H&M Window in New York City

H+M, the Swedish retailer, has taken the U.S. by storm in recent years. They do it right every step of the way. The company has a clear brand position and definite understanding of whom their target customer is and her lifestyle and they constantly work to build that brand position with every customer touchpoint.

I was fortunate to be in New York City last week. While my associate Robin Lybarger and I were walking to a meeting, we were both taken by the signage in H+M’s windows. Well, not really their windows but the communication about why there was nothing in the windows. Wow, do they GET IT!

Using simple but highly effective copy on a plain background, the retailer covered their windows while in transition from one display to another. They could have said something mundane like, “Sale” or “New arrivals for Fall” but no, instead, they used humor to support their overall brand message and voice.

Copy lines like, “Sometimes even our mannequins have a hard time deciding what to wear” are fun, imaginative and spot on for the woman that shops H+M. Brilliant.

It speaks to the power of using every customer touchpoint, in this case window signage, to express a brand strategy. When looking at your brand, you have to first identify all the ways your external and internal targets interact with the brand and use those touchpoints as a platform for communications. Even things as simple as an invoice form, a company internal newsletter or intranet, a social media site or even a window display message. Every touchpoint brings the brand to life, every step of the way.