As a brand development agency, we handle a lot of visual identity projects for our partners—both consumer-facing and B2B. Those projects are often the first tangible deliverable of a well-rounded branding campaign. As a designer, I love taking on that responsibility, especially the work that goes into crafting a logo—that […]
We regularly say that a company’s website, designed and developed correctly, is more than a marketing tool; rather, it’s a brand asset that benefits all marcomm efforts and increases profitability for years to come. Typically, we develop websites as a result of or in tandem with a brand identity project (logo, […]
(This is part of a series of ongoing posts we’re calling Brandcrumbs, which are bits and pieces of branding advice left over from our regular conversations about real-world brand positioning challenges.) Like many in the branding and marketing world, we use the word “culture” a lot. We say things like “a […]
(This is the first in a series of ongoing posts we’re calling Brandcrumbs, which are bits and pieces of branding advice left over from our regular conversations about real-world brand positioning challenges.) I do not like “it is what it is.” Because “it is what it is” means nothing. Because it […]
In spare moments, I’ve been reading Tom Nealon’s 15-blog-post-long history of condiments, a frantic and learned tour through more than two thousand years of vinegars, sauces, dressings, and spices. It’s tremendously informative and entertaining—Nealon studies rare cookbooks, and consequently possesses a massive repertoire of weird food facts and history. Perhaps […]
For years now, we’ve been discussing the implications of transparency with our partners and on our blog. So we’re incredibly excited to be partnering with the Food Leaders Summit April 27-29 in Chicago. We’ll be in Booth 130, so we hope you’ll say hello while you’re there. If you’re registering […]
A recent essay in the food magazine Lucky Peach points to one of the reasons that food marketing can be uniquely challenging: the hurdle of our deep-seated human tendency to give the word “food” a very specific definition, which we then endow with incredible emotional meaning. That’s a little abstract, […]
New technology has enabled food companies to create aggressive and successful customer loyalty programs, from the grocery programs we’re all familiar with to the new Starbucks mobile app, which facilitates brand loyalty through convenience. The value of loyalty to food companies is obvious: loyal customers equal consistent sales. A recent […]
I was talking with a friend about a few lifestyle changes that I planned to make in light of the New Year. He said to me, “If you don’t make changes, you can expect more of the same.” While it sounded like great advice at the moment, something about it […]
The Rise of the Bubbles When the convenience store a convenient two-block walk from my house opens a refrigerator slot for that old stalwart LaCroix, then we’ll know that flavored sparkling waters have graduated from trend to fixture. Until then, it’s fair to say that we’re in growing trend territory. […]
With Christmas just a few days away, we’re thinking about gifts. As the new year approaches, we’re thinking about what’s in store for 2015. As marketers, we’re thinking about lists. So we figured that since we’re doing all this thinking about gifts and other good things, we’d share our lists […]
Here at MarketPlace, we often beat the drum in favor of greater transparency on the part of food companies. New York chef and restaurateur Frank Prisinzano is taking the principle as far as about anyone we’ve seen by posting critical reviews of his own restaurants to Instagram. Prisinzano’s reviews are […]
