Last summer I got on a train leaving Stockholm for Gothenburg. Together with freelancing project manager, planner and colleague Caroline Karlström I had a meeting set up with diving brand Poseidon. This was the start of a project where I truly had the opportunity to work with all aspects of branding and creative communication.
A dream project.
Ingvar Elfström, the founder of Poseidon back in 1958.
The Background
Back in 1958 this brand was founded by a young Swedish diver, Ingvar Elfström. Since then the brand has become famous for unique, different and great products. However over the last couple of years they’ve lost speed when it comes to innovation and marketing initiatives.
But then something happened. The company was bought by a small group of investors three years back. Headed by visionaire Kurt Sjöblom they set out on a journey – to develop the first ever automated rebreather for recreational divers.
This was why we were there. About a year from launch Kurt and his team felt they needed to do something about the brand. And after a successful meeting that actually started with me diving [click to continue…]
While spending some time reading up on what the ‘fine art’ video photographer Vincent Lafore was up to I ran into a campaign by Canon placed on the video site Vimeo.
The concept called ‘The Story Beyond The Still’ is a perfect example on how brands could look into creating digital events rather than necessarily trying to pull traffic to their own sites.
Swedish brands as well as most brands seem preoccupied with trying to figure out how to get traffic to their campaign (often built in flash…) and brand sites. This is of course the number one strategy for any brand with an online business. But so far most brands do not have their business online so brand building and advertising is still what it’s [click to continue…]
Those are the words said by Phil Schiller, Senior Vice President World Wide Product Marketing over at Apple when speaking about the new Apple iPad. It pretty much sums up what I thing after having followed the keynote given by Steve Jobs today.
The new iPad is a game-changer and I need one now! (you too!)
Those are the words the packaging of your product should whisper over and over and over again. The customers immediate response should of course be – I want to live the rest of my life with you no matter if it will make me go bankrupt!
This is exactly what Soon Mo Kang’s Tea Bag packaging does. In fact I think once you’ve taken this little beauty home the first person that comes for a cup of tea will steal it. Now there’s a brief for ya – “My product should be so well designed so my customers have people stealing it from them”
On top of the sheer beauty of it it also keeps your tea bag from sinking to the bottom of your cup. Also what we should expect from products in the future – everything communicates. I love it.
I‘ve spent some time this evening browsing my favorite packaging site The Dieline. That’s when I suddenly realized I should blog about packaging today.
When I speak about creativity and innovation and how it must be a part of every interaction (especially packaging) you have with your customers one of the most common replies I get is: “How can I make use of what you say in my business. We don’t have a sexy product”. Wrong question!
Today no one, no matter what kind of product you market, can overlook the fact that your customers lead a stressed life. People want to be entertained. We want drama. We want smiles. We want to feel. Everything is about entertainment and drama! Brand owners – inject emotion into your products or eject yourselves from your position!
The one question you should ask yourselves when it comes to packaging is: “Does my packaging make people smile”
Here are 10 brands that obviously have understood that you can make something out of anything.
1. Rellana Wool – Making Yarn Come Alive
This wonderful wool packaging concept called Wolly Heads was made by Ogilvy Frankfurt- It’s one of my absolute favorites. They’ve turned something very ordinary into something [click to continue…]
It’s not all about creating WOW-effects. You’ve gotta deliver some kind of value too. And this must be one of the better way can you deliver both of those qualities in a physical space.
Imagine what this would do for Swedish tourism if it was installed in any airport in the world showcasing our beautiful country. Imagine what it would do for a fashion brand if installed at the next fashion show letting people explore the behind the scenes, talk to the designers etc etc. Imagine what it would do for any brand if placed at any coming business fair. Get this one geared up with some online community functionality and you’ll have people peeing their pants!
Today I’m browsing for mood images. My search has led me to tons of newspaper blogs. Then suddenly as I noticed this comic strip below my heart stop for a brief second.
This piece of communication is so simple yet so strong. If this would have a been an ad that ended with ‘Send Money to The Earthquake Victims in China’ I’d have my wallet turned upside down.
I can’t think of a better, stronger and more emotional way to portrait this story. Thank you Visual Journalism for bringing it too me!
People ask me from time to time why I’m a blogger. I tell them I’m not. What I am is a junkie for inspiration and reflection. A quite passionate one too.
For me this blog is the ultimate tool to log things that shape my life. Things, thoughts, people, objects and so on. I don’t really care what people think about it. The most important thing is what I think about it. My personal space so to say…only more public that most personal spaces.
The time it takes to write something and then press that publish button is just enough to filter the bad stuff away and let the good shit shine.
This video showing a huge flock of birds is exactly one of those things. I just have to put it down in writing. I spotted it this morning on SwissMiss. Birds have been doing this for about 200 million years and they still put on a show no human being can ever top. I’ve said it before but it’s worth repeating – Nature is the ultimate source of inspiration!
ps. In case you’ve missed the speech by Janine Benyus over at TED.com on Natures Designs you should head over there asap and get inspired!
If you’re into marketing you should really have a look at this new iPhone app from Nike. It really puts focus on what’s going on in the world. Old school people keep talking about how the mobile will advertise the store when you pass it. New school don’t give a shit about the store.
This new [...]
The gaming industry is conquering one lifestyle segment after another. DJ Hero is the latest and coolest in a long line of musical games such as Guitar Hero and Rock Band. DJ Hero let’s you rock the party using old style turntables featuring the gaming controls.
In a smart move the company behind the game, Activision, [...]
Today Miss Swiss miss made me notice this wonderful initiative from Volkswagen called ‘The Fun Theory’. It’s one of the more refreshing campaigns I’ve seen coming out of Sweden in the last 10 years. This is good shit and to me it’s spot on brand! Or what do you think?
Last week rumors started to surface regarding a new tablet about to be launched by Microsoft. The name was Courier and the rumor was a video containing a demonstration of the user interface. At first I thought it was more of an interface bonanza than an actual usable product.
But today I ran into yet another [...]
ronnestam.com was voted Sweden’s first blog on Innovation, future trends and digital communication. It’s written by Johan Ronnestam. He's widely regarded as one of Sweden’s leading speakers and authorities in the field of modern creative and conceptual thinking and skill of innovating brands and their communication.
