One popular method for marketing and branding is promotional merchandise. Everyone loves a good freebie! What better way to get your brand recognised than supplying consumers with a branded product they can use to remind them of you?
However, when branding your company or product several checks and precautions should be taken else you can end up in sticky situations like these:
Some examples of where the position of your artwork can really trip you up...
The above images show that you should check the design spec or branding position along with spelling. These errors definitely left someone's cheeks a darker shade of red!
When it comes to branding your company, the first thing you have to create is your company logo. This is an important factor as it becomes the face of your company. The composition of the wording and objects within your logo can be crucial - one slip up, and you may find yourself in a compromising position like these companies:
These logos could've done with another pair of eyes cast over them before the green light was given...
Now, we will all find these logos amusing however they will haunt the companies for a long time! These are just a handful of examples of companies who I'm sure now regret their choice of logo. Then again, it is one way of getting your brand noticed and remembered!
A company's logo is just one way a marketing mishap can occur. However, another hilarious epic fail is mis-translation between countries. Companies look to take their companies internationally to create further success. However, creativity can easily backfire when it comes up against cultural and language borders. These companies have tried and suffered:
The first candidate for the best catch-phrase fail is the American brewing company Coors. When Coors introduced its cool "Turn It Loose" campaign to the Spanish market, the company soon learnt the devastating effects of poor translation. The translated slogan used an expression commonly interpreted as "Suffer from diarrhoea."
The Parker Pen company also suffered a translation fail, although for a different reason. Parker Pen's slogan reassuringly claimed: "It won't leak in your pocket and embarrass you." Yet, when introducing their high-quality ball-point pens to the Mexican market the phrase read: "It won't leak in your pocket and make you pregnant." The Spanish 'embarazar' may sound similar to 'embarrass' but it really means to put one in the oven! Talk about a complete miscommunication.
The most unfortunate case of badly-translated branded products is Vicks, when introducing their cough drops in Germany. It was only after the product was released that the company learnt the German pronunciation of 'v' is 'f', which makes 'Vicks' sound exactly like the German expletive for "sexual penetration." I think it's safe to say this is probably the most embarrassing. However there are plenty more cases when translation have caused some funny misconceptions.
I think the main lesson learnt from this is you can never check your marketing campaigns enough.