Contributors
Bryan K. Oekel
Mr. Oekel leads global brand research for Davis Brand Capital in the analytics group, and is especially interested in methodologies that detect measurable, quantitative patterns inside qualitative input. He has created the firm’s proprietary market segmentation product, nQue, and applied it across North America, Europe and Asia. He writes about brands, media and the cultural wonder of the automobile for Unbound Edition.
Articles by Bryan K. Oekel
From Bots to Spimes: Emerging Technologies Offer Early Glimpse of Our A.I. Future
Web bots, the “internet of things”, machine learning and other converging technological advancements offer an early glimpse of our artificial intelligence future. And marketers need to start paying attention.
Frank’s RedHot: “I put that $#@* on everything”
As a rule of thumb, marketers tend to avoid likening their products to excrement, even when its an apt comparison.
How Did Volvo Avoid a Saab Story?
Yesterday’s New York Times featured an interesting look at the “divergent paths” of the iconic Swedish auto brands Saab and Volvo. Both were orphaned by their parent companies, GM and Ford respectively, during the global economic downturn.
Google+, Minus Active Users?
Public posts to Google+ have decreased 41 percent month over month, according to 89n data cited on TechCrunch. After a fast start out of the gates, quickly gaining 25 million users, is Google+ losing steam?
IP Lawyers Playing Chicken with Local Restauranteur?
Intellectual property law fascinates me. The ambiguity and subjectivity involved in determining whether or not a trademark can be protected, or if it infringes on an existing mark, can make brand-naming projects painfully frustrating.
Mouths Agape Pondering New GAP Logo
Admittedly I’ve never had much use for the GAP, other than the fact it inspired some of my favorite Saturday Night Live skits (“Lay off me I’m starving”). But its newly designed logo seems to be leaving branding experts and fans alike starving for a bit more.
Boston Globe Trek Redefines Digital for Newspaper Industry
The Boston Globe recently launched a digital scavenger hunt that further blurs the lines between physical and digital spaces, news and entertainment, and social and traditional media. Boston Globe Trek is a prime example of innovation within an industry struggling to reinvent itself, and other news organizations should take note.
Volvo's Thoughtful Brand Management Eclipsed by Latest Twilight Partnership
Even though I've beat up on Volvo before, on a personal level I'm a lifelong fan of their cars. On a professional level, I have profound respect for Volvo's clear, consistent brand management. That's why their new advertising partnership with "Twilight: Eclipse" is so painful to watch.
Will BP Clean Up Its Act After the Big Spill?
In 2007, I lauded BP's rebranding for its aesthetics and the company's willingness to position itself at the forefront of social and cultural debate. But I questioned its ability and willingness to "walk the walk" of its "beyond petroleum" talk. Sadly, the Gulf of Mexico spill will prove an excellent case study on the perils of disingenuous branding.
Facebook "Likes" Locking and Leveraging Your Data
Facebook seems unstoppable. The community boasts more than 400 million users, half of whom log on at least once a day, and 35 million of whom update their status at least once a day. In the first week of March, its traffic increased 185 percent compared to the same time last year, briefly beating out Google for most-visited site in the U.S. And according to comScore, it commands a 41 percent share of unique visitors to top social media sites, including Twitter, YouTube, MySpace and Ning. But history suggests that when it comes to destination sites, what goes up must come down. And Facebook has apparently learned a few lessons from AOL, Friendster and MySpace. Facebook Connect and Facebook's recent announcement to extend its popular "Like" feature to the rest of the Internet point to strategic shifts intended to help it avoid a similar fate. In a decidedly Google-like move, Facebook wants to follow you outside of its walls to become a more integral part of your entire Internet experience.
