Unorthodox Brand Alliances
	Recently I was in a Copenhagen taxi, heading for the citys airport. My co-passenger was a lady who carried a fancy bag. A very nice bag, Im sure, but what interested me was the combination of brands it represented. The bag was produced by Samsonite. No surprise there, as Samsonite is the worlds largest luggage manufacturer. This Samsonite bag also represented Philippe Starck, a designer known for his work with furniture who, in this case, had designed the bag for Samsonite.
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	Smashing Your Brand
	Back in 1915 Earl R. Dean, who was working at the Root Glass Company, was given a brief to design a bottle, which firstly could be recognized in the dark. And then, even if broken, a person could tell at first glance what it was. Taking his inspiration from the pod of the cocoa bean, Dean produced a bottle with ridged contours. He succeeded beyond his wildest dreams. This led to the Coca-Cola Company’s contourization strategy, which used the shape to emphasize the very brand. The bottle he designed was the classic Coke bottle, which has become one of the most famous glass icons ever. The bottle is still in service, still recognizable, and been passing the smash test for every generation over the last 80 years.
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	ROI Branding
	The days where branding was all about big budgets and doubtful return on investments is long gone. Even though the big brand image campaign still might work – its harder and harder for any company justifying the big investments they require leading to alternative ways of building and maintaining brands – like ROI Branding. Let me check up the health of your brand – from a ROI point of view – ensuring that you haven’t overseen three of the most effective alternative ways of building brands. Team up…
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	Online Dating for Brands
	What do United Airlines and Starbucks coffee have in common? Take one of United\'s U.S. flights, and you\'ll find out. On every domestic flight, you\'re no longer served coffee. You\'re served Starbucks coffee. In fact, the deal between the two companies requires flight attendants to say \"Starbucks Coffee\" when offering in-flight beverages. What we\'re seeing is the trend toward brand alliances. Brands that are mutually complementary team up with each other and with their partners\' brand missions. A quick look at several major U.S. supermarkets reveals they offer Starbucks coffee. Starbucks cafés are situated in the stores. Starbucks analysed its traffic flow and concluded people are in the mood for a cup of something while waiting around. Successfully selling coffee to such customers optimises revenue flow for both the coffee chain and host establishments. Thus, brand alliances are born that benefit both the consumer and the bottom line.
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	Made In...
	Imagine you were offered a choice to purchase two different cars. Nothing was said about the cars, not even the price. The only information you have would be the country of origin. The first car is produced in Turkey – the second in Switzerland. Which one would you choose? Most people wouldn\'t hesitate. They\'d select the Swiss car, because Switzerland has established a reputation for products that are high quality, precise, secure and of good design. A country brand is everything. It\'s a factor in attracting tourists, trade agreements and consumers\' perception that earns respect. This respect extends to its citizens, and the way they are treated the world over.
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	Brand plus Brand
	Will the recent alliance between Proctor & Gamble and Gillette succeed? Well some years ago, the American Marketing Association produced a study with an interesting result. In a consumer survey on co-branding, 80 percent of respondents said they would be likely to buy a digital-imaging product co-branded by Sony and Eastman Kodak. However, only 20 percent of respondents claimed they would buy the product if it were branded by Kodak alone, and only 20 percent said they would buy the product if it carried only the Sony brand.
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	Brand Alliances Put to the Test
	I\'ll bet that, more than once in your career, you\'ve pondered the risk of teaming up with some other brand in a co-branding deal. The deal probably looked good; the conditions were perfect; but the brand... would it damage your own? It would be an exaggeration to claim that a number of studies have examined co-branding. But, luckily enough, I\'ve managed to get hold of one study that might help us shed light on the issue. The Journal of Consumer Marketing published the study I’m referring to in 2000. It reveals a lot of interesting data and highlights facts of which we are possibly instinctively aware -- by confirming them empirically. The study was based on potato chips and dips. By offering various combinations, the tests helped the research team determine how human beings value brand alliances.
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