The present paper examines how companies strategically employ design to create visual recognition of their brands' core values. To address this question, an explorative in-depth case study was carried out concerning the strategic design efforts of two companies: Nokia (mobile phones) and Volvo (passenger cars). It was found that these two companies fostered design philosophies that lay out which approach to design and which design features are expressive of the core brand values. The communication of value through design was modeled as a process of semantic transformation. This process specifies how meaning is created by design in a three-way relation among design features, brand values, and the interpretation by a potential customer. By analyzing the design effort of Nokia and Volvo with the help of this model, it is shown that control over the process of semantic transformation enabled managers in both companies to make strategic decisions over the type, strength, and generality of the relation between design features and brand values. Another result is that the embodiment of brand values in a design can be strategically organized around lead products. Such products serve as reference points for what the brand stands for and can be used as such during subsequent new product development (NPD) projects for other products in the brand portfolio. The design philosophy of Nokia was found to depart from that of Volvo. Nokia had a bigger product portfolio and served more market segments. It therefore had to apply its design features more flexibly over its product portfolio, and in many of its designs the relation between design features and brand values was more implicit.Six key drivers for the differences between the two companies were derived from the data. Two external drivers were identified that relate to the product category, and four internal drivers were found to stem from the companies' past and present brand management strategies. These drivers show that the design of visual recognition for the brand depends on the particular circumstances of the company and that it is tightly connected to strategic decision making on branding. These results are relevant for brand, product, and design managers, because they provide two good examples of companies that have organized their design efforts in such a way that they communicate the core values of their brands. Other companies can learn from these examples by considering why these two companies acted as they did and how their communication goals of product design were aligned to those of brand management.

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Purpose -Entrepreneurial passion has recently begun to fascinate a growing number of researchers. While only a few systematic studies exist, Cardon et al.'s review suggests passion as a prevalent phenomenon among entrepreneurs. They make a call for empirical and systematic studies of entrepreneurial passion to provide insights for practice and research. This paper aims to apply the recent theoretical advances in a particular empirical setting: the heavy metal genre in the popular music industry. Design/methodology/approach -Using a qualitative in-depth case study approach, four ventures that are considered new ventures in the metal music business are studied. Findings -The findings strongly imply that the grounds for a globally successful creative venture require the passion of at least one inventor entrepreneur. Also, at least one founder is needed to take the venture to the next stage, where business is formalized for ramp up and at least one developer is needed to grow the business after the other two identities and earlier stages of the venture life cycle have created the platform on which to build and develop the business. The paper also finds that these role identity-related behaviors are essential characteristics for artists in the popular music industry. Originality/value -The popular music industry is an excellent research site for studying entrepreneurial passion because artists start their careers and join together to form bands mainly because of their passion and love to create and perform music. While the theory of entrepreneurial passion offers a promising approach for entrepreneurial studies, few systematic studies exist that apply it.

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If decision makers want to understand and explore the meaning behind their brands, Toni‐Matti Karjalainen recommends a series of exercises that translate brand perceptions into metaphors. His goal is to uncover the nuances that build strong emotional links to consumers and embody those insights in graphics and hypothetical product extensions. His approach generates connections that are sometimes startling, and it stands as a creative, almost playful way to confirm the power of brand messages.