This is what you see when you first enter Patagonia's website. It's a silly picture. It made me laugh. I like it. But it is not what I expected.
As I noted in my previous posts, the Patagonia brand prides itself on being environmentally aware and active. The company believes in making high-quality products, while doing the least possible harm to the environment. So this is why I was a little surprised by the main page. But if you read the caption for the picture (by clicking on the icon in the lower right hand corner), you realize that the picture has to do with recycling!
While exploring the site, I realized that their message of environmental activism is reinforced time and again. The site contains just as much information, if not more, about environmental activism as it does on the brand's products.
And the photography is beautiful. Images of nature and people enjoying nature are at the top of nearly every page. And the best thing about it all: Patagonia asks their customers to submit photographs and they then use those photographs in their advertising and publications:All of our advertising and promotions are handled through our in-house art department, including photo selection for all projects. We continue to look for photos of our customers exploring the world – shots that exemplify a commitment to uncommon culture, environmental activism and the sports we make clothing for. We want to capture an innovative approach to life. Humor is welcome!
I'm reminded of a previous class discussion on the evils of stock photos. Patagonia's use of authentic photos of their customers using their products helps to create an emotional connection.
Upon entering the site, you choose a country. Patagonia has stores all over the world and the site can be viewed in French or English. The photographs are different, depending on which country's site you enter, but they are all beautiful. The photographs can communicate to people of all cultures and I imagine Patagonia wants it that way: to be able to send their message to as many people as possible, all over the world.
I believe Patagonia's website communicates and reinforces the brand's identity. The text certainly communicates a lot of information but I think the images make an emotional connection to the viewer. Whether the page is about women's clothing, climbing gear, company information, or environmental activism, the top of the page holds an image representing not only the costumers who buy their products, but of the beauty of nature, and the environment they hope to save.
9 comments:
Your three branding postings were very thorough without being a drag-- I like the way you've broken up the text with blank spaces and, in the case of your third posting, screenshots. Very cool. What is your method for doing so? I think many of us have had difficulties incorporating more than one image in a posting. Kudos on using the Patagonia brand, by the way- I'm a fan.
Great screenshots.
Ditto previous accolades.
I like that your screenshots are consistent in their size as well -- adds repetition. I need to learn to do that.
And I'm in awe of your header, and the placement of the images in the proper size with the "rounder" background. Tried that a long time ago and just made a mess. How much time did that take, and do you have tips? Did you have to do math? Oh noooo.
The idea of having customers send in their pictures is a stroke of genius. Patagonia gets more pictures of gorgeous nature scenes from a around the world without having to send a photography crew there themselves.
And as for the customer whose picture gets selected and used onthe website... you just can't buy the brand loyalty that comes as a result. Talk about your lovemarks!
Andria-
As for my header, it was a lot of trial and error. I looked in the template for the url of the rounded corners and based my image size on that. The section I altered originally looked like this:
#header {
background:url("http://www.blogblog.com/rounders3/corners_cap_bot.gif") no-repeat left bottom;
padding:0 15px 8px;
}
I used an online image resizer to get my collage the correct size, then posted it online at geocities, because I had an account with them from awhile ago. Then copied and pasted the url of my photo, replacing the default url. But this whole process did take some estimating and some time. The dimensions of my image are 740x75 pixels.
I'm not very skilled in this area and I tend to use logic before actually researching a method. There may be a better, a less time-consuming way to do it. But Serena posted a similar description in the Blogger Help forum, so maybe I didn’t waste too much time!
I almost bought a Patagonia jacket because of your blog. In the end, I bought Columbia, but only because I'm cheap. :)
the super hero screen shot keeps making me chuckle. not what I'd expect from Patagonia, but like you say, the message isn't super heros, rather recycling.
Thanks on header info...may have to try it. Need new spring colors!
Brilliant! you have identified the brand, the elements of visual communication that Patagonia uses to reinforce this brand, and you've gone beyond to talk about how they have reinforced the brand by building a community through visual humor, and allowing their customers to participate through sharing their Patagonia images.
Excellent job!
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