Patients, employees, and loved ones may experience stress and anxiety in healthcare settings. While initial medical facilities were not designed with mental health in mind, a recent change towards better overall wellness has changed this. Healthcare designs, as a setting that can have negative connotations, must strive to create a sense of calm for its […]
How Design Contributes To Health And Mental Wellbeing Read More »
How do you meet the needs and aspirations of your customers? How do you differentiate your brand to start successfully selling products and services? It’s best to start by determining your company’s needs and priorities. Many brands fail to define their value proposition, even though it may appear obvious to some. A positioning process can
How To Define Your Company’s Value Proposition (With Free Guide) Read More »
In 2022, in spite of inflation and the threat of a recession, consumers flocked to stores, restaurants, and other in-person experiences after several years of COVID-related barriers. Concerts were sold out, restaurants were booked weeks in advance, and wedding season was outright crazy – all while venues, stores, and kitchens were understaffed. Although consumers may
How Brands Are Delivering High-Touch Service Experiences In 2022 Read More »
We are emerging from the pandemic and should expect a period of chaos as customers establish new values, such as working from home, inflation, and the recession. At the same time, companies try to respond to remain relevant. Our predictions for 2022 were fairly accurate, citing increased automation, the need to go green, the emergence
What Will 2023 Look Like For Retail Brands? Read More »
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One of the most promising strategies for established CPG brands attempting to grow their direct-to-consumer online business is in giftables. M&Ms started the trend many years ago when they offered consumers the chance to personalize their classic candies: bridal showers, weddings and baby showers in the early 2000s just didn’t seem complete without a tulle-wrapped
CPG Brand Gifts that Drive Direct-To-Consumer Growth Read More »
The COVID-19 pandemic has renewed our focus on health and wellness, influencing people worldwide to be more self-aware of its importance. This has driven growth in the global wellness economy, and it now exceeds a $4 trillion industry. Demand for wellness products and services creates an exceptional opportunity for health and wellness companies to secure
The Importance of Branding to Health & Wellness Brands Read More »
Direct-to-consumer (DTC) brands have disrupted retail with unique niche offerings, greater convenience, and great savings. By rethinking simple products like shaving cream and razors, giants like Dollar Shave Club shook things up. Their success has inspired a sea of entrants into almost every category, driving up the costs of customer acquisition online and making it
How to Enter Retail for DTC Brands Read More »
As we look back on 2021, it would be nice to be able to view COVID-19 in the rearview mirror with a sigh of relief. But to quote Michael Corleone, “just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in!” This must be the way a lot of brands are feeling right now,
The Best Brand Pivots of COVID-19 Read More »
The inability to tell fact from fiction is being driven by a number of factors and is challenging the way that consumers perceive and engage with brands. To help gain a better understanding of how consumers discern information and make their purchase decisions, SLD conducted a study among 2000 respondents in January, 2021. As part
DeepReal Part 2: The Blurring Line Between Fact and Fiction Read More »
It has been a long time since we have experienced such a disruptive year. Many of us are wondering if 2021 will bring with it the same level of uncertainty or if the dust will settle, and what a new normal will look like. To that point, at the end of each year, we provide
Six Things That Will Define 2021 Read More »
Not since the second world war has the entire planet been so focused on a singular event. Stories about economic impact, charts of the curve… it’s all consuming and can feel exhausting. But in the midst of the anxiety and very real impact, there are also stories of inspiration – people doing what they can
The Best Brand Responses to COVID-19 Read More »
Soaring property values, increased urban dwelling, housing shortages and stagnating salaries are just some of the factors that are keeping younger generations out of the housing market. Many millennials now say they do not think they’ll ever be able to afford a home, and things are even bleaker for Generations Z and Alpha. And for
How A Decline in Home Ownership Will Impact Brands Read More »
We’ve all been there: excited and passionate to do something and then…we don’t do it. Often this can be seen with forgotten New Year’s Resolutions, unopened books, and abandoned gym memberships. This phenomenon, defined by behavioral psychologists as the “intention-action gap,” has been a challenge for marketers, who know all-too-well that enthusiastic consumers in surveys and
What The Intention-Action Gap Means for Brands Read More »
In our 2030 predictions blog we included two of many likely scenarios. One of these we called the “Fortress Society,” which would see the increased rise of isolationist movements, a move away from global trade and a growing division between an Asian versus North America centric economy. This scenario was driven by the rise of buying locally,
The Evolving Definition of “Local” Read More »
The following is an excerpt from Jean-Pierre Lacroix’s Desire by Design. To learn more about the book, click here. Brand loyalty is the ability to build sustainable relationships between brands and consumers by providing both a functional and emotional benefit that meet the meaningful needs of the consumer. Certain circumstances or triggers have to exist
The Key Triggers That Drive Brand Loyalty Read More »
With the surge in consumer demand for things that are better, faster and more convenient, the past decade has had a wealth of challenges and opportunities for CPG brands. As we put this eventful decade behind us, it’s time for businesses to prepare for a strong sprint into 2020. Here are some top packaging trends
Packaging Trends to Keep an Eye On Read More »
Packaging is a complex and evolving topic. It’s one third of CPG and one fourth of the 4 P’s of Marketing, therefore a crucial consumer-facing element in any strategy. So it comes as no surprise that a great technique to generate buzz and potentially gain viral status is leveraging the best and most accessible canvas:
Packaging Strategies That Will Get People Talking Read More »
Creating a name for a company, a service or a product is an important part of the overall branding strategy for a business. A great name helps convey what a brand stands for and is aligned with both the brand personality traits and its value proposition, helping build brand equity. Inviting employees and/or customers to
Naming Strategies for Your Business, Product, or Service Read More »
Plastic, a useful and cheap material once seen as the solution to every packaging problem, is choking the planet. Although most plastic is recyclable, only about 9 percent of it is actually recycled. This means billions of tonnes of plastic end up as trash. Globally we have reached a maximum capacity for our recycling plants,
The Best Eco-Friendly Packaging Options Read More »
