Will brand survive the future?

The next ten years will see more disruptive technological innovation than in the whole of the 20th century. If the future is about short-term access to stuff rather than open-ended possession, where does it leave the concept of ‘the brand’?

Brand strength beyond optics

By supporting a business ethos where companies, like the Post Office and Qantas, prioritise societal welfare, they not only enhance their brand trust but also contribute positively to the communities they serve.

What’s in a name?

Choosing a company or product name is a minefield. Is it memorable? Available? Trade markable? Does it tell our story, or reflect our organisation’s values and those of our customers?

Back to your roots

In a competition for the most-recognisable tagline of the past 50 years, ‘The world’s local bank’ would surely be a leading contender. There can be few people who didn’t wish they’d thought of it first. Yet this catchy line has been quietly dropped by HSBC. Why, and what does it tell us about the growing […]

Everything is design

“Everything”, wrote Paul Rand, “is design.” That is a terrific soundbite. An almost imperial statement. Like man landing on the moon and sticking a flag in its surface, it claims for design…

Motherhood and apple pie

A crisis in consumer confidence has provoked a reappraisal of corporate values. But many companies are still talking platitudes, says Sholto Lindsay-Smith.

The perils of groupthink

So how do we find out what our customers need? Ask them, right?