Logos, Logos Everywhere – And, Yet Our Brands Do Doth Despair - By John Hendrie
This past Holiday weekend gave us a flourish, nay a cacophony, of Logos. The AT&T National Golf tournament ended this past Sunday with a decisive scorecard by Justin Rose. One of the upcoming Tour events is the Ford Wayne Gretzky Golf Classic presented by Samsung. I am not sure which excites me most – seeing the Great One tee off or watching the line-up of Samsung products, back-dropped with big trucks and autos on little islands amidst the water hazards.
Corporate sponsorship has run amok. General Electric and Mutual of Omaha once brought terrific programming to television. Now, you can watch MSNBC’s “Morning Joe”, brewed by Starbucks (a brilliant piece of marketing, by the way). Staples does not have much to do with the LA Lakers and their historic battle with the Boston Celtics, but there were other sponsors for replays, instant analysis, half-time, histories, free throws – just about everything. Then, you look to the Wimbledon Gentleman’s finals – two top-notch players and the only clothing Logo was Nike – pure, unadulterated, crisp and clean. Yup, BP owns the Gulf Oil catastrophe. As you watched the Daytona races, did you see where the logos on the jump suits began and ended – no place for a zipper.
Our Logos represent our Brand Values. Logos are memorable for their design, represented by product/service delivery. We are talking reliability, quality, dependability, price, convenience, authenticity and the like. I think we are wasting our imaging, promotion and even integrity on these sporting venues and events, while the infrastructure and value of the American community and natural resources are becoming bankrupt.
This is where the corporate marketing dollars should be directed, for “logo-ed” America is the reality – we smile with the Michelin blob, salivate with the King of Burgers, crunch with Mr. Peanut, gather our friends for Applebee’s, shiver with cold Coors – you get the picture; we respond in a sincere, visceral often loving fashion. Yet, our schools are closing, national parks are restricting visits, there are no life guards on our beaches, municipalities are laying off entire Police departments, public services are cut severely – the list goes on.
I am not sure we need to go to the extreme of Cabella’s Yosemite National Park, LL Bean’s Mt. Washington, Coca-Cola’s I-95, the Aetna Grand Canyon or Budweiser Elementary School # 132. Corporations should focus on where the need exists – not in the arenas or the sporting and entertainment events – but right back with our communities and national resources. That is where the Brand attains loyalty and the Logo its’ integrity.
The US Congress can rein in the excesses of Corporations, yet the Supreme Court can loosen the restrictions at the same time and allow Corporations to further leverage politics. Can you imagine in the future: “Presenting the Junior Oscar Meyer Senator from Massachusetts, Scott Brown, and the Senior Heinz Senator, John Kerry. We can do better with our Marketing dollars, directed where the needs exist. Be daring, be courageous, be responsible, be a Pathfinder (oops, Brand already taken).
