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.