New ‘Old’ burger at McDonalds

September 2nd, 2011 Posted in Advertisement, Brand recognition, Food, History | No Comments »

We all love reminiscing about food we ate when we were younger, even those early McDonalds meals you may cherish.  So it seems no surprise that McDonalds is looking to the past when creating new burgers.

 They plan to launch their 1955 “no-nonsense” premium burger in the UK soon, the burger is named after the year the fast-food chain was founded and is reminiscent of the style of burger they launched the company with.

It looks like the new burger will be available in the next couple of weeks and those wishing to sample this new delight will find a beef burger served in a premium bun, with lettuce, grilled onion, tomato, bacon ketchup and smoky barbecue sauce.

At first the burger will be sold as part of a special promotion in addition to their usual menu however if it is successful then McDonalds may add it to their menu permanently.  It has already been a big hit in European markets, including Spain and Germany.

The new burger is expected to be accompanied by a campaign which has been created by Leo Burnett that pays tribute to the brand’s beginnings.

Over the summer McDonald’s branched out into an experiential marketing campaign to support the launch of its sweet chilli crispy chicken wraps which have also been quite popular.

Re-launch of online platform for M&S

August 20th, 2011 Posted in Brand recognition, Expansion, Online services, Social Media | No Comments »

With a lot of retailers now moving into more ecommerce, it’s no surprise to hear that British highstreet stalwart Marks and Spencer are moving closer to launching their first independent ecommerce and multi-channel platform. The company will be able to collect and use customer data to shape its international and UK business with this new platform, much better than they have in the past.

The new platform will be built by SapientNitro as part of the new CEO, Marc Bolland’s strategy to transform the retailer from a UK to an international multi-channel retailer by 2015. The company already had plans last year to sever ties with Amazon who currently hosts their online platform. This was so they could create a more flexible bespoke platform to help accelerate international growth and better integrate its multi-channel operations as part of Marc Bolland’s vision for the company’s future.

The development of the new platform will be overseen by M&S’s first multi-channel chief, Laura Wade-Gery who was appointed to that position last year after previously heading up Tesco.com.

Wade-Gery, executive director of multi-channel ecommerce at M&S, says: “We have had a very successful relationship with Amazon but in order to fulfil our multi-channel ambitions we need to build and manage our own platform.”

Over the next three years M&S aims to more than double its online sales to reach £1bn, after completing their new platform. Ecommerce, content management, search and analytics platforms for the site will be built by SapientNitro.

Lucozade renew their support English National teams

August 12th, 2011 Posted in Advertisement, Brand recognition | No Comments »

The famous sports energy drink, Lucozade which is owned by GlaxoSmithKline has signed a new four year deal with the Football Association, which sees the brand renewing it partnership which began back in September 2007.

Lucozade will be supporting all 24 England national teams over the next four years; this includes the men’s European Championship qualification campaign and the women’s senior team which are due to play against Serbia in September.

Head of business development at the FA, Sean McAuliffe, said: “Lucozade remains a market leader in the field of sports and energy drinks and has an unrivalled heritage of supporting top-flight football, and we are delighted to be able to continue our partnership with them. Their continued support and expertise will remain a huge asset to all England teams training and competing at the highest level.”

New site launched by Facebook for businesses

August 8th, 2011 Posted in Advertisement, Brand recognition, Expansion, Social Media | No Comments »

Facebook has launched a new site called Facebook for Businesses, which is aimed at helping small businesses use social media effectively. It offers tips on how to create pages, ads and use the Facebook platform for social plug-ins or apps specifically designed around small businesses rather than big business.

Facebook for Businesses is Facebook’s latest site in a series of pages and websites launched by them to help companies understand how using Facebook can benefit them. A Facebook spokeswoman says: “Facebook allows small businesses to create rich social experiences, build lasting relationships and amplify the most powerful type of marketing – word of mouth. We created Facebook.com/business to make it even easier for people to reach these objectives and grow.”

The social network launched Facebook studio in March this year, which is an online resource to showcase creative campaigns that have used the social network for brand activity. They also have their own pages across categories such as music, media and marketing.

Facebook have launched their business site after recent success of Google+ who are also now trialling business accounts on their too. Brands have been asked by the search giant to apply to take part in their tests before a full Google+ business which will be launched later in the year.

David Beckham to design underwear range for H&M

August 4th, 2011 Posted in Advertisement, Brand recognition, Clothing | No Comments »

From Valentine’s Day next year you will be able to buy David Beckhams long awaited underwear range H&M shops, after he entered a partnership deal with the company. The Bodywear range will be sold exclusively through some 1,800 H&M shops in around 40 countries worldwide.

Speaking about the launch next year H&M said it, will mark the beginning of a “significant relationship between H&M and David Beckham”. Which will see the partnership last initially for two years, during which time new products will be stocked seasonally.

Earlier this year Beckham announced details about the range and his business partner Simon Fuller, Fuller said the partnership with H&M was “an important step in the evolution of David’s journey from sporting hero to entrepreneur and icon”.

It’s not the first time David Beckham has delved into the world of underwear, in 2007 fashion brand Giorgio Armani signed up Beckham as the global ambassador for its Emporio underwear collection, which was a phenomenal success.

David Beckham sure likes to keep fashion in the family, his wife Victoria also has a successful fashion line VB designer clothing which gained critical acclaim amongst fashion insiders as well as a large celebrity following. Victoria has also branched out into shoes, bags and high street clothes.

Over the years the Swedish fashion group have formed a few partnerships with designers and celebrities. Some of those who have joined forces with H&M include; Chanel designer Karl Lagerfeld in 2004, Stella McCartney and Madonna

Superdrug readies The Only Way Is Essex cosmetic range

July 29th, 2011 Posted in Brand recognition, Expansion | No Comments »

The famous beauty store, Superdrug, has announced that it is to launch an exclusive ‘The Only Way Is Essex’ ‘cosmetics and perfume range, ‘so that customers can replicate the look of the characters from the popular ITV2 programme.

The launch of this particular range is part of the new “take another look” campaign that aims to boost the brand by putting emphasis on ranges that are ‘in’ with the current fashion trends.

The range is said to include: a home vajazzle kit, lip gloss, mascara, perfume for men (“Be Reem”), perfume for women (“Dazzle”) and a bronzer; so that customers can produce the famous ‘Only Way Is Essex’ fake tan look.

The range is said to be launched just in time for Christmas.

Superdrug is also said to be expanding its men’s Christmas gift section by as much as 20% as the company are set to compete against rival beauty brand ‘Boots’.

T-shirt printing – Successful visibility

July 22nd, 2011 Posted in Advertisement, Brand recognition, Clothing | No Comments »

If you are looking into t shirt printing as a form of advertising then there are some things you should consider first. For example; can you target you clients easily, will your designs be easily recognisable and will it be cost effective?

Using printed t-shirts for corporate days can be highly effective especially around prospective clients, events are another useful area where printed t-shirts come in handy and of course in the work place.

Making sure you stick out with your designs and been easily recognisable means people know who you are. Bright designs do work well however you should also aim to keep designs in line with your corporate identity too. Big bold designs come in handy if your company colour scheme isn’t particularly bright.

Finally make sure what you produce is cost effective, you can bulk buy t-shirts through retailers, Adlogo are one such online retailer who offer discounts on bulk orders. They also offer a quick turnaround service so if you need more t-shirts quickly they can do that for you.

If you think t-shirt printing can help you company have a look online today.

Carlsberg looks to Rooney to boost sales

July 20th, 2011 Posted in Advertisement, Brand recognition, Expansion | No Comments »

Carlsberg, the Danish brewing company, has extended its deal with the Football Association (FA) ad is set to increase the use of England players in its marketing.

Faces such as Wayne Rooney, John Terry and Jack Wilshere are now allowed to be advertised in campaigns both in the UK and globally,  after the beer brand, already the “official beer” of the England football team, has agreed to this in a contract.

The value of the new deal was not disclosed but it is thought that the beer brand paid more for the additional rights.

Hoping that the advertising will boost sales, Parent company Carlsberg UK claims that sales of Carlsberg in pubs increased by 26% during the first week of last year’s World Cup.

Chief executive at Carlsberg UK, Dr Isaac Sheps, states: “We know that when we activate around our England sponsorship we see a great boost to sales and brand awareness. It is a great partnership and one that we hope will extend beyond the 2014 World Cup.”

Separately, the FA has announced Budweiser as title sponsor of the FA Cup. The new beer brand will replace E.on.

Web-based magazine introduced by Pandora with “1 million” readership

July 15th, 2011 Posted in Advertisement, Brand recognition, Expansion, Online services | No Comments »

Pandora, the famous jewellery manufacturer, is ready to produce a new digital magazine that aims to achieve an audience of over 1 million people. The interactive magazine will be available to Pandora’s Customer Club with a whopping 1.6 million members.

The mag enables readers to share their favourite articles with friends and family on social networking sites and comment on them. Pandora’s popular Facebook page is evidence that online publicity is key to moving the company forward.

The magazine is going to be available in 4 different languages and published 6 times a year. The magazine will eventually be adapted to different shops with local content. John Lewis and P&G are among some of the well-known brands to launch digital magazines in recent months.

Key elements that will feature in the fab mag will include: behind the scenes insights into the brand, fashion shoots, style tips and Pandora customer stories.

Executive marketing director, Mikkel Berg, quotes: “This magazine rewards our customers’ loyalty and gives new opportunities for them to share their thoughts with each other and the company. The dialogue gives us a better understanding of what Pandora customers want, which we can learn from and incorporate into our future plans.”

Waitrose to develop into convenience shops

July 11th, 2011 Posted in Advertisement, Brand recognition, Expansion | No Comments »

Waitrose, the high-class food-store, has announced that it intends to expand into the convenience industry and has guaranteed to open at least a total of 20 new Little Waitrose shops. The expansion follows the testing of the sub-brand Little Waitrose in the Waitrose store on in South Kensington, which started out in January.

The development into the convenience market puts Waitrose face to face with competitors such as Marks & Spencer and its Simply Food smaller stores which hopefully will be a success.

So far this year, Waitrose has opened one full-size supermarket and five convenience stores in London. The next Little Waitrose will open on Tottenham Court Road in central London this week.

The launch marks the largest number of branches that Waitrose has opened in London in a year, and will create up to 1,000 jobs, according to a company spokesperson. The first Waitrose opened in Acton, west London in 1904. Waitrose has also promised Wimbledon and Stratford two new full-size supermarkets, and five convenience shops, which is said to create a further 600 jobs by Christmas time.

Managing Director, Mark Price, exclaims: “London is an important part of our heritage, so this is another exciting milestone for our business. It demonstrates our ambition to continue increasing our presence and improving our accessibility to those who wish to shop with us.”

Throughout the last six years, Waitrose has taken major steps to increase the number of its sites within the UK, however, more than a quarter of its 257 stores are located within the M25.