Posts Tagged: "Brand Building"

Terminology Management: Ensuring a Consistent Brand When Protecting IP Overseas

A North American fondue restaurant franchise found out just how essential terminology management can be when it expanded into Mexico in 2010. A translation service provider previously translated its kitchen training materials into Spanish, specifically for the restaurant’s Spanish-speaking employees in the United States who originally came from various Latin American countries. Company executives thought the Spanish they were currently using would be sufficient for the menu and other materials to be used in Mexico. When the Mexican franchise owners visited the company’s U.S. headquarters, it quickly became clear that one dialect of Spanish is not always the same as another. Different countries have their own dialect with words and phrases unique to each culture.

All-time Best Corporate Character Mascots

Recently Inc.com published an article titled The Art and Science of Corporate Icons, which discusses Skeeter the squirrel, who is apparently the only squirrel in the world allergic to nuts. Skeeter is also the cartoon mascot for Skeeter Snacks, a line of nut-free cookies created by Dave Leyrer and Pete Najarian, whose target audience is parents with children who have allergies to nuts. The Inc.com article, discussed the creation of Skeeter from the drawing board to the finished product, including what aspects of this critter they wanted to depict their brand. They wanted the product to not only be affordable and appealing to kids but also to show that they were “…more playful than other allergen-free brands.”

Combating Counterfeiting and Unauthorized Product Sales

Criminals on all levels — from opportunistic, small-time thieves to major drug cartels — are finding that the penalties for intellectual property crimes pale in comparison to the penalties they would receive for trafficking drugs and engaging in other illicit activities. At the same time, the profit margin for counterfeit software, as well as for other counterfeit goods, is extremely high. So the combination of great riches, relatively low penalties and a low likelihood of being caught and you can see why criminal enterprises, including terrorist networks, are becoming major players in the counterfeit software black-market.

5 Simple Ways to Leverage Your Online Business Relationships

Social Media is not a fad. It is not something that is going to go away nor is it going to be replaced by something bigger and better. Most businesses have embraced social media and all that it has to offer. Perhaps you, yourself have taken a ride on the social media bandwagon. But, even if you have a well-established social media presence, are you really getting the most out of your online relationships? Are you missing opportunities to truly leverage your business relationships online in order to reap bigger rewards and sales in the real world? Following are 5 easy ways that you can take to utilize your online business and real-world relationships to increase your overall social media ROI.

How Your Telephone System Impacts Your Brand

If you are a small business owner, you are located in a small personal office or you work from home, you probably use either a cell phone or personal landline as your business phone. When you call a potential client, what shows up on their called ID? What do potential clients hear when they call and want to leave you a voicemail? What if they simply want to know your hours of operation or fax number? You may not realize this but your telephone system’s features, including your caller ID display and voicemail greeting, have a major impact on how others see your brand.