We wish we could work with every company that needed help with telling a more powerful story, but we realize it’s not feasible. Timing, budget, and fit (among other things) aren’t always right. But we’ve seen our message and story development work well for so many different types of businesses, that we wanted to help…
Having a compelling value proposition means taking a stand. It means having the courage to not sound like everyone else in your category. It means having incredibly powerful insights and knowledge about your audience, so you know how your solution will make a difference for them. That makes you confident about being different. Too often,…
Why is the messaging of B2B technology so dull? Why doesn’t it connect with prospects? Why do so many companies sound exactly the same? In our 20 years of working in the space, we’ve puzzled over these questions endlessly. We’ve heard and hypothesized many answers: Tech companies are engineering-centric, and aren’t interested in messaging. B2B…
Brand stories are not static. As a company grows changes and evolves, it must also ensure that the story it’s telling remains relevant and engaging to audiences. At the same time, B2B brands can’t constantly be reinventing or telling new storiess. Even the most fascinating and viral stories need time to gain a foothold and…
The last couple of weeks we’ve focused on the importance of brand values, and what we call the Five Fundamental Human Values that provide a foundation for a successful organization. So what does it look like to really build your company around a brand value? How does that play out in the way a business…
In our last post, we talked about the importance of values for businesses. Strong values create the foundation for a company’s purpose, brand positioning, product strategy, and culture. Identifying and communicating those values to your customers, employees and other constituents can have a galvanizing, energizing effect on businesses. In Jim Stengel’s excellent book GROW, he…
David Lazarus of the LA Times recently derided the idea that corporations should operate based on a set of core values. He writes, “This kabuki play of corporate values is little more than feel-good propaganda, which may be beneficial from a team-building or marketing perspective, but has nothing to do with a business’ day-to-day…
I was recently reminded of a hilarious phenomenon that started in Japan known as Chindogu. These are product inventions that are bizarre, hard to understand, and of very little utility. One key to Chindogu is that they are “un-useless” – there is some value they provide – however marginal, and even if realizing this value…
In my last post I talked about why Mission Statements are diminishing in value, and offered an alternative – something we call the Brand Principle Statement (BPS). The BPS crystallizes the reason for your organization’s existence into a simple statement that everyone can understand, and can serve as inspiration for your employees and customers.
We have been asked by several clients to help them with mission statements over the years, and we’ve come to the conclusion that it’s time to put the mission statement as we know it out of commission. Today’s businesses need something that’s simpler and more compelling. Here’s why: