Branding, Professional Services, Website Launch, Visual Identity, Small Business, Healthcare
SCG Creative
Brand Launch: Stephanie Vanden Bos
Brand Launch: Stephanie Vanden Bos

VERIFICIENT TECHNOLOGIES SITE LAUNCHED

Over the last year, SCG Creative has collaborated with our partner/sister company/good pals, Verificient Technologies to push the nascent automated remote proctoring company from inception to launch, and beyond. Step by step we have undergone many challenges with Verificient Technologies to take an idea into a 10+ person Education Technology company. This is the latest iteration of the Verificient Website and one we are truly proud to put the SCG Creative name on. Check out the site at http://www.verificient.com.

HIVALGO SITE LAUNCHED

Startups are a breath of fresh, disruptive air to many industries that are rife for renewal. We have had the pleasure over the last few months to work to name and brand a startup concept that would bring humongous change to the food chain we all take part in everyday. We worked to take the business plan behind Specialty Commodities, Inc and develop it into a new brand known as Hivalgo. Take a look at www.hivalgo.com to find out more.

SCG's What is a Brand

What is a brand?

In today’s world, brands touch nearly every part of our lives. Are you thirsty? Reach for a can of Coca-Cola, a Starbucks latté, or a bottle of Evian water. Feeling under the blue? You immediately grab for a Klenex tissue or pop a Tylenol – never a foreign sounding “Paracetamol.” That being said, have you ever really asked yourself, “What is a brand?” If we copied a Jay Leno “Hits the Streets” segment and asked everyone we crossed that question, we would probably get back many different answers. “It’s a company’s logo,” or, “it’s a company’s image,” might be two of the main responses we would get.

The American Marketing Association defines a brand as "name, term, design, symbol, or any other feature that identifies one seller's product as distinct from those of other sellers, e.g. music." The word branding itself comes from the tradition of branding cattle with a distinctive symbol so farmers knew whose cattle belonged to whom. This concept was later spread to companies, products, places, and on from there.

This information is all great for starting to understand what a brand is, but it’s all a bit technical and dry. Here at SCG, we believe in a more simplified, comprehensive definition of a brand. To us, a brand is “a promise of value.” For a customer it is important to find out just what exactly that promise means and if that promise is held. A company’s promise of value is often its most valuable asset. What value promise does your company or organization communicate to your client base? How is it perceived by your client base? Moreover, through what medium is that promise made? Over the following weeks we will be running a series of blogs about “what is a brand?”. Through this series of blogs, we hope to work hand in hand with our good friends and clients to provide some food for thought and some important questions to ask about where your brand stands today. We believe that through this series of blogs you will be able to develop the tools and knowledge necessary to strengthen your promise of value, which can only lead to an increase in your business.

In order to determine how your promise of value is conveyed to and perceived by your client base, it is crucial to know the “8 P’s” of branding, also known as the marketing mix. In the early days of branding, the 8 P’s started out as the 4 P’s: price, product, promotion, and place. As branding and the business environment has changed over the last several decades, the 4 P’s have been expanded to include people, process, partners, and physical evidence. By understanding how all 8 of these elements come into play in your brand identity, you can move to strengthen your brand and as a result, your business. What is one of the main ways that the “8 P’s” of your brand are experienced by your client base? Your website.

Thirty years ago, your brand’s promise of value was conveyed through a brand media kit that could be easily distributed to prospective customers. In today’s world, this ambassador or mascot for your brand is embodied by your website. When a client is not on site in your storefront, the website is the strongest way to communicate your brand experience. As potential customers explore your website, they start to develop an understanding of what kind of value promise your organization offers. With that in mind, it is important to have a website that is captivating to its audience and draws potential and existing customers back for more. At this point, there is no turning back. When a modern consumer has a new business or service need to be met, they often turn to the internet to get informed. A strong website built for 2013 and beyond becomes a key investment for your brand for years to come. So, you need to ask yourself, “does my current website represent the best my brand has to offer to my customers?” In the 21st century, a weak website equals a weak brand.

How do you know if your website represents the best your brand has to offer? Here at SCG we have a rubric that helps us to analyze and understand the quality of your website and brand positioning. Take for example one of our recent web projects that we completed for Ultimate Sound and Installation (LINK). Not only do we think this site boasts a spiffy web-based brand experience, but it also rates strongly on every question on our rubric. When we analyze websites we ask ourselves some of the following questions:

-Does your website clearly communicate what you do in less than 30 seconds? If someone falls on your site and they don’t know who you are or who you target, you can guarantee they’re bound to jump somewhere else before long.

-Is there a call to action on this website? Customers want an interactive brand experience! What useful content do you provide to keep your customer’s interest. Do you have blogs or press that you update frequently on the site? This keeps people coming back and raises your position in search results. Ultimate Sound has a fantastic interactive app (go check it out!) that allows you to preview what your house after getting the Ultimate Sound treatment.

-Does your website design reflect your expertise stylistically and is it visually appealing to the customer? Have you noticed lately how many websites have become works of art? Website styles have changed more over the last two years than they have over the last 10. If your website has a dated color palette or a clunky navigation experience customers will be turned off. Your key content needs to be accessible within three clicks. What we love about the Ultimate Sound website is the bold grey and yellow color palette. It gives a distinct, reassuring feeling that really conveys a well-planned brand visual identity.

Make your website the strongest platform for a potential customer to discover the promise of value your brand brings. Make your website a reason for your current customers to come back. Raise your brand awareness.

SHAFALI FATALE SITE LAUNCHED

As a creative agency ourselves, we love to work with other organizations that have creativity as the corner stone of their brand. We have had the pleasure to collaborate with bespoke, "twister" cocktail sari designer Shafali Patel to reposition her brand and launch a new website. We conceptualized her new brand name Shafali Fatale to more clearly convey her brand image to her potential customers. Then we created a minimal style website that perfectly matches her brand aesthetic. Check out the evolving brand at www.shafalifatale.com.

SINO BARITE SITE LAUNCHED

The global market can be a difficult place to operate in when it's something you're just not familiar with, that's why companies turn to creative branding experts like ourselves (not to toot our own horns). We were approached by SinoBarite, a Chinese mineral resource company looking to enter the USA market and advance their global presence. They were looking for branding efforts that helped portray their identity as a burgeoning international brand to American consumers, and we delivered.

Check out the new SinoBarite site at sinobarite.us.

PIVOTAL PHYSICAL THERAPY SITE LAUNCHED

What can you say about Manhattan's Pivotal Physical Therapy? Their holistic, attentive service is unparalleled and everyone that works there is about as kind and charming as it gets. We have had the pleasure to help their practice redesign their website to create a best-in-class product. If you need physical therapy, this is where you need to go. Check out their website to find out more.

Check out the new Pivotal Physical Therapy website at www.pitovtalpt.com.

FARRELL LIMOUSINE SERVICE SITE REDESIGNED AND LAUNCHED

We have had the pleasure to work with Farrell Limousine Service over the years. When it comes to luxury private car service in the New York area, no one does the job like Farrell. We redesigned their website and helped them to integrate some great new digital services for their customers.

Check out the newly redesigned Farrell Limousine Service site at www.farrellslimo.com.

NYC SMILE SPA SITE LAUNCHED!

For over 30 years, the Smile Spa of New York has built its reputation on the quality of their dental work, exceedingly high level client service and a uniquely pleasant and painless dental environment. Drs. Michael Krochak and Joshua Perlman are two of the most respected, well reviewed dentists in New York City. We were really excited to help their practice rebrand and launch a new website.

Check out the new site at www.nycsmilespa.com.