Who’s more important for a Brand – The creative guy or the mathematician
The world as we know it today could not have been created without the ones who challenged the status quo. For those who decided to think differently and had the courage to ask tough questions. It’s the same with successful brands, they continuously challenge and question to create true pieces of art that are built on mathematical models of perfection.
More than a decade ago, Apple saved a dying music industry with what was then called iTunes Music. Crafted by content and distributed by technology it just goes to show how the math men and the mad men came together to create a product that saved an entire industry threatened by Napster and piracy. The iPod backed by the first unbundled music service created a new marketplace for content.
A very similar battle is raging today with e-commerce firms trying to outplay each other in the Indian market. Who will win, is only something that time will tell. But two of the biggest players have their own strengths.
Amazon the global leader has a strong team that continuously builds the best algorithms, the smartest methodologies to find the best customers and show them products they are most likely to buy. However, they still lack a consistent brand tone of voice. For the end consumer, Amazon stands for an international brand. And like all international brands, we Indians love the ones created in the USA. But we don’t have that inherent connect.
Flipkart on the other hand touches the heart with creatives that people love. From the kids campaign to the Latest one #EveryoneonFlipkart , they have made promises and stuck to them. Thus, from a consumer POV Flipkart stands for trust.
While Flipkart definitely seems to be more popular from a Google search perspective.
Amazon beats it purely from a traffic perspective.
May the best brand win. But for now none of the competitors have a clear edge over the other. While one has the mathematicians, the other wins with pure creative genius.
The company that can get data scientists to work with the creative teams is the one that will surely take a leap that few will be able to catch up with.
From experience, I can say this is way easier said than done and depends a lot on who calls the shots. You need a team of equals and not parallels here. Respect is more important than education or experience.
The truth is there is no winning formula. But the only way to find what is right for you, is to continously challenge the mad men and the math men to work together. The day they do start to enjoy each other’s company, that day will be marked in history or as they say will be the day your “hockey stick” curve will start to build.
