In fashion, how do you create brand positioning and differentiate yourself? Competition is tough, especially in the fashion sector. It’s a massive challenge to start a brand, produce at least the first three collections, and watch it take off. Your Brand Positioning, Brand Voice and creating a USP (unique selling proposition) in many cases are … Read more

Naming brands, whether company, service or product, is not an every day part of the marketing mix. Most companies and brands only do it once and established companies don’t have to think about it much unless they are part of a merger or an acquisition. With start-ups being the new way and only about 1 … Read more

Sex: intrinsic to the oldest profession and one of the most powerful forces of human nature. Unsurprisingly, sex is used extensively in communications and advertising. The day after Hugh Hefner passed away, Grain director Madelyn Postman discussed the Playboy brand on BBC’s Talking Business with Aaron Heslehurst.  Whether men really think about sex every seven … Read more

Five strategic questions for FE Colleges to ask ahead of merger 1. How do we position ourselves to get maximum benefits from the merger? First and foremost, further education colleges (which mostly serve learners aged 16-18) need students and so a merged college needs a brand that is memorable and attractive. Existing students need to … Read more

Thanks to our guest author, Hazel Garcia of Investment Zen, who has provided us with this infographic showing the cost breakdown of pricing of a shirt. Branding and marketing costs also need to be considered, and in the world of luxury, the markup for added value – the brand magic – will be substantial. To find out how … Read more

The glass entrance of the recently reopened Amersham Museum draws in passers-by, and once they’re inside, the new displays are captivating. The entire space is welcoming and encourages visitors to move from one area to another, learning about the area’s history. The many local stories, some of which go back centuries, come to life and interweave with current … Read more

Square. Slack. Sea. These words could soon mean a lot more to you than their literal meaning. They are all on Interbrand’s 2017 list of Breakthrough Brands, the companies that are rising head and shoulders above their peers and breaking through to the level where they are soon to become household names. The 40 companies … Read more

Politics has long depended on marketing, with a leader’s image being critical to any political campaign. But marketeers, and brands in particular, have historically tried as hard as possible to avoid politics. However as the political scene has become more divisive, especially in the wake of Brexit, the rise of Marine Le-Pen in France and the election … Read more

Brand Architecture – Maximising Synergies from Complex Portfolios Brand architecture may at first sight seem like the tediously dull end of the otherwise exciting area of new brand development with its creative naming, cutting edge logo design and glitzy launches.  But look at the detail and you’ll see that this is the world of brand strategy … Read more

Mégane Osio is Grain’s intern this summer and is enjoying putting her design skills to use whilst rapidly improving her English. She is a student of graphic design at ECV Creative Schools & Community in Bordeaux, France. She particularly likes all aspects of corporate design and print, including the visual identity of a brand, packaging, … Read more

In the mid-1990s, well before the internet had tangled us all in its worldwide web, Michael Porter set the benchmarks for marketing strategy which still resonate today. To sum up some quite complex theory, he argued that brands either had to achieve cost leadership or they had to differentiate. In a nutshell, differentiation is what … Read more

The National Federation of Property Professionals (NFoPP) has rebranded and repositioned as the umbrella brand Propertymark and the changes, developed by Grain Creative, are aiming to significantly disrupt the estate and letting agency market in the UK. Through its membership associations, the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) and the Association of Residential Letting Agents … Read more

Changing a well-established and well-known brand with all its existing brand attributes, brand promises and emotional ties can be like the clichéd oil tanker which needs a very long time to change course. There are still people who call a Snickers bar “Marathon”! It can be a challenge to say the least. But to rebrand the biggest … Read more

Driving Positive Change Sponsoring F1 gives brands huge exposure in Europe, Latin America and Asia combined with important (and relatively unique) access to growth markets in the developing world. The associations with speed, glamour and excitement are tempting for any global company and for FMCG brands these associations can be promoted through branding around the … Read more

Sometimes Nougat Sticks in Your Teeth! After the unimaginative Android Alpha and Android Beta, Google has historically named its Android updates after sweet products (or as Google calls them “sweet treats”). In compulsory alphabetical order we’ve had; Cupcake, Donut, Eclair, Froyo, Gingerbread, Honeycomb, Ice Cream Sandwich, Jelly Bean, KitKat, Lollipop and Marshmallow. When they arrived … Read more