Netbooks: A cure for Internet Addiction
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I thought I had uncovered the mother of all typos when I was recently perusing the computer section of the Best Buy website and eyed a heading for “Netbooks”. Silly Best Buy web editor, I thought, it’s Notebooks not Netbooks!
Wrong. Netbooks do exist.
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Happy 110th Merck Manual!
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The year 2009 marks the 110th anniversary of The Merck Manual, the best-selling and oldest continuously published general medical text in the English language. And what a 110 years it has been!
It all started in 1899, when the American drug manufacturer Merck & Co. published a small book titled Merck's Manual of the Materia Medica. According to their website, the book was meant as an aid to physicians and pharmacists, reminding doctors that “Memory is treacherous.”
In 1899 the Manual cost $1, about as much as a week’s groceries. Now the Merck Manuals, divided
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Tips for Effective Brainstorming
Have you ever set up a brainstorming session for your office and felt like you were at a dead end at the very beginning? This happens to many people but there are effective ways to get you and your colleagues brainstorming like there’s no tomorrow!
It’s best to schedule brainstorming in the morning when everyone is more alert. After lunch is when people begin to get tired and think more about how much longer they have until they can leave. It’s not exactly the best time to focus.
Come to the brainstorming session prepared! Make sure you have all the information at hand in case anyone has any questions or needs more information to come up with ideas.
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Facebook Face-Offs
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Facebook is moving into the global market with much success, but according to BusinessWeek, the competition overseas has the traffic, and the brands, to put up a decent fight. Here are the social networking sites defending their turf:
Hyves: The Netherlands: 5.7 million users
Hyves is based on the English word “beehive”. It has extended its brand beyond the title, naming the bulletin board feature (equivalent to Facebook’s ‘wall’) "krabbel." This created word has become so popular, it may find its way into the Dutch dictionary.
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A Branding Mission From Our Government
The branding mission, should you choose to accept, is to re-brand No Child Left Behind.
On February 4th, Arne Duncan, our new Secretary of Education, shared his vision with Michelle Block on All Things Considered. Mr. Duncan considers quality education to be “the civil rights issue of our generation.” With this rhetoric you can trust he is not kidding around when he challenged all of us in the branding industry to “repackage and rename” the education reform set to replace or improve upon “No Child Left Behind.” This is quite the linguistic challenge because not only does this name need to inspire the inclusion and betterment of all American children but it also needs to rebuild bipartisan consensus on education reform! Read more
More Than Words
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It’s that time of year again. Time to tell that special someone how you truly feel…through candy hearts of course! Who needs love letters and flowers? Pass your significant other a real piece of sugar and call it a day.
Sweethearts have a history that dates back to the time of Abraham Lincoln, so it’s understandable that NECCO, the company responsible for its popularity, has managed to perfect the art of candy messaging. Check out the fascinating story here.
Year after year, the company melts consumer’s hearts with simple phrases including “be mine,” “kiss me,” and “my man.”
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The Perfect FIT
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With New Year’s not far behind us, I, like most of the population, have decided that this is the year to get in shape, be fit and be healthy. In my quest for this seemingly “every-year” resolution, I’ve spent quite a good deal of time at my local fitness center. Granted, I go to the YMCA which is within a mile of where I live and work, but being in this fitness frame of mind, I’ve been wondering about gym names and the types that exist. Some top of mind examples include:
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Not My Peanut Butter!
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It seems like every time I turn on the news lately there is someone telling me to stop eating something or to return my favorite toy.
Yep, you guessed it. I'm talking about recalls, and the ones that tend to cause the most uproar seem to deal with food and drug products. This is completely understandable considering the health risks involved. I tend to get a bit more nervous when I’m told that there’s a chance my ketchup could kill me versus the risk that a defective toy gun may pinch my finger. If learning about interesting recalls
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My Phone is Smarter Than Me
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Cue the hallelujah chorus--I finally got a new cell phone. I’ve been happy with the LG Fusic for two years. It doubles as an MP3 player, but I have never once utilized that particular function. Like some sort of Christmas miracle, Sprint® gave me credits to upgrade my phone. I am somewhat of a risk taker. So at the news of my upgrade opportunity, I jumped off of a cliff and onto the smart phone bandwagon.
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Making a Mark with Brand Punctuation
Brand namers are constantly searching for new and innovative ways to utilize the 26 letters of the English alphabet. Perhaps the answer is beyond those letters. A punctuation mark in your brand name not only helps it stand out from the crowd, but, if it is truly distinctive, can even be registered and protected as part of your trademark.
Look at how these brands have used a little punctuation in a big way:
E*Trade
Consumer identification with the asterisk between E and Trade is so strong that the punctuation itself is part of E*Trades registered trademark. The asterisk has also been extended across E*Trade's marketing materials, serving as a calling card for the brand.
Yahoo!
If a name ever needed an exclamation point, Yahoo was it. Without added punctuation the word Yahoo was at risk for coming across as an insult or as sarcasm. The exclamation point forces audiences to read the name as it was intended, as a celebratory shout. The simple mark has become as much a part of the name as the letters themselves.
Häagen-Dazs
If you think that this name is simply using traditional diacritics to stay true to its foreign heritage, think again. The umlaut in Häagen-Dazs is as meaningless as the name itself. The brand simply uses two made up words with cleverly placed punctuation in order to appeal to upscale audiences seeking a super-premium ice cream import.
Contributed by Maghan Cook