Porsche kitchen designed by Poggenpohl.

http://www.gizmag.com/go/8138/

This is an interesting and unusual example of brand extension. Usually the kitchen are designed and made for women, but Porsche, by its association with the kitchen designer Poggenpohl, tried to open the kitchen market to men. As we can see on the picture, the design is very manly with a lot of aluminium (also used a lot by Porsche). This is a risk taken by Porsche but it could work. The target would be probably single businessman with a lot of money who wants a design home. As in a car, all the features and equipments are very good quality. 

Mercedes presents its new attributes.

This commercial can be easily linked with our course because we can see that Mercedes talks about its point-of-difference with the market. The point-of-parity is obvious, they don't need to talk about it, everyone knows that Mercedes is a luxury car. The german brand expose here its two novelty: the stereoscopic cameras and the ability of the car to stop by itself in case of emergency. Theses two technological breakthroughs go in the direction of the firm to offer more safety and comfort to its customers without forgetting the luxury.

Coca Cola partner of the major sport events.

Coca-Cola is one of the most powerful brand in the world. Probably in the top 10 when it comes to global brands. For the two main sport events (Olympic Games and football World Cup) Coca-Cola is one of the major partner. It is a brand with a lot of likability, most of the people likes Coke.

During the World Cup they release bottles with a special packaging showing the teams playing at the World Cup. The brand is famous for its brand elements (slogan, logo, packaging...). I find this brand extensions (the special editions) a good idea, people prefer buying the special bottle (more expensive) than the basic can. 

Nespresso commercial including George Clooney and Matt Damon.

The Nespresso commercial reflects really well the spirit of the company. Again as in a lot of commercial, celebrity endorsement is used with two famous actors, George Clooney and Matt Damon.

Clooney is the muse of Nespresso for a while and he embodies the brand perfectly with his class. It's interesting to notice that George Clooney only does the advertisement for Nespresso in Europe but not in the USA because it's bad seen to do commercial there. All the commercials are filmed with humor but also in luxurious surrounding (Nespresso store). The two actors give a positive image of the brand because their are mostly liked and people want to be associated with them by drinking the same coffee as they do.

Why McDonald's turned to green logo in Europe.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/11/23/mcdonalds-logo-to-go-gree_n_368169.html

This article was written a while ago but I found it very interesting because it deals with changing in the brand elements of one of the most powerful brand in the world. By turning the red logo into green McDonald's took a risk. It is always crucial when a company changes its brand element because the customers might not like the change and not buy the product or the service again. In this case the change was only in Europe not in the USA. It's also interesting to say that in the USA McDonald's has a bad image as a fast-food whereas in Europe the image is good and people go with their family their. The firm from Oak Brook explains this change by the will of "clarifying our responsibility for the preservation of natural resources. In the future we will put an even larger focus on that," Hoger Beek, vice chairman of McDonald's Germany.

How Oreo succeeded in China?

http://www.canadianbusiness.com/business-news/industries/marketing-to-china-oreos-chinese-twist/

This is a true success story for Oreo. They started really bad their launch on the Asian continent but thanks to good managing and marketing they show wonderful adaptability to win market shares in China. They created a whole new Oreo biscuit for the country which don't have the same form. No circle cookie but a stick wafer cookie stuffed with Oreo cream. The effect was immediate and opened a new range of opportunities with different flavour. They choose the NBA superstar Yao Ming to advertise their product, this celebrity endorsement was a perfect choice because Ming is almost a god in his country. This article shows well that it's not because you are the best on a market that you will succeed easily on others. It always requires market research and good positioning.

Messi & Federer for Gillette

Another example of celebrity endorsement which I find really good. Gillette also prepares the football World Cup and offer for its customer the opportunity to have a razor with the flag and name of their country on it. The commercial includes two of the most well-known sportsman in the world who are both considered as the best of all time in their sport. More of that, they are both likeable and represent really well the spirit of the brand.

Kia's customers are the most loyal.

http://www.autonews.com/article/20140124/RETAIL06/301259996/kias-rising-brand-loyalty-could-boost-new-flagship-sales

It's kind of a surprise to find Kia at the top of the ranking of the most loyal car customers. In Europe the brand is not really famous and only a few people own a kia. The satisfaction post-purchase should be very high but it's also linked with good marketing of the firm. Kia insure their car for 7 years which is huge and very attractive for its consumers. Most of the consumers buys Kia for the reliability, and purchase it again probably for the same reason.

Apple commercial

It's not this ad in particular which hold my attention but all of the Apple's commercial. They are all filmed in the same way, with almost no sound and a narrator who speaks. This type of ad works really well with the firm, they are pure, and calm. We find the same personality in Apple's products. The design is very important and every details count. 

Jersey Shore stars paid for not wearing A&F clothes.

http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2011/08/16/abercrombie-and-fitch-offer-to-pay-the-situation-to-stop-wearing-their-clothes/

We have seen this example in class and it really surprised me. I've never heard before a company who pays people no to wear their product. But it this case it is understandable. The show Jersey Shore is very bad seen in the US and the person who are in it are real thugs. A&F didn't want to see their name associated to this kind of images and proposed to pay for that. It could affect the brand image and decrease the number of sales because people wouldn't want to wear the same clothes as the characters of Jersey Shore.

Nike Commercial 2014: Winner Stays

For every big event such as the World Cup or the Olympics, Nike release a new commercial. This one especially retain my attention thanks to the number of guests. A lot of the best players of the world are in this ad such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Rooney, Neymar or Iniesta. This commercial also surprised me by its duration, more than 4 minutes ! The celebrity endorsement works very well in the sector of sport. The customers want to see their favorite players.

This video is shown on youtube before watching a video. So it means you can skip it after 5 seconds. And I have to say that for once I watched the whole commercial without skipping it before watching my youtube video.