Why the new Detroit Lions logo is perfect

They could have done something drastic. The Detroit Lions could have come out with some freaky blue and black concoction that would look like an awkwardly fierce safari animal as well as another boring minor league baseball team.

It seems like all the Otters, Beavers, Grizzlies and Eagles of the sports world have redesigned their logos to be these three-dimensional emblems jumping out at you. Simply Y7-rated cartoons on hats and helmets.

Thankfully the Lions made the right decision. They didn't change the one that wasn't broken. Instead they mildly tweaked and improved upon it and I really like it.

I'm also sure there was a larger business decision behind this re-design. The fact that the Lions logo is built into the entire architecture of Ford Field was probably an expense the Fords weren't willing to absorb. With this enhanced logo version, they can rather easily touch-up the logo applications around the stadium without the use of a jackhammer.

This is a perfect example of making sure that business, branding and design are all sitting in the same room. Now let's focus on what's really important...the NFL draft and what's happening on the field.

Introducing ADOPT MORE

Unless you're a doctor or work for a non-profit organization, you may have at one time or another asked yourself what is the greater purpose behind what I'm doing?

As much as we absolutely love and are passionate about what we do here at SOZO | Pivotal, we oftentimes find ourselves searching for that higher purpose—using our talents to contribute on a greater level. After several months of planning and development, we think we've really figured it out.

It's call ADOPT MORE. Throughout the development phase it has taken on many incarnations, but today we're proud to say that the plan is solid and the mission couldn't be more perfect:

ADOPT MORE is an educational forum that speaks about adoption and gives prospective adoptive parents a platform to raise funds in order to help bring their little one/s home.

Through our branding, marketing and design talents, it is our hope that more people will become aware of the children in the world who need homes, love and families and will choose to grow their families through adoption.

Today we have a simple blog at www.adoptmore.com that showcases the participating families who are using this medium to raise funds for their adoption and the larger cause of adoption awareness. The first ADOPT MORE product is the orange bracelets. Proceeds go towards adoptive families who are selected by the individual purchasing the bracelet.

Tomorrow, who knows what's in store for ADOPT MORE, but we can guarantee that it will be exciting. As we say on the blog: there are 140,000,000 reasons to adopt. But more specifically, there are 140,000,000 children in this world without homes and families.

The things we're planning and developing are extremely exciting and we hope you decide to follow us on this journey. In addition to the blog, you can follow us on twitter @adoptmore.

Thank you for checking it out and we hope that you at least help us spread and adopt more awareness!

Trust: a two-way street

As business owners we're always trying to build trust with our customers. But can you really gain their trust unless you trust them first?

I noticed something very interesting today when I walked into Biggby for a coffee. They trust their customers so much that they have a Brewed Coffee Express area where patrons can skip the line and get their coffee. To pay they are asked to simply leave exact change in the piggy bank next to the coffee carafes?

But aren't they worried about people running off with free coffee? That would be short-sighted. In fact, for every cup of coffee that may be stolen, there are probably 100 people happy they can run in and out quickly. After all, this isn't 7-Eleven where a bunch of zit-faced high-schoolers are hanging out at the Slurpee machine.

It's a nice convenience for their customers, but more importantly its a relationship that they are building with everyone that walks into one of their stores — we trust you and hope you trust us. This is a great example of living your brand when it comes to placing the customer first. You can't fake that and you can't design it.

See my other blog post about the Biggby brand here.

Social Media: Are you talking or listening?

Social media this, social media that. Twitter. Facebook. LinkedIn. Everyone's jumping on the Web 2.0 bandwagon and trying to make some noise.

And that's the problem.

If you participate in any of these great social networking tools you've surely identified the spammers and so-called social media experts from those who truly want to engage in a conversation.

The other day a very intriguing email came across my inbox. The subject was "Yelp Me Out Please!" It came from Tim Castaneda, owner of Zumba Mexican Grille in Royal Oak, and it wasn't your typical email promotion.

Since I've subscribed to Zumba's e-newsletter I've been impressed with the way they approach marketing and promoting the restaurant. I'm never annoyed by the volume of email they deliver and there's usually a really good coupon or promotion that benefits me, the customer.

This email was totally different, but it did benefit the customer. Apparently Zumba's had recently received some negative comments and reviews about its salsa bar. Instead of dismissing the bad reviews and only relishing on the positive news Tim noticed an opportunity to get more feedback on his salsas. Tim did what many companies — and restaurants specifically — wouldn't, he copy and pasted his negative salsa reviews into the body of the email. Whoa!

Comments like:

• I would have probably given it three stars until I walked around to the salsa bar. What a disappointment!
• the salsas were awful!
• The mild salsa tastes like spaghetti sauce, the tomatillo is too acidic, and the chipotle-tomatillo is garbage.

At the end of the email he said he would love to hear our opinions? That's a very impressive and constructive way of using social media to provide a better experience for the customer. I've always liked the salsa at Zumbas and the food in general is always great and fresh. Everyone has an opinion and people tend to get very passionate when it comes to restaurants. Tim clearly realizes how important his customers are to his success. He could have decided to just plow ahead and ignore the complaints. Instead he engaged in a conversation with all of his customers and will come out ahead and perhaps with improved salsa—at least if that's the consensus.

Just as I was beginning to think tools like Facebook and Twitter were getting a bit too loud, along comes Zumba showing us all how it's supposed to be used!

The currency of branding

What percentage of your branding efforts cost money versus time? I'm sure we've all had our share of customer experiences where the response is:

"We'd love to do that, but, you know, it's just not a good time right now. Money is tight."

I was catching up on some reading this afternoon and a couple of different topics collided to form this post. One had to do with time and money and the fact that they usually don't coexist. Basically, when the money is rolling in, we don't have time and when money is scarce the hands on the clock move a little slower.

For the most part that seems to ring true—at least from my experience. But then I started thinking how businesses must control the swing between money and time and create a more balanced approach to investing both into their companies. They really must coexist.

So take a look at how you invest in strengthening your brand identity and message. How much of it is in dollars and how much in time? Now how do both those currencies work together?

We tell our clients all the time that branding and communications must be a passionate endeavor that is built into the fabric of the company. You have to live it and living it is more an investment in time and commitment than money. The foundation of what your company is all about can't be faked and it certainly can't be bought. If you hire a creative company to tell you who you are aren't you actually just hiring an outside CEO? Having someone re-design your logo or packaging without the higher purpose of embracing it throughout your organization isn't going to do anything but empty your pockets.

So where are you investing TIME into your brand?

• Identifying what it is you want to be and how you're different
• Truly living your brand in everything you do. Giving it that extra effort to be memorable in a very authentic way.
• Hiring the right people to represent your company
• Brainstorming ideas that complement the brand
• Going above and beyond in delivering an exceptional customer experience
  

And, when do you need to realize it may be time to open the checkbook?

• Creating a corporate identity that reflects all that you've identified above
• Building a website that serves as a tool for recruiting, prospecting, educating and showcasing
• Designing experiences that appeal to the senses
• Writing copy and crafting imagery that engages your audience

Spending the necessary time understanding what it is you want to do with your brand will actually save you a ton of money in the long-term—whether you're designing in-house or working with a creative agency like SOZO | Pivotal.