Re: branding

Okay, so I did a very rough mockup of a possible solution…but it would require changing the orientation of the American Sentry Solar logo, which I'm not positive you're allowed to do:

Again, this is very rough: you'd definitely need to tweak the colors. I think one of the things that could really help is if you found a way to use the same "American" that's used in the original logo.

To answer your second question, I think that helping your co-workers understand the benefits of having a cohesive brand is really important. However, it's also really hard. I would consider presenting them with real-life scenarios to demonstrate how a disjointed brand can hurt business/credibility and how a cohesive brand can help it.

That's all I have for right now…I'll try to comment on the last two questions before tomorrow!

Re: Branding

I have to say I am completely confounded by this challenge you face Shana. When I saw the two images, right away I knew exactly what I would want to do! However, you started listing the requirements or well, lack of willingness on both ends to change either logo. Then I realized, it's my nightmare of a puzzle - and kudos to you for handling it so well (I think).

Now that I have had time to sit and let this simmer - here we go:

What are your suggestions for making this particular branding issue work better? 
 - As suggested before, I do agree with the suggestion of the words "Design" and "Build ltd" altering to a typeface that is sans serif, but not quite as "rigid" as American Sentry Solar. If at all possible, I would try finding a typeface that works with both and a typeface that can be consistent in both, showing minimal change to the clients (yet bigger change to us who may notice it more). Also, finding a happy medium with the use of green. I like the American Design and Build logo, but I am not sure the hue of green would work well for Solar. I am not a fan of the sun, but I do like the idea Jen mentioned prior on how to incorporate it in both logos, connecting the two (if I understood correctly).

I am more of a visual person, but here is my attempt. It is definitely a challenge! I didn't bother with color, just an overall template idea.

How important is having a good understanding of brand strategy for people in our line of work?

I think it is very important! In broad strategy its the communication to the customer, and I suppose we are the linguists in away. If the brand strategy is flawed, then the company can lose money. 

Do you have real life experience with a branding nightmare/success story?

I think if I did.. it would be completely in the recess of my brain. I am having a hard time wrapping the challenge of these two company logos around my head, ha!

How much of branding is good design and good business?

Much like Monique said half and half. Although I do believe good design does make or break a business.. at the end of the day, they really have to be worked out properly - or the business can suffer either way. 

I do hope this helps, even just a little bit! 

Re: Branding

What are your suggestions for making this particular branding issue work better?

I agree with both Monique and Jen that adding a division of American Design and Build LTD would be a great idea and would help marry the two designs together. In class Amy suggested that maybe you should try to change the Design and Build typeface into a Sans leaving the decorative type for American. I think that was a great idea considering the amount of history you stated the company has. By changing those elements, the American would still stand out and many people will recognize the existing logotype with the new elements added.


I do agree that there are too many colors with both and do like the idea of using a set color palette to represent the company's brand. The Solar element doesn't have to necessarily be a bright yellow sun. It could be maybe a vector or something of the sort presenting the panels used during the solar energy process.You could even maybe use the same shape as the green and turn it into some type of panel with some squares to depict it.

 2. How important is having a good understanding of brand strategy for people in our line of work?



I agree with Jen on her statement about branding as a whole. It is an important factor no matter the work environment you are in. As an employee your job is to represent the brand to the best of your ability. 
I believe a good understanding of branding strategy is very important because apart our jobs is to solve those hidden problems that are not allowing our clients to go in the direction they hope to go in.

 I've learned in Creative Concepts and Words and Images that a great idea with an ok design has it's advances over a bad well designed concept. If designers are unable to communicate and strategize great ideas, they will never be great problem solvers.

I found an interesting write up from Wells Fargo. It doesn't have anything to do with design but there are some good pointers about developing an idea and strategy.

  "A good strategy perfectly executed will beat a great strategy poorly executed"

 https://www.wellsfargo.com/invest_relations/vision_values/6

3.  Do you have real life experience with a branding nightmare/success story?

I have little experience with real life branding experiences but I have had several opportunities to work with a few small businesses. I find that branding can be very difficult at times. Especially if you are working with clients who don't believe in change. Some clients are so focused on what they want instead of what they NEED for their business to grow.  But Hey "the customers are always right" :-\


4. How much of branding is good design and good business?

  I think they are equally important. Sometimes the design attracts people while the product, message or idea of the business attracts others.

Re: Branding

This is a tough one, Shana. In class I didn't have anything to say because they just seem so different. I'm just going to throw out some ideas/questions because that's kind of all that I can think of to do/say.

1. Suggestions: Like Monique, the solution that you mentioned in class (adding "a division of American Design and Build LTD" to the Solar logo) seems like a first step. But it seems like you want to bring them into a consistent brand vision instead of just the small step of making the connection explicit on the logo. That seems like it would require a larger project.
   
   What if you suggested altering the sun in the solar logo to a sunrise that could echo the shape of the green (grassy ground?) area in the original logo? Is that too cheesy in its metaphorical reference? Then, could you alter the "design" and "build" to a straight forward sans like the Google font Open Sans, and do the same with either "American sentry" or "sentry solar"? Maybe then you could work with the shades of green so that there is some more consistency in the color schemes?
   
   My other suggestion is to have a discussion with your coworkers about what they want from their business/brand. I'm sure the book that Erin mentioned in class would be helpful here. Other options: this blog post from brass media does a pretty good quick and dirty job of discussing some basic points that make sense to me. I think the various Coke bottles image helps make a point that might be necessary to make to the higher-ups of this company about consistency and recognition. Also, the text breaks down the idea that a brand is not just a logo, but who you are to the customer (or what the customer expects) and how the customer feels about you. I would rename the post about "theme" to "concept," but the post is in general terms--these two logos of your company's have different themes. They point to two different focus points and send two different messages. One is sturdy, reliable, quaint, American; the other is the futuristic, solar dream of the nineties (alive in Portland?). This post from David Airey may be helpful in convincing your company that there's more to branding than a logo. And last, I like this post from LGM Creative because the Socratic method of asking questions here might be just as effective with adults, assuming they come up with a company with as strong of a brand as Target.
   
2. In general, I think all communications/design professionals should come from a place of knowing that whatever they do, whatever they make or produce, they'll be contributing to the brand presence of the company their work represents, for better or for worse. To be honest, I think all professionals no matter what their position should be aware that they're contributing to the brand of their company, again for better or worse.
   
   Anecdote time! My father, who's always been in sales, loves to tell the cheesy urban legend of the janitor at NASA: supposedly, when President Kennedy was visiting Cape Canaveral in the 60s, he encountered many men in overalls and asked them all, "what do you do here?" Most of them answered things like "take out the garbage," or "earn a living," but one very enthusiastic man who was sweeping the floor said, "I'm helping put a man on the moon." So the moral for my father and every other person in sales or leadership or team-building is that having a clearly defined vision will motivate your employees to see their work as more than just a job, and they'll become brand ambassadors even in their general conversation. In some ways, I agree with this sentiment--brands are built with customers on all their experiences with a company, not just with that company's advertising and/or logo. In the oversaturated environment we live in where we're inundated with messaging, it seems like a basic need that all employees understand the company's brand strategy. Not that that necessarily happens.
   
3. Sadly (or not sadly if there aren't nightmares), no--all that I'm saying comes from not having any real-life experience, other than trying to get my office co-workers to realize that typefaces matter and images printed from the Internet are not okay.
   
4. I'd say that strong branding is good business, as long as the brand is developed with the customer's needs in mind and with an eye for strong design. Do I think you can have a strong business without good branding? Sure, probably, especially a local one. I'm not sure I can give you an example off the top of my head, though, because when I think about the strongest companies, they tend to also have the strongest brands. Ultimately, though, I think strong branding has become a necessity in (again) the oversaturation of messaging we live with. 

Re: Branding

I'll be writing up a real response soon, but I wanted to share the website I was talking about in class.

http://www.underconsideration.com/brandnew

Re: Branding

Well hello, from sunny California. Heres my view.

Anywho back to the subject at hand. 

1.   What are your suggestions for making this particular branding issue work better?

This one is the most challenging discussion that I think we have had but as for suggestions I think that adding a division of American Design and Build LTD would be a small start to branding. Maybe colors change so at least the companies could be recognized by color.

2.   How important is having a good understanding of brand strategy for people in our line of work?

I think that it is important for us to understand what branding can do for a company. How it affects business and how it could add potential capital to a company.

3.   Do you have real life experience with a branding nightmare/success story?

I'm working on a logo for a church, which needs to be unique and different, but we all have the same ideas of what we think a logo for a religious organization should look like. I’m having a hard time with it but nothing like what you’re going through right now.

4.   How much of branding is good design and good    

business?

I thinking that branding is a little of both without one or the other the company could fail.

Branding

Hey guys! In true Shana form this week, I'm a little late posting! Sorry.

And as you all know, the blog is about branding and company identity. On Thursday I presented a real life branding problem I am running into at my work. Again, here are both logos one for the parent company 'American Design and Build' and one for the solar division of 'American Sentry Solar'.

Obviously, the issue is to make both work well together as the solar division continues to grow and become more successful without completely changing one or both logos. We need them to work together and be recognizable as the same brand but can't change too much about either.

Since I already gave a brief synopsis of the company, each logo and problem at hand, I thought I'd present some questions for us to discuss.

1. What are your suggestions for making this particular branding issue work better?
2. How important is having a good understanding of brand strategy for people in our line of work?
3. Do you have real life experience with a branding nightmare/success story?
4. How much of branding is good design and good business?