More than 335 people completed the Visit Topeka, Inc. logo survey last week, and it’s unanimous, Visit Topeka is the winner!
We used our social media networks to recruit participants through our blog, Facebook Fan Page and Twitter accounts. Visit Topeka also distributed an email blast. Eighty-nine percent of the participants were between the ages of 18 and 64. Just over two-thirds were women, and over 80 percent lived in or nearby Topeka.
The most popular logo received 42 percent of the votes. Here’s how the various logos fared:
Earlier we told you how jhP was in consideration for an American Advertising Federation National ADDY Award for the illustration “Paper Dali,” created to promote the Mulvane Art Museum’s Mountain/Plains Art Fair. At last Saturday night’s National Conference ADDY Show, Dan Billen and Gary Jones received a Silver ADDY on behalf of jones huyett Partners -– the highest honor awarded in the category! This was the first jhP piece to win national recognition from the AAF. Here’s what Dan and Gary had to say:
Dan Billen, in an email from the hotel after the ADDY show Saturday night:
I’m sitting in the hotel room with Gary trying to come down from a pretty big night. We won a Silver ADDY for Illustration, and – because the awards are based on a point system, not by rank – there wasn’t a Gold ADDY given in that category. That puts us at the top of the nation!
There were about 50 tables and several hundred people at the award show. It was a packed house! I did my best to represent jhP with a bright orange tie and orange Converse shoes to match (that was a real crowd pleaser). We dined on huge steaks and watched as people were called up on stage to accept their awards. Pretty soon it was jones huyett Partners’ turn, and Gary and I went up in front of what seemed like an ocean of people to get our award. I felt like a rock star (again!).
Gary Jones, on the ADDY Award-winning project, after returning to the office Monday morning:
The Mulvane Art Museum, which is part of Washburn University, was our client on this project. I serve on the Friends of the Mulvane Art Museum Board of Directors, and jhP works on the advertising for the Mountain Plains Art Fair, one of the big fundraising projects for the museum. Each year I work with our creative staff to come up with a fresh, new look for the fundraiser.
This year’s goal was to select an artist who personified creativity. I suggested Salvador Dali, remembered for his flamboyant mustache and wild eyebrows. Dali was highly imaginative and looked at things in a surreal and grandiose manner. His work was just as striking and bizarre. Our mission was to create an illustration that captured Dali’s energy in a fresh, exciting way. Dan’s personal collage work made me think he could collage a portrait of Dali. With little direction, Dan created the image and it was clearly a winner. We used the illustration on everything (billboards, banners, posters, flyers, postcards, tickets, T-shirts and TV) and the response was fantastic! Some people knew immediately who he was, and others just liked him because he looked so outrageuos and fun.
Receiving a National ADDY award for the piece solidified our confidence that the ‘Paper Dali’ illustration is world-class work. We are thrilled to bring national exposure to Washburn University and the Mulvane Art Museum. jhP has always appreciated the value of supporting the arts, and we’re proud to help children learn through Mulvane Art Museum programs. Topeka is a great place to live and learn about the arts.
Congratulations Dan and Gary! Everyone at jhP is very proud of you for being recognized as among the best in the country and bringing honor to the excellent work our creative team produces every day!
The winner will be drawn Monday, June 15. The winner will be contacted directly by phone and email, and will be announced via Twitter and the jhP Facebook Fan Page.
On those Extreme Makeover shows, it’s fun when the family says, “Wow! You look so terrific, we almost wouldn’t recognize you!” But what if the makeover was SO extreme that the baffled husband said, “… who are you?” And the kids cried, “Where’s our mommy?” That’s exactly what happened to PepsiCo’sTropicana Pure Premium Orange Juice products.
After a major package redesign, Tropicana sales dropped a whopping 20% between January 1 and February 22, 2009, according to AdAge.com. To stop the bleeding, PepsiCo, the parent company of Tropicana, trashed the new look and rushed back to the old design. So what went wrong?
1.) PepsiCo underestimated the value of package recognition.
Consumers knew Tropicana by its look. But when the re–branded packaging was put next to other orange juice brands (Minute Maid, Dole, etc.) nothing said to the consumer, “Hey! It’s me, your old friend Tropicana!” The key design elements that made Tropicana packaging iconic to loyal customers were either muted or missing. Consumers no longer recognized their favorite drink. They assumed it was gone and simply grabbed another brand.
2.) The redesign was too much too fast!
It’s often best to ease into a new logo or package design gradually. But Tropicana dove head first. The packaging changed so suddenly and radically that loyal customers looked right past it.
3.) The packaging was too generic.
Although the new packaging was attractive on the design board, it looked so bland on the shelf that it simply blended into the background. Loyal customers couldn’t distinguish between their favorite brand and generic orange juice brands.
4.) The new packaging made it hard to distinguish between varieties.
Whether you were looking for Tropicana’s No Pulp or Calcium variety, all the new packaging looked the same! Tropicana’s previous packaging had used different colors to successfully differentiate each variety. Even customers who figured out what Tropicana looked like now couldn’t find the taste they wanted.
On February 23, after losing millions of dollars in sales, PepsiCo announced they were ditching their new look and reverting to the previous package design. Clearly, they learned a valuable lesson or two. What would you have done differently if you were PepsiCo?
jones huyett Partners is proud to work with Meals on Wheels for one of their largest fundraisers, “Sumptuous Settings.” This year’s theme is “Windows to the Soul.”
The jhP team has produced creative elements for the event, including photographs, cards, and posters.
Everyone at jhP is honored to help Meals on Wheels with their efforts to feed elderly and homebound in Shawnee and Jefferson Counties. Please join us this weekend for Sumptuous Settings 2009!
Please help us re-brand Visit Topeka, Inc and be entered into our giveaway drawing!
