Blog

  • New on BMB: My updated guidance on logo color combinations.

    New on BMB: My updated guidance on logo color combinations.

    I have updated my recommendations on logo colors for 2020. There I layout 45 color combinations ideal for logos, and identify 5 trends that graphic designers are following this year.

    Read the article here:

  • Colin Dives Into Drake’s Esports Brand

    Colin Dives Into Drake’s Esports Brand

    100 Thieves: The history, culture, and apparel of one of the fastest-growing brands in the world.

    I wrote an in-depth profile of 100 Thieves for BMB, and there are a lot of lesson’s brand builders can learn from this rapidly growing brand.

    This brand went from a dream and a logo, to being invested in by Drake, to a $660 million evaluation over the course of three years. It’s as if we are witnessing the birth of the Yankees, only bigger and better because 100 Thieves is a worldwide lifestyle brand.

    Read about the apparel and history of 100 Thieves:

    https://brandmarketingblog.com/articles/good-branding/100-thieves/

  • Colin Finkle interviews Allen Adamson

    Colin Finkle interviews Allen Adamson

    Colin talks with Allen Adamson about maintaining brand relevancy in a fast-changing marketplace.

    Allen Adamson is a brand guru. He is the founder of the branding agency Metaforce, as well as an author of four books regarding branding. He has taught at New York University, Cornell, and Harvard.

    I was honored when he reached out to talk about his latest book: Shift Ahead. He was concerned when he saw his clients asking for surface level solutions for deeper problems. The market was leaving these businesses behind, and their business model and soon their brand was going to be out of date.

    Shift Ahead, available on Amazon, is a guide to actively look for changes in the marketplace and maintain your position. It also is a framework for innovation which can allow you to shift ahead of your competitors.

    Video of the interview:

    Remember to follow BMB on YouTube.

    Find the full transcript on BMB: Brand Marketing Blog.

  • New on BMB: Veblen Goods

    New on BMB: Veblen Goods

    Some types of products and some brands defy the laws of economics and can charge whatever they want.

    Something that fascinated me about branding is that some brands would be able to charge whatever they want. Some brands were known to be expensive, and people bought their products because of the high price not in spite of it.

    It turns out that there is a whole class of goods that fit that category. They are called Veblen goods. These products are defined by when their price goes up, the quantity demanded also goes up. Their value is their price!

    Read more about Veblen goods on my article on BMB:

    https://brandmarketingblog.com/articles/branding-definitions/veblen-good/

  • BMB and Just Creative’s Logo Design Trends

    BMB and Just Creative’s Logo Design Trends

    My thoughts on the trends in logo design were featured both on BMB and Just Creative.

    It’s a new year, and a good time to reassess where logo design is heading.

    The first place I look when I am looking for trends is at companies who have rebranded in the last year. If a big corporation is spending millions of dollars to move from one logo to another, then it is worth asking why. Thankfully, Logopedia makes looking at all the recent rebranding really easy by compiling all of the logo changes of the last year.

    I identified a bunch of trends. There were a few big ones, namely the public preference for simple, flat logos is continuing and the flight away from all caps wordmarks.

    Using that knowledge, I wrote and posted an article on BMB: Brand Marketing Blog. Then I Jacob Cass and I started talking and I collaborated with Logaster to compile the logo design trends on Just Creative, a very successful graphic design blog.

  • How I Would Design the Subaru WRX STI

    How I Would Design the Subaru WRX STI

    Designing the iconic rally-inspired 4-door sports sedan.

    Some of my favourite brands are the sport-tuning divisions of the major automakers: Mercedes AMG, Dodge SRT, Mini’s John Cooper Works. All of them have a clear character and a very clear division.

    One of the coolest is Subaru Tecnica International, STI. They are best known for making the top of the sportiest vehicle that Subaru offers: The Subaru WRX STI.

    I took a take at designing the next version of this iconic car:

    Subaru WRK STI design by Colin Finkle

    Let me know what you think. Should I develop the concept a little more?

  • New on BMB: How to Design Signs

    New on BMB: How to Design Signs

    Exterior business signs are a great way to add visibility to a brand… but are often poorly designed.

    Painted Sign

    Recently, Burlington Sports And Spine (whose brand I designed) asked me to design the sign for their plaza’s pylon sign. Pylon signs are the towers with a bunch of rectangular backlit signs, one for each of the businesses in a shopping center.

    I realized that, while I had designed a lot of signage for inside retail environments, I had never designed an exterior sign. A business’ sign represents both a big investment and a big opportunity for them. I really didn’t want to screw it up for my client, so I needed to learn more about exterior sign.

    My research resulted in not only a sign for BSSC, but also a post on Brand Marketing Blog where I share all I learned. I hope it can become a resource for designed and business owners to understand the process and options when designing a retail sign.

    Give it a read to learn more:

  • New on BMB: Endorsements in Marketing

    New on BMB: Endorsements in Marketing

    Endorsements are a powerful but misunderstood tool in marketing.

    Ariana Grande endorsing Reebok

    Every brand benefits from endorsements, whether it be a patron who raves about a bakery on Instagram or Nike spending $100 million + to secure a top athlete’s endorsement.

    But endorsements are not understood by marketers. Few people understand the nature of why endorsements are so powerful, and the legality and ethics around paying someone for their endorsements.

    So I wrote an extensive guide on endorsements for BMB: Brand Marketing Blog.

    Check it out today:

  • How I would change the Tesla Cybertruck

    How I would change the Tesla Cybertruck

    What the Tesla Cybertruck would have to be to have me as a buyer.

    Electric propulsion is a clear opportunity for trucks. The instantaneous torque from an electric vehicle is ideal for getting a large mass moving; this is something Ford proved with when their all-electric F-150 towed a freight train that weighed over a million pounds.

    I know there is a great opportunity in fleet vehicles and work trucks to be electric, where they can be rotated from working to charging in a yard. Tesla’s autopilot could revolutionize logistics.

    So there is a need for a Tesla truck. We are all ready for one.

    But the launch of the Tesla Cybertruck left me feeling… dissonant.

    There is no doubt the truck is remarkable in every way. Unfortunately, it is also remarkably out of touch with the truck market. I am all for innovation, but there are some things about the existing market that you have to respect and appreciate before you take a sledgehammer to it. There are many things about the modern truck that are there for very good reasons.

    To be more than a critic, I brought my skills to bear and drew the Tesla Cybertruck that I wished I had seen.

    Redesigned Tesla Cybertruck

    What I Kept:

    • Stainless steel construction (mostly)
    • Stance
    • Wheels
    • Angles on the sides
    • Angles on the front
    • Headlight bar
    • Above windshield light bar.

    What I Changed:

    • Silhouette: I made it have the silhouette of a more traditional pickup truck.
    • Gave access to the bed from the side of the truck. (An important reason trucks have the silhouette’s they do, in my opinion.)
    • I moved the above windshield light bar onto a utility roof rack.
    • A utility hood, powder-coated dark grey.
    • A winch
    • A redesigned bumper with a notch to give make the truck look like it has a more “monster truck” like stance.
    • Step up bars on the front and rear.
    • Bar style running boards.
    • A utility bed, powder-coated dark grey.

    Yes, I did cheat. The hood, the cab, and the bed-liner would need to be made using a more traditional stamped-steel manufacturing method rather than the bent stainless steel method that Franz von Holzhausen, Tesla’s head of design, is trying to employ. And those pieces would be powder-coated, not raw.

    What do you think? Should I go further, and model it in 3D?

  • New on BMB: Mundane to Memorable

    New on BMB: Mundane to Memorable

    An easy to use framework to help you evaluate your marketing ideas.

    Your brand to compete in today’s marketplace where customers are blitzed with thousands of marketing messages a day. That means only putting messages out there that are memorable, if not remarkable or shareable.

    I created a framework so you can evaluate any of your marketing messages on a five point scale:

    1. Irrelevant
    2. Mundane
    3. Memorable
    4. Remarkable
    5. Sharable

    Everything a brand does should be at least memorable, but we need to strive to create messages that are truly interesting to our target audience.

    Read more on BMB: Brand Marketing Blog

  • New on BMB: Why are logos so expensive?

    New on BMB: Why are logos so expensive?

    Logos can be expensive because they take time and thought to get right, and great logo designers are in demand.

    I just put up a post on BMB (Brand Marketing Blog) entitled Why does professional logo design cost so much?

    When it comes to logo design, there are smart ways to spend money and dumb ways.

    Like any investment in a business, there are smart ways to spend on a logo design and other ways that could set your business back. Every entrepreneur should not run out and spend $15,000 for a branding firm to design a branding package, but it should be equally silly to spend no money on logo design (an online logo maker) or hired the kid down the block who knows Photoshop for enough money to by some Fornite skins.

    If an entrepreneur hires a professional brand designer (like myself – call me if you need a logo designed) then they don’t have to spend much time managing the process and they don’t have to stress that they will have a bad result. But someone starting an organization hires an amateur or someone from around the world (Fiverr) or run a spec work contest (99 Designs), then they have to manage the process in order to get a great result: a logo they can be proud of. They might end up spending as much in the end as they would have if they had hired a professional in the first place, especially when they value their own time.

  • Unobstructed Podcast Ep 3 is out

    Unobstructed Podcast Ep 3 is out

    Edward Cervantes and I talk about personal branding on the latest episode of The Unobstructed Podcast.

    The sweet spot of topics Edward and I aim for is something that is poised to tip business, culture or both. The power of personal branding and the need to maintain a personal brand has never been greater and stands to be even more important as time goes on.

    A personal brand is a reputation. So personal branding is simply trying to be thoughtful and purposeful with the reputation you are building.

    It is not as if personal brands are a new thing; Edward and I talk on the episode that reputation and specialization have been something humans have worked around since hunter-gatherer times; need to hunt antelope, then this is your guy!

    You can watch the episode below, or check out The Unobstructed Podcast’s website or YouTube page.