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Facebook is moving into the global market with much success, but according to BusinessWeek, the competition overseas has the traffic, and the brands, to put up a decent fight. Here are the social networking sites defending their turf:

Hyves: The Netherlands: 5.7 million users
Hyves is based on the English word “beehive”. It has extended its brand beyond the title, naming the bulletin board feature (equivalent to Facebook’s ‘wall’) “krabbel.” This created word has become so popular, it may find its way into the Dutch dictionary.
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The branding mission, should you choose to accept, is to re-brand No Child Left Behind.

On February 4th, Arne Duncan, our new Secretary of Education, shared his vision with Michelle Block on All Things Considered. Mr. Duncan considers quality education to be “the civil rights issue of our generation.” With this rhetoric you can trust he is not kidding around when he challenged all of us in the branding industry to “repackage and rename” the education reform set to replace or improve upon “No Child Left Behind.” This is quite the linguistic challenge because not only does this name need to inspire the inclusion and betterment of all American children but it also needs to rebuild bipartisan consensus on education reform! Continue Reading »

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It’s that time of year again. Time to tell that special someone how you truly feel…through candy hearts of course! Who needs love letters and flowers? Pass your significant other a real piece of sugar and call it a day.

Sweethearts have a history that dates back to the time of Abraham Lincoln, so it’s understandable that NECCO, the company responsible for its popularity, has managed to perfect the art of candy messaging. Check out the fascinating story here.

Year after year, the company melts consumer’s hearts with simple phrases including “be mine,” “kiss me,” and “my man.”
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With New Year’s not far behind us, I, like most of the population, have decided that this is the year to get in shape, be fit and be healthy. In my quest for this seemingly “every-year” resolution, I’ve spent quite a good deal of time at my local fitness center. Granted, I go to the YMCA which is within a mile of where I live and work, but being in this fitness frame of mind, I’ve been wondering about gym names and the types that exist. Some top of mind examples include:
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