Filed under: Comment
So you live in Asia and want to start a consumer technology company.
You’ve got the hard part sorted – making nice, innovative products that perform well and don’t cost a fortune – all you need now is a cool brand name to ensure global domination is yours.
After having a look round to see what brands are popular, you realise one company in particular is doing well … APPLE.
Apple?
Yes, you can see why it is liked … afterall the name conjures up things like freshness, cleanliness, temptation, simplicity, memorability, variety … all attributes you would like for your brand.
So off you go and register your new company name and launch to great fanfare what you believe is the coolest electronics company in the World …
Lemon!
LEMON!!!
The poor, poor bastards – they just have no idea do they …
And here is the point, cultural understanding and relevance is absolutely critical if you wish to expand into different markets/audiences and if you arrogantly ignore it [as most companies do – despite what they may say], you can end up making a World-Class-Fuck-Up like these guys – even if your product that is truly great.
Rule to planners working in multiple markets/regions … know your market, know the cultures within that market, know the coloquilisms used within the cultures of that market or risk being haunted forever!
41 Comments so far
Leave a comment
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
lemon, genius.
Afternoon.
Comment by Marcus Brown March 18, 2007 @ 9:52 pmIs gooseberry next or maybe rhubarb? I kind of like the idea of a rhubarb audioplayer.
Comment by Pete March 18, 2007 @ 10:00 pmrhubarb was an excellent children’s show. I’m backing rhubarb.
Comment by Marcus Brown March 18, 2007 @ 10:17 pmI remember that show, the guy got sacked by the BBC for making more and more hidden drug references in the show and delivering it later and later for broadcast so they couldn’t censor it. Legend.
Comment by Pete March 18, 2007 @ 10:29 pmthe new look sucks rob.
Comment by Marcus Brown March 18, 2007 @ 11:36 pmTwo new blog looks, within 2 minutes. You must be bored campbell.
Comment by Marcus Brown March 18, 2007 @ 11:41 pmHello Mr Marcus – yes, I am bored, I am waiting for my stupid partner to get on the video conference and he bloody isn’t – and what’s worse, he isn’t even answering his bloomin’ phone.
I’ve just read about your mini-holiday – it sounds just what you needed and deserved and I’m well chuffed you had a wonderful time. I absolutely relate to what you were talking about as regards ‘just nipping across the border’ but then I am just coming to terms with living in Asia, travelling like a knob-end and getting engaged, ha!
As you can see I’ve decided to stick with the usual ‘look’ – had a play and a fiddle but when all things are considered, the old and comfortable is what I like best, ha!
Comment by Rob March 18, 2007 @ 11:50 pmOh … and at primary school, I was nicknamed RHUBARB for some reason … and my best friend Paul … was CUSTARD.
Why????
Comment by Rob March 18, 2007 @ 11:51 pmThe old look is way better. Well done. The weekend was great, difficult to put into words. Eva has gone to bed. She was tired after sitting next to me reading a women’s mag while I drove for four hours.
Comment by Marcus Brown March 18, 2007 @ 11:55 pmWILL YOU STOP FUCKING ABOUT WITH YOUR BLOG.
Thank you.
Comment by Marcus Brown March 18, 2007 @ 11:56 pmI’ll stop if you do the washing up!
Comment by Rob March 19, 2007 @ 12:00 amit’s done already.
Comment by Marcus Brown March 19, 2007 @ 12:00 amBum … alright, I’ll blooming stop!
Comment by Robert March 19, 2007 @ 12:02 amyou’re just doing it to piss me off now aren’t you? I know you are.
Comment by Marcus Brown March 19, 2007 @ 12:03 amHahaha … that was the last ‘fiddle’ because [1] you’ve done the washing up, [2] my lovely business partner has finally turned up [pissed!!!] and [3] I have a big meeting tomorrow morning and I need to get some sleep.
No more pissing Marcus off now … promise.
Comment by Robert March 19, 2007 @ 12:04 amgood. If it’s Andy who’s pissed say hi, and well done. Good luck with that meeting tomorrow. I’m sure it will go well.
Comment by Marcus Brown March 19, 2007 @ 12:06 amand eva did the washing up. I drove 440 odd kilometers, bloody least should could do.
Comment by Marcus Brown March 19, 2007 @ 12:07 amErrrrrrm, is this the washing up you should have done BEFORE you left on your trip or some new stuff? Just want to get the situation clear, ha.
And Andy say’s Hi but he’s pissed so he actually went “Hiiiiisssssshhhh”
Better go … laters my son.
Comment by Robert March 19, 2007 @ 12:11 amold stuff. old stuff.
Comment by Marcus Brown March 19, 2007 @ 12:27 amNight night.
Tut tut, what sort of example are you setting for your young employees Andy? Actually its quite a good one so keep up the good work and I’ll see you and your bleary eyes monday.
Comment by Billy Whizz March 19, 2007 @ 12:43 amI’m about to follow Andy’s excellent example. Off to the bar! Hurrah!
Comment by Marcus Brown March 19, 2007 @ 12:53 amHmm.
Still, its better than the hundred million ietc product names.
Comment by Rob Mortimer March 19, 2007 @ 2:22 ampoor marcus, you just drove 440 kms.. did you have to stop for a nanna nap? ha! that distance is all in a days work for half of us over here!!
Comment by lauren March 19, 2007 @ 8:12 amOK, so you drive that distance and skip a couple of borders, while we don’t even leave the state 🙂
hope you’re holiday was lovely.
You’re so right Lauren – I remember being amazed that I had driven 9 hours on one straight road [Pacific Highway] and still not got to my destination … these Europeans don’t know they’re born do they.
And Mr Mortimer, does that mean you are interested in a Lemon MP3? I can get you one and send it over if you like? What’s that I hear … mad coughing and a head shaking side to side?
[Assuming you can hear someones head shaking – OK, lets assume you’re in a neck brace which makes the movement audible. What the hell am I going on about?]
Comment by Rob March 19, 2007 @ 8:31 amrob, did you get enough sleep last night?! lol!
Comment by lauren March 19, 2007 @ 8:37 amthe brand name of those products pictured is littered with irony…
Comment by Age March 19, 2007 @ 10:52 amWell you know I thought the same, but I actually was at the IT show and kept hearing the an announcement… then I realised that this wasn’t meant to be LEMON, but Le Mon (as in French for ‘My’)… but then this is a brand by the Koreans (or so the salesman told me), which explains the name. As they probably think this is uber cool, and the scary thing is that most Koreans probably think so. After all this is a country where Hyundai’s first ever sports coupe was named Turbulence.
Comment by Hari March 19, 2007 @ 11:28 amThat’s like being called BUCKET and pronouncing it BOUQUET … what a pile of shite.
Did you know that in Korea, smiling and laughing is seen as a cultural weakness? Infact on a global scale, they smile and laugh less than anyone else – how ironic that they end up making us lot happier by their myopic approaches.
Do I sound bitter?
Yep … after one experience with a Korean company I vowed NEVER to work with the lying, thieving, dictatorial little shits again. Don’t get me wrong, the people and the country are wonderful – but as soon as they put on a tie and go to work, they become fuckers – especially when dealing with international people who they are convinced are ripping them off. [Which makes them taking on a supposed ‘French’ phrase even more amazing/ironic]
Infact I set up the K[B]KKK after my one and ONLY project with them – the Korean [Business] Ku Klux Klan.
Comment by Robert March 19, 2007 @ 11:39 amfucken hell Rob, Anger really is Energy huh?
Comment by Age March 19, 2007 @ 12:42 pmhey rob, while you’re angry, tell us a bedtime story called ‘Telemarketing Sucks at Dinner Time and Every Other Time’..
Comment by lauren March 19, 2007 @ 1:28 pmHahaha … you found my massive rant I did at some conference a couple of years back then eh!
And I still stand by my view, Telemarketing DOES Suck at Dinner Time and Every Other Time
Comment by Rob March 19, 2007 @ 1:59 pmi wish i found the full rant…just a smug report from the ADMA about how telemarketing ‘won’ the debate…
Comment by lauren March 19, 2007 @ 2:23 pmOi Lauren … did you get my email about your email?
Comment by Rob March 19, 2007 @ 4:03 pmsure did! thanks!… am still cultivating a reply…ha!
Comment by lauren March 19, 2007 @ 4:49 pmTops … in your own time … just wanted to make sure you got it as I sent it from a plane [ooooh, how trendy] and don’t trust their technology, ha!
Comment by Rob March 19, 2007 @ 4:59 pmrhubarb and blackberry? ha!
Comment by lauren March 19, 2007 @ 5:05 pmooh – that reminds me – i have apple and blackberry pie in the freezer! yess!! everything is right with the world..
You’re scary … but in a good way
Comment by Rob March 19, 2007 @ 5:09 pmMorning.
Comment by Marcus Brown March 19, 2007 @ 5:26 pmTelemarketing sucks more than a cheap hooker with a fetish for vacuuming…
Comment by Rob Mortimer March 19, 2007 @ 5:32 pmThis is going even more surreal than ever. Brill!
Comment by Rob March 19, 2007 @ 5:35 pmHurrah!
Comment by Rob Mortimer March 19, 2007 @ 5:40 pm