planning fun

“In that moment [I] saw a bottle of Coke in a whole new light… [I] began to see a bottle of Coca-Cola as more than a drink that refreshed a hundred million people a day in almost every corner of the globe. So [I] began to see the familiar words, ‘Let’s have a Coke,’ as more than an invitation to pause for refreshment. They were actually a subtle way of saying, ‘Let’s keep each other company for a little while.’ And [I] knew they were being said all over the world as [I] sat there in Ireland. So that was the basic idea: to see Coke not as it was originally designed to be — a liquid refresher — but as a tiny bit of commonality between all peoples, a universally liked formula that would help to keep them company for a few minutes.”

A designer has reimagined a host of everyday edibles as high-end grocery items. It's a project that explores how branding influences our purchases — and where the ethical boundaries lie for designers.

"OUR TARGET IS DRIVEN BY CURIOSITY. THEY ARE A LITTLE BIT OUTSIDE OF THE ORDINARY SO MAINSTREAM BRANDS MIGHT NOT BE ABLE TO CAPTURE THEM."

Core Brand's approach to brand strategy. What will ours be in communicating the difference between Brand promises, positioning and platform to future clients? 

"The rhetoric of hope that worked so well in 2008 would be ineffective now," he writes. "In these circumstances, I suspect, citizens will be looking for leaders who offer concrete, credible plans for a better future—and who have what it takes to get the job done."

Good reminder that uncomfortable human truths hiding in plain sight are often at the heart of problems we're trying to solve. 

Real focus groups rip the Apple "1984" commercial to pieces. I'm not sure if I want to laugh or cry. 

If nothing else, I suggest reading this article just so you can watch the clips from climactic moments on the show. 

Enjoy! 

This is a long read, but it's a close look at the change - or, potentially, lack of change - in the presentation and perception of adulthood in American culture. It's good.

Something that’s cool tends to diverge from the norm -"Being cool requires a very delicate balance of doing something that shows that you go your own way and do your own thing, but you do it in a way that is socially desirable or at least acceptable".  

 "To me, compassion is the new cool," 

Viral 50 - US is a Spotify playlist that updates weekly with the most shared, trending tracks across the entire United States. A playlist that is truly powered by the fans.  

Certain spaces, like a corporate lobby or website, can serve as "touch points" for a company, offering an opportunity to tell a story or share a message, said Cleve Tuttle, principal at Houston-based Woreman Brand Agency. A company should tell its story in every interaction it has, including how its presents its office, lobby and conference room, said Allen Adamson, chairman of the North American region of the global branding firm Landor Associates, In business-to-business dealings, the visual impression made by an office is crucial, he said. 

"We're down a farm wife but still talking GMOs, labeling laws, landlords, food safety and food dollars: where are they really going?" 

Panelists in House Ag Committee subcommittee hearing address biotech's perceived role in ag production, how consumers react to that perception in the grocery store, and  how consumers interpret news and research on the topic.