This document summarizes a presentation about digital marketing and brand storytelling. It discusses the history and evolution of brands, including definitions from marketing experts. It also covers the concepts of brand positioning, purpose, experiences, culture and storytelling. Specifically, it explores how brands can develop a shared purpose and culture with stakeholders. A major section discusses the science behind storytelling and how brands can use narrative and video content in their marketing. It provides examples of successful brand stories and videos that drove engagement. Finally, it addresses how content, media and marketing have evolved in the digital age.
4. WHAT IS A BRAND?
“The intangible sum of a product’s attributes: its name, packaging, and price, its
history, its reputation, and the way it’s advertised.”
-- David Ogilvy (Founder, Ogilvy & Mather), 1985
“The set of expectations, memories, stories and relationships that, taken
together, account for a consumer’s decision to choose one product or service
over another.”
-- Seth Godin (Marketer & Writer), 2010
”A name, term, design, symbol, or any other feature that identifies one seller's
good or service as distinct from those of other sellers."
-- The American Marketing Association, 2016
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5. ORIGINS OF BRAND
Brand (the verb). As in “to brand”.
Old English, of Germanic origin; related to German Brand, also to burn . The
word originally meant ‘burning’ or ‘a piece of burning or smoldering wood’; the
verb sense ‘mark permanently with a hot iron’ dates from late Middle English.
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7. ORIGINS OF BRAND
Brand (the noun). As in “brand mark”.
The noun sense ‘mark of ownership made by branding,’ arose in the mid 17th
century.
Brand mark is a better term, and in fact, in many other languages brand is
translated to marke (German), marca (Spanish), marka (Croatian), marque
(French), markë (Albanian), марка (Byelorussian).
A brand mark is a name, term, symbol, or design intended to identify the
product of one company, and to diferentiate it from those of competitors.
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11. EVOLUTION OF BRAND
Brand (the noun). As in “brand perception”.
How the brand is perceived (or “positioned”) in the hearts and minds of customers.
“Positioning” is an articulation of the unique space an organization wishes to
capture in the hearts and minds of its customers, supported by the rational,
emotional and social benefits that the organization (and its products and services)
provide to its customers.
“Positioning starts with a product. A piece of merchandise, a service, a company, an
institution, or even a person…But positioning is not what you do to a product.
Positioning is what you do to the mind of the prospect.”
-- Al Ries and Jack Trout,1972
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12. IT STARTS WITH A POSITIONING STATEMENT
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[emotional/rational benefit promise]THAT…
[support/reasons to believe]
BECAUSE/
THROUGH…
[target audience],
is the [point of difference/value proposition]
FOR/TO…
[BRAND/
PRODUCT]…
13. POSITIONING STATEMENT: IPOD
13
puts your music in your pocket and gives you the freedom to
express your unique style,
THAT…
iPod provides wherever/whenever access to your music in a
sleek, contemporary, compact design.
BECAUSE…
creative dreamers,
is the cool MP3 player/fashion accessory
TO…
iPOD…
15. POSITIONING STATEMENT: UNICEF
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the authority, knowledge and resources to get things done.WITH…
people who want to make a lasting difference,
is the champion of rights for all the world’s children
FOR…
UNICEF…
16. POSITIONING STATEMENT: INTERCEPT PHARMACEUTICALS
16
THAT…
THROUGH…
FOR…
INTERCEPT…
is rejuvenating therapeutic options to extend life and transplant
free survival
applying its proprietary agonist compounds to unique
therapeutic targets.
patients with systemic, chronic liver diseases,
is the determined team
19. SARAH KAVANAGH VS. GATORADE
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Sarah Kavanagh, 15, of Hattiesburg,
Miss., started an online petition to
have BVO ingredient, perceived to be
a ‘flame retardant’ removed from
Gatorade. Gained >200K supporters.
20. SO, THE WORLD CHANGED
OLD WORLD
• One-way
• Brand is owned
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NEW WORLD
• Two-way
• Brand is shared
21. MODERN LEXICON
Brand Mark (noun)
A brand mark is a name, term, symbol, or design intended to identify the
product of one company, and to differentiate it from those of competitors.
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27. 27
The brand’s passion and
reason for being. The shared
contribution to its community
The shared values, beliefs
and behaviors of the brand
and its stakeholders
PURPOSE
EXPERIENCE CULTURE
The touch points,
interactions and
moments shared
between the brand
and its stakeholders
35. STORYTELLING: THE SCIENCE BEHIND THE ART
• Neuroeconomist, Paul Zak’s research
discovered “The Moral Molecule”, and
that
• Storytelling enables us to direct human
behavior by changing brain chemistry
through well-structured narratives
Tension synthesizes Cortisol
(focuses our attention)
+
Narrative synthesizes Oxytocin
(sense of empathy)
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Act 3
CLIMAX
(turning point)
Act 2
COMPLICATION
(rising action)
Act 1
EXPOSITION
(inciting moment)
Act 4
REVERSAL
(falling action)
Act 5
DENOUEMENT
(moment of release)
FREYTAG’S PYRAMID
A simple storytelling structure that has worked for thousands of years
36. 36
“The Man Who Walked Around The World” (2009)
6:27 commercial made by customers
38. 38
“If business is about service to others, then business
itself is a virtue. You’re engaging in a virtuous activity
by serving the needs of somebody else. When you do
that, you’re serving the needs of your employees, of
your customers, you will induce oxytocin release and
they will want to reciprocate…”
-- Paul Zak
39. 39
“…In the old model: greed is good, the management
technique is lead with fear. In the new model: empower
individuals to be the best that they can be in an
organization with purpose, you’re going to lead with
love.”
-- Paul Zak
46. THE VALUE OF CREATIVE CAMPAIGNS
The data tell us…
1. Creatively awarded campaigns are 12x more efficient
2. The greater level of creativity, the greater level of effectiveness
3. Creative campaigns are more reliable investments
4. Increasing the emotional response to a brand reduces its price sensitivity
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48. HOW CONTENT EVOLVED ONLINE
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Content moved from long-form copy to short-
form, visual mix of original and curated
49. WHAT DRIVES CONTENT CONSUMPTION
49
QUALITY
What drives publisher stickiness
FRESH RELEVANTTRUSTED AUTHENTIC
UNIQUE
VALUED
ORIGINAL
CONTENT
1 “Content: What Drives Consumption? – AOL, 2010
50. WHAT DRIVES CONTENT SHARING
50
RELATIONSHIPSSELF-IMAGE
SELF-
FULFILLMENT
ENTERTAINMENT ADVOCACY
To grow and nourish
our relationships
To define ourselves to
others
To bring valuable &
entertaining content
to others
To add value to their
relationships
To get the word out
about causes or
brands
Motivators for sharing
*”Psychology of Sharing” – NYT, 2011
51. WHY VIDEO?
51
65% of people are
visual learners
YouTube is the 2nd
largest search
engine behind
Google
Facebook users
watch 8 billion
video views per
day
Snapchat
users watch >8
billion
video views per
day
58. MEDIA IS NOW SYNDICATED
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“Huffington Post and Flipboard often get more traffic from Times journalism than we do.”
– Jill Abramson, former Executive Director, New York Times, 2014
59. WHAT DOES SYNDICATED MEAN?
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BRAND
.COM
HOMEPAGE NEWSROOM
E-COMM
SOCIAL
FACEBOOK LINKEDINTWITTER
SNAPCHAT
VINE PERISCOPEINSTAGRAM
OTHER
E-MAIL
APPS
FLIPBOARD PAPER.LI iOS ANDROID
TRADITIONAL
TV RADIO PRINT
OUTDOORONLINE
INFLUENCERS
10-year growth study of 50,000 brands
Reveals that the 50 highest-performing businesses are the ones driven by brand ideals
“The Stengel 50” grew three times faster than their competitors
An investment in “The Stengel 50” would have been 400 percent more profitable than an investment in the S&P 500.
Source:
http://www.jimstengel.com/grow/research-validation/
10-year growth study of 50,000 brands
Reveals that the 50 highest-performing businesses are the ones driven by brand ideals
“The Stengel 50” grew three times faster than their competitors
An investment in “The Stengel 50” would have been 400 percent more profitable than an investment in the S&P 500.
Source:
http://www.jimstengel.com/grow/research-validation/
10-year growth study of 50,000 brands
Reveals that the 50 highest-performing businesses are the ones driven by brand ideals
“The Stengel 50” grew three times faster than their competitors
An investment in “The Stengel 50” would have been 400 percent more profitable than an investment in the S&P 500.
Source:
http://www.jimstengel.com/grow/research-validation/
10-year growth study of 50,000 brands
Reveals that the 50 highest-performing businesses are the ones driven by brand ideals
“The Stengel 50” grew three times faster than their competitors
An investment in “The Stengel 50” would have been 400 percent more profitable than an investment in the S&P 500.
Source:
http://www.jimstengel.com/grow/research-validation/
10-year growth study of 50,000 brands
Reveals that the 50 highest-performing businesses are the ones driven by brand ideals
“The Stengel 50” grew three times faster than their competitors
An investment in “The Stengel 50” would have been 400 percent more profitable than an investment in the S&P 500.
Source:
http://www.jimstengel.com/grow/research-validation/
10-year growth study of 50,000 brands
Reveals that the 50 highest-performing businesses are the ones driven by brand ideals
“The Stengel 50” grew three times faster than their competitors
An investment in “The Stengel 50” would have been 400 percent more profitable than an investment in the S&P 500.
Source:
http://www.jimstengel.com/grow/research-validation/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q1a7tiA1Qzo
Through his research, neuroeconomist, Paul Zak, discovered what he dubs “The Moral Molecule”
Oxytocin is a neurochemical that is key to signaling trust and invoking a sense of empathy
Produced when we are trusted or shown a kindness
Motivates cooperation with others by
Enhancing the sense of empathy – our ability to experience others’ emotions
Research found that character-driven stories consistently cause oxytocin synthesis, and
The amount of oxytocin released by the brain predicted how much people were willing to help others (e.g. donating money to a charity associated with the narrative)
So, is it any wonder why the Ice Bucket Challenge went viral?
Research found that
In order to motivate a desire to help others, a story must first sustain attention – an increasingly scarce resource in the brain – by developing tension during the narrative
If that tension resonates strongly enough with the audience, then they will come to share the emotions of the characters in the story, and, after the story ends, likely to continue mimicking the feelings and behaviors of those characters
This explains your feelings of dominance after you watch James Bond save the world, or your desire to work out after watching the Spartans fight in the movie 300
Business implications
Enables better recall of key points in a presentation or speech
People are substantially more motivated by their organization’s transcendent purpose (how it improves lives) than by its transactional purpose (how it sells goods and services)
The former is effectively communicated through stories
Sources
“Why Your Brain Loves Good Storytelling” – written by Paul J. Zak, published by Harvard Business Review (October, 28, 2014) http://bit.ly/1yso8wD
https://vimeo.com/52386084
Sources
Big Think Interview with Paul Zak http://bit.ly/1rFK2H3
“…So, if you lead with love, then you have this oxytocin environment that will motivate people going beyond exceeding expectations leading to delighting the customer, delighting the people around me. And, delight is what we really want from a customer experience.”
Sources
Big Think Interview with Paul Zak http://bit.ly/1rFK2H3
https://vimeo.com/79295049
The data tell us…
Creatively awarded campaigns are 12x more efficient, and become more so over time
The greater level of creativity, the greater level of effectiveness
Highly creative campaigns generate buzz, which correlates strongly with effectiveness
Creative campaigns are more reliable investments
It is in the power of emotional response that brands really make huge progress
Increasing the emotional response to a brand reduces its price sensitivity
Brands should spend more time getting the brand thinking right before rushing into communications
Creativity is not merely converting an audience, but actually creating one
Energize lots of people to think about the nature of the brand
Sources
The Link Between Creativity and Effectiveness – Peter Field (IPA Databank, The Gunn Report, ThinkBox, 2010) (www.ipaeffectivenessawards.co.uk)
Virgin Atlantic's response to the 2008 recession. In a time when Virgin Atlantic's main competitor, British Airways, was cutting back on marketing spend, Virgin Atlantic increased its marketing spend by 10%, investing in a new advertising campaign to celebrate its 25th birthday. This campaign alone is estimated to have driven 20% of revenue during the period in which the campaign was running with a return on investment of £10.58 for every £1 spent on the campaign. British Airways, which cut back on marketing expenses during this period, reported a £400M operating loss, while Virgin Atlantic reported a £68M operating profit.