soulsight®

Grolsch Finds Another Way to Bring Cold to the Streets

6/29/2010 | Author: Brenda Teruel

grolsch-cool-hotline
Credit: enschedeaanzee.nl

Wish you could snap your fingers and a cold beer shows up? How about a quick phone call? Grolsch has found a refreshing way to bring cold to the streets of the Netherlands with its "Cool*Season" campaign. Just dial up the "Cool*Hotline" and a Grolsch-slinging rep will zoom in on a scooter (complete with refrigerated sidecar, no less) and trade your other brand of beer for a chilled can of Grolsch Premium Pils. Each can features a "Cool*Meter", ensuring you'll get the optimal chilled experience. Very cool.

For more info on other "Cool*Initiatives", visit the Grolsch site.

Posted in Awesome, Brand Sightings, Industry Happenings, Strategy

World Cup Edition: Great Idea, Great Design Rolled Into One Ball

6/21/2010 | Author: Justin Berglund

Unplug Design's Dreamball is simply awesome. It's a perfect example of how inventive design can serve a greater purpose, something more than just nudging one towards one product or another.

Dreamball is a cylindrical, custom aid package delivered to children in developing Third World countries ravaged by war, poverty and famine. It's a new way to think about creating a sustainable package that can be more than just a throwaway vessel for a product.

When the children take the paper off the package and follow the simple patterns and instructions on it, they can building themselves a pretty cool soccer ball. The leftover cylinder can be used to store the soccer balls and rolled to wherever they want to play, and the cardboard is biodegradable. And because most of the soccer is played barefoot, the lightweight, flexible design works great. This really can bring some joy and hope to kids who have not been afforded too much of either. It's always inspiring to see outside-the-box thinking, of course very literally this time, but even more so when it's impacting lives in the best way possible.

Posted in Awesome, Brand Sightings, Go Green, Packaging

The Power of Packaging (Even when it's Fake)

1/4/2010 | Author: George Argyros

The power of packaging as a billboard for your product was, quite nicely I might add, reinforced over the holiday season.

Like many, I enjoy spying on my neighbors via the boxes they have on the curb the day after Christmas. Yikes, the Smiths got a 72 inch flat panel! The Jones got another treadmill (good luck with that).

What struck me this year was that a company that doesn't even have a package for its product, or ever will, understood this premise so much that it went to all the trouble of creating a nice "little" box to be left on corners throughout the land in a smart guerilla marketing effort.

Mini, one of our favorite examples of a brand that embraced its authenticity, understood this natural human behavior. (I assure you, it's natural!)

Just after Christmas, Mini strategically distributed massive cardboard cartons with torn gift wrapping in trash heaps all over Amsterdam. Each box had a large diagram of the car with the words MINI COOPER across the top as if the car had been packaged inside. Kudos to Ubachswisbrun/JWT.

To us, it further emphasizes the power of good packaging and the tractor beam-like effect that it has. Mini's recognition of this fact makes me feel all warm inside on a freezing winter day. Now if I can only get the Ferrari people to return my call about that custom clam shell.

Posted in Brand Sightings, Industry Happenings, Packaging

SIGHTINGS: Giving Back to the Community

10/26/2009 | Author: Brenda Teruel

At Optima Soulsight, we are deeply committed to giving back. Some of the most rewarding and inspiring projects that we work on are for non-profit organizations in the community. This year, Optima Soulsight was given the opportunity to help out two incredible organizations: the Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) and the Lake Geneva Wine Festival.

Ronald McDonald House Charities asked Optima Soulsight to design an invitation for their 5th Annual "Big Mac Under Glass" dinner gala held in Chicago. The turnout for the Ronald McDonald House gala was considered to be its best ever, and the bold and engaging invitation was credited as a major part of that success.

For the past three years, Optima Soulsight has
co-sponsored the Lake Geneva Wine Festival, which supports the needs of children, families and education in the surrounding community. This fall, Optima Soulsight developed a holistic design program for the festival that spanned posters, invitations, print ads, festival banners, and a website that captured the essence of the experience and generated excitement for the event.

Read the complete Giving Back case study

Posted in Brand Sightings

SIGHTINGS: Miller Chill Restage

5/5/2009 | Author: Brenda Teruel

It's Cinco de Mayo – a celebration that began with the Battle of Puebla, and one that continues hard fought in coolers today. Miller Chill, the first "light beer with lime, " was a reveler favorite in 2007 until the competition took note and launched a "me too" offering backed by aggressive distribution and above-the-line support. In an effort to regain lost volume and reconnect with consumers, Miller Chill tapped into the growing trends of health consciousness and the Latinization of American culture and reformulated its recipe to only 100 calories, with a splash of natural lime flavor.

Optima Soulsight breathed new life into the packaging and delivered a design that reflected the new “light beer with lime” proposition.

The result? A dynamic and distinctive new look for the brand that boldly takes over the limelight, offering 100 calories of refreshing, Latin fun – the perfect party starter for Cinco de Mayo!

Read the complete Chill Restage case study.

Posted in Brand ID, Brand Sightings, Packaging

SIGHTINGS: FTD Brand Identity

2/19/2009 | Author: Brenda Teruel

Faced with growing competition, FTD needed to revitalize its floral business. Optima Soulsight created a brand identity and package design system centered around their globally recognized brand icon, the fleet-footed Mercury Man. We removed him from the constraints of the FTD logo and gave him a life of his own, making him bolder and more dynamic.

Drawing from FTD’s strong black and gold equity, we put the emphasis on black — an unusual choice for a flower company — and created a striking backdrop for FTD’s colorful floral arrangements. The beautiful shipper also became an eye-catching advertisement – the ideal place to bring the brand icon to life.

Read the complete FTD case study.