In the stream of communication, the basic fulfillment we seek out of an experience is a connection - through a laugh, a song, a premise. We seek to share a common thread that entertains, evokes or educates us in a unique and satisfying way. To see communication as less than experience is to reduce a moment to a definition of time. Ricochet Partners uses the art of the story to tackle challenging branding and marketing projects for a cross-industry client roster of innovative category leaders. Welcome to rNEWS, our newsletter offering you insight on marketing challenges and solutions. In this issue, we're focusing on the building sector, bringing you two case study examples of companies making headway in a competitive market. In "Travel Plus," we'll highlight a few of our recommendations from our travels. In "The Differentiation Lifecycle," we'll look at how differentiation can be used throughout the life of a product or service. If you'd like to submit a story, an idea or a travel recommendation, just drop a note to rNEWS@ricochetpartners.com Redefining a Category through Brand Creation Elecore™ Architectural Accents was born from the merger of two existing companies with longstanding reputations for accent creation. While the foundation for the company was substantial, the new management saw the potential to redefine the accents category by developing a brand that emphasized the emotional in addition to the business benefits of using their superbly designed products. Read the whole story Progressive Ideas in the Masonry Services SectorSuccessful companies look at the same problem everyone else looks at, but they come up with a better solution to it. That's the case with The Masonry Group, now the largest masonry contractor in the Southwest. Seeing the challenges regional and national builders continued to face with an industry that hadn't kept pace with their own professionalism, The Masonry Group created a company focused on serving not only the masonry needs of its customers with progressive excellence but their business needs as well. Read the whole story Beresford Arms | www.beresford.comSo you're in San Francisco, you've booked late for a trade show and none of the usual hotels are available. If you like the European hotel experience and are willing to go without the restaurant and fitness center for a night, check out the Beresford Arms. It's a lovely provincial hotel with the charm of the old world in the heart of San Francisco's Post Street. Near plenty of great restaurants and neighborhood hang-outs you can feel the pace of life immediately slow when you walk through the door. A veritable bargain in terms of price, it's a good find.Read the whole story Product engineers and service conceptualists believe all differentiation emanates from them. Marketers think they add the secret ingredient through positioning, messaging and tactics. Sales people believe it's all in the pitch. In reality, differentiation has its own lifecycle. Avoiding any of the significant phases of that lifecycle can result in a failed product or service. In this article, we'll provide a brief overview of the lifecycle and the benefits you can experience by embracing it.Read the whole story ©2008 Ricochet Partners, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Unsubscribe from this list. Email us at: rNEWS@ricochetpartners.com. Send inquiries to: sales@ricochetpartners.com. Report an email abuse issue. P: 503.220.0212