ak, Begbeder talks about the world of marketing through the mouth of a cynical advertising man.
Advertising has become part of our daily lives, and branding has become an art form. Teams of creatives work hard for weeks to come up with a single name for the brand they are developing. Graphic designers are frothing at the mouth to prove to each other that a pale yellow background is better than orange.
For nothing?
I don’t think so. Given the billion-dollar turnover of some companies.
Morshynska trademark earned UAH 738.57 million in 2016. Is it only about quality? Then answer, how does Truskavetska or Prosora differ significantly from Morshynska?
In today’s realities, a quality product is nothing without a well thought out branding strategy.
Let’s consider the top 7 most famous brands on the Ukrainian market. Those titans whose brands are on the lips of both 12-year-old teenagers and those who are well over 60.
1) Roshen. A sweet mark of quality or the president’s goodies
A giant corporation that includes not only Ukrainian, but also Lithuanian, Russian, Hungarian, Kazakh and even Chinese enterprises. In 2015, Roshen’s revenue amounted to about 500 million dollars. In the Candy Industry Top 100 international ranking, the company ranked 22nd in terms of its contribution to the confectionery industry.
Naming. Although the company has been on the market since 1996, but with the new millennium a new history of the brand began. In 2000, the cumbersome name “Ukrpromivestkonditer” was changed to the laconic Roshen. Marketers tried to create a legend about the mythical god of sweets, but the truth turned out to be too obvious.
The name is laconic, sounding and suitable for entering foreign markets. KOLORO branding agency approves.
Logo. After the rebranding, the logo became simpler. The trademark is easy to place on any labels and packaging. The use of dim colors can be explained by the fact that the brand is not trying to stand out on the shelves. Roshen has already established itself on the market.
Figure. Comparison of Roshen logos
Unique selling proposition. It should be noted that the UTP is the trump card up a company’s sleeve. It is what distinguishes a corporation from its competitors.
The fairy-tale atmosphere of company stores is not an advertising slogan, it is a reality. Have you noticed that there is always pleasant slow music playing near them? And the smells? Maybe 1.5% of the company’s budget is allocated just for this intoxicating sweet aroma?
In 2016, there were 30 Roshen stores in Kyiv. Competitors attribute this to the patronage of the President, but we believe that the company’s marketing specialists really tried their best: unique interior for each sales area, themed decorations for holidays, beautiful branded clothes for salespeople. And yes, we almost forgot – really delicious sweets.
Figure. ProductsRoshen
Such attention to detail is not a cheap pleasure. Nikolai Chumak, founder of the IDNT consulting company, suggests that re-equipping a small store with an area of 200 square meters will cost from $100,000 to $300,000.
Excursions to factories, reconstruction of the Vinnitsa musical fountain, construction of playgrounds, regular assistance to the OHMATDIT hospital and the center of pediatric cardiology and cardiac surgery – PR, charity or PR at the expense of charity?
It is up to you to decide. But from 2014 to 2016, the corporation donated more than 240 million UAH to charity projects. And even if it is additional advertising, we are in favor of such advertising with all our hands.
2) Our Ryaba. Pikluuchis about you or “the hen was eaten, the scallop was left behind”.
In 1998, Ukrainian entrepreneur Yuriy Kosyuk starts re-equipment of the Myronivsky Feed Mill and Cherkassy Pobeda poultry farm. The main tasks of the specialists are to develop a feed formulation and efficient broiler breeding technology.
But the date of creation of the brand is December 25, 2001. It was on New Year’s Eve that Nasha Ryaba’s hen first went out in public.
Since then, much water has flowed, feed has been eaten, and the company has become the leader of the Ukrainian market. In 2016, half of the industrial production belonged to the Nasha Ryaba brand. There are more than 2000 franchise outlets operating in Ukraine.
Naming. Simple and homely. Associations with fairy tales and grandmother’s village. But it is rather difficult to imagine an English gentleman in a raincoat, a kind of Cumberbatch, addressing his wife: “Dear, let’s take some Nasha Ryaba for this wonderful rainy evening?”. Perhaps the naming specialists created a different name for the export.
Logo. In 2009, the company rebranded. The cartoon chicken was replaced by a laconic abstract logo. The brand name is in the center of attention. It is easy to spot even from a great distance. And only the scallop remains of the bird.
On the package appeared inscriptions: “Natural feeds of own production” and “Packed by the manufacturer”.
Figure. Our Ryaba logo comparison
Unique selling proposition. The main problems with the “chicken” business are animal rights activists and health food advocates who claim that “all those broilers are slathered in chemicals.”
“Nasha Ryaba” positions itself as a welcoming host for the birds. Here is how the website describes the process of chick delivery: “When chicks are brought from Germany, the houses are warmed up 48 hours in advance – this ensures a “warm” welcome for the babies. The mood on the site is already festive – they have arrived!
Figure. A fragment of Nasha Ryaba’s website
Whether this is true or an element of style is unknown, but it is worth noting that the creators of the site have done a quality job. The information is accessible and interesting. It is not clear why the average customer needs it, but retailers may be interested.
As for lovers of a healthy diet – they can rest easy. The website provides information on the composition of broiler feed and the meat quality testing system.
3) Kyivstar. Z dumkoyu about you or capital star
Although the company is part of the VimpelCom Ltd holding, the Kyivstar brand is entirely Ukrainian. As a rule, the operator’s services are used by successful adults or residents of regions, for whom the quality of communication is especially important.
Today Kyivstar has more than 26 million mobile subscribers.
Naming. The star of the capital. Probably, this is how the company’s creatives thought about it 20 years ago. Although the world of advertising is fleeting and fastidious, it is still worth recognizing that the name Kyivstar remains successful today.
Kiev – as a small homeland of the operator and the star – as a bright clear image. A guiding star, a star on the Walk of Fame, a star as a symbol of leadership.
In June 2008, Kyivstar ranked first in the rating of Ukraine’s most expensive brands. Its value was 3,176, 266 million dollars.
Logo. Is black PR also PR? Kyivstar’s directorate has had plenty of time to think about this question, as in 2015 a whole scandal broke out over the new logo.
The order to create a new logo was received by Saffron Brand Consultants, a foreign structure. Along with the order, they received a check for $100,000 (according to estimates by Valentin Persia, co-owner of Vitagramma), which is not very patriotic.
Figure. Comparison of Kyivstar logos
Speaking of patriotism. The new logo has a national identity, which was very timely, given the difficult political situation in 2015.
“The old version was static and corporate. The new one is dynamic and modern,” says Kyivstar Marketing Director Svyatoslav Gorban. The logo has indeed become lighter and friendlier, but during the reincarnation it also acquired a significant similarity to the trademark of the American company Wallmart.
Figure. Logo of the American retailer Walmart
Unique selling proposition. According to KOLORO desk-based marketing research, 68.5% of the focus group named Kyivstar as the operator with the best coverage area.
Is it true or the result of quality brand building? The Internet provider selection service “Multitest” will help to understand. Since February 26, 2016 users can see an interactive map of 3G coverage of mobile operators, which was created on the basis of open data provided by operators.
Figure. 3G coverage map of Kyivstar (blue) and Lifecell (orange)
Obviously, sometimes quality advertising is more important than quality coverage.
4) Globino. Enterprise or city?
A 19-year-old, self-confident enterprise. It is easy to be confident when you sell 1700 tons of products every month, have the status of “The Best Enterprise of the Country 2015” and are among the top three leaders of the meat market of Ukraine.
Naming. There is a town called Globine in the Poltava region… Is it worth explaining further the train of thought of the company’s creatives? Logical, sound, easy to be perceived by foreign consumers. Hats off to you.
Logo. There are 3 types of logos: text, graphic and combined. The most concise, but by no means the simplest, is text. For everyday products, a logo in the form of a name is ideal.
Unique selling proposition. In 2016, Globino decided to create a new dairy brand. The COLORO agency willingly agreed to help.
Figure. A new umbrella brand
The UTP is based on the information that Globino uses 10.5 liters of milk to produce 1 kg of cheese. The slogan appeared by itself: “There is more milk than in milk”. A new corporate identity and packaging design were developed.
Learn about the process of creating a new umbrella brand here.
5) Nemiroff. You turned – the world supported you
Back in 1872 Count Grigory Stroganov opened the largest distillery on Podol. But it took a long 125 years before the Nemiroff brand saw the world for the first time. Since then, the Nemiroff vodka brand has held leading positions in the Ukrainian market and is also actively exported abroad.
The assortment includes more than 40 types of products in different price categories. Over the last 10 years, the company has won 60 prestigious awards at international competitions.
Naming. The history is similar to the Globino trademark. If you say the word “Nemirov” in Ukraine, the first association will be with vodka, and then, if you are lucky, you will remember a wonderful town in the Vinnitsa region. The name is written in Latin letters to create an impression of the “foreignness” of the alcoholic beverage.
It is interesting to note that one of the best-selling brands in the world is Russian vodka Smirnoff. It is obvious how consonant the names are. Time will tell whether this is an accident or a deliberate step in the struggle for world domination.
Logo. The company gave up pepper in its logo. According to Koloro’s experts, this decision was a good one. Firstly, Nemiroff has a lot of “non-spicy” flavors in its line: strawberry, honey, light. The image of pepper is not always appropriate for vodka with “softened” flavor.
Secondly, for the foreign consumer, vodka does not have a direct association with pepper, unlike in Slavic countries.
Figure. Comparison of Nemiroff logos
Unique selling proposition. The uniqueness of Nemiroff is in the absence of a unique selling proposition. And it is worth noting that the product is of high quality and is in demand in the market.
The brand lacks recognizable attributes. The packaging design has no common element, only a few associations come to mind when the brand is mentioned: “For Nemiroff all over the world” and boxing fights sponsored by the brand.
If in Ukraine the company has advantages over competitors as the longest-lasting vodka product, then to enter the international market it is necessary to think about branding of the trademark.
6) Morshinskaya. You feel it, others can see it
Morshynska is a Ukrainian brand owned by IDS Group. The assortment includes non-carbonated, low-carbonated and high-carbonated water. Morshynska ranks first in sales among non-carbonated waters in Ukraine. The products are exported to Russia, Moldova and Baltic countries.
Naming. Traditionally, the name of the trademark is based on the village Morshyn, which is located in the Lviv region.
Logo. If there was a ranking of the calmest brand, the KOLORO agency would solemnly give Morshinskaya the Grand Prix.
Figure. Logo of Morshinskaya trademark
Simple and tasteful. Modest first letter in lower case, “soft” rounded font, no PR scandals with rebranding.
Unique selling proposition. How to instill in a child the habit of drinking water? After all, it has no taste, no color, no smell, and in general – “this water is boring, mother”. The marketers of Morshinskaya found a way out – to pay the main attention to the packaging, so that the baby would not want to part with his bottle.
The characters from the cartoon “Cold Heart” became the prototypes for the girls’ collection, and the boys were pleased with the characters from “Star Wars”.
Morshinskaya also took care of the convenience of the bottles – they are comfortable to hold even in a child’s hand.
Figure. Unique selling proposition of Morshinskaya.
Cooperation with the American movie company Disney will be long-term. Therefore, soon you will be able to find new fairytale characters on supermarket shelves. Each series is limited. This will encourage people to shop faster.
7) Obolon. Beer of your fatherland
Obolon is a producer of beer, soft drinks and low-alcoholic beverages. Over 37 years of its existence Obolon has created a dozen of new brands. Some of them (Hike premium, Ziber, Zlata Praga) are actively sold to this day, while other experiments (Magnat beer, Frest soft drink, Jett energy drink) were not so successful.
Obolon brand beer is exported to 40 countries of the world. The company’s share in total exports is 80%.
Obolon is a good taxpayer and a constant leader in the rating of companies with transparent financial policy.
Naming. The brewery was built near the source of artesian water in the Obolon district of Kyiv. This is how the name came into being: sound, international and easy to remember.
Logo. There is a parallel with the coat of arms, which is very appropriate for geographical naming. Both the coat of arms of Obolon district and the brewery logo have a crown.
Heraldry is associated with recipes that have been handed down from generation to generation, with traditions and long history. That is why Obolon’s logo, although not modern, fully reflects the production policy.
Figure. Obolon brand logo
Read more about beer label design here.
Unique selling proposition. The company positions itself as “beer of your Batkivshchyna”. But due to the similar policy of competitors (“Chernigivske”, “Lvivske”) this is not a unique offer.
Obolon is a company with great social responsibility. With a huge social responsibility.
Switching to alternative fuel, supporting Ukrainian book publishing, developing artificial intelligence, organizing an international competition in Ukrainian language, restoring architectural landmarks – this is an incomplete list of Obolon’s activities.
They don’t flaunt it, but modestly mention it on the site.
And for nothing. According to KOLORO marketing experts, the image of a benefactor can be used as an emotional UTP. If a consumer has a choice of buying beer of a regular brand and a brand that sponsors a national movie, then in conditions of the same price and quality, the advantage will be given to the second one.
Conclusions
Creating a brand is an archival task. The most famous brands spend the lion’s share of their budget on image. With the great competition of quality goods, the consumer buys not only the product. He buys a story, a feeling, an association.
Our Ryaba is not a piece of meat, it is the comfort of home holidays, Kyivstar is not a set of functions on the phone, it is an opportunity to contact loved ones from anywhere in the world, Morshinskaya is not water. It is health.
Figure. Logo development process
Whether your product becomes another chocolate bar or a holiday symbol, it’s up to you to decide. And we will.
COLORO Agency – always happy to help.
