Brands And Digital Culture: It
Doesn’t Have To Suck Washington University Olin School Of Business ‘Brands And Social Networks’ Marketing Seminar February 24th, 2011 1

Hello, I’m Avin. I’m an
Account Planner. 2

Simply said, I try to
serve as a guide for brand and agency teams, navigating an always changing landscape. 3

I help make connections that
enable people and brands to create stories together. 4

Spanning causes, retail, automotive, CPG,
and financial. 5

A few things I’ve learned:
It’s not easy. Or free. Or turnkey. Or an intern’s job. Or a reason to freak out. Or a task to push to a silo-d ‘digital’ team. 6

Source: David Armano, Logic And
Emotion Dec 2010 7

My hope for todays discussion:
Provide some actionable lessons + ideas that you can implement for your brands. 8

5 things to consider for
your approach. Being a social brand is about more than media. Complexity is a marketers best friend. Stop worrying about ‘digital’ vs ‘traditional’. Rethinking the role of film. Mobile lifestyles, not just mobile devices. 9

5 things to consider for
your approach. 3 Being a social brand is about more than media. Complexity is a marketers best friend. Stop worrying about ‘digital’ vs ‘traditional’. Rethinking the role of film. Mobile lifestyles, not just mobile devices. 10

5 things to consider for
your approach. 3 Being a social brand is about more than media. Complexity is a marketers best friend. Stop worrying about ‘digital’ vs ‘traditional’. Rethinking the role of film. Mobile lifestyles, not just mobile devices. 11

We’ve been obsessing over platforms,
rather than focusing on the underlying behaviors. Pre 2005 2006 - 2007 2008 - Present 2011 - ? 12

It’s a natural reaction to
technological disruption. 13

Technology changes, but it’s still
about people connecting and sharing with other people. 14

“Communications tools don’t become socially
interesting until they become technologically boring.” - Clay Shirky, Author And Futurist 15

A key difference: being a
social brand, vs using social media. VS 16

17

Reinventing a dusty brand in
a low-interest category. 18

What most people don’t realize
is they spent years testing out different ideas, and refining. 2007 2008 2008 2009 Strange yet intriguing main characters, perfect comedic timing, odd situational humor Source: Bud Caddell “The Art Of Repetition And Recombinance” Aug 6th 2010 19

Then they found the perfect
person. The man your man...well, you know the rest. 20

An inherently social idea easily
lent itself to transmedia storytelling. 21

22

23

After that much media attention,
and months passed, the idea still draws people in. Over 3.5 million views in the first week, and that doesn’t even include millions more on broadcast tv Source: AdAge February 2011 24

“It’s one of the reasons
anyone buys anything; not just to own a product, but to become a part of the story.” - Jay-Z, Decoded 25

Implications. Technology comes and goes-
don’t get caught in the technolust trap. Just because a platform exists, doesn’t mean it’s right for your brand/product/goals. Never underestimate how much you can learn by listening to what people expect from you. 26

5 things to consider for
your approach. 3 Being a social brand is about more than media. Complexity is a marketers best friend. Stop worrying about ‘digital’ vs ‘traditional’. Rethinking the role of film. Mobile lifestyles, not just mobile devices. 27

Marketing, as marketers envision it.
Advertising Retail Direct Social Web Marketing The Brand Promotions/ Events POS Digital Experience 28

Marketing, as people experience it.
My Needs My Desires Role For Brands That Bridge Intersecting Realities 29

Things Real People Don’t Say
About Advertising 30

Truth is, people don’t really
care whether your ideas are digital or traditional. 31

Just make it useful, stupid!
By the Summer of 2010, over 35% of all USAA customer checks were processed via the banks mobile app. Source: Netbanker and Banking.com July 2010 32

Digital culture is no longer
just geek culture. Source: FastCompany Jan 2011 Feature 33

34

35

Strategy: force reappraisal of savings
culture among young Americans. Challenges: • Facing the worst economic recession in a generation. • A culture already inclined to spend over save. • Intense distrust and even hatred for the financial world (justifiably so). • Despite knowing a change was needed in their finances, most were paralyzed with fear. 36

Put savings into a familiar
context. 37

Rather than run ads talking
about savings, it showed people the tangible rewards. 38

“From saying things at people,
to doing things with and for people.” - Gareth Kay, Director Of Brand Strategy Goodby, Silverstein and Partners 39

Implications. Great ideas don’t have
clear distinctions between ‘online’ and ‘offline’ elements. Aside from the geek contingent, simpler is almost always better. Focus on platforms that allow for fast iteration, refinement, and relaunch. 40

41

5 things to consider for
your approach. 3 Being a social brand is about more than media. Complexity is a marketers best friend. Stop worrying about ‘digital’ vs ‘traditional’. Rethinking the role of film. Mobile lifestyles, not just mobile devices. 42

43

6 out of 10 people
now own a DVR (or other time-shifting device). - Comcast Corporation Research August 2010 Source: MSNBC Today Show 8/17/2010 44

45

And yet...
46

Source: MediaPost Dec 2010
47

48

49

50

Film itself isn’t in question,
but when, where, and how it can be experienced has changed. Source: Morgan Stanley State Of The Internet Nov 2010 51

52

53

Strategy: get teens to take
action by highlighting the disrespectful behavior of Big Tobacco. Challenges: • Limited paid media budget + timeframe. • Highly sensitive legal issues. • Toxic cultural and political environment dominated mass media. • Perception among teens that tobacco is a ‘lesser evil’. Source: Arnold + American Legacy Foundation Strategy Development Summer 2010 54

Film was a crucial way
to start a dialogue. Product Innovation Shards Of Glass Announcement Company Recall 55

Deeper meaning came through robust
activity across all Truth social platforms. Let people discuss the Provoke and incite action Content + entertainment resource issue together 56

Implications. Technology has liberated film-
identify the ideal role for your initiatives. Contrary to conventional wisdom, shorter is not always better. People don’t care about production value and perfect editing- just get it made, and get it out. 57

Let’s take a breather. In
summary: Being a social brand is about more than media. Complexity is a marketers best friend. Stop worrying about ‘digital’ vs ‘traditional’. Rethinking the role of film. Mobile is more than just ‘mobile’. 58

Overtime session. Being a social
brand is about more than media. Complexity is a marketers best friend. Stop worrying about ‘digital’ vs ‘traditional’. Rethinking the role of film. Mobile lifestyles, not just mobile devices. 59

Problem: brands haven’t let go
of an outdated model for how people make decisions. Source: Forrester Technographics 2008 60

61

Constant technological shifts have enabled
a more complex and non-linear process. 62

Our digital world is full
of depth and nuance. From everyday distractions... ...to enabling true cultural movements 63

Shared Language Advertise Habits Specials
Range And Formation Akeelah And Options The Bee Ordering Barista Better Coffee System Culture Mission Post-digital era brands Used Starbucks Brand can be complex too. Grounds Experience Sofas And For Gardners Ambience Social Responsibility Fair Trade Africa Hearmusic PRODUCT Coffee Connection Jazz Label (RED) Partnership Cause Music Hearmusic Publicity Cultural Cafes In-Store Connection In-Store Burn Your Performance Own And Art Compilation Album Source: John Grant, Brand Manifesto 2008 64

65

Strategy: turn a concert series
into a cultural pulse for (RED). Challenges: • No paid media. • Under $250K production (start to finish). • Small venues, limited total audience reach. • A tanking economy squeezing even affluents disposable $. 66

We created an in-depth, highly
involved digital roadtrip for (RED) fans. 67

Content creation came exclusively from
fans on the ground- (RED) served as a curator. We asked fans for their help: If you’re tweeting, use hashtag #rednights Tag your photos #rednights on Flickr Use #rednights and #red on Youtube DL the fan toolkit and spread the word 68

69

Implications. Brands are far more
interesting when they are multi-dimensional. Embrace your personality. People are not stupid. Give them credit. No one outside of the marketing department worries about ‘multiple messages’ or ‘brand schizophrenia’. 70

Overtime session. Being a social
brand is about more than media. Complexity is a marketers best friend. Stop worrying about ‘digital’ vs ‘traditional’. Rethinking the role of film. Mobile lifestyles, not just mobile devices. 71

‘Social’ and ‘mobile’ are increasingly
inseparable. Source: JeSS3 Strategic Consultancy August 2010 72

Culture is rapidly adopting the
mobile web. Source: Morgan Stanley State Of The Internet Nov 2010 73

But marketers have responded by
spending more on intrusive ads people don’t want. Source: Nielsen “State Of Mobile Apps” Sept 2010 74

1. At the core, there
seem to be two key problems. Starting with the brand, instead of mobile behavior 2. Lumping mobile into one amorphous blob 75

1. How can you best
facilitate mobile decisions? Incentive Information Providing monetary value Educating, providing (coupons or promotions), brand, product or service or an exchange of brand news,or answering currency (contests, questions and prizes) commentary. Curating or developing Giving people a content, ideas and platforms mechanism to make a for entertainment & involvement beyond brand decision, find products, or messaging. accomplish a task. Entertainment Utility 76

77

Integration WITHIN mobile, not just
OF mobile. Games Utility 2. Text Social Promos Mobile Integration Experience Location Mobile Site Aware Incentives Mobile Payment 78

79

Implications. Mobile behavior requires looking
to new sources for inspiration. Get out of the marketing bubble. Get granular with ideas- plan for the tactical as well as the strategic. Fast, simple, and clean UX are paramount. Don’t underestimate their value. 80

OK. Done for real this
time. In summary: Being a social brand is about more than media. Complexity is a marketers best friend. Stop worrying about ‘digital’ vs ‘traditional’. Rethinking the role of film. Mobile is more than just ‘mobile’. 81

Depending on how you look
at it, these are incredibly fun or incredibly scary times. 82

What kind of organizational cultural
will you shape and develop? • Will you encourage experimentation? (you should) • Will you embrace failure? (within acceptable limits) • Will you refuse to use the phrase ‘that’s how it’s always been done’? (yes, please) • Will you push folks like me and demand constant innovation? (I can take it) 83

If you’re interested in staying
connected...? avin.narasimhan facebook.com/ linkedin.com/ @avin_narasimhan @gmail.com avin.narasimhan avinnarasimhan avin.posterous.com avin_narasimhan nahmisaran avin_narasimhan 84

85