(Madison, Wis.) – Planet Propaganda showcases its breadth of creative and strategic strengths with the launch of UpperCut Images’ brand of high-end, rights-protected stock photography. Carefully crafted to engage both artist and art buyer, Planet developed UpperCut Images’ brand personality, name, identity, website, advertising, brochures, sales kit and web movies.
Planet distinguished UpperCut as its own brand, while allowing for cross promotion with sibling brand PunchStock. “Each brand has it’s own identity, own principles, and own marketing materials,” notes Kevin Wade, principal and creative director at Planet. The design, advertising and interactive company has helped shape PunchStock’s brand and design since 2001 and in 2004 won the competitive review for the brand they’ve named UpperCut Images.
“Planet’s experience in stock imagery gives them an intuitive understanding of our business, our customers and the photographers that we work with, but it’s their original thinking and ability to carry the creative across all media that we find so invaluable,” emphasizes Miles Gerstein, President and CEO of UpperCut Images. “They get it and they did a wonderful job interpreting our vision into a full-blown brand, distinctive in its own right, but obviously related to our other product offering.”
“We think of PunchStock and UpperCut as siblings. They’re in the same family, but each has his own personality and approaches the world from his own perspective,” explains Planet’s brand manager Travis Ott. “PunchStock is the established brand that’s all about choice and convenience. Typically, it’s used by in-house designers for tight turn projects. UpperCut’s new and on the move. It has a little more style, a little more sophistication, and offers rock-solid exclusivity. Because of this, its especially attractive to big agencies, art buyers and others who want to keep their images safely out of reach of the competition, while preserving their creative integrity.”
Beyond the protective assurances provided to its end-users, UpperCut Images proves it to be an exciting, new contender because of its innovative, imaginative images. Photographers were hand-selected from the “phenomenal response” generated by Planet’s photographer recruitment materials earlier this year. UpperCut’s line-up now features Sean Kennedy Santos, David Maisel, Paul Aresu, Chase Jarvis, Darryl Estrine and Steve Bonini.
“This is a select group of photographers with a unique vision. UpperCut carefully picked them because they admire their work and don’t want to limit it. It’s all original; each shot is carefully considered and about as near to commissioned photography as stock gets. We call it ‘Stock that isn’t,'” says Ott.
He adds that this phrase may soon become familiar as it is the descriptive tagline appearing on UpperCut’s ads, direct mail, website, and more. The advertisements are scheduled to run in the U.S. and U.K. through the end of the year in such publications as Print, Communication Arts, Creativity and Creative Review. The 50,000 initial launch brochures will be distributed through direct mail and in-person sales calls. Then booklets, also created by Planet, will be mailed on a regular basis following the launch.
Both marketing vehicles introduce the new brand and direct interested spectators to visit www.uppercutimages.com, also designed and developed by Planet. Here an online gallery allows them to explore each photographer’s collection, learning a little about the person behind the camera and how they approach their work. And for convenience, a simple, toggle of the navigation or check mark in the image search window allows users to check out UpperCut’s sibling brand, PunchStock.
Planet Propaganda is a design, advertising and interactive company committed to shaping passion-based brands. Founded in 1989 in Madison, Wis., Planet’s national clients include Gary Fisher mountain bikes, Bretford furniture and workspaces, and PunchStock royalty-free images. For more information, please visit http://www.planetpropaganda.com.
