09

Nov

The What, Who and Why of #Influence

We obsess about influence here at Braben and as part of our activity this year, we’ve been asking all visitors to our website a simple question.

What is the secret of influence? 

We’ve offered people a choice of three answers – who you know, what you know and why you know.  This is to start digging into what people in the media, technology and communications sectors believe to be the most essential ingredient of an influential profile.

The results are in, with over 500 participants contributing their views in our study.

Our winner is what you know, taking 40% of the vote.  So two in five people believe that what you know is the secret to your influence.

However, this result was closely followed in second place by who you know with 34% believing that this is the secret ingredient to a position of influence.

In third place, with 26% of the vote, was why you know, the point of difference in why you are in a position of influence.

At the centre of every campaign we are involved in is a focus on building a profile of influence.  We know from the experience of delivering hundreds of campaigns, that varying combination of communications tools have the power to change perceptions around reputations and influential profiles.

So, when it comes to thinking about an influential communications campaign, we will finish this blog entry with some simple but essential questions.

If your secret is what you know, how are you communicating the value of that in a way which excites and engages?

If it is, who you know, are all the key relationships in place that you need?  To a level of understanding and empathy that is required?

And if it is why you know, how are you evidencing the importance of this and qualifying its importance?

For more on making sure your profile is as influential as possible, take a look at some other blogs around listening, planning and creating.

196 days ago Short URL Comments

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01

Nov

Five #influence tips to turn your comms campaign into a symphony

When considering how to build an influential profile, to support your commercial ambitions, we like to think of the communications campaign as a symphony of messages, each perfectly timed to hit the right note at the right moment.

In our world of mass communications with its torrent of information, every communication tool should be viewed as an instrument in the orchestra you are building to play out the campaign. The word symphony is derived from Greek συμφωνία, meaning “agreement or concord of sound” and ultimately, we are aiming for a campaign that strikes up this same effect and influences people to listen and engage with it.

Braben has been behind hundreds of communication campaigns that have focussed on building an influential profile that have encouraged audiences to engage with the business behind the campaign. As campaign planning for 2013 is now in full swing, we thought we would share five key pointers for developing a campaign that hits the right note with target customers.

1. Select the combination of communication tools carefully

There are many communications tools which can take their place in the campaign. A targeted one-on-one briefing, a headline-grabbing keynote speech, a high-profile sponsorship, a brilliant customer event, a thought-provoking round-table, a world-first stunt, a humorous teaser, a piece of insightful research, a stunning picture story or jaw-dropping video are just some examples of what can go into a campaign. What’s key is really understanding the audience you want to engage with and considering the best set of tools to spark their interest but also complement the commercial profile, messages and reputation you want to deliver.

2. Every communication tool has its own unique attributes so select wisely

Each communications tool needs to be fully understood and considered for how it affects and shapes a campaign. It needs to be tuned, prepared and readied to be delivered at exactly the moment when it will complement and be in accord with the other communication tools in the campaign.

3. Big/small, loud/discreet – campaigns can be made up of a variety of different tools

Campaigns range in size, scale and make-up of tools to deliver different types of symphonies. Whether it’s a company blog, a compelling sales deck, a refreshed website, a punchy newsletter, a personal note, an engaging case study, a winning award entry or the way clients are welcomed when they arrive at a meeting with you, every campaign structure is different reflecting the symphony of messages you have planned.

4. Every campaign needs a designated leader

The best campaign managers know when and how each communication tool will be played. Be clear about who is taking this role and give them the authority to manage the roll-out of the campaign. Don’t have more than one leader as this can lead to confusion.

5. Build your campaign on insight, planning and awesome content

Symphonies aren’t just thrown together at the last minute. They take tremendous skill, planning and creativity to pull together and delight the audience they are entertaining. The same is true of any communications campaign. Great campaigns are built on brilliant insight and preparation, a very clear and precise plan of what you want to say and how you are going to say it, fantastic content to bring the story to life, excite and engage your audience completely. Don’t go straight into a campaign without this preparation and practice or you may end up sounding like an orchestra warming up.

204 days ago Short URL Comments

Advertising/Content

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25

Oct

So, is it time to blow the comms landscape up, then?

I attended a highly entertaining and thought-challenging session at this week’s Guardian Changing Advertising Summit, delivered by Cindy Gallop, founder and CEO of If I Changed The World (and other interesting side-projects).

Her general premise was it’s time to blow some shit up within adland to deal with the dynamic changes we are going through. Here’s five hand-grenades she lobbed into the audience…

1. Stop aligning your strategy with what everyone else is doing. Collaborative competition leads to doomed businesses. Flip it on its head and go for an approach based on competitive collaboration.

2. Under duress or in a crisis? Take these two simple steps. A) Identify what you’re passionate about, strike out everything else. B) Identify the conditions when you’re most passionate about it – hours, locations, clients, people and build something based on that. My take? Do this anyway, crisis or not, in order to be as focused and cost effective as possible

3. You are what you measure, which is as true in life as it is in business. Stop stressing about measurement and design your own metrics for the new world. Be very precise in what they are, then humanise that data.

4. Worry about and focus on the future of money. The future of advertising is intrinsically linked to the future of payments. Technology means we can engage and transact simultaneously.

5. New creativity will be female-informed and data-informed. Art and science are coming together and every comms business needs more women in it. Why? Because women are the majority of the target audience.

Interested in more, then take a look here for the full session.

211 days ago Short URL Comments

Advertising/Content/Digital

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24

Oct

5 licensing trends influencing growth for brands

The Fifa 2014 World Cup mascot visits Brand Licensing Europe 2012.

Brazilians will name the mascot through a nationwide poll in November 2012.

 

We’ve just completed this year’s campaign for Brand Licensing 2012 which has been the biggest ever licensing event of its kind anywhere in the world outside of the US. The world’s biggest brands were there in force at Olympia from the media, entertainment, sports and lifestyle sectors, with over 280 brand owners showcasing over 2,200 brands, characters and images available for license. Attendees totalled nearly 7,000 people, up 25% year-on-year.

So, why the growth in licensing? Well, our take is that it is a sector that is demonstrating a fantastic entrepreneurial spirit in all types of businesses, from global and world-famous names to the digital newcomers and one-person start-ups. Licensing represents new revenue streams for business under pressure from established business models as well as powerful opportunities to brand-build and there are clear trends which indicate further positive growth and focus on licensing for brand owners.

Here’s five trends that we’ve identified from this year’s show.

1. Licensing is increasing in importance as a revenue stream for global media, entertainment, sports and lifestyle businesses. As established revenue streams, such as DVD sales, TV advertising and paid-media are challenged, licensing offers up an exciting new way to bring in revenue from fans. The world’s biggest brands – World Cups, blockbuster films, hit TV shows, major sports teams and more – are investing in the development of powerful licensing campaigns to extend the reach and value of their brands. For example, FIFA set out its planned strategy for World Cup 2014 in Brazil and how licensing will play pivotal role in building the FIFA brand. FIFA’s revenue splits into two thirds TV and one third sponsorship. So licensing is not about revenue at all. It is all about brand building and how licensed products can develop the brand and fuel fan excitement for teams, players and the event itself on a global basis.

2. Licensing can turbo-charge the profile of new brands for entrepreneurs. One example is City of Friends – uniquely based on the adventures of real-life Norway state police officer Carl Christian Hamre. Hamre created bedtime stories for his young son based on his day job as a police officer and within four years, established CreaCon Group, one of Norway’s largest independent children’s entertainment production companies with businesses spanning television production, licensing, live events, music and digital operations. There are also new business models developing and being applied to the sector. Take, for example, a new launch at this year’s show (and a Braben client) – Shopping4fans which is the world’s first Internet Shopping Club for official products.

3. Licensing is at the heart of how new brands are hyped and extended to as broad a fan base as possible. Examples include Caroline Mickler Ltd showcasing lingerie, sleepwear, apparel, bedding, home furnishings, stationery, jewellery and adult products for Fifty Shades of Grey.

4. Licensing works brilliantly with archive content from much-loved brands, tapping into retro and releasing new revenue. There were multiple classic brands returning this year: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are back as a highlight at this year’s show, on the back of a new TV series and celebrating over 25 years since the characters’ first appeared. They were joined by Roobarb & Custard, Batfink, Garfield, Where’s Wally (celebrating its 25th anniversary), Purple Ronnie (celebrating its 25th anniversary), My Little Pony, Transformers, Monopoly, Power Rangers (another 25th anniversary), R Whites lemonade and Rainbow which is 40 years old this year.

5. There is an exciting future for licensing in mobile gaming. People are interacting with gaming content in a different way on smartphones or tablets. With the forthcoming release of the Kindle Family Fire, this Christmas will see more tablets in UK households than ever before. For example, Disney Mobile boasts award-winning studios that consistently develop chart-topping, critically-acclaimed apps. Meanwhile, new gaming community Taymai is developing a business model where gamers can actually lobby for merchandise to be created and sold for their favourite mobile games.

We’re strong believers in the power of licensing. Our experiences at this year’s Brand Licensing Europe have served to reinforce the exciting possibilities the discipline offers to owners of any brand with fans who want more.

212 days ago Short URL Comments

Content/Digital/Events/Licensing

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15

Oct

Will 4G be the next gear change for media?

I attended the Guardian Media Network’s Future of Digital Media event last week to hear the views of three Guardian thought-leaders – Andrew Miller, CEO, Dan Sabbagh, Head of Media and Technology and Anthony Sullivan, Group Product Manager.

The context was the now and future strategy of The Guardian to transition during this digitally dynamic time.

Andrew Miller described the audience strategy which has been put in place as to grow, deepen and retain Guardian consumers during a time when digital consumption is growing rapidly and exciting but print still accounts for 70% of revenues.

Dan Sabbagh pointed to the imminent introduction of 4G as being the next game-changer for media businesses, a major change in speed which will make everything more immediate. He described its arrival as transformative for media where all types of media will be competing against each other for one thing – consumer attention.

Miller described the tablet likely to bring about increased pressure on the media sector and spoke of plans for Guardian content to feature in social media aggregators like Flipboard. He also acknowledged that other assets owned by GMG will help to fund the necessary transition being made by The Guardian.

Anthony Sullivan cited agile product development as being key to the next stage of this transition. Products are being developed in two week sprints. Gone are the days of building something over a period of months and then launching it.

Mobile browsing is growing fast representing 15-20% of the Guardian’s digital traffic and sport content is leading the way. He pointed to the new m.guardian platform coming soon as highlighting how mobile is taking precedence. The challenge for the future is using data to deliver personal experiences while retaining an editorial voice. The Guardian of the future may offer individual journeys through content but to do so registration will be essential allowing media owners to learn as much as they can about the readers.

Miller said the question he is addressing is ‘what is a news media company in the digital space?’ and is refining costs by using other people’s platforms so that all resource can go into the creation of content.

Sabbagh talked about a balance of exciting opportunities and astonishing pessimism, pointing to a loss of financial confidence in media. He talked of Britain’s world-renowned creativity but lack of world-beating companies to back that up. He pointed to EMI as an example of a company being sliced, diced and ultimately destroyed. The Guardian’s financial position, supported by a trust, led him to express the view that “No rich man tells us what to write and that’s a precious thing”.

My conclusion was the pace of updating and refreshing business models in the media space continues to accelerate and 4G has been highlighted as the next gear-change companies will have to go through.

221 days ago Short URL Comments

Content/Digital/Newspapers

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11

Oct

Tellin’ Stories, The Social Way…

With an endless feed of content, how can you filter and use this content to tell your brand story in a clear coherent way?  We’ve been looking into this as part of our focus on B2B story-telling and ways for businesses to share their stories with staff, clients, new business prospects and influencers.

Introducing Storify, the site that allows you to capture moments of news in the real-time stream, sourced from today’s most popular social media sites. Offering a blank canvas and the multiple social sources of Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Flickr, Instagram, Google Search and Storify itself, the concept is simple; search and locate significant posts, tweets, photos and links from the ‘sources’ tab, add in your own narrative text and organise the content to structure your own easy-to-read interactive social story. With a simple layout and limited space to explore, the site is clean, professional and effective as a narrative tool.

We’ve been using Storify these past few months to capture the stories of our client campaigns; when monitoring coverage, Storify is an additional space to gather the online buzz surrounding our clients and acts as an ongoing living document to create a timeline of references, opinion and capture the effectiveness of our campaigns as they unfold online.

The great thing about Storify is the power you have as the narrator; content can be filtered and handpicked, selecting key pieces that display the development and success of campaign work. Whether it is a journalist’s article, an image or a member of the public tweeting about your campaign, this can all be gathered to display the impact your brand has made online, along with your own text to structure and explain your brand story.

Here are three examples of how we’ve been using Storify:

The Weather Channel UK:  We’ve used the site to showcase the innovative campaign we’ve built for the brand, significant coverage and media buzz has been gathered and structured to tell the brand’s story and activity throughout 2012.

Chello DMC, the broadcast services company:  We’ve used Storify as a live-blog for events taking place across Europe this year, most recently at an industry event in Instanbul.  A summary of the event was instantly available online once it had ended which was promoted across Twitter, LinkedIn and other key channels.

Braben: We’ve applied it ourselves, pulling together ‘The Story Of Braben’ which looks at what we’ve been up to since we first started out back in 1994.

Note for each, we’re embedding the code from Storify into our own blog ‘Under The Influence’, which is acting as the central online hub for our campaign activity.

Media brands are using the site to gather stories; Brand Republic recently posted a story on ‘The verdict on the new eBay logo’ and The Metro UK concluded the ‘Twitter reaction to Kate Middleton’s topless photos’.

We believe Storify is a site to take advantage of right now, as a host for all social media elements and news together in one place. It’s a valuable tool to tell your story.

225 days ago Short URL Comments

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04

Oct

Why content has the power to influence

Content is king, right? Maybe. But only brilliant content. And what makes brilliant content? Ooh, that’s been challenging people since they first drew on the walls of caves… Hasn’t stopped us though, has it? As Pablo Picasso said, “Disciples be damned. It’s not interesting. It’s only the masters that matter. Those who create.”

With the explosion of smart devices, we can now take in all manner of content in the forms of words, sounds, audio, pictures and video, often in a complex time-shifted combination of all of these. And of course, all this technology means we can also all create in ways never seen before. Never has humankind been so creative…

So, in any communications campaign where influence is the central focus, each of the communication elements needs to be considered, questioned and produced to deliver the desired message in the most influential way possible.

Let’s break each of those communications elements down further then.

Words – what are your written materials like right across the mix. From your site to your boiler-plate, your Tweeting tone-of-voice, your speeches, your sales collateral, everywhere you use words to tell your story… how’s it working for you and is there a tone-of-voice that brings to life the messages you want to? Do you need to bring in talent specifically to produce the written copy for you? Are there words you must use and words you must avoid?

Pictures – how is your visual library shaping up and does it reflect how you want the business to be perceived? From head-shots to product-shots, from the lighter side of the business culture and work-place to fact-packed infographics. Every single piece of visual information has the potential to tell another piece of the story you are building. Who’s best placed to take and produce the photography for you? And how are you sharing through Flickr, Instagram, Pinterest et al?

Video – how are you using video? And where are you using it? On your site? On devices when presenting? On social media? Have you got your own Youtube channel? How does the content of the video tell your story? Video has the potential to be one of the most dynamic ways to tell a story but even the world’s greatest film-makers can spend $500M and make a turkey that no one wants to watch (er, John Carter, anyone?). So, if you’re thinking about video, bring in the experts, don’t scrimp on production quality and values and make sure it’s worth watching and rewatching.

Audio –what about the way your business is presented through audio? Millions of podcasts are listened to regularly and there are many different podcasts out there for all types of businesses. The podcast works for me, I love listening to them across the commute, the walk from station to office, time in the gym or working out. There are many useful podcasts out there and your business might just suit producing a one or even a series…

So when it comes to creating content , I will defer finally to one of the masters of the big screen, Orson Welles, who said: “Create your own visual style… let it be unique for yourself and yet identifiable for others”. That, I would suggest, is the secret to creating content for a successful influential communications campaign.

232 days ago Short URL Comments

Content/Digital

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01

Oct

The importance of a cunning plan

The final scene of The Italian Job sprang to mind when I first started thinking about the importance of a communications plan and its role in influence. A coach loaded with gold is balanced on a cliff-edge and Michael Caine as Charlie Croker delivers the final line of the film – ‘Hang on a minute lads, I’ve got a great idea…er…er…’ I’m always left speculating who jumps off first or whether Croker’s plan influences the lads to sit tight, work together and eventually escape with the gold.

Of course, the best plans aren’t made when a business is teetering on a cliff-edge. Although a certain amount of pressure does force through clarity of thinking on occasions!

An influential communications plan takes time and focus. Time to review, to consult, to research, to develop, to map out, to present, to refine and to sign-off.

We have written many communications plans for clients here at Braben. In our experience, every communications plan should follow a framework that runs from business aims right through to a timeline and costing.

The following is a breakdown of the typical framework of a communications plan. It sets out what is entailed, why it takes time and why it requires commitment from the business the plan is being written for.

The ideal framework for a communications plan consists of the following:

Business objectives – what is the business trying to achieve?

Business roadmap – what is the business doing to achieve this?

Communications objectives – what are the required results of the communications activity?

Key messages – therefore, what does the business need to say?

Key audiences – who does it need to say it to?

Key media channels – what are the best channels to communicate that message?

Creative toolkit – what are the creative options to deliver the message in the most compelling way?

Tactical campaign – so, what will happen and how?

Social – with that, what’s the optimum way to ensure the campaign results are shared by key influencers?

Timeline – when does it all need to take place and in what order?

Budget – how will the plan use the agreed level of investment in the optimum way?

Evaluation – how will the results be measured against the business objectives?

If you ensure the communications plan you require covers the above then you’re on your way to a cunning plan.

A plan so cunning Blackadder might just describe it “as cunning as a fox that has just been made Professor of Cunning at Oxford University”.

For more about how planning can inform an influential communications campaign, check out our Vintage TV case study

235 days ago Short URL Comments

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14

Sep

Why listening sits at the heart of influence

It was Ernest Hemingway who said, “When people talk, listen completely. Most people never listen”.

Every campaign we work on begins with our team listening and we have refined and evolved how we listen over the years to capture exactly the right information to inform the development of strategy, plans and creative solutions.

We believe it is essential to listen. This blog will share a little more detail on four ways that we listen to help people understand why we place such importance on the listening as a service area.

1. To the business we are working with.

This is about spending time with the client business, its team and its products and services to really get under the skin of exactly what is they want to say about themselves and to also experience how they currently say it. An interesting tell-tale sign on how the importance of comms is perceived by a client business is how much time they are willing to set aside for this. The less the time available, the more there is a need to question why and, as a knock-on effect, the commitment to communications

2. To the media and influencers the client business needs to reach.

This about a qualitative auditing approach to the key individuals who are opinion-formers and influencers in sectors which are critical to the client business, now and in the future. We have conducted hundreds of audits with influencers and media over the years. It is always fascinating, informative and useful to dig into the things they are interested in and understand and benchmark the levels of understanding and interest in the business. It’s hear where you learn the things that the client business might need to also be saying that it hasn’t considered yet. And these audits are always carried out in the real world, not through online surveys, ideally through face-to-face or phone-based conversations where conversations can be tailored and developed.

3. To the client business and its profile online.

This about a comprehensive review of the current online profile of the business, how it is performing across the relevant key social media channels, its profile in natural search, the profile of its team members and its participation in the key online communities where it wishes to do business. An example here is competitor analysis on Twitter to see how a business is benchmarking in a key social media channel. This regularly highlights gaps, opportunities, training needs and more.

4. To the client business and its marketing spend.

PR and communications has the ability to maximise all other elements of marketing spend. This is why PR and communications professionals consistently advise that it be allowed to sit at the heart of any business. This process allows us to make observations on how spend could be tweaked or leveraged to develop greater opportunities to build fame and profile for the business.

Our listening service is a combined effort by our team members who all have a passion and expertise for the client business and sector. We also evolve the methods of listening in line with new developments in technology to ensure, particularly in the online space, that the most relevant information is identified, collected and assessed.

As William Shakespeare wrote, “Listen to many, speak to a few”. The greatest influential communication campaigns can be built on this premise.

252 days ago Short URL Comments

Advertising/Content/Digital

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22

May

Data v Emotion: A Media360 Thriller

The lowdown from your ringside civilian reporter…

It was like watching two heavyweights slug it out over an epic 15-round bout at this year’s Media360.

In the red corner, the champion fighter, Sugar Ray Emotion.

This is the established warrior of the marketing world, weaving stories into advertising campaigns that are wonderful enough to make grown men cry (see John Lewis) or make airlines pimp up their wings (hello, British Airways). Suger Ray was old school, preaching stories for brands that float from the gut of Creativity and sting with real Emotion.

In the blue corner, the young pretender to the crown, Big Joe Data.

Whatever you might feel, Big Joe has it covered, processed and is so confident in the marketing ring, that he knows what punch you’re going to throw before you’ve even thought of it. He’s huge, the biggest fighter we’ve seen and growing exponentially by the day, eating his way through high-fibre protein diets of Tweets, Likes, Searches and Clicks. Big Joe knows what he sees and learns fast.

The audience was enthralled as these two fighters traded blows across the sessions during the two days, each trying to out-box the other. But Rory Sutherland from Ogilvy and Mather nailed Big Joe with a one-liner when he asked the young fighter if it has been training on the incorrect diet, relying on software for the wrong operating system – the rational mind, rather than the emotional one.

It was left to the team from John Lewis to wipe the floor with Big Joe when they declared their most successful ad of the year wasn’t pre-tested.

The Champion, Sugar Ray Emotion, emerged victorious, waving the flag for all those peacock brands out there and laughing at the penguins.

Until next year, fight fans. When Big Joe Data will be back once more. Bigger, smarter, wiser.

367 days ago Short URL Comments

Advertising/Content/Digital/Events/TV

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