF: The recipe? Giving the fans what they want time and time again, but most importantly, relating to the audience. We have had parents of kids that are on the NEW DANCIN’ ON AIR actually cry tears of joy while they tell us how happy they are that the show is back and their children will get to experience it. Their stories always start out the same way: “My friends and I used to rush home from school every day to see DANCIN’ ON AIR, I’m so glad you brought it back. Kids today really need a show like Dancin' On Air!"

 

“Relating to the audience” and having them “cry tears of joy.” In our opinion, the reason DANCIN’ ON AIR has made a comeback—the reason there was even a demand for it in the first place—isn’t a matter of fancy marketing footwork. Rather, among its viewers, the brand has struck the right chord between head and heart—and that’s the winning formula for any successful brand, regardless of industry.