I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve read about the imminent death of the thing we call ‘brand’. Every time (with apologies to Mark Twain), those reports have been greatly exaggerated. From the very beginning of the information age, when the digital prophets proclaimed that a Minority Report world of minutely targeted advertising was just around the corner, to the much-heralded advent of the metaverse today, the power of the brand has stayed strong.
Why is that? To rehearse an argument that’s been made many times before by people much more eminent than me, it’s because brand is about emotion. And emotion matters.
The brand is the emotionally-resonant package of signifiers that confers meaning on things that might otherwise just be commodities. Products. Services. Stuff.
Enter the brand experience
It’s a simple enough relationship for marketers, agencies and customers to understand when it plays out in its traditionally linear fashion; an active brand in control of the narrative, imposing it on a largely passive consumer. Admittedly, things get a lot more muddled when it plays out through the infinitely complex interplay of multi-directional meaning that takes place in what we commonly call brand experience.
It’s potentially so complicated that it’s tempting for those working in the experiential space to de-prioritise brand completely in favor of connecting the consumer with the product or service with as little friction as possible. This would be a mistake.
In the world of experiential marketing, brand is more important, not less. Brand is the connective tissue that unites the digital and the physical realm.
We know that people are looking for unique immersive experiences and deeper connections. We also know, as Daniel Kaneman and others have proven, that the last thing someone experiences determines what they remember. Which means that in the realm of the experiential, brand marketers wield enormous power.
The story continuum
Indeed, you might argue (and I’m about to), that the next wave in marketing is not one where we all dive into the tech-bro vision of a virtual version of the world, but rather one where we engage more deeply with an enhanced version of the world we already inhabit. We might call it the experience transformation.
Throughout history, communities and cultures have been built around shared stories. They provide us with a sense of connection and meaning and provide us with the narratives that make sense of our lives. Brands successfully tap into this human predisposition when they give us something to care about, communicate values that resonate with our own, and demonstrate a meaningful relationship between the things they say and do and whatever it is they are selling.
Experience is a powerful, logical extension of a brand’s storytelling toolkit. But a brand experience does not exist in a vacuum. It’s part of a story continuum. Without a logical sense of how an experience contributes to a brand’s story, there is little momentum and, critically, no emotional impact. So how do you go about achieving the best experience for your brand?
Convenience is table-stakes
We live in a world of single-tap access to everything from your dinner delivery to your next date. If an experience isn’t absolutely seamless, intuitive and delightful to navigate, it’s no experience at all. Indeed, it’s actually counter-productive.
Quality is key
It’s critical to hold the line with clients and partners and never compromise for the sake of an easy meeting or a short-term win. If you can’t deliver excellence, re-think, reduce scope, re-plan. A high-quality experience will leave a mark that the participant will remember for years to come. And so will its negative counterpart.
Your last move needs to be your best move
First and last impressions matter. But last impressions matter more. Invest a disproportionate amount of time and energy into the way an experience closes out. It’s a good habit, indeed, to start at the end. The last impression needs to feel as invigorating, fresh and motivating as the minds that created it.
Identify dissonance
Human beings are incredible pattern-recognizers. We know instinctively when something feels off. We’re also terribly susceptible to confirmation bias and groupthink. Even the tiniest inner-voice telling you something doesn’t feel quite right should never, ever be ignored. And don’t be tempted either to dismiss feedback from inside the team. If somebody has the courage to speak out when it threatens the momentum of the work, listen. Courage counts.
Always be ready for a resurrection
Ideas are the world’s only inexhaustible resource. They’re also immortal. Just because something has been dismissed in the past, doesn’t mean it can’t rise again and offer value in the future. Remember that a great rule for storytelling, which applies equally to an experience is, ‘tell people what you are about to tell them, tell them, and then tell them what you’ve just told them.’ Hopefully Mark Twain would have agreed with that.
Cover image source: Roberto Sorin