Guillermo Hernandez
had a problem. Global sales of Texaco’s leading diesel engine
oil Ursa® were flat, and part of the cause seemed to be a
general dilution of the Ursa brand.
 As Director of Lubricants for Texaco International
Marketing and Manufacturing, Guillermo was charged with
revitalizing the brand. He needed help, and turned to David Wright
for solutions.
“The brand image had become fragmented,” said Wright, “Each
international sales region was using the logo and imagery differently, which
put the entire Ursa line under stress. This was a brand in need of some well-considered discipline to bring it back to full health.”
The logo itself was complicated, composed of the Ursa wordmark, the Ursa Bear
(a detailed drawing of a bear superimposed over the constellation Ursa Major),
and the Texaco logo. To accommodate real-world placement issues, the logo had
to be available in either horizontal or vertical orientation, in color or black & white,
on light or dark backgrounds, and with and without the Ursa Bear.
The logo was used each year on millions of consumer packages, marquees, PoP displays,
posters, promotional items, websites and more. A consistent
approach was vital to the success of the brand.
Working closely together, Guillermo and David mapped out a plan of action to consolidate and revitalize the brand.
Phase I: Logo and brand guidelines
- Establish a limited set of
approved logo lock-ups; create new logo artwork.
- Write brand guidelines; create a
multi-language brand brochure and binder.
- Prepare a CD containing approved logo artwork and brand guidelines
brochure.
- Distribute internationally to all Texaco sales offices and
vendors.
Phase II: Advertising and marketing
- Prepare a set of full-page magazine ads in several languages targeted at
vertical markets (trucking, sugar mills, power generation, etc.).
- Create additional marketing materials for use by the sales
force (pocket folders, sellsheets, promotional items, etc.).
- Prepare an Advertising CD containing high resolution artwork.
- Distribute internationally to all Texaco sales offices and
vendors.
Phase III: Website
- Design an Ursa-branded website targeted to consumers and
retailers, including product information, Texaco trivia, international
office locations, and a knowledge-base of industry terms.
- Design in multiple languages for
a target market to include South America, Europe and Northern
Africa (English, Spanish, Portuguese, French and Italian).
- Launch to support the branding efforts in Phases I and II.
Over the course of one year, Guillermo and David’s team successfully
accomplished all three phases.
“After careful consideration, we designed five logo settings, which were
approved and sent to agencies around the world,” said
Wright. “Guillermo and I co-wrote the brand guidelines, which were set
in English and Spanish. The ads were also set in English and Spanish, and
the translator and I included bilingual wordplay to enhance the appeal of the
taglines. For example — in our ad for the concrete industry, we translated
the phrase ‘Texaco lubricants make it happen’ as Lubricantes
Texaco lo hace concreto (‘Texaco lubricants make it real’),
with concreto doubling as both the target industry and Texaco’s
results.”
Guillermo’s boss was very pleased with the initiative, which put the Ursa brand back on solid ground and preserved its best-selling position. Guillermo was equally pleased, and turned again to David for help with his next project: the rebranding of Texaco’s Havoline© motor oils, featuring a series of NASCAR-themed ads.
But that’s another story …
Click here to see samples from the Ursa project.
Call 800-790-6021 to
create your success with our Rochester graphic design, brand identity,
web design, copy writing, photography and printing services.
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