When designing the Strange Range logo it was important to highlight the personality of the brand to produce an authentic identity. Strange Range is a craft beer made locally in Colorado that appeals to the middle-class "everyday" Coloradan adventurist. With satirical humor geared towards the stereotypical Coloradan, Strange Range highlights the usefulness of their products in specific Colorado survival situations. The logo was designed to have a hand made crafted look to it because the product is hand made craft beer. The particular aesthetic was chosen to highlight the typical Colorado landforms and playful attitude of the brand. From the typography to the mountains, everything in the logo was hand made. The authentic typography can only be found in our logo, which helps to differentiate Strange Range from the competition. The typography is also a bit unusual for a logo because the word Range is read from right to left instead of left to right. This choice helps to lend itself to the brand name. There needed to be something "strange" about the logo to highlight our satirical and fun personality. The mountains in the logo were used because the iconic symbol of Colorado is the Rocky Mountains. This helps to position us as a Colorado handcrafted beer. The logo works well in black and white and in color. This allows it to have durability because it can be used in many situations ranging from the production of packaging and swag to the implementation of it on the website and motion pieces.
DEMOGRAPHIC
In order to define Strange Range's demographic it is crucial to first look at the beer drinking demographics within the United States. According to the brewer's handbook written by Ted Goldammer, beer-drinking demographics within the United States is male dominated. Goldammer explains that 80% of all of the beer consumed is attributed to male consumption. In addition, a large number of the males are primarily white. The business of micro-brews is booming. According to the article, Market Research and Advertising by Kent Wolfe he states, "Micro brewed consumers consume an average of $250 worth of beer annually. Younger people were more likely to have tried a microbrew. 36% of beer drinkers between the ages of 25 and 34 had tried a microbrew. In contrast, 27% of beer drinkers between the ages 34 through 45 and 20% of those 45 and older had tried microbrews." From this information it is clear that not only are microbrews popular, they reach a demographic of a younger adult. Microbrews also tend to be a little more expensive than mass-produced beer so we will have to target the middle class white American males and females. There also needs to be a focus on the local and unique qualities in our beer that attracts a person to our brand because of its familiarity. We need to create a local identity for our brand that attaches with it a sense of place. It needs to look and feel like Colorado.
Geographer Wes Flack has hypothesized, "that the growth of microbreweries is a prime illustration of a movement termed ‘neo-localism’ in which people are attempting to reconnect with the local, the personal and the unique." In the article, Microbreweries as tools of Local Identity, Steven M. Schnell and Joseph F. Reese define neo-localism as the active, conscious creation and maintenance of attachment to place. They go on to say that microbreweries are still on the rise partly because, "people in small ways are attempting to reclaim a sense of place and a distinct landscape in the face of our globalizing economy." Microbreweries provide a diverse array of ales that can be found nowhere else, creating a truly unique experience. Based on the above research Strange Range will be targeting its marketing efforts towards a dominated white male demographic. The particular demographic focus is on those white males who range from ages 24-39. The typical Strange Range customer will live in the city and play in the mountains. They can be defined as the middle-class weekend warrior who appreciates a good craft beer and enjoys the typical outdoor Colorado activities such as hiking, camping, fishing, biking, skiing and snowboarding.
When considering our approach to marketing to this specific Colorado demographic we must consider archetypes in our process. By choosing the right archetypes for our brand, it will help us to understand the dynamics of the category our brand operates in as well as help to connect our brand emotionally to our consumers. The archetypes that are consistent with our brand essence are the Jester and the explorer. The jester archetype is characterized as being fun, original and irreverent. True jester brands help us really live life in the present and allow us to be impulsive and spontaneous and they help people to have a good time. The explorer is characterized by being independent, adventurous and daring and represents self-discovery, trial and challenge. With our outdoor survival twist this archetype is also relevant to our brand.
The eyes on this one remind me of our mountain man. Our label wouldn't be quite as bright, though.
I like how clean this one is.
I think the Dead Guy aesthetic also works.
Alpenglow brewing co
Out of bounds Brewing co
Steep and Deep Brewery
Rockytop Brewing co
Mystic Mountain Brewery
Plight Brewery
Excursion Brewing co
Stumbler Brewing co
Rambler Brewery
Traverse Brewing co
Here is what I was thinking about names. We really need to come to a decision about the name asap. If any of my designs are going to be good I need time to develop them.
This is how I propose to do this. Each person pick 3 to 5 of their favorite names from all of the lists before 8PM tonight. The name that appears the most out of the 3 to 5 picked will be our name.
We could do this all weekend if there is no format to it. If anybody else has a better idea I would love to hear it.
Also what is the deal with the dropbox thing?
People typically purchase merchandise with a brands logo to associate themselves with the brands image, or they think it’s visually interesting. Youth enjoy wearing beer related swag because it makes them feel older and mature. They want to separate themselves from being a teen and want to take that next step social groups in life. There are those who wear merchandise such as Guinness’s original tee shirts because of the nostalgia associated with the brand and not drinking at all. At the heart of it all, people associate with beer brands because they want to live the lifestyle the brand is projecting.
Merchandise was first used as promotional products during George Washington’s election campaign through commemorative buttons. Labeled merchandise is very effective at helping promote a brand. The largest product category for promotional products is wearable items, which makes up more than 30% of the total market. Brand awareness is the most common use for promotional items at 12.59%. Beer specific merchandise http://microbrewmarketing.com/ comes in all shapes and sizes. Most alcohol merchandise is purchased over the internet or given away as free items. In some cases merchandise turns into collector’s items that can go for a good amount of money. Merchandise collecting can be equivalent to antiques. It’s not uncommon for high-end companies such as pottery makers to created collectibles that retail for hundreds of dollars. At this level, the collecting is very far removed from selling beer. It’s more about the art and the branding involved.
Beer Demographics/Geographic’s
We have decided to brand a micro brewed beer for this project. To understand the demographics and geographical information pertaining to microbrews we must first take a quick look at the history of beer in the United States and other parts of the world. Not only is beer a beverage popular around the world, it has an extensive history. The earliest records of beer date back to about 5,000 years ago in ancient Mesopotamia.( A History of Beer http://www.alabev.com/history.htm)Other early examples of brewing beer include the Ancient Chinese and the Egyptians. The Chinese produced, "Kui" which was a beer like substance. Along with these examples, some believe that even the Egyptian Pharos brewed beer and included beer in their daily diets. Passed down through generations and transcended through many cultures beer is multicultural. Today beer is an especially important drink with deep unbroken brewing traditions in countries such as Belgium, Germany, Ireland and the UK. Each distinct region has their own tradition and interpretation of how beer is produced. While brewing beer began as a family-oriented activity it quickly became an artisan tradition and today beer is mass-produced for global markets.
With the advent of the Industrial revolution in the United States in 1765, the industrialization of beer became a reality. Prior to prohibition there were thousands of breweries in the United States. When prohibition hit, it drove many breweries out of business. During prohibition bootlegged beer was often watered down to increase profits. This began the trend that is ongoing today in American culture. Many Americans prefer watered down beers, making this type of beer distinctive to our culture. After prohibition a few corporations emerged that had the resources to supply beer to the masses. They were Budweiser and Miller and they produced a lighter more watered down beer appealing to the taste of the American public. At this time, smaller breweries began to spring up. Eventually they were called microbreweries because they produced less than 15,000 barrels annually. (http://www.beer-brewing-advice.com/Microbrewery-And-America.htm) In addition to producing small quantities, microbreweries specialize in quality and diversity of beers. Gradually they came to reflect an alternative attitude towards beer and their approach to brewing included flexibility, adaptability, experimentation and above all, customer service. Microbreweries were able to accomplish something other major corporations could not through mass production. Microbreweries now have become more abundant since the mid 1980's and currently there are more than 1600 microbreweries in the United States. (http://www.wisegeek.com/)
After prohibition beer had a small geographic region because of the high costs to transport it. People who drank beer had to rely on locally produced beer. As technology progressed it became easier to mass-produce and transport it across the country. Geographer Wes Flack has hypothesized "that the growth of such establishments is a prime illustration of a movement termed ‘neo-localism’ in which people are attempting to reconnect with the local, the personal and the unique." In the article, Microbreweries as tools of Local Identity, Steven M. Schnell and Joseph F. Reese define neo-localism as the active, conscious creation and maintenance of attachment to place. They go on to say that microbreweries are still on the rise partly because, "people in small ways are attempting to reclaim a sense of place and a distinct landscape in the face of our globalizing economy." Microbreweries provide a diverse array of ales that can be found nowhere else, creating a truly unique experience. Many microbreweries and brewpubs across the country are limited to regions, with the exception of a handful that bottle and ship their products across the country. Demographically, beer drinking within the United States is male dominated. 80% of all of the consumed volume is attributed to male consumption. A large number of the males are primarily white. The majority of men also favor domestic light beer and domestic draft beer. When it comes to the demographic of women, light beer has the strongest following. Women are also more likely to be attracted to specialty micro brewed beers than they are to big brands, possibly because of their larger variety. According to the article, Market Research and advertising by Kent Wolfe he states "Micro brewed consumers consume an average of $250 worth of beer annually. Younger people were more likely to have tried a microbrew. Thirty-six percent of beer drinkers between the ages of 25 and 34 had tried a microbrew. In contrast, 27% of beer drinkers between the ages 34 through 45 and 20% of those 45 and older had tried microbrews." From this information it is clear that not only are microbrews popular, they reach a demographic of a younger adult. Microbrews also tend to be a little more expensive than mass-produced beer so we will have to target the middle class white American males and females. We also need to focus on the local, person and unique qualities in our beer that people are increasingly becoming attracted to. We need to create a local identity for our brand that attaches with it a sense of place. It needs to look and feel like Colorado.
