Journal Daisy Hughes 13170530 ADVT13-101_133
CONTENTS 01.
Mood Boards
02. Volcom
04. Sol 06. Fender 08.
Brand Critiques
11.
Victoria’s Secret
09. Corona 13.
Jack Daniels
05. References
Mood Boards
02
Volcom
03 The pictures I have used all depict various forms of creative youth expression
supported by Volcom; from board sports and art to gigs and parties all hosted
by the brand. Volcom had a strong sense of exclusivity, only being available at certain surf stores in certain places and had a loyal brand following.
Volcom prides itself as a family of people ‘not willing to accept the suppression
of established ways’ (Volcom, 2013). Upon spending some time with the brands One of my all-time favorite brands, Volcom Stone, is seen as a modern lifestyle
creator, promoter, team managers, riders and musicians I immersed myself
include ‘liberation, innovation and experimentation while remaining dedicated
of loyalty within the brand that is very hard for others to achieve. The major-
Volcom was conceived with $5K in Newport Beach, CA in 1991, which was
company’s birth. Recently however, the company whose core message was
com was the first company to include the three board sports under one brand.
owns brands such as Gucci and Puma) for $608million. (Higgins, 2011) This will
and snow team riders in action.
ing increasingly available in department stores to people in all sorts of markets,
including myself, over various generations could identify with, “Youth Against
riders, including Bruce Irons (Volcom’s most famous ambassador who had
age and support creative thinking and expression among young people.
opinion, the family is not what it once was and nor is the brand.
brand that captures creativity in the spirit of youth culture. The brand values
in the Volcom family, and that’s just what it was, a family. There was a sense
the breakdown of established tradition’ (Volcom, 2013)
ity of people in the company (including team riders) had been there since the
a time when surfing, skating and snowboarding was looked down upon. Vol-
‘against establishment’ sold itself 100% to giant corporation, PPR (who also
Pictured are various snapshots used in Volcom’s advertising of their surf, skate
indeed extend the brands reach and capabilities, however the brand is becom-
The brand message reflected a huge philosophy of the times that many people,
thus losing its exclusivity. Since the sell-out, many once loyal workers and team
Establishment” (Volcom, 2013) This spirit was an open-minded state to encour-
been with the company since its birth) have now moved to other brands. In my
04
Sol
05 Brewed in Mexico since 1899, Sol sells itself as an ‘easy to drink beer with a
smooth refreshing flavour’ and is intended to become a global brand. (Nasard, 2013)
Whilst the Corona wins the marketing battle abroad, Sol is the winning brand in Mexico. The logo can be seen everywhere and it is on almost every menu. I first established my connection with the brand in Mexico itself. All photos
on my moodboards that are not Sol advertisements were taken by myself in
Mexico and are exactly what I associate with the brand. (Yes, I even placed the Sol on my beachside table and took a photo to savour the moment – and make all my facebook friends jealous)
The brand name ‘Sol’ translates as ‘sun’ in Spanish and with the hot Mexican
climate this beer was successfully designed to be incredibly refreshing on a hot day, served with a slice of lime. I had my first Sol on a tour bus to the Mayan
Pyramids where the guides brought along coolers filled with Sol beers (cervesas). Whilst walking around the insanely hot pyramids I could not wait to get back to the bus to have another Sol.
Sol is legitimate Mexican beer and that’s the way it should be reviewed. Many beer connoisseurs rate it low against other ‘quality’ beers, however this beer was designed to refreshing in the hot Mexican sun and it succeeded.
Upon my return to Australia I have continued to drink Sol as it is also perfect in the Australian climate. Sol is marketed at those who live life to the fullest and the Mexican fiesta spirit mixes well with Australian culture. (sol.com)
Consuming Sol is declaring your independence. The brand helps its drinker
break free from every day life by being the rebel its consumer would like to be.
06
07
Fender
Many of us have grown up with the idea one of the coolest brands on planet
earth is Fender. My first guitar was by Fender; an electric guitar whose design fits what everyone’s imagines an electric guitar should look like.
Fender is a powerful guitar brand hailing from the USA, and their image is reflected by their style.
Everything about Fender is center of the road. It’s classic, without the grunge, clean but not too clean. The brand wants to inform its audience that they pro-
vide guitars for every male, female and child that has ever dreamed of performing on a stage with a screaming audience before them.
Fender has the image of a blank canvas that you can throw yourself onto. They manage to seem rock, jazz, punk, retro, blues and country all at one time. The brand is timeless. No matter what age you are, you can’t help but appreciate Fender.
The brand has a universal identity that we can all identify with in our own right. It is a feat not simple to pull of, however they manage to do it with charm and style.
Brand Critiques
09
Corona
Born in Mexico, 1925, ‘Corona is more than just a beer. It represents a philoso-
phy of living in the moment that has been embraced around the world.’ (corona. com)
Corona presents a beach, sunshine and fun state of mind. The brand appears to be light hearted without trying too hard to impress. It is characterized by a
laid back image, founded by its consumers when it originally became available
in the USA and which continues to be the foundation of the brand today. Mainly due to it’s growing universal appeal, recent years have seen Corona move past the category of imports and position itself as a powerful competitor opposing domestic beers also.
Though there may be variable differences in the manner in which Corona has positioned itself throughout countries, the brand has kept common strategic
guidelines across the world and persists to align itself with the beach, sports
and carefree lifestyles of youthful, party going consumers. Consumers of beer
in Australia persist to drink this beer for the refreshing taste. (Good, 2010) The
ritual involving serving with a slice of lime is key to the brands consumer experience.
Corona is one of the best selling imported beers in
‘From Where You’d Rather Be” stimulates emotion;
other areas of the globe. This fast growing global
far from the busy party scenes that the majority
Australia, the US and rapidly gaining popularity in appeal is thanks to its consistent messaging and brand values. With the recent ad campaign, “On Mexico Time; From Where You’d Rather Be”, a
slight shift in Coronas positioning across the world
can be noted as it attempts to conquer global mar-
kets. The campaign conveys a ‘take the beach with
you’ way of life and captures the brands philosophy of embracing the moment, relaxing and connecting. Uniting its brand values and image, Corona
has also directed its aims at Corporate Citizenship on it’s Save the Beach campaign. The brand has
been working with celebrities to revitalize beaches
throughout Europe and directing efforts at sponsoring sporting events. (Interbrand, 2013)
Though the majority of Coronas advertising has
been very effective and aligned itself with the brand message and values, a recent campaign starring
sheep has steered the brand in another direction.
The new advertisements attempt to encourage consumers to “ditch from the herd” by displaying a person wearing a sheep-outfit standing up and trotting
away from the rest of the flock. The next shot shows a hoof slamming down a bottle of Corona Light. These ads are a dramatic break-away from the
identifiable, unique and perfect positioning of the
beach theme that has characterized the brand for
decades. In my opinion, the change does not fit. For so long, the brand has achieved excellent work in separating itself from the competition.
transporting its audience to a relaxing, sunny place, of its competitors promote. Beer ads are usually
composed of a poor punch line followed by a closing shot of the product. Unfortunately Corona has flocked to the wrong herd.
10
11
Victoria’s Secret
Luxury, romance, glamour and sex appeal are just some of the ideals that
Victoria’s Secret highly prides itself upon, regally displaying this identity to the globe. Renowned for being the most dominant, sexy, easily identified lingerie
brand on the planet, the brand encourages confidence through being fashion-
able, glamorous, and throwing in a dash of fantasy throughout its variety of inti-
mate clothing, perfumes, beauty products, hosiery, etc. (Victoria’s Secret, 2013) From the famous Victoria’s Secret fashion show to the incredibly iconic and
identifiable striped shopping bag, the brand carries and executes the power to successfully acquire and constitute a diverse and vastly populated consumer
base around the globe, by focusing on a major target market of women in the
eighteen to forty-nine age group, who hold a desire to experience a look that is glamorous and sexy. (Cooper, 2013)
Recently however, a new line called Pink has
The brand spends $66000 per year on advertis-
However the brand renowned for using ‘sex sells’
buyers. (Debora, 2013) When a consumer wears a
been released, targeting a younger demographic. techniques in their advertising has been receiving criticism from parents of younger consumers and
some going as far as to boycott brand, saying that
it is not age appropriate (Suhay, 2013). A sub target market of the brand is men, as the brand aims to
make them feel comfortable coming into the stores
to buy gifts from their wives or girlfriends. (Morabito, 2013)
Victoria’s Secret does not just offer a vast assortment of products deemed desirable and vital to
give the target market a better life; the brand offers consumers an important, desirable lifestyle as well
ing, essentially defining sexy and packaging it for
piece of the brand’s lingerie, they are led to believe they can be transformed from having an everyday
domestic life to become one of the angels from the walkway, just like Cinderella.
The annual fashion show held by Victoria’s Secret
is s centerpiece for their advertising. This event has a reach of over 1 billion people, as well as gaining
newspaper coverage (Heflin. 2011). Televised every year, this fashion show extravaganza consists of
stunning supermodels parading about the brands
new line of lingerie complete with special fx and music that heightens the show to a Broadway produc-
as the ideas and products to accomplish the way
tion level. Female consumers are persuaded that
especially Facebook, strategically entwines this
plainly in their male associates.
to live it. Victoria’s Secret’s social media outlets,
fabulous way of life with it’s products, linking them
both as one and cleverly transmitting the intentional message to consumers that not a single part of the brand can exist without the other, and more importantly, it should not have to.
The brand strives to keep confidence in its mer-
chandise by the constant upkeep of quality. Victo-
ria’s Secret’s products are both unique and creative, with new lines appearing with each new season,
whilst patient consumers wait anxiously, thus creating buzz and awareness for the band and new products. (Cheng, 2013)
A strength of Victoria’s secret is that it has an incredibly successful strategy or advertising.
buying this product will win the enthusiasm seen
One of the minor weaknesses possessed by this brand comes in the form of its beloved models.
The Angels of Victoria’s Secret are tall, beautiful,
glamorous supermodels. However, as these models advertise the brand, Victoria’s Secret gambles
with the chance of steering away some of its target
market, due to the fact that the everyday consumer is not a supermodel, nor do they see themselves
as supermodels. Some people may experience a negative perception that you have to be ‘perfect’
to wear Victoria’s Secret, this may possibly emit a
negative perception with Victoria’s Secret, resulting in some consumers deciding to keep away from it’s lingerie as they may feel as though they don’t fit in with the brand’s criteria.
12
Jack Daniel’s
13
Throughout many cultural disciplines, brands are seen as symbols; vessels
of sentiment and meaning that society values strongly. (Holt, 2006) The most
powerful brand symbols, being iconic brands such as Jack Daniels are among the most successful in the world. Jack Daniel’s has held an iconic position in American culture for close to sixty years, transforming itself from a small re-
gional brand into a national icon. From the US to the UK, Australia and the rest of the world, Jack Daniel’s has extensive global reach. (Cue, 2013)
Jack Daniels is a successful global brand because it represents values that are universally respected and people can identify with. These genuine core values are described as independence, integrity, and authenticity. (Jackdaniels.com, 2013). Timeliness is a vital part of an icon’s power. What was recognized as
integrity and independence sixty years ago still stands today. These values are true to who the brand is and what Jack Daniel’s represents. (Sirchio, 2012)
The main reason behind the equity and staying power of Jack Daniel’s is its
consistency. Since its beginning, the brand has stayed true to itself. Looking back over the past sixty years, the brand has had mainly just one core message and communication platform.
The image of a Jack Daniel’s consumer is one of defiance. This is the core
message that the brands marketing team has hammering for decades, and it’s now extensively attached to pop culture. Over the years, rock stars have been seen as strong ambassadors for the Jack Daniels brand. Recently, the brand
has been associating itself with the independent American spirit. This shift has managed to keep the brand message incredibly consistent. (Bhasin, 2012)
Jack Daniels seems to focus on a tell, not sell
With Jack Daniel’s strong connection to rock music,
strategy. Rather than shoving product advertising
the post wasn’t about their product or drinking.
the power of story telling and over the years, the
Daniels fans.
down consumer’s throats, the brand understands
brand and its history has become the story. This is a vital part of the brands communication strategy.
The brand also thrives off word of mouth advertising. (Abramovich, 2012)
Though often being associated with celebrities,
especially musicians, the brands friendships with
celebrities are just that. They are not paid endorse-
ments or sponsored; these loyal friendships are not
advertised, they are respected. (Sirchio, 2012) Jack Daniel’s is mindful that it doesn’t attempt to “man-
age” becoming part of culture, because that would
subtract from the mystic and magic of the brand it-
self. Instead, Jack manages to organically immerse itself in the culture; this is a way of life for lovers of Jack, the brand does not define this or use it for
marketing purposes as that would subtract from the authenticity of the experience; one of the brand’s core values.
Recently, the brand has extended its outreach
further into social media, which is all about developing closer connections and sharing with people. It appears that brands offering the right content are
focused less on selling and more on telling as this
creates a stronger connection to the brand (Devers, 2012). Jack Daniel’s has followed this approach by
refraining from pushing product photos and focusing on appealing to the shared sentiments of fans. For instance, when Jim Marshall passed away (creator of the rock ‘n’ roll, Marshall Amplifier) the brand posted a picture with a caption.
Instead, it was a common interest among Jack
14
References
13 Debora, 2013. ‘Victoria’s Secret: Advertising and Public Relations’ sourced
from http://onizukadm.blogspot.com.au/2012/03/ch-17-advertising-and-publicrelations.html on 31/10/2013
Cheng, C. 2013. ‘The Silky Strategy of Victoria’s Secret’ sourced from http:// www.mcafee.cc/Classes/BEM106/Papers/2004/Victoria.pdf on 31/10/2013
Heflin, Dr K. 2011. ‘Victoria’s Secrey Comprehensive Social Media Analysis’
sourced from http://hannahwoods.weebly.com/uploads/7/0/0/2/7002427/victorias_secret_analysis_paper.pdf on 30/10/2013 Volcom, 2013. Sourced from www.volcom.com on 22/10/2013
Holt, Douglas. 2006. Oxford University. Journal of Consumer Culture. “Jack
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