Writing taglines: The good, the bad and the ugly (but mostly the bad)

Nick Wreden has a great blog entry at http://fusionbrand.blogs.com/fusionbrand/2007/06/how_to_write_a_.html that describes how NOT to write a tagline.

He points out that forming consensus through a committee and confusing your tagline with your brand are huge mistakes when writing taglines. It is definitely worth the read.

Read this and you’ll never drink from a STYROFOAM TM cup again

I was intrigued back in April when I saw a full-page ad from Dow Chemical Company in Brandweek magazine that was intended to do nothing but clarify the STYROFOAM^TM brand, counteract any consumer confusion and avoid possible generic attachment of the STYROFOAM^TM brand name to the broader foam category.



You see, STYROFOAM^TM brand insulation is the trade name for Dow’s extruded polystyrene foam that is most commonly blue when used as an insulating building material and less commonly green or white when used in the floral or craft markets. It turns out, STYROFOAM^TM is not used in the manufacture of disposable foam products, such as food packaging, cups, plates, coolers or egg trays. Therefore, foam cups are actually never made from STYROFOAM^TM.

The last sentence of text in the Brandweek ad states, “We appreciate that STYROFOAM^TM is a household name. But since we’ve worked so hard over the years to produce the best insulation in the industry, we kindly request proper usage. Please join us in the effort to put the lid on misuse of our intellectual property."

Wow.

Here is a brand that understands that it is so universally recognized (and mistaken for the broader category) that it runs the risk of committing genericide and it is trying to set the record straight. This is exactly what one needs to do to prevent one's brand name from becoming generic.

Not only is there a lesson for branders to learn from STYROFOAM^TM (see my previous post), but the brand is asking for our help in stopping misuse of the trade name. I am happy to oblige.

So maybe the next time you hear somebody ask for a beverage in a STRYOFOAM^TM cup you’ll help protect the brand by setting the record straight.

For a list of trademark guidelines for STYROFOAM^TM brand products, please visit:
http://craft.dow.com/profcr/trademark.htm