Kdog

Passion, hard work, whether or not you like pineapple on pizza. Brand values are the uncompromising ideas that truly matter to you. These values serve as the guiding principles that shape your company’s identity and decisions as it grows. 

Embracing Values That Resonate:

When crafting your brand values, it’s crucial to consider concepts that genuinely resonate with you. If words like integrity, quality or diversity appeal to you, ask yourself why and make sure your brand can uphold those values. These values should align with your personal beliefs and become the foundation upon which your brand stands.

The Pizza Principle:

Just as pizza toppings reflect personal taste, brand values reflect the essence of your business. Choosing the right words for your brand is like selecting ingredients that you can actually sink your teeth into. Sure, Hawaiian is a classic choice, but if the thought of sweetness on a savoury pizza makes you queasy, then skip it! Don’t order anything you can’t commit to devouring, and don’t pick values you can’t uphold.

There’s no one-size-fits-all recipe here, just what feels right for you. Whether you’re a pineapple aficionado or a staunch traditionalist, it’s about finding the right combination that resonates with your taste buds.

Guiding Your Business, Even in the Shadows:

Brand values play a vital role in shaping how your company sees itself, even when nobody else is watching. They serve as a constant reminder of the principles you hold dear and guide your decision-making process. Upholding your values consistently strengthens your brand’s integrity and fosters trust with your audience.

To continue the metaphor, if you say you have vegetarian options then you better be able to break out the vege-rama pizza, rather than telling someone that they can just eat the garlic bread. Your audience trusts you to uphold these ideals, internally and externally. 

Brand values should reflect the core principles that matter to you and will shape your decision-making as you grow. Your brand values are like the perfect pizza toppings, a delicious blend of ideas that are uniquely personal to you. Let them define your business’s identity and serve as a constant reminder of what truly matters. Uphold your brand values proudly and watch as they shape the success and integrity of your brand.

Looking to infuse your company with meaningful values that resonate with your audience?

Email us at hello@theincubator.com.au to find out more about how The Incubator can help you define and integrate your company’s values for maximum impact.

Let’s embark on this journey together and create a brand that leaves a lasting impact.

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Your brand mantra is a crucial aspect of establishing a strong identity. This statement expresses the core of what your brand represents and the image you want to put out into the world. It’s a call to arms that inspires others to connect with your brand. Let’s crack open the grimoire and explore the process of crafting a spellbinding message that leaves everyone captivated.

Understanding a Brand Mantra
At its heart, your brand mantra is a powerful expression that conveys the soul of a brand. It is a callout that sets the tone for your brand and defines its unique character. The aim is to create a powerful and memorable message that resonates with consumers.

Nike, for example, uses three words as their brand mantra:

“Authentic Athletic Performance”

This mantra emphasises the authenticity of the brand and creates emotional associations, you can practically see the fit people running on treadmills when you hear those words.
Sum up all the feelings, vibes, and dreams your brand wants to evoke in others, then smash them together into a concise statement.

How Do I Do That?
Crafting a compelling brand mantra requires honesty, research, and introspection. It’s about going beyond surface-level buzzwords and getting to the heart of what your brand truly stands for. Here are some steps to help you create a mesmerising brand mantra:

  • Dig deep: Reflect on the purpose and values that drive your brand. What is it that sets you apart from the competition? What are the core beliefs and principles that guide your business?
  • Know your audience: Understand your target audience. How does your brand align with their values? What message will resonate with them on a deep and meaningful level?
  • Craft your story: Use the power of storytelling to create a narrative that engages and inspires. Tell the story of your brand’s journey, its mission, and the impact it aims to make in the world.
  • Stay true to yourself: Ensure that your brand mantra aligns with the core essence of your brand. It should be an authentic representation of who you are and what you believe in. Don’t chase trends or try to be something you’re not. Embrace your unique identity and let it shine through in your brand mantra.

The Impact of a Powerful Brand Mantra
A well-crafted brand mantra is integral to brand recognition. It has the power to ignite emotions, inspire action, and forge a connection between the consumer and brand. If a customer was asked to sum up your brand, you hold the power to shape their answers by providing a simple and compelling brand story.

Ready to discover the essence of your brand and create a captivating brand mantra that evokes emotions and inspires others?

Email us at hello@theincubator.com.au to find out more about how The Incubator can help you uncover the true essence of your brand and craft a powerful brand message that sets you apart.

Let’s embark on this journey together and create a brand that leaves a lasting impact.

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Press Release: Tradie Bamboo - So much Nature

Tradie Bamboo - So much Nature

Tradie urges audience to bamboo the world a favour in their latest spot for Tradie Bamboo via The Incubator

Tradie underwear has let Aussie athletes Nick ‘Honey Badger’ Cummins, Danielle Scott and Charlotte Caslick loose in the forest to get super up-close-and-personal with nature in their latest spot for Tradie Bamboo.

From frolicking in slow motion, to playing the pan pipes and hugging huge trees, the trio show off their softer sides while espousing the silky smooth anti-chafe fabric, moisture wicking and hypoallergenic benefits of this luxurious new bamboo range.

“Trekking into the forest with Nick, Danni & Charlotte was an absolute joy.” Says Kyran Docker, Creative Director at The Incubator. “It is always a delight working with the Tradie team, and we’re thrilled with what was achieved. Through this campaign, we had the chance to have a bit of fun with the medium while staying true to the Tradie spirit.”

Filmed in Victoria’s leafy foothills, The Incubator had a great time bringing out the team’s natural talents with the forest backdrop providing the perfect foil for Tradie Bamboo’s eco-friendly roots. “Being fast-growing, organic and biodegradable, our Bamboo range is our most sustainable yet” says Tradie founder Ben Goodfellow.

The 30 second spot is airing on TV and social media from Sunday 5th March 2023.

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John Lewis continues their stranglehold on your heartstrings this Christmas with The Beginner, the story of a new foster father finding a way to bond with his new daughter. It’s a simpler tale than their usual fare, but no less touching.

You have a higher chance of being hit by lightning seven times than winning the lottery, but you have an even slimmer chance of finding love on a crowded train full of miserable commuters. But this year’s Lottery Christmas ad will have you believing in the possibility of both, as it follows the story of a missed love connection on a train. Enjoy the weird experience of weeping over the lottery.

J&B just released She, a holiday ad telling the story of a grandfather experimenting with makeup before a family gathering. Look, it’s probably pandering for a whiskey company to use a story of transition unrelated to their product, just to get you to break out the tissues. But in the tradition of Christmas movies, the pandering works damn well.

You’d think you wouldn’t be able to get emotional while Hall and Oates is playing but Boots, the UK health and beauty company, has found a way with their fun, adorable Christmas ad. A pair of magic specs gives a woman the ability to see what those around her want for Christmas.

Just when you thought you could escape the Christmas ads with your Grinch-like tendencies intact, The Petspiration Foundation has deployed cute dogs. The charity uses their Christmas Project initiative to provide assistance animals to those in need. Their emotional ad spotlights the impact pets can have on people who need them the most, via a little girl’s selfless wish list.

Subway is tackling holiday loneliness with its new Christmas ads, probably because you’re never more alone than when you haven’t rehearsed what sauces you want at the sandwich bar and there’s a queue growing behind you.

Welcome to the Thunderdome, sponsored by your local grocery store. In the hilarious new ALDI holiday campaign, politeness becomes a bloodsport as two women are determined to be the one to offer the final prawn at a Christmas lunch.

HelloFresh has released a super cute holiday meal kit inspired by the classic Christmas flick, Elf, offering Buddy’s signature dish: chocolate and maple syrup spaghetti. While we’re still not fully convinced this would be appetising, there’s no kid that wouldn’t lose their damn minds over the chance to make this meal.

It seems there’s more than one way to spice up the holiday driving, as a digital billboard in Brisbane was recently hacked and started broadcasting pornography. The billboard was shut down after a few minutes, but given its location on one of Brisbane’s busiest roads, it’s probably safe to say the advertising did its job and reached a fair number of eyeballs.

Like the terrifying concoctions of a mad scientist, Kraft Mayo has been combined with Juicy Couture. The condiment brand has collaborated with Juicy to create the kind of outfit sane individuals left behind in 2005. Featuring a blue velour tracksuit with “Smooth” replacing the iconic “Juicy” on the back and a white velour tube top boasting “Mayo Couture,” this flashback to the aughts is now available for pre-sale. Get in loser, we’re going shopping.

Did you know in Washington, it’s illegal to harass a Sasquatch? LegalShield has released a new series of ads bringing to light some of the stupidest laws in America, but the fun kind, not the depressing  gun control and corruption kind we make fun of them for. The ads serve as a handy guide, should you ever end up in an X-File and need to worry about legal representation.

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Leaving your corner of the forest.

You can’t stay in your corner of the Forest waiting for others to come to you. You have to go to them sometimes.

It’s a little trite in brand circles to discuss building brands to ‘be your friend’, but in a world reaching for more genuine connections, consumers are expecting authenticity from their brands. Thanks to social media, the connection between brand and consumer has become closer than ever before. Once distant monoliths, you now have 24/7 access to whatever brand you like, from your Health Insurance to your breakfast cereal.

Brands are discovering new ways to form personal connections with their customers. Everyone can remember a brand that went the extra step and gave you the warm fuzzies during your interactions, a Tim Tam with your delivery, a personal note, a free gift, planting a tree with every purchase, a second pair delivered to those in need, the list goes on. But while the little things are nice, what’s important is how companies are using their platform for the larger things. Listening to your audience and committing to making their world better, standing your ground, and showing support for the things that matter can not only be the right thing to do, but can lead you to develop loyal customers.

In the states, years before the Black Lives Matter reckoning for brands, Nike was thrust, or thrust themselves, into the centre of the conversation with the release of their 2018 ‘Dream Crazy’ spot. Part of Nike’s 30th anniversary of Just Do It, the campaign starred former NFL star Colin Kaepernick, tennis legend Serena Williams and skateboarder Lacey Baker inspiring people to dream crazy. It contained the now famous line ‘Believe in something, even if it means sacrificing everything.’ The backlash was swift and strong and overblown, there was burning of shoes, cancelling of orders and snipes from the President. However, the bank holiday weekend following the release resulted in a 31% increase in online sales, Nikes overall valuation increased by $6 Billion in the months after the campaign launch. Manish Dudharejia writes that there are four key takeaways to learn from the Colin Kaepernick Ad.

Four key takeaways

01.

Approach controversy wisely.

02.

Embrace the backlash.

03.

Know who will rally behind you.

04.

Never sacrifice values.

According to a recent broad study, Impact of Culture: What it Means for Brands Today, conducted by MAGNA and Twitter along with its localised extension, shows that Australian brands involvement in and leadership of social issues is not only what consumers want, it’s what they expect.

The study found that:

  • Almost three quarters (74%) of Australians thought of culture other than that of tradition.
  • More than half think it’s important for brands to be involved in social issues and movements, and almost half think it’s important for brands to be involved in events and trends.
  • The top ways for brand involvement include giving back to the community (59%), supporting social issues that benefit everyone (52%), demonstrating that they put their customers first (52%), and are inclusive of all (52%).
  • Involvement in culture is nearly as valuable as having positive brand perceptions.
  • Almost one fifth of a consumer’s purchase decision is made up by a brand’s cultural involvement.
  • Brands supporting social issues have the most potential to impact consumer purchase decisions.

Speaking to Adnews, Emily Float, head of agency at Twitter Australia, notes that the way culture is defined has changed but its importance has not.

“Consumers want brands to get involved in the issues and moments that matter most to them and those that do, will reap the rewards,” she said.

“For marketers, this presents an exciting opportunity because involvement in culture is something in their control. Price and quality will always be the top driver of purchase decisions, but those are relatively set, and brand perceptions can take years, if not decades, to meaningfully shift.

“A brand’s involvement in culture is something that can be changed with a single campaign, and it’s something Twitter in particular is well positioned to help with.”

So, after you’ve spent so much energy making all these new friends, when are you going to head over to their corner of the forest?

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Both Pepsi and Guinness have released ads this month fantasising about what life post-covid will be like. You know the past year was weird when the thought of an overcrowded bar table has started getting us all choked up and emotional.

Speaking of Covid, The ABC’s producer and broadcaster, Dr Norman Swan has compared Australia’s vaccination ads to something produced by a “communist government committee,” so…. not a glowing review.

The Australian Government has had a rough track record lately. Their recent “milkshake ads” about consent were so awful, they seem to have been made with the sole purpose of providing a Mystery Science Theatre 3000 style mockery platform for those you show it to. Described as “disappointing, confusing and cringe-worthy,” the ads were quietly pulled following intense backlash. If you want to wash the taste of milkshake out of your mouth with some actual information about consent, Clementine Ford and independent agency The Royals have released a response video, featuring a mature and useful conversation about consent.

The Feed made a fake influencer account to expose the rise of sponsored content on social media. When “25 per cent of Australian influencers are involved in fraudulent activity,” are advertising regulators going to be able to update their guidelines to deal with our new media platforms?

Veet has gotten a makeover, with their new approach highlighting that body hair (or the removal thereof) is an individual choice to make. A welcome change from the old “burn it all and salt the earth” approach to hairy legs.

Following in the footsteps of companies like Cheer CheeseNestle and even The Washington Football teamBen’s Original has started rolling out the packaging for their new name, made to distance themselves from the racist connotations of their old brand. Any step in the right direction is always a good thing.

Over Mother’s Day, A director put together a tribute to both his commercial actress mother and cheesy 80s and ’90s ads with a series called Mom’s Spots, a compilation of all of the retro advertisements his mother starred in during his youth. A reminder that they just don’t make sweaters that garish anymore.

Over The Bridge, a non-profit mental health group, has released an album called the Lost Tapes of the 27 Club, using AI to create songs from famous musicians like Kurt Cobain and Jimi Hendrix, whose lives were all lost at 27 years old. The organisation is aiming to change the narrative away from the romanticisation of these early deaths by imagining what these artists might have created, were they still with us.

Five industry professionals have gotten together to list The 50 Movie Posters That Changed Entertainment Marketing. From Saul Bass’s paper cut outs for Anatomy of A Murder to Silence of The Lambs’ oft-imitated surrealism, check out just how much posters have evolved over the years.

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Press Release: Tradie Body

Tradie: Storm the room

Tradie storms our screens with new TV spots via The Incubator

NRL’s Cameron Munster, Josh Addo-Carr and Christian Welch are set to storm our screens off the field this week, starring an uproarious series of new TVCs celebrating Tradie’s proud Melbourne Storm sponsorship. Whether trying to squeeze three big rigs into a tiny bathtub, or unleashing an epic deodorant battle, the boys whipped up a perfect storm while showcasing Tradie’s signature body wash and deodorant range.

Ben Goodfellow, Tradie founder says: “We’re extremely proud to be sponsors of the Melbourne Storm, one of the most successful clubs in NRL history, and we’re sure they’ll be great ambassadors for our Tradie body range. Plus our products will help make all their victories smell even sweeter this season.”

“The boys were game for everything we threw at them during filming, and we’re excited to show how much fun these ads are.” said Kyran Docker, Creative Director at The Incubator.

The two new 15 second spots will air on National TV from Sunday 23rd May.


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Burger King c̶l̶e̶v̶e̶r̶l̶y̶ celebrated International Women’s Day insulting women. Austin, Texas-based agency Hunt, Gather reworked the campaign with its own twist for a line of merchandise, with all proceeds going to the Girls Empowerment Network.

Earlier in the year Burger King also overhauled their global brand that will feel very familiar to us in Australia. McDonalds, not too far behind has unveiled a global packing redesign of its own, that feels a bit “Hey can i copy your homework?” “Sure, just make sure you change it a little.”

The 2020 auto industry great logo flattening party rolls on with Kia the latest to flatten up, joining ToyotaNissanBMWMINI and Volkswagon. Any left?

Jeep landed themselves in a bit of hot water with their Super Bowl submission in a two-pronged attack. First being flooded with a wave of negative comments around its tone deaf plea to a country divided, then in a case of ‘maybe you should have vetted your talent better’ the ad was pulled completely after it was revealed that Bruce Springsteen was arrested for DWI, reckless driving and consuming alcohol in a closed area three months prior.

The Teeter-Totter Wall along the US-Mexico border has been named the overall winner of the Beazley Designs of the Year awards of 2020.

Industry leader Campaign Monitor has released their annual Benchmarks Report that breaks down key findings from their mountain of 2020 email marketing data.

The roll-out of Apple’s iOS 14 includes a tracking prompt set to disrupt Facebook Ads targeting. We’re yet to see how this will affect campaigns, but it has really got Facebook rattled.

The great 90’s show Rugrats is getting a really creepy makeover. Is this really what we need to be giving the next generation?

Amazon made a misstep by rebranding their logo to look like … Hitler. Yeah. That guy.

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There’s little doubt you haven’t seen the Nike spot that ripped through the internet like wildfire last week. “You can’t stop us.” If you haven’t seen it, you should – if you have, watch it again.

The great logo flattening party of 2020 continues with Toyota the latest to flatten up with mixed results from Nissan, BMW, MINI and Volkswagon who have steamrolled their brands.

If you’re looking for some reading the folks over at Campaign Monitorare releasing a series that focuses on diversity and equity in marketing.

For the first time in its 55-year history, Vogue Italia has commissioned children to design eight special edition covers, it’s one of many unexpected cover designs at the moment, from David Hockney’s exclusive cover for Telegraph Magazine to frontline workers as cover stars, the current crop of covers are a great twist on the normal.

As the world’s collective mental health takes a dive around the world R U OK? Day 2020 is working on what happens next, focussing on increasing skills and building confidence in navigating the steps after someone opens up about their struggles. Learn what to say next at ruok.org.au

Meditation App Headspace & Snapchat have joined forces to open up conversations around mental health and to help users on their platform feel better and call on their friends for support.

Burger King has given up on 2020 in the states and launched a Christmas campaign six months early to bring some simple joy in these uNpReCidEnTeD tImEs.

Designed in 1920 Cooper Black has become ubiquitous the world over from hip hop album covers, food packaging, advertising, a tonne of store fronts, Garfield comics and the Pet Sounds album cover by The Beach Boys. Vox looks into the origins and deconstruct all the reasons it’s been pop culture’s favourite font for so long.

After two years in development, Evian is embracing the circular economy by launching their first label free bottle made from recycled plastic.

The tourism industry has been one of the hardest hit of 2020, but as restrictions start to slowly lift in some states the SMI (Standard Media Index) is reporting early data showing ad spend lifting in July and August for domestic tourism. Tourism Australia relaunched domestic campaigns in May with its Live From Aus campaign and Destination Gold Coast has launched with its Come Back and Play Queensland campaign.

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