PLDT and SMART New Corporate Identity

Today as I passed by the head office of the Philippine's high valued company PLDT, I notice something different than usual, they facade is now cascaded with a new PLDT Logo.  Thus I recall the news just a few days ago that PLDT and Smart will have a new corporate logo that embodies unity and similarity in their new logo.  So today I also decided to write about PLDT and Smart in this blog.

I remember in the early 1990's when PLDT was implementing their "Zero backlog program" where they attempted to complete its fixed-line rollout and phone installation to all applicants of its telephone service.  That was triggered by the onset of competition from new telcos such as Bayantel, ETPI, Digitel and others, in the wake of the de-monopilization of the local telecom industry with Republic Act 7925 and similar government issuances.  I remember how elated we are at home when we finally had our fixed phone line installed.  I also had my first mobile phone from Smart back in 1998, its a motorola handset and had been a subscriber of Smart Communication until 2002.  Who would have thought then that moving on more than two decades, these two communication giants would become part of one congolomerate. 

Corporate Rebranding

PLDT Incorporated, formerly called Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company, has evolved with strategic rebranding, reflecting its 3-year massive digital transformation.

During a surprise launch last, June 13, PLDT and its subsidiary, Smart Communications, Incorporated, launched their new logos and change in name to better represent their current thrust to shift the business to data-driven services. Philippine’s giant telco PLDT and Smart welcomes the new day with a fresh brand identity as they launch new logos.  PLDT chairman says the new logos symbolize 'the powerful convergence of PLDT and Smart, combining fixed and wireless technologies to serve individual and enterprise customers.

New Company Name

In April 2016, the company then known as the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company, dropped the "long distance telephone" from its corporate name and has since been known as PLDT Incorporated.  Its board of directors approved the new corporate name to reflect on the company's new range of services, mainly focusing on data services. PLDT-Smart has embarked on a three-year digital pivot that aims to transform into networks into the country’s most data capable infrastructure delivering a growing array of compelling digital services.

This year, the Group has allocated P43 billion for capital expenditures. Around USD100 million more in capex will be earmarked, following the acquisition of the telecoms business of San Miguel Corp. which is referred to as the 700 Mhz frequency band.

PLDT and its various subsidiaries such as Voyager Innovation, Talas Data Intelligence are also developing and offering digital and financial technology services that offer the Group’s customers higher levels of efficiencies and convenience.

"Rather than allow ourselves to be disrupted by new technologies, we are disrupting ourselves. We have embarked on a digital pivot to enable us to serve the increasing needs of our people's digital lifestyle and the country's growing digital economy," PLDT Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan said during the launch.

The country’s largest phone carrier has embarked on a 3-year digital pivot that aims to transform its networks into a top data-capable infrastructure.

New Logo Explained

The new logo symbolizes the powerful convergence of PLDT and Smart, combining fixed and wireless technologies to serve individual and enterprise customers.

The logos are shaped like a triangle with the three sides representing Company’s business pillars — exceptional people, meaningful innovations and its valuable customers.

The triangle also the symbol for Delta, the fourth letter on the Greek alphabet, which stands for “Change”

PLDT’s logo is their fifth logo since the 1940s, while Smart is their sixth since 1993.

The Evolution 

Branding and Marketing

There’s a bit of confusion mostly in the inter-change of functions of marketing and branding.  Any business always has marketing embedded in their corporate structure but few has brand management incorporate in their companies.  How important is branding and is it really a necessity to have such a department or could it just be included as a sub-classification under their marketing department.

For all multinational companies that gives so much importance and value to their market position, branding is very important, equally if not more important than marketing.  Their corporate brands are considered as an asset that needs to be protected and retain market position thru the efforts of marketing avenues.

Here we differentiate and delve into the two contrasting and yet parallel world of branding and marketing, what makes one equally important in any company organizational structure.

Branding is strategic. Marketing is tactical.

Marketing may contribute to a brand, but the brand is bigger than any particular marketing effort. The brand is what remains after the marketing has swept through the room. It’s what sticks in your mind associated with a product, service, or organization—whether or not, at that particular moment, you bought or did not buy.

The brand is ultimately what determines if you will become a loyal customer or not. The marketing may convince you to buy a particular Toyota, and maybe it’s the first foreign car you ever owned, but it is the brand that will determine if you will only buy Toyotas for the rest of your life.

The brand is built from many things. Very important among these things is the lived experience of the brand. Did that gadget deliver on its brand promise of reliability? Did the maker continue to uphold the quality standards that made them what they are? Did the sales guy or the service center mechanic know what they were talking about?

Marketing unearths and activates buyers. Branding makes loyal customers, advocates, even evangelists, out of those who buy.

This works the same way for all types of businesses and organizations. All organizations must sell (including nonprofits). How they sell may differ, and everyone in an organization is, with their every action, either constructing or deconstructing the brand. Every thought, every action, every policy, every ad, every marketing promotion has the effect of either inspiring or deterring brand loyalty in whomever is exposed to it. All of this affects sales.

Branding is as vital to the success of a business or nonprofit as having financial coherence, having a vision for the future, or having quality employees.

It is the essential foundation for a successful operation. So yes, it’s a cost center, like good employees, financial experts, and business or organizational innovators are. They are cost centers, but what is REALLY costly is not to have them, or to have substandard ones.

Marketing vs Branding

There is a spectrum of opinions here, but in my view, marketing is actively promoting a product or service. It’s a push tactic. It’s pushing out a message to get sales results: “Buy our product because it’s better than theirs.” (Or because it’s cool, or because this celebrity likes it, or because you have this problem and this thing will fix it, etc.) This is oversimplification, but that’s it in a nutshell.  This is MARKETING.

Branding on the other hand, should both precede and underlie any marketing effort. Branding is not push, but pull. Branding is the expression of the essential truth or value of an organization, product, or service. It is communication of characteristics, values, and attributes that clarify what this particular brand is and is not.

A brand will help encourage someone to buy a product, and it directly supports whatever sales or marketing activities are in play, but the brand does not explicitly say “buy me.” Instead, it says “This is what I am. This is why I exist. If you agree, if you like me, you can buy me, support me, and recommend me to your friends.”

Is marketing a cost center? Poorly researched and executed marketing activities can certainly be a cost center, but well-researched and well-executed marketing is an investment that pays for itself in sales and brand reinforcement.

Is branding a cost center? On the surface, yes, but the return is loyalty. The return is sales people whose jobs are easier and more effective, employees who stay longer and work harder, customers who become ambassadors and advocates for the organization.

Conclusion

Branding isn’t the same as marketing – branding is the core of your marketing strategy. In order to build an effective brand, you need authenticity and clarity in each of the steps discussed earlier, allowing your target market to identify with your brand personality and values successfully.

One final thing to remember – and a very important point – is that branding isn’t a one-time thing that you do at the beginning of establishing your business. It is an ongoing effort that permeates your processes, your culture, and your development as a business, and it requires your dedication and loyalty in order to reflect in your work. At the end of the day, the true measure of your branding success is in earning loyal customers who become your brand ambassadors as well.

Another Retail Brand downsizing

Ralph Lauren, like some other luxury brands, has been struggling amid sluggish spending on luxury apparel and accessories. The company's margins have taken a knock as department stores discount heavily to get rid of excess inventory.

Ralph Lauren is closing stores, cutting jobs and focusing more on its most popular as part of a sweeping plan to lower costs and revive sales growth at the luxury fashion brand.

The changes are the first big moves from CEO Stefan Larsson, who replaced company founder Ralph Lauren as CEO last November 2015. Lauren is still executive chairman and chief creative officer of the fashion and home decor business he created.  The new CEO Stefan Larsson's plan includes restructuring in a move aimed at saving $220 million over the next year.

Larsson has also worked with H&M for about 15 years, where he helped grow the company's sales to $17 billion from $3 billion and introduced partnerships with luxury brands such as Versace and Karl Lagerfeld.

In order to create a leaner business that operates with fewer layers of management. Larsson also wants to bring the brand more in line with today's trends and better cater to what shoppers want, taking a page out of his time at fast-fashion brands Old Navy and H&M. He will reduce inventory and focus more on the company's core brands.

Moreover, the company's lower-end Polo and Lauren brands are facing competition from retailers such as H&M (HMb.ST) and Inditex's (ITX.MC) Zara, which are known for their shorter production times.

Ralph Lauren said on Tuesday it The company will focus on its luxury Ralph Lauren line and the lower-end Polo and Lauren brands.

The New York-based company, known for its polo shirts and pony logo, plans to close more than 50 stores, or about 10 percent of its total retail stores. It will cut about 8 percent, or 1,200, of its 15,000 full-time employee.

It will focus more on its three best-selling brands — Ralph Lauren, Polo and Lauren — and devote fewer resources to its smaller ones, such as Chaps and RLX. The company would try to reduce the time taken to get new products to shelves to nine months from 15.

Ralph Lauren expects the restructuring to save it between $180 million and $220 million a year. That’s on top of $125 million in cost cuts from last year. It expects to incur restructuring charges of up to $400 million for the year and inventory-related charges of up to $150 million.

For the current quarter, it expects revenue to fall in the mid-single digits and fall in the low double digits for the year.

The changes mark a significant shift for the all-American fashion house built on denim staples and branded polo shirts. But the company, where Lauren himself was at the helm until last year, has struggled under falling sales and profits, failing to keep up with rapidly changing retail trends and new style preferences. In the year ended April 2, Ralph Lauren's profit dropped by more than 22%, excluding restructuring charges.

The company said it expects to record restructuring charges of up to $400 million and an inventory reduction-related charge of up to $150 million, mostly in the current fiscal year.

The restructuring measures are expected to result in annualized savings of about $180-$220 million.

The company had about 493 directly operated retail stores and employed about 26,000 people, roughly 15,000 of who work full time as of April 2.

Buying Children's Footwear Tips

Its back to school season once again and one thing that is on top of any parents list is the shoes for their kid's, I decided to write something about children's footwear as there are so many things that parents tend to missed out during their shoe shopping with their kids.

Tips for Finding Proper Fitting Shoes for Your Child

During back-to-school season and throughout the year, one of the most important purchases on any parent's shopping list should be a pair of proper fitting shoes for their child. For many parents, shoe shopping may seem easier than a pop-quiz in gym class, but several important factors should be considered:

Children's Feet Change With Age. Shoe and sock sizes may change every few months as a child's feet grow.

Shoes That Don't Fit Properly Can Aggravate the Feet. Always measure a child's feet before buying shoes, and watch for signs of irritation.

Never Hand Down Footwear. Just because a shoe size fits one child comfortably doesn't mean it will fit another the same way. Also, sharing shoes can spread fungi like athlete's foot and nail fungus.

Examine the Heels. Children may wear through the heels of shoes quicker than outgrowing shoes themselves. Uneven heel wear can indicate a foot problem that should be checked by a podiatrist.

Take Your Child Shoe Shopping. Every shoe fits differently. Letting a kid have a say in the shoe buying process promotes healthy foot habits down the road.

Always Buy for the Larger Foot. Feet are seldom precisely the same size.

Buy Shoes That Do Not Need a “Break-In” Period. Shoes should be comfortable immediately. Also make sure to have your kid try on shoes with socks or tights, if that's how they'll be worn.

Think of a Deck of Cards

Children's footwear sizes start at 1, go up to size 13 1/2, then start over again at 1.  It's confusing because there are two sets of sizes with the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5.

There are BABY sizes 1-5, and YOUTH sizes 1-5.  Make sure you're shopping in the correct category.

To make it more confusing, different companies call these categories different names.  The chart at the right gives you American shoe size, Approximate Age, Common Names and tips for fitting.

Half (1/2) Sizes

Brands positioned as specialty children's shoes usually offer “half-sizes” between each “whole size” for a precise fit.  Half sizes require extra investment throughout the supply chain -- which is why only "serious" children's footwear brands offer them.  Factories must purchase 1/2 sizes of manufacturing lasts, and retailers must carry more inventory per style.

Retailers and manufacturers often choose to save money by only offering Full Sizes.  This is especially the case with sandals and boots.  Sandals are open at the toes, so there's less pinching, and a more accommodating fit overall.  Boots cost more to make in general, so companies try to cut costs where they can.

Double Sizes:    Such as:    5/6     7/8      9/10

Double sizing saves companies even more money by being able to market shoes as fitting in between two sizes.

The savvy customer will know that a double-sized shoe is actually the larger of the two sizes, not a length in between the two sizes.  So, if your child is a 5 and you're looking at a shoe marked 5/6, the shoe is most likely a true 6, and will be too large for a true size 5 child.  Make sure you fit double-sized shoes carefully.  If the shoes are a whole size to big, you will need to go to a specialty retailer who offers at least whole sizes, if not half sizes.

Shoe types that often offer double sizing are snowboots, rainboots, water clogs, and sandals.

Reference for Newborn to Children's Shoe Sizes

Digital Marketing

The digital space is fast becoming a platform of influence and almost anything can be done in just a click of a button.  We always have the human urge to connect, to stay in touch with our fellow human species, to communicate, share our thoughts, ideas, feelings, even a not so smart comments, it is also being use to do exchanges of goods and services and it is what we call, The digital marketing age. For marketers it is vital knowing where their website visitors are coming from. By measuring the metrics behind it they can decide how to divide their marketing budgets between social media and paid ads on various platforms.

Let’s have a look at what you should know to optimally divide your marketing budgets.

Start by digging into your web analytics tool to see where exactly the traffic to your website is coming from. This information will be of great use to decide on either of these two options:

you can optimize your presence on a social site if that channel already provides a healthy amount of traffic

you can put paid ads on a channel if the visitors are converting at a good rate

Your own marketing efforts will determine which channels you should measure against each other. Let’s take a closer look at three main categories, to help you determine where to put your focus, and why.

1. Social Channels

If one particular channel already refers a large amount of people to your website, you should definitely consider optimizing your presence there. However, it has become quite the challenge to track your niche communities on each channel individually because of the ever-growing number of social channels.

Once you have determined which specific social channel most traffic is coming from, you should determine what it is exactly they find appealing about your content. Based on that knowledge, you can further optimize your content to keep encouraging traffic to your website.

2. Organic Search

Many people in the industry have stated before that search is no longer as important as social. However, in a vast amount of cases, SEO is still driving very successful traffic. If you notice that indeed your brand search is providing traffic that actually converts, then investing in SEO is your way to go.

3. Advertising

When we say ‘advertising’, we can be referring to three things: paid search, display ads and ads on social sites.

To measure the efficiency of paid ads on for example Google or Facebook, you should take into account several metrics. For example, the number of conversions per user of each channel, compared to your investments into that channel.

Due to the diverse amount of marketing options, it’s beneficial to calculate the outcome of each of these traffic sources. If there’s room for experiment in your marketing budget, seize the opportunity and you will have all the insights you need to determine which path to take.