Katrina Chen Noah Fell Alexa Espinoza Ashley Hawthorne Marian Huang Jhoanne Mecija Ashley Oster Will Schoenfeld Ivana Wong
THE DIFFERENCE It’s more than just the “right brain” and
“the left brain.” More than the blood drifting in our veins or the impulses that our neurons transmit. It’s the way we move, how we skip to a beat, what our morning routine is. It’s how our desk is organized compared to theirs, or how we choose to ensemble our outfits for the day. It’s the difference between how we think and how we execute. In the world that was taught to us by our parents, there are only two ways to
solve a problem: inductively and deductively. In both of these ways, we are faced with a theory, hypothesis, observation, and a conclusion, a very systematic, right-or-wrong way of thinking. What if, however, we explored the mysteriousness of the problem and faced an abstract challenge to create an abstract solution? That, right there, is the difference, the difference between thinking business and thinking design. Of course, business thinking solves the problem, but we are now moving away from this age of information to an age of conceptualizing and imagination. Designer thinking is a key part of surviving in this day of economy where consumer relationships are being built by what they see and how they interpret it. Not only must a company be aware of linear numbers, but they should also know how to speak to their audiences and how to do it correctly. In this book, we take a look at a few case studies of companies who have successfully rebranded their image to in turn increase sales and customer loyalty. They learned to meet both ends of design and business and continue to innovate
and thrive. As we now move forward rom strategies and routines toward creative solutions and the understanding of relationships, it is important that we learn how these companies are seen in a new light through design.
IN A NEW LIGHT: THE MOVE TOWARDS CREATIVE SOLUTIONS
The Company Target Corporation has become the United States’ second biggest discounter. Positioning itself as a mass merchandiser of affordable chic goods and focusing on differentiating their product offering Target has achieved sustainable growth throughout the years. Target’s continous effort to improve the design of their brand, stores and products has been succesful at creating value for their customers. Even though good design may not always equal good business, good business is most often achieved through a well-sutructured design process.
The Brand Target has strived throughout the years to build a brand around their name in order to facilitate their growth. In order to avoid competing directly with Walmart as a low-cost producer, Target decided to differentiate their brand and their product offerings. Target has realized the importance of providing their customers with a memorable and desirable experience and value for their money in order to encourage increased loyalty towards the brand.
Competition Target’s main competitor is Wal-mart. However, while Walmart generates more annual revenues than Target, the company has been able to achieve substantial growth throughout the years. Revenues had grown about 6% per year over the previous ten years presenting a record operating profit margin of 8.4 percent versus Wal-mart’s 7.6 percent. Additionally, Target’s annual same-store sales growth averaged 4.6%, while Wal-mart’s stayed at 2.9%. Despite Target’s smaller size the company has been able to thrive and compete with Wal-mart by utilizing its distinctive resources and capabilities to gain an advantage in the market place. Target’s success lies on their competitive advantage which involves achieving the right kind of differentiation and distinctive marketing communications through a well-structured design process.
Target’s emphasis on design is reflected throughout every department of their stores. They apply design to their store layout to create an “easy and intuitive” shopping experience for their customers. The company’s innovative design is also reflected in their packaging and labeling of their private labels. Target also recognizes the value of design and creates exclusive product lines in fashion trends and home décor. Target’s creates trust, loyalty, and positive public perception, through highly valued design, which results increased customer loyalty and revenue.
Target’s commitment to design goes far past how something looks, they apply design in everyday products that satisfies their customer’s needs, simplifies their lives, and changes the way they feel about products. The company has taken significant measures to understand their consumers, and create products that mimic what they want and need. They synthesize functionality and aesthetics to create designs that engage their customers and motivate behavior changes that keep them coming back to Target stores.
One of their innovative designs includes ClearRx, Target’s medication packaging design that makes prescription and health information easier to use. The bottles differ from conventional bottles by having clear labeling with hierarchy of information, color-coding rings that avoid medication mix-ups, accessible patient info cards, a blunder-proof dispenser, and handy label magnifier. Deemed by IDSA’s jury as standout Design of the Decade, ClearRx has also been called the first major advance in retail drug packaging and labeling, and keeps their customers coming back to fill their prescriptions time and time again.
Target’s design aesthetic is applied to their other private labels including Up and Up for essential commodities such as household, health care, beauty, baby, and personal care products, Market Pantry and Archer Farms, for food, and RE (Room Essentials) for home furnishing. These private brands put pressure on national brands and compete in sale. The application of design to the private brand products makes their products more appealing to consumers. Target knows this, which is why the company values design, making their private label products some of the successful in the market.
Target’s significantly increased profits and gained much popularity after establishing limited time partnerships with noted designers, who created exclusive lines for home furnishings, house ware, and fashion at Target stores. They use this to create excitement for their customers. Some of the most popular partnerships include Giada de Laurentis for kitchen gear, many fashion designers including Missoni, Alexander McQueen, and Zac Posen. With each release of these collaborated products, the company sees a spike in revenue, and gains much publicity. The designer labels for Target created extensive amounts of buzz with consumers.
The partnership with Missoni in 2011 is an example of how successful Target’s collaborations can be, with Missoni products selling out in stores and online in less than a day, increasing Target’s stock up by .22 percent to $51.40.
The company not only applies great design to their products and stores, they also incorporate unique concepts and designs into their print and commercial advertising. They create an image and an experience of exclusivity and belonging through their advertising that their target audience can relate with, which creates an attachment to the company. Target’s design aesthetic bolster’s the company’s image and creates a lifestyle that people want to be a part of. The company builds trust through design and creates customer loyalty with their consumers.
This graph shows the sales of each department at Target. Because the company distributes attention to detail in each of their categories, sales are even all around, which is not commonly found in companies who choose to ignore design. With new designer names paired with each of these departments, the target audience is able to personalize as they wish. Along with Target’s own name brands that are engulfed in colors and clever layouts, consumers are able to build trust and loyalty in the company.
Since Target’s new focus on design, total revenues have almost doubled, as shown in the graph below, and are expected to continue growing.The company carries their mantra of “Expect More. Pay Less.� by growing through design, as stated in their 2005 annual report. They have moved from their discount store counterparts to a store that has strengthened their relationship with their guests, creating a personable, one-stop convenience. Target plans to expand in the near future by investing more in their existing stores, which includes elements of print and media design and new store formats, all for the experience of the customer. They took the formula to survive in this economy and successfully
executed with the element of design. Being totally conscious of their design image, Target also strategically shooses other retailers with good design to reflect its own personality, including the big coffee lead, Starbucks.
The Company Starbucks, a well known coffee and tea merchandiser, recently celebrated its 40th anniversary. It has become a place where consumers everywhere can come enjoy a great cup of coffee in an inviting and stimulating environment. Their stores are all unique but each one evokes the romance of coffee. Starbuck’s dedication to their brand and its expansion, has led to its success even through difficult economic times. They have established a relationship with their consumers and promote a brand loyalty that grows stronger with each cup they serve.
The Brand Starbuck’s mission is to inspire and nurture the human spirit– one person, one cup, and one neighborhood at a time. They live this motto everday through their coffee, partners (or employees), customers, stores, neighborhoods, and shareholders. They are fully engaged with every aspect of their company and this has led to success. Most importantly however, they connect with and uplift their customers. They believe it is about a human connection and though it starts with the promise of a perfectly made beverage, their work goes far beyond that.
Starbucks looks to create an authentic coffee making experience that conveys the artistry of espresso making, a place to think and imagine, a spot where people can gather and talk over a great cup of coffee. They sought to create a place that welcomes and rewards people for coming by with both fast sevice and a setting for quiet, memorable moments. Each store was designed to create this mood and create an ambiance within each store. Starbucks believes that “everything matters.” They go to great lengths to make sure the store fixtures, displays, colors, artwork, music, and aromas all created this consistent, inviting environment.
Competition Going into 1997, there were approximately 8,000 specialty coffee outlets in the United States. However, Starbuck’s closest competitor, Second Cup, was less than one-third its size and no other rival had as many as 250 stores but many aspired to grow into rivals of the company.
Expansion Expansion did not come easy for the fresh coffee company in the first of it’s target cities. Chicago proved difficult and lost the company money due to the cold weather and placement of the stores. Nevertheless, Schultz pushed forward and rallied the board of directors behind him through his determination, “Look, we’re going to keep losing money until we can do three things. We have to attract a management team well beyond our expansion needs. We have to build a world-class roasting facility. And we need a computer
information system sophisticated enough to keep track of sales in hundreds and hundreds of stores.” One tactic Schultz pressed in making sure Starbucks recognizable and reliable was to keep stores under company control, in other words, no franchising. This was the key to the customer experience and committing to fresh the product in every location. For the customer, every visit to a Starbucks location meant consistency with design, product, and employee friendliness. In this way, Schultz was able to turn buying coffee into an experience built on human interaction and dependability. In this way, the brand was born. After the company endured a rough road of the first two years, the expansion grew with more success. The attention to design detail in every cup, bag of coffee, and syrup, used store color palettes, furniture, and employee care was thought out to solidify the brand Schultz had started. It was crucial in this phase to spend the money on unifying Starbucks store and creating a recognizable brand, and the results showed. The company
was able to open more stores each year after 1987. Five years later, in 1992, Starbucks had opened 150 new stores, bringing their total to 161, which far exceeded their forecast of 125. From this point on, the consumers, the board of directors, and Schultz were all on the same page to enjoy the brand and experience of great coffee called Starbucks.
New Stores Total Stores
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1987
Starbucks first opening in Seattle. Il Giornale company. As you can see, the Il Giornale logo is somewhat similar to Starbucks logo i.e being circular and having a band.
Howard Schultz joins Starbucks as director of retail operations. The Starbucks siren was topless and had a fully-visible double fish tail.
Starbucks opens their first store in Chicago
1997
2001
2004
Establishes The Starbucks Foundation
Introduces the Starbucks card
Introduces Starbucks Coffee Master Program to provide Starbucks partners with an opportunity to learn more about the world of coffee, and share their passion with customers and partners.
1987-1992
1992-2011
1995
In the second version, her chest was covered by her flowing hair, but her navel was still visible, and the fish tail was cropped slightly. The logo also inherited the stars from the Il Giornale logo.
Revised logo by Terry Heckler and here the Siren lost her navel
Begins serving Frappuccino blended beverages
2009
2011 and beyond
Launches the Ready Brew coffee and it becomes the world’s largest buyer of Fair Trade Certified coffee.
New logo gives the freedom to think beyond coffee but also represents Starbucks high quality coffee.
The Company JetBlue Airlines is ranked #1 in customer satisfaction by J.D. Power & Associates, an achievement that was fostered by ten years of strong, established branding leadership. JetBlue started business in 2000, and as a young company has been a digital brand. Their objectives have been placed on excellent customer service and experience, and making traveling pleasant again. JetBlue had a redesign or refresh of their branding in 2010 that lead to increased success for the company, increasing its revenues and continuing to set JetBlue appart as a quality airline.
The Brand Since its inception in 2000, JetBlue has created certain values that are synonymous with its name: it’s nice, fresh, smart, stylish, and witty. These principals are incorporated meticulously into all aspects of their brand, from its friendly, offbeat verbiage (“Happy Jetting!”) to its approachable website (a design marvel from HUGE inc. that captures 80% of the airline’s ticket sales). Not a single part of the company doesn’t reflect the brand’s persona, and ultimately, it has truly benefitted one of the most effective and well-received brands in America. According to Fast Company, JetBlue captures 65% of the airline industry’s brand loyalty. In 2010, their new advertising campaign, “You Above All”, contributed heavily to their profits for that quarter and succesffuly holding up to its fellow airline competitors.
Competition JetBlue’s main competitor has been Southwest Airlines. The two companies fall into the same vein: cheap fares and good customer service. Their competiton of flight locations, fares, and having a following of brand loyalty. However, the “You Above All” campaign, accompanied by extremely recognizable and simple design, set JetBlue apart from Southwest with its fun colors and its simple, yet effective message. In the next few pages, you’ll see examples of how the “You Above All” campaign, as well as other aspects of the company’s branding, established JetBlue as the forerunner and obvious choice for airline passengers.
JetBlue Airways is a young company, started in 2000, that has carried good design through its growing process. It’s had the memorable trait of in flight live television, with their campaigns focused on “jetting” and “more” when you fly with them. Their recent brand refresh has boosted its sales and reputation. As a company, jetBlue has continued to keep their customer service as a high priority. The “You Above All” Campaign was used to refocus the airline’s strengths and personality. They make use of social media and less traditional strategies, such as viral marketing. Keeping in mind that their main source of revenue, almost 80% comes from the website. The campaign advertisiments point out the strengths of JetBlue against its competitors. Their viral campaign was a series of youtube vidoes, which record people in different situations pointing out the ridiculous nature of other airline’s policies. This same theme continues through their print advertisements, that focus their campaign on the commitment
The new website launched in 2006 and was awarded Honorable Merit by ID Magazine in the interactive design award. This design increased revenue, site traffic, and had a decline in customer service phone calls. It is one of the most successful travel sites generating $2.6 billion annually.
to putting people first that was founded on the company’s original and ongoing mission to bring humanity back to air travel.
Seeing as up to 80% of their sales are online, the website is essentiall to JetBlue. As a company, JetBlue keeps in mind how it’s choices both in their website, social media, viral marketing, and advertisements effect the customers.
Their bright colors, simple, and direct advertisments resonate with their customers and present JetBlue ahead of its competitors.
In 2008, JetBlue opened their own terminal at John F. Kennedy International Airport, in New York. With a ring of flatscreen displays suspended from the ceiling, movable italian seated lounge, stands in the food area, they created a modern museum feeling terminal.
included a design for their planes when they decided to keep flights in New York, using Milton Glaser’s I love New York logo, altered slightly adding JetBlue. The design thinking is forward thinking, making JetBlue stand out from other airlines and make air travel pleasant again.
The goal of the terminal was to give customers a way to experience things differently, and make traveling pleasant. JetBlue recieved a corporate leadership award for design by the AIGA committee in 2009. The opening of the terminal was the begining of its redesign, followed by interior of planes, crew uniforms, in-flight experience, ad campaign, and headquarters. Part of the brand refresh, was new cabin designs as well as new tail fin designs. They
Quality Perception
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Brand Trust
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Community and Trust
Recommendation
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Sense of community Trust in brand
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61% 84%
The above graphs show different aspects of social currency, a way of showing brand loyalty, trust, and how much a brand is talked about in society. The top chart shows JetBlue in relation to other competing airlines. They are highest in overall social currency rating at 65% to Virgin at 58%. The segments of facebook to the right show the likes and talking about, as well as were here. Although Southwest out numbers in two categories, the third shows how much that brand is tagged, its combination of talked about and were here greatly outnumber Southwest.
90
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JetBlue’s main competitor, Southwest, with the same goals of low fare and a customer service airlines, as with the economy they decreased in revenue. However, Jetblue’s revenue decreased by 2.8% while Southwest decreased by 6.1%, more than double. Jetblue’s brand continued to keep up its sales, better than its competitor.
of new design strategy and connection to the consumer was a successful campaign. The company continues to have the highest in reccomendation and quality perception and second to Virgin in brand trust. The focus of JetBlue on brand buliding and an investment of quality design have resulted in its success as a low cost, customer service focused airline.
2007
2008
2009
$3,779
$3,292
$3,388
$2,842
Revenue increased from $3.292 billion in 2009 to $3.779 billion in 2010, representing a 14.8% increase in revenue. For the first half of 2011, revenues increased 19.5% from $1.81 billion in 2010 to $2.16 billion. The increase in revenue in 2010 was a direct result of the “You Above All” campaign launch. That quarter had a resulting spike in revenues. This approach
2010
DESIGN MATTERS Target, Starbucks, and JetBlue are
three fine examples of companies who have found the coexisting relationship between design and business. As Roger Martin, director at Monitor Co. and dean at University of Toronto, says, “For any company that chooses to innovate, the foremost challenge is this…Are you willing to step back and ask, ‘What’s the problem we’re trying to solve?’ Well, that’s what designers do: They take on a mystery, some abstract challenge, and they try to create a solution.”
We, as trained creatives who think design, hope that through our research and interpretation, you take with you one thing: design matters. Although design’s affect on business may be inconspicuous, perhaps in a new light, the fusion of business and design can continue to flourish together.
IN A NEW LIGHT: THE MOVE TOWARDS CREATIVE SOLUTIONS