It's all in the detail - Johnny Cupcakes Branding
This is a perfect example of good branding... Love it!
I was having dinner with a friend yesterday who spends quite a lot of time in Boston, Massachusetts. He asked if I'd ever heard about a brand called Johnny Cupcakes?, I hadn't, but the more he told me about this brand the more I wanted to find out about it straight away.
Johnny cupcakes started off selling t'shirts with cupcakes on them - doesn't sound that amazing does it? However this business Johnny started from the boot of his car has now grown to be a multi-million dollar business. His branding is exceptional and because of this he's created a cult following, with many people even branding themselves with the Johnny cupcakes logo.
My friend was raving about the Johnny Cupcakes store, he loved it! You go in, and it's all set up like a store selling cupcakes but actually sells t'shirts. (check out the store pics here) When you buy a t'shirt it comes in a little cake box and you also get a cup cake too, how cool is that!
It's those little details which create a brand people treasure and are completely loyal too.
Here's what Johnny says about his brand on his website www.johnnycupcakes.com
I'd rather have a strong brand filled with knowledgeable customers who truly enjoy and appreciate what I've created instead of making a quick buck– being just another fad. People like what nobody else has, and I love coming out with limited edition, exclusive shirts rather than mass-producing things. Once a shirt is sold out, I never produce them again.
I hang out with my customers, talk to them, and build memorable experiences with them at my in-store events and through the little details that I put into everything. Paying attention to my customers and treating them as individuals just makes sense to me– I wouldn't be here without them!
Most companies try to cut as many corners so that they can to turn a better profit.
I do the exact opposite and pay very close attention to all the little things.
The consistency of Johnny's brand is also spot on, he's thought about everything. From the way his product is delivered, to the stores, to the website, it all helps sell a brand which people will buy into rather than just buy.
His brand values are almost identical to ours. We understand it's the little details which will make you stand out from your competitors, and be what your clients remember. We aim to build lasting relationships with our clients, too many companies nowadays don't seem to care whether their customers are happy or not so long as they're getting the money in. By building relationships we really get to know our clients and what'll make a difference to our clients business, suggesting the little extra things that'll make their brand special!
The Internal Brand Audit (aka: what do they really think?)
We completed our annual internal brand audit last week and, as ever, very inspiring and insightful.
Every member of the Threerooms team gets to confidentially answer a series of brand audit questions about Threerooms like: What do you like about working at Threerooms?; What don't you like?; Where do you see us in 5 years?
The information is then collated by Alissa our account manager and presented back to the whole team to talk about. While it can throw up some very interesting and valid suggestions for business development, it's always good to check to see whether we are all on the same lines when it comes to Threerooms as a brand... and we were very pleased to see that we were!
As company directors, the 'What don't you like about Threerooms?' question was probably the most interesting. Luckily nothing major arises, all simple things really, and very easy for us to action and make better, although we're not sure how to address the issue of asking the cleaner to be less heavy-handed with our mugs though!
Some businesses are scared of hearing what their staff really think, in case it isn't positive, but how could you possibly make things better if you don't know 
what's wrong in the first place? Feedback is one of the most valuable pieces of information a company can get, and having a happy team that genuinely feels passionate about their company and brand goes a very long way!
It was also really nice to see where everyone saw Threerooms in 5 years time, we're all quite an ambitious lot and that showed in the answers!
All in all, very inspiring, motivating, interesting, insightful and an absolutely key business development tool.
If you'd like Threerooms to organise an internal brand audit for your company then just give us a call
on 0115 9061 320
Branding - It's an education
We've been working on quite a few projects for clients in the education sector recently. As well as branding, we've been designing prospectuses and helping create exhibition branding for our clients who are exhibiting at the BETT show this week. We've collated some of the work into a quick video. Why not take a look.
