A week or so ago I had the pleasure of taking part in a cycling tour from Hobart to Launceston via the east coast of Tasmania. The timing of the trip couldn’t have been more perfect for reflecting on and processing ideas for our Rebrand Tasmania Project.

Over the space of a week I shared 500 kilometers of coastal roads and hill climbs with cyclists from the UK, USA and New Zealand, Sharing in their collective awe in the diversity and dichotomy of the place and it’s people. Days were spent rolling around the coast as number plates overtook uneasily on narrow bending roads. Riding the whip from an eco-tourism hub in national park through to areas of invasive logging within the space of a blustery morning.

The major stops along the way were Hobart, Orford, Freycinet National Park, St Helens, Scottsdale and Launceston but the most memorable aspects were the places along the way. More shots from the trip are here.

The work of Baptiste Debombourg exists somewhere in flux between installation, architecture, construction and destruction. Beautifully considered.

We were aksed by Sinclair Brook to design a label for their Yering Station Xmas wine. Looking forward to popping the cork on this in the next few days!

We’re really enjoying sharing our new space with Aaron Roberts from Room11. Having a lively, creative mind in the mix makes for a fertile environment. We’re also enjoying sharing in the excitement as the profile of their practice grows, as evidenced in their feature in the recent edition of Houses. Read all about it.

After the Mercury, the most widely read newspaper in Tasmania picked up on the story, the site has experienced a huge surge in visitation and participation. As we expected the response has been a healthy mix of positivity, skepticism, personal expression and constructive contributions. It is safe to say we have been stunned by the level of response and are really keen to kep up this level of participation over the next few weeks. More than anything else we are really happy to have been able to tap into the passions and emotions of all those who have responded.

These are just a few snippets of the commentary the Mercury article received when published online. Read the article and commentary here.

Thanks to all those who have jumped in and had their say, and thanks in advance to all those who waiting in the wings.

If there are any identity designers or design writers, based inside/outside of Australia that would be prepared to write a short piece for the blog, we would love to hear your thoughts on what the current identity communicates to a non-Tasmanian and what a new identity should.  More generally we would love to hear ideas/thoughts/perspectives from anyone inside or outside of Australia on Tasmania, place branding, our process or anything else that the discussion throws up.  Please email me if interested.

Things are hotting up at Rebrand Tasmania, as you can see from this pic of Reg Watson, one of our recent contributors. Two weeks in we have already had some great feedback and a stack of really interesting ideas thrown up. It’s funny how much a broad spectrum of opinion can open up creative possibilities.

We encountered this question recently whilst developing an identity for a reusable take away coffee cup. The client’s idea was extremely smart, sustainable and had global potential, so we were excited by the possibilities from the first meeting. The only barrier to world domination we identified was that consumers/cafes had to be prepared to make a change to their daily habits, in return for the collective environmental good. We were engaging an audience to enact behavioural change.

Whilst the market potential was massive, the project resources were modest. We needed a plan to do a lot with a little, so we had to take the audience on a journey. There were two possible strategies we identified to win over the sceptics and rally the enthusiasts:

1. Make an alluring promise. Embellish the product with a cool, craze-worthy concept that would sell it as a must-have lifestyle accessory, sweeping the world like the iPod
2. Offer consumers a simple alternative. Play it cool and slide below the mainstream radar, spreading by stealth via a wave of social awareness

As a totally new product category there were no real direct competitors to study so many long client meetings were required to flesh out a strategy. In the end it was also the practical considerations that helped illuminate the path ahead. Right away we knew the name had to do several things that we non-negotiable:

1. Fit easily into the ordering sentence – i.e. “ Long Black in a …….. please”. Which we decided should make it ideally two syllables, or three at most.
2. Sound catchy and memorable
3. Communicate the idea of the product (we knew cafes would be on a short fuse if it was too tricky and required explanation to sell)

So there we had it. KeepCup. More than just a name, it was a set of instructions. “Keep (your) Cup”. If they could grasp that concept we are almost there.

Our instincts were leading us towards a brand that would makes it’s mark through honesty and a lack of pretence. There would be no gimmicks or coolisms. The client confirmed the market was responsive to the direction; we were on the right path.

From that point we had a unique positioning and the system began to take shape, informed by a communications strategy, which in turn was supported by some impressive environmental facts. We then developed a friendly, hand drawn custom type treatment, colouring it in a soft mid green and complimentary neutral shade, subtly highlighting the environmental cause behind the product. These elements came together nicely when we started to put together the website.

At this point it became clear that the campaign would be defined by it’s many facets. The visual language expanded to include a functional illustrative style and a playful, type-driven advertising style and all parties were now comfortable that we had given rise to a unique and fitting identity. 6 months past the launch, the market seems to agree with 60,000 units sold so far in Australia and the brand now on it’s way to the US, UK and Europe.

So going back to the bigger question of whether a brand should make an alluring promise or just offer a compelling alternative, for this project the answer was strongly towards the compelling alternative side. Supporting the case, the growing KeepCup supporter base were Twitter/Facebook enthusiasts, willing and able to shoot down anything with the slightest hint of hoodwink in less than ten seconds.

Can brands actually dictate consumer desires in todays environment? I think the jury is still out on that one. I’ll gather some more thoughts when series three comes out on DVD and get back to you.