Perspective isn’t everything.
Shaping better perspective—that’s everything. ”Better” means different things to different brands, but achieving it means earning more hearts, minds and voices.
I’ve spent the past 15 years working with companies to shape better perspective between their brands and the people that invest in them. I don’t believe in one secret sauce,* but I’ve found that unlocking a brand’s full potential almost always starts the same way: having different conversations.
“The single biggest problem with communication is the illusion that it has taken place.”
— Bernard Shaw
Asking elastic questions
Some of the most actionable and differentiating brand innovations hide between areas of expertise. And just stretching fresh connections between them can unlock new potential. Asking elastic questions like, “what would have to be true?” lifts the curse of knowledge, and our subject matter experts can begin to hear each other in new ways, sparking empathy, debate and brand equity... and, relationships.
“What helps people, helps business.”
— Leo Burnett
Exercising vigilant empathy
Satisfaction helps retention, but customer confidence leads to profitable growth. Some of the most meaningful brand connections hide within this paradox. Vigilant empathy melts away bias, freeing us to see a customer’s life more like we see our own: personally. With the constraints of “us and them” removed, we can solve problems using our expertise through their perspective.
“Water shapes its course according to the ground over which it flows.”
— Sun Tzu
Inspiring strategic thinking
Fourth industrial revolution or not, the pace and magnitude of change today can be blinding. And while brand recall takes consistency, brand relevance can be hidden within sameness. Strategic thinking integrates best-in-class innovations, ideas and insights to future-proof our longer-term strategy. By widening our options and failing at an ambitious-yet-healthy pace, teams feel more aligned with the strategy because they’re inspired to challenge it.
“What gets measured, gets done.”
— History
Celebrating change
Disruptive innovation can make a startup unicorn or future-proof an incumbent’s theory of business. Innovation like that doesn’t measure itself, though—let alone sell itself. It lays dormant within a forest of other ideas until it’s given what it needs to succeed or fail. Thankfully, data science and marketing automation come to the rescue. Your brand can test and grow individual ideas and relationships at scale. So let’s embrace what makes your brand valuable today and find the hidden potential that can make your brand iconic tomorrow.
Where is your brand’s hidden potential?
Please click through to chat—and if you represent a potential client or hiring team, the password for the portfolio section is available upon request.