Crispin CEO Shares Recipe For Building Cider Brand

Cydney sits down with the CEO of a local hard cider company to learn how marketing and branding have contributed to the company’s spectacular growth.

Minneapolis Rebrands

Meet Minneapolis unveiled its new logo and tagline, ‘City by Nature.’ While the whole city-reflection-in-a-lake-is-trees thing has been done, the juxtaposition does capture the heart of Minneapolis better than the city’s existing sailboat logo.

Three Inspiring Projects From Three Inspiring Designers

Whether you are a Minnesota native, a movie buff or a lover of history, we’ve got an inspiring project for you! Three inspiring designers have put together three inspiring projects for your viewing pleasure.

Once You Go SpongeBob, You’ll Never Go Back

What’s wrong with ‘Star Wars’ bandages, ‘Toy Story’ apples and Dora the Explorer toothpaste? Nothing — until you run out and try to get a kid to use an unbranded version of the same product. In the world of children’s products, expectations always go up, never down.

Five Strange Mascots I Could Live Without

The recent campaign to try to force Ronald McDonald into retirement got me thinking about what other mascots I could live without. As it turns out, there are plenty!

Brand Positioning

Underdog Under Armour Triumphs In Brand-Building Game

They’ve built their brand around quality and image. Their products are portrayed as roughneck, constructed to survive the wear-and-tear of on-field battle. Their marketing campaigns focus on the blue-collar aspects of sport – training and practice. In fact, it’s rare an Under Armour ad features an athlete on the field of play, but rather the weight room or practice field. It also helps they’ve focused on endorsing athletes known for near-religious work ethic, including Lindsey Vonn, Ray Lewis, Michael Phelps, Anquan Boldin and Georges St. Pierre.

Growing Branding Campaigns On FarmVille

’ve got an admission to make: I am a nerd. Not necessarily a classic nerd with taped glasses and a fascination with “Star Trek.” But the kind who gets hooked on things like … FarmVille. Yes, that FarmVille. Sometime during the day, every day, I log on to my Facebook page and slop my pigs, milk my cows and harvest my crops. I’m hooked and I admit it. Like Phillip Morris did 20 years ago, FarmVille’s creators (Zynga) have done a great job of establishing and feeding my addiction. They continually invent new ways to keep me and 56 million(!) other fans interested and engaged by adding new crops, introducing new animals and creating features that entice us to log on and play frequently.

If You Haven't Seen Luis Fitch Or His Work, Here's Your Chance

If you have never heard of Luis Fitch or seen his work, don’t miss a pair of chances this week. Luis Fitch is the force behind UNO Branding, a Minneapolis-based design shop that does great work for firms trying to reach Latino populations.

Check Out That Banana!

Ever thought about the packaging, labels and logos on the food you buy? If you’re in any sort of marketing discipline, then no doubt you’ve given it at least an ounce of consideration. Brands are constantly trying to out-shout each other to get consumers to take notice (and buy) with claims of better taste, bigger sizes, etc. But recently, everybody’s favorite banana brand came up with a very clever approach.