Good Brands Reinforce Themselves
We’re all communicators here and we all know that a brand is way more than just a logo and some colors. A brand is an ethos. A brand is a feeling. A brand is the connective tissue between the mind of the consumer and the heart of the business. And like all tissue, it atrophies if it’s not being flexed, but it grows with some dedicated work. So let’s hit the gym and take some examples from the brands that already do heavy lifting.
Users Love this One Simple Sound: Netflix
There’s a great episode of the podcast 20,000 Hertz that tells the story of Netflix’s Tudum! sound better than I could, but I bet just reading that sentence made you play the sound in your head. I’d even bet that you’re thinking about all the hours you’ve spent watching Love is Blind or (my fave) The Circle and wondering if a new season or episode has dropped.
Through a simple audio signature, Netflix has connected their entire platform and the experiences we have on it together. It’s something so simple and yet so well executed that even the phoneticization can transport you to your couch with your favorite binge-watching snacks.
Not that every brand needs an audio signature, but every brand should strive to understand how to make users/customers remember them without having to say the name or see the logo.
Take On VW
This commercial is easily my favorite ad spot of all time. From the nearly perfect homage to the A-Ha music video and high note of Take on Me to the cameo of Coach Beard as the villain, this spot fits right into VW’s legacy of creating great ads and I cannot hear that song without thinking of the Jetta.
Effective brand building often takes cultural touchpoints and repurposes them in ways that both replicate the original but also gives it new meaning. This idea is what Richard Dawkins would call a meme, and we’re all here for the memes.
We don’t think every brand should jump on the “meme train”, but they should be looking for opportunities to engage with the larger culture and find ways to become part of the conversation instead, as they often try, to make the conversation about them.
Steak-umm Goes Goblin Mode
If you haven’t ever read the Twitter (we’re not calling it ‘X’) account from Steak-umm, a frozen food company, you’re missing out on a postmodernist masterpiece.
They actively engage in rants on subjects ranging from late stage capitalism to the need to listen to experts and avoid conspiracy theories. Just so we’re all clear about this, a relatively minor frozen steak company has some of the most incisive analysis of the modern world.
Believe me when I say that when the world has problems, I (a decade long vegetarian) turn to Steak-umm for their takes. By trusting their social media managers, they have grown a dedicated following that has managed to get them tons of earned media and grow a huge following.
How Can Your Brand Do It?
Any ad agency or marketer who tells you that this is easy is a liar. There’s not a simple solution to find the “thing” (or things) that can take your brand into the minds of the consumer. But we do think there are a couple of ingredients every brand needs: curiosity and the willingness to take a risk and to fail.
We are nothing if not curious and while we may be cautious we look for opportunities to take calculated risks to give our partners a chance to grow their brand’s relationship with their customers
