brand-driven design for content strategy
DESCRIPTION
The remix of my talk on brand strategy with a focus on content strategy. My wins and fails of creating differentiation and tone of voice at a B2B enterprise startup. If the slides make no sense, invite me to give the talk live and/or run a workshop. I'm pretty cheap and I don't mind flying coach.TRANSCRIPT
@MIKEATHERTON
A MINIMUM VIABLE PRESENTATION FOR NUX2
BRANDING: ALL IN THE MIND
Sharepoint sucks. !
Alastair Mitchell and Andy McLoughlin
THE FEATURITIS CURVE
Number of features
User
happ
ines
s
“Nice, but I wish it did more…”
“So glad they added this!”
“Cool!”
“I rule!”“Guess I’d better read the manual”
“Where the f*** did they put that?!”
“Now I can’t even do the ONE SIMPLE THING I bought this for.”
“I suck.”
Kathy Sierra - Creating Passionate Users, 2005
Happy user peak RAWR!
2001 “No wireless. Less storage space than a Nomad. Lame. I don't see many sales in the future...”
Slashdot commenter !
“All this hype for something so ridiculous! Who cares about an MP3 player?” MacRumors commenter
350,000,000 iPods sold (September 2012)
50 MILLION USERS
38 years 13 years 6 months4 years 50 days
YOUR BRAND IS NOT YOUR LOGO.
@MIKEATHERTON
BRANDS OWN A CORNER OF YOUR MIND.
BRAND IS A SMALL, DIFFERENTIATED IDEA.
CarSafe VacuumRobot CameraInstant
THE FIRST LAW OF BRANDING IS
AL RIES, THE 22 IMMUTABLE LAWS OF BRANDING
FOCUSOWNING A SINGLE DIFFERENTIATED IDEA IN THE CUSTOMER MIND
Who are you? (Identity)
What are you? (Meaning)
What do I think about you? (Response)
What about you and me? (Relationship)
THE BRAND LADDER“Building brand equity is a sequence of steps, where each step is dependent on successful completion of the previous one.”Kevin Lane Keller - Building Customer-based Brand Equity, 2001
commodities
goods
services
experiences
transformations
CUSTOMER RELEVANCY
DIFF
EREN
TIAT
ION
PRICE PREMIUM
PROGRESSION OF ECONOMIC VALUE
Joseph Pine II and James H. Gilmore - The Experience Economy, 1999
A brand is an idea that you stand for, made real by what you do and expressed through your personality. !Wally Olins
VALUES: The iconic things that you stand for above all else. !PERSONALITY: Your specific characteristics, or how others would describe you.
We choose to go to the moon. John F. Kennedy, 1962
WRITE YOUR BRAND STORY
@MIKEATHERTON
TELL THE TALE OF YOUR PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE.
TELL US WHERE YOU CAME FROM AND WHAT YOU’RE HERE TO DO.
VALUES: The iconic things that you stand for above all else. !PERSONALITY: Your specific characteristics, or how others would describe you.
Rohit Bhargava Personality Not Included
Brand voice must be unique, authentic and talkable.
FIND YOUR TRUE VOICE
@MIKEATHERTON
CUTE IS NOT THE ONLY TONE OF VOICE.
AIM FOR UNIQUE, AUTHENTIC, TALKABLE...AND APPROPRIATE TO YOUR PRODUCT.
CHALLENGER BRANDS
AL RIES & JACK TROUT, POSITIONING: THE BATTLE FOR YOUR MIND
REFRAME THE CONVERSATION
MAKING US CONSIDER THE CATEGORY IN NEW WAYS
$500? It’s the most expensive phone in the world! !Steve Ballmer on the iPhone, 2007
ComputerPersonal
JumpingFlop
ComputerPocket
CarSmall
FabricCruelty-free
CHOOSE YOUR WORDS CAREFULLY
FROM PERSONALITY TO POSITIONING.
LET YOUR VOICE TELL US WHY YOU’RE DIFFERENT.
@MIKEATHERTON
Feminine but not girly Witty but not zany Informal but not cutesy Clever but not elitist Geeky but not niche
Irreverent but not vague Parental but not stern Stylish but not dated Trustworthy but not boring Surprising but not shocking
Hugh Laurie British manner with global relevance, dry sarcasm.
David Tennant Charm, British but global, warmth, geek chic.
New MINI British know-how, glamour, fun, well-built, informal, technology wrapped in timeless style.
Tina Fey Modern woman, intelligent humor, touch of sarcasm.
TONE OF VOICEThe people's champion, speaking to those on the front-line. A friendly tone echoes the people behind the brand. We’re authoritative, understated, charming and witty. We’ve even a sliver of geek chic. We're resonant to the British, and relevant to the world.
“Welcome,Alastair Mitchell.”
“Hello Alastair. Are you sitting comfortably? Then let's begin.”
“Yo Alastair! Ready to rock and roll?”
Too little Just right Too much
Example: In-app greeting
REMEMBER YOUR MASLOW
MEET BASIC NEEDS BEFORE DELIGHT
SPEND YOUR GOODWILL ON PERSONALITY
@MIKEATHERTON
A brand is an idea that you stand for, made real by what you do and expressed through your personality.
BRAND-DRIVEN DESIGN PUTS YOUR DIFFERENTIATOR, VALUES AND ATTITUDE INTO
THE HEART OF YOUR PRODUCT.
Collaboration
Blogging
NewsIntelligent Micro Micro
People think focus means saying yes to the thing you’ve got to focus on. But that’s not what it means at all. !It means saying no to a hundred other good ideas. !Steve Jobs
@MIKEATHERTON
MORE CHALLENGESAgile makes sweeping changes hard Sharpening focus takes true grit Customers want faster horses
THE FUTURE OF DIGITAL PRODUCTS
@MIKEATHERTON
SMALL PIECES, LOOSELY JOINED.
FOCUSED AND INTEROPERABLE.
BRAND IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY
@MIKEATHERTON
MAKING MARKETING RUN YOUR BRAND IS LIKE MAKING
I.T. RUN YOUR WEBSITE.LIVE YOUR VALUES IN EVERYTHING YOU DO.
BE A CHALLENGER
@MIKEATHERTON
DON’T ATTACK PRODUCTS. CHANGE IDEAS.
SOLVE THE PROBLEM IN A BETTER WAY.
FIND THE UNCONTESTED GROUND
@MIKEATHERTON
MAKE THINGS UNIQUE, AUTHENTIC & TALKABLE.
USE BRAND-VALUES TO DEFINE YOUR PROPOSITION.
KNOW YOUR HEART REFRAME YOUR CATEGORY
DEFINE YOUR MISSION FIND YOUR VOICE
MAKE YOUR DIFFERENCE SHINE
BRAND-DRIVEN DESIGN
THANKS! @MIKEATHERTON