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A Lesson on Branding at DePaul University

October 28, 2011

Yesterday, a few members of our team facilitated a Branding session at DePaul University for a class of MBA students. The goal behind the exercise was to strategically arrive at new market/product opportunities for existing brands. The students began the exercise by analyzing a chosen brand to determine its strengths and weaknesses, its distribution channels and marketing efforts, core competencies, and any other brand equity that could be leveraged. The students were asked to think about new market opportunities for the brand and a new avenue of revenue that that the company could pursue. Image boards were developed to create a visual representation of the intangibles of the brand—what they feel the brand means to consumers.

There were 26 students who were divided into five teams. The brands they chose were Harley-Davidson, Reynolds Wrap®, North Face®, Lemonheads, and Courvoisier. A brainstorming session was held and some creative ideas were later presented. The group that chose Reynolds Wrap® chose to take what the brand already markets (paper and foil for baking, cooking, and grilling), and expand it into serving and storage, while the group that chose Harley-Davidson chose to develop an energy drink that represents the excitement of riding a Harley.

The overall session was a great learning experience for the students, and an exciting opportunity for our designers to share their experiences at Beyond Design. It challenged each individual to consider what makes a great brand and the strategic business decision making that goes into launching a new product or service in an already established company.

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