Author: Chris Heile

Our View

For a brand to lead, it must inspire

For a brand to lead, it must inspire In previous chapters, we’ve discussed the power of making connections through collaboration: connecting people inside an organization with each other, connecting the views of leadership with the beliefs of employees and connecting the mission of an organization with the beliefs and passions of their audiences. This collaboration is a powerful organizational and marketing force. But as much as the concept of a collaborative brand is differentiating, it is not enough to simply align people. The real power of a collaborative brand is the opportunity to work together to further a common interest, to solve shared problems, and...
Posted by Chris Heile
Our View

Getting Collaborative Right

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] How to steer your brand through marketing’s most pressing paradigm shift. Most companies invest a great deal of time, money and effort into understanding everything that’s influencing their company from the outside: the market, competitors, customers, trends, and insights. But they often overlook questions about themselves: What is the culture of their own organization? What are the ethics and ambitions of their people—from leadership to middle management and the front lines? What inspires them, makes them proud of what they do, and what stands in the way of them contributing more? These questions are important because your culture, your people, your processes are your...
Posted by Chris Heile
Our View

The most powerful brands are building a new kind of relationship with customers

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] The most powerful brands are building a new kind of relationship with customers. When you think about brands in your life that you love, you see companies that are pursuing the same interests you care about. If you look at your circle of friends, your closest colleagues at work, the people you associate with in your neighborhood, you’ll see something you may not expect: yourself. We are drawn to people who think like us, act like us, have the same interests as us because it helps create a sense of confidence in ourselves and our world. This basic human response is not just true...
Posted by Chris Heile
Branding Design

A time to refocus. How business can thrive in the shutdown.

Even though it’s been several months, most businesses and industries are still in some level of shock from the shutdown. It may not always feel like it, because within many of these companies, people are still working, maybe differently, maybe remotely, maybe in smaller numbers, but the lights are still on and people are continuing to do what they do. But the fact is many organizations are operating in a sort of limbo, not enough demand to support their past infrastructure, and not enough confidence to invest in the future. So we sit. And wait. And worry about what the future will bring while revenues...
Posted by Chris Heile
Branding

Is data the solution or the problem?

There’s little question that technology has changed the entire dynamic of the marketing industry. The influx of data, along with behavioral retargeting, has allowed brands to communicate a desired message to a desired audience with extreme precision. What isn’t so clear is the impact these changes have had on the relationship between brands and their consumers. In fact, what once looked like the opening of the floodgate of opportunity is actually leading to the rapid erosion of brand value. The branding industry has evolved from “target marketing” to what essentially qualifies as high-level engineering. This should mean that brands are more relevant and therefore more...
Posted by Chris Heile
Uncategorized

Building Collaborative Brands:

Back in 2006, two fisherman brothers is Austin, Texas were frustrated with how quickly ice melted in their coolers during a long day on the lake. They decided to do something about it, and they created a product that revolutionized an entire industry. The company came to be known as Yeti, and in 2016 alone they increased their market value by over 500%. This is a story we’ve heard countless times before. Reed Hastings hated paying late fees on video rentals, and went on to found Netflix, which revolutionized the video rental business. Brian Chesky and Joe Gebbia could not afford the rent for their...
Posted by Chris Heile
Branding

Beware the Groundhog’s Shadow:

Rarely does a single movie change the lexicon of the American culture. But Bill Murray’s popular ’90s film gave an entirely new meaning to the term Groundhog Day. The drudgery of repeating the same events over and over again is an unhappy warning to people who find themselves caught in an endless loop of life. In the movie, Groundhog Day is portrayed as a sort of hell. And it is. But nowhere are the prospects of Groundhog Day more apparent than in marketing and advertising. For decades, our industry was built on the sturdy rock of consistency and familiarity. We built brands that lasted, icons that endured. Consistency of product and experience was the secret...
Posted by Chris Heile

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