Product (Mis)placement

The way some businesses treat their brands never ceases to amaze me.

Near to where I live in Sydney, a new real estate agency burst onto the scene a couple of months ago. Their signboards were dramatically different to everyone else’s, some of them even appeared upside down to dramatic effect. They bought large billboard spaces to further reinforce the brand, launched a high-profile, schmick office and ran ads in the local media.

These guys had arrived and boy, did we know it.

I confess I was impressed by the manner in which a new company suddenly became so apparent.

Then, over a cup of coffee, my view changed in an instant. There in their lavishly printed, high-gloss real estate magazine was a clear indication that someone had missed the importance of detail when establishing a new brand.

In a half-page photo of a luxurious apartment was a close up of the beautifully appointed kitchen. And there, centre shot was a can of Baygon cockroach spray. All that work establishing a brand and these guys can’t even find a photographer with the common sense to remove a can of pest spray when it jumps out of an image.

Wanna buy a luxury apartment with just a few unwelcome guests? Wanna trust these people to really sell and market your property?

Truly effective branding is so much more than some slick ads and spunky offices and it doesn’t take much to undermine a lot of investment.

Am I being petty? Maybe. Let me know your thoughts.