livingbrands

Have a read

A couple of interesting recent articles from Business Week. Both are very much 'on message' in their interactive, people-centric, web 2.0 style, so it may be nothing you haven't read before. But they say it in a nice pithy way, with bullet points and examples. And it's Business Week. So if you need to convince someone it's probably a good place to start.

First up, an article on the importance of making the relationship people have with your brand a genuine experience. Why would you want to do this? It gives 4 reasons...

1. It creates fans who will talk to others about you.
2. It builds loyalty (e.g. 80% of Starbuck's revenues comes from those who visit 18 times+ a month).
3. It lets you premium price. Because people will pay for a functionally and emotionally rewarding experience, that moves things beyond the average and mundane (or even a 'bit better' and 'best in market'...which can still mean 'not very good').
4. It creates differentiation. Unique experiences are more easily ownable and more likely to stand out.

Second up, an article on the importance of doing things differently if you want to stay ahead (which might include brand experiences!). It offers up 7 ways at this...

1. Experiment fearlessly. Just keep doing stuff. Mad stuff. Stuff that doesn't always work. But do it anyway. Instead of just talking about doing stuff. Or having brainstorms about stuff you might do. Or researching stuff, and finding reasons not to do it.
2. Don't get bigger get unique. Getting bigger in a way that is profitable, is very difficult nowadays, unless you are a certain kind of company. Instead be brave enough to offer something unique and different to the people you aiming to attract and you will have far more success.
3. Don't compete...create new markets. Rather than fighting the existing competition over ever smaller market niches, just invent a new market where there is no competition and create your own rules for success. Interestingly, a study of new launches found that the 14% that were genuinely new markets represented 61% of profit generated.
4. Obsess about customers not rivals. Basically don't worry about what everyone else is doing, just worry about what the consumer wants...and do it. Even if that means doing far more than is necessary when benchmarked vs. the competition. Over deliver always, don't cut costs and corners, or be deceievd by being 'better' when this trails far behind expectations.
5. Be open. Secrecy doesn't work in the world we live in. So don't hide behind the walls of your company. Embrace network relationships. Share your thinking and ideas. Get outside points of view. Have an open-source attitude to the way you do things.
6. Get personal. There is no such thing anymore as 'consumers'; the aggregated but impersonal demographic we 'aim' at in a rather haphazard, 'chuck it and see what sticks' manner. There are only real people; individuals we should look to engage at a personal level, with meaningful dialogue and tailored solutions.
7. Stay hunger. Don't get lazy and rest on your laurels. Always be on the move and doing stuff. Which brings us back to point 1...

Anyway, all very important lessons, so get going!

Died and gone to heaven

Have you ever had a client that you felt you were put on this earth to work with? Much as I have always loved all my clients (in their different ways!), I can now safely say I am in this position, as Quiet Storm have just started working with HMV.

CDs!! DVDs!! Games!! Well I’m not actually a gamer, but the first 2 are more than enough to make me happy as a pig in mud for some time to come.

And it’s not just any old (music) retailer. HMV is a classic brand – in many ways THE music brand, with 100 years heritage and commitment to something that is very important to me. And the organisation is hungry to reconnect with these roots. So a great time to be working with them professionally as well.

I’ve already got a free copy of the new Muse album! Which is really good by the way. I just haven’t yet dared get out the (very long) wish list of CDs I have each month (most of which I can never afford to buy).

Anyway, how I feel about HMV got me thinking. What would your dream come true client be? Not in a Nike/Apple/Virgin/Innocent 'I would love to work on X because it’s such a great brand' kind of way. It has to be something that you’re genuinely passionate about and is important to you. Let me know.

Redemption Songs

This Friday I'm off to Cheltenham racecourse to spend the weekend with 20,000 other people at the Greenbelt Festival.

For those that are interested, Greenbelt sits at the more open and experimental end of the Christian faith (woolly liberals some would say; Glastonbury with extra prayers, I say), and a good time will be had by all.

I'm planning to meet up with the most excellent John Griffiths at some point. But on the off chance that there are any other fellow travelers reading this, let me know and we can arrange a get together.

Room for hire

The idea of Creative Spaces seems quite in at the moment. And we have one for hire. It's called the Boudoir - I won't try and explain, just look at the photo.

And there are more pics here.

It's great for meetings, brainstorms, focus groups and all sorts. There a comfy bit with (rather baroque) sofas, as well as a nice big 'boardroom' table.

It's AV'ed up throughout, and we can also do filming and editing via our sister company, Quiet Storm Productions.

All this, and only 2 minutes from Oxford Circus.

But why I hear you cry - it's not really an ad agency thing to do after all. Because we thought, 'why not': it's a great space, and we love it, but we aren't always using it. So rather than be precious, why not let others enjoy it?!

Obviously, money will change hands: I think we even have a rate card somewhere. And if you want some different perspectives, we might even be able to rustle up a few people to get stuck in! If you interested, email me here, or give me a call on 020 7907 1140.

Believe in something

Here's a little something I came across at the weekend, which is a good example of why brands and businesses need to stand for something in this world of interchangeable functionality; to have something they care about and believe in enough that it sets them apart.

Now this is to do with basketball, which I have to admit I know pretty much nothing about, but I think it makes the point well. Stephon Marbury is a star player with the New York Knicks, and like many stars he has launched a pair of 'self-designed' boots. However, unlike a pair of Air Jordan's, which will set you back around $200 (£100), Maybury's boots retail at under $15 (about £7.90), despite being made to the same quality as the big names. As he says "$200 to buy a pair of sneakers - that's groceries for the week".

Which all seems to fit well with Maybury's positioning in the game. He is Known (apparently) as a bit of a maverick, not always getting along with other players, but is also considered one of the most generous of America's sports stars. And in a world of functionally similar 'products', this sets the Maybury brand apart. In this instance, he is not just endorsing the boots but will be wearing them as well...without being paid a fee to do so (a share of sales probably helps though!).

A lesson for us all: standing for something sets you apart. But standing FOR something is an active choice; it needs to make a difference, to have cost and sacrifices involved, to alienate some people, to be AGAINST some things. And are we brave enough to go there?

Just because you say it doesn't mean it makes sense

"I believe this was not an act of desperation, but act of asymmetrical warfare waged against us".

So said Rear Admiral Harry Harris of the Guantanamo Bay detention camp, after 3 prisoners hanged themselves. Go figure.

The Tyranny of Consumer Insights

Borrowed the title from this post over at Sidewalk Life. Basic premise: 'consumer insights' are never unique to us (everyone can find them out...and increasingly do), and are typically pretty superficial. But we still persist in creating advertising that just plays back what consumers say they want in focus groups (a blunt instrument at best of times). I find myself continually having this debate with clients. But as David says "the challenge in a world where information is ubiquitous, and therefore no longer differentiating, is to apply creative thinking to available information to create unique selling ideas". Or maybe more radically still, find an 'insight' and then just say 'sod it' and do the exact opposite. Strangely, you may find this yields surprising results!!

Every little doesn't always help

Was searching for photos of shopping trolleys (as you do - ahhh, the joys of planning!!) when I came across this on Flickr.

To make your shopping trip easy we have 13 types of trolley!?!? As the comment at Flickr says, 'how does that work then?'

Really does demonstrate the principle of death by choice. And that every little helps isn't always the case. What next? Personalised trolleys designed to the exact specifications of every customer? I bet it's come up in a brainstorm!

Thanks to James for the photo.

Google humour

Cracking spot from Dino who points out a great article in the Independent about Google having a massive sense of humour failure over the verb 'to google'.

Let's have some more classic examples of great brands which just lose it, if only momentarily.

Tails within tails

Just thought I would lob in a little twist in the (long) tail that struck me over the weekend.

Currently most comment on Chris Anderson's theory talks as if there's only one tail (in any given 'market' - eg music) that encompasses the sum total of everything. But I wonder whether it is more like fractals, where any bit of the image, no matter how small, contains a mirror of the whole; that if you take a slice of the long tail at any point, you will see that it is made up of its own mini 'blockbusters' and tail.

Take the world of (digital) 'information'. Normally talk is of the big, traditional/conventional news media and the long tail of (special interest) blogs that follow on behind. But take any one of those interest groups and you'll have your own long tail action going on.

If I look at the blogs I track on Bloglines, they are all of a type (media/marketing/comms/brands/social trends kind of stuff) and definitely follow this patten. At the blockbuster end you have the likes of Gladwell (3487 subscribers) and the even bigger Godin (10837 subscribers), who (like all good blockbusters) are probably there as much because they're famous as for any other reason (Malcolm is usually very good, but rarely ever posts; Seth is the opposite: lots of posts, few worth reading). Then, on my own personal Bloglines long tail, there's a host of blogs with few subscribers, many of which I find far more rewarding that the big names.

If I was then to drill down further, looking at designers or account planners say (stand up Russell and John - always worth a read) I'm sure the fractal effect would repeat. Anyway, does suggest that where you sit on the tail, whether your a blockbuster movie or an indie special interest flick, depends on how you define the animal in the first place.

(note: for a better insight into the blockbuster end of the marketing blog long tail have a look at the Viral Garden).