Nope, you can’t wear them! But they sure look cool, don't they?
We’re increasingly seeing more mash-up marketing happening, where 2 seemingly unrelated brands come together to develop really interesting stuff. One of the most interesting mash-ups announced recently is the COKE and L’Oreal project for a skin care beverage called Lumea. This drink is supposed to be able to deliver nutrients important for skin health. While this genre of product is not new - as drinkable skin care is already marketed by a company call BORBA - it’s really the partnership between 2 big brands that’s making people pay attention.
One of the most successful marketing mash-up project thus far has got to be the Nike Plus, a collabo between Nike + Apple. This range of Nike running shoes is able to sync with your iPod so that you can, not only listen to music while you run, but also track / record your work out stats and pace. There’s more. The stats tracked can then be loaded onto the nikeplus website to monitor and review your workout progress.
What these marketing mash-ups really underlie is the necessity for brands, especially big ones, to be innovative. This is a very strong message but I’m not sure how many bosses / organizations realize its seriousness. You can’t be serious about innovation if you continue to close your mind to things…
