Take the case of the strapline:

It’s a cool and composed challenge. Unfortunately, it doesn’t really say anything to you.

But what if you put a powerful symbol just above it. Read the rest of this entry…

Is it just me or does Starbucks looks like it’s in real, big trouble?

Photo by Carbon NYC

There have been a lot of buzz and theories over the past two years how Starbucks is in really big trouble. Persistent Starbucks doomsday articles like, “Starbucks to close 300 more stores and lay-off 6700 workers,” have been flooding the news.

Not seeing the actual closing of stores and mass layoffs, I’ve always wondered, are any of these true?

To my surprise, my speculations were confirmed this year with successive panic moves that the guys at Starbucks have been doing. Here they are:

1. 15th Avenue Coffee and Tea

Last July, Starbucks announced their opening of a non-Starbucks coffee shop owned by them. It’s basically a Starbucks without the pretentious, corporate atmosphere—laptops, business suits and caffeine-dependent office men—that Starbucks is now known for. Here are the differences with their new 15th Avenue Coffee and Tea (from Perez-fox):

Coffee served at 15th Ave. Coffee & Tea is roasted in small batches and brewed within days of roasting. (Coffee served at Starbucks is roasted in mega-huge industrial machines and could be months before it is brewed in-store.)

Espresso served at 15th Ave. Coffee & Tea is drawn from a classic La Marzocco machine and baristas will add latte art flair to drinks. (Starbucks uses automated espresso machines and baristas are too busy to add latte art touches to espresso drinks.)

Passion for coffee oozes at 15th Ave. Coffee & Tea. Limited-edition roasts are served through single-serving low-tech brewers (pour-over, press pots) or a high-tech brewer (Clover). (Starbucks uses large-scale brewers to mass brew gallons at a time.)

Pastries served at 15th Ave. Coffee & Tea are from a local bakery. Baked daily and delivered daily. (Starbucks sells lots of “thaw and serve” pastries baked in far-off places that are then frozen, packed, and shipped to stores for serving days later.)

Ambiance at 15th Ave. Coffee & Tea will be warm, welcoming, eclectic, and subtle. (Ambiance at nearly every Starbucks is uniformly clean, cold, and sterile.)

An interesting tidbit is how Starbucks wanted to reinforce their “neighborhood coffeehouse” experience with the domain, www.streetlevelcoffee.com. Also noteworthy is the fact that the website itself looks homemade—it looks as if it was done by a teenager who knew how to do a little html.

I thought it was a pretty good idea branding-wise, but some don’t.

2. Starbucks Ice Cream

I thought they’d end sounding their alarms with 15th Avenue, but they went through with another brand extension—Starbucks Ice Cream!

Again, this isn’t a totally bad idea for me. Since, their iced products aren’t so far from Ice Cream and it’s not difficult to imagine their coffee flavors translated from Ventis to pints, it’ll be quite easy to convert their coffee fans to Ice Cream too.

Considering the state of their brand, I don’t mind this product extension.

3. Via, Instant Coffee!

Just a few weeks ago, Starbucks now announced the release of their instant coffee line. Doesn’t sound too bad, right?

It was okay until Laura Ries blogged about Starbucks and showed this image of their brand promise:

It's as good as the original!

With this message, what they’re visibly telling people is: “Our instant coffee tastes as good as our original Brewed Coffee.” But in the minds of the consumers, this could potentially translate to, “We’ve been ripping you off all this time! We’re frauds!”

To further promote this claim, they held taste tests that pitted the instant coffee against the original to prove that people won’t be able to tell the difference. Insane. They will be definitely hurting their coffeehouses if they’re gonna make this instant coffee big.

A Counter-argument

As much as I want to tell them how stupid they are, they aren’t. Stupid people can’t make a coffee chain grow to that scale. So, I’ve wondered if there’s some sort of catch, or an ingenius strategy hiding behind this seemingly obvious death trap.

One strong argument from a commenter in Ries’ blog is that it’s just like how the instant coffee isn’t necessarily that cheap compared to their brewed. There is a chance that this may actually maximize profit by possibly losing some coffeehouse customers and converting them to instant coffee addicts who will buy even more.

Another one would be that Starbucks could still be riding on the “coffeehouse experience” it spearheaded and popularized. Because the experience of drinking coffee at home is still different than actually staying in Starbucks and sipping it in that specific atmosphere, instant coffee wouldn’t necessarily be killing brewed coffee.

What would Starbucks do?

It’s funny to think how hundreds of books were published to show how great Starbucks is as they changed the way people drink coffee. Millions of businesses before always looked to Starbucks as a model to how you build a good brand. The beginnings of Starbucks is still one of the best case studies for brand experience.

Ironically today, the world is watching them fall apart.

So please, Starbucks, show us what you got and give us another case study to talk about and remember for the rest of our coffee-drinking lives.

As I’ve said in my previous controversial blog post, Team Manila  has made itself known as the design company that makes nationalistic shirts that sell like fishballs.

Then followed a plethora of nationalistic shirts that went viral crazy. You’ve seen hundreds of Multiply stores with national shirts. You’ve seen Collezione’s My Pilipinas shirts with the printed Philippine map ala Lacoste. And today, I saw a friend of mine, Mark Gosingtian, do a Philippine statement shirt in response to the disaster that struck our country.

As I am writing this message, the shirt has recorded 1621 notes. That’s a huge, huge number considering how relatively small the Filipino blogging community is. (In the mean time, check out his blog and order a shirt! )

The Collezione My Pilipinas Shirt

Mark's Hero Shirt. From top to bottom: Saab Magalona, Tricia Gosingtian, Mark Gosingtian

But the question I want to pose today is not a question of morality but that of productivity. Are these shirt campaigns going somewhere or are they all in vain?

Tell it with some T-shirts

We don’t need to be rocket scientists to know that we want to say something when we wear something.

There are of course, subconscious factors affecting the way we clothe ourselves, and I will not talk about these because I’m not an expert in that field. But what I want to talk about is the obvious. I want to point out the conscious and deliberate part of clothing.

Church people have Jesus dangling all over their bodies. Whores have their nipples almost slipping out of their shirts. Environmentalists will try their best to have trees, panda bears and the recycle symbol printed on their shirts. Rockstars will have a skull, guitar and some demons somewhere hidden.

The Obvious Message

These nationalistic shirts are living testimonies that we have a nation hungry for a Philippine brand. We have millions waiting for a flaming horseshoe that will burn the words, “Pinoy ako,” to their bare butts.

We don’t want to belong to a group of random people living together and screwing each other. We want a nation and we want to be damn proud of it.

The Problem

I had a crush on a blockmate before. She had a very nice body, dressed herself extremely well with noticeable signature clothing and looked like a princess. When I approached her, all of it changed. If you’re thinking she had a rotten attitude, that’s not it. My problem was that she had a rotten smell. (Mmm. I can still remember the odour…)

The shirts are good as they’re hot and reaching thousands, but at the same time, they’re only making us look good without fixing what’s inside. Although we’re gaining a sense of nationalism from them, to what end does this nationalism lead to when our very core as a nation is ambiguous?

What use is nationalism when we don’t have a nation?

The Challenge

Shirts and other nationalistic movements have been successful in creating a desire to have a nation. They’ve been extremely successful in increasing awareness that we, as a country, have to have our own brand. That’s a good thing.

But first, we have to take a step back and look deep into our nation and ask, “What does it truly mean to be a Filipino? What will make us proud to be Filipinos? What do we want to be known for in the global community?”

Then take a step ahead and challenge ourselves, ‘How do we translate the desire these T-shirts have created to real, productive action?”

You’ve probably been loitering around facebook and probably stumbled upon this disturbing image:

Thanks a lot Manny!

As many you guys have said, while so many people are suffering from Ondoy, Villar had the right mind to proclaim himself a savior of the typhoon victims by shamelessly plastering his name over a styro meal.

Some argue that it could’ve been an enemy of Villar who did this—and I believe that’s possible. But what’s really, really interesting is that people are choosing to believe that he did it.

Why? Read the rest of this entry…

Let me start with a funny, true story.

As you probably know, we moved into our new studio two weeks ago. To get to know my new neighborhood, I walked around the place and randomly talked to people asking them questions of all sorts. So, I met Rose, three different Jun’s, Mike and an unnamed security guard.

After I introduced myself, I asked for his name. His reply, “Borromeo.” Of course, that name was stitched to a patch over his uniform, which indicated that it was his surname. So, I asked again politely and jokingly for his real name.

He gave me this uneasy and hesitant face. I didn’t know what to expect.

After perhaps what seemed to be an hour of uneasy silence, he finally let go and revealed his darkest secret.

“I’m Birdie.”

In itself, Birdie’s already an awful, shameful name you could give your son. It gets even worse in his context.

Being a security guard, a protector of people, a harbinger of justice and a man of power, the name Birdie’s not gonna be easy for him. “Oh, Birdie, save me!” just doesn’t sound right.

The sad part here is that it’s not his fault.

On the other side, meet Sony Ericsson’s upcoming sexy phone, the Kiki. (If you didn’t laugh that means you’re not from the Philippines. Here’s what kiki means.)

If Sony Ericsson doesn’t plan to market this phone here in our country, then no problem. If they do however, like Birdie being a security guard, it’s not gonna be easy for them to do so.

“Can I text using your Kiki?”

“That’s a really cool Kiki you got there.”

“Oh, your Kiki’s so shiny and sexy. Can I touch it?”

Naming Brands isn’t as easy as it seems. It has to be researched and tested if it pronounces well. It has to reproduce well visually. It has to be associated with things you want to be associated with. Most importantly, it has to be taken in context.

What’s funny though is that Birdie and Kiki mesh well together.

This is a big, big mistake by United Airlines.

They broke a few guitars and in return, got a satirical music video with more than five million views (and counting) spreading across the world relaying to people of all sorts how uncaring their employees are and how much their service sucks. As hilarious as the video is, it’s definitely gonna do some serious damage.

They’ve probably been treating customers like this for a while. This time, it’s just too unfortunate that they messed with the wrong people.

Like many others in my age who didn’t grow up with his music, I didn’t care much about Michael Jackson. That is, until he died.

For the past few weeks, his performances have been literally all over the place. And I, seeing how many die-hard worshippers gather infront of those ubiquitous projector screens with blaring speakers of “Man in the Mirror,” and repeated fantastic performances of his infamous moonwalk, suddenly realized that I love his music.

This is not because it’s pleasant to my ears. But after seeing communities, tribes, nations and practically the whole world follow this man to his grave, I saw a glimpse of the meaning of Michael Jackson.

Haven’t you experienced liking a song not because of how it sounds, but what it meant to you?

Haven’t you gone to a place not because it’s beautiful, but because of the meaning of the memories you’ve had with it?

The strongest brands are those where people derive meaning from. When a product suddenly develops a motivational and emotional attachment, it ceases to be one—it metamorphosizes into a brand.

Who's it gonna be?

Canadian actor Ryan Reynolds is confirmed to play two, distinct superhero roles—Deadpool and Green Lantern. (EDIT: Kevin points out that Green Lantern will be his third comic book role.)

Both movies are slated to be released 2-4 years down the road with the booming hearththrob playing both superhero roles. I am not aware of all the specific details, but the first thought that came into my mind was, how are they gonna pull this off?

In the superhero movie industry, actor-hero associations are extremely powerful. Christian Bale is Batman. Tobey Maguire is Spiderman. Robert Downey Jr. is Ironman. Hugh Jackman is Wolverine. You can’t just simply detach these guys from their costumes and place them in another. Read the rest of this entry…

If you’ve tried Peking Duck before, you know how the routine goes. Dressed to do the perfect job, the chef comes out of the kitchen doors gracefully rolling the signature cart. On it are four plates—the sauce, fillings, wrappers and the duck temptingly hidden under a flattering, shiny plate cover.

Silence looms over the table. All eyes are fixated on the magical carrier of the glorious dish. The cart stops and the drum roll begins. You and your salivating friends see the perfectly roasted skin evenly glazed with oil. Holding a sharp knife and with extreme precision, the masterful hands of the chef divide the dish into convenient pieces. The steaming wrappers cover the duck and it is finally served.

You dig in and take a bite out of heaven. (But after three or four pieces, you feel bloated and nauseated.)

Now, let me get to the point!

It has become Chinese tradition to serve the duck that way; but the reason it has been solidified as a time-tested tradition is hinging not (entirely) on the taste of the dish itself, but the intricate process of carving and serving.

Peking duck is loved by many because it accomplishes many things that don’t directly connect to the taste of the dish itself. First, ordering it gives the customer a (subconscious) sense of pride as the expensive dish is being paraded around the whole restaurant for everyone to see. Second, others who do see it become envious and eventually orders it too the next time they get their hands on the menu. Third, the anticipation created by having to actually observe the lengthy spectacle of slicing simply makes us hungrier, and the duck more desirable. It turns the duck into some sort of reward rather than just another dish to be chomped off the table.

Perhaps the next time we’re trying to sell something, innovating on the experience of trying out the product rather than the product itself may be the elusive answer to our problems.

As they always say, “Sell the sizzle, not the steak.” or in this case, “Sell the really cool, mouth-watering process of slicing and serving the duck, not the duck.”

Due to its popularity, an article entitled “The 10 Most Confusing Things in Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” made it to the front page of Yahoo!

If you’ve watched the movie, you’ll agree with most of what that article is saying. The critics over at Rotten Tomatoes rated it an embarassing 20/100. On my side, I thought it was a brainless, mechanical punchfest that resembled a Manny Pacquiao match more than a movie. The point I’m getting at is basically that the movie had tons of serious shortcomings.

Fortunately for Michael Bay and friends, the numbers are saying otherwise. Transformers 2 has already amassed $200 million in its first week, an amount most movies never even reach in their entire screenings. It’s pretty much a global success.

There are of course a lot of factors coming into play, but my personal top 3 reasons for their success are as follows:

1.  Going after the Right People

They had hundreds in their team and I don’t think they’re all dumb enough to overlook the fact that critics are going to hate their movie. It was expected. Instead of trying to please everyone, they focused all their energy in impressing their bread & butter—geeks, kids and fanboys. (Of course, the market is larger than this one, but the bulk of it fall under the three.)

2. Positive Focus

Again, they were aware that they had shortcomings. I’m sure some random movie critic in their team at least, pointed out to them that the story sucked or it had a lot of loopholes; but who cares? If all these movie-makers focused on fixing these inconsistencies, then there’d be no creativity or imagination. It wouldn’t be too fun if all the main characters died with a gunshot. Think Jack Bauer or Chuck Norris.

They did well by focusing on their assets (cool transforming robots, and Megan Fox…but mostly Megan Fox) and delivering what’s necessary.

3. Protecting the Brand

Transformers is all about…Transforming Robots, so they perfected it. With a film like that, people won’t really remember much of the story, but they will definitely remember the trademark futuristic transforming sound, the detailed morphing of the metal and the bangs and booms of the robotic bodies.

Because they decided to focus on protecting their brand, none of their mistakes will stop the geeks of the world from buying their ridiculously-priced action figures. More importantly, even the unimpressive acting will not stop the boys from googling “Megan Fox Transformers.”

Lesson learned: big shortcomings don’t necessarily end up in big failures.