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FACT: One in five Irish Enterprises fail according to the Irish Small and Medium Enterprises Association. In many instances they fail due to a lack of understanding of their customers and market place.

Post-recession shoppers are a completely different breed when compared to what has gone before. They’ve been profoundly impacted by a feeling of deprivation the recession caused and the way in which they’ve coped with it. Now they are more demanding than ever and their expectations are increasingly high. We all know shoppers are fickle and the days of being completely loyal to one brand or company are gone. Shoppers have been conditioned to search out the best price and value during these recessionary times yet they can be swayed at the point of purchase to make very different decisions. Other factors like emotions also come into play, hence the contradiction in terms, when you hear that more than one in two customers claim to be cutting down on treats but sales of premium products such as ice cream and chocolates are on the rise. How can that be?

Business consultancy Deloitte released an interesting research report just this week in New York where they talked about a ‘paradigm shift’ in consumer purchasing habits in the US. It found that a whopping 84% of households were examining their spending in every category to try and save money while 79% believed they were ‘smarter’ shoppers than they were two years ago. But it also found that 75% believed that the financial crisis had caused them to realise ‘which brands I really care about and which ones are less important to me’ and that there were only two or three brands which they ‘could not live without’.

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Tags: @ThinkTank_, brand audit, Branding, Colette Quinn, Company Analysis, competitor analysis, consumer insights, consumer trends, Cork, differentiation, Enterprise Ireland, Ireland, Jonathan Amm, Lisa Murphy, Market Analysis, Marketing, Marketing Director, post recessionary customer, Real Insights, Research, social media, ThinkTank, Twitter, www.think-tank.ie

Insights & Tips on Company & Product Naming

Naming a business is a lot like laying the cornerstone of a new building. Once it’s in place, the entire foundation and structure is aligned to that original stone. If it’s off, even in the slightest, the misalignment becomes amplified.

The tougher it gets out there, the more important it is to put your marketing money where it will do the most good. Coming up with the right name for a company or a product can make a huge difference in building a brand and even in determining it’s future success. Too often companies jump straight into designing a logo and then spend the rest of the marketing budget trying to explain to people what they actually do and what their difference is.

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Tags: 10 tips on company naming, @ThinkTank_, Advertising, Big Idea, Brand Positioning, Brand Strategy, Branding, Company Naming, Cork, differentiation, Fishy Fishy, Innovation, Ireland, Irish Patents Office, Jonathan Amm, Kinsale, Logo Design, Marketing, Product Development, Product Naming, Start-ups, Strategy, Trade Mark Agents, Trademarks, Twitter

For a business to be viable, it has to do something as well as its competitors; to win in a competitive market, it has to do something better than its competitors.

Recent research by global marketing firm, Young & Rubicam highlights the fact that 80% of new businesses and brands fail. Lack of differentiation is cited as the major reason for business failure.

In order to ensure that your product is preferred over those of your competitors, you must consider the complete brand experience and how that experience will contribute to consumer perception. Your brand isn’t what you think it is – it’s what your customer think it is. Your brand isn’t your logo, web site design or tag line – it’s a research informed strategic premise that is designed to deliver competitive advantage and grow market share.

As a bit of a brand refresher and value add to customers, ThinkTank decided to take a peek into what really goes on inside the mind of your customer.

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Tags: @ThinkTank_, Advertising, Brand Positioning, Branding, differentiation, Emotional Branding, Jonathan Amm, Marketing, Twitter, USP, www.think-tank.ie

Let’s say you’re at a networking event and someone steps in the elevator with you, notices your nametag, and asks, “So what do you guys do?” Quick–what’s your answer? You’ve got just 30 seconds before the doors open so you’d better think fast.

In many ways an Elevator Pitch is shorthand for what your brand stands for. It’s your one-shot opportunity to be different and present yourself in a compelling and memorable way. For most business owners, getting to the crux of what you really do is the hardest, yet potentially most rewarding, one-minute conversation you could ever have.

So what is an Elevator Pitch?

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Tags: @ThinkTank_, Advertising, Brand Positioning, Branding, Cork, differentiation, Elevator Pitch, Entrepreneurs, Ireland, Jonathan Amm, Marketing, Start-ups, Strategy, ThinkTank, Twitter, Value Proposition, www.think-tank.ie