06.29
[This post was originally published on FutureBrand's FBlog.]
Recent IPOs from LinkedIn, Groupon and Pandora have all eyes on the “social media” industry. While that label may be useful in contrasting from more traditional brick-and-mortar businesses or the dotcom darlings of the early 2000s, it does the companies it refers to a disservice by failing to recognize diversity within the group. Facebook, Groupon, Twitter, LinkedIn—while they all allow us to connect with each other online, they are otherwise quite different businesses. (In fact, doesn’t it feel a little funny to refer to Twitter as a “business” at all?)
The success of LinkedIn is based on a simple tenet of brand strategy, and something that Facebook, Twitter and even Google mostly lack. Namely, LinkedIn has a niche.
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10.19
As a brand strategist, I’m sometimes asked to name a few favorite brands. While companies like Apple and Starbucks seem to show up in every branding presentation and book (not to mention my own blog posts), the truth is that my interest in these brands is more detached and academic than emotional or personal. I am professionally impressed by how often these marketing machines seem to be “right.” But perhaps it’s precisely because I’m so keenly aware of their marketing activities that Apple and Starbucks rarely have the power to move me—to connect with me beyond a clinical curiosity.
One brand that has made me sit up and take notice is REI, the American chain of outdoor and adventure sports equipment retail stores. To my knowledge, the company does not yet do business in China, and my affinity for the brand may partly be a case of “absence makes the heart grow fonder.” But REI, seemingly without a massive marketing budget or a paradigm-shifting retail strategy, has built a powerful brand through at least three basics of brand strategy:
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05.12
Conan O’Brien’s 60 Minutes interview from May 2nd drew a lot of attention because it was his first appearance since leaving The Tonight Show, because of what he said about Jay Leno, and maybe because despite his repeated assertions that he’s “fine,” he seemed to be brimming with resentment. But what stuck out for me was this statement from Conan:
I hope people still find me — comedically absurd and ridiculous.
I noticed it because of the slight hesitation before “comedically absurd and ridiculous.” I think he was about to say “funny,” but he caught himself and replaced it with something much more interesting. By positioning himself as comedically absurd instead of funny,
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10.01
Differentiate. Decommoditize. Zag. Conventional brand strategy wisdom dictates that in order to succeed, a brand must set itself apart from the competition. Examples of differentiation-driven success abound, and in fact most of the support for differentiation seems to be delivered through case study or anecdote.
But what do we mean when we say “be different?” Telling stories about brands that have succeeded by standing apart from their competition may support the point that differentiation works, but it leaves something to be desired when consulting with a client on how they can differentiate their organization. Instead of listing examples, I wonder if it’s possible to think more systematically about the dimensions along which a brand can differentiate.
I use the word “dimensions” because brand consultants (including me) are often guilty of simplifying everything down to a two-dimensional graph, plotting the competition on the axes, and pointing out where a client has room to stand apart. To illustrate, here’s one of my favorite two-axis graphs from xkcd.com, poetically entitled “Fuck Grapefruit.”
(I can hear the conference-room conversation now…
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03.17
It's been un-geekified
Landor has renamed the Sci Fi Channel. The new name? “Syfy.” I assume it’s homophonic with “SciFi.” Reasons for the name change, according to a TV Week article and a few blog posts, include:
- A desire to create a “more open and accessible and relatable and human-friendly brand.” – Dave Howe, president of the Sci Fi Channel
- Disassociate the channel with “geeks and dysfunctional, antisocial boys in their basements with video games and stuff like that.” – TV historian Tim Brooks, who helped launch Sci Fi Channel when he worked at USA Network
- Make the name more “ownable,” since there are “hundreds of sci-fi Web sites and sci-fi publications.” – Dave Howe
- To stay connected to the channel’s “heritage and the track record of success.” – Dave Howe
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