Gwyneth Paltrow's Reader Survey

The notion of consumer research informing a brand is nothing new. In fact, the hope is always that good research will reveal some untapped need or desire that can lead to a great creative idea or a product innovation that will capture the collective consumer imagination. So it shouldn’t come as any surprise that even Gwyneth Paltrow is looking for some brand insight. Her recent diversification from actress and fashion icon, to songstress, culinary guru, and travel expert has left her brand a little stretched. The latest Goop missive contained an extensive reader survey… And my unhealthy Gwyneth fascination aside, it was interesting to see that even the most personal of brands, your own, can sometimes be in need of some necessary retooling. “Does my website need a redesign?” “When am I most interesting: when I’m talking about fashion, travel or food?” And finally, “Who finds me most fascinating: twenty-somethings, thirty-somethings, or dare I ask forty- and fifty-somethings?” If there is an insight to be unearthed here – it may be twofold. Firstly, every brand no matter how small, needs to know what they are selling and to whom. Only then can you craft a message that is meaningful and relevant. And secondly, and perhaps more importantly, all of us need to re-examine more closely the brand and message we project every once and a while. Do we really know how others see us? I’m just saying…

peter g

When I first spotted the poster design for the latest Terrence Malick film, “The Tree of Life”, I was reminded of how powerful the effect can be of doing things differently. Although it may seem like a hackneyed thought in the world of marketing, the simple effect of creating a grid of images to create a movie poster seemed somehow revelatory. What followed for me, was a meandering path of movie poster research too tangential and varied to summarize succinctly, but what became apparent was that in the history of entertainment poster design, little has changed since its inception. From an historical perspective, entertainment poster design really took off in the late  nineteenth century, with the perfection of colour lithography and mass printing, creating an outlet to showcase the talents of such artists as Toulouse-Lautrec with his now iconic posters promoting the Moulin Rouge. Since then, entertainment and movie posters have managed to capitalize on every major art movement and leveraged every graphic design star from Saul Bass to Rex Ray. Yet when you look at the art form as a whole, not surprisingly, it’s those unique posters that deviate from the norm that have had the most impact on our collective imagination. Those that make you think a little more, versus those that attempt to depict a scene, character or visual montage to encapsulate the film. So at the risk of stating the obvious, sometimes breaking the mold can often have a great effect. Yet ironically, it can only work when the established norm is entrenched in our visual lexicon. So the lesson becomes recognizing when these have reached a level of visual universality, so that flipping it on its head will have the most impact.

peter g

The ING Coffee Bar

The latest ING Direct café has opened in downtown Toronto at 221 Yonge Street, and for those of you who are not familiar with the concept, the bank is hoping you’ll stop in for a cup of coffee, some free WiFi, and maybe discuss the benefits of a fixed or variable mortgage. It’s part of a growing global trend that UK think-tank The Future Laboratory has termed “bleisure” – the mixing of business and leisure. Although this premise may seem like a union of church and state, the ubiquity of electronic devices has done much to blur the boundaries between these two opposing worlds. American Express and Starwood Hotels & Resorts recently launched a joint credit card geared specifically at this phenomenon – targeting travelers looking for ways to maximize their points and build leisure time into their business travel. This mashup moniker is also finding its way into the fashion industry, with menswear shows increasingly being dubbed as “bleisure” collections – as they straddle a happy medium between work and casual style.  Even the seemingly innocuous act of linking your Facebook page to your LinkedIn account signals to all that you’re comfortable blending your work and personal lives. So although this trend may seem like a passing fad – I suspect we’ll see more mashups of what we have traditionally defined as separate pursuits. Latte with your GIC anyone?

peter g

The Genius of Daphne Guinness

A sense of drama is always an inspired companion to fashion. So it should come as no surprise that Barneys New York announced that they were collaborating with Daphne Guinness on a live window performance at their flagship Madison Avenue store to celebrate the Met Gala. Part peep show and part performance art, the exercise attracted a mix of curious onlookers, die-hard fashionistas and budding design students. Lady Gaga meets Matthew Barney in an Alexander McQueen haute couture dress. The piece lasted only about seven minutes, and once it was over, my marketing brain kicked into overdrive analyzing the potential marketing benefits of such a brief and insular event. But as soon as the wheels started turning, I was reminded why I love working with fashion brands – ideas don’t always have to make logical sense. Great fashion brands are some of the biggest risk takers in the marketing world because they don’t always have to generate a brief, a USP (unique selling proposition for the non-marketing folks), a consumer insight or ROI to buy into an idea. Barneys, Daphne Guinness, Alexander McQueen and the Met Costume Gala? Sounds like an interesting idea – Let’s do it. The measurement of success is merely the fact that it went down…

peter g

For those of you who don’t know her already – meet Jenna Lyons, President and Executive Creative Director at J. Crew. Professional envy aside, there is something different about Jenna. Not only is she the driving force behind the retailer’s product design, she is also their arbiter of all things cool. “Jenna’s Picks” – her monthly email of handpicked J. Crew essentials, her latest video log of the design team’s travels through Italy in search of century-old craftsmanship, and now her latest missive – “Saturday with Jenna” – all work together to stitch a story about style, passion, and yes, curating. We’re invited to see things through Jenna’s discriminating lens and more importantly partake in her edited choices from the world around us. In the world of marketing, this is nothing new: a front person that is paraded to consumers as the “expert”. But the undeniable success of Jenna’s world is a lesson in layered storytelling. Probably most significant, is the fact that Jenna’s world is there for those who care to discover it, but not central to their marketing. J. Crew is still the purveyor of practical catalogue and online shopping, but now, for a whole new legion of label-focused shoppers, Jenna gives them a reason to believe in this brand as well. “Not everything at J. Crew is worth my attention…but Jenna’s picks promises unique style from a mass label.” A brilliant way to get two seemingly diametrically opposed retail demographics together in one store.

peter g