Trying to Brand a Country? Don’t depend on an Adjective to do it.

December 14th, 2010 § 4

This is a post the official Korea Tourism Organization had on their Facebook wall recently.

If you could pick only ONE word to describe Korea, what would it be?^^
I had read at the beginning of the year that Korea is going to be rebranding its tourism campaign and logo, after the not-so-great “Korea, Sparkling” that InterBrand came up with. Additionally, I know that the government formed a whole organization just to deal with the rebrand.
But, I think there are a few things that are inherently wrong with trying to label a whole country with a SINGLE word.
  1. No country, city, person, object, or even color (how many “blues” are there?) can be adequately described with a single word – especially not an all-encompassing, generic word.
  2. Countries are naturally combinations of thousands of elements, traditions, characteristics, and experiences. To try and describe them all with ONE word is like trying to paint the Sistine Chapel with a single color of paint.
  3. Adjectives, even those that sound specific (“Incredible India” anyone?), are far too generic and can be applied to any number of other countries, or positive AND negative experiences (“Incredibly terrible service at that restaurant.” or “Is Japan really as incredible as people claim?”).
  4. Any single word (or country) may be misunderstood by a reader. Take “Korea, Sparkling” for example. Many tourists thought it meant “sparkling soda.” Take “Korea” for another example. Many Americans immediately think of North Korea whenever that word is mentioned. The connotations of both of these aren’t beneficial to a tourism campaign.
So, I have a suggestion:
If you’re thinking about a new Tourism brand, why not use a verb, rather than an adjective?

Superman Returns’ Box Office Mojo: Wimpy. Doesn’t The Man of Steel deserve better?

August 3rd, 2010 § 0

I think that most fans of Superman are in favor of elevating the Superman brand with a new movie, likely in 3-D and iMAX. The original Superman movies originally took off on the big screen to big reviews – Rotten Tomatoes reports a 94% approval rating for the original Superman (Rotten Tomatoes), an 88% approval for Superman II (Rotten Tomatoes), and an 83% rating for the Richard Donner cut of Superman II which was released in 2006 (Rotten Tomatoes). Compare that to the 76% rating they show for Superman Returns, also released in 2006, and the very low 23% rating for Superman III, and 10% rating for Superman IV (Rotten Tomatoes). I think it is very apparent that Superman is due for a big comeback on the silver screen. My own BHAG and BHIs reflect this sentiment.

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Isn’t a BHAG (Big, Hairy, Audacious Goal) with a numerically measurable goal better than a short, simple slogan?

August 1st, 2010 § 0

I first posted about BHAGs and BHIs (Big, Hairy, Audacious Goals and Big, Hairy Ideas) regarding the Superman brand. Let me get a little more specific with the BHAGs portion by saying that I think it is a great idea to use a percentage to quantify BHAGs – i.e. Increase XX by YY%. It can really help make a goal visible, targetable, and reachable, and it gives everyone involved with the brand something to shoot for. One of my classmates posted a great article with great references for different types of BHAGs: Target, Common Foe, Role Model, and Internal Transformation. Numbers can held add depth and meaning to any of these kinds of BHAGs.

On the other hand, as I was also researching BHAGs, I also noticed that not every BHAG I’d seen was measurable – like Microsoft’s, “A computer on every desk and in every home” (Microsoft, 2002), or Twitter’s “To become the ‘Pulse of the Planet.’” (Schonfeld, 2009). It is definitely interesting to see the different ways BHAGs can be used. Often the shortest and simplest are the most focused and easiest to keep in mind.

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One Big, Hairy, Audacious Goal and Three Big, Hairy Ideas to Make Superman a Truly Iconic GLOBAL Superhero

July 30th, 2010 § 2

BHAG: Big, Hairy, Audacious Goal

BHAG: To make Superman the de-facto, number one, iconic superhero throughout the globe, particularly in the G20 and OECD countries, by increasing his presence and visibility overseas 100% (doubled) over the next 2 years in preparation for a worldwide release of The Man of Steel in 2012, in which he saves the WORLD and not just America. To increase international ticket sales of The Man of Steel by 100% (doubled to $382 million (Box Office Mojo)) over that of its predecessor Superman Returns in 2006.

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A Faux Interview about Brand Me

July 26th, 2010 § 0

As part of my schooling, I was asked to consider “The Brand Called You” about myself. My first thoughts were posted here, and this is a follow-up, “faux interview” that asked me to consider all kinds of various aspects and angles of the brand that is me, as a designer and freelancer, both now and in the future.

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Brand “You”: Find out about Me

July 24th, 2010 § 1

For one assignment in my class, we were required to read a very interesting article called “The Brand Called You” that was published by Fast Company back in 1997. I find that the things Tom Peters writes about in there are no less pertinent today than they were then, and in fact they are more so. There is also a great follow-up article on Fast Company here called “Brand You Survival Kit.” Thinking about “Brand Me” was an interesting challenge, as it is difficult sometimes to look at yourself from an outside perspective and really analyze and consider who you are and where you’re going. Therefore, writing in the third-person was an integral part of this assignment. Below, you can read a little about “Brand Me.” » Read the rest of this entry «

This is Korea: Mood Board Design for Tourism Promotion

July 22nd, 2010 § 0

I created this mood board with the specific purpose of thinking about tourism from the perspective of a Western traveler who wants to take a vacation, but has little understanding about Korea. I find that the biggest problem most Western people have with Korea is a misunderstanding of it. When I say “Korea,” most people look surprised and ask me “North Korea?” Or, if they understand that South Korea is the one I’m referring to, they ask me, “What is it like with North Korea?” Most people from the Western world are so concerned with and focused on North Korea, that they miss the beauty that is South Korea. Therefore, I chose the words (and potential logo) in the top right corner of the mood board, “This is Korea.” I think that most people don’t fully understand what Korea truly is.

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The QUALITY Checklist for Finding Great Tourism Photos of Korea (or Any Target Country)

July 20th, 2010 § 0

Follow this simple checklist for GREAT tourism photos of KOREA (or any other country).

  1. Quality (High)
  2. Unique (to Korea – or the country of focus)
  3. Action (People are included)
  4. Light (Strong Colors/contrast/etc)
  5. Image (Clear, sharp)
  6. Traditional/Modern (but not generic)
  7. Yourself (Can you picture yourself there?)

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Working for Friends and Family: Good Idea, or Terrible Idea?

July 18th, 2010 § 0

I always have a tough time saying no to designing for friends and family. It’s really hard to explain these complications to your dear grandmother who simply wants a logo for her newsletter. You could easily be misunderstood, and come across as lazy or discourteous. –Classmate

I really agree with that statement about working for friends and family. I’m sure we’ve all had experiences like that. In my last post, I made “Mom and Dad” the difficult clients that were trying to negotiate a sweet deal on a website (and many other things). Although that exact situation has never happened to me, I’ve had friends who have experienced that (my uncle offered his son $20 for $500 worth of professional photography – and got it because his son still lives at home and he fell into the “family trap”).

Working for friends and family is always a difficult situation. Many people say, “never, EVER, do it” while others say that it’s OK. And sometimes, as the earlier quote mentions, “You could easily be misunderstood, and come across as lazy or discourteous” if you don’t help out your friends and family. » Read the rest of this entry «

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