Author: AGAdmin

“So, what exactly is a Brand Refresh?” asked Moderator, Dave Trebilcock, as he looked over to the panel of featured speakers.

Ed Rice, Affinity Creative Group’s Director of Strategy replied, “It’s a makeover, and when done well, it strengthens your connection to current customers and attracts new consumers to your brand.” Christine Lilienthal, Director of Marketing for Cline Family Cellars and past Affinity client, smiled and nodded in agreement.

This past Thursday I had the pleasure of attending the WIN Expo, Trade Show & Conference, hosted by the Wine Industry Network, at the chilly but spacious Sonoma County Fairgrounds in Santa Rosa, California. As a new addition to the Affinity Creative team, this event gave me the opportunity to see the industry from a totally new perspective. It also gave me the chance to observe audience reaction to one of Affinity’s most dramatic brand transformations.

Colleague Ed and client Christine were selected to participate in the Sales and Marketing Seminar: Keys to Successfully Refreshing Your Brand, highlighting our agency’s efforts in the refurbishment of Cline Family Cellars, Old Vine Zinfandel

Affinity Creative Group was awarded this assignment in late 2016. With creative mojo provided by the Affinity Brand Design team, Christine’s marketing turnaround plan came to fruition with dramatic results. When we started the project, the product had experienced over a -14% decline. After working with Affinity and producing a fresh new label look and feel, the brand has seen a +21% increase.

Lilienthal indicated that Cline sales and marketing teams are now using this success story to open new points of distribution and get buyers who had lost faith in their Old Vine Lodi Zinfandel to give it another try. And they are.

Additionally, from a wine quality perspective, Cline also received a Best Buy from Wine Enthusiast and 88 Points from Wine Spectator.

As Christine provided words of encouragement to other producers who might consider a brand refresh, it was a pretty amazing feel to watch a past client give such praise to Affinity’s creative prowess.

This seminar also offered guidance and inspiration to attendees pondering the pathway to a brand design update for their labeling and packaging systems. Undertaking that daunting brand ‘facelift’. In today’s competitive sales environment, projecting an image from your package that clearly reflects the quality of the product and supports the brand’s positioning is essential.

However, executing the necessary steps to get there is not always as easy as it may initially seem. Lilienthal and Rice spoke in detail about the re-branding experience, revealing pitfalls to avoid and providing guidance to achieve a highly satisfactory outcome.

As a new member of Affinity Creative Group, it was rewarding to witness first hand the audience reaction to a standout example of one of our strategic/creative client programs. I’m excited to see how my ‘client-side’ wine industry knowledge will be leveraged to help Affinity’s clients, both existing and new, refresh and rebuild their brands as successfully as the agency did for Cline Family Cellars.

The West Coast POP show provides an opportunity for agencies and display companies to come together and share their most creative retail marketing work. This year, Affinity Retail took home three gold awards for the Duckhorn Vineyards end cap display, the Kendall-Jackson point of sale bottle display, and the Altos Tequila Countertop Display.

The Altos Tequila display was also awarded one of the show’s top honors – Best of Innovation. As an agency, one of our core values is in creating meaningful experiences through innovation – creativity is in our DNA. We carry that with us wherever we go, and to receive an award that matches that value is truly an honor.

SHOP! provides research, education and networking to more than 1,400 member companies and affiliates globally and holds national competitions to showcase the best of the best in the retail display environment.

A commentary on the Best in Innovation award from our Creative Director, Mark Ray: “Retail is Detail” and Tequila remains a highly competitive product in the spirits category. Consumer engagement happens when you connect and inspire consumers while delivering the brand story, sometimes in an unexpected way. Affinity Creative Group was asked to build and adapt a branded concept of the ‘mobile Tequila truck’ into this colorful, stylish countertop display. Our group adapted the theme for small space – countertop opportunities in independent and C-stores stores. The innovation is found in the original art to create differentiation of other tequila brands. The display features 14 – 50ml bottles and direct printing onto acrylic with hidden glue to create a seamless display.

How many times do you go into a restaurant and have such a great experience there that you want to come back the next day or, au contraire, a bad experience that you never want to go there again, even more so that you tell other people?

This type of feedback loop is exactly what brands deal with from a consumer standpoint. This isn’t limited to the experience of using the product (which, of course, is very important) but rather delivering an experience at every step of the consumer’s journey. At any stage, a negative experience could ruin the relationship with the consumer the same way a positive one can create a real connection.

During the path to purchase, we have many opportunities to “talk” to our consumer. As marketers, we need to take full advantage of these opportunities and make them memorable. Our goal is to position our brand by creating content and campaigns that provide consumers the best experience at every touchpoint.

For example, in the wine industry, this positioning can be a beautifully designed in-store display, a slick design made with real wood and finished with a gorgeous varnish. In the digital world, a stunning website that is nice looking, intuitive, and fast, and delivers on the brand’s USP. At the product level, it could be a beautiful bottle with a unique label with great design and impressive printing techniques that can offer a sensorial experience through sight and touch.

But a great brand experience goes beyond any physical element – it exists in the way we address our consumer. Every piece of communication is fundamental to the success of the experience. The headlines in our POS, the body copy, the imagery, etc. are all ingredients of a unique encounter between our consumer and our brand. The quality and attention to detail are essential parts of this experience.

Perception is everything, and we, as marketers, are the perception-builders of our brands.

Every designer makes sure that they have a chance to take things in, similar to a sponge soaking up ideas and input. Everything we experience is designed, and when you experience well thought out, beautiful design, you gain perspective on what purposeful design is meant to evoke. Behind the object, there is a certain school of thought – a thought that is in many ways the combination of function and aesthetics. Function and emotion, function and experience; this is what design is all about.

In my experience, being surrounded by good design may not make you happier, but it can make things easier. Good design is not just beauty, but rather something that functions beautifully and adds purpose, which in turn seamlessly improves your life.

This principle is embedded within everything I stand for as a designer, and I’ve found five examples that reinforces the power of purposeful design.

NOMOS

by Function and Esthetics

This first example perfectly illustrates the point that design can be pure, free of superfluous ornamentation. Function and Esthetics brings this minimalism approach to their watches through a more rigorous focus on typefaces, efficient case design, and a balance between functionality and looks. Simply put – the Nomos Tangente embodies the Bauhaus ethos to a tee.

Monument Valley

by Impossible Geometry

I am mesmerized every time I play this game. The reason being is that it was created in an isometric view, which catches the human eye off guard. The game itself is a surreal exploration through fantastical architecture and impossible geometry. Function meets design through the gorgeous, pastel buildings and vistas (a true sight to behold – especially for those playing on some of the newer smartphone screens). The functionality comes in where the game relies on the player to manipulate the landscape to advance – something that would make M.C. Escher green with envy.

Less and More

by The Design Ethos of Dieter Ram

The poster child of bauhaus / form follows function design mantra is “Dieter Rams.” This is a book in which the visual appeal is as enjoyable as the content itself. Flipping through the pages, you can instantly get a sense of Rams design ethos. The book goes on to demonstrate how simple, accessible, straight-forward and powerful purposeful design can be.

Color Factory

This interactive exhibit was like being teleported into a brand new Roald Dahl novel called ’Charlie and the Color Factory.’ A true visual menagerie of color in all shapes and forms, this experience is a fantastical visualization of how reality can evoke an array of emotions – simply through the use of design and color. The tour for the Bay Area exhibit has ended, but this is a must see if and when it returns.

HIBIKI Suntory Whiskey

Japanese Harmony

This is the good stuff. I’m talking about the juice inside the bottle (and yes, the package is nice as well). Any special occasion calls for some Hibiki, and while the 17-year-old whiskey might be the nectar of the gods a well crafted product like the Harmony blend creates a delicious and unique experience that holds true to the brand name and promise. Another example of how something that’s designed with purpose can be beautiful both inside and out.

These are just a few examples that speak to me as a designer. They provide inspiration for what I value in my day to day and the variety of projects that I help bring to life through purposeful design.