Yaffe Tidbits

Seduce Your Customers With Style

Design, style and fashion put the thrill in our everyday lives. Looking at an aesthetic object gives us pause. Keeping that in mind when you go to market with your product or brand can positively affect your bottom line.

Every day the general public is introduced to the excitement of design and they are responding to it. No one seems to have a better grasp on that than one of the most successful retailers of our time, Target. Target’s ability to integrate the value of design so broadly and effectively has spread the thrill factor throughout the mass market of consumers. Now we all have to pay attention to design and style to compete.

From the Michael Graves egg timer to an Isaac Mizrahi dog leash, Target has style. This sense of style then oozes out to everything incorporating the Target bulls eye, even the way they show mundane products such as Tide detergent. To maintain their reputation of style, Target approaches designers that are not "over exposed" in the market place. Through their marketing, these designers take on an elevated role in heightening the image of Target. Part of that strategy for Target is to take the time to educate consumers on the appeal of style and the intrinsic value of their designers, such as Michael Graves, Luella Bartley and Isaac Mizrahi. The customer feels the value of Graves’ egg timer every time she sees it on her kitchen counter, which makes her feel good.

Design has an emotional impact on the consumer. It’s a sure bet that anyone can go online and find something from Target that excites them. Good design, either in the product itself or in the presentation of the product, gives the consumer trust and confidence. Trust is essential in the online environment. If the product follows up and performs, then you have won yourself a loyal customer.

Website design and product design become increasingly more important as we cross cultures in our now world bazaar environment. The design element is the emotional tie between the brand and the consumer. If you can get into the hearts of your consumers, you can engage them in the seduction of your brand. If you get into their minds, they are successfully wooed. Companies like Target and Apple understand how to do both, each in a most distinctive way.

The E-commerce portion of your business will become most influential in determining how people feel about your brand. Design and creativity, your personal stamp on the world as a brand, is communicating the heart and soul of what your product stands for.

Art and design in our daily living make us happy. Good design can make a grown man smile even if he takes in the sense of design unconsciously. The seduction of design and creativity is a powerful force. Today’s retail demands the collaboration of merchandising, design and technical knowledge to aesthetically accommodate your audience. It is the synthesizing of these elements that will create your full growth potential in this environment.

Joan Abraham, Digital AE & Design Fan

Our Style Is In Our Cars

Detroit is in such an interesting place at this moment. I am an outsider who was an insider connected to the Detroit Advertising community and fashion community growing up in the city back in the ‘50’s when Detroit was the center of the universe. I was a bit concerned about having to return to the Motor city after 20 years in fashion and new media in New York. I moved back to Detroit in February of 2008 and I have seen some pretty devastating days as Detroit fights to remain standing. I think it’s pretty safe to say that the overhaul of the American auto industry has deeply affected every one of us who lives in this great town.

But what Detroit has not lost is a distinct sense of style born from car design and marketing. When it comes to style and new media Detroit is rich with resources. There are great influences in the city that have grown out of car country. And every major new media resource is represented in Detroit because of the money and development Detroit autos have poured into new media marketing.

As we start pulling out of the economic disaster by overhauling the infrastructure of auto production, we seem to be attracting many young, hip growth industries requiring a lot of energy and creative thinking: namely alternative energy sources, innovation in making our world green and even a little film business, thanks to our connections in Hollywood and the Governor’s film incentive package. Detroit is starting to look like it will have a strong re- tooled future after all.

For a city that could have been written off, Detroit has never lost its mojo. There is something to be said about the Motor City and the sense of style that we generate here.

Style is that illusive element that fills all of us with desire. Style is what separates the cool from the ordinary. Imparting an image of style on a car will energize the senses of a female audience faster than any other factor. And the sense of style that used to govern the Detroit auto industry needs to be reinforced more substantially than ever. Understanding the appropriate role of fashion in creating a sense of style is the key to attracting and keeping the female audience.

Joanie Abraham, Digital AE & Author of StyleBranding 

7 Fresh Ideas To Improve Your Business

It’s tough times in the retail business these days. I don’t know any segment that is having a whole lotta fun and success at the moment. We’re always looking for ideas that can give our clients an edge. Sometimes they are the big Ah Ha moments. Other times, they are simple new perspectives on the basic fundamentals.

EDITOR'S NOTE: ALL THE IDEAS FROM THE WEBINAR "7 FRESH IDEAS TO IMPROVE YOUR BUSINESS" CAN BE FOUND IN OUR WHITE PAPER, WRITTEN AFTER THE WEBINAR WAS COMPLETE. YOU CAN GET THIS WHITE PAPER BY FOLLOWING THIS LINK.

On April 21st at 5 pm EST we’re sponsoring an extremely interesting panel discussion titled “7 Fresh Ideas to Improve Your Business”. You’ll find both kinds of ideas presented. This topic is particularly timely for high ticket retailers. The panel is being moderated by Tim O’Day, Executive Director of the University of Michigan’s Yaffe Center for Persuasive Communications. Several panelists have already been announced including Sondra Wellmerling and Lisa Weber. Wellmerling has served as Chief Marketing Officer for a consumer goods company and two top 50 furniture retailers. Weber has led marketing teams for GMAC Bank, Volkswagen and Audi. You can find more information and register for the event at www.TheYaffeGroup.com/info/