STRONGBRANDS    Professor Tim Calkins, Kellogg School of Management

Last weekend my son Charlie and I spent a day in Wisconsin at the Racine County Fair. One of the highlights was watching the market pig auction. Every summer dozens of young people raise pigs for the auction. They buy piglets in the spring and then spend months feeding and caring for the animals. At […]

Government leaders in Chicago are considering rebranding some public schools to increase their appeal. The idea is interesting, but it isn’t likely to work on its own. Rebranding is more difficult than it seems. Some public schools in Chicago have very negative perceptions. People associate them with poor teaching and disappointing academic achievement. There is a […]

Last week I was in Hong Kong teaching a branding and marketing strategy program for global executives. It was a treat to be back in such a vibrant and colorful international city. On an open day, I headed over to Macau, just an hour away by high-speed ferry. I was astonished by my visit. Macau is […]

Last week, I provided some branding advice for Donald Trump. This week, I have some advice for Hillary Clinton. At this point, Hillary certainly needs some assistance. Bernie Sanders continues to do well in the primaries, and Hillary’s all but certain nomination now seems in question. With Trump gaining in the polls, some people are […]

Many people think Donald Trump has no chance of winning the upcoming presidential election. For example, the topic came up at a party I was at last weekend, and the consensus was that Trump has no chance. Polls certainly suggest this is the case. At the moment, they show that he will lose against either […]

On Tuesday, Hamdi Ulukaya–founder and CEO of Chobani, the Greek yogurt giant–gave his employees 10% of the company. Each worker received a packet with a share grant commensurate with their tenure with the company. The gift came directly from the CEO. This is quite a gift. A private equity firm recently valued Chobani between $3 […]

Two weeks ago I wrote on this blog about a new fee from Homeaway, a vacation home rental giant. I noted that the pricing move made good sense for a number of reasons. The post generated quite a response. I’ve received a series of comments, many of them thoughtful, from Homeaway and VRBO customers. The […]

One of the big issues in the U.S. today is student loans. People are astonished at the debt young people are dealing with, and presidential candidates are proposing various solutions that range from lower interest rates to debt forgiveness. This all makes sense. Student loan debt is increasing at a dramatic pace because colleges are […]

Home rental giant Homeaway recently began charging a new fee to travelers. This has caused an uproar in the rental world. Despite the initial adverse reaction, the fee is a smart idea. Homeaway is the largest home rental website in the world. It owns a range of sites including VRBO.com, homeaway.com, and vacationrentals.com. Collectively, there […]

Last October Playboy announced a dramatic and surprising change – the brand would no longer publish pictures of nude women. It was a shocking announcement. Playboy, after all, was a pioneer among adult magazines. When Hugh Hefner launched the magazine in 1953, its defining characteristic was racy photography. Many people wondered where Playboy was heading with […]

Chobani is out this week with some bold new advertising. My assessment: this is a risky strategy. The new campaign from Chobani takes aim at yogurt giants Yoplait and Dannon, attacking their ingredients. Here are some highlights from the full-page newspaper ads Chobani ran yesterday: Look, there’s potassium sorbate as a preservative in Yoplait Greek 100. Potassium sorbate? Really? That stuff is […]

The new year will bring challenges and opportunities for brands around the world. Here are five brands that will be particularly interesting to watch. Chipotle Things are not going well for this high-flying restaurant chain. After a stunning run, the brand is facing significant safety issues, its healthy image battered by a series of outbreaks. Customers […]