Holistic Tech Companies On The Rise
Five must-dos to create a winning brand for the Information Economy
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There was a time when tech products were all about facts and features: Storage capacity, download speed, screen sizes, anything with a numeric value that could be used by marketing people to tell consumers: We are better than our competition. Well, not anymore. It actually changed a long time ago. Ever since Steve Jobs introduced a new computer with “Think Different”, the wall between engineers on one side, and brand and marketing people on the other, came crumbling down. Still, many entrepreneurs present their products as if it's 1984.
Flash forward. What makes a winning brand today? Certainly not product features alone. Or a shiny logo or a nifty website. There are other — and quite powerful – factors in play that define who’s a commodity selling over price, and who’s a beloved brand with millions of followers. The difference is a comprehensive and holistic brand experience. It’s how your brand behaves inside and outside your organization, and how it is perceived not only rationally but also deep down on the emotional level.
Holistic branding drives the analytic process that defines a compelling brand message, while marketing executes the strategy. This is how organizational change takes place. When done correctly it’s a powerful, galvanizing and transformational process that sets the course for measurable business gains.
In the bestselling book, The Turning Point, the physicist and author Fritjof Capra describes those interactions as Systems:
“The systems view looks at the world in terms of relationships and integration. Systems are integrated wholes whose properties cannot be reduced to those of smaller units. Instead of concentrating on basic building blocks or basic substances, the systems approach emphasizes basic principles of organization. Every organism- from the smallest bacterium through the wide range or plants and animals to humans is an integrated whole and thus a living system. …But systems are not confined to individual organisms and their parts. The same aspects of wholeness are exhibited by social systems- such as an anthill, a beehive, or a human family- and by ecosystems that consist of a variety of organisms and inanimate matter in mutual interaction. What is preserved in a wilderness area is not individual trees or organisms but a complex web of relationships between them. All these natural systems are wholes whose specific structures arise from the interactions and interdependence of their parts. The activity of systems involves a process known as transaction- the simultaneous and mutually interdependent interaction between multiple components. - Fritjof Capra, The Turning Point
So, how do you know if you’re organization fully understands and embraces a holistic brand experience? Here are 5 must-haves to creating a comprehensive brand environment and transforming your organization:
Creating a Holistic Brand Experience
1. The first law of Holistic Branding: Don’t just start with the logo. First, find your unique voice and story, unveil the “why” and not just the “what” and ‘how”. Why did you start the company? What made you launch that product? People buy what a product stands for, not what it does. Tell your story in powerful ways so it anchors itself on the emotional benefit scale.
2. Let it grow wings. You can’t buy your way to success. Own a compelling story and send it out. Let it fly. Let your constituents pick your brand story and articulate it in their own voice. Give your customers the content to tell your story in the context of their own. It will turn them into brand ambassadors. Word of mouth is still the most powerful way of communication.
3. Unite Branding, Marketing, and Sales. Break down those silos. Lead with your vision and demonstrate how your brand can engage your customers while arming your sales partners with the narrative to influence the conversation.
4. Align your troops. Beyond marketing and sales, engage everyone who directly and indirectly impacts your brand experience. Everyone from product development to operations and customer service play their part in your brand story. Help them understand the importance of their behavior and how it delivers on the team’s brand promise to all constituents, including vendors, partners, brand ambassadors and all those who join you on your journey.
5. Plan for the long run. Plan for the long run. Holistic branding is a marathon, not a sprint. Create a 3, 5 or 10-year master plan with goals and milestones. Write it on the wall! That way everybody will know where the train is heading. This will also arm you to engage all constituents who influence your brand experience including the media, financial community, as well as current and future employees and candidates to help you win the battle for customers and talent.
“Branding adds spirit and a soul to what would otherwise be a robotic, automated, generic price-value proposition. If branding is ultimately about the creation of human meaning, it follows logically that it is the humans who must ultimately provide it.” — David Aaker
Holistic brands optimize every dollar and asset, to deliver an authentic, powerful and transformational brand experience. It’s an exciting time to launch a tech brand and — done right — watch it grow and turn into a global powerhouse. Enjoy the journey.
This article is an excerpt from “The Million Dollar Brand — Building A Million Dollar Brand For The Information Economy. A Step-by-Step Manual.” By Marc Posch, Creative Director, and Brand Consultant. To order click here
Opus Brand Consult Brand, Los Angeles, Munich, Paris. A team of creatives, thinkers, and developers. We help emerging tech and manufacturing companies to disrupt, stand out and grow. With experience, deep industry expertise and all the collaborators to make it happen.
Contact +1.213.446.7986. Or visit opusbrandconsult.com. Thank you.
