What makes a company an innovator? And how do you recognise an innovation? brand eins Wissen, the corporate publishing subsidiary of brand eins Medien AG in Hamburg, and Statista, the operator of statista.com, the leading statistics portal, wanted to find the answers to these questions.
They asked 2,056 representatives of companies that have won an innovation award as well as 4,326 experts of Atheneum Partners, a global knowledge transfer and research network, about the most innovative industry representatives. They suggested 1,800 companies, of which 256 made it onto the top list.
Grohe was voted Germany’s most innovative company, winning the title of “Innovator of the Year 2016”.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPwL0s0U878
Michael Rauterkus, CEO of Grohe AG said: “We are proud that the experts have acknowledged our ability to innovate and put us on the top list. It is a great honour to have been chosen from among this large number of world-famous innovators. We will now aim to live up to our title of Innovator of the Year 2016 and to continue taking the sanitary fittings industry forward with more innovative technologies, designs and products.”
Grohe provides innovative water technology products. Their passion for water and aim for perfection have made Grohe the global leader in luxury water faucets and the winner of the 2016 award. With a long history of manufacturing excellence and German engineering precision, they have become the world’s leading provider of sanitary fittings, offering a variety of stylish solutions for every aspect of the bathroom and kitchen. Each product is based on our four core values: Quality, Technology, Design and Sustainability.
“Pure Freude an Wasser”
The 256 companies from 20 different industries were assessed in three areas of innovation, namely products, processes and corporate culture. GROHE falls into the consumer goods category, which also comprises such renowned corporations as Henkel AG & Co. KGaA, Samsung Electronics GmbH, adidas AG and Miele & Co. KG.
Leica cameras were the chief tool used to document the 20th century, one of the most tumultuous periods in human history. Photography as we know it today would simply not exist without Oskar Barnack’s humble invention
No batteries, no circuitry or electrical elements, no motor – just impeccably tuned mechanical parts, working harmoniously to produce a controlled result. This description could fit a number of objects: bicycles, musical instruments and traditional watches spring to mind. Cameras, however, do not.
Since the 1980s, the consumer photography industry has been obsessed with electronic features. Digital cameras, obviously electrical, dominate the market today, but even in the latter days of film, motor winders, autofocus, electronic zooms and automatic exposure were aggressively marketed as tools to make photography ‘easier’. This obscured the fact that, at its heart, photography is a mechanical process. All that is required to take a picture is a light-sensitive material (either film or a digital sensor) and a shutter to allow light to hit that material.
Oskar Barnack changing the game
Prior to 1913, cameras were huge, bulky affairs with curtains and stands, exposing large, fragile glass plates one at a time. In that year, however, a man named Oskar Barnack changed the course of history with a humble side project.
Barnack worked for Ernst Leitz Optische Werke in Wetzlar, Germany, in charge of microscope research. His knowledge of optical glass led to a natural interest in cameras, and he was known to enjoy landscape photography. What he did not enjoy was carrying the enormous, heavy gear the hobby required at the time, particularly given he was an asthmatic. So, he focused his energies on creating a smaller, more portable alternative.
At the time, 35mm film was in regular use for motion picture production, but was only used in a handful of still cameras, none of which were capable of decent quality results. Using his knowledge of high-quality glass optics, Barnack developed a 35mm camera small enough to be handheld or worn around the neck, with a lens that could rival the large-format cameras of the time. He also changed the standard aspect ratio of the film, so that, instead of the 18 x 24mm vertical image standard in movies at the time, his camera used a larger 24 x 36mm horizontal frame, which further improved image quality.
The First World War delayed further development, but eventually, in 1924, Barnack convinced his employer to produce his invention for public sale. The following year, the Leica (a truncation of ‘Leitz camera’) went on sale, proving an instant hit and making high-quality photography a truly portable thing. From holiday snaps to journalism, the impact was far reaching.
Capturing the special moments in time
Henri Cartier-Bresson made an art form of candid urban photography using a Leica. Robert Capa showed the world the moment a Spanish Civil War soldier lost his life in 1936 using a Leica. In 1960, Alberto Korda took the iconic, now ubiquitous portrait of Che Guevara using a Leica. Josef Koudelka captured the Soviet invasion of Prague 1968 using a Leica. Nick Ut distilled the horrors of war with his Napalm Girl image in 1972 using a Leica. Queen Elizabeth II photographed Prince Phillip at the 1982 Windsor Horse Show using a Leica. In 2000, Arthur Miller’s wife photographed Fidel Castro during dinner using the only camera Castro would allow at the table: a Leica. The camera, in its various models, has accompanied and documented much of modern history as we know it, and it owes this status to its mechanical simplicity, quality and reliability.
So what is the modern appeal of Leica cameras? In this world of plastic digital models, reliant on technology that becomes outdated every few years, Leicas offer something different: an antidote to gear-focused consumerism that distracts from the artistic process. The Leica M3, which many still regard as the pinnacle of the company’s efforts, features just two controllable elements: the aperture of the lens (i.e. how much light it lets in) and the shutter speed (i.e. how long it allows light in). This means there’s nothing in the way of the photographer and their creative vision – nothing to go wrong, once experience takes human error out of the equation.
For this to work, the camera must be built from the highest quality materials to a level of precision that defies production line construction. To this day, Leica cameras are handmade to incredibly exacting standards by expert technicians. This is reflected in the price, with new models costing upwards of €5,000. It is also why they have become collector’s items, prized for their intricacy and historical importance.
Inevitably, there are collectors who buy Leica cameras purely as investments, to sit on a shelf. The company itself has clocked on to this, producing a range of limited editions throughout the years. These are sold for extortionate prices to appreciate in a display case, and then sold on for even more extortionate prices, often without ever having tasted a single roll of film. Perhaps the nadir of this sad trend was the Leica M-P Correspondent: a brand new camera that had been carefully pre-rubbed to look worn, revealing the brass beneath the exterior paintwork, which is normally a proud sign of a life of heavy use. Of course, the same effect can be achieved for a fraction of the price by buying a second-hand model and simply using it over time.
Thankfully, most aficionados appreciate the dual collectability and usability of a camera that is built like a tank, using solid metal parts. “If you are concerned about losing value on a camera, then maybe you are buying it for the wrong reasons”, said Bellamy Hunt, a Leica expert who specialises in sourcing used models for his clients. “Even the most avid collectors I know put a roll of film through their most precious cameras from time to time.”
Photography guru Ken Rockwell concurred, writing on his blog: “A camera has no value if it’s not used; you can’t take its resale value to heaven, but your images will last forever and make you immortal when you shoot it.” With a Leica, this is easy, as Rockwell explained: “With a top-notch camera like a Leica, it will stay like new for decades and decades… the reason Leicas earned their reputation is precisely because of the amount of use you can give them, while still looking and working flawlessly.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-E6vI0PIn0k
Fear then love of digital
Like many of the great names of the age of film cameras, Leica initially resisted the lure of digital photography when it came to prominence in the early 2000s. The company did release a few basic models, usually based on existing cameras from other companies, which were merely tweaked and then sold for higher prices. After all, the thinking went, Leica cameras were regarded as the world’s finest, and were the go-to choice for photojournalists worldwide. What’s more, digital sensors at the time were far inferior to film in terms of resolution, colour definition, tonality and dynamic range. In any case, as the Financial Times noted in an interview with Chairman Andreas Kaufmann, “there were difficulties marrying Leica’s core M range with digital electronics”. Like Kodak, that other great stalwart of the film era, Leica’s fortunes took an abrupt turn for the worse. Their cameras, already low volume sellers due to their price and durability, almost stopped selling altogether and, by 2004, one of Europe’s last remaining camera manufacturers was on the brink of bankruptcy. It was at that time that Kaufmann stepped in.
A teacher by profession, Kaufmann was also a member of the family that owned Austria’s largest paper mill, and commanded significant wealth. “I led a double life, one half working as a teacher, the other looking at real estate investments in the US”, he told the Financial Times. Tiring of the pressures of this life, Kaufmann wanted a new challenge. “I felt the need to do something different – something on my own to use some of the money.” His decision was to invest in the struggling icon.
Kaufmann bought the entirety of Leica’s shares, taking on an executive role in the process. He guided the company to invest heavily in research and development, and pushed the development of a digital model that stayed true to Leica’s principles. Thus, in 2006, the Leica M8 was born. A deliberate continuation of the iconic M series, the camera was compatible with all of Leica’s existing M lenses, so entered into a line that could trace its lineage directly back to Barnack’s original creation.
Robust, well-built and blessed with the same luxurious user experience that had come to define Leica, the M8 and its successors saved the company. Between 2011 and 2012, Leica’s revenue doubled, from €150m to €300m. Jobs were saved, a legacy was rescued from a sad end, and production and servicing of all models – including film models – could continue. Undoubtedly, it was a good result.
All the same, it is hard to resist the conclusion something has been lost. Leica can’t be blamed for fighting to survive – and survive it has, with private equity firm Blackstone now owning 45 percent, and sales strong. But the combination of build quality designed to last several generations (given occasional servicing) with digital technology that is essentially finite doesn’t add up. Indeed, Leica’s digital cameras – unlike their film predecessors – cannot be said to be ambitious purchases for aspiring photographers willing to invest once in a pricey model and then care for it for a lifetime. Leica is now a luxury lifestyle brand, squarely aimed at those for whom money is no object, while budding photojournalists and artists look elsewhere.
History is constantly being written, and Leica will sadly no longer be its companion. But the company’s link with the 20th century, when so much of the world we know was shaped, will stand the test of time.
“Your beliefs become your thoughts, your thoughts become your words, your words become your actions, your actions become your habits, your habits become your values, your values become your destiny”
Mahatma Gandhi
What is a Mindset?
Eight principles, developed by Ash Buchanan, can be used to describe the underlying nature of mindsets.
Mindsets are habits of mind
The word mindset was first used in the 1930’s to mean “habits of mind formed by previous experience.” In simple terms, mindsets are deeply held beliefs, attitudes and assumptions we create about who we are and how the world works.
Mindsets are created by experiences
Mindsets are created from the distinctions we are able to make about our experiences. We have experiences. From our experiences, we make new distinctions. From these distinctions, we create new mindsets.
Mindsets create blind spots
Mindsets provide us with fragmented ways of looking at the world, never with complete facts of what is. We always see the world through the filter of our mindsets and our mindsets are always incomplete.
Mindsets are self-deceptive
Any attempt to shift our mindsets will be met by powerful forces. An example of these forces is our tenancy for confirmation bias; the searching for, and recalling of, information that reconfirms our pre-existing beliefs.
Mindsets shape our everyday lives
We make our mindsets, and thereafter, our mindsets make us. Our thoughts, words and actions radiate out from our mindsets like ripples on the surface of a lake. If there is something we would like to change in our lives, such as be more creative or improve our wellbeing, we must also be open to shifting our mindsets.
Mindsets create our shared world
Mindsets are a powerful leverage point for cultural and systemic change. If we want to more consciously create the world we live in, such as act in a way that contributes to the UN global goals, the first-ever global consensus on what must be done to address inequality, climate change and mental health, we must also be open to shifting our mindsets.
Mindsets can be developed in complexity
The more developed our mindsets become, the more we unfold towards deeper levels of wisdom and effectiveness in the world. Our mindsets evolve from simple to complex, from static to dynamic, and from ego-centric to socio-centric to world-centric. Our ability to take a perspective improves, as does our capacity to embrace ambiguity and hold paradox.
Mindsets can be transcended
Using the power of mindfulness, we can transcend our blind spots and self-deceptive forces, examine how our habits of mind manifest to create our lives and our world — and tap our collective capacities for profound personal and societal transformation.
In sum, it can be said that there is no way to avoid the far-reaching effects of our mindsets. Their hidden web of influence permeates everything — all the time. What’s inside us, our beliefs, attitudes and assumptions — manifests outside, shaping our future possibilities on both an individual and a collective level.
Why do mindsets matter?
“It is not primarily our physical selves that limit us but rather our mindset about our physical limits.”
Ellen Langer
On a personal level, examining mindsets can create subtle yet radical click’s in our mind, when suddenly, new ways of seeing, being — and ultimately acting become available to us. These liberating shifts can go on to meaningfully transform our lives in surprising and fulfilling ways. Cultivating this capacity is particularly important when engaging in creative activities, or when participating in innovative processes such as human centred design.
For some of you, this may be enough of a reason to inquire into the nature of your mindset. There is, however, a deeper reason to examine your habits of mind.
“It is not until we see our global problems as symptoms of one fundamental, deeper-rooted crisis — the symptoms of our individual and shared mindset — that we can begin to mount a more profound response”
Monica Sharma
We live in turbulent times. Everyone is facing increasingly urgent and deeply interrelated challenges they haven’t faced before. Collectively, we are facing an ever-growing number of social and ecological crises that continue to intensify and worsen. The ultimate source of today’s great challenges — the primary root cause that creates all of our crises in the first place — is also our mindsets.All of today’s great global problems are consequences of reliving unexamined habits of mind.
Thus, the deeper reason to examine our mindsets is so we can mount a self-aware response to the great challenges of our day. We simply can’t respond to our personal and global problems in a meaningful way unless we also learn how to examine our mindsets as an integral part of how we live our lives.
The three basic mindsets
“The most important question anyone can ask is: What myth am I living?”
Carl Jung
While everyone’s mindset is unique there are some common types that are useful to be aware of.
This includes the Fixed, Growth and Benefit Mindsets which reflect common beliefs people hold about the nature of learning and leadership.
A Fixed Mindset is symbolised by the everyday expert.
“In a Fixed Mindset people believe their basic abilities, their intelligence, their talents, are fixed traits. They have a certain amount and that’s that, and then their goal becomes to look smart all the time and never look dumb.” — Carol Dweck
A Growth Mindset is symbolised by the everyday learner.
“In a Growth Mindset people understand that their talents and abilities can be developed through effort and persistence. They don’t necessarily think everyone’s the same or anyone can be Einstein, but they believe everyone can get smarter if they work at it.” — Carol Dweck
A Benefit Mindset is symbolised by the everyday leader.
In a Benefit Mindset we not only seek to fulfil our potential, but choose to do it in a way that contributes to the wellbeing of others and society as a whole. We question ‘why’ we do what we do, and believe in doing good things for good reasons.
In summary
Let’s say you went shopping to buy some food for dinner.
If you did your shopping on autopilot, drawing on your habitual patterns of behaviour and bought what you normally would, that’s an example of a Fixed Mindset.
If instead, you went shopping and considered making something new and different, and bought ingredients in a mindful fashion, that’s an example of a Growth Mindset.
However, if you went shopping, considered making something new and you also considered the wellbeing of your community and the planet — choosing socially and environmentally innovative options, that’s an example of a Benefit Mindset.
This is a simple example of how the mindset we adopt shapes our everyday actions and the future possibilities of our world.
The world’s 100 largest luxury goods companies generated sales of $222 billion in financial year 2014, 3.6 percent higher year-on-year. The average luxury goods annual sales for a top 100 company is now $2.2 billion.
Luxury goods are being reinvented – some have called it the “decade of change” – an industry which for a long survived on its European heritage, corporate mystique, and indulgent customers – is finally being disrupted – by digital, by Asians, and by a new sense of what luxury actually is.
Over recent years luxury has been characterised by the Chinese consumer and the explosion in the use of digital technology. This period has offered strong growth, new markets and exciting channels. It brought with it an avalanche of exciting new technologies and platforms for brands to play on, and experiment with.
There is a shift in the luxury path-to-purchase. Empowered by social networks and digital devices, luxury goods consumers are dictating increasingly when, where and how they engage with luxury brands. They have become both critics and creators, demanding a more personalised luxury experience, and expect to be given the opportunity to shape the products and services they consume.
The category is now consolidating its new ways of working. The external environment will change in a number of crucial areas: an evolution in consumer buying behaviours; the merging of channels and business model complexity; an acceptance of highest levels of sustainability; an increase in international travel; the growing importance of the millennial consumer; and the continued impact of the global economy. All of these factors create opportunities for the luxury goods sector.
There are four key elements of growth for luxury goods companies, and if brands bring disciplined, long-term investment to these areas and focus on them, they will be well-placed to succeed. In addition, brands will also emerge as ‘winners’, in the eyes of the consumers, investors and stakeholder communities, if they manage carefully four other factors in the market: reputational risk, regulation and stakeholders, inertia and external events.
Over the coming months I will be interviewing some of the world’s luxury brand leaders, to really understand how they are responding to the changing market, and how they see the next phase in its reinvention. I will be learning from:
Here are some more useful reports on the state of luxury brands, and how they are seeking to reinvent themselves – from purpose to business model, reputation and responsibility, product and service, channel and price:
Tesla’s CEO Elon Musk unveiled the highly anticipated Tesla Model 3 electric car on Thursday night in a converted LA aircraft hangar. Tesla’s launch events have become a little like Apple’s big moments used to be. Electrifying, a pioneering spirit, packed with hard core fans. Musk is much more improvised than the word perfect Jobs, stuttering with nerves that show he is human despite his vision and celebrity. The Model 3 has the potential to become the tipping point from carbon to carbon-free motoring, and to drive exponential growth for Tesla, and the electric car market. 250,000 preorders, almost two years ahead of delivery, demonstrates the consumer response.
In the Gamechangers project we explore in detail how Tesla has developed a long-term market-shaping strategy to change the game of car travel. The cars themselves, beautiful and technically wonderful, are not even the heart of the story. Nor is the innovative retail model, selling direct in upmarket shopping malls, customised on the iPad, cash in advance. Most significant is the overall business model – designed to shape the market through the world’s leading charging network – the Supercharger network, which is included as an ongoing subscription in the retail price, for Tesla and other brand cars. Supercharger is driven by another of Musk’s businesses, Solar City. By giving away much technical IP, Tesla is creating an industry standard in its own vision, on its own terms. It is redefining the game of motoring in front of our eyes.
At the launch of the Model 3, Musk was at pains to explain his market entry strategy too. Starting from the expensive and niche roadster, to the other premium models, he has positioned the brand as innovative and aspirational, to compare with a Porsche or even Ferrari. Now he is moving down the price ladder to the wider market – to compete alongside the BMW and Audi-type brands, but with more magic, and sustainable credentials. He even thanked early adopters, those who had bought the early models at premium prices, saying that the profits he made through them has allowed him to build this new car for everyone (well at lot more people, and made him incredibly rich too).
Tesla’s mass market Model 3 was driven onto a foggy stage in an extravagant unveiling, where Musk revealed that the Tesla Model 3 will seat five, and be able to cover at least 215 miles on one charge. Musk said the standard Model 3 would be capable of zero to 60 miles per hour in less than 6 seconds, and will cost $35,000, which is half that of the company’s current flagship cars, the Model S sedan and Model X crossover. The new car actually looks like a more sporty version of the company’s Model S. The Model 3 will also feature Autopilot for assisted driving and be future-proof for self-driving road use. Deliveries begin in late 2017, by which time Tesla says it will have doubled the number of charging stations worldwide and will include charging for free.
The Model 3 is Tesla’s attempt to bring electric cars to the mass market and is considered critical to the company’s future success. Interest has been strong, with preorders for the Model 3 at Tesla stores and galleries – some of which are located directly adjacent to Apple retail stores (where the launch of the iPhone SE no longer commands the long queues of old). Musk later boasted on stage that the company had already secured 115,000 reservations before the car had even been revealed (a figure that has doubled in the last few days). Tesla’s stock price rocketed too.
You can watch the full unveiling of the Tesla Model 3 here:
Apple is believed to be working on its own electric road vehicle, commonly referred to as the Apple Car (rather than iCar, in a similar naming logic to the Apple Watch), which Musk has called an “open secret” in the industry. According to Musk, the hundreds of engineers Apple has taken on make it clear there’s an electric car in the works. Apple and Tesla have hired each other’s employees over the last couple of years, with Musk saying that Apple has hired away “very few people” from the car company despite offering $250,000 signing bonuses and 60 percent salary increases to its employees. Tesla meanwhile has hired nearly 150 Apple employees.
Read more about Tesla and how it is changing the game.
In September 1975 Jos Hermens, a Dutch long-distance runner with drooping moustache and John Lennon spectacles, ran further in one hour than anybody in history. He improved his world record to 20,942m a year later, and took a lead role in the Montreal Olympics 10k, in a fantastic race against the double double gold medallist, Lasse Viren.
He joined Nike when his legs would run no more, and was instrumental in setting up their European HQ in Hilversum, near to Amsterdam. Having established his relationships with athletes and meeting organisers, and acquired Nike’s commercial nouse, he set up Global Sports Communication in 1985. Over the last 30 years Global Sports Communication has become one of the leading sports management agencies in the world.
What made Jos Hermens a winner in the field of sports management?
Taking the talent management model of the entertainment and music industries and applying it in a professional and relevant way to the world of sport, especially the fast-changing world of athletics.
Searching for new markets – most notably in the high altitude mountains of Ethiopia and Kenya – establishing training camps, and giving young athletes a dream.
Managing the whole athlete – developing the best talent from a young age, guiding them to become world record breakers and Olympic champions, from sponsorships to PR, domestic and personal life.
Combining athlete management with event management – from global track meetings to big city marathons across the world – a home stage for his athletes to perform, and leverage over others.
Building his business around big stars, like Haile Gebrselassie, the world’s greatest ever distance runner, who became a magnet for clients, and youngsters who wanted to be like him.
Managing world class athletes
Today, Jos Hermens’ company Global Sports Communication serves as an athlete’s manager for some 150 athletes from 20 different countries. The largest group of athletes is based in East Africa, the Netherlands and China. The athletes are active in track and field and road races.
As the representative of world class athletes such as Haile Gebrselassie, Eliud Kipchoge, Kenenisa Bekele, Florence Kiplagat and Caterine Ibarguen they assist them in the best possible way. Their ambition is to help each athlete have a long and successful career for them and make the most out of their career.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZ1mOSZHjzA
Organising athletic events
Global Sports Communication is organisationally involved in some of the biggest and fastest marathons and road races in the world like Amsterdam, Hamburg and Mumbai marathon, New Delhi half marathon, Dam tot Dam 10 miles and Seven Hills race. They act as a liaison for the international elite athletes and as an advisor and consultant. They also organise the IAAF Shanghai Diamond League, and are involved in the IAAF World Challenge meeting the FBK Games in Hengelo.
Partnering with the best brands
Building on their extensive experience in sport and working with the best athletes in the world, Hermens and his team created their own sports marketing vision: integrating individual athletes, teams and high profile events. As the mother of all sports, athletics (or track and field, as it is sometimes known) combines speed, endurance, power and flexibility. This makes it possible for every company or brand to find an affiliated element to link to. And of course, running events like no other sport, allows everybody to participate in an event at the same time as a world class star.
Brands are obsessed about their consumers, seeking to build meaningful relationships to sustain their loyalty. Yet most consumers don’t trust brands, but they do trust others like them.
In fact, one rock-climbing enthusiast loves hanging out with another, or a wine lover comparing notes with others. People are social, yet most brands don’t connect them, and in particular those with a shared passion which the brand could be part of too. It’s the same story in the B2B world.
There are some great success stories – look at my personal favourite, Rapha which brings cycling enthusiasts together in their Cycle Clubs around the world. These are actually shops, selling ultra premium cycling gear, but with fantastic Illy coffee, bike repair station, showers, and 24/7 Tour de France videos too. Harley Davidson is another great example, the world’s most tattooed brand showing a biker’s communal loyalty much more than the technical superiority of the bike. Sephora Beauty Talk is another, Traditional Medicinals, and Nike Running Club.
However, across most markets, active and engaged brand communities remain few and far between.
Perhaps the biggest challenge for brands is that building brand communities requires a considerable investment in time, and complete commitment and integration from departments across a business to stand a chance.
An HBR study on branded communities states that “too often, companies isolate their community-building efforts within the marketing function. That is a mistake. For a brand community to yield maximum benefit, it must be framed as a high-level strategy supporting businesswide goals.”
SAP Community Network, and Random House’s Underlined, are two communities that have captured the hearts and minds of consumers by providing a place to share and tips, advice, and stories with like-minded individuals. The communities are built on the three principles of feedback, advocacy, and support which were identified in a 2012 Comblu report for being the pillars for a successful brand community.
SAP in particular are operating at the very forefront of the industry in building a engaged brand community, and it stems from the technology company’s organization-wide commitment to providing a platform for social engagement. CMO Jonathan Becher spoke of the companies philosophy, in which social is seen to benefit every department, from sales, to development, support and marketing, and in which social interaction is viewed as an “enabler” and “not a goal in itself”.
Recently, several brands have been stepping up their efforts to engage consumers and build online communities. What’s fascinating about each one is that each is uniquely different, offering different opportunities and incentives for consumers to participate and engage.
With more than 2.5 million engaged members, the SCN has been called “the most extensive use to date of social media by a corporation,” by Richard Adler from the Aspen Institute. Community members range from huge multinationals, such as Disney and Bose, to innumerable small and medium-sized businesses, all of which are able to connect and mutually benefit via the SCN. The communities real success lies in the fact that many members are highly engaged and willing to contribute time and expertise to grow the strength of the network.
Community power: Huge, diverse, and highly engaged community. Users gain reputation for community contributions and there are plenty of incentives for users to continue to engage.
The Playstation Community has done an exceptional job at providing an online space for gamers to connect. Users are able to zone in on their specific interests, whether it be by game, interests, or the type of support they need, and it’s clear to see how the network caters for the pillars of feedback, advocacy, and support. The community is closely tied to Playstation’s linked social media channels, on YouTube and Twitter, and users are also able to experience content being generated both by brands, and users themselves.User-generated content creation is one of the great strengths of the community and with new features on the PS4 console that enable users to upload in-game clips directly online, this is only going to increase and continue to grow the strength of the community.
Community power: Virtually unlimited capability and scale in user-generated content, that both entertains and adds value at awareness building, and purchase-point consumer touchpoints.
Being Girl was created in 2000 as an informative resource for young, teenage girls, to connect and find out answers to the those difficult questions that growing up entails. Like a digital big sister, the community enables open discussion and the ability to ask the resident expert, Anna, for advice on topics such as menstruation, eating disorders, acne, and dating. Being Girl has been expanded to 46 countries worldwide, and its strength lies in the fact that girls all over the world can relate to each other in the trials of growing up. Being Girl was cited in the book “Groundswell“, as requiring just a 1 percent conversion rate to offer a 3x ROI built on the brand loyalty that the community inspires.
Community power: Global reach, and builds brand loyalty among potential customers for products in a competitive niche where loyalty for a brand often lasts a lifetime.
Underlined is a branded community that caters to teenagers who love to read and write fan fiction. It has more than 300,000 members who can share, create, and moderate content, as well as create awareness by recommending products. Highly engaged individuals become brand advocates giving sincere and earnest reviews of the products they enjoy, and this fulfils multiple touchpoints for other community members. It shows how all consumer-facing brands can generate branded community engagement by focusing on specific, highly engaged niches within their audiences.
Community power: Laser focus on a niche segment of brand audience, which ensure rich engagement levels, and fantastic mutual community experience.
H&R Block created a community site that connects users to a tax professional for quick responses to tax-related questions via the “Get Answers” section of their website. The real strength of the portal is in connecting users enabling them to learn and share experiences with others in the H&R Community. The community is reported to have answered 1 million questions and generated a 15 percent lift in business.
Community power: Adds genuine, and highly useful value to consumer lives. Allows user questions to build the community into a comprehensive resource.
HOG is a special community. Harley-Davidson enthusiasts share more than their loyalty to a brand. For them, it represents a way of life, a culture, and it is one that can be found all over the world. Since the 1980s, Harley-Davidson have been diligently building up a brand community based around shared lifestyle, taste, and ethos. HOG was born as a way the brand’s highly passionate consumers to connect and engage online. With more than 1 million active members, the strength of the community lies in the openness and highly impassioned members it tries to foster and serve.
Community power: Incredibly strong and impassioned community, one that extends beyond online communities. HOG acts as a connector for enthusiasts around the world.
7. Lego
Lego Ideas is an established website and the largest unofficial community of Lego fans. Lugnet is mainly composed of adult men, who build elaborate Lego projects, sharing news and images of their creations. As a focused and niche group of users, the Lugnet community has even been recognized by the Lego brand as being a valuable source of information. As one Lego spokesman said: “It incredibly valuable insights” in hardware, software, design and usability, feedback which informs the brands product development, marketing, and much more.
Community power: A highly enthusiastic and capable community that is receptive to working closely with the brand to provide a source of feedback which can inform product and business decisions.
My Starbucks Idea works on the same principle as the old customer “suggestion box” for the global coffee chain’s 150,000+ members. In the last six years, suggestions from My Starbucks Idea community members has led to the implementation of nearly 300 innovations – from digital tipping, peach green-tea lemonade, to the hugely popular ability to enjoy free Wi-Fi. Alex Wheeler,VP global digital marketing for Starbucks, said that “our passionate customers and partners have been sharing their ideas with us on My Starbucks Idea, and we have listened and acted upon many amazing innovations that we have received from this online community.”
Community power: Actual implementation and follow through of popular ideas shows that the brand listens to consumers, which inspire ever greater levels of innovation and ideas. A real asset for the brand’s continued progression.
Oracle Community connects the millions of users worldwide who use the platform, whether for personal or for a business function. It enables users to ask questions on dedicated forums and to solve problems together. Members are able to share personal stories, form independent groups, and even build their own networks and schedule meetings.
Community power: A great technical resource, which seeks to aid users in solving problems in any way it can. Very popular among its target audience.
While many brands feel comfortable on social media platforms such as Twitter, or Instagram, where they are able to maintain a level of control of the content on their channels, the majority seem reluctant to open a channel on Reddit, put off perhaps by the unabridged openness of the site, and the rawness of user-generated comments. Nordstrom, however, felt ready to rise to the challenge, a first for a luxury brand.The brand values genuine authenticity, which gives them the bravery to facilitate open conversation with customers via reddit. All initial signs point toward it being a highly positive move for the brand. “We’ve been on Reddit for about two months,” said Dan Evans Jr., spokesperson for Nordstrom, Seattle. “We hope it’s another way for us to respond to and speak with our customers directly in real-time in a way our customers will enjoy.”
Community power: Engaging on an open forum such as reddit requires brands to commit to genuine authenticity, consumer-centricity, and social values, which ensures sentiment for the brand will win a highly positive response. Future-proof, and long-term wins.
11. Traditional Medicinals
This herbal tea brand offers wellness enthusiasts an online space for everything tea with its Plant Power Journal. Users can browse DIY ideas, recipes, herbal lore, and learn about the communities where the herbs for the brand’s teas are grown. While there’s no online forum, the site is designed to feature users’ tea reviews and encourages online feedback, which everyone can see. This makes it easy for customers to see what other people think about their products, creating that all-important social proof.
12. Sephora Beauty Talk and Beauty Board
Sephora does an amazing job of helping customers feel connected with its online community, Beauty Talk. It’s a massive, well-organized forum where users can ask questions, share ideas, and have their beauty quagmires solved by other enthusiasts. Their Beauty Board offers another way to engage with the products and the community. Users upload pictures of themselves wearing Sephora products. The photos then link to the product page of all the items used. Talk about selling without selling! The customers become instant brand ambassadors, inspiring others to use the products. Meanwhile, Sephora never had to lift a finger; all they did was create the platform for customers to share. And, the brand’s marketing team can use the forum to find out which products customers are interested in and what their pain points are. They also can respond to customer service issues, putting a lot of their customer relations work into one channel.
Why build a brand community?
Each one of the above brand communities offer a unique set of virtues that ensure their success. To varying degrees, each possesses the three pillars of feedback, advocacy, and support that have come to define a thriving community.
Lego and My Starbucks Idea offer a unmatchable resource for brands to gain feedback on their product offering and the influence of that feedback has permeated into the culture and identity of the company. Harley-Davidson is an outstanding example of how a brand can win and engender advocacy. H&R Block and Oracle Community offer valuable support resources for consumers.
Another crucial element of all of these is that all of these networks offer a unique value proposition for consumers, whether it be the facilitation and sharing of information (SCN, Being Girl, H&R Block, Oracle Community), or a platform for users to connect and share content (Playstation Community, Underlined).
Companies have come to realize that communities can serve their purposes in a variety of ways. Here are some core success metrics for brand communities:
Distributed customer service: Does this reduce the number of customer service tickets, because customers will answer each other’s questions? For example: the Apple support forum (“Find answers, ask questions, and connect with our community of Apple users from around the world”).
Knowledge sharing of super users: Are customers sharing their experiences and best practice with other customers, therefore creating a richer brand experience for them? For example: the Airbnb host community (“The Community Center is a place to connect with other hosts, share stories, ask for advice, and get updates from the Airbnb team. You can also plan or join meetups”).
Shared product experience: Are customers using the product together with other customers, therefore creating a shared experience? For example: Nike+ Run Club (“At Nike+ Run Club Live Sessions, you’ll find encouragement, guidance, and a local crew of like-minded runners”).
Brand loyalty and retention: There is an assumption that many of these different types of brand communities share: that a strong brand community will lead to increased brand loyalty and customer retention. Intuitively this makes sense, but how exactly community engagement turns into brand loyalty, I haven’t really understood. A quick glance at some academic research points to some evidence that trust within the community leads to higher commitment and affinity, which in turn leads to more loyal behavior towards the brand: “brand community commitment was found to play a mediating role in the relationships between brand community trust/affect and brand loyalty” (Via Emerald Insight).
Product innovation: Are customers providing feedback on existing products or submitting new ideas? Example: Lego Ideas, an initiative by the toymaker where users can support, submit and discover ideas for new LEGO sets.
I found this overview below on the Feverbee website (which has loads of content geared towards people running online brand communities):
With interactive communities, brands have the opportunity to truly listen to the customer. They can use what they learn to help develop the next focused marketing strategy or even the next product. In an age where marketing is becoming increasingly customer-centric, online communities are merely the evolution of the standard online business website, with blog content, landing pages, and ecommerce.
Perhaps the most important takeaway, and the one which required the greatest amount of commitment from an organization to deliver, is the boldness and authenticity that enables brands to operate in a way which doesn’t require censorship. It’s a measure of how transparent a company is prepared to be, and something all brands must eventually aspire toward. The rewards for such authenticity as unmatched (having, for example, the power to transform struggling motorcycle brand Harley-Davidson in the 1980s into the multi-million dollar global brand they are today).
Building such communities requires integration and commitment across departments within an organization. HBR’s study summarized:
“In today’s turbulent world, people are hungry for a sense of connection; and in lean economic times, every company needs new ways to do more with what it already has. Unfortunately, although many firms aspire to the customer loyalty, marketing efficiency, and brand authenticity that strong communities deliver, few understand what it takes to achieve such benefits. Worse, most subscribe to serious misconceptions about what brand communities are and how they work.”
It means that brand communities are not, as they are often perceived, a lone marketing or customer support objective, but a business strategy that demands authenticity as a pre-requisite. In establishing one, a brand can look to grow and evolve with the expectations and needs of its most valuable customers.
Elon Musk launched the much-anticipated Tesla Model 3 last week – for release in 2017 at a starting price of $35,000. Much has been said about the car itself, from its affordable price point to its standard autopilot feature. Yet perhaps the most impressive feature of the launch is not the car, but its future drivers.
In the first few days Tesla has racked up over 250,000 pre orders, an incredible number outright when you consider that the car is yet to be built or driven by potential buyers. Yet the reputation of the brand and its driver-friendly marketing strategies (including a $1,000 refundable deposit) has ushered in a new generation of drivers inspired to revolutionize the auto industry at the side of Elon Musk.
The Model 3’s success began with the introduction of the Tesla brand itself over 10 years ago. Rather than merely launch a revolutionary auto brand, Musk was very clear that the mission of Tesla was “to accelerate the advent of sustainable transport.” In fact, he shared his “Master Plan” back in 2006:
1. Build sports car
2. Use that money to build an affordable car
3. Use that money to build an even more affordable car
4. While doing above, also provide zero emission electric power generation options
5. Don’t tell anyone
This “Master Plan” has unfolded before our eyes, but not without course corrections along the way. Initially, Musk intended to protect Tesla’s valuable battery technology IP, as you would expect any automaker to do. But on reflection in the context of his stated mission, Musk wrote “Tesla Motors was created to accelerate the advent of sustainable transport. If we clear a path to the creation of compelling electric vehicles, but then lay intellectual property landmines behind us to inhibit others, we are acting in a manner contrary to that goal. Tesla will not initiate patent lawsuits against anyone who, in good faith, wants to use our technology.”
Musk changed his mind in response to undeniable facts that would increasingly affect all of humanity. As Musk stated, ‘“I don’t think people quite appreciate the gravity of what is going on [with regard to global warming] or just how much inertia the climate has. We really need to do something. It would be shortsighted if we try to hold these things close to our vest.”
With that decision, Musk demonstrated that Tesla is a mission with a company, not a company with a mission. And, in doing so, he set the standard for next gen marketing that leverages social technologies to build an effective movement, rather than launch a brand or product. Let’s examine the three keys steps he took to achieve this:
1. Inspire A Movement: By defining the brand around a higher purpose and the socially-conscious values that it shares with a growing number of drivers, Musk ensured from the outset that his marketing would cut through the clutter of typical auto industry advertising. This purpose allowed Musk to make counter-intuitive decisions, such as his infinity mile warranty, partnerships with other auto brands and opening his intellectual property, to ignite both consumer loyalty and earned media. It also allowed him to accelerate growth without utilizing more traditional avenues, such as a national ad campaign or a chief marketing officer, by educating drivers and fans about the role they can play as brand ambassadors in the movement. This strategy was used to powerful effect when they announced their referral program through which existing drivers are rewarded for inspiring purchases by their friends.
2. Elevate The Brand: The Tesla Model S did more than just make the concept of a performance electric vehicle a reality—it inspired Tesla to make electric vehicles as desirable as the most high performance incumbents, and elevated the brand in the process. This not only sent competitors scrambling to justify their respective merits on both performance and efficiency terms, but it pigeon-holed them as old-tech gas guzzlers in the growing debate around the need for alternative fuel vehicles. In doing so, Musk drew a stark line between the past and the future, between fear and hope, between powerlessness and power of consumers to make a difference through their purchases, especially one as important as what car to drive. By launching the brand with a model that married higher purpose with both performance and safety excellence, Musk turned the existing industry on its head by claiming the aspirational high ground of tomorrow’s driver.
3. Democratise The Impact: Out of this earlier disruption comes an even more seismic opportunity with the Model 3 launch. Affordable enough to make mass sustainable transportation possible, Musk’s latest car can radically disrupt the entrenched automotive industry. In short, Musk has enlisted a legion of future drivers – many of whom waited patiently for hours in unprecedented lines to hand over their Model 3 deposits – in the service of the Tesla mission. As competitors now rush to bring electric vehicles to market, they will have to compete with this first mover advantage and profound personal commitment to rewriting our shared future.
With all this in mind, we can see that Elon Musk did far more than launch the Model 3 last week; he executed another critical stage of his “Master Plan” and movement to both lead and make sustainable mass transportation possible. And it all began with a clear articulation, and commitment, to his original purpose and mission. Tesla’s socially-conscious philosophy has proven vital to both its growth as a brand, and the explosive success of the Model 3. It’s also why “Step 5” in his plan is only half meant in jest – why would Musk need to tell anyone about what he is doing when his legion of drivers will do it for him?
British Airways, the United Kingdom’s largest airline in terms of fleet, routes and revenue, was looking for opportunities to increase North American sales.
The airline was aiming for 10 percent business growth in North America. However, flights to and from the United Kingdom generated the most revenue, and were not expected to grow dramatically.
Analyzing available data and over 1,400 worldwide airline routes revealed an untapped opportunity in the route between North America and India.
To build awareness, a short film was created, telling the story of an expat son’s surprise visit to his mum in India after a separation of 15 years.
The touching reunion between mother and son, made possible by British Airways, was distributed exclusively online, and coupled with social and search-intent data.
The video received over a million views on YouTube and over 125,000 shares on Facebook. Ticket sales from North America to India on ba.com increased by 65 percent.
British Airways’ share of the North America to India route increased from 5 percent to 38 percent.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmjuV_XRD7M
The insurance sector is ripe for disruption by technologies, and in particular by start-ups who can focus and innovate in niche markets, and specific aspects of insurance. My friends at CB Insights have provided me with a fantastic map which illustrates how $3.5bn of investment is going into reinventing the insurance market:
The map focuses on 11 categories, as follows.
Life/annuity: Private startups providing distribution of life insurance products including term life and annuities including Abaris and PolicyGenius
Auto insurance (split into distribution, usage-based insurance/telematics, and claims): Startups ranging from aggregators including CoverHound and Goji to white label auto claims apps (Snapsheet) to per-mile managing general agents like Metromile.
P2P insurance: Private peer-to-peer insurance and mutual-based startups include Lemonade, Guevara, Friendsurance, and others.
Small business insurance: Private tech companies serving as commercial insurance brokers and managing general agents to SMBs include Insureon, Embroker, and Next Insurance.
Insurance industry software/analytics/IaaS: Insurance-specific software across the value chain providers range from BI and data-warehousing startup Quantemplate to insurance fraud detection firm Shift Technology to re-insurance SaaS analytics startup Analyze Re to claims inspection startup Spex.
Mobile insurance management: Startups focusing on allowing consumers to manage and purchase insurance policies via their mobile device including Knip and GetSafe.
Product insurance: Companies insuring or tracking products — i.e. smartphones, laptops — for insurance applications.
Renters/homeowners: Startups providing distribution of renter’s insurance and homeowner’s insurance as well as lease default insurance programs.
Sharing economy: Startups working on new insurance products in coverage areas including short-term rental marketplaces and for sharing economy 1099 workers.
Health insurance: Across new carriers like Oscar as well as healthcare insurance startups targeted at individuals (Stride Health) and employers (Zenefits).
