A L B E R T K U G E L B R A N D S T R A T E G Y

albertkugel.comakugel@gmail.com718.219.5051

ReflexAmerica (www.reflexgroup.com) Paris-based branding agency focused on tourism and luxury brands.

Freelance Copywriter, NY, NY (12/07 – Present )• Co-created and wrote several episodes of “Lost in Francelation,” an online video

series produced for the French Tourist Office.

Junior Planner, NY, NY (6/05 – 7/07)• Developed strategy for the Island of Martinique that differentiated ‘traveler’ from

‘tourist,’ which sold them on repositioning as a luxury brand• Created interactive concept for DKNY Fragrances that was ultimately used in their

Delicious Night campaign -- uncoverthecity.com• Developed marketing partnership between French Tourist Office and Canson Fine

Arts targeting art students in the US.

Crispin Porter + BoguskyIntern Interactive Producer, Boulder, CO (5/09 – 8/09)• Assistant producer on BK digital business card project• Managed keywords for user generated Crispin beta site• Assistant producer and screener on Microsoft’s PC Hook Up Show, a late night live

streaming online talk show.

Adrants & MarketingVox.com Blogger, Virtual (11/06 – 3/08)• Wrote and edited thirty posts per week• Kept me up to date of the online marketing world

Education Experience

Contact

VCU BrandcenterRichmond, VirginiaMS in Creative Brand Management, Graduation Date May 2010

University of Mary Washington Fredericksburg, Virginia BA in Literature, Graduated May 2003• News Editor of student paper, “The Bullet”• Virginia AP journalism award winner

Rebrand Toys R Us (1/10)• Conducted qualitative and quantitative research on the

toy industry• Identified key insight that Target was now the favorite

toy store• Recommended new store concept that owned “play.”

The center of the store was a playroom that showcased new toys, featured a coffeebar for mom, and plenty of $1 bins, so every kid walked out with a toy.

Brand Audit for the Virginia Lottery (8/08 – 11/08)• Crafted situational analysis and identified key strengths,

weaknesses, opportunities, threats of the organization• Conducted surveys and focus groups and analyzed

results• Recommended strategic direction, the launch of an

alternate reality game to target Gen Y consumers

Academic Projects

Albert Kugel

{

1994. 2002.

2004. 2006.1996.The 1980s.

2005.Become a fan of marketing when I win the Fox video game challenge. You played from home on live TV using your touchtone phone. What a cool promo concept!

Write for school paper. Decide against staying in Virginia to work for the local paper.

Up and move to Brooklyn. Gunning to return largely due to two restaurants: Waterfalls on Atlantic Ave., and Boca Lupo on Henry Street.

Start blogging about branding and digital marketing. End up post-ing for Adrants and Mar-ketingVox - two popular marketing blogs.

Start running in high school. Not to win, but for the cardio.Still run a couple time a week. It’s good for you.

Thanks to five older siblings, watch waaayy too much TV. I become a pop culture historian.

Work at a French ad agency, and work a lot with the American CD. Work as an interactive copywriter, a strategist, and on new business. It was a lot of fun.

A bit about me.Ti

mel

ine

I am the Doug Coupland that never was.In another life, I would be happy working for a city paper writing reviews of movies, video games, and myriad of other texts that make up the world of popular culture.

I have an encyclopedic knowledge of video games from the 1990s, sci-fi films of the 1970s, B action films from the 80s, and sitcoms from the 1980s onward.

So why marketing? First and foremost, it's in a golden age of creativity. A time where anything is game. The message is no longer, "sell, sell, sell," it's, "create an experience. invent a new platform. design a game." Essentially, we get to create and evolve pop culture.

My Take on Branding

A brand should have a point of view.Nintendo thinks the whole family should play video games.Snickers thinks you're just not the same when you're hungry.CSX believes shipping by train is the future.You can write positioning statements to the cows come home, but if a brand doesn't bring its opinions and views to the discussion, it's wasting money buying media.

Start with a Problem.I believe that one of the most challenging aspects of marketing is finding the brand's prob-lem.One of the most rewarding aspects of the business side is pinpointing a problem even the client hadn't considered. Not only does it show you how thoughtful you are, it proves that the outside perspective of an agency is a necessity to brands.

The power of digital.Since brands are already spending a lot of money on media to get noticed, I think it's a brand's responsibility to speak to people in new and innovative ways. Digital makes anything possible, and it often costs a lot less than people think. There’s no reason not to experiment!

A Few Group Projects.This is the best and the worst part of Brandcenter.

Collaboration has taught me that the most well-articulated strategy can come from the copywriter, and a winning concept

can come from the strategist.

The Assignment.

Wonder’s Equity:

The Brand.

Wonder BreadCreate a campaign to revive a brand.

Yet when all was said and done, Wonder still owns White Bread. No other bread company could claim this. So we set out to see what peo-ple though of white bread...

$ $$$

Health

Taste

Private

Label

The Situation.

To the West. Private Label brands deliver white bread at a much lower price.

To the North. Whole Wheat is pushing its health value to moms. Moms are on to Wonder’s “fortified” white bread, and know it contains corn syrup.

But those days are over. Over the last 25 years, Won-der’s share has gradually declined. And in the bread aisle, Wonder is now losing a 2-front war.

21

America grew up on Wonder white bread.Or at least that’s what it feels like sometimes.Our parents grew up on it.Our parents’ parents grew up on it.And in a lot of cases, we grew up on it.In the age of television, it was everywhere.

Insights.

Strategy.

Moms still value white bread for one reason...A lot of kids just won’t eat wheat bread. So when moms realize that they need to feed their kid something, they know they can turn to Wonder.

“Somethings just taste better on White Bread”In man-on-the-street interviews, we kept hearing people say this. Turns out, white brad en-abled them to put interesting (and even strange) things on sandwiches-- because on white bread, you can taste every ingredient. Meanwhile, wheat overpowers the taste...

We realized that while people eat wheat bread because they should, they eat white bread because they want to. So we set out to rekindle America’s craving for all the comfort foods that start with Wonder Bread. From fluffernutters to baloney and cheese to… yes, even the fried Elvis.

Wonder is an open canvas to your next sandwich masterpiece.If we couldn’t own health and we couldn’t own price, we were going to own happiness.

Our campaign means to spark a spirit of playfulness in consumers by encouraging people to “Make your next masterpiece with Wonder.”

Creative.

Campaign: Create your next sandwich masterpiece with Wonder.

We created Wonder Sandwich cafes, which serve white- bread sandwiches ranging from the sublime to the ridiculous, and Wonder Sandwich trucks, which bring Wonder to people in their neighborhoods or places of business.

Both Wonder’s website and Facebook allow users to compete in the search for the next American masterpiece, which encourages users to design their dream-sandfwich recipe and send them to their friends, sharing the love of a good, fun sandwich.

On the next page lies...

The Most Awesome CREATIVE Brief EverThe Client? A Teen Anti-smoking Campaign

THE DARK FOREST [ s i t u a t i o n ]

During the 2000s, teen smoking has dropped

dramatically across the country after an

equally dramatic rise during the Gen Xer

90s. Currently, teen smoking in Virginia is

holding at around 16%, well below the na-

tional average. YDoYouThink is in a unique

position to stomp out smoking among those

teens most likely to start smoking.

The teens most likely to start smoking or who have already started

smoking. They come in all ages. From junior high-schoolers experiment-

ing with pot, all the way up to 18-year-olds on their way to college

who are starting to drink. It’s not about a gender, a certain age,

social group or ethnicity. It’s about the attitude of experimentation

and wanting to be cool that inspires teens to light up.

The messaging will primarily target the older teens (17-18) as younger

ones look up to their older peers.

YDoUThink’s current campaign revolves around humor to deliver its mes-

sage. Teens laugh at the smoking dog, they think formaldehyde drinking

is gross, but it stops short of actually getting teens to stop the

smoking habit. FIRST INSIGHT :: It just serves as a reinforcement for

people who will NEVER smoke in the first place.

From images of cancerous lips and black lungs on cigarette packaging

in Canada and Europe, to New York state ads showing emphysema patients

talking through an electronic voicebox, Shock is the standard anti-

smoking messaging for many parts of the Western world. SECOND INSIGHT

:: Shock is shocking, but it’s fleeting. Teens think they’re going to

live forever. One smoker told us she used to collect and trade anti-

smoking ads with her friends.

The TRUTH campaign made those that smoked feel guilty for supporting

the evil corporation, but again, stopped short of actually telling

people smoking’s ill effects.THIRD INSIGHT :: It’s more of a forced

protest than a calling not to smoke.

smoking makes teenagers feel comfortable, like

they are part of a cool group. we want to leave

them feeling extremely uncomfortable.

LIFE IN HELL [ d i f f e r e n t i a t i n g i d e a ]

Instead of telling kids smoking causes cancer,

is gross, or comes from evil corporations,

we’ll create a “pro-smoking” campaign to sell

them on every aspect of smoking and what comes

along with tobacco use (side effects, prod-

ucts they’ll need when health problems arrive,

etc.). It’s a twist on reality.

[ t h e a u d i e n c e ]

We mounted this on a 20x30 posterboard to present to our creative team. It was the first brief in history that was read in its entirety.

You start in the forest, go through hell, and then are presented with the strategy.

Smoking gives teens a sense of belonging and comfort.Instead, lets make them feel extremely uncomfortable.

Meet Bruce Velk.The Scuzzy proprietor behind cigbonanza.biz.Bruce sells smoking accessories to help you deal with all the effects smoking causes AND POSTS CRUMMY ADS ON THE WEB TO GET CUSTOMERS.

The Strategy.

The WORK.The creatives came up with a brilliant idea: a disgusting PRO-smoking Campaign...

BRUCE’s Products

Yellowz Out.A cream that Bruce liberally applies to his face to cover the yellowing of his skin brought on by smoking.

The Buttsaver. Just put your old butts into this grinder and, voila, you have instant rolling tobacco.. kind of...

Ideation.Ideas are why I’m in the business.

I love thinking of marketing ideas and crafting marketing plans.

Copywriting::French Wine

The Problem.

The Assignment.

The Concept.

Every year, French wine gets ignored by Americans in favor of friendlier bottles of wine with fun brand names and mascots. Meanwhile, most French wine labels abide by Appelation codes that result in a much more intimidating, and well, snootier, look.

The French Tourist Office wanted to promote French wine in the US through Go postcards placed in restaurants in major cities.

Turn restaurant postcards into magnetized fridge magnets that give aspiring wineophiles a crash course in French wine right in the kitchen. A more laid back tone also provides a more welcoming voice to the French wine industry.

<<Magnetized>>Peel & Stick on Fridge

DKNY Fragrances

The Problem.

The Insight.

The Assignment.

The Concept.

New fragrance launches are a dime a dozen. How do we cut throught the clutter?

Post-Sex and the City, New York City has become the mecca for the girls night out. All Delicious Night needs to do is to bring this story to life.

Back in 2006, DKNY wanted some edgy marketing to promote Delicious Night, a new fragrance targeting young women that embodied the New York nightlife.

Delicious Night’s New York nightlife vibe.

+ =“Choose Your Own Adventure”

books of the 80s

Uncoverthecity.com - a Flash-based ‘choose your own’ adventure game that captures a night on the town.

Market a New Mattress Brand

Positioning.

Marketing POV.

Owning Bedtime.

The Brand.

The Assignment.

Welcome busy Americans back to bedtime. Surveys and one-on-ones revealed bedtime as the best part of the day.

Set off a sleep renaissance by owning the intangible benefits of sleep.

nest. Since 80% of mattresses are bought by women, we wanted a name that appealed to them.

Create a new brand for a new Richmond-based mat-tress company from the ground up. I played a big role in the marketing plan.

Own The Goodnight Tweet.Every night at the about the same time, nest will tweet goodnight by sharing a link to a bedtime story, a soothing song, a post on the sleep benefits.

Invent the Best Blanket Ever.Like those robes at the Ritz, this could be nest’s shtick. The best signature blanket you could ever imagine.

All You Need Is Sleep.A Social Campaign.A program for businesses that rewards workers who get enough sleep.

Step 1. Partner with the Sleep Experts. To launch the campaign, we’ll turn to a national advocacy group to give the campaign credibility.

Step 2. Development.

Step 3. Partnerships.Step 4. Spread the Word.

The Reverse Alarm Clock.An app you load on your phone and PC that you can set remind you of bedtime. It will even save your work and shut down automat-ically if you just can’t pry yourself from work.

Partner with well-known corporations in the Richmond area to get the program’s ball rolling.

Sleep is already a popular human interest story. Many a news org will want to pick this up.

Sleep Tracker. Allows coworkers to see who’s getting enough and who isn’t. They can offer support to those who haven’t been getting enough sleep lately.

Richmond Bike Rider Segmentation Study

Assignment: Segment a specific group of people using primary and secondary research.

0%

17.5%

35.0%

52.5%

70.0%

62%

45%

55%

44%

23%

16-2021-29

30-4546-64

65+

Objective. To increase clientele at Conte’s, a regional bike store in the mid-Atlantic.

Research Methodology. Bike Owners by Age.• Online Survey - 130 Respondents.• Dozens of Personal Interviews• Industry Interviews - Area bike store retail employees• Local Store visits.• Online research bicyclist usage and attitudes - BikeForums.net,

blogs, and consumer reports.

Current US Perceptions: Bikes are for Sport.

The 1970s.The 1980s.

The 1990s.The 2000s.

The Fitness Boom and films like “Breaking Away” make cycling a legit sport in the US.

Greg Lemond wins the Tour de France making the US a legit cycling force.

The mountain bike explodes onto the US scene. Places like Moab, Utah instantly be-come meccas for the sport.

Lance Armstrong wins the Tour 7 times turning the US into a cycling superpower.

Meet the Segments

Commitment

Round the Blockers

Fashionistas Fairweathers Sportos Road Warriors

They see the bike as a toy. They’re not riding to get somewhere, but to simply go out on a bike ride. They ride only 3 months out of the year, and also replace, and maintain their bikes the least.

They view the bike as a fashion accessory. The fashionista takes many shapes: from the urban sophisticate riding a vintage cruiser, to the wannabe riding the BMX or track bike. Not a good segment to work with as the bike as all for show.

They view the bike as a tool and ride it to get from point A to point B. However, if the weather’s bad, or if they’re all dressed up, they’ll skip the bike for the car or public transit. This group also represents those that are looking to beat gas prices and be green, two recent develop-ments in the US.

The sportos ride purely for fitness reasons. They’ll ride long distances and will participate in bike clubs, tours and races. Among them, having the right bike and gear is a status thing. This group pays the most of anyone on bikes making them the retail stores’ primary target.

They ride, because it’s a part of their lifestyle. They have a place set aside for working on bikes and view the bike frame as an open canvas for their next creation. They’re most likely to work in a bike shop, and they buy parts cheap online.

Meet the SegmentsWhere do they live (in Richmond)?

Where did they shop for bikes?

Annual spending on bike accessories.

Plotting them out.

Indifference

$

$$$

Identity

RoadWarriors

Roundthe Blockers

Fashionistas

Sportos

Fair-Weathers

1.Round the Blockers live in the suburbs and will ride to the park. 2. Fashionistas live in the city and will ride short distances for social reasons, e.g. to a friend’s party. 3. Fairweathers live in the city and will ride 1 or 2 miles to run errands. 4. Sportos live in the suburbs and will ride long distances on the weekend. 5. Road Warriors live on the outskirts of the city and will ride most everyday.

RoadWarriors

Sportos

FashionistasRoundthe Blockers

Fair-Weathers

Round the Blockers

Big Box

Bike Shop(New)

Bike Shop(Used) A Friend Web

Self-Built

Fashionistas

Fairweathers

Sportos

Road Warriors

$0

$50

$100

$150

$200

$40$30

$100

$200

$150

RtBersFashionistas

Fairweathers SportosRoad Warriors

The StrategyThe Problem:Fairweathers feel ignored by the industry.

The Solution:Launch an urban retail store that removes the intimidation factor and views the bike as a mode of transportation, not a hardcore sport. We need a bike shop for the people.

Research revealed that Fairweathers are intimidated by the bike shop. Its typically employed by Road Warriors and is geared mainly toward Sportos. The web doesn’t help either. It’s filled with forum posts by experts and bicyclophiles.Meanwhile, the big box stores are selling bikes to Round the Blockers as they’re selling cheaply made bikes geared toward playtime. An important segment is getting lost in the shuffle.

VS.

2. Package every bike with a fun manual so everyone is on the same page on basic bike maintenance and operation. e.g. we found Fairweathers who didn’t know how to change the gears.

1. Move all the ac-cessories out of the front of the store. Turn the front into a kind of visitor center for the every-day rider.

3. Outdoor advertising would offer a service in the form of a map of what routes are bike-friendly around town.

4. Move the store into a bigger space to allow indoor test drives.

Tactics:

albert kugel | 718.219.5051 | akugel@gmail.com

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