Best in Brand & Innovation for April
Every month we bring you the best articles we find in brand, innovation, and creativity.
This month is all about individualizing your company, your personal life and even your wardrobe. An award winning journalist pushes companies to pick a side – no matter how divisive. Writers dive into the importance of personal branding. And a professor at the Fashion Institute of Technology challenges people to dress for empowerment.
Brand attraction steeped in personality – The Australian
In this article author Debbie O’Connor writes, “Today, it’s only those brands that truly engage with the consumer to evoke an emotion that are remembered.” And psychologist Peter Noel Murray backs this up saying, “Emotions greatly influence and, in many cases, even determine our decisions.” O’Connor writes that in order to be successful brands have to focus on creating a personality. Using Apple as an example of a company whose brand is reflected in everything that they do, O’Connor says branding is all about reputation. Your business must always reflect your values.
Debbie O’Connor @Debbieobrands
You Can’t Afford to Make this Mistake With Your Company Culture – Entrepreneurs’ Organization
Marina Byezhanova uses statistics to back up a few facts about company culture including that talented professionals have high standards for company culture and employer branding, and that in general employees are disengaged. However, there is a silver lining. Byezhanova writes, “70% of your company’s turnover is preventable,” and that “over 60% of job seekers are more negotiable for companies with solid culture brands.” She says culture branding is imperative – it’s time for companies to adapt a strategic approach and “roll up our sleeves at a micro level.”
Marina Byezhanova @Pronexia
The Consumer Psychology Trick Behind Repetition in Brand Storytelling – Skyword
The Baader-Meinhof phenomenon or the “frequency illusion” is when you encounter something new and immediately start seeing it everywhere – It’s a cognitive habit brands tend to lean on. But with buyers having infinite options, this idea of the more you see it, the more likely you are to buy it may be fading. However, Crowl suggests using a diverse range of content to tell modern brand stories. He calls this the “extended runway” of the frequency illusion and is also “an opportunity for brands working hard to develop familiarity and trust with their prospects. And while there’s a conscious, analytical process playing out as buyers vet their options and evaluate what brands have to offer, there are subconscious forces at play as well—and the frequency illusion is right at the center of this all.” Playing into this concept of frequency, Crowl suggests repurposing the same content across channels “to reinforce themes, ideas, and concepts that are important to their audience.”
Jonathan Crowl @jonathancrowl
Author Richard Shotton on What Brands Can Learn from the Psychology of Decision Making – branding in asia
Bobby McGill interviews Richard Shotton, author of “The Choice Factory: 25 behavioural biases that influence what we buy” who talks about his new book, marketing trends and how brands can benefit from psychological research. Shotton explains that brands need to tune into behavioral science – the study of decision making. He says that advertising decisions should be based on psychologists, not board members. For example, according to a 1966 Harvard University study, when flaws are exhibited people (and bands) are more likeable. “The smartest brands have recognized this, and they use the pratfall effect to stand-out from their braggart competitors. Just think of VW (Ugly is only skin deep), Stella (Reassuringly expensive) and Avis (When you’re only No. 2 you try harder). Three of the most successful campaigns of all time are based on this simple psychological insight,” says Shotton. Read on to find out more tips and advice.
Bobby McGill @BrandingInAsia
Richard Shotton @rshotton
How This Millennial Mom Leveraged Her Personal Brand To Land A $19K Dream Gig In Paradise – Forbes
In this Q&A author Celinne Da Costa interviews entrepreneur and millennial mother, Chanelle Segerius-Bruce about the importance of personal branding. Segerius-Bruce runs an online coaching business and remotely serves clients. She works 8am to 2pm and takes off weekends. She attributes her success to her personal online branding which she caters to attract her ideal clients. “Closing sales is a lot easier when the person on the other side is already 80% sold on you,” says Segerius-Bruce. At the end, she offers tips to other millennials including, “be prepared to hustle in the beginning… and then outsource”, “work for people who have the success you desire to achieve”, and “as you progress, don’t compare your success to someone else’s.” To find more tips, read on!
Celinne Da Costa @CelinneDaCosta
Why Brands Are Under Increasing Pressure to Be Transparent About What They Believe In – Ad Week
Using Cards Against Humanity and their recent announcement that they’re raising “$2.2 million to buy a small plot of land on the U.S.-Mexican border to prevent a wall from being built on it” writer Dan Tynan says that companies are being pressured to “pick a side – and do it quickly.” He writes that generation Z is not allowing for these luke-warm approach companies have safely taken. “The pressure to step up is driven in part by the rise of direct-to-consumer brands that see social activism as part of their primary mission.” While having a great PR team or ad agency helps, Tynan says it really comes down to defining your values and not being afraid to stand by them.
Dan Tynan @tynanwrites
Branding Yourself? Follow These 14 Tips To Build Your Strategy – Forbes
Forbes Coaches Council offer 14 pointers on how to build your personal brand, even if you’re new to your career path. First though, it’s essential to study who you are “your core values, skills and beliefs” while “figuring out how to convey those elements consistently in your digital presence.” Some of these tips include understanding how others perceive you. This can be done through surveying. The council also says that because people initially buy into a person and not a brand it’s important to be sincere. Adjust where need be, and most importantly, don’t give up!
Forbes Coaches Council @ForbesCoaches
The Dress Doctor Is In – The New York Times
New York Times journalist, Jennifer Miller, writes about 29-year-old Dawnn Karen, and her theories on fashion psychology. Karen is a brand consultant, therapist and instructor at the Fashion Institute of Technology. While her theories and ideas are fascinating, Karen says, advertising and fashion have too many mess-ups. Miller writes, “She pointed to missteps including H&M using a black child to model its “coolest monkey in the jungle” sweatshirt; Zara’s miniskirt with the alt-right symbol Pepe the Frog; and a Dove skin care campaign that featured a black model who turned into a white one. ‘People are speaking out about all this,’ she said. “That’s why you need a fashion psychologist on your advisory team.” Beyond just advertising, Karen is using fashion psychology to help people to brand themselves. And likewise, brand herself. Miller writes, “‘I deliberately dress down to debunk the notion that a young black girl in sweats is from the hood, or the ghetto, or isn’t smart,’ she said. ‘Students see me, and I give them a whole different idea of what an urban dresser can be.’”
Jennifer Miller
