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HIPPOS CREATIVE AGENCY
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Foreword
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The Cocktail Process
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The Agency Services
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Hippos Cocktails
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Vodafone
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Maritimo Shopping Center
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Green Hills
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Vivando Unirii
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Magnum Rasfat Regal
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Danone
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Actimel
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Activia
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Regalina
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Upsiders
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Interbelic
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Snack Attack
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Sollers
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Casinos
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Augsburg International
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ProGarage and PerfektAuto
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Dealer
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AT Augsburg
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Willon Harbour
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Share the boat, start the fun
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Link Resource
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HARE
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Fa & Gliss
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Nestle Baby
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Hippos Kids
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Hippos creating identities
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Interactive Design
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Our clients and friends
Foreword Emanuel Clonda Managing Partner 5
What you see is not what you see
(WYSINWYS)
Our most creative moments occur when we are asleep. Our dreams are fascinating, both happy and sad, terrifying, but surely eclectic. Our subconscious is too profound to be entirely memorized. Every time we wake up, we try to remember the seed that brought us in the middle of a totally unfamiliar place. Yet we cannot explain the reasons or meanings of our dreams. Most of the times, we reach a certain point when we think we have found the answer, and that urges us to struggle some more. But in the end we actually realize we have found nothing. We cannot puzzle out the storyline, so we move on.
What you see is not what it means … like many things that surround us in our daily existence. Why? Because our visual culture teaches us that a lily is not only a flower, but a symbol of purity, innocence and virtue. So what we see can have different meanings and purposes. That’s why we have to let ourselves get carried away by the power of symbols and visual communication.
What you see is what you get The energy – So we concentrate most of our energy to understand and explain our opinions, our beliefs, our life
experience, our ideas. The process – In the end, it comes to results. Every GM wants to see results. What, when and how you manage to get it done with all the guidelines considered. There is no “It depends” here. The questions – Every day we search for solutions for our dreams to take shape, hoping we will piece up what we have in mind. But we are sometimes afraid of what we can find and we slip into confusion. Wrong! It shouldn’t be about being afraid, but about understanding the purposes of our ideas. And that is why we have to ask for solutions from people who understand us and know what we feel. Sometimes we change our mind with every answer we get. Other times we want to change people around us because we cannot decide. But we still have that idea in mind that has to be transformed. With a posivite and happy result, right? Because WE LOVE COLOURS and also we love ideas…. Even ideas are actually colours or vice versa. What we know is that colours inspire the consumer... and the client... and the results... so we get the positive, happy end, right? There was a time when a 4 minute music video was too long for the audience. Now time is shrinking. Too much information surrounds us. And unfortunately, our mind spends less time with details. But we WILL succeed, because we have realized that we have a few seconds to tell consumers what a Fyodor Mikhaylovich Dostoyevsky`s novel is about. Welcome to the 2 seconds WYSIWYG* generation. (*what you see is what you get)
The cocktail process Hippos is a creative agency who, during its existence, has defined the Cocktail Process. 6
What does it mean? The Cocktail Process is a mixed drink containing ingredients such as strategic planning, creative ideas, account management, efficient media and a very accurate production. The cocktails we mix are 100% customized for every client we have.
How does it work? First we ask what shape, colour or taste you like. Then, we combine our knowledge in mixology with your personality. We put together all the ingredients, and then we strongly shake them up, until the perfect cocktail falls into place.
What happens next? Time to enjoy it.
Remember:
Choose Mix Shake Enjoy
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Hippos Cocktails
Vodafone
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Company/Brand: Vodafone Project: Facebook contest Date: September 2010
Vodafone
The giant of telecommunications Vodafone is the world’s largest mobile telecommunication group, with over 347 million clients worldwide. In the Romanian market, Vodafone is one of the most active companies in terms of communication and advertising, using all kinds of media from TV, radio, print, OOH and BTL to online. Vodafone Romania is active on Facebook, Twitter and Flickr, and is part of many online projects. In September 2010, when Guns N’Roses arranged to have their first concert in Romania, Vodafone planned to organize an online contest offering Guns N’Roses related prizes. They needed a simple, yet creative mechanism that would involve fans and generate buzz.
Guns N’Hippos for Vodafone on Facebook The Hippos team has created a contest mechanism and implemented it on Vodafone Buzz, the company’s existing Facebook page. We have named the contest “Rock Attitude” and we have created a mechanism that implied developing an application through API technology, flash programming and lots of art direction and copywriting. In order to enter the contest, participants had to upload a photo of them proving their rock attitude and then wait to see if they have won (by visiting the Vodafone Buzz page and checking the contest’s evolution). What happened “behind the scenes”? Each contestant’s photo randomly replaced one piece in one of the 5 puzzle-posters
(each puzzle-poster represented the name of a Guns N’Roses song, made from lots of small pieces). When one poster got filled-up with photos, the application revealed the winners and opened the next poster for fans to upload their photos in. The contest offered 50 tickets for the Guns N’Roses concert in Bucharest, 20 CDs and 5 Chinese Democracy Boxes, distributed in 5 puzzle-posters.
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The application was multidirectional: it could be accessed for entering the contest, checking the status or just seeing what it was all about.
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Maritimo Shopping Center
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Company/Brand: Maritimo Shopping Center Project: Branding Date: since July 2010
Maritimo Shopping Center
The new meeting point in Constanta Maritimo is a developing project, the largest shopping center in the Constanta region, which aims to become the community’s new meeting point, a place providing a great variety of options for shopping and entertainment, both to Constanta inhabitants and tourists. Maritimo needed a brand for the project, so they approached Hippos.
A dynamic identity We have created the logo based on the name “Maritimo”, its connection to the sea and the idea of large variety of shopping and entertainment. We started by thinking of the sea and its constant motion – winds, water currents, organisms living under water are continuously moving. Also, the idea of sea stands for a variety of notions, from physical ones (water, temperature, salinity, wind, sand, etc.) to emotional ones (fun, relaxing, enthusiasm, being at ease, etc.).
Further on, we have created the visual identity to be used in communication materials: first, a pattern made by multiplying the black and white version of the logomark, and second, an oversized version of the logomark to be used on white backgrounds for strong visual impact. Then, we have applied the identity in stationery, personalized give away products (branded textile bag, metallic laser-pen with case, colored plastic pens) and brochure. The latter was a leasing brochure the company uses for presenting the shopping center to potential tenants. Having the opening scheduled for the end of 2011, Maritimo Shopping Center is an ongoing project for the Hippos team.
In order to show these two features, we have created a multicolored shape that seems to be in motion. The logo encloses the letter M, the idea of waves, the dynamics and energy of the sea environment, but also the great variety of entertainment people can find in Maritimo Shopping Center (shown through the multiple colors used). Also, the shape is an intersection of roads – showing that Maritimo is the metaphorical center of the community it is part of, a place where every road leads to. The Maritimo Shopping Center logo reconstructed from colored T-shirts.
The Maritimo team needed to distribute the leasing brochure along with other information such as plans, maps or offers, so we have created a box to hold them together. We have used the pattern for the interior of the box and the oversized logo mark on the cover.
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The slogan we have created is “Ride the wave!� (Fii pe val!), encouraging people to come to Maritimo Shopping Center and find what they need to be modern and successful. Work in progress: radio communication, signage in the shopping center, audio and odor concepts.
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Green Hills
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Company: Aura Europe Brand: Green Hills Project: Visual communication materials Date: April - June 2009
The first high quality residential project in Piatra Neamt Green Hills is the first residential development on a large scale in Piatra Neamt and one of the most important investments in the city, providing the highest quality standards and comfort. The complex integrates modern architecture with high quality finishes to create an exceptional living environment. During its development, the company contracted Hippos for creating a set of visual
communication materials that would create awareness in the Piatra Neamt community, and also build trust in the project.
Hippos goes green Starting from the project’s name and logo, we have created leaflets, vouchers and folders with green backgrounds and graphic elements inspired from leaves shapes and textures. We have focused on showing large images of the development and of the furnished apartment interiors, in order to express the idea of top quality, yet affordable units. Another graphic element that dominates the layouts is an invitation card hanging out of the leaves – a combination of nature symbols and the regular printed invitation we are all used to. The shape of the folder’s pocket follows the contour of such a card and its string, that looks like it’s coming out of a tree branch. For the opening of the Galeria Mall shopping center located 2 minutes away from Green Hills, the project featured a presentation corner providing information to visitors. For this occasion, we have developed a strategic promotion offering 3,000 lei apartment expenses to those who bought a unit in Green Hills, and we have announced the promotion through vouchers hanging from a string.
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In 2009, Green Hills was the most important real estate project in Piatra Neamt.
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Vivando Unirii
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Company/brand: Vivando Unirii Project: Website, communication materials Date: 2008-2010
Vivando Unirii
An elegant residential complex Vivando Unirii is a residential compound located in the center of Bucharest. Since 2008 and up to its completion in 2010, the developer needed to create awareness for the Vivando brand and communicate its special offers in order to draw potential customers.
Hippos wraps up Vivando With a middle upper class positioning, Vivando had to communicate in an elegant manner, by focusing on the benefits clients would profit from when buying an apartment. Our goal was to create a relaxing environment, a new living experience brought by the project’s features: great location downtown, intimacy, wide spaces, private gardens, elegant architecture, security and lots of facilities for inhabitants. Therefore, we have thought of an elegant, minimalist graphic concept based on Vivando’s brand colors – grey, black, white and hints of orange, and featuring strong words that send out the idea of happiness, family and dreams coming true. We have implemented this concept in Vivando’s website – a bilingual flash website, including video presentations, virtual tours of the project, 3D photos and animations, and useful information such as apartment plans, location map, information about the developers, etc. Also, we have designed the project’s brochure: a 44 page hard cover book that introduces the viewer in the Vivando universe, through large photos, relevant famous quotes and meaningful taglines, printed on special Pantone colors and tracing paper inserts. Besides the presentation materials, we have also created promotional prints sustaining the current promotions. One of them suggested the idea of making yourself a gift – we have wrapped the inside of an apartment with a gift bow, also communicating that if you buy an apartment, you receive it fully furnished.
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Magnum
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Company: Unilever Brand: Magnum Project: Facebook page and activities Date: Since July 2010
The World’s Pleasure Authority Magnum is the #1 ice cream in the world (in the impulse segment) and the most known ice cream brand of Unilever worldwide. It is renowned for its thick chocolate layer, which cracks when biting it, and its smooth and silky vanilla ice cream filling. Since 2009, Magnum has been communicated on the Romanian market as “The World’s Pleasure Authority”, through the ATL campaign based on the “Royal Treatment” concept. In 2010, the brand continued with this communication line, bringing much more focus on creating a very premium brand experience, and making Magnum the most appealing ice cream brand. In addition to its ATL and BTL activities, Magnum also needed to approach its target in the digital environment. And what better way to do that than Facebook?
A Facebook Royal Treatment by Magnum We have created a Facebook page called “Magnum Rasfat Regal” (Magnum Royal Treatment) where we have provided smart and exclusive content and consumer attractive rewards in order to gain friends and keep them active. The Facebook page hosted a contest called “Castiga un rasfat regal cu Magnum” (Win a Royal Treatment with Magnum), where participants could win a trip for two in their dream destination – Ibiza, Dubai, or the Stonefield Castle in Scotland. The user had to answer a quiz about pleasure, relaxation and leisure. Based on his/her answers, the application assigned the destination that best suited his/her personality and likes. Then, the user had to invite a friend to join him/her in the contest for winning
the trip, and both of them had to encourage Facebook friends to vote for them. For this purpose, we have created a mechanism that helps them spread the word and also create awareness for the contest, in order to bring more participants. The concept was meant to create a chain reaction across social media. During the contest period, we have created wall content sending out Magnum’s brand personality and values, engaging visitors in conversations and other small contests (the first user who found the Magnum ice cream hidden in our photo album and tagged himself on that spot won a weekend for 2 in Mamaia). After the contest was over, we have continued Facebook activities during fall and winter – interaction with users on Magnum’s wall and contests with indulging prizes, which continued to bring lots of new friends.
Facts & numbers During the 3 weeks of contest, 22,150 users have interacted with our application. The new friends of Magnum have posted thousands of comments on walls, spreading the word about Magnum, and offering us valuable feedback: coffee and ice cream recipes, funny comments regarding ice cream eating, pictures uploads with Magnum or with them eating Magnum, questions regarding Magnum. The winner couple gained over 1.300 votes and has won a trip for two in Ibiza.
Fun stuff During research, pre-campaign time and meetings with the client, our lactose-intolerant art director couldn’t resist eating Magnum ice cream almost every day. Lucky for him (and the rest of us), he carries his antihistaminic pills with him at all times.
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The client’s point of view Irina Urechean, Marketing Assistant Magnum, Unilever: “Creating the Facebook page was good for our brand because we were able to interact with our fans in real time and get feedback from them, but also useful insights; and all of these… on a Facebook page. Moreover, the project has been in harmony with the brand’s personality and its communication direction. Communication with Hippos has been easy and in real time. We appreciate the team’s short reaction time when dealing with problems and their receptivity to our feedback. Also, their proactivity has made them come with proposals for preventing eventual problems and achieving the best results.”
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Danone
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Company/brand: Danone Project: Corporate website Date: Since October 2010
Danone
A global leader in healthy food Group Danone is a French food-products multinational corporation, world leader in fresh dairy products and bottled water. Danone is present on the Romanian market since 1996 and now has a portfolio of over 60 products references, most of them yogurts. Danone Romania is an active partner in research programs for the nutrition of children and elderly people. Also, the company has a great experience in developing new products by adding functional components such as probiotics, vitamins, fibers, minerals and antioxidants, and also in conducting studies along with specialized medical teams on the consumption on specific nutrients. Danone Romania needed to change its online communication platform, www.danone.ro, in order to continuously be in contact with all its partners: end consumers, mass-media, authorities and regulatory institutions, business partners and NGOs.
Redesigning Danone online We have created a new website whose creative concept is based on the company’s values – humanism, openness, proximity and enthusiasm. These values are the foundation of Danone’s unique organizational culture and support the company’s identity and promise: “Danone – Pofta de sanatate” claim stands for promoting the importance of yogurt in a healthy diet and promoting a balanced lifestyle. The new website is built in 6 sections: “About Danone”, “Products”, “Danone is involved”, “Science and Health”, “Careers”, and “Press”. In “About Danone”, users can find the
company’s mission and values, as well as the brand’s history and the way Danone produces yogurt. The “Products” section is structured by product, allowing easy access to detailed information about each Danone product. The “Danone is involved” section is dedicated to corporate social responsibility. Visitors can see the social projects developed by Danone for supporting the community and protecting the environment. In “Science and health”, users can read useful information on the nutritional quality and health benefits of Danone products. Also, they can find out what a balanced diet is, how to read products’ labels and how to evaluate their weight status. Furthermore, the company provides scientific proof found by researchers in clinic medical studies, as well as product monographs. The “Careers” section is one of the most dynamic parts of the website, sending out the relaxed atmosphere in the company and its vision about the work environment. Users can find a recruiting tool, information on internship and training programs, as well as Danone’s fundamentals as employer. The “Press” section is the company’s interface with mass-media, providing up-to-date information and official press releases, as well as contact details and additional media resources – logos, photos, products description. The design is inspired from the Danone identity. We have used a colour range based on white and blue in order to create a corporate, clean environment, and rounded shapes for sending out humanism and openness. Also, in order to familiarize viewers with the Danone world, we have used headers with large images, representative for each section. The homepage features short video intros with joyful families, expressing the concept “Pofta de sanatate”.
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Actimel
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Company: Danone Brand: Actimel Project: Website, Facebook page and campaigns Date: Since January 2010
A delicious drinking yogurt Actimel is a drinking probiotic yogurt produced by Danone. It helps the body’s natural defense system through its L Casei ferment, used exclusively by Danone. Actimel is available in 6 flavors - natural and various fruit. Actimel’s communication needed its own website and Facebook activity, so Hippos came to the rescue.
Actimel’s online universe We have created Actimel’s official website for Romania, www.actimel.ro, a multiple section flash website focused on offering information on Actimel’s composition, nutritional values and its positive impact on our health. The section “Scientific evidence” provides specialists with data collected by scientists from clinical studies.
Another purpose of the website is to promote a healthy lifestyle, by offering useful information about nutrition, rest and exercise. Actimel’s ambassador, Simona Balanescu, is present in the section “Me and Actimel”, where we have embedded short videos of her testimonials about how she discovered Actimel and why she considers it useful for her family. The website is connected to Actimel’s Facebook page, developed in January 2010 for creating the Actimel brand experience and communicating with friends on a daily basis. The Facebook page contains information on all Actimel products, a “Goodies” section where friends can download Actimel wallpapers, a Video section with Simona Balanescu talking about Actimel, a “Poll” section that helps us understand the consumer’s behavior related to Actimel and Facebook, a “News” section that communicates the latest promotions or contests and a “Doodle” section where friends can design their own Actimel bottle by using a drawing application. We think that constantly generating fresh, ludic Facebook content is very important for the brand’s relationship with its fans, keeping them close and loyal. Since launching the Facebook page, we have developed various campaigns and contests. Here are some of them: launching Actimel Cherry – take a picture of you spending summer with Actimel Cherry and win a thermal bag filled with Actimel; Actimel Doodle – draw your own Actimel bottle and the most voted design gets to be the next Actimel profile photo. Actimel’s Facebook communication consists of constantly generating wall content and creating low budget promo campaigns with great impact in the existing Actimel community. At the time we have published this portfolio, the Actimel Facebook page had gathered over 12,400 friends, who generate wall content and discussions about Actimel and healthy lifestyle. And their number keeps growing.
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Activia
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Company: Danone Brand: Activia Project: Facebook page, desktop widget Date: Since January 2010
A yogurt for daily routine Activia is a probiotic yogurt from Danone, which has positive effects on digestion. Activia is available in various types – regular yogurt and drinking yogurt, and flavors – natural, cereals, fruit flavored. Besides being included in the Danone Romanian corporate website, Activia also has its own website www.activia.ro, where the company communicates information about the products, nutritional values, scientific data, campaigns and current promotions. Being a modern, friendly brand, Activia needed to get in touch with its friends through social media as well.
information), Video (embedding short videos with ads and features), News (new products and promotions), Poll (helping us understand the consumers’ behavior related to Activa and Facebook), and others are temporary, dedicated to current events, contests or special offers. In addition to the regular sections, we have created a special tab, dedicated to an application where visitors can test their digestive system. Based on their answers to a set of questions about their lifestyle, the test gives them advice on how to keep their digestive system healthy.
Over time, we have implemented various contests or activities supporting Activia campaigns from other media. For the launching of Activia Mic Dejun, we gave Activia’s friends on Facebook the opportunity to download a discount coupon for them to use in supermarkets when buying Activia Mic Dejun. For supporting the TV show “Dansez pentru tine”, we have created a Facebook contest – the first fan that uploaded a photo of her and her favorite Activia on our wall won 2 seats in public at the show’s final edition. For the In January 2010, our team has created “Discover the Activia woman in you” campaign, Activia’s Facebook page and, since we have created a special tab describing the then, has populated it with information and activities regarding the contest and redirecting users to the online competition. integrated campaigns developed in other media. The objective Also, as an extra gadget, we have developed a special was to inform people about the products and campaigns, and Activia widget, which users can download, install and use to create an environment where Activia’s friends could enjoy the as an organizer, advice giver and weather forecast, and also brand’s experience. synchronize their Facebook account with it.The Activia’s The Activia Facebook page is based on a structure consisting of Facebook community has grown to over 16,000 friends at the various informative and interactive sections. Some of them are time we have printed this portfolio, proving the campaigns were permanent – Products (showing all Activia products and nutritional successful and that fans like the Activia “recipe” for Facebook.
Sustainable campaigns for social media
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Regalina
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Company: Necri San Brand: Regalina Project: Naming, identity Date: Since June 2009
An egg farm in a mountain region Necri San is an independent egg farm located in Rasnov, near Brasov. Compared to other industrial egg farms, Necri San has smaller capacity and production rate, but this is translated into better quality products. The farm produces its own forage, in order to control the chicken’s nutrition and hence the quality of the eggs. In terms of distribution, they sell their eggs in supermarkets around the region and plan to go nationwide. Necri San needed a strong identity for their business and products, so they approached Hippos to find a solution.
Regalina: the chicken you love After performing a thorough research on the egg farms market, we have created an identity that positions Necri San completely different from others. We have used large cartoon-style visuals and we have created a friendly character that people would remember – the Regalina chicken. The name Regalina is a conjunction of two words – “regal” and “gallina” (Latin for chicken), meaning the royal chicken, as a direct reference to the quality of the eggs. The visual identity is a graphic composition representing a friendly chicken laying in front of a farm, both on top of a giant egg, symbolizing the fact that Regalina is located in the mountains. In order to create a natural, rustic environment, we have used representative graphic elements: a small house with a wooden fence, green grass, leaves and flowers.
The products’ quality is also communicated through the flower on the chicken’s neck, which can be interpreted as a medal. The logotype uses a personalized character, created by our team for the Regalina brand, in order to give it a unique, friendly personality. The logo is available in 3 versions. For packaging and commercial use, we recommended using the full version, in order to create the Regalina story, while for stationery it is better to use only the handwritten logotype or the logotype inserted in the egg, in order to have a corporate image in the business-to-business environment. In terms of slogan, we have created a descriptor for corporate use, “The farm from Rasnov” (Ferma din Rasnov), in order to clearly communicate the farm’s location, an important aspect for creating partners in the region. For commercial use, the slogan is “Freshness and tradition from the Farm in Rasnov” (Prospetime cu traditie de la Ferma din Rasnov), communicating both the quality of the products and the expertise in eggs production. After setting the identity, we have developed it in stationery, signboard for exterior use, wobbler, and car branding. For the latter, we have used a large visual representing the environment where Regalina lives – a peaceful, green, hilly region.
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Upsiders
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Company/brand: Upsiders Project: Rebranding (naming, identity), office design, website Date: Since March 2010
Bar Instigators
Hippos, shaken not stirred
Upsiders is the new brand for the former Limes, a team of professionals providing bartending services for shows, parties, corporate events and consultancy in HoReCa. In 2010, because of some structural changes in the company, Limes needed a revival in the market, so they have decided to ask Hippos for a rebranding.
In order to completely discard the company’s former image (fresh, accessible, friendly bartenders) and to include all the services provided (they also began providing trainings for young bartenders), we have positioned them as a team of exclusive professionals creating more than just exotic cocktails in fancy shows. This led us to the name Upsiders, which can be translated in two meanings: first of all, they are from the upper class (hence the idea of exclusivity, professionalism and sophistication), and second of all, they are the guys that lift up the spirits in every social event. Being an invented word, Upsiders also shows their creativity and flexibility, crucial features in their field of work. The slogan “Creating bar attitude” explains the meaning of the Upsiders team – to create great experiences through their bartending expertise and social skills. For the visual identity, we have created an elegant logo, suggesting the idea of an exclusive club. The word “up” is emphasized in big, bold letters, and the other light letters are positioned on the top side, suggesting that they were lifted up to reach the upper level. The connection between the two parts of the logo is made through the letter S (half bold, half light) which was the starting point for creating the brand’s visual pattern. After setting the brand identity, we have developed it in Upsiders’ key visual – an exuberant young woman sitting on a chair with her head upside down, her legs forming a cocktail glass. This approach shows the optimism, passion and innovation of the Upsiders team, three of the brand’s main values. Further on, we have used the identity to create communication materials: stationery (business cards, digital signature), office interior design, flair bottles branding, car branding.
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Interbelic Cocktail Bar
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Company/brand: Interbelic Cocktail Bar Project: Naming, identity, interior design, menu Date: Since January 2008
Interbelic Bar
The Cocktail Bar of little Paris Interbelic is a cocktail bar located in the historical center of Bucharest, a part of the city that is currently under restoration. This makes the area temporarily dominated by dusty, damaged buildings and construction sites. In this environment, Interbelic intends to bring back the light of the interwar period, with its elegance and prosperity, and also to educate people about spirits and cocktails. When the owners first came up with the idea of having a cocktail bar, they needed to build a brand based on an innovative concept. This is what Hippos does best!
Hippos going back to the 20’s We started thinking about alcohol and its history, and we realized that the interwar period was one of the most interesting times for the alcohol industry.
After the First World War ended, people were rebuilding their lives and society was flourishing. People started to dress up and go out, have parties and drink sophisticated drinks. So this is what led us to the name “Interbelic”, a direct reference to those wonderful times. Now what about the logo? The graphic element is an elegant lady from the 20’s – modern dress, high heels shoes, nice hairdo, posing with a cocktail glass in her hand, like she was in the middle of a high society party. For the type, we have used a geometric, white art deco font, placed on a black background – in order to create an elegant, party-like atmosphere. The black/white contrast is balanced by the dark red insertion used for the lady’s dress, hair, shoes and drink, creating a like a sepia-toning effect. When the bar was beginning to take shape, the Hippos team has created a wallpaper to suit the brand and create a unique atmosphere. We have chosen illustrations representative for the interwar period, showing people having drinks, bottles and glasses, bartenders, ads from the beginning of the century, classy ladies and gentlemen – all of them intended to make people look, read, smile and feel the interwar environment. We have used the same type of illustrations in the bar’s menu – a collection of drinks classified by type, where every cocktail is described so that readers can feel it even before they have it. This is why most people find it so difficult to decide what to order!
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In the Selari alley between Lipscani and Blanari stands a bar that harbours the essence of the old Bucharest. A friendly interwar bar welcoming us with a delicious selection of alcoholic and non-alcoholic cocktails.
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Snack Attack
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Company/brand: Snack Attack Project: Packaging, website, promotional materials, iconic characters, communication materials Date: 2008
Snack Attack – from London to Bucharest Snack Attack is a Romanian snacking chain, producer and distributor of sandwiches, salads, soup, tortilla, coffee and dessert. Snack Attack’s mission is to provide its clients fresh, tasty and healthy products, plus prompt sales and delivery services. The company tries to create a new lifestyle for modern people, by implementing the “healthy food” concept. Thus, they make it easier for dynamic people to eat healthy when and where they want, whether it’s at home, at the office, while driving their car, etc. Snack Attack approached Hippos because they needed creative design that suited their brand and implement it in website, packaging and various promotional materials.
Snack Attack + Hippos = friends We started from the brand’s values – quality, creativity, flexibility and passion, plus a bit of London style, because the brand has a British inspiration, and the idea of friendship, very important for the Snack Attack brand. We have created two friendly cartoon-like iconic characters – Snack and Coffee, whose role was to be intermediates between the brand and the target. We wanted them to be associated with Snack Attack as funny mascots who bear the brand’s message. Then, we have designed packaging for sandwiches and pasta, by using elements from the logo, fresh colors and messages
referring to the products’ healthy features and the brand’s funky personality. Also, we have created the design for Snack Attack’s London-look bags – brown paper, hints of orange and a double decker spreading meaningful words like “joy”, “food”, “happy”, “London” , “flavours” , “smile”, etc., for setting a positive mood around the Snack Attack brand and products. And speaking of the double decker, we have also associated it with the brand through BTL activities we have organized while riding the symbol of London around the country in order to promote the Snack Attack brand and products. When the company has launched a new product named Sub Zero (a cool fruit drink with lots of crushed ice), the Hippos team has designed its logo – each letter was depicted as an oversized block of ice with snow on top of it in order to create, as well as the drink does, a cooling effect during a hot summer. The Snack Attack’s website, www.snackattack.ro, was also our work. We have used large background pictures chosen according to the pages’ content, in order to set a specific mood: a personalized double decker, a close-up on vegetables, images taken inside the Snack Attack restaurants, etc. And to spice-up the atmosphere, we have introduced funny, animated versions of Snack and Coffee mascots jumping around, describing products in funny ways or playing tricks on the user’s mouse arrow.
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Sollers
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Company: Sollers PPD Brand: Johnnie Walker, J&B, Smirnoff, Captain Morgan, Jose Cuervo Project: Cocktails menu Date: August 2010
Top alcoholic drinks distributor Sollers PPD was established in Bucharest in 2006 as a 100% subsidiary of Photos Photiades Distributors, the leading beverage distribution company in Cyprus. In March 2007, Sollers PPD entered a long-term distribution agreement with Diageo for the distribution of the whole range of Diageo spirits in the Romanian market and began its operations immediately. The company has asked Hippos to create a menu with cocktails based on drinks imported by Sollers.
Cocktails menu, fan style The concept created by Hippos for the menu was to dedicate one page to each brand (front and back), sorting cocktails by the drink they are based on. Thus, we have created 9 different unique bottle-shaped pages, bound together with a staple, so that the menu opens like a hand-held fan and customers can see all the bottles at one glance. Each front page shows one bottle seen from the front, immersed in a big round black freeze box filled with ice, and also the cocktails’ names and details. The back pages display a graphic composition based on each brand’s key visual. In terms of production, we have chosen a thick paper, printed with a matte finish and with selective varnish on the bottles and ice, in order to create an elegant look.
Find the bottle you want from the fan menu & easily choose your cocktail
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56 Sollers
The menu reflects the customers’ refined taste, through its dynamic approach and its appealing design for anyone who appreciates the spirit of a quality drink.
We have designed the back side displaying the brands’ key visuals in order to introduce consumers to the sensation provided by each flavour.
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Tiki Bar
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Company/brand: Tiki Bar Project: Branding, interior design Date: June 2010 - January 2011
Tiki Bar
Polynesian inspiration for a cocktail bar A tiki bar is an exotic-themed drinking establishment that serves elaborate cocktails, especially rum-based mixed drinks. Tiki bars are aesthetically defined by their tiki culture decor which is based upon a romanticized conception of primitive tropical cultures, most commonly Polynesian. The first of its kind in Romania, Tiki Bar needed a strong identity that would send out the tiki feeling and make people curious enough to come in.
Hippos entering tiki culture Tiki refers to large wood and stone carvings of humanoid forms in Central Eastern Polynesian cultures of the Pacific Ocean, usually used to mark the boundaries of sacred or significant sites. Thus, we have created a totem inspired logo – resembling to a tall and slim carved log, proudly displaying the face of a stylized Polynesian god – that marks a significant location in Bucharest’s historical center. The Tiki bar identity is based on natural colors (wood and grass) and on shapes inspired from ancient Polynesian drawings. When you enter Tiki Bar, you get the impression that you have travelled through space and time, back to ancient Polynesia. The decor is 100% customized: bamboo walls and accessories, chairs and tables made of carved logs, wooden totems looking down on you, and even a row boat hanging from the ceiling.
You pick a table, sit down and check out the drinks in a tall and slim, totem like menu. You order an exotic cocktail and the waiter – dressed in a tiki shirt – brings you a totem shaped mug with special garnishes. Everything is thoroughly designed and implemented so that you can feel the tiki spirit through every detail of the bar.
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Casinos
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Company/brand: Max Bet, Queen Casino, Olympic Casino, Bling Casino, Plaza Casino Project: Promotional materials, opening event
Casinos
A dynamic market The casinos market in Romania has constantly been growing over the past years, thus becoming more and more competitive. The enjoyable atmosphere, exciting games and great prizes were no longer enough to seduce the customers. Brands had to reach out to them through various types of advertising.
Casino advertising, the Hippos way Over time, we have designed promotional materials for casinos, such as MaxBet, Olympic Casino or Queen Casino. Starting from their identities, we have found creative ways to communicate promotions, contests, prizes and special events.
They all meant to set a winning mood, in order to determine the viewer to feel like a special person, for whom the casino has prepared exciting moments and prizes like never before. The designs were dynamic, showing the thrill of success and luxurious environments. For the opening of Olympic Casino in the World Trade Center Bucharest, we have organized a special party with a customized entertainment program: flair show, dancers, local celebrity performer, mime, etc. The most exciting moment of the evening was the making of the oversized glasses pyramid, in which we have then poured 12 liters of champagne – and it stood up heroically!
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Augsburg International
68 Augsburg International
Company: Augsburg International Brand: Augsburg International Project: Identity, presentation materials, website, communication strategy Date: Since January 2010
Complete solutions for the automotive businesses Augsburg International is one of the leading importers and distributors of auto parts, lubricants, tuning parts, accessories, servicing equipment and machinery, leading the Romanian segment for original spare parts and aftermarket body parts. With 270 employees, 14 branches, a fleet of 130 cars and summed warehouses of 22,500 m2, Augsburg International provides over 8,000,000 components and 30,000 references in stock. The company has been established in 1996, and over the years has focused on developing its team of professionals and logistics. In 2009, the management decided to invest in creating a solid communication strategy.
The power of strategy First of all, we have analyzed the market, the competitors and Augsburg International’s opportunities, and we have built up a strategy setting the company’s positioning, communication objectives and instruments to be used in order to achieve those objectives. Then, we have built the Augsburg International brand, defining its mission and values, and designing a specific visual identity. The slogan we have created was “The power of experience” (Puterea experientei), communicating the idea that Augsburg International is a reliable partner that gets its strengh from its team’s experience. The next step was to communicate the new identity in various presentation brochures (company presentation,
products and equipment offer), sales representatives’ speech, company website and corporate magazine (Dealer).
The client’s point of view Victor Ilioiu, Marketing Manager, Augsburg International: “Our clients have been pleased with the presentation of the company and products because they have found out things they didn’t know about us. As where the telemarketing is concerned, the new clients perceived it as a new practice in the market and some of them felt important for the company. Our current clients found it interesting, being called for company presentations and not for bills and payments. In terms of sales, we have recorded an increase after implementing the new strategy”. “We appreciate your bold ideas and that you are trying to implement them in a field that hasn’t had any of these.”
Fun stuff The copywriter came up with the “Puterea experientei” slogan at 3 o’clock in the morning, after endless phone conversations with one of her car passionate friends. She added it to the 10-items list of slogans she thought of the previous day. At the 10 o’clock meeting the next day, this was the client’s first choice.
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Augsburg International’s slogan:
The power of experience
ProGarage and PerfektAuto
70 ProGarage & PerfektAuto
Company: Augsburg International Brand: ProGarage, PerfektAuto Proiect: Naming, visual identity, presentation materials Date: Since March 2010
Service concepts by Augsburg International
Specialists in mechanics and bodywork
In the auto market, where competition is more and more aggressive, independent service shops need a competent partner to provide them with help and support. This is the reason why Augsburg International has brought to Romania two service concepts meant to offer competitive advantages to independent service shops in the market: one specialized in mechanics (the international Euro Garage concept) and the other one, in bodywork, created entirely by Augsburg International. Euro Garage is an international network of mechanics service shops, developed by Group Auto Union International, functioning in various countries under the same visual identity, but with specific names for each market: AutoCare (United Kingdom), TopGarage (France), ProfiService (Germany), EuroTaller (Spain), PuntoPro (Italy), EuroMobil (Turkey), Rede PitStop (Brazil), etc. Augsburg International has brought the Euro Garage network to Romania and has approached Hippos for creating a specific name and identity. Also, the company has created its own network of service shops, specialized in bodywork, which needed naming and identity from Hippos.
The first step was finding names for the two concepts. For the mechanics network, we have studied the identity used by Euro Garage in the rest of Europe, and we have found an appropriate name for both the European network and the Romanian public: ProGarage. Then, in terms of visual identity, we have adapted the Euro Garage logo to the name chosen for Romania and, starting from there, we have developed graphic elements that we have later used in communication materials. The identity for the second concept was entirely built by Hippos, starting from the idea that a car body / painting / tin repairing shop creates impeccable work in terms of car body shape and paint. This led us to the idea of a perfect car, which we have communicated both in the name – PerfektAuto, and the logo – a stylized car, with modern, aerodynamic lines. The German origin of the founder Augsburg International is communicated by using the letter “K”, suggesting the idea of German perfection. Moreover, the connection between the concept and Augsburg International is highlighted through the use of the founder’s chromatic range (red, white, black) in the PerfektAuto’s visual identity. After designing the identities, we have developed a series of communication materials for both concepts. First of all, starting from the logo, we have established the direction for branding a wide range of materials: from light signs and other image elements for service shops, to promotional products and car branding. Then, we have included them in the concept’s manual, along with all the necessary information for the independent service shops willing to join the network.
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Besides identity, stationery and promo materials, we have also designed brochures – briefly showing the conditions for buyers and advantages for end consumers, and PowerPoint presentations – sales tools for Augsburg International’s representatives to use during meetings with potential clients. At the time we have printed this portfolio, we were working on promoting the concepts through print ad campaigns and websites.
Dealer
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Company: Augsburg International Brand: Dealer Project: Customer magazine (business to business) Date: Since November 2009
Augsburg International’s customer magazine Dealer is Augsburg International’s customer magazine, providing information about the company, its products and seasonal promotions. In 2010, the magazine was issued once every two months and was distributed to Augsburg International’s clients (auto service shops, auto dealers, insurance companies, car parts dealers, transport companies, leasing companies, etc.). Before November 2009, the magazine was a collection of ads and features on various brands imported or distributed by Augsburg International, not having a distinct editorial or graphic concept, nor a constant structure. Dealer needed a change in order to be perceived as a magazine and not only an ads catalogue.
A new shape for Dealer We have created the editorial concept, setting up the structure of the magazine, naming each section – News, Seasonals, Editorial, Service Equipment, Usually at Augsburg, Parts Portfolio – and creating a rhythm and a hierarchy of the information. In the editorial sections, we now provide the readers useful information about car parts and tips on how to assemble them, while the promotional features are organized into specific pages, easy to recognize.
The graphic concept is based on the Augsburg International brand identity, to which we have added specific elements for Dealer, such as the title tag, the typography and graphic elements derived from the Dealer logo. Where the color range is concerned, we have added one extra color, saffron yellow, which brings a commercial note to the Augsburg International’s black, white and red.
Fun stuff After months writing for Dealer, our copywriter (a hippo girl) is now an expert in car parts. She can recognize brake pads or clutch disks from dozens of other parts and she can easiliy tell you the symptoms of a malfunctioning car suspenssion.
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The client’s point of view Victor Ilioiu, Marketing Manager, Augsburg International: “We have found out that one of our competitors displays our magazines in the clients’ waiting room, because he thinks they are well made.”
AT Augsburg
74 AT Augsburg
Company: Augsburg International Brand: AT Augsburg Proiect: Customer magazine (end consumer) Date: Since October 2009
Auto supermarket and fast service. By Ausgburg. AT Augsburg is an auto supermarket and fast service concept eveloped by Augsburg International, under the slogan “Everything for your car” (Totul pentru masina ta). Once every two months, AT Augsburg publishes a 16 page magazine communicating the period’s promotions for various products and services. AT Augsburg magazine is distributed to actual and potential clients in traffic around Militari area and is displayed in the supermarket.
A magazine for drivers The Hippos team has created a dynamic graphic concept, adapted to the AT Augsburg communication in the other media. First of all, we have created a distinct title area on the cover, which clearly separates the magazine’s name from the other information (the promotions’ validity, etc.) and gives the magazine a strong identity. The Hippos team has created a dynamic graphic concept, adapted to the AT Augsburg communication in the other media. We have structured the visual elements on the cover in order to create a hierarchy and to guide readers through the information. Also, we have made the layout adaptable to the quantity of information in every issue, in order to provide the customer a greater freedom in choosing the contents. In terms of production, we have switched to a better quality, more resistant paper, because the magazine bears the AT Augsburg brand image and it is imperative to express professionalism and trust. Furthermore, we have optimized the number of pages in order to achieve a cost/circulation/quality ratio in the client’s favor. After all the changes made, the magazine is now a strong communication channel through which AT Augsburg announces its strong points: great variety of products and accessible prices, sustaining the image of the brand and increasing its sales.
AT Augsburg provides
everything for your car 75 AT Augsburg
Willon Harbour
76 Willon Harbour
Company/brand: Willon Harbour Project: Naming, identity, website, exhibition stand, communication campaign Date: Since April 2008
The largest motor boats showroom in Romania
Navigation, Hippos style
When we started the naming process, we were looking for a short Saxon word that would be easy to pronounce and memorize. We Willon Harbour is a young company emerging on the Romanian wanted it to be in English because the company targets English motor boats market, providing a wide range of boats and quality speaking people and we needed to position the brand as middleservices, from pre and post-sales consultancy to reselling second hand boats. When it launched, the company owned the only motor premium. So we came up with “Willon”, and we added “Harbour”, so we would have a direct reference to the company’s activity. boats showroom in Romania, and had a great variety of boats in The logo is based on a representative symbol for navigation and stock, so that everyone, amateur or passionate, could choose water-related colors – a dynamic stylized boat, riding on top of the their favorite boat (varying from 10,000 to 350,000 Euros). The waves. The visual identity is developed from the logo and its main company needed a strong identity and communication tools so theme is a navy blue wavy shape placed in the lower side of the that they would rapidly get noticed in the market. communication materials (business card, letterhead, envelope, CD, car branding), in order to create a premium corporate image. Further on, we have developed the website, www.willon.ro, whose concept is based on navigation elements – the logo is placed in an animated shape resembling to the radar screen, scanning the surrounding area, the background contains various thematic elements (anchor, compass, sea maps, etc.). The website offers information regarding the company, complete description of their products and services, and also provides a dictionary for navigation terms and a tool for comparing boats. For the launching campaign, we have created a strategy which we have implemented in various media: radio teaser for 2 weeks, print ads in specialized magazines, PR (press conference at showroom opening) and online (newsletter, interactive banners). An awareness campaign followed, based on PR activities (press and TV features with interviews promoting the company and its products), outdoor and participating to fairs. For the boats fair in Bucharest, we have created the company’s exhibition stand resembling to a harbour, like boats were docked near a lighthouse.
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78 Willon Harbour
Willon Harbour is the perfect place for passionate nautical shopping.
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A navy-blue identity for an elegant, passionate brand. 81 Willon Harbour
Share the boat, start the fun
82 Share the boat start the fun
Company: Willon Harbour Brand: Share the boat Project: Naming, identity, website, exhibition stand, communication campaigns Date: February 2010
Willon Harbour introduces Time sharing is fun! time sharing for boats Willon Harbor is a young company emerging on the Romanian motor boats market, providing a wide range of boats and quality services, from pre and post-sales consultancy to reselling second hand boats. In February 2010, Willon Harbor launched a new concept for selling boats. In brief, time sharing means one boat, several owners and an intelligent planning system managed by Willon Harbour, so that they all use it equally. The company also is in charge with cleaning, maintenance, renovations, docking formalities, etc. This way, the owners just enjoy their time on the boat. And if they want to try another boat, they can sell their share and buy another one, also in time share.
Our team has created an identity for this concept, which we have named “Share the boat, start the fun”. We thought that not having to worry about formalities, cleaning, renovations, etc., means more fun for the boat owners. No matter what they need the boat for – partying with friends, fishing trips, romantic escapades or just relaxing in open waters, they all can now spend less money and have more fun. The logo is an emblematic composition of text and graphics, representing a boat riding on top of wavy waters. Because it is seen from the front side, it looks like it’s coming out from a fairytale right into reality. Watching it, you feel like the boat of your dreams is coming towards you, encouraging you to “share the boat, start the fun”, so that your dream would finally come true.
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Starting from these ideas, we have created the website – a collection of visuals showing categories of people from the target (friends having fun, a passionate fisherman, a guy relaxing on the boat in open seas, a romantic couple) and texts describing the concept and its advantages in a friendly manner, as they were written by the characters in the pictures. We have also created an exhibition stand for the boats fair, where we have used these visuals in flyers and large printed boards.
Link Resource
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Company/Brand: Link Resource Project: Identity, website Date: Since November 2009
Link Resource
A team of healthcare experts Link Resource is the first team of experts with long track record in Romanian and international pharma business and healthcare, providing its customers with quality, locally tailored consultancy and execution services related to various aspects of the Romanian healthcare environment. Link Resource asked Hippos to develop the visual identity for their brand. They needed a modern, high-tech image, expressing their professionalism and forward thinking.
Blending the organic with technology In order to position Link Resource in an impactful manner that would consolidate the company’s image and credibility, we have decided to break the visual stereotypes used in the industry (corporate people, blue skies, endless roads, etc.) and develop the “organic meets technology” concept, by communicating the essence of the business in an abstract manner. The organic idea applied in consultancy creates a strong, vivid mix, perfectly fit to Link Resource’s principles and communication needs, therefore we have implemented it in the company’s corporate image and its products (HARE). Starting from the existing Link Resource logo, we have created the brand’s key visual: a modern, dynamic reinterpretation of the caduceus, the symbol of healthcare industry, represented through organic elements (feathers and snake skin). Then, we have developed the key visual into stationery – business card, letterhead, folder, notebook, envelopes, digital signature, compliment card and bags, creating a uniform, coherent set of communication tools.
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At the time we have printed this portfolio, we were developing the Link Resource website, providing company and services information. The website features a video flash intro which displays the company’s description and values in a dynamic, high-tech manner. This approach introduces users to a virtual world made of aseptic, organic-virtual images and 3D reconstructions of structures and abstract forms, which become iconic images for Link Resource and communicate the brand’s values and premium positioning. At the client’s request, we are working on developing the technical platform in order to make the website also available for mobile devices (all smartphones, iPhone and iPad).
HARE
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Company: Link Resource Brand: HARE Project: Visual identity, website Date: Since November 2009
Online assistance for experts HARE (short for Healthcare Analist Report) is a unique, real-time, exclusive consultancy web portal developed by Link Resource for healthcare industry professionals, providing important information about the industry. Customers can choose which of the three components of HARE they wish to subscribe for: HARE website (provides daily information from the healthcare industry and comments made by Link Resource specialists), HARE alert (customers are informed by sms and e-mail about legislative changes that might influence their business), HARE quarterly report (analyzing the market evolution and future trends). Link Resource approached Hippos for creating HARE’s visual identity and website.
Creating an organic world of information We have created the HARE logo and key visual in line with Link Resource’s identity and color range. Starting from the caduceus – a rod with a snake around it – generally used as a graphic symbol of medicine, we have designed a dynamic logo, by combining this ancient symbol with a modern black type, with interconnected letters, placing the logo in a premium and virtual area. The key visual, as well as the logo, represents the association between healthcare and technology – a twirl made of two parts: one half is organic (feathers and snake skin) and the other half is technological (a part of a laptop seen in
various angles). Further on, we have created the HARE website. In terms of graphics, the website is in line with the visual identity, and in terms of programming, it is a complex portal developed using the best open-source technologies in order to obtain a specific product with optimized costs. The design was created for it to be in harmony with the content. Being a complex healthcare industry information portal, we have used simple, minimalist graphic elements, reproducing the caduceus idea and the colour green (predominant in the industry) combined with large white areas, in order to create an aseptic environment. Also, the hints of light gray helped us create a corporate, professional and reliable feeling to those visiting the website. From a technical point a view, Link Resource needed the HARE website to have 3 important features. First, security of information – we have created a system through which paying subscribers login with USB tokens containing their personal security certificate. Second, variable content – after login, each user has access to the type of content he has subscribed for. Third, a personalized content management system that allows several levels of Link Resource specialists to approve the information before publishing it on the website.
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The header reproduces the key visual, but this time in a dynamic version – a continuous loop animation of a mechanism created from a caduceus and a laptop (healthcare + technology). The continuous motion is a metaphor of the information flow that HARE provides its subscribers.
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Fa & Gliss
92 Fa & Gliss
Company: Henkel Brand: Fa, Gliss Project: Packaging Date: 2009, 2010
Two giants of body care
Hippos packaging emotions
Fa is one of the best-known brands in the world of body care and a leader on the European market. Its inspiring products have been liberating vitality in consumers by giving them freshness for body and soul. Gliss offers a targeted range of products from care to styling to suit all individual hair types. Its intelligent formula can detect even the slightest damage and repair it, without overburdening the hair. Several times a year, Henkel sells Fa and Gliss products in special promotional packs. In 2009 and 2010, the company asked Hippos to design the gift packs.
Besides their functional features (hydrating skin, making hair stronger, etc.), these brands also have emotional benefits – they make consumers feel beautiful, charming and happy. And because emotions are crucial when people make the buying decision for this category of products, we have used them in our packaging. For Gliss, we have designed the boxes respecting the brands’ key visual and communication direction, by creating a specific environment for each product. For Fa, the graphic compositions are based on the products and their ingredients (aloe vera, silk, cocoa butter, etc.), creating a soft, indulgence universe. We have named each pack, associating it to a mood or emotional benefit of the product – Aloe vera touch, Gentleness and freshness, Natural care, Wellbeing, Life in pink, etc. As where production in concerned, the products inside the boxes were visible through clippings in the cardboard with shapes inspired from the brands logo or labels. The back of the boxes had a functional role, describing the contents of the package.
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Making people pick your product up from the supermarket shelf is a tough job. One of the most important aspects that determine them to decide in your favor is the packaging design.
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Nestlé Baby
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Company: Nestlé Romania Brand: Nestlé Baby Project: Brochures, calendar Date: Since March 2010
Start healthy, stay healthy
Nutrition brochures
Nestlé is one of the world leaders in nutrition, health and vitality. Nestlé Romania started its activity in 1995 and, over the years, has grown into a major company, with 1,000 employees in two major cities in the country and an impressive brand portfolio containing chocolate and confectionery (Joe, Kit Kat, Lion, After Eight, Smarties, Nesquik), beverages (Nescafe, Nesquik, Coffeemate), kitchen products (Maggi), breakfast cereals (Nestlé Fitness, Corn Flakes, Nesquik, Musli), baby foods (Nan, Lactogen, Cerelac, Ma recette, Baby Yogo, etc.) and pet foods (Purina). Since the beginning of 2010, in addition to its other communication activities, Nestlé Baby Foods needed informative brochures to get closer to pregnant women and mothers with small children. And for that, they came to Hippos.
Hippos has developed 3 brochures for Nestlé Nutrition: one for pregnant women – giving them useful information on their pregnancy, one for feeding babies in the first years of life, from breastfeeding to baby formula, and the other for Nestlé Plastic Cups – food for babies up to 15 months. The Hippos team has designed de Plastic Cups brochure (8 pages) using images inspired from Nestlé’s brand image, communicating the idea of healthy food for happy babies. The products were divided into 4 phases, correlated with the baby’s stages of evolution, each product featuring detailed information on contents and benefits. For the other 2 brochures (Prenatal - 48 pages and Child feeding – 28 pages) the company’s request was to adapt the brochures they have used in other countries. Therefore, we have translated the information and created a graphic concept adapted to the Romanian market.
The client’s point of view Anda Stanculescu, CCSD Coordinator at Nestlé Romania: “All the projects we have developed with Hippos were as good as we expected them to be and the outcome was positive for the Nestlé Nutrition brands.”
Fun stuff Our entire creative team is now ready to have children, as they have all learned everything about being pregnant and feeding babies.
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Hippos Kids
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Hippos has developed a separate division called Hippos Kids, which handles clients whose business activates in the wonderful world of children.
Hippos Kids
Hippos Kids is specialized in successfully communicating to a specific target – children, parents, kindergarten managers, children fairs, and other companies that themselves target children or parents – understanding their profile and finding innovative ways of reaching them. Over the years, Hippos Kids has developed identity and website concepts for lots of clients, creating attractive environments for children to play & learn and for parents to find information and advice. The first concept developed by Hippos Kids is Gradinite.com (English translation: kindergartens.com), a well-known portal that provides information and guidance to parents regarding their children. It contains updated, structured and accessible information about kindergartens, private schools, after school programs, babysitters, stores, parties and other services for children, doctor’s advice, events, books, toys, etc., all in an original, children-friendly design. Besides information, Gradinite.com also provides advertising options for companies targeting children or parents – online banners, video presentations, advertising in forum topics, forum branding, newsletter inserts or personalization, etc. Thanks to all these features, Gradinite.com has grown into a large community where parents and companies share information and find ways to interact.
Another interesting project was Kinder Club kindergarten, for which we have created a castle-like logo with a rainbow in the background, symbolizing the focal point of joyful fairyland. The whole identity reconstructs this imaginary enchanted environment around the kids’ castle, where little ones play and discover the world they live in. For Pink Lemon kindergarten, we have created a concept based on a friendly character personifying a pink lemon, which lifts children up in his balloon for them to discover the world and learn about it. The cartoon-like design creates an ambient that successfully combines ludic and educational elements, for it to be appealing for both children and parents. Learn2B is a non-formal optional educational program for child’s development, which combines classic pedagogy with alternative methods and modern psychological concepts, promoting the holistic education (considering not only academic competences, but also social, emotional and cognitive skills). For Learn2B’s website, starting from the bee character, the honeycomb and bee-inspired colors, we have created a world made of hexagons – perfect shapes that build up a solid structure – as a metaphor for education. For Cami kindergarten, we have designed the main character, a little girl personifying the kindergarten and thus becoming children’s best friend and guide in their journey discovering the world. For some clients, Hippos Kids has extended the brand identity in other materials also, such as stationery or branded cars, creative calendars, etc.
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Hippos creating Identities
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Over the years, the Hippos team has developed, tested and proven right a recipe for creating identities of great success. The process consists of three parts, all of them equally important and totally requisite.
Identities
Investigation
Exploration
The first part of the process consists of finding out all there is to know about the product we are creating the identity for – what it does, what it means, what its strong (and also weak) points are, how it is different from others.
All the data previously gathered are now placed in a shaker and mixed together until ideas pop out. We create several concepts, and for each we design several graphic executions. We experiment various approaches, styles and ideas, associating the logo not only with shapes and colours, but also with materials – we try to “see” it in wood, plastic, metal, glass, clay, wax, etc., trying to foresee its implementation in real life environments.
Then, the target: who they are, why they should use/need/love our product, what their general likes/dislikes are, what touches their emotions, how we can communicate with them, etc. Next, we need to understand how the industry works, whether it’s farm eggs, barb wire or ultimate IT services for pharma specialists. Also, we thoroughly examine our client’s competition and find the exact place in the market for the brand we are about to create.
Inquiry After the first step, some ideas begin to develop in our heads – the seeds of the future concept that we will use. But there is more research to do. We need to connect to the design used all over the world in the respective industry: what are the trends, the limits, what is considered to be “soft”, “out of the box” or even “outrageous”? Are there any shapes or colours used as distinct symbols (like the Caduceus in medicine or the cross in pharmacy)? This leads us to the next step, the most exciting part of the process.
We look for original, innovative, imposing, impactful, contemporary, solid, time proof logos. Then we organize focus groups to test each one of them: how is it perceived by the target, does it have a strong potential of becoming an icon, does it communicate the values of the brand, is it versatile (can it be used on light or dark backgrounds; can it be communicated in multiple media)? And last but not least: is it recognizable and memorable?
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102 Identities
103 Identities
Interactive Design
104 Interactive Design
A whole new mix A decade ago, campaigns meant having an efficient mix of TV, print, OOH, radio and maybe some BTL, too. Now, this mix is nothing without ONLINE. Because if you haven’t gone online, you don’t exist at all. Today, when people hear about a brand they might be interested in, they look it up on the internet. And if they don’t find it there, surely they find something similar and end up buying the competition. So, we’re all convinced that online is a must. But it’s not enough just to BE online, you also have to stand out and make viewers REMEMBER you and COME BACK to you. And how do you do that? Be interactive!
Ok, I’m online. Now what? Classic advertising principles don’t work in the online environment. Here, people move faster – extremely fast, I might say – and if you don’t catch their eye in one second, they immediately click away. Now, let’s assume you have got them interested through nice design or smart copy. Next, you have to keep them engaged, in order to make them receptive to your key messages. And don’t forget – keep them simple.
Create valuable user experience A website’s success hinges on just one thing: how users perceive it. “Does this website give me value? Is it easy to use? Is it pleasant to use?” These are the questions that run through
visitors’ minds as they interact with your products, and they form the basis of their decisions on whether to become regular users. Interactive design is all about striving to make them answer “Yes” to all of those questions. Today, good websites have great strengths, such as flexibility, cross-browser compatibility and personalization, but they are also becoming increasingly simple and intuitive, for people to get involved and keep on browsing. Making a website easy to use and easy to understand has a direct economic impact as, for example, it guides the users across the site, helps users to successfully sign up for a service or to complete a checkout process. The Web today is increasingly complex, while usage of the Web is becoming increasingly simple. Besides being easy-to-use, the driving factor of how we build websites today has become the experience we want to give the people who will use them. And we do that through a design tailored to the goals, values, production process and products of the website.
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http://www.web-spot.ro/