Merchandising: A solution for your brand ?
I know… the title of this new post is again a terrible solecism. Yes, using strange word in the digital sphere is definitely a national sport. I believe that more the terms sound complicated, more digital specialists feel good… reading my title for this post; I’m obviously part of them.
However, thanks to Wikipedia; I will not need to explain you in details what mean tie-in. You will “click and know”. By the way we can say that now with Internet, knowledge is more “nearby”, but it’s another topic for another post another day.
So, after a simple “click and know” I found the following: “Merchandising and/or tie-in”: fact to offer alternative products branded; nowadays it’s mainly used by the Hollywood film factory; but most of the brands are using this tool for brand awareness.
Here, I will not try to explain you the difference between merchandising, tie-in, free souvenir, branded product for sale; promotional gifts as you will go back to Vbox7 watching the new video clip of the Octopus. I will just give my feeling of the general vision of “branded product” and how important it is for a company to think about it. Then to know what gifts, online shop, promotion products will be the most suitable for you; we need a meeting. 
From my point of view, we can distinct three types of tie-in: the limited edition replicas; the pure advertising product to assist in marketing the brand promotion and the “prestige” branding accessories.
My favorite one is definitely the limited edition replicas of objects from the brand. First, I believe that all tie-in is linked to it. For example, a pure advertising product yesterday becomes a replica; like the branded accessories which could also become replica in the future. It could even happen that a worthless object becomes on E-bay a really precious and expensive item thanks to the time and trends.
For instance, I could go to my attic, to open one of my dusty childhood boxes and find incredible objects that remind me so many things:
- a small Volkswagen Beetle as a key holder brought from Mexico 10 years ago
- a t-shirt “British Telecom” that looks really cool today
- a hat Windows 95 from Microsoft
- a 80’ poster from Societe Generale with a slogan: ”from writing to computer”.
These objects today sound really vintage and trendy. But when I had them, they were also really great for me; they were modern and useful. When the advertising product becomes the replica; the advertising effect is working at every moment; the brand has won.
At the bottom of my dusty box, I found a movie accessory, the famous light saber from Star Wars! All of us, during our youth, we dreamed about becoming a Jedi or Darth Vader. And if we had the chance to get the light-saber (bad plastic quality and ridiculous color) we were ready to fight the evil like Luke Skywalker. Cinema branded products are always the most significant marketing product to assist movie promotion in marketing. These days, try to escape from Shrek or from Toy story when you are walking in the streets, it’s just impossible.
But now, looking at my fantastic saber with my professional eyes, I’m also seeing branding, merchandising, advertising and tie-in. Should I feel stupid of my child behavior? I didn’t understand that advertising agencies were operating into my favorite childhood feelings. Whatever I know from now thanks to my experiences, I still like this object.
Today I have to say that by principle; I like the brand and/or the products connected to the ones of my youth. I like them thanks to the feeling I’ve got looking at the current advertisement. I have to confess that I even own a Volkswagen and my bank is still the same since 20 years. Hazard?
Now, with the new Internet behavior of the customers; brands are offering more and online shopping tools. It’s getting much easier for everyone to buy and/or to get branded product. And I believe that the third type of tie-in, the “prestige” branding accessories as a new business core is really suiting perfectly the new Internet trend.
For example, Mercedes; which is the figure of luxury, style and elegance. They are offering great online shop to their fans and real connoisseurs. You can find new categories by accessories and many gift ideas. When the name of the brand is enough to attract the attention, it is really good idea to provide extra products and to use the customers to advertise the brand and its success. We have all seen Ferrari accessories, Bentley watches or towels, and other luxury brand making luxury advertising product. People are advertising the product to other customers. We use to call “earned media” between advertising specialists.
Concerning luxury brand, we can see that the demand of online sales increases. An online shop definitely adds value to the brand awareness. With the one of Mercedes for example, the challenge is to transfer the atmosphere of luxury brands into the Internet as well as to sell the fashion goods online.
Most of the well known names need brand awareness; not only luxury brand but every kind of companies can use this marketing instrument. Consumer satisfaction is a work of every day and communication needs to be in perpetual evolution. Great online shop with new products branded is the perfect tool for it.
Let’s go back to work but before; as a professional, I will check into the boxes of my children to look which brand succeeds to attract young customers via tie-in. I will check also around me to see, as an educated adult, what branded products I’m using.
As an individual; I may offer a Mercedes gift to my father that loves the brand (he never got enough money to buy the car , like nice cufflinks for example. But, right now I’m going to have a lunch in the restaurant next door, they are offering cups for free for each meal bought, it’s great for the office. It’s raining… I’ll take my Volkswagen umbrella.
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Euro RSCG 4d Bulgaria is based in Sofia, 18 Ivan Vazov street.
We are specialists in digital strategy and consultant in communication online.
Our clients are the largest companies worldwide such as Carrefour, Volkswagen, Societe generale, Edenred BACB, Eon, Solvay, etc
Our main team comprise of Nicolas Galand, Alexandre Glas, Biliana Bogdanova, Zdravko Totinov, Martin Zhelyazkov.
You can send us an email to contact@eurorscg4d.bg or find us on Twitter @4d_bulgaria
Business Race
Business is not boring, specially when it’s explained to kids!
Euro RSCG 4D Bulgaria used its Lift to make a funny video explaining business to kids
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Euro RSCG 4d Bulgaria is based in Sofia, 18 Ivan Vazov street.
We are specialists in digital strategy and consultant in communication online.
Our clients are the largest companies worldwide such as Carrefour, Volkswagen, Societe generale, Edenred BACB, Eon, Solvay, etc
Our main team comprise of Nicolas Galand, Alexandre Glas, Biliana Bogdanova, Zdravko Totinov, Martin Zhelyazkov.
You can send us an email to contact@eurorscg4d.bg or find us on Twitter @4d_bulgaria
Do you “Google” yourself?
It’s a rhetorical question.
I know you do.
Come on, there is nothing shameful in it, we all do it!
Actually, I would be surprised if you have never checked what “uncle Google” says about you! No matter what you do for living, whether you try to hide something in your past online or want to show off with a picture of you with your favorite rock band, you should “google” yourself from time to time to check what your internet image is.
Why?
Another rhetorical question, I would say, but still to point out the evident.
Because Google is the one online service that shows you (and the rest of the world) what people on the internet talk, see and read about you. Your ONLINE REPUTATION, to put it in my favorite advertising slang.
So, don’t tell me you don’t care what the WEB says about you!?
Because Google is the online equivalent of your neighborhood, but multiplied million times! You should consider yourself lucky that the bore 70-year lady that you have for neighbor can tell only 3 friends about your coming home at 4h in the morning with suspiciously wild hair and some traces of make-up. Then, some of these 3 friends will discuss with at least 2 other ladies the question of your decency the next time they see you passing by. Still, remember my word, you should consider yourself lucky to have the “news” spread among a dozen of indignant old ladies!
Now, imagine that your lady neighbor is computer littered (here you need to have rich imagination, considering her age and that we are in Bulgaria…). So, she tells “the breaking news” with you starring to her online community – post on her Facebook status with a mention of your name for young generation’s edification or publish a photo of your look at the moment of that unfortunate morning and “tag” you! Then she shares all this is in www.forum-grandma.com (rich imagination, remember?) and… you find yourself with some contradictory references in Google!
OK, I exaggerate. A lot. I admit it. But did you picture yourself in the situation?
Now think where all this came from? Yep, it was the morning after one of the happiest nights in your life – the prom ball!
So, go to tell Google it was a misunderstanding!
* to google: to use the Google search engine to obtain information on the World Wide Web (see Wiki for reference)
** When I use “Google” in this post, I also mean any other search engine you like (Yahoo, Bing etc.). Google however is the most used from Bulgarians search engine.
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Euro RSCG 4d Bulgaria is based in Sofia, 18 Ivan Vazov street.
We are specialists in digital strategy and consultant in communication online.
Our clients are the largest companies worldwide such as Carrefour, Volkswagen, Societe generale, Edenred BACB, Eon, Solvay, etc
Our main team comprise of Nicolas Galand, Alexandre Glas, Biliana Bogdanova, Zdravko Totinov, Martin Zhelyazkov.
You can send us an email to contact@eurorscg4d.bg or find us on Twitter @4d_bulgaria
Welcome to the lift!
Contrary to what you may conclude from the name of our blog, we are not a lift company.
We are the Bulgarian face of Euro RSCG 4D – the digital network of Euro RSCG Worldwide, the largest global agency as measured by total number of global accounts, according to the 2009 Advertising Age Global Marketers Report.
Wherever you find a Euro RSCG company you’ll find Euro RSCG 4D. This is the case with Bulgaria, too.
We believe that every business needs digital at the core, just like every computer needs a processor and software. Think of us as “the digital software” powering the Euro RSCG brands worldwide. And just to give you an idea of “our database”, Euro RSCG Worldwide has 233 offices across the globe that specialize in advertising, digital, marketing services, healthcare, PR and corporate communications.
Euro RSCG 4D is created by combining Euro RSCG Marketing Services and Euro RSCG Interaction companies, along with the new agencies that joined Euro RSCG during the September 2003 Havas reorganization, such as Euro RSCG Skybridge, EHS Brann, Brann Worldwide, and NRS.
As you will see, following our blog, we are young, fresh and creative. And we love what we are doing.
Euro RSCG 4D exists in Bulgaria since March 2010. We told you we are young, didn’t we?
And we are positioned in Varna, at 200 meters from the beach… Fresh, right?
We love what we are doing and when you get to know our job, you’ll know why.
Still waiting for a proof of our creativity? Just wait for the next floor, uhh … article. 
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Euro RSCG 4d Bulgaria is based in Sofia, 18 Ivan Vazov street.
We are specialists in digital strategy and consultant in communication online.
Our clients are the largest companies worldwide such as Carrefour, Volkswagen, Societe generale, Edenred BACB, Eon, Solvay, etc
Our main team comprise of Nicolas Galand, Alexandre Glas, Biliana Bogdanova, Zdravko Totinov, Martin Zhelyazkov.
You can send us an email to contact@eurorscg4d.bg or find us on Twitter @4d_bulgaria