News Flash English :: VUB Banka Gets a New Logo

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VÚB Banka gets a new logo

Ideas and Articles by David Robinson

28^th May 2008

Category: Business / Marketing / Banking

Level: Intermediate / Upper intermediate

This lesson is the copyright of www.newsflashenglish.com

VÚB Banka gets a new logo

VÚB Banka in Slovakia recently unveiled a brand new logo for itself. Instead of blue, the new logo introduced new colours of green, yellow and rich orange, as well as blue - SME reported. Instead of the title 'VÚB Banka' there are now three arches of a viaduct next to the name. The changes to the logo and the colours are not only in VÚB Banka but also in the whole group Intesa Sanpaolo. The new logo and colours are as a result of changes in the mother bank. The previous owner of VÚB Banka - Banca Intesa merged last year with Sanpaolo IMI bank. The new bank Intesa Sanpaolo became the biggest bank in Italy and the 5^th biggest bank in Europe. The logo has been changed in all banks that belong to Intesa Sanpaolo. In some cases, they changed the title too but VÚB Banka changed only the logo and colours not the title. This is because the clients of the bank didn't want the title to change. In a survey of 721 people, 83% of them wanted the title to remain the same.

The General Director of the bank Ignacio Jaqoutot introduced the new logo and colours on 15^th May. Director of International Communication at Intesa Sanpaolo Danila Guenza: "The new logo symbolises a stone, a power and a tying together of the countries and cultures." He added, "These symbols point out the task of the bankers to the clients, the shareholders and the country where they take place." The new logo and the title in green colour will appear in every branch office of VÚB Banka by the end of the year. The Head Office at Mlynské Nivy in Bratislava is not however going to change its appearance. The Director of Marketing Communication for VÚB Banka Marek Mikle said, "This building became one of the most characteristic buildings in Bratislava. It is symbolic - like the Sydney Opera House building!" The blue colours on its walls will remain. During the launch weekend two new logos, each of them weighing 1,500kg were put on the roof of the skyscraper building together with one of the biggest shining neon titles in Slovakia.

The Speaker of VÚB Banka Alena Walterova didn't say how much the new logo and colours were going to cost. New TV advertisements were due to air over the launch weekend. Some people say they were 21 times more expensive than the previous ones. The colours and symbols in the new logo came from Italy, as did the viaduct and the green colour but in the TV adverts you can find pictures of Slovakia. The viaduct is from the railway in Telgárte and the rest of the pictures in the advert are from the Slovak town of Slovenska Ľupča and from Sadu Janka Kráľa, a park in Bratislava.

START

1. REBRANDING: What is rebranding? Think of two products that have been rebranded recently. Did the new logos catch on? What company/organisation were they from? Did you like the new logo? Why might a company/organisation change their logo? Go round the room swapping stories. Change partners often.

2.DICTATION: The teacher will read some of the article slowly and clearly. Students will write down what they hear. The teacher will repeat the passage slowly again. Self correct your work from page 2 - filling in spaces and correcting mistakes. Be honest with yourself on the number of errors. Advise the teacher of your total number of errors. Less than 5 is very good. 10 are acceptable. Any more is room for improvement! More than 20 - we need to do some work!

3. READING: Get students to read the passage aloud. Swap readers every paragraph.

4. VOCABULARY: Students look through the article. Underline/highlight any vocabulary you do not know. Look in dictionaries. Discuss and help each other out. The teacher will go through & explain any words or phrases you do not understand.

5. REBRANDING: Discuss the following words associated with 'rebranding' with your partner. What do you think they mean?

1 Product line	5 Marketing strategy
2 Repositioning	6 Advertising
3 Brand	7 Budget
4 Target markets	8 Image

6. QUICK DISCUSSION: Student A likes the new VÚB Banka logo. Student B doesn't.

7. BANKS: Name 4 of the biggest banks in your country. List them below. What marketing campaigns have they done recently? Have they changed their logos? Compare and discuss with your partner.

1	3
2	4

The teacher will choose some pairs to discuss their findings in front of the class.

8. MARKETING A NEW LOGO: Think of 6 different marketing ideas that could be used to market a new logo. Compare and discuss with your partner. Which is the most effective?

1	4
2	5
3	6

The teacher will choose some pairs to discuss their findings in front of the class.

9. ARTICLE QUIZ: With your partner or in small groups: (1 point for each correct answer. Lose ½ point if you look at the article for help!)

Student A
1) Name the bank.
2) Who is the mother bank?
3) Who was the previous owner?
4) How much more allegedly were the TV advertisements?
5) Where did the colours and logo come from?
6) In the TV advert what park is mentioned?
7) From what country is the featured viaduct?
8) Name the Slovak town featured in the TV advert.
9) What is like the Sydney Opera House?
Student B
1) Who did the previous owner of VUB merge with last year?
2) How many people took part in the survey?
3) Name the Speaker of the VÚB Banka
4) Who is the General Director of the bank?
5) What date did the General Director introduce the new logo and colours?
6) Where is VÚB's head office?
7) What was put on the roof?
8) What colours are the new logo?
9) Describe the new logo.

10. BUSINESS: Think of 4 business reasons why logos change. Discuss and compare your list below with your partners.

1	3
2	4

11. DISADVANTAGES: Think of 2 disadvantages of rebranding. Discuss and compare your list below with your partner.

12. REBRANDING: With your partner on the board write as many words to do with 'rebranding' as you can. One-two minutes. Compare with other teams. Discuss together - linking your words.

13. SENTENCES: Choose six/nine of the words from no 12. Write two/three sentences using two/three words in each. Underline your chosen words. The teacher will if necessary correct your work. Students might be asked to read their sentences aloud.

14. I WALKED IN A BRANCH OF A BANK AND SAW...: Think of 10 things you might see rebranded with a new logo on in a branch of a bank. Write them below. Compare and discuss with your partner. Create a short story to tell to your partner linking your words.

1	6
2	7
3	8
4	9
5	10

15. SENTENCE STARTERS: Finish these sentence starters. Change partner(s) and talk about the sentences you made.

The new logo _________________________________________________

The bank _________________________________________________

Customers _________________________________________________

The colours _________________________________________________

A survey _________________________________________________

At the launch _________________________________________________

16. UN-SCRAMBLE: Put the following into the right order:

Harder
1) yellow orange are colours green, the and rich new
2) roof neon signs new were the two on put
3) House HQ is like symbolic - Sydney Opera the VÚB
4) weekend on adverts TV the launch during new were
5) Slovakia VÚB new itself Banka a unveiled recently log for in

(Answers are on the end - sentences adapted from article)

AFTER READING / LISTENING

1. TRUE / FALSE: After reading the article guess whether these sentences are true (T) or false (F): If false, why?

a.	VÚB's new colours are green, blue, orange and rich yellow	T / F
b.	There are now 3 arches next to the banks name	T / F
c.	The previous logo was in blue and golde	T / F
d.	The previous owner of the bank was HSBC	T / F
e.	The new logo will be in every branch by the end of the year	T / F
f.	Neon lights were put on the head office skyscraper	T / F
g.	Intesa Sanpaolo will be the 4th biggest bank in Europe	T / F
h.	722 people took part in the survey	T / F

2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article:

a.	Whole	Attribute
b.	Title	Alter
c.	Survey	Largest
d.	Biggest	Last
e.	Clients	Look
f.	Change	Heading
g.	Previous	Start
h.	Launch	All
i.	Appearance	Questionnaire
j.	Characteristic	Customers

3. PHRASE MATCH: Match the following phrases from the article:

a.	VÚB recently unveiled a brand	bankers to the clients, the shareholders...
b.	The new logo and colours are as a result of	and a tying together of the countries
c.	The new bank Intesa Sanpaolo became	on its walls will remain
d.	The logo has been changed in all banks	the biggest bank in Italy
e.	VÚB Banka	characteristic buildings in Bratislava
f.	The new logo symbolises a stone, a power,	1500kg were put on the roof
g.	This building became one of the most	changes in the mother bank
h.	The blue colours	changed only the logo and colours
i.	...two new logos, each of them weighing	new logo for itself
j.	These symbols point out the task of the	that belong to Intesa Sanpaolo.

GAP FILL: READING

Put the words into the gaps in the text.

VÚB Banka in Slovakia recently unveiled a _____ new logo for itself. Instead of blue, the new logo introduced new colours of green, yellow and rich orange, as well as blue - SME reported. Instead of the title 'VÚB Banka' there are now three ______ of a _______ next to the name. The changes to the ____ and the colours are not only in VÚB Banka but also in the whole group Intesa Sanpaolo. The new logo and colours are as a result of changes in the mother bank. The ________ owner of VÚB Banka - Banca Intesa merged last year with Sanpaolo IMI bank. The new bank Intesa Sanpaolo became the biggest bank in Italy and the 5^th biggest bank in Europe. The logo has been changed in all banks that belong to Intesa Sanpaolo. In some cases, they changed the _____ too but VÚB Banka changed only the logo and _______ not the title. This is because the _______ of the bank didn't want the title to change. In a survey of 721 people, 83% of them wanted the title to remain the same.		previous brand logo title clients arches colours viaduct
The General Director of the bank Ignacio Jaqoutot introduced the new logo and colours on 15^th May. Director of International Communication at Intesa Sanpaolo Danila Guenza: "The new logo symbolises a stone, a power and a tying together of the countries and ________." He added, "These symbols point out the task of the bankers to the clients, the shareholders and the country where they take place." The new logo and the title in green colour will appear in every ______ office of VÚB Banka by the end of the year. The Head Office at Mlynské Nivy in Bratislava is not however going to change its __________. The Director of Marketing Communication for VÚB Banka Marek Mikle said, "This building became one of the most ______________ buildings in Bratislava. It is ________ - like the Sydney Opera House building!" The blue colours on its walls will remain. During the ______ weekend two new logos, each of them weighing 1,500kg were put on the roof of the __________ building together with one of the biggest shining ____ titles in Slovakia.		appearance characteristic skyscraper cultures launch branch symbolic neon

GAP FILL: LISTENING:

Listen and fill in the spaces.

VÚB Banka gets a new logo
VÚB Banka in Slovakia recently unveiled a brand ___________________. Instead of blue, the new logo introduced new colours of green, yellow and rich orange, as well as blue - SME reported. Instead of the title 'VÚB Banka' there are now three arches of a viaduct next to the name. The changes ___________________ colours are not only in VÚB Banka but also in the whole group Intesa Sanpaolo. The new ____________________ as a result of changes in the mother bank. The previous owner of VÚB Banka - Banca Intesa merged last year with Sanpaolo IMI bank. The new bank Intesa Sanpaolo became the biggest bank in Italy and the 5^th biggest bank in Europe. The logo has been changed _________________ belong to Intesa Sanpaolo. In some cases, they changed the title too but VÚB Banka changed only the logo and colours not the title. This is because the clients of the bank didnt want ___________________. In a survey of 721 people, 83% of them wanted ___________________ the same.

The General Director of the bank Ignacio Jaqoutot introduced the new logo and colours on 15^th May. Director of International Communication at Intesa Sanpaolo Danila Guenza: "The new logo symbolises a stone, a power and a tying together of the ______________________." He added, "These symbols point out the task of the bankers to the clients, ________________ and the country where they take place." The ______________________ in green colour will appear in every branch office of VÚB Banka by the end of the year. The Head Office at Mlynské Nivy in Bratislava is not however going to change its appearance. The Director of Marketing Communication for VÚB Banka Marek Mikle said, "This building became one of the most characteristic buildings in Bratislava. It is symbolic - like the __________________ building!" The blue colours on its walls will remain. During the __________________ new logos, each of them weighing 1,500kg were put on the roof of the ___________________ together with one of the biggest shining neon titles in Slovakia.

DISCUSSION

STUDENT A's QUESTIONS(Do not show these to student B)

1)   Did the headline make you want to read the article?
2)   Can you think of an interesting or unusual building -
like the Sydney Opera House - in your city/country?
3)   What unusual marketing stunts have you seen?
4)   Do you think changing a brand name is a waste of money?
5)   Who do you think pays for a brand re-launch?
6)   What do you think clients and shareholders think of new logos?
7)   Would you change your company's/organisation logo?
8)   Have you ever been in an advert?
9)   Is rebranding every few years a good idea?
10)  What happens to all the old logos?

---------------------------------------------------------------------

STUDENT A's QUESTIONS(Do not show these to student B)

1)   What do you think about what you read?
2)   What do you think of the new logo at VÚB Banka?
(You might need to use the internet to find this out)
3)   How often do you visit your bank?
4)   What is the name of your bank?
5)   Would you consider opening an account at VÚB Banka?
6)   Have you ever designed a logo?
7)   Would you like to work in a marketing department? Why?
8)   What sort of preparation is needed to launch a new logo?
9)   What advise would you give VÚB's marketing department?
10)  Did you like this discussion?

SPEAKING

MARKET YOUR PRODUCT:

You work in the marketing department of a big company. With your marketing exec classroom partners, think of a new product or service to launch and promote. Use the table below to help you.

	Your ideas	Reasons why your ideas are/will be winners
The product
Product name
Product logo
Product slogan
Target consumers
Reasons why it is better than other products
Marketing method 1
Marketing method 2
Marketing stunt

Present your ideas to the class / other teams. Decide on which teams were best. Tell other teams why their ideas might not be winners.

Change partner(s) and give help on making your presentations better. Tell each other what is needed for a more effective campaign. Present again.

Discuss the things you heard. What products would be most exciting or useful in your life?

LANGUAGE:

CORRECT WORD:
Choose the correct words from a-d below and write them in the article.

VÚB Banka in Slovakia recently unveiled a (1)__ new logo for itself. Instead of blue, the new logo (2)__ new colours of green, yellow and rich orange, as well as blue - SME reported. Instead of the title 'VÚB Banka' there are now three arches of a (3)__ next to the name. The changes to the logo and the colours are not only in VÚB Banka but also in the (4)__ group Intesa Sanpaolo. The new logo and colours are as a result of changes in the (5)__ bank. The previous owner of VÚB Banka - Banca Intesa (6)__ last year with Sanpaolo IMI bank. The new bank Intesa Sanpaolo became the biggest (7)__ in Italy and the 5^th biggest bank in Europe. The logo has been changed in all banks (8)__ belong to Intesa Sanpaolo. In some cases, they changed the title too but VÚB Banka changed only the logo and colours not the title. This is because the clients of the bank didn't want the title to change. In a survey of 721 people, 83% of them wanted the title to remain the same.

The General Director of the bank Ignacio Jaqoutot introduced the new logo and colours on 15^th May. Director of International Communication at Intesa Sanpaolo Danila Guenza: "The new logo (9)__ a stone, a power and a tying together of the countries and cultures." He added, "These symbols point out the task of the bankers to the clients, the shareholders and the country where they take place." The new logo and the title in green colour will appear in every branch office of VÚB Banka by the end of the year. The (10)__Head Office at Mlynské Nivy in Bratislava is not however going to change its appearance. The Director of Marketing Communication for VÚB Banka Marek Mikle said, "This building became one of the most characteristic buildings in Bratislava. It is symbolic - like the Sydney Opera House building!" The blue colours on its walls will remain. During the launch weekend two new logos, each of them weighing 1,500kg were put on the roof of the (11)__ building together with one of the (12)__ shining neon titles in Slovakia.

1.	(a)	band	(b)	brandy	(c)	brand	(d)	rand
2.	(a)	introduced	(b)	introducing	(c)	introduce	(d)	introduces
3.	(a)	road	(b)	bridge	(c)	waterway	(d)	viaduct
4.	(a)	hole	(b)	whole	(c)	all	(d)	Vole
5.	(a)	main	(b)	daughter	(c)	mother	(d)	father
6.	(a)	merges	(b)	merge	(c)	merging	(d)	merged
7.	(a)	bank	(b)	shop	(c)	insurer	(d)	player
8.	(a)	then	(b)	the	(c)	that	(d)	this
9.	(a)	symbolising	(b)	symbolises	(c)	symbolise	(d)	symbolised
10.	(a)	daughter	(b)	mother	(c)	Head	(d)	regional
11.	(a)	sky house	(b)	sky train	(c)	sky	(d)	skyscraper
12.	(a)	smallest	(b)	big	(c)	biggest	(d)	huge

GRAMMAR 1: MIDWAY

Put the words into the gaps in the text.

VÚB Banka gets a new logo VÚB Banka in Slovakia recently unveiled a brand new logo for itself. Instead of blue, the new logo introduced new colours of green, yellow and rich orange, as well as blue - SME reported. Instead of the title 'VÚB Banka' (1)__ are now three arches of a viaduct next to the name. The changes to the logo and the colours are not (2)__ in VÚB Banka but (3)__ in the whole group Intesa Sanpaolo. The new logo and colours are as a result of changes in the mother bank. The previous owner of VÚB Banka - Banca Intesa merged last year (4)__ Sanpaolo IMI bank. The new bank Intesa Sanpaolo became the biggest bank in Italy and the 5^th biggest bank in Europe. The logo has been changed in all banks (5)__ belong to Intesa Sanpaolo. In some cases, (6)__ changed the title too but VÚB Banka changed only the logo and colours not the title. (7)__ is because the clients of the bank didn't want the title to change. In a survey of 721 people, 83% of (8)__ wanted the title to remain the same.		this there also they with that them only
The General Director of the bank Ignacio Jaqoutot introduced the new logo and colours on 15^th May. Director of International Communication at Intesa Sanpaolo Danila Guenza: "The new logo symbolises a stone, a power and a tying together of the countries and cultures." He added, "(1)__ symbols point out the task of the bankers to the clients, the shareholders and the country (2)__ they take place." The new logo and the title in green colour will appear in (3)__ branch office of VÚB Banka by the end of the year. The Head Office at Mlynské Nivy in Bratislava is not (4)__ going to change its appearance. The Director of Marketing Communication for VÚB Banka Marek Mikle said, "(5)__ building became one of the (6)__ characteristic buildings in Bratislava. It is symbolic - like the Sydney Opera House building!" The blue colours on its walls will remain. During the launch weekend two new logos, each of (7)__ weighing 1,500kg were put on the roof of the skyscraper building together (8)__ one of the biggest shining neon titles in Slovakia.		this most where them every with these however

GRAMMAR 2: EASY

Put the words into the gaps in the text.

VÚB Banka gets a new logo VÚB Banka in Slovakia recently unveiled (1)__ brand new logo (2)__ itself. Instead of blue, the new logo introduced new colours of green, yellow and rich orange, (3)__ well as blue - SME reported. Instead of the title 'VÚB Banka' there are now three arches of a viaduct next to the name. The changes to the logo (4)__ the colours are not only in VÚB Banka (5)__ also in the whole group Intesa Sanpaolo. The new logo and colours are as a result of changes in the mother bank. The previous owner of VÚB Banka - Banca Intesa merged last year with Sanpaolo IMI bank. The new bank Intesa Sanpaolo became the biggest bank in Italy and the 5^th biggest bank in Europe. The logo has been changed (6)__ all banks that belong to Intesa Sanpaolo. In some cases, they changed the title too but VÚB Banka changed only the logo and colours not the title. This is because the clients (7)__ the bank didn't want the title to change. In a survey of 721 people, 83% of them wanted the title to remain (8)__ same.		for a as and but the of in
The General Director (1)__ the bank Ignacio Jaqoutot introduced the new logo and colours on 15^th May. Director of International Communication at Intesa Sanpaolo Danila Guenza: "The new logo symbolises a stone, a power (2)__ a tying together of the countries and cultures." He added, "These symbols point out the task of the bankers (3)__ the clients, the shareholders and the country where they take place." The new logo and the title in green colour will appear in every branch office of VÚB Banka (4)__ the end of the year. (5)__ Head Office at Mlynské Nivy in Bratislava is not however going to change (6)__ appearance. The Director of Marketing Communication for VÚB Banka Marek Mikle said, "This building became one of the most characteristic buildings in Bratislava. It is symbolic - like the Sydney Opera House building!" The blue colours on its walls will remain. During the launch weekend two new logos, each of them weighing 1,500kg were put (7)__ the roof of the skyscraper building together with one of the biggest shining neon titles (8)__ Slovakia.		on by to of and the in its

HOMEWORK

1. NEWSPAPER ARTICLE: Write an article on "Rebranding a product" (You may need to use the internet for this!)
(Minimum 200 words)

2. NEWSPAPER ARTICLE: Write an article on "Launching a new logo" (You may need to use the internet for this!)
(Minimum 200 words)

Read what you wrote to your classmates in the next lesson. Which article was best and why?

WRITING: IN CLASS:

1. FIVE MINUTE ARTICLE: Write an article on "Rebranding a product" You have five minutes. Afterwards swap articles with your partner. Read through their article and correct any mistakes. The teacher will select some students to read out their work.

Countdown: Every minute the teacher may say, "You have xx minutes."

2. FIVE MINUTE ARTICLE: Write an article on "Launching a new logo" You have five minutes. Afterwards swap articles with your partner. Read through their article and correct any mistakes. The teacher will select some students to read out their work.

Countdown: Every minute the teacher may say, "You have xx minutes."

SPELLING TEST

The teacher will ask the class individually to spell the following words that are in the article:

1 viaduct	11 previous
2 tying	12 instead
3 skyscraper	13 advertisements
4 appearance	14 expensive
5 neon	15 communication
6 symbols	16 international
7 characteristic	17 marketing
8 symbolic	18 weighing
9 launch	19 unveiled
10 shareholders	20 cultures

ANSWERS: 1

UN-SCRAMBLED: (adapted from article)

Harder
1) The new colours are green, yellow and rich orange
2) two new neon signs were put on the roof
3) VUB HQ is symbolic - like the Sydney Opera House
4) New adverts were on TV during the launch weekend
5) VUB Banka in Slovakia recently unveiled a new log for itself

ANSWERS: 2

TRUE / FALSE:

a. F

b. T

c. F

d. F

e. T

f. T

g. F

h. F

2. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article:

a.	Whole	All
b.	Title	Heading
c.	Survey	Questionnaire
d.	Biggest	Largest
e.	Clients	Customers
f.	Change	Alter
g.	Previous	Last
h.	Launch	Start
i.	Appearance	Look
j.	Characteristic	Attribute

3. PHRASE MATCH: Match the following phrases from the article:

a.	VÚB recently unveiled a brand	new logo for itself
b.	The new logo and colours are as a result of	changes in the mother bank
c.	The new bank Intesa Sanpaolo became	the biggest bank in Italy
d.	The logo has been changed in all banks	that belong to Intesa Sanpaolo.
e.	VÚB Banka	changed only the logo and colours
f.	The new logo symbolises a stone, a power,	and a tying together of the countries
g.	This building became one of the most	characteristic buildings in Bratislava
h.	The blue colours	on its walls will remain
i.	...two new logos, each of them weighing	1500kg were put on the roof
j.	These symbols point out the task of the	bankers to the clients, the shareholders...

GAP FILL: VÚB Banka gets a new logo: VÚB Banka in Slovakia recently unveiled a brand new logo for itself. Instead of blue, the new logo introduced new colours of green, yellow and rich orange, as well as blue - SME reported. Instead of the title 'VÚB Banka' there are now three arches of a viaduct next to the name. The changes to the logo and the colours are not only in VÚB Banka but also in the whole group Intesa Sanpaolo. The new logo and colours are as a result of changes in the mother bank. The previous owner of VÚB Banka - Banca Intesa merged last year with Sanpaolo IMI bank. The new bank Intesa Sanpaolo became the biggest bank in Italy and the 5^th biggest bank in Europe. The logo has been changed in all banks that belong to Intesa Sanpaolo. In some cases, they changed the title too but VÚB Banka changed only the logo and colours not the title. This is because the clients of the bank didn't want the title to change. In a survey of 721 people, 83% of them wanted the title to remain the same. The General Director of the bank Ignacio Jaqoutot introduced the new logo and colours on 15^th May. Director of International Communication at Intesa Sanpaolo Danila Guenza: "The new logo symbolises a stone, a power and a tying together of the countries and cultures." He added, "These symbols point out the task of the bankers to the clients, the shareholders and the country where they take place." The new logo and the title in green colour will appear in every branch office of VÚB Banka by the end of the year. The Head Office at Mlynské Nivy in Bratislava is not however going to change its appearance. The Director of Marketing Communication for VÚB Banka Marek Mikle said, "This building became one of the most characteristic buildings in Bratislava. It is symbolic - like the Sydney Opera House building!" The blue colours on its walls will remain. During the launch weekend two new logos, each of them weighing 1,500kg were put on the roof of the skyscraper building together with one of the biggest shining neon titles in Slovakia.

LANGUAGE WORK

1 - c

2 - a

3 - d

4 - b

5 - a

6 - d

7 - a

8 - c

9 - b

10 - c

11 - d

12 - c