Beer Branding Trends

Points of discussion:

1. The most common goals we’ve seen breweries have for a branding or rebranding process

2. Qualitative vs. Quantitative goals

3. The most important goal of any rebranding project. Period.

4. S.M.A.R.T. Goals (Specific, Measurable, Action-Oriented, Realistic, Time-Limited)

5. Common qualitative goals we see

6. How to defeat a grizzly bear in hand to hand combat 

7. CODO's 2020 CBC Presentation

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Join 5,500+ food and bev industry pros who are subscribed to the Beer Branding Trends Newsletter (and access all past issues) at: www.beerbrandingtrends.com

Points of discussion:

1. Trust the process?

2. Understand that the design process is iterative.

3. Thoughts on the big Don Draper reveal.

4. Why you need to stick to your timeline.

5. Why is giving great feedback challenging for non-designers?

6. Candor is king. (Don’t worry about your designer’s feelings)

7. Keep feedback focused on specific project goals (and the defined strategy) and not personal tastes.

8. Keep your customer in mind.

9. Is it necessary for a client to personally love the work a design firm develops?

10. How many concepts should a branding firm share? 25? 5? 1?

11. Paul Rand’s work for Steve Job’s NeXT Computers. 

12. We’ve decided to record future episodes shirtless.

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Learn more at www.craftbeerrebranded.com

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Have a topic or question you’d like us to field on the show? Shoot it our way: [email protected]

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Join 5,500+ food and bev industry pros who are subscribed to the Beer Branding Trends Newsletter (and access all past issues) at: www.beerbrandingtrends.com
 

Points of discussion:

1. You’ve worked through the proposal process and now have a signed contract. What is our next move?

2. Email handshake = let’s get after it!

3. Pre-project art direction homework. (Art direction, competitive set audit, brand audit, if applicable)

4. Tools and software for onboarding clients.

5. Beyond the Executive Team, who do we need to talk to during the kickoff?

6. How do we organize, prioritize and schedule all of your brewery’s internal stakeholders? (Sales, Marketing & Design, Front of House, Brew Staff)

7. What external partners will we need to interview? (Distributors, Large Chain Retail Partners, Field Reps, Market Managers, etc.)

8. Thoughts on in-person vs remote work. When is travel necessary and when can we run everything remotely?

9. What does an in-person, onsite kickoff itinerary look like?

10. Sample 2–3 day itinerary.

11. One-on-one conversations vs large group “discovery” sessions. When is each one appropriate?

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Learn more at www.craftbeerrebranded.com

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Have a topic or question you’d like us to field on the show? Shoot it our way: [email protected]

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Join 5,500+ food and bev industry pros who are subscribed to the Beer Branding Trends Newsletter (and access all past issues) at: www.beerbrandingtrends.com

Points of discussion:

1. Give us an eagle eye view of the business development process, from a branding firm’s perspective.

2. How much should a brewery prepare ahead of your initial conversations with a potential partner? 
3. What subjects will you discuss in your early exploratory meetings? (timeline, budget, project goals, project context, business objectives, etc.)

4. What is project “fit” and why is it so important at this stage of the process?

5. Differences between contracts and proposals.

6. Always Be Closing?

7. How often does CODO pass on a project because of poor fit?

8. What should a rebranding proposal outline?

9. What is an RFP and why is Isaac always cursing about them?

10. How important is it to like your design partner? What is the role of chemistry in this process?

11. That time a brewery hired CODO because Isaac was “…not some skinny hipster asshole.”

12. What should your branding or rebranding budget look like? How much will this all cost?

13. Why your budget should be tied to business objectives and the value this project will create.

14. Cody presses Isaac for a firm number. Isaac relents with a figure he’s seen cited in several business books.

15. Why work with an expert?

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Learn more at www.craftbeerrebranded.com

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Have a topic or question you’d like us to field on the show? Shoot it our way: [email protected]

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Join 5,500+ food and bev industry pros who are subscribed to the Beer Branding Trends Newsletter (and access all past issues) at: www.beerbrandingtrends.com

Points of discussion:

1. What is a Freelancer? Pros and cons?

2. What is a small to medium size firm? Pros and cons?

3. What is a Big agency? Pros and cons?

4. What does “Full Service” actually mean?

5. Why you never want to be an agency’s “cool” client.

6. Why we believe mid-size firms are taking over the world.

7. What should your partner be able to handle in order to be a great fit?

8. Let’s open up a can of worms! Should you hire a partner based solely on their personal or house style?

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Learn more at www.craftbeerrebranded.com

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Have a topic or question you’d like us to field on the show? Shoot it our way: [email protected]

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Join 5,500+ food and bev industry pros who are subscribed to the Beer Branding Trends Newsletter (and access all past issues) at: www.beerbrandingtrends.com

Points of discussion:

1. Why is this important? What are some of the moving parts and logistics that need to be organized ahead of a brand launch?

2. Gird yourself?

3. A proper brand launch start internally by getting your team on the same page. How do we get everyone marching in the same direction if we’re spread out over several states?

4. What is a Master Campaign Timeline and what are some of the key benchmarks to base this on as we build out our schedule?

5. Why we like a launch week (or month) instead of one specific day.

6. Packaging logistics are often the most challenging issue to manage during this process. What are some tactics we can employ early on to make sure we’re not setting ourselves up for failure later on?

7. In the real world, a “staggered” release is often called for. Is this the end of the world?

8. What is a “Teaser” Campaign and why is it so valuable for announcing a rebrand?

9. How soon should you start promoting that a change is coming? Can you be too early?

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Learn more at www.craftbeerrebranded.com

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Have a topic or question you’d like us to field on the show? Shoot it our way: [email protected]

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Join 5,500+ food and bev industry pros who are subscribed to the Beer Branding Trends Newsletter (and access all past issues) at: www.beerbrandingtrends.com

Points of discussion:

1. CODO Design overview

2. Cody and Isaac introductions

3. We founded CODO the Monday after graduating from college in 2009

4. Internship experiences that galvanized our decision to start our own firm right out of school

5. How we began to focus on the Food and Beverage space

6. Our work in beer, starting 2010 and leading up to current day.

7. How did our Craft Beer Branding Guide come to be?

8. Why did we write Craft Beer, Rebranded?

9. How have we seen the beer industry shift and mature over the last 11 years

10. We’re working on our third book?

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Learn more at www.craftbeerrebranded.com

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Have a topic or question you’d like us to field on the show? Shoot it our way: [email protected]

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Join 5,500+ food and bev industry pros who are subscribed to the Beer Branding Trends Newsletter (and access all past issues) at: www.beerbrandingtrends.com

Points of discussion:

1. What is a Brand Essence? (+ real project examples)

2. Why does this matter?

3. Should (or can) a Brand Essence be public facing?

4. What is Brand Personality?

5. “If your brewery were a person, what sort of personality traits would it have?”

6. What is Brand Voice?

7. Spectrum Exercise as a process tool.

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Learn more at www.craftbeerrebranded.com

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Have a topic or question you’d like us to field on the show? Shoot it our way: [email protected]

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Join 5,500+ food and bev industry pros who are subscribed to the Beer Branding Trends Newsletter (and access all past issues) at: www.beerbrandingtrends.com

Points of discussion:

1. Who comprises the Executive Team throughout a branding project.

2. How many people should actually be involved in decision making throughout this process?

3. How do we organize and prioritize other stakeholder groups beyond the Executive Team?

4. How (if at all) do we bring customers into this process?

5. Why CODO prefers one-on-one intimate conversations over beer to the dreaded large group “discovery” session.

6. What’s the magic numbers in terms of interviews? Where do we start to see diminishing returns?

7. Some emotional intelligence tactics for engaging with folks who *need* to be involved, but that might not be on the same page as the rest of your team.

8. Always assume the person you’re talking to knows something you don’t. (Important life lesson as well)

9. How can we avoid the dreaded “Swoop?”

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Learn more at www.craftbeerrebranded.com

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Have a topic or question you’d like us to field on the show? Shoot it our way: [email protected]

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Join 5,500+ food and bev industry pros who are subscribed to the Beer Branding Trends Newsletter (and access all past issues) at: www.beerbrandingtrends.com

Points of discussion:

1. Isaac is leaving CODO to open a brewery?

2. What is positioning (3 Core Questions) and why does this matter?

3. How to use a matrix to get a quick eagle eye view of your competitive landscape.

4. Categorical Differentiation as a positioning strategy.

5. What is the “Positioning Trap?”

6. Can a specific a theme or differentiator be too limiting on a day-to-day brand building basis?

7. How to write your brand positioning statement.

8. Okay, Isaac is not starting a brewery after all.

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Learn more at www.craftbeerrebranded.com

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Have a topic or question you’d like us to field on the show? Shoot it our way: [email protected]

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Join 5,500+ food and bev industry pros who are subscribed to the Beer Branding Trends Newsletter (and access all past issues) at: www.beerbrandingtrends.com