We often move so quickly from one project to the next that we don’t get the opportunity to review the results of our branding efforts. That’s why a note this week from our client at Carl Zeiss Vision was so welcome.

We had helped develop a solid brand campaign for their newest progressive lens.  In her post-launch synopsis, Bernadette Hiskey said the Zeiss Individual campaign was a huge success, and shared these highlights:

• It was a strong year for customized lenses, despite the poor economy.  We ended the year approx 15% above an aggressive plan.
• In December we were awarded the OLA “Best in Lens Design” 2009 Award of Excellence voted on by the independent laboratories across the US.  The marketing campaign played no small part in the win.
• We just finished clinical trials with UC Berkeley are pleased to say we have strong results demonstrating patient preference, so are moving on to peer clinical publications now.
• Our first ZEISS TV spots for Zeiss Individual are now on air in 4 regional markets.

It’s great, of course, for a client to take the time to keep us informed and share this great news.  It’s also a reminder for all of us that while our work may wrap up with the launch of a brand campaign, for our clients much of the heavy lifting is just beginning.  We need to keep in mind that our designs and our messaging are meant to connect powerfully with an audience and achieve very real marketing and sales objectives.

As Bernadette shared her praise and appreciation not only for us but also for the lab operations teams and sales people — “You’ve all scored a knockout!” — we were reminded that our efforts truly are part of a team effort whose success depends on the collaboration of many many people.

Following up with our clients and measuring campaign results give us the opportunity to really recognize the value of our branding efforts.

Part of our strategy was to convey that the true heroes are not the frames -- but the Zeiss lenses. Our solution was to photograph our talent both with and without the frames, and then accurately create the lens shape for each individual face. Architectural measurement lines were added to the graphics to emphasize the Zeiss brand attributes of precision, accuracy and performance.