The Quest for Purpose
Exploring and uncovering Questbook’s brand purpose and platform
If I asked you what your product, company or brand does, you’d likely be able to quickly give me the highlights — we build creative tools for designers, we help travellers find homestays in new cities, etc. But if I asked you why your company does what it does, what would you say? Why did you start this company? Or why do you wake every morning to do the work that you do? Why did you choose to work here as supposed to elsewhere? And of course, the big assumption here is that your reasons aren’t limited to just the obvious monetary benefits. What is your brand’s WHY?
That’s what we set out to explore next for Questbook — what’s our purpose? Or as the brilliant folks at DesignStudio put it simply, what meaningful difference does our brand strive to bring into the world?
Remember, still no logos, no colours, no copy or website. Just a quest (pun intended!) to clarify and articulate the thinking for our brand into an authentic purpose. And we want to also keep in mind that Questbook, as a product, is still evolving. The whole web3 space still is. So, how can we dig deep to define our brand purpose such that it stays true as the product and space, at large, continues to grow and evolve?
Armed with insights from the developer interviews and by now, many conversations with the team, some key themes began to emerge:
- Accessibility: Does the Questbook brand feel relatable and easy to be a part of?
- Self-actualisation: Does the brand make me feel fulfilled?
- Community: Does it give me a sense of togetherness and community?
- Agency: Does it make me feel like I’m in control?
- Aspiration: Does it make me feel inspired?
We started with 4 strategic territories, each that toggled between a few of those values. The questions we were and are trying to answer with these brand platforms are:
- Does this reflect who Questbook is? But more importantly, who does Questbook want to be?
- Does this reinforce the core values that Questbook is trying to champion as a brand?
- Would people understand the image that Questbook projects?
Territory 1: Learn so you can build
Questbook started as a learning platform. The idea behind this territory was to highlight the learning ability in the most functional way possible. Learning so that you can build, not to self-actualise or grow.
The issue with this territory ultimately ended up being that learning is limiting. Questbook is already seen as ‘Edtech for Crypto’ but they’re so much more than that. It’s a community that emphasises learning, yes, but also opportunity and action.
Territory 2: Build what you believe
Through the interviews, we had come to a reasonable conclusion that most developers are functional about their craft. A certain expectation of outcome or sense of problem-solving sits them down to write code and build. Allowing Questbook to become a community where developers could network, connect and figure out what they believed in, from a more philosophical lens was an angle that resonated a lot with the team.
Ultimately, this territory felt almost too aspirational and not functional enough. It requires high amounts of agency and self-actualisation which at the moment, feels too distant from developers’ realities and perhaps, over-ambitious. However, there could be merit in switching up the toggles to explore how this territory might manifest.
Territory 3: Transform yourself
A brand in an ever-changing paradigm like web3 should transform and evolve itself. With ‘Transform yourself’, we were getting closer and closer to what felt right as a brand platform. It was inspiring enough for people to interpret it in different ways, its values ran deep, like with ‘Build what you believe’, and it encouraged learning without being limiting.
The only thing that was missing was the community — one of Questbook’s core brand values. It was important to find a way to capture that sense of collectivism and collaboration.
Territory 4: Unlock the unknown
‘Unlock the unknown’ was the most interesting of the four territories. It tapped into the adventurous nature of developers and Questbook — their need to travel where no man has before. It created a sense of exclusivity and community, a thirst to know more. But it didn’t capture or imply ‘action’. More curious, but less ‘do’.
From here, based on the feedback, we went on to further develop ‘Unlock the unknown’ and create 2 new territories that emerged from capturing important themes from some of the previous territories. This time around, we also tried to explore the brand persona for each of these territories, looking at their:
- Mindset
- Aspirations
- Culture and community
We also tried to add more clarity in the form of what we don’t do for each. Using the magical powers of elimination, we’d be able to better understand the world that each of the strategic territories would create as Questbook.
Territory 5: Let’s build what’s next
Although intended to bring down the self-actualisation of ‘Build what you believe’, ‘Let’s build what’s next’ still did not feel authentic to who we are. As Madhavan put it during our discussion,
There are very few that have the vision to build the future. Even fewer are thought leaders who drive that. That’s not who we want to be. We want to be the doers.
Territory 6: We, the builders
And finally, ‘We, the builders’ captured community, collaboration and bias for action. It also felt like a rallying cry for the developer and builder community. However, what was missing was that sense of wonder that ‘Unlock the unknown’ captured very well.
How might we encapsulate the best of these territories such that the Questbook brand represents curiosity that is channelled into creating lasting impact, together with the community?
More on that, next!
