We ran across a fun and fascinating article entitled “If you love your brand, set it free,” written by Jose Martinez Salmeron. In the journey through the brand process – from birth to growth to maturity – Salmeron makes the case for, well, change.
Not just because we have a thousand new platforms, but also because standardization doesn’t have to be the only way to accomplish a vital and engaging brand in the eyes of consumers. In fact, standardization might be the death knell.
He posits that we should give our brand permission to flirt, to be surprising, to act a little more human. He cites Grant McCracken, who recently espoused in the Harvard Business Review that people first treat brands like new guests. But if they say boring and repetitive stuff, people will abandon and then exclude them.
With this kind of moving target, how is a brand supposed to make it in this cruel, hard world?
For starters, a modern brand no longer has to be predictable. At The Ocean Group, we have firsthand knowledge of this. We often push our clients to break free from the codified style guides and shackles that are mainstream media and start thinking about how they – and their customers – connect with their own brand.
We like to ask the tough questions, like What makes a brand interesting? What makes a brand long lasting? Because we don’t want to get stuck talking to the securities and investment banker at a cocktail party. Give us the fun-loving, story-telling, unpredictable and fascinating brand any day! Finally, a license to flirt.
