Branding, Engagement, and the Limits of Applause
Branding, Engagement, and the Limits of Applause There is nothing quite like the sound of applause, but strong brands and strong leaders remember that applause is temporary. To build a lasting relationship and have a lasting impact requires more than the fleeting expression of momentary approval. Those more significant outcomes require brand engagement. “What is it that we’re living for? Applause, applause!” Applause (1970) by Lee Adams & Charles Strouse “There must be more to life than this.” Freddie Mercury, 1982 Brand Engagement Brand engagement is the ongoing process of building a connection between a person and a brand. In theatrical terms, it is the unfolding of a story that involves both characters – both listen, both take action, both respond to what happens, and both are involved in the scenes. Engagement can be built in different ways. It can start with that applause, or approval, when the awareness of your brand creates an initial positive response. It can grow when a conversation takes place between the brand leader and the consumer, or the artist and the audience. It can deepen when you provide multiple opportunities for your audience to participate in branded experiences, relating to your brand and talking about it with others. All of these elements must be consistent with the overall story that your brand is telling, and the promise that your brand is making to everyone who encounters it. Pursuing brand engagement can feel like a neverending quest for Twitter followers, Facebook likes, or blog comments. All of these can be useful metrics in certain circumstances, but as Robert Passikoff explained in Forbes, it’s important to realize that engagement with your communication tools or methods is not quite the same thing as engaging with your brand. After all, some people love to go to the theatre even when they don’t care for the play. Interacting with the Brand It is easy for a brand to become a permanent monologue. We have hundreds or thousands of things we want our audiences to understand about our product, whether it’s a retail product or something else, like our art, or our leadership vision, or any other idea we wish to share. And sometimes a monologue can be a strong dramatic experience, so it has a place in the overall texture of the play. But don’t leave the other characters out of the scene too long – they may find another theatre where they can get some stage time, too! Most of my brand’s interaction happens on the Facebook and Twitter pages, and in person at events. I can tell that my brand has engaged with a large part of my audience because they think of my brand when they encounter other providers in my sector. When people in my audience watch television, go to a movie, or see something floating around online – if it involves magic, I will frequently get dozens of emails or shares asking me if I’ve seen it. Those interactions come via Facebook, Twitter, or email, but in all cases they indicate that I have ownership of the “magic” brand for them. What are you experiencing in your own business that lets you know that your brand has traction and engagement? What are you going to do now to increase that engagement?
12 Amazing Audience Engagement Ideas I Learned on a Cruise – Part 3
12 Amazing Audience Engagement Ideas I Learned on a Cruise – Part 3 We’ve reached the conclusion of this short series – better late than never! Though the cruise itself is long past, the memories and lessons learned in each port remain. Out of curiosity – are you paying attention to the experiences you have to see what branding and audience engagement lessons can be learned? If so – let me know of a tip or technique you gleaned from an experience in your own life! Amazing tip #9: Put something awesome out of sight to reward the devoted. Holyhead, Wales – What do you know about Holyhead, Wales? That’s about what I knew, too, as we went ashore for our first visit to Wales. The town is centered around St. Cybi’s Church, which is actually built in what was an old Roman fort. There are lots of nooks and crannies to explore, but the real treasure here isn’t in town. You have to take a cab or a tour to get to South Stack Lighthouse, but even when you are able to see it, you can’t experience it without hiking down 400 steps and walking across an aluminum footbridge. Then you get to climb the 400 steps on your way back. But the reward is a tremendous view of coastline cliffs and the lighthouse itself… an experience you won’t ever forget. Put some not-so-obvious rewards in place for those willing to seriously engage with your brand! Amazing tip #10: Make sure your brand has attentive, observant ambassadors. Liverpool, England – Rosemary and I arrived in Liverpool on a relatively gray day. Cloudy morning, scattered showers, and a blustery wind. We decided to brave the elements and so we made a trek to Liverpool Cathedral. This impressive building – the largest Anglican cathedral in the UK – was full of interesting and beautiful art. It was reverent and inspiring. But it became an unforgettable experience when I was approached by Brian Jackson. A smiling gentleman with a long robe quietly asked how I was enjoying my visit. We began talking about our experiences in church and found common ground instantly. He took me and Rosemary on a private tour, unlocked a walkway across the expanse of the interior, and told us numerous little stories (including a great one about the chairs where the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh sit). This visit was unforgettable because an ambassador perceived my interest and probed effectively, then delivered an exceptional experience. Does your brand have attentive, observant ambassadors on site? On the phone? Online? Amazing tip #11: A fresh approach can make old things new again. Inveraray, Scotland – Inveraray Castle in Scotland looks like a fairy tale with its conical spires on towers. Since the 1200s the site has been the ancestral home of the Duke of Argyll – yes, the same family from which we derive argyle sweaters and socks! While the castle is centuries old, it recently enjoyed a renewed interest when it was used as a location for the 2012 Christmas episode of Downton Abbey. The popularity of a current hit translated into additional visibility and tourism for a site that was relatively unknown to many outside Scotland. By the time Rosemary and I arrived, we were primed to be receptive to much more of the real history of the location based on our interest in a fictional story! Can you connect your brand to something in the news, or some phenomenon in the popular culture? If so, you have a golden opportunity to boost sagging interest in your message. Amazing tip #12: Craft a presentation worthy of your content. Dublin, Ireland – Dublin is home to St. Patrick’s Cathedral, the Ha’Penny Bridge, and a thousand pubs. It is also home to one of the best universities in the world, Trinity College Dublin. Here, at the alma mater of Swift, Burke, Beckett, Stoker, Wilde, you can view the Book of Kells and marvel at a unique object with artistic, philosophical, and historical significance. But while the pages of that book inspire reflection and introspection, when you walk into the Long Room you will find yourself awestruck. This vast, expansive space houses only 200,000 of the library’s roughly six million volumes. Even so, the presentation of this subset creates a feeling of near infinite knowledge. The levels, the arches, and the sheer visual impact create an experience that inspires respect for the work of masters whose thoughts are recorded in these pages. Presentation doesn’t replace the knowledge in those volumes, but it certainly inspires a high level of respect for whatever you might find in there. Just as the theatre in St. Petersburg primed us to appreciate beauty, this room primed us to respect intellect. When your brand is unveiled for a new audience, what feelings does it inspire? You can read the other entries in this series via the following links: 12 Amazing Audience Engagement Ideas I Learned on a Cruise – Part 1 12 Amazing Audience Engagement Ideas I Learned on a Cruise – Part 2
12 Amazing Audience Engagement Ideas I Learned on a Cruise – Part 1
12 Amazing Audience Engagement Ideas I Learned on a Cruise – Part 1 I recently returned from performing magic on a couple of European cruises which combined to fill nearly the entire month of August. My wife joined me on this adventure as the dates overlapped our 19th wedding anniversary. We started with five days in Stockholm, Sweden, where we saw the sights and I visited a friend who had been an exchange student to my high school many years ago! We concluded with three days in Dublin, Ireland. While we were in Russia, I was inspired by one experience to make a change to the way I think about my business, my performances, and my keynote presentations. As I gave it more thought, I realized that each stop along the way taught me something important about providing amazing and engaging experiences for my audiences, both at live events and for my brand’s audience. What did I learn in each port? Here are some of my takeaways. The rest will appear in the next post. Amazing tip #1: Guide your audience to an experience that most people miss. Stockholm, Sweden – In the five days we were in Stockholm we covered a lot of ground, from visiting royal palaces to shopping in Gamla stan. But the most amazing experience to me was the opportunity to reconnect with my friend Anna, whom I hadn’t seen since high school over 25 years ago. Her insights and advice led us to explore a part of the city we might otherwise have missed. Amazing tip #2: Put a hidden gem somewhere in the experience for your audience to discover. Tallin, Estonia – This wasn’t a port we expected to love, but we were tipped off by Rosemary’s aunt that it was a hidden gem. It didn’t have the name recognition of a St. Petersburg or Helsinki. But it turned out to be a favorite stop – lots of history, interesting things around every corner, and easy to walk and explore. Amazing tip #3: You don’t have to be “on” all the time; create multiple ways for your audience to explore your offerings on their own. Helsinki, Finland – This port had name recognition, but our visit was on a Sunday and so we encountered a lot of closed stores until later in the day. This meant that we had quiet streets and little traffic all morning. We couldn’t get into every location because some places are closed on Sunday morning. But we got to peek inside a Russian Orthodox cathedral during a service and that was a beautiful experience. Amazing tip #4: In every possible interaction, prime your audience to appreciate the beauty in what you will share with them. St. Petersburg, Russia – Rosemary and I spent an evening at the ballet. We saw “Sleeping Beauty” at the Alexandrinsky Theatre. I was intensely moved by the beauty of the building, the sets, the costumes, the music, and of course the dancers. The moment we entered that theatre, we knew something special was going to happen. We were primed to appreciate the beauty to follow. I was inspired to add something beautiful to my presentations – something that gives my audience a chance to appreciate art for the sake of beauty. Amazing tip #5: Make sure the experience you deliver stands up to repeat engagement. Add layers if necessary. Copenhagen, Denmark – This was my second visit to Copenhagen, and it was easy to pick up right where I left off on last year’s trip with my daughter. Since my wife and I had only a single day in port, though, we had to budget our time. We chose to limit the number of attractions and explore more thoroughly, meaning that even though I visited Rosenborg Castle last year, I actually got a bit more out of the visit this year. There’s more to come in part two! Stay tuned! You can read the other entries in this series via the following links: 12 Amazing Audience Engagement Ideas I Learned on a Cruise – Part 2 12 Amazing Audience Engagement Ideas I Learned on a Cruise – Part 3
Captain’s Log: NetFlix Customer Service Boldly Amazes!
4 Great Lessons from NetFlix’s Amazing Customer Service Interaction When I speak to conferences on how to create amazing brand experiences for their audiences, one of the key points is to create amazement within the very processes that your audience would normally consider the most boring or irritating. Tom Cheredar’s post on VentureBeat last week illustrates this in multiple ways. The story describes how a NetFlix customer service representative, Mike, did exactly that. In an online support chat session, he assumed the character of a Starfleet Captain, asking the customer for information as if he were a member of the starship crew. The customer played along, and their subsequent conversation about temporal loops and damage reports became a great example of an amazing brand experience. Make sure to read the entire post here: https://venturebeat.com/2013/10/11/awesome-netflix-customer-service-conversation/, then consider my “lessons learned” below. [spacer size=”50″] 4 Takeaways from Captain Mike and Lieutenant Norm’s Exchange “Captain Mike” is a real person, not a robot or an over-trained, over-regulated customer service android (with no offense intended to Commander Data). His choice to engage the customer in character was bold and a little risky, but he retained the power to abandon the character if the customer didn’t respond positively. The decision to make the interaction fun demonstrates point 2 of my “Five Kinds of Amazing,” namely, the Science/Process experience. This was not really a breaking or rethinking of the rules, but rather an unexpected result that was embedded within the natural processes of the business environment. (Note that while the incident demonstrates that NetFlix empowers their reps to take some liberties with customer interactions, this specific interaction did not demonstrate the Magic/Empowerment experience as it is present in my “5 Kinds” model. This is because there was no coloring outside the lines of policy to the direct benefit of the customer at some cost to the brand; there were no exceptions, extensions, refunds, etc. This doesn’t mean the experience wasn’t amazing; it just means that it was amazing for point 2, not for point 3.) This experience cost NetFlix nothing. It was a direct result of the unleashed creativity of an individual, not a policy. Individuals who act and communicate create cultural influences that lead to more of these experiences more effectively than policy edicts. As a result of the amazing experience, “Lt. Norm” didn’t just want a copy of the transcript to keep, but to share with his network. This is the real evidence of an amazing brand experience – the customer is motivated to tell others about what happened.
Five Kinds of Amazing – The Framework
Five Kinds of Amazing – The Framework “Five Kinds of Amazing” is a useful model for understanding, evaluating, and increasing audience engagement, typically as it relates to retail or corporate brands and their associated audiences. It has relevance not just for marketing professionals and brand managers, but also for event producers, team or organization leaders, and even individuals. If you make decisions that ultimately have an audience that you’d like to influence and amaze, then this concept can be useful for you. If you’ve heard me speak in the past year, you’ve probably heard me give a version of this presentation. In the next few weeks, I’ll be giving you a thumbnail sketch of each of the concepts. I’m also openly asking for your stories and contributions, as they will be part of the accompanying book that I’m currently writing. For today, though, I’d like to give you a brief overview of the model. This is a map for where this blog will go in the next few weeks. “Five Kinds of Amazing” begins with an analysis of the theatrical magical experience. Magicians and mentalists perform a wide range of entertaining illusions, from making things appear or disappear to apparent feats of mindreading. These experiences share the characteristic of being “impossible,” but they are different in terms of effect; that is, they are different in the characteristics of what rules are being broken or what normal constraints are being overcome. The various “flavors” of impossible experiences have been systematized in many ways over the years. Some magical writers have taken it to truly impressive degrees of granularity, describing dozens of different effects. I have divided the experiences into five broad categories: five kinds of amazing. Talent – Relating to the overt demonstration of exceptional or highly-developed skill. Feats of amazing dexterity fall into this category, along with demonstrations of juggling or complicated magical flourishes. Outside of magic, many other fields fall into this category including performing arts, sports, and many crafts. Science – Relating to an unexpected consequence of a natural law. Some magic tricks work because natural physical laws sometimes lead to unusual results. Creators such as Martin Gardner and Stewart James are well known to magicians for their insights that fall into this category. Optical illusions, science demonstrations, and unusual natural events such as eclipses would also fall here. Mystery – Relating to the apparent contradiction of a natural law. Most traditional magic falls here – people are cut in half and put back together, or birds appear from nowhere. Even a signed card vanishing and reappearing in a wallet fits here. This is an enormous category but the characteristic of all the effects is that physics is being visibly contradicted. Contact – Relating to apparent mental interaction or influence. Mentalism consists in large part of the apparent ability to read minds. This category involves all apparent thought-reading or thought-sharing, including tricks relating to contacting spirits. Essentially, if there are two minds involved then the effect belongs in this category. Hypersight – Relating to apparent knowledge at a distance, either physically or temporally. I’ve used an unusual term to describe a combination of clairvoyant effects (i.e., seeing something at a great physical distance) and precognition effects (i.e., seeing something that happens in the future). This category includes effects that involve a single mind – a “receiver” only, not a “sender” – and a separation of either distance or time. As we explore these concepts, I’ll explain how each of these concepts can be applied to the decisions you make relating to your own brand and your own audience. Stay tuned!
