Big Little ThingsNo branding, no problem
Lately, we’ve had a few potential clients ask us for copywriting help. They’ll send us a shitload of “brand documents” and ask us to give their words some personality, or voice. Mostly, these are smaller clients who have very little budget, and just want their copy to sound good. And that’s fine. But here’s the thing: if you’re really having a hard time getting your words to express who you are, what you do, and why it matters, you can be pretty sure it’s not the words that need help. It’s the brand.
Of course, it costs a lot of money and time and work to create a brand strategy you can actually use. There’s flailing around in the muck of what-does-it-all-mean. There’s banging-of-head against the walls of fear. There’s a lot of lostness in the woods of self-observation. And once you’ve got something that seems right, there’s still the whole problem of execution.
The good news is that it’s okay if maybe you’re not ready for that yet, if maybe you just want to get your stuff out there and start doing whatever it is you do. There’s a lot of learning in the doing. And many organizations (especially in the earlier stages) change more rapidly than they can be defined. It might be a bad idea to get locked in to one strategy too early in the game.
There is one caveat, however. If you don’t have your brand stuff resolved, then it’s not a good idea to use the language of branding to present what you do. This means no talk of mission statements, no communication about what you “stand for” or what you “believe in.” Instead talk about the work you do in specific concrete terms. Tell them that you make housecleaning robots, not that you deliver “lifestyle evolution solutions.”
At some point, you’ll have to deal with your brand because it will take on a life of its own. But when that happens, you’ll be ready for it.
August 19th, 2008 at 8:43 am
I couldn’t agree more about the learning being in the doing. We’ve been experimenting with prototyping / functional spec writing processes and I’ve found that just getting right into the muck of what you want to do (what 37signals calls getting real) produces quicker results.
Instead of hoping for a feature and adding it to a bulleted list, you can just start trying it out and see if it works. If so, great! If not, move on and find a new solution.
Also, 37signals has talked about not being defined by what you do or what your product is, but evolving who you are and letting your product line reflect that over time.
August 24th, 2008 at 9:55 am
Hi Josh (and Axel): I agree, too. Businesses and brands evolve. But developing a compelling brand doesn’t have to be THAT hard.
I work with clients on these issues every day (it’s all I do). there are varying degrees of being ready to do the brand work.
If you’re new to what you’re doing, spend some time on the big questions — but don’t agonize, because it will change as you do and learn, as you pointed out.
On the other hand, after you’ve been going down the path for a while THEN it is worthwhile to take a breath and start to integrate what you’ve been learning into a more powerful strategy. At that point, you’re probably ready to turn the basics into something more hard-hitting, emotional and differentiated.
What I’ve learned is that businesses often underestimate the real value they provide, so they position their businesses too generically. It’s useful to understand your value and translate it into a “big idea” for your brand. It makes it easier to let those you can help most know why your business/product is going to be a great fit for them.
September 5th, 2008 at 11:11 am
wise words, dealing with this branding issue now
thanks,