Building a Charismatic Brand: Part 1 > Differentiate

What is a charismatic brand? It's any product, service, or company for which people believe there's no substitute. Charismatic brands have a clear competitive stance, a sense of rectitude and a dedication to aesthetics. Why aesthetics? Because it's the language of feeling, and in a society that's information-rich and time-poor, people value feeling more than information. In this series we will discuss the five disciplines (differentiation, collaboration, innovation, validation, and cultivation) of branding that must be mastered in order to have a charismatic brand.

Differentiate

This is the process of setting your company, your product, or your service apart from the rest of the pack.


• Begin building your brand with three questions: Who are we? What do we do? Why does it matter?

• Our brains filter out irrelevant information, letting in only what's different and useful. Tell me again, why does your product matter?

• Differentiation has evolved from a focus on "what it is" to "what it does" to "how you'll feel" to "who you are." While features, benefits, and prices are still important to people, experience and personal identity are even more important.

• As globalism removes barriers, people erect new ones. They create and gravitate toward smaller worlds--"tribal units"--they can understand and participate in. Brand names occupy and govern different spaces within these tribes.

• Become the number one or number two leader in your tribal space. If you can't obtain either position, redefine your space or move to a different tribe.


Differentiation to collaboration to innovation to validation to cultivation, back to differentiation. Each lap around the branding circle takes the brand further from being a listing of commodities and closer to being a force to be reckoned with.*


*Source: Marty Neumeier, The Brand Gap (Berkeley: New Riders Publishing, 2003).

Building a Charismatic Brand: Part 2 > Collaborate

What is a charismatic brand? It's any product, service, or company for which people believe there's no substitute. Charismatic brands have a clear competitive stance, a sense of rectitude and a dedication to aesthetics. Why aesthetics? Because it's the language of feeling, and in a society that's information-rich and time-poor, people value feeling more than information. In this series we will discuss the five disciplines (differentiation, collaboration, innovation, validation, and cultivation) of branding that must be mastered in order to have a charismatic brand.

Collaborate

Branding is not a solo act. It is a community that requires a multi-level team of executives and employees, marketing and PR, a branding firm, suppliers and stockholders. Like the cathedral builders of yore, it takes scores of specialized craftsmen and years to build a charismatic brand. These "branding craftsmen" share ideas and coordinate efforts across an entire creative network. In short, they collaborate. The more brains acting in UNITY, the more likely the success of the brand.
The three models listed below demonstrate the various executions of brand collaboration:

1. The one-stop shop is the place where all responsibilities of branding--research, strategy, design, campaigns, tracking--takes place such as in an advertising agency. The one-stop shop advantage is the unity of the message and ease of brand management for the client. The disadvantage is that an offering of broad and varied services can often times result in a watered-down talent pool in one or more of those services. Additionally, the client has less control of the management of their brand.
2. The brand agency acts as a contractor of the brand for the client, subcontracting only the necessary responsibilities of branding to the "best of the best" for that application. The brand agency, like Hornsby Brand Design, heads the project and gathers the best specialists on behalf of the client. The advantage of using a brand agency is that the brand message is developed by expert talent gathered for just the needs of the brand creation and the agency maintains unity across all media applications. Additionally, the client company is unfettered with researching and developing these talent pools. The disadvantage is that the brand control still lies outside of the company, but this can be remedied with close interaction between the brand agency and the company.
3. The in-house marketing department has the advantages of the brand agency in that they can subcontract specialists while hiring full-time managers of the brand, giving the company full control of their brand. The disadvantage is the inability to think outside the box. Working with the same brand in the same environment with the same resources can limit a creative and fresh approach to branding and risk repackaging the same old processes and philosophies with only a new ribbon. Success of this paradigm requires a strong internal team with lots of access to innovation.

It takes a village to build a brand. By asking left-brainers and right-brainers to work 
as a team, you bridge the gap between logic and magic. With collaboration, one plus 
one equals eleven.


*Source: Marty Neumeier, The Brand Gap (Berkeley: New Riders Publishing, 2003).

Building a Charismatic Brand: Part 3 > Innovate

What is a charismatic brand? It's any product, service, or company for which people believe there's no substitute. Charismatic brands have a clear competitive stance, a sense of rectitude and a dedication to aesthetics. Why aesthetics? Because it's the language of feeling, and in a society that's information-rich and time-poor, people value feeling more than information. In this series we will discuss the five disciplines (differentiation, collaboration, innovation, validation, and cultivation) of branding that must be mastered in order to have a charismatic brand.

Innovate


It's design, not strategy, which ignites passion in people. And the magic behind better design and better business is innovation. Innovation requires creativity, but creativity gives many business people a twitch. Anything new, by definition, is untried, and therefore "unsafe," yet radical innovation has the power to render competition obsolete. It's a self-evident truth: you can't be a leader by following. It's innovation that gives brands traction in the marketplace.An example of this truth is found in magazine ads. Pick up a copy of your favorite magazine and leaf through the ads. Note which ones actually evoke emotion from you and then see if you remember them when you set your magazine down. If not, it's likely that the strategy was good, but the execution was lacking originality and innovation.

So, how do you know when an idea is innovative? When it scares you. You don't have to reinvent the wheel, just find a fresh approach. Below are some tips on igniting innovation in your brand:

1. Expect innovation from people outside the company or from people inside the company that think "outside" the company. The audience usually rewards gutsy moves, but corporations usually don't, which inhibits new ideas from emerging in the corporate atmosphere. Avoid this and seek out creators. Remember, marketers describe the world as it is now, creative professionals demonstrate how the world could be. They innovate.
2. Make sure the name of your brand is...distinctive, brief, appropriate, easy to spell, easy to pronounce, likable, extendible, and protectable. Don't create just an icon; create an "earcon," something pleasing and memorable to the ear. Yahoo!, Google, Apple, and Smuckers all are unique names that get attention and get the job done. Customers will always want convenient ways of remembering your brand. The right name can be your brand's most valuable asset, aiding in your quest to be different.
3. Packaging is the last and best chance to influence a prospect this side of the checkout counter. Clarity, emotion, and natural reading sequencing are the key words for packaging. When you present your brand's information with these things working together, you increase resonance and create a sympathetic bond with your customer.
4. Packaging your brand, by the way, extends to your web presence, too. Most of today's home pages ignore the basic rules of visual aesthetics, including contrast, legibility, pacing and reading sequence. Consider this: the average home page squeezes an average of 25 pieces of information into an area the size of a tissue. So, avoid turfismo (where department managers fight for space on the company marquee) and featuritis (the tendency to add features, articles, graphics, animations, links, etc.). While most people like clicking, they hate waiting for a new page.
5. Bottom line: All brand innovation should be aimed at creating a positive experience for the user. And remember, If it's not innovative, it's not magic.*

Differentiation to collaboration to innovation to validation to cultivation, back to differentiation. Each lap around the branding circle takes the brand further from being a listing of commodities and closer to being a force to be reckoned with.*

*Source: Marty Neumeier, The Brand Gap (Berkeley: New Riders Publishing, 2003).

Building a Charismatic Brand: Part 4 > Validate

What is a charismatic brand? It's any product, service, or company for which people believe there's no substitute. Charismatic brands have a clear competitive stance, a sense of rectitude and a dedication to aesthetics. Why aesthetics? Because it's the language of feeling, and in a society that's information-rich and time-poor, people value feeling more than information. In this series we will discuss the five disciplines (differentiation, collaboration, innovation, validation, and cultivation) of branding that must be mastered in order to have a charismatic brand.

Validate


Sender. Message. Receiver. Your company (the sender) creates a web page, ad, brochure, direct mail, etc. (the message) and sends it to your target market (the receiver). Communication complete, right? Wrong. This standard communication model is archaic, because true communication is interactive, a dialog between parties; it's not, nor never has been, one way. Even with a magazine ad, the reader is processing the information and responding; it's just the sender doesn't know what his responses are...unless he asks. Companies need feedback. Brands need validation.

Testing and research, while it may not validate your innovative idea as being great, it can certainly turn a wild guess into an educated one and give collaborators enough confidence to proceed. Several tips on acquiring good research are as follows.

Audience Surveys. Target audiences typically are divided into two groups: those who rely on facts (hard information) to make a purchase and those who rely on feelings (soft information). The former group, "Appliers," gravitate toward precise, realistic and familiar designs while the latter, "creators," are attracted to the lyrical, abstract, and novel designs. Some may refer to these groups as left brainers and right brainers. When surveying your audience, be sure to include questions that qualify which person you are interviewing to sift through the extreme responses you may get.

Focus Groups. Use focus groups to FOCUS the research, not BE the research. Focus groups are particularly susceptible to the Hawthorne effect--the tendency for people to act differently when they know someone is watching. The successful focus group measures both the quantitative items like pricing, product and package design, or elements of messages as well as the qualitative aspects of human nature and responses as long as observation takes place on the sidelines. Because quantitative studies alone can lead to analysis paralysis, you'll need to seek out ideas that lead to breakthroughs by using the qualitative research produced by audience behavior as well.

More Is Less with Research. The truth is, most large studies could be exchanged for a few smaller, more effective ones. The smaller ones save time, money, and are more likely to focus on one problem at a time. Also, it's better to get a broad answer to the right question than a detailed answer to the wrong question.

The Swap Test. A simple test that can be done in your office is the Swap Test. Swap your brand icon, name or logo with that of your competitor. If the results are better, or no worse, then you may need to improve your icon. By the same token, your competitor's should not be better by using yours. A good brand icon is like a tailored suit: it should only look good on you. While performing the Swap Test, be sure to measure your company's brand expressions for distinctiveness, relevance, memorability, extendibility, and depth.

The Concept Test. To ensure that your company is following through on the communication loop and not simply "talking to itself," test your idea with a concept test. The concept test helps develop names, symbols, icons, taglines, and brand promises. With this test you can get the right idea AND get the idea right. Create a rage of prototypes of the brand element in question. You can start with seven ideas, but whittling it down to two or three best choices helps keep your focus. Choose 10 people from your target audience (outside your company) and ask a series of questions listed below. DO NOT ask, "Which one do you like?" The example below is concerning product names:

• Which of these names catches your eye?

• What does this name say to you?

• What does it remind you of?
• 
Does it sound like any other name you've encountered?
• 
Do you think it says what it means or is there a better choice?
• 
Why? (NOTE: Always ask why. It yields deep insight.)

An important advantage of a concept test is that it's inexpensive and gets real results in a short amount of time.

The Field Test. Realistic situations offer the best feedback, because the reality is easier to comprehend than concept. This is done by placing your packaged prototype on the shelf next to the competition and interviewing shoppers in your category. A good product with great brand promise can fail if the they don't connect with the buyers at the point of contact. A field test can reveal flaws BEFORE the product is actually launched, giving room to make adjustments as needed.
Validation--is the process of measuring brands against meaningful criteria. When decision makers validate their innovations, the breakthrough ideas live, prosper, and multiply like magic.

Differentiation to collaboration to innovation to validation to cultivation, back to differentiation. Each lap around the branding circle takes the brand further from being a listing of commodities and closer to being a force to be reckoned with.*

*Source: Marty Neumeier, The Brand Gap (Berkeley: New Riders Publishing, 2003).

Building a Charismatic Brand: Part 5 > Cultivate

What is a charismatic brand? It's any product, service, or company for which people believe there's no substitute. Charismatic brands have a clear competitive stance, a sense of rectitude and a dedication to aesthetics. Why aesthetics? Because it's the language of feeling, and in a society that's information-rich and time-poor, people value feeling more than information. In this series we will discuss the five disciplines (differentiation, collaboration, innovation, validation, and cultivation) of branding that must be mastered in order to have a charismatic brand.

Cultivate


Your business is not an entity but a living organism. Successful businesses grow and adapt to their changing environment. Ditto your brand. We call this brand cultivation. In contrast to the old corporate identity paradigm, which prized militaristic uniformity and consistency, the new brand paradigm possesses dynamism and vitality. It sacrifices the perfectly mundane in favor of the exciting, and sometimes, imperfect brand. Good branding lives, breathes, and is humanized. It's cultivated through process and growth.

Brands, like people, can wear different clothes and still be recognized. Like a person, what makes a brand a brand is deeper than appearances and moods. It carries a sense of reputation, apart from its "look." A living brand is a pattern of behavior that grows out of character, not a stylistic veneer. If a brand does not project a sense of humanity and depth, it loses believability. But when the company's external actions align with its internal culture, the brand resonates with authenticity. So ask yourself this simple question: "Does your company's behavior match your company's image?"

The secret of a living brand is that it lives throughout the company, not just in the marketing department. Therefore, every brand contributor should develop a personal shockproof brandometer. No decision in any department should be made without asking, "Will it help or hurt the brand?" This requires an unwavering, central point-person, ever policing the company's brand face to the public, a strong CBO--chief brand officer--who can steward the brand from inside the company.

Continuing education programs is key to getting everyone on the same page. And since, branding is a cultivating process that can be studied, analyzed, learned, taught, replicated, and managed, it's the CBO's job to document and disseminate his/her brand knowledge and transfer it in whole to each new manager and collaborator involved in the process.

A good comparison of brand cultivation is Amazon versus Starbucks. In Amazon's attempt to extend its book niche with its music/camera/computer/appliance/baby/furniture/toy lines, it lost 31% of its brand value. All the while, Starbucks stayed focused and protected its brand as it spread across America and increased its value by 32%. It cultivated its brand without sacrificing its central focus and niche in the marketplace.

Differentiation to collaboration to innovation to validation to cultivation, back to differentiation. Each lap around the branding circle takes the brand further from being a listing of commodities and closer to being a force to be reckoned with.*

*Source: Marty Neumeier, The Brand Gap (Berkeley: New Riders Publishing, 2003).