Method

In 2006, world leader in information management services and software, EMC Corporation, launched a new line of small business focused products: EMC Insignia. The corporation had recently acquired Dantz, a company serving the small-medium business market, and planned to develop it into a subsidiary EMC brand.

Challenge

Method's was asked to define a brand position for EMC Insignia that would appeal to the small-medium business (SMB) market, while gaining leverage from the heritage and brand value of EMC. Additionally, the Insignia product line needed packaging, marketing and advertising collateral, and a robust multi-language website.

Approach

We began by conducting work sessions and interviews with EMC staff and partners, building a clear picture of the opportunities, business objectives, and requirements for the Insignia brand. To determine how the EMC/EMC Insignia relationship could be leveraged to provide competitive differentiation, we conducted a thorough audit of companies serving the SMB market. Considering all aspects from messaging and package design to Web presence and market penetration, we identified the pain points the SMB market faced and specified how EMC Insignia offerings would alleviate them. To bring the findings to life, Method developed several customer sales process scenarios illustrating the product life cycle and interaction with branded communications materials.

The resulting designs included product packaging, marketing collateral, advertising, and point of sale systems, as well as a robust, strict XHTML website, partner portal, and online store with site localization in French, German, Italian, Japanese, and Spanish. The design system was documented in a Brand Guidelines manual that articulates the brand positioning and provides a framework for future extension to support more products.

Outcome

The design system is clean, sophisticated, and confident, reflecting the brand proposition developed for Insignia: the line of products and solutions that will help SMBs confidently meet their information management needs, today and tomorrow. The EMC Insignia product line has been well received in the marketplace and continues to grow. It has won numerous awards, including recognition from Small Business Technology Magazine as "The Product That Gets the Job Done."