This past summer, I was allowed the privilege to join the Summer Institute at the Strategy Group LLC. As I joined mid-summer, the group of four other college students ranging from sophomores to seniors had already begun the interactive training focused on strategic marketing and branding. As with any new job or major life change, it was an adjustment to learn the processes and expectations of my new role. I quickly learned the most beneficial contribution an individual could make to the group was an idea.

Each individual’s thoughts and ideas brought greater collaboration to the group and allowed the five of us, called “The Summer Institute team,” to progress toward creatively and efficiently completing projects. Through the Summer Institute, I was able to grasp the full power of collaboration. Through my sophomore year in college, I was the quiet student in classroom discussions, either waiting for what I deemed the perfect moment to add my comment—which I rehearsed ad nauseam in my head—or simply sitting and soaking up the comments made by my peers.

During my first few meetings at the Institute, I took the approach of the “quiet student” while my four peers pitched ideas and vocalized their thoughts. I saw the group progress and move forward through one idea given by an individual that was built upon and used as the foundation for a complex idea. I found that vocalizing thoughts was the most efficient way to collaborate and progress towards a finished product.

Successful collaboration of a group hinges upon both active participation of individuals involved and an encouraging environment. At the Summer Institute, each individual brought a different skill set and personality to the group, which was appreciated by each member through encouragement and willingness to listen to each other’s ideas. Had we not encouraged each other to voice our own ideas and personality, I believe the unique perspectives and potential ideas would not have been expressed in the final draft of our projects.

The positive environment provided by the entire group allowed me to break the mold of the “quiet student.” I began to voice the ideas I had previously kept to myself and felt a catharsis as each of my peers added their own comments and we saw all of our thoughts take the shape of a complex and well-thought idea. Vocalized comments from each of us brought a new perspective on ideas and allowed the group to look at tasks from many different angles.

The challenge I give to myself moving forward is to continue collaborating in all aspects of my life, including this fall semester of school. Now that I have seen and participated in successful collaboration, I want to keep my profile as a quiet student in the past. I also know that, moving forward, the lessons and tasks we were exposed to over the summer will give me a deeper understanding for the real-world use of the skills I will learn in my remaining college courses.

I would like to add a “thank you” to all of the members of the group, including the Strategy Group employees and owners for letting me share in an experience that has certainly furthered my personal growth and helped me realize the potential of my own skill set.

—Kelly Gebert, junior, DePauw

Effective advertising doesn’t have to be expensive, but it does need to be consistent to build brand awareness. Explore ways to keep your message in front of your audience. Break through the clutter and tell your story in a way that is unique. Nearly everyone’s marketing budget is holding level or even decreasing to combat these financial times, so spend smart! Think outside the box and search for co-op dollar opportunities as we did for one of our clients.

Wichita Roofing & Remodeling is taking its new customer service program to the streets, literally. We designed a vehicle wrap for the marketing director’s car that would represent three different market areas—and more importantly strategically and effectively use their resources.

Today, the company name is reaching thousands of people daily as the director travels to meet one on one with insurance agents across the state. It’s not often you see a “Nascar” traveling down the Kansas turnpike. Is wrapping a vehicle original? No. But choosing an image of the number one spectator sport in America to carry your message across unexpected terrain is. It’s a conversation starter and it creates a memorable impression. And the best part is some of the client’s vendors are “car sponsors.” Their sponsorship dollars are helping pay for the vehicle wrap while our client’s message speeds across the state.

Get in the driver’s seat. The race is on! What are you doing to reach the checkered flag before your competition?

We are brand gatekeepers. Without gatekeepers, brands crumble. Every single thing we do, every single thing we say and every single dollar we spend either builds equity in a brand or contributes to its dilution.

Right now we are witnessing the total annihilation of one of the world’s dominant brands. Make no mistake. Tiger Woods is not just a person. Tiger Woods is a brand. So I’m left to wonder, who was the gatekeeper of the Tiger Woods brand?

Sometimes our job is not easy. Sometimes we’re the bad guys. Sometimes “just do it” is just plain wrong. Wherever you go from this point forward Tiger, make certain you have an Alan in your life.

Cheers.

To ensure that leaders’ voices were heard and opinions counted, we hosted a two-hour, guided ideation session. At the completion of the ideation, we knew that we needed to create an identity that was attractive to a younger crowd, while paying respect to and not offending an older audience.

We launched the logo design process. After a number of sketch rounds, we arrived at a logo that was both strongly progressive and rooted in tradition. By combining hand-lettered, modern type with the historic Celtic cross, we were able to create a look that appealed to a wide age spectrum.

Our work, however, was not done. We needed to devise a strategy that incorporated 18 distinct subministries into the at-large identity.

This might sound like a strange analogy, but this church identity needed to become a swimming octopus—I know, bear with me. The church’s many subminstries needed to become the tentacles and the logo the octopus’ head. As the octopus propels forward, the tentacles need to work in conjunction behind the head.

To create this swimming octopus, SG created a consistent format for the subministry names in combination with the logo, allowing the subministries to work with the main organizational identity rather than against it. This created a main-brand focus that allowed the smaller ministries to point back to the church’s main identity.

When building an identity for an organization that is made up of smaller entities, creating a concise, consolidated logo will help you build a sleek, sticky brand—your very own swimming octopus.

The heavenly bed points to an important discipline for strategic marketers, brand managers and CEOs: calculating what can go wrong. It’s a marvelous thing to be a person of vision, even better to see the line to the finish. But after the first flush of a new vision passes, it’s time to start the homework—to count the costs, understand the risks, study the competitive environment, jog around the whole vision with a few experts to look for both opportunities and pitfalls, and then, most important, slow to walk a mile in the brand consumer’s shoes. What is the consumer experience? What will the consumer say is great about this new vision of product or service brilliance? What will diminish his experience or worse, cause his confidence in my company to falter?

Several weeks before our not-so-heavenly bed experience, I booked two more room nights at this same hotel for an end-October visit back to South Carolina. It really is a beautiful hotel, but now I’m torn: cancel the reservation or travel with a bottle of Febreeze.

Curiously enough, this particular “pea” in my sleep experience was hinted at as early as 1749. I found this on Wikipedia when I Googled “duvet”:

“In Westphalia, an English travel-writer observed with surprise in 1749,
“There is one thing very particular to them, that they do not cover themselves with bed-cloaths, but lay one feather-bed over, and another under. This is comfortable enough in winter, but how they can bear their feather-beds over them in summer, as is generally practised, I cannot conceive.” —Thomas Nugent, The Grand Tour 1749, vol II. p66 [1]

While Tommy may not define every lifestyle, I believe his is one of the true branding success stories of our time. Read Cigar Aficionado, June 2007. I wish I were a little more like Tommy.

Tommy is an innovator. He had the courage to persevere when others were blind to his vision. Today he has legions of brand loyalists and just as many wannabe imitators.

Tommy knows who he is. He was created to live a very specific life (an attainable yet aspirational life)—and even more than a life, an attitude.

Tommy is true to who he is. He doesn’t try to be more things to more people. Instead he continues to drill into his own life (always asking the question: What would Tommy want?) and take a niche market deeper into his experience.

In my mind Tommy defines “boutique” and has rightfully earned his station in a life “where the weekend never ends.”

Relax.