a presentation we did for Agoria, a network of Belgian industrial suppliers. On branding and strategic design for B2B technology companies

1. Branding and design in
technological B2B companies
How to build brands and use them to generate durable value…
Erik Roscam Abbing MSc Mdm en Christa van Gessel MSc
Agoria/Zilver innovation bv november 18th 2009

2. Today:
Showroom visit 14:00
Introduction 14:20
What are brands and what are they for?14:30
How do you build a useful brand?
Case1: priva
Exercise 1 15:10
Break. 15:40
Branding and strategic design.16:00
Case2: NLISIS
Exercise 2. 16:45
Drinks 18:00

3. introduction

5. We are rooted in industrial design

6. We have designed many many products

7. But we’ve moved to consulting

8. In branding, design and innovation

9. Our clients: b2b and b2c

10. success
design
brand
strategy
Our mission for today

11. What are brands"
and what are they for?

12. What is a brand? The logo? Advertising?

13. That’s just the tip of the iceberg…

14. Logo
Corporate identity
The vision behind that identity
The culture and values behind that vision
The better you define the rest of the iceberg…

15. Unique products
A clear identity
A well defined vision
A strong culture and values
The more the brand will function as a rich resource…

16. Brands are strategic instruments that,
when managed well,
are rich resources
that benefit the health of a company.

17. What are brands for?
>the organisation’s point of view
• They reduce risk
• They enable a price premium
• They help differentiate
• They stimulate social responsibility
• They help leverage from reputation
• They create internal pride and loyalty
• They streamline processes through a shared vision
• They are an asset on the balance sheet
Based on Jean Noel Kapferer

18. What are brands for?
>the customer’s point of view
• They help you recognise and understand a new product
• They help you to identify with a product
• They facilitate choice
• They provide a guarantee of quality
• The help you identify yourself
• They provide continuity
• They provide peace of mind
Based on Jean Noel Kapferer

19. The brand as bridge:
the
brand
Between
and
the internal world
the external world
Make the gap as narrow as possible

20. The brand as lens:
What are brands for?...the customer’s point of view
Make the lens as clear as possible

21. The brand defines the relationship an organisation
aspires to have with its stakeholders

22. A relationship implies:
“I understand what you find valuable, I understand
my role in delivering that value to you, and I will do
my best to perform that role”
Aka ‘the brand promise’

23. But also
“I will develop the products and services that
capture that value and make it accessible to you”
Aka ‘the delivery of the brand promise’

24. Branding is as much about creating a relevant
promise as it is about fulfilling that promise in an
authentic way.
I’ts as much about what you as organisation have
to offer, as it is about what the customer or end-
user values.

25. fulfilment
internal
external
promise

26. How do you build"
a useful brand?

27. Brand usability is the extent to which a brand, as it
is found in an organisation, can be used by those
who need it to do their work.
In our case it will be used by: designers,
developers, researchers and engineers, as a
resource to develop new products and services.

30. Branding is as much about communication as it is
about innovation.
It’s as much part of marketing as it is a part of
R&D, engineering, and design

31. The brand as bridge:
And the innovation function
the
brand
Between the marketing function
Make the gap as narrow as possible

32. Concrete
Authentic
Relevant
Aspirational

33. Building a useful brand: 3 pillars
• Process: how do you build the brand and with whom?
• Content: what’s your brand story? What do you promise?
• Form: in which ways do you capture the brand?

34. Building a brand: 3 pillars
process
content
form
involve
explain
share

35. Building a brand in a technological B2B context
• Empty promises don’t work
• Knowledge of your customer’s context essential
• Also understand your customer’s customer
• Understand the value chain of which you’re a part
• Buyers are human beings, just like you and me

36. Case1
priva

37. Case 1: Priva
objective: uncover latent brand vision and make it explicit
Instruments: brand relationship model, context mapping, team workshops
Results: internal brand vision, brand champion network, approved roll out for entire
organisation (and yes, a new slogan)

38. Our brand relationship model
http://www.branddriveninnovation.com/2009/02/24/new-brand-relationship-model/

39. many sessions with top and middle management

40. Using ‘generative techniques’ (knip en plak werk)

41. And many discussions

42. Then: looking for patterns and structure…

43. Resulting in a booklet, endorsed by the ceo

44. Showing our findings in the form of models and stories

45. Leading to a team of brand champions

46. Exploring the consequences of the new insights for the
organisation, and experimenting with them in a safe
environment

47. Exercise 1:"
exploring the building
of a brand

48. The case: our host LVD
Read the LVD vision first

49. Fill in the why, how and what for LVD and their customer
why:
why:
Why do we do what we do?
Why do they do what they do?
Norms, values, culture
Norms, values, culture
how:
how:
How do we do what we do?
How do they do what they do?
Vision and mission, our way of working
processes, their way of working
what:
what:
What do we do?
What do they do?
The value that we deliver
The value they deliver

50. Work towards a brand promise:
“I understand what you find valuable
I understand my role in delivering that value to you
and I will do my best to perform that role”

51. Break!!

52. Branding and
strategic design

53. You can express your brand through many
touchpoints.
The most important one is the design of your
products.

54. Branding through product design: why?
• of all touchpoints, the product has the most intensive
relationship with users
• of all touchpoints, the product is there the longest time
• products are what you make money with, all the other
touchpoints cost you money
• Except for service design…but that’s a different story.

55. The strategic role of design:
• design connects the unconnected
• design turns the abstract into the concrete

56. The trick is to use design strategically.
That means:
To use design as a set of instruments
That are used to support strategies
that are based on objectives
targeting certain people.

57. Something that helps us think strategically:
P.O.S.T.
People (who)
Objectives (why)
Strategies (how)
Technologies (what)
Forrester research

58. With prof. Ralf Beuker
http://www.flickr.com/photos/zilverpics/3325251867/

59. Building a design strategy: who?
• people:
Who is your target group?
What do they want/need/aspire?
What is the context in which they use you product?
What is their taste?
How can you increase their performance or enrich their expereince

60. Building a design strategy: why?
• objectives:
Why are you using design?
What goals do you want to reach?
What are the expected benefits of using design?
You can only measure design effect if you are clear about its objective
Market share, repeat purchase, user satisfaction, word of mouth, increased
margin, increased turnover, beat competition, enter new markets, introduce
innovation, internal pride etc etc.

61. Building a design strategy: how?
• strategies:
How will you reach your objectives?
What is the role assigned to design in reaching those objectives?
What design instruments, tools and methods will you use?
What (human) resources will you allocate to design?
Will you outsource or not?
How will you brief, manage, benchmark, measure, deliver etc.

62. Building a design strategy: what?
• technologies:
What products and services will you design to support your strategy?
What design aspects will you focus on?
What design disciplines will you focus on?
What is your design language?
What are your design cues?
What do you use to create product family recognition?

63. So: think before you design:
For whom ? Why ? How ? What ?
Let’s now look a bit closer at the ‘what’

64. Branding through product design is often
about conveying meaning through aesthetics
Based on Toni Matti Karjalainen

65. But there’s so much more!!!
How the product is made
How the product looks
What the product does
Interaction with the product
What the product means to the user

66. Our brand design layer model
http://www.branddriveninnovation.com/2008/10/25/design-management-review-article/

67. Example: Océ

68. Building design guidelines
1. Look at competitors: what do they convey and how?
2. Look at your own portfolio: what works and what
doesn’t?
3. Look at examples of ‘customer focused’, experienced,
etc. how is that expressed in design (also in other
industries?
4. Gather images (keep a folder on you desktop)
5. make lots of collages

69. On consistency in product families
1. works well when you develop many products
2. works well when you direct the design (not too customised)
3. Works differently within a category than between categories
4. use all design layers

70. Case 2
nlisis

71. Case 2: NLISIS chromatography
Objective: develop brand vision and design guidelines based on deep understanding of
users and internal stakeholders. Then manage all expressions for the first 2 yrs.
Instruments: generative sessions, lead user sessions, team workshops, project mgt.
Results: brand vision, design guidelines, design management market intro, DME award

72. Internal research: the entrepreneurs, their vision,
strategy and aspiration

73. external research: lead users and their expertise,
annoyances and dreams

74. Building a brand:"
where internal and external meet

75. Brand based "
multidisciplinary design strategy

76. Brand based design guidelines:"
briefed to several agencies

77. The roll out: all disciplines in parallel, all based on
the same vision

78. The reward:"
the Design Management Europe Award 2008

79. Exercise 2
brand design strategy in practice:
Making brand design guidelines

80. The case: LVD

81. Three groups:
1. form:
What do you think LVD aesthetics should be?
Look at the main form but also at details, colour, proportions
2. interaction:
What do you think LVD ergonomics should be?
How do you operate the machine, how do you design the interaction?
both 2d and 3d
3. materials and construction:
What do you think LVD material and construction should be?
Look at combinations, details, structure

82. Tips:
1. your discussion is more important than the result:
write conclusions and thoughts next to your collage or in it!
don’t try to make it look too nice, it’s about the process!
look for categories
2. pretend LVD doesn’t have a design language yet:
see yourselves as design consultants who start on a new job
start from scratch: what should they do, given their vision and values?
3. design is about solving problems and creating value:
especially for the interaction group: be creative!
think some years ahead as well.

83. Conclusions 1:
A well considered brand design gives you
• A focused and relatively cheap way to build a brand
• A guide that facilitates choice
• Confidence
• Differentiation
• Recognisability
• Trust

84. Conclusions 2:
• From strategy to brand to design guidelines is
possible
• It requires careful steps, some patience and
involvement
• And it requires design expertise!
• There is a general process but every situation is
unique
• This is how we did it in the NLISIS case:

89. Thank you!!!
erik@zilverinnovation.com
christa@zilverinnovation.com
www.zilverinnovation.com
www.branddriveninnovation.com