1 + 1 = 3
I’m always meeting new people, if only to hear new perspectives.
Without fail, I come away from those conversations with an intriguing new thought or two. I always write them down and this one popped up when prepping for a pitch recently.
“When you work in pairs, it’s the third person in the room who comes up with the idea.”
It’s a sentiment that immediately struck me because it’s such a distinctive expression of what it means to collaborate – the inherent combination of generosity and fearlessness that invites a catalytic, almost alchemical effect.
(As a side note, it’s no wonder that Rory Sutherland’s wonderfully-titled book Alchemy includes the equally counterintuitive notion that ‘the opposite of a good idea can also be a good idea’).
New people. New perspectives. New ideas.
Random rules. Planned spontaneity. Momentous serendipity.
What’s more, collaboration not only amplifies creativity but it also binds collaborators to the outcome. Because when you help create something, it means more to you.
So, next time you need to crack a problem or create a solution, think about this…
Who will be your +1?
Building brands for humans and robots
It was only last month that I wrote about the change in perspective that you gain when you ‘try AI before you buy’.
Building on that same theme, if only by coincidence, our Sam wrote this latest op-ed for The Australian on the emergence of a new kind of audience, namely the robot LLMs.
Only a few paragraphs into reading Sam’s first draft, I’d already logged this as one of my fave reads of the year so far, if only for how his op-ed highlights the inherent difference in perspectives when searching for information or looking to find something.
Humans want meaning. Machines want structure.
Humans are looking for distinctiveness. Machines reward clarity.
Humans forgive ambiguity. Machines punish it.
In a world where we need to build brands for both, what might that mean in practical terms?
It’s obvious there is now a commercial imperative to create identities that work hard in this world in which robot LLMs exist, and that means creating ‘distinctive assets’ for a brand’s visual identity. But it also makes it all the more important to look beyond those visual assets, and and that means augmenting them with ‘brand experience’ and ‘brand language’ too.
It’s the combination that gives your brand the versatility it needs to be clear and legible to robot LLMs, as well as distinctive and emotional to humans. In other words, meaningful and memorable, whichever way your brand gets translated.
When technology meets trust
Later this week, a fintech clients of ours will be hosting the internal launch of their revitalised brand – strategy, identity, experience.
As part of the launch, our Victoria will be paving the way by presenting the latest data and insights shaping the business landscape, courtesy of the FutureBrand Index. Alongside the highlights showcasing the value of consistency, distinctiveness and more, it’s a timely reminder of this nugget too:
As the data reveals, the strongest financial services brands are not simply keeping pace with technological change, they’re beating the tech giants at their own game: ‘innovation’ for the financial services sector is up by 44% against tech’s 6%.
As I’ve written before, it comes down to one word.
Trust.
It’s become the linchpin for responsible innovation: new technologies are met with customer enthusiasm rather than apprehension and so lead to sustainable growth.
The difference is that the strongest financial services brands aren’t pursuing disruption at all costs but rather shaping progress purposefully and responsibly. This demonstrates that you don’t need to ‘move fast and break things’ in order to drive digital transformation. With trust as their competitive edge, financial services brands now have the permission to innovate boldly in ways that deliver real value for customers.
Joining the dots
Names are very much top of mind for a couple of client projects just now – long lists, collections of letters, some not even words (yet), let alone names.
It’s an involved process, it can also feel abstract at times. But just the other week, as I sat on the tarmac inside a brand name we helped create, I was reminded of just how tangible a name can become.
Link Airways.
It might not happen by magic overnight, but with effort over time names become tangible experiences as a result of strategy becoming reality – something you can see and hear, touch and feel.
From the personal welcome with a friendly smile to the efficient point-to-point flight route and then the farewell message delivered by the captain stood at the front of the cabin, the customer experience was exactly as I recalled from Link Airways’ brand strategy.
After all, a brand is what a brand does, and Link Airways does it very well.
That’s it for this month of news, views and insights.
For me, the best thing about this email newsletter format is that you can simply reply if you have questions or comments. Please feel free to do so, I’m always happy to follow-up with more detail on any of the stories I share, especially if that can help you build your own brand and business. Hit ‘Reply’, speak soon.
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