A company has invented cheap pcs so that people can enjoy the low power consumption at low price. Its just not about the low price as power consumption directly effect you electricity bills and helps energy saving.

Its not just about the power consumption, but they are also the cheapest found on market. If people are really concious about the energy and the money then, I suggest people surely should get a one. I have order a piece for myself, as every good things should be started from ownself.

Save energy, Save world – Go green.

You can tweet via anything you like that are listed on the directory. Posting and Updating new status using cool applications like iPhone, iPad, Android, Twitter, Google and more. You do not need to have the device or applications on your own, you just need to allow your Twitter to access and you will be ready to go. Just type any status you want to post via and press the Tweet button, and you see the tweet updated on Twitter time line.

Still, for HP it’s a really bad idea. When my father was growing up they lived next door to the Packard’s home in Palo Alto, and the founders of HP were very solid individuals with a strong vision of what the company should become. If you doubt this, read “Built to Last” by Collins, a professor at Stanford Business School.

Okay so, anyone who owns an HP computer is very likely to become a brand loyalist over time, and thus, buy most of their products from HP, how do I know this? Well, I am one myself you see. I also own a number of their computer peripherals, such as scanners, fax machines, copy machines, etc. Any time I go to buy a computer product, I always look for HP first. No, I’m not an Apple fan, because I think their products are overpriced, and I don’t identify with their brand name.

There was an interesting article in ComputerWorld on October 27, 2011 titled; “HP to keep PC division, rejects spin-off idea – Whitman rejects path set by former CEO Apotheker,” by Patrick Thibodeau. The article stated;

“Whitman categorically rejected a plan from former CEO Leo Apotheker, to sell or spin-off the PC division. HP said it conducted a “data-driven evaluation” of the impact of cutting off its Personal Systems Group (PSG) and concluding it was just too important to its supply chain, procurement, and overall brand.”

Now then, Meg Whitman is absolutely correct on this, and I just can’t believe that HP would even consider getting rid of their PC line, so I am pleased to see Whitman taking the proper leadership role here to maintain the HP Brand. In preparing this article, I did little research and I have been clipping articles on this topic and reading all there is about it I would also recommend to you that if you are interested that you go back and read the same articles;

1. New York Times “Ouster of Hewlett-Packard CEO Expected – And Companies Value and Stock Price Have Plunged” by Quentin Hardy and Nick Wingfield, September 22, 2011.
2. Wall Street Journal “HP’s Customers Backing Off” by Ben Worthen, September 2, 2011.
3. WSJ “The Board Is HP’s Chief Problem” – September 22, 2011
4. WSJ “Crisis Unfolds at HP over CEO” by Ben Worthen and JoAnn S Lubin, September 22, 2011
5. WSJ “HP Defends Hasty Whitman Hire” by Ben Worthen, Justin Scheck, Joann S Lubin, September 23, 2011.
6. WSJ “Whitman Takes Charge – Newest HP CEO Tries to Reassure Staff; Promises to Evaluate PC Business,” by Ben Worthen, September 24, 2011.

Did you know one of the big questions in psychology is considered to be; “Will You Be There for Me?” In other words this is something that humans ask of other people in their personal relationships, families, and is a key decision factor when humans make a decision to support a brand name, or buy a product. If HP jumps out of the PC business after selling tens of millions of laptops and computers, along with hundreds of millions of computer peripheral devices, then basically what they’ve done is they’ve answered that question in the negative.

If they stop making these products they would have basically told the consumer that; “our company can’t be trusted, and that we are not going to be there for you in the future.” Now I realize that the former CEO of HP had come from SAP which is primarily an enterprise software company. And he reasoned that HP makes more money in the software business segment, than they do on the peripherals and PCs – sure, yes, I see that, and yes that makes sense, they make more money as a percentage of the sale of those items.

But why are we comparing apples and oranges? Before retirement I was in the car wash business, and the percentage of profit we made washing cars as a service business certainly wasn’t the same as we made if we sold products for cleaning cars. But for us to have either of those businesses, we needed both sides of the equation. If we all the suddenly stopped selling either the products or the services, we would be letting down our customers who have grown accustomed to our brand name.

It is absolutely amazing that the former CEO of HP didn’t realize to strength of “the HP legacy” or what their products mean to the most loyal brand followers, not to mention their loyal employee teams in the various divisions of HP. You see, to make that level of a mistake in business is really scary. Now that’s not to say that a company shouldn’t shake things up once in a while change the way they do things, surely they should, but leaving your customers high and dry is quite another thing indeed.

HP can recover from this poor message to their customers under the leadership of Meg Whitman. I hope you will please consider this case study in brand name management.

*Note: Last minute references in the news, at time of printing affirming the observations herein:

1. Bloomberg Business News, HP’s Whitman Starts CEO Tenure by Unwinding Apotheker’s Criticized Moves,” by Aaron Ricadela, October 28, 2011.
2. Wall Street Journal, “In U-Turn, HP Will Hold On to PCs” by Ben Warthen, October 28, 2011.

The Branches of Product Branding

1. Conceptualization (consider the objectives as well)

2. Total Image/outlook of the product

3. Packaging

4. Positioning, designing and sizing the business logo

5. Marketing Activities (for your targeted market)

6. Existing Patronage

7. Beneficial attributes of the product

8. Innovative ideas

9. Linguistic strategies (consider language barrier and cultural differences)

10. Trademark security & protection

Being aware that Product branding is a discipline applied in building a name for your company’s product. Consider the fact that when a company more often produce products of great quality and satisfaction; chances are that the same kind of people will patronize more and more of the brands of products you produce. Because you have created a sound image, people tend to be impulsive of any product your company will produce in the future. This is where the Product branding task becomes less difficult. A dependable product brand maintains customer’s loyalty in years to come. It is also believed that a stable customers’ patronage lessens the overhead costs of any business when we speak of promotion and advertising. Whereas, for those businesses that just entered the competitive market, it would take a period of time before they can come up with a rightful, striking product name to create an image in the world market.

Four Categories of Product branding:

a. Descriptive

These are the type of names that describe a product’s feature, characteristic, appearance, ingredient or even geographical location.

Example: Florida Orange Juice, Philadelphia Cream Cheese

b. Suggestive

This product naming is so commonly used, it hits business to consumer with more impact through directly hinting the key features of the product, stating the benefits up to describing the image of the company. A suggestive name simply implies all the positive associations of the product to the consumers. Some metaphoric quotes are even adapted to create a slogan which is but an effective way to attract and convince clients.

Example: Kellog’s Nutri Grain, Bounty Paper Towels

c. Arbitrary

This technique in naming a product do not directly or literally describe the product, its approach is not really adapted from any product’s feature, description or benefits. The names can be composed of natural or coined words.

Example: Apple Computers (Steve Jobs’ favorite fruit, and that he had worked in an apple farm before becoming a billionaire in computer world)

d. Fanciful (or coined names)

These Product branding names seemed completely made-up, often perceived as a current phenomenon but scientifically not proven to be true yet; often referred to as neologism. These fanciful names have already been long established, approved and accepted.

Example: Kool-Aid, Crayola,

Product branding plays a vital role in attracting buyers and users alike. Some product names already became an icon for a specific product line. It is well accepted by the society that brand names that are meaningfully coined are more effective to create an impression to consumers. However, Descriptive and Suggestive names created the exact meaning for the targeted market because these names are mainly composed of natural English words that can work alone or through combination that can also create in the formation of a unique abstract name or the literal counterpart.

In determining just how to make a brand the embodiment of a good citizen, it is helpful to look at a brand that has not just succeeded at being a model citizen but built their entire business around it. Apolis Activism is that brand. Instead of hiding behind layers of marketing, they embrace transparency. Founded by three brothers in Los Angeles, California, Apolis (Greek for “global citizen”) creates clothing and gear with an unwavering commitment to social responsibility. Their philosophy of ‘empowering people through opportunity rather than charity’ is woven through the entire supply chain, spelling out exactly who they work with, place of origin, types of materials, and economic effect.

Instead of just having a website that discusses their concern for the world’s poor and some flashy marketing illustrating their commitment to “responsibility,” Apolis actually involves the very people in developing countries whom they are trying to help in the creation of their goods. In Nepal alone, the company employs fifty people through their partnership with the Citta International Co-Op, an NGO. This is brand citizenship at its finest that is only achievable through a sincere commitment to a cause based on a desire to help rather than simply a method for driving sales.

While this type of business model may not be appropriate for all brands, the key lesson that any brand should take from Apolis is that consumers seek out genuine social commitment in brands. With marketing firms across the world looking to leverage social responsibility for profit, consumers are both more skeptical and more sophisticated than ever when it comes to determining which brands actually care. Keeping that in mind, in order to be taken seriously as a good citizen by consumers, organizations need to pick something they truly care about and get involved. Whether it is helping people in Nepal gain employment or simply helping the homeless in your local area, as long as a brand can be authentic in its efforts, consumers will notice. In turn, they will develop a loyalty to your product that no amount of empty social responsibility rhetoric could ever hope to match.

About the author:
Craig Johnson is the chief strategist and co-founder of Matchstic, a premier brand identity house. His Atlanta branding agency helps organizations create passionate brands that are memorable, relevant, and lasting. Specializing in brand development through brand strategy, positioning, business & product naming and brand identity services, Matchstic’s brand architects forge positive change and accomplish business objectives through creative thinking and smart design.

Companies and brands have for too long “cried wolf” to consumers. Banks tell us they want to be our friends, actors tell us they are really Camry owners, and that we should buy one too, chain restaurants tell us their food is ‘garden-fresh, and toothpaste brands pitch ‘whiter teeth.’ Frankly, consumers just don’t believe any of it, and why should they? Brands are all saying the same thing and those that try to say something different often fail to deliver. Years of over-saturation and under delivering have turned consumers off to the notion of being sold.

In order to be heard, brands must do one thing very well: differentiate. Muhtar Kent, Chairman & CEO of the world’s largest beverage corporation, put it this way, “A good brand is a promise. A great brand is a promise kept.” While Mr. Kent uses the word promise, in my career, I have grown to prefer the term reputation. Building a great brand reputation is achieved through the use of influence in the marketplace. While not something we can control directly, influence can be achieved through four main objectives:

1. Authentic customer engagement: Engaging consumers in a way that comes across as sincere and believable is the first step to creating a solid reputation. Whether through social media, sit down meetings, or customer service, show the consumer that you are interested in them for more than what they bring to the bottom line. In my branding firm, we use our blog as a way to engage customers by providing what we see as valuable information that would be of interest to them as they build their brands because we sincerely want them to succeed.

2. Delivering real value: A firm should seek to add value in whatever space they are present. Going back to the social media example, I have seen countless Facebook pages from companies who have a high number of “friends” but who offer nothing of value to their customers. If, instead, these companies posted informative articles or case studies that educated and helped their customers, their Facebook page would become a thing of significance in the marketplace and in turn help to build their reputation as provider a value.

3. Core needs addressed: Companies often need to step back and determine if they are addressing the core need of their consumer or simply selling a product. The success of Kodak and failure of Polaroid is a perfect example. When digital cameras first started coming on the scene, Kodak knew they were addressing the core need of preserving memories rather than simply making film. They responded appropriately to the shift in the industry by manufacturing digital cameras and digital photo frames. Polaroid, on the other hand, did not understand that core need and instead maintained that they were in the business of manufacturing instant photo cameras. As a result, Kodak continues to be a presence in the lives of consumers while Polaroid languishes in obscurity.

4. Customer delight: This objective is placed last for a reason. If you fulfill the three prior objectives of reputation building, you will have customers who are delighted to do business with you and return time and time again. The delight comes not only from the fact that you sincerely engage them or address their core needs, but also from the fact that because of those things you actually kept the promise of your brand.

Maintaining your reputation as a brand is imperative in keeping consumers focused and loyal to your firm or product. The world today is filled with brands that have failed to maintain their reputation and in turn have been put out to the proverbial pasture. Fortunately, however, by following the four objectives mentioned here, you can cut through the false wolf calls and make sure that your voice is heard.

About the author:
Craig Johnson is the chief strategist and co-founder of Matchstic, a premier brand identity house. His Atlanta branding agency helps organizations create passionate brands that are memorable, relevant, and lasting. Specializing in brand development through brand strategy, positioning, business & product naming and brand identity services, Matchstic’s brand architects forge positive change and accomplish business objectives through creative thinking and smart design.

The debate between the Mac and the PC is a massive topic that has generated a lot of interest in the computer industry.

Generally speaking Macs appear to be the graphic design industry favourite, while PC’s are preferable in the business world. However, when making the decision it’s still important to consider a variety of important factors when making your decision.

Graphics, colours and font variety are a key element to consider when you work within the graphic design industry. Having a computer that makes work with these three things easy and transferable between computers is extremely important. Apple has always established their brand as being a very design focused computer, often surpassing PC’s in many regards. Mac colour calibration and display is often more accurate, and more configurable.

The software that is unique to PC and Mac is another factor that graphic designers should consider when purchasing a machine to work on. All of the major applications, including the Adobe Creative Suite, are developed for both platforms. But, because Mac is more design focused, programs specifically made for the purpose of design have emerged and are exclusive only to those who use Macs. Some of the best professional apps are unique only to Macs. Apps such as best pro apps are tailored for it like TextMate, BBEdit, Final Cut Pro, Reason etc. In saying that though, if your work is focused in a particular faculty of graphic design, such as 3-D animation or game design, the programs available for PC are quite outstanding, especially considering the PC reputation as being a gamer’s computer.

There are other smaller details that make Macs more useable than PC’s. Short cuts, easy and obvious function buttons make using a Mac considerably less time consuming and frustrating than a PC, though there are those that argue that these characteristics of the Mac detracts from the traditional computer experience. Macs have also been reported as being significantly more reliable that PC’s. They crash far less than PC’s and experience less screen freezes. In terms of how this relates to the work of a graphic designer, having a faster and more consistently reliable machines means that you can remain confident that your work isn’t going to be lost or your work flow isn’t going to be constantly disrupted. As a graphic designer you often find yourself working with delicate and tedious scopes of work. Precision when working is a fundamental part of being a successful graphic designer, so having a machine that can accommodate to that is of particular importance.

Ultimately, the people behind Macs are very well aware of their primary audience and so they create and deliver equipment and programs accordingly. The scope for PC is a lot broader than a Mac, though that is certainly not to say that the use of a Mac is limited to just graphic design. The strength of the Mac remains firmly attributed to its brilliance in the area of design, where as a PC is less specific to design and more invested in other areas of computer usage.

Companies and brands have for too long “cried wolf” to consumers. Banks inform us they want to be our friends, actors tell us they are really Camry owners, and that we should buy one too, chain restaurants tell us their meals are ‘garden-fresh, and toothpaste brands pitch ‘whiter teeth.’ Frankly, consumers just don’t believe any of it, and why must they? Brands are all saying exactly the same thing and people who attempt to say different things often fail to deliver. Many years of over-saturation and under delivering have turned consumers off to the notion of being sold.

In order to be heard, brands should do something perfectly: differentiate. Muhtar Kent, Chairman & CEO from the world’s largest beverage corporation, place it this way, “A good brand is really a promise. A great brand is a promise kept.” While Mr. Kent uses the term promise, in my career, I have grown to like the term reputation. Creating a great brand reputation is achieved through the use of influence in the marketplace. While not something we are able to control directly, influence can be achieved through four main objectives:

1. Authentic customer engagement: Engaging consumers in a way that results in as sincere and believable is the initial step to creating a solid reputation. Whether through social networking, sit down meetings, or customer support, show the consumer that you’re thinking about them for more than the things they provide the bottom line. During my branding firm, we use our blog in an effort to engage customers by providing what we should see as valuable information that might be of great interest for them because they build their brands because we sincerely want them to succeed.

2. Delivering real value: A strong should seek to add value in whatever space they’re present. Going back to the social media example, I have seen countless Facebook pages from companies who have a higher quantity of “friends” but who offer nothing of worth for their customers. If, instead, these companies posted informative articles or case studies that educated and helped their customers, their Facebook page would be a thing of significance available on the market and as a result help to build their reputation as provider a value.

3. Core needs addressed: Companies often have to take a step back and see if they are addressing the core need of their consumer or simply selling a product. The success of Kodak and failure of Polaroid is a perfect example. When digital cameras started coming on the scene, Kodak knew these were addressing the core need of preserving memories rather than simply making film. They responded appropriately towards the shift in the by manufacturing digital cameras and digital photo frames. Polaroid, on the other hand, did not realize that core need and instead maintained that they are in the industry of manufacturing instant photo cameras. Consequently, Kodak continues to be a name within the lives of consumers while Polaroid languishes in obscurity.

4. Customer delight: This objective is positioned continue for a reason. Should you fulfill the three prior objectives of reputation building, you’ll have customers who’re delighted to do business with you and return again and again. The delight comes not just in the fact that you sincerely engage them or address their core needs, but also from the proven fact that because of those activities you really kept the commitment of your brand.

Maintaining your reputation like a brand is imperative in keeping consumers focused and loyal to your firm or product. The planet today is stuffed with brands which have didn’t maintain their reputation and as a result have been released towards the proverbial pasture. Fortunately, however, by using the 4 objectives mentioned here, you can cut with the false wolf calls and make sure that the voice is heard.

About the author:
Craig Johnson may be the chief strategist and co-founder of Matchstic, a premier brand identity house. His Atlanta branding agency helps organizations create passionate brands which are memorable, relevant, and lasting. Specializing in brand development through brand strategy, positioning, business & product naming and brand identity services, Matchstic’s brand architects forge positive change and accomplish business objectives through creativity and smart design.

The controversy between the Mac and also the PC is really a massive topic which has generated lots of curiosity about the computer industry.

Generally speaking Macs seem to be the graphic design industry favourite, while PC’s are preferable in the industry world. However, when creating the decision will still be important to think about a variety of key elements when creating your final decision.

Graphics, colours and font variety are a key element to think about when you work within the graphic design industry. Using a computer that makes use these three things simple and easy , transferable between computers is very important. Apple has always established their brand as being a very design focused computer, often surpassing PC’s in many regards. Mac colour calibration and display is usually better, and more configurable.

The program that’s unique to PC and Mac is yet another component that graphic artists should consider when choosing a machine to work on. All of the major applications, including the Adobe Creative Suite, are developed for both platforms. But, because Mac is much more design focused, programs specifically made for the purpose of design have emerged and therefore are exclusive simply to those who use Macs. Some of the best professional apps are unique simply to Macs. Apps for example best pro apps are targeted at it like TextMate, BBEdit, Final Cut Pro, Reason etc. In saying that though, in case your work is focused inside a particular faculty of graphics, for example 3-D animation or game design, the programs around for PC are very outstanding, especially thinking about the PC reputation as being a gamer’s computer.

There are other smaller details which make Macs more useable than PC’s. Short cuts, easy and obvious function buttons make utilizing a Mac considerably less time consuming and frustrating than a PC, though there are the ones that reason that these characteristics of the Mac detracts from the traditional computer experience. Macs are also reported to be much more reliable that PC’s. They crash far less than PC’s and experience less screen freezes. In terms of how this relates to the work of a graphic designer, having a faster and more consistently reliable machines implies that you can remain confident that your projects isn’t going to be lost or perhaps your work flow isn’t going to be constantly disrupted. Like a graphic designer it’s easy to find yourself dealing with delicate and tedious scopes of work. Precision when working is really a fundamental part of being a successful artist, so having a machine that can accommodate to that particular is of particular importance.

Ultimately, the people behind Macs are very aware of their primary audience and they also create and deliver equipment and programs accordingly. The scope for PC is a lot broader than a Mac, though that is certainly not to say that the utilization of a Mac is restricted to simply graphic design. The strength of the Mac remains firmly related to its brilliance in the region of design, while your personal computer is less specific to design and more committed to other areas of computer usage.

1. Audit your present customer experience. Begin by getting feedback out of your current customers. Determine what they like and what they don’t. Simply ask them a few open ended questions and you will be surprised about the things that arrived at the surface. We feel in qualitative over quantitative research in this instance. Once you have a reading in your customer’s pulse, map out every touch-point from start to finish and examine the current experience landscape. Look for regions of improvement and include customer feedback for given areas.
2. Analyze the competitive landscape. What are your competitors’ signature cues? Among John Deere’s signature cues is the green tractor. Then when Kubota tractors entered the market they choose orange tractors as their cue. Basing your signature cue off a competitor’s strategy might seem counterintuitive at first, but quite often it may prove effective when two similar yet distinctive cues become a badge of loyalty for customers choosing one brand over another.
3. Ideate and map cues. Take a seat and consider why is your business special. What cues do you currently posses? What color, texture, shape, products, service, voice, or sound makes the experience of your brand unique? After thinking about the various factors which make your brand unique, go ahead and take key and work to create a signature cue through it. Cues do not need to be complex to work. They need simply be memorable and recognizable.

A signature cue is a unique facet of your brand that sticks within the mind of shoppers and allows them to experience what your brand has to offer. This cue helps to create a customer centered experience that allows a brandname to stand in the marketplace. Consumers feel a personal connection to Corona once they squeeze a lime right into a bottle from the company’s beer and women instantly feel special and appreciated when they open one of Tiffany’s blue boxes. Thinking about why is your brand special and applying it to some recognizable signature cure is a superb way to engage consumers in a manner that encapsulates these questions unique experience only attainable using your brand.

About the writer:
Craig Johnson may be the chief strategist and co-founder of Matchstic, a premier brand identity house. His Atlanta branding agency helps organizations create passionate brands which are memorable, relevant, and lasting. Focusing on brand development through brand strategy, positioning, business & product naming and brand identity services, Matchstic’s brand architects forge positive change and accomplish business objectives through creativity and smart design.