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Tag: logo

Good marketing starts with good branding

Posted on October 24, 2017May 13, 2021 by Cheryl Riley
Good marketing starts with good branding

Last Sunday eve I joined the masses of people on their weekly pilgrimage to scour the aisles of capitalism and stock their pantries in an attempt to both prevent starvation and summon euphoria in the shape of a colourful fridge. What should have been a menial task felt more like a scene from Hunger Games, but that’s not the point. The point is that I caught myself on a confronting journey of discovering my own work at play. The thing is, I’ve been doing this branding thing for quite some time now. And as they say, do anything for 5 days a week (more like 7), 8 hours a day (sometimes 16), and you’re bound to become reasonably good at it. And I often do feel like I have become reasonably good at this whole branding thing (for the record, my mum thinks so too). But last Sunday, in the madness of Woolies with about 7 billion women rushing around (not sexist, true) in a sea of shopping trolleys and commercial chaos, I was caught out at my own game. 

It went a little something like this:

We needed jam. That’s easy, I bought the one we’ve been dolloping on our sourdough for the last 8 years, it’s tasty AND has a nice logo. Win. Next on the list, milk. I bought the one my partner swears by — the one with an inch or two of full-fat thick cream sitting at the top that makes me dry retch at the thought of it and says that it supports local farmers. Add to trolley. And finally, we needed eggs. Well, of course, I’m no sinner, so I bought the free-range ones with the green and blue sticker because they a). Satisfy my desire to be a relatively good human, and b). The sticker is the least ugly on the shelf. Great, done.

As I returned home and began unpacking my groceries, it dawned on me that not only did I not even see any other jam, milk, egg options on the shelf, I didn’t even consider whether I was getting the best price/choice/morally-aligned product. Branding in its best form had gotten me. One undeniable fact about successful branding is that it swells within you, building a solid foundation of trust and loyalty, without you even thinking twice. Just like it did to me. When you’ve got a solid brand and your messaging is crystal clear, your product value goes straight to people’s brains without them having to think too much about it. When executed effectively, good branding equates to customer trust. And guess what? Trust means that people just like me, will pick your product off the shelf without even considering another option.

Some will say that this is Marketing. And in effect, they’re right, but if you ask me, good marketing starts with good branding. Because, the thing is, if you do your branding well, you’ll have all the tools you need to make your marketing efforts count. If you’re running a million and one marketing initiatives with high hopes of getting traction, but little consideration for building strong branding foundations, then I’d recommend throwing those marketing dollars in the Trevi Fountain instead.

I’ve seen many companies’ marketing efforts sink rather than swim, and I believe it’s because they don’t have a strategic basis on which to find a foothold. In a sea of sameness, their advertising and brand communications are not rooted in standing out, and so, they tend to fit in instead. Their unique selling point is less point that and more pointless as it camouflages itself among the rest.

A solid brand will:

  • Deliver your message clearly
  • Confirm your business’s credibility
  • Connect your business to your customer emotionally
  • Motivate the buyer
  • Cement customer loyalty
  • Get people to buy your jam, regardless of the fact that it costs $9 a pop and isn’t even organic

If you thought branding was just a way to use a variety of gimmicks and a carefully curated selection of fonts to catch the eye of a passing customer, you’re missing the point. A good brand carries the weight of an entire business. It is the strategy that builds a relationship and the foundations upon which a customer places their trust and loyalty without considering alternatives. When a consumer sees the brand, she or he attributes a range of values, characteristics and emotional connections to it.

Expert marketers assert that it’s impossible to create a solid product/service offering and marketing strategy without building a strong branding identity. Building it should precede PR activations, SEO improvements, social media strategies, content creation, and the rest of it. Successful businesses figure out who and what they are before embarking on these other missions because, at the end (and the beginning) of the day, your brand influences your design, your language, and your entire approach.

If you’re blowing your marketing dollars without first establishing and communicating your brand proposition, you’re effectively throwing your hard-earned moolah into a celestial black hole.

  1. GIVE YOUR BRAND A PERSONALITY
    Inject some serious Myer-Briggs into your brand by making it the one that people desperately want to talk to at the party. Be friendly, accessible, genuine, relatable, and full of great anecdotes about popular culture and sojourning the expanse of continental Europe that one time. Smack Bang Designs is quirky and fun because the people who work here constantly make each other laugh. We crack ourselves up first and foremost, which could be a worry. Still, our own enthusiasm seeps via osmosis on to our audience as much as we can possibly muster. However, our playfulness is only a fraction of our company personality. The rest of it is hard work, credibility and creativity.
  2. BE THE GOODEST OF GOOD
    The simple fact is, selling your stuff to other humans is hard work, so you have to be darn good at it. If you can’t create a bloody amazing product, then it might be better to stick to Netflix and popcorn of a weeknight. Building a brand is a slog, and it’s not for everyone.
    It’s simple, but ultimately essential: Products and services that show craftsmanship and quality are increasingly rare. We are (sadly?) a world of materialist guzzlers that love convenience and quality, so when we find an app like Uber, or a product like the iPhone, or an experience like Asos, we get verrrrrrry excited. Be the best in your class, run in your own lane, put your head down, and make something worth taking notice of.
  3. TARGET YOUR PEEPS
    Never try to please everyone, or you’ll likely please no-one. Rome wasn’t built in a day, hey hey hey, so don’t try to be an overnight success to the entire world. That’s silliness! As you double down on your audience and continually sharpen your offering, you’ll find firstly who your target people are, and also, that your target audience naturally expands. Don’t try to set out with a hunger for entire world domination, do love your obvious and devoted fanbase like Edward loves Bella Swan: obsessively (and a little bit creepily).
  4. SAY IT LIKE A BROKEN RECORD
    Branding is clearly articulating what you want people to know, do, and feel with every blog post, Instagram photo, tweet, and webinar. It doesn’t stop. Branding is a continual journey and will never sit in your ‘finished’ pile. When thinking about branding and marketing, remember that marketing starts and stops. Branding is what carries on between marketing events. It’s what keeps your people coming back for more, liking your daily social posts, subscribing to your emails and telling their friends about your amazing website layout.
  5. GET SOME GROUPIES
    Once upon a time, your logo was all that mattered. Nike, much? These days, you’ve gotta bring a scintillating story, an enticing identity, and that certain je ne sais quoi — hence, branding reigns supreme. People immerse themselves so much in brands they love that they inadvertently become brand groupies, telling the masses about their love through their style, social media and word of mouth. They Instagram, Facebook and Snapchat all the things that they love (and conversely, some of the things they definitely don’t). So that should be a very clear indicator to you, lovely business owner, to work towards acquiring some groupies of your own. The people who wear your gear, use your service, eat your product — and tell the world about it on live stream as they do it.
  6. GET FUNKY-CLOSE
    There’s nothing like getting up close and personal with a stranger’s armpit on a peak hour Cityrail train, right? We’re not suggesting this. We are suggesting you directly interact with both your current fans and your future ones via every platform you can possibly think of. Get on top of social media, learn about it, harness it, make it work for you. Email your people with valuable content, giving them something to giggle at or exclaim with glee when they receive a freebie. Get in their space in the best possible way, and they’ll return the favour.
  7. DELIVER THE WHOLE BRANDING SHE-BANG
    People have high expectations. They want authenticity, consistency, transparency, and quality. This means you’ve really gotta ‘bring it’ with the whole branding experience. Just like Lumiere dazzles Belle with a fabulous feast full of dancing furniture and a talking teacup, you’ve gotta dazzle your own crew. At every possible touchpoint — logos, culture, website, social, email — lay out your brand with your best foot forward. Wear your Sunday best, only every day! Yep, that’s the sort of commitment it takes to build and build and build a brand with legs.

Image Credit: Nadia Lachance

Posted in Ideas + InsightsTagged branding, advice, business, communication, successful, tips, consistency, creativity, graphic design, social media, marketing, logoLeave a Comment on Good marketing starts with good branding

smackbang.co

smackbang.co
80% of unwanted textiles end up in landfill with a 80% of unwanted textiles end up in landfill with an astonishing 30% of fast fashion items never even being sold. As our planet is suffering and consumer awareness is increasing - the time to change is now. So what can fashion brands do to be more sustainable?
​
​Head to The Paper to read more, link in bio.
The Future of Fashion is Sustainable. We sat down The Future of Fashion is Sustainable. We sat down with Co Founder and Director of @del.rainbow, Bianca Gregg to discuss where and how brands need to step up to the plate. 
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​Head to The Paper to read more, link in bio.
Brand is the ability to influence self perception Brand is the ability to influence self perception and self expression. ⚡️
As a female founded business, Smack Bang has alway As a female founded business, Smack Bang has always sought to empower working mothers and obliterate stigma traditionally bestowed to mummas who value both their career and their role as a mum.

To celebrate Mothers Day this year we spoke to Melanie Corlett, the founder behind @mumli.app, an app that helps you collect, save and share information and treasured moments throughout your motherhood journey, about her own journey with motherhood and how she balances being a mum and running a business.
We are for a thriving planet. We are for a survivi We are for a thriving planet. We are for a surviving population. We are for a lasting legacy. 

We are for a strong economy. We are for free speech and informed opinions. We are for opportunities.

We are for future generations with bright futures ahead. We are for our families, friends and neighbours.

We are for you.
We are for a thriving planet. We are for a survivi We are for a thriving planet. We are for a surviving population. We are for a lasting legacy. 

We are for a strong economy. We are for free speech and informed opinions. We are for opportunities.

We are for future generations with bright futures ahead. We are for our families, friends and neighbours.

We are for you.
We are for a thriving planet. We are for a survivi We are for a thriving planet. We are for a surviving population. We are for a lasting legacy. 

We are for a strong economy. We are for free speech and informed opinions. We are for opportunities.

We are for future generations with bright futures ahead. We are for our families, friends and neighbours.

We are for you.
Are the once successful tactics you implemented no Are the once successful tactics you implemented no longer delivering for your brand? Audience dwindling? Messaging diluted? Revenue falling? Losing relevance? Taking stock of where your brand has been, where it is currently positioned and where you want to go is an invaluable exercise. 

Head to The Paper to read more, link in bio.
Celebrate Earth Day with 20% off our Ebook range, Celebrate Earth Day with 20% off our Ebook range, with ten trees planted for every sale. 
​
Hit the link in our bio to SHOP and use code EARTHDAY. 
​
@onetreeplanted
Smack Bang was founded to support brands, startups Smack Bang was founded to support brands, startups and individuals with a strong belief in creating better future. During our eleven year tenure we've been fortunate enough to partner with a multitude of brands who make sustainability a natural and implicit part of their proposition.
​
This Earth Day, we're celebrating three of our most recent brands who are pioneering a sustainable new world — @wornforgood, @ethicalmadeeasy and Phantm.
​
​Hit the link in our bio to read the full article on The Paper.
With the post-pandemic world embracing the economi With the post-pandemic world embracing the economic ‘Lipstick Effect’, luxury personal care items have never been so in demand. The brands that stand out, however, are those who inspire intention and thoughtfulness not just with their product, but with the wider world. This is coupled with a ubiquitous consumer need for transparency and efficacy, as science continues to dominate our daily conversations. 

Through our strategy and brand building, Smack Bang created a brand for @aekos that is both thoughtful, unique, and communicates their commitment to doing better by the world. In doing so, we've created a brand that has an opportunity to redefine skincare to be 'skin care' — a holistic, inclusive and intentional approach to wellness. 

The brand ID is deeply inspired by the harmony between science and nature which exists as the core foundation of the Aekos brand. Every touchpoint created for Aekos reflects a distinctly Australian display of nature at its finest, where we, the consumers, are the ultimate beneficiaries.
With an intent to Elevate the Ordinary™ @aekos  With an intent to Elevate the Ordinary™ @aekos harnesses Australian native botanicals to create a powerful, effective and natural deodorant.
​
​Born from an identified gap in a highly saturated market, Aekos aims to merge the space between luxury wellness and sustainability. 
​
​Smack Bang were tasked with building the Aekos brand from the ground up, honing in on the brand's intentional, refined approach to forge a brand that is resonant, meaningful and authentic to the founding vision.
With a booming consumer wellness market and a nota With a booming consumer wellness market and a notable rise in self-care culture, comes
increasing demand for simple, effective and considered products that are both socially
responsible and aesthetically pleasing. 
​
Enter: @aekos 
​
​Aekos is a considered, luxury wellness brand with a core focus on showcasing its proud Australian heritage through unique ingredients and thoughtful product lines. Built on a plant to product philosophy, Aekos is a natural brand in the truest form. Innovative in direction and launching with a product range set on redefining skincare for underarms, Aekos creates clever but practical everyday products.
​
​Our team at Smack Bang have had the pleasure of bringing this brand to market.
Ignite a love affair between your brand and those Ignite a love affair between your brand and those ready to experience it through branded merch that fosters curiosity and credibility geared to convert.

Using a loyal following to champion your brand in the market is the ultimate strategy for success. We specialise in brand extensions, like creative merchandise, that help to sell your story and ignite the right kind of conversations about your brand. From conceptualisation to sourcing and execution, every design we produce works to create direct impact, shape perception and give your brand solid market recognition. 
​
​Recent merch designs for US based Cannabis brand Justice Cannabis Co.
The votes are in. This is the only playlist you'll The votes are in. This is the only playlist you'll need this long weekend. Hit the link in our bio to tune in.
As a community of conscious business owners, we ar As a community of conscious business owners, we are becoming increasingly aware of the role we play in contributing to the climate crisis. 
​
​On our blog today, Pru Chapman, founder of @ownerscollective shares her insights into how we can use business to shape our future. 
​
​Pru has just launched a timely and incredibly pertinent online course for purpose-driven leaders—The One Wild Ride Program was built for the next generation of change-makers and innovators to use business as a force for good. 
​
​And let's face it, the world sure does need more of that right now. Head to our stories to learn more.
Across categories of all kinds, we are seeing demo Across categories of all kinds, we are seeing demographics once left out of the conversation, step into the spotlight. 

The global plus-size women's market is one such example — Worth an estimated USD 152.8B in 2020 and expected to garner a market value of over USD 264.4B in 2027. 

This cultural shift is happening so fast that retail is scrambling to play catch-up. Our clients, Active Truth, however were quick to market, launching a radically inclusive activewear range that caters to every body.

Active Truth aims to empower under-represented body shapes through inclusive product ranges, campaigns, and messaging, ensuring every woman feels confident, comfortable and most importantly, represented.

Smack Bang is proud to work with brands who are intent on reshaping outdated narratives.
Active Truth is an inclusive activewear brand with Active Truth is an inclusive activewear brand with extended sizes from 6 to 26 and niche product ranges, designed with a focus on fit to give more women confidence and support for exercise, and for life. 
The Active Truth brand champions the notion that an active lifestyle looks different for every woman. A brand built to inspire, connect and instill confidence and an identity that speaks with refreshing honesty as an informed voice of reason in an industry that underserves the majority of women and preys on their insecurities.
Smack Bang were engaged to rethink the brand strategy for an elevated repositioning, and build out the identity and art direction to tell a cohesive story which seamlessly translates across all touchpoints to further reinforces their brand values.
Founded by one of America’s leading cannabis com Founded by one of America’s leading cannabis companies, Bloc offers a carefully curated selection of cannabis products through its sleek dispensaries across the U.S. With high demand and a growing community driving rapid expansion, Bloc are set to have dispensaries accessible to one third of the U.S. very soon.
​
​The Smack Bang team were recently engaged to develop a bold and memorable year-long campaign purposed to be rolled out in line with new store openings around the country as they occur. 
​
​The New Kid on the Bloc theme explores simplified, succinct messaging that is both relevant and relatable, engaging an existing consumer but also providing intrigue and connection with a modern demographic.
​
Through this campaign, we successfully streamlined Bloc's marketing efforts to ensure a clear brand presence, coordinated integrated communications and impactful content. We provided a clear path and process for future campaign direction and roll out that will enable maximum impact across all channels with a clear purpose and growth trajectory.
The combination of escalating climate threats, the The combination of escalating climate threats, the intensity of the pandemic and now significant global discord have brought our worst fears to the forefront. Thankfully, this newfound consumer consciousness and subsequent demands have sparked an acute response, spurring companies of all sizes to reimagine their place in a greener future with greater urgency and genuine action. 
​
​Read the full article on THE PAPER, via the link in our bio.

(first written and featured on the @compass_studio journal.)
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