WHATFOR, WHY, AND WHEREFORE

Some words go in and out of fashion.  Often.

Our latest is “purpose.”  Basic, simple, and oh-so-germaine to the marketplace, the word is being applied by many experts today to brands, as in ‘purpose-driven brands.’  Or some such. 

Actually, the Pepsi folks reinvigorated the word in its mid-2000s’ acronym PwP (performance with purpose, we believe).  Many followed the leader. 

Now, much of purpose’s usefulness in 2016 and beyond is to point consumers away from short-term thinking and toward the company’s higher goals and aims.  There’s much ado about ensuring that employees and other stakeholders believe that the business is true to its societal goals, and that it really and truly produces good for itself and for society.

Why the resurrection of purpose?   For any number of reasons:

  • Millennials’ need for Planet-conscious work, something to stand for
  • A very real talent void,  a/k/a the hole between retiring Boomers and up-and-coming Ms and Gen Zs
  • The cry for employee commitment that lasts longer than a job stint
  • Creation of positive, productive business cultures that do all of the above … and more.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Of course, a focus on purpose also manages expectations around profits and performance, reassuring investors that a longer-term perspective is being adopted (and yes, we are cynics).  It is refreshing, though, to hear of products that will share consumer views, help change behaviors, and deliver at least a miniscule part of the solution to world ills. 

Much like in the 19th and 20th centuries, when corporations built America’s first railroads, introduced cars to the masses, treated diabetes, and made air travel affordable.

PRESIDENTIAL PARALLELS, ONE

We were seriously entranced with Bloomberg Businessweek’s op-ed on why Hillary Clinton lost her first POTUS campaign.

So much so that we read it twice, and mused about parallels to our business.

The reasons for her demise, asserts writer-pundit Joshua Green, were multiple, specifically:

  • No clear overarching justification for candidacy
  • Not focusing squarely on the issues
  • Trying to be all things to all people
  • Delaying a response to uproars and turmoils and
  • Not recognizing her own shortcomings.

First things first:  The business case.  Right now, it’s clear that Hillary is concentrating on middle-class economic advancement and, as a sub-theme, making Washington work better.  That’s a singular target – and though overall motifs might vary (depending on the audience), messaging potentially will carry the same narrative.  It’s simple, impactful, and just might be as powerful as Obama’s ‘change.’ 

On the other hand, it could be subjected to the candidate’s (and her/his strategists’) boredom and continual polling.  Hear it now:  “The economy has changed; the middle class isn’t as worried as before.”  Or:  “Xyz is much more critical these days; let’s zero in on that issue.”   And:  “The opposition is attacking us on abc now; we need to answer.”

Squirming yet?  Check how you’d respond to these questions:

  • How often do we abandon our messaging at the drop of a survey – and latch onto another hot topic? 
  • Are we easily dissuaded from pursuing original goals? 
  • Can we withstand corporate requests and continue our mission?

Next up:   The stuff that campaigns are made of …

THE VOICE, PART TWO

Not every leader and corporation can afford voice coaches like Adam Levin and Blake Shelton, Gwen Stefani and Pharrell Williams.

On the other hand, they have us – communicators and marketers and branding gurus.

We’re serious.  Because guiding our executives through the process of defining words and actions of value for themselves and for the business – a/k/a the voice – is a commitment based on experience, intuition, and no small amount of tears and sweat.

It goes beyond the tried and true message platform, to the heart of what’s believed and what’s been accomplished.  The voice integrates values, vision, and purpose.  And the process never stops.

Where to start?  With an examination of self (and of company).  Begin by asking some standards:

  • What gets you up in the morning?
  • What do you and the business stand for?
  • What motivates others to do their best – for you and for the company?
  • Who are you/the company when both are at your best?
  • What attitudes and beliefs move you forward … or hold you back?
  • How would you define success now, and in the future?

Balance those responses and the initial voice with the leader’s style and personality, a combination of presence, attentiveness, bedside manner, decisiveness, and, oddly, the traits of humility and confidence.  Most of all, the final voice must be a comfortable one, one that connects well with the leader/company.

There’s no audition.  No contest.  And probably no recording contract.  But it’s one of the most rewarding contributions we make.

 

‘TIS A GIFT

Lately, our eyes are glazing over more often.

 It’s not because of aggravated presbyopia.  Nor hours of Web surfing.  Or even our occasional trips in visual stimulation (read:  shopping of all sorts).

 Instead, we’re attributing that “duh” look to the ever-increasing complexity of, well, stuff.  Charlie Sheen’s tour name, My Violent Torpedo of Truth, mesmerizes without saying much.  Twitter handles and comments are all-too-often incomprehensible.  Parsing the latest U.S. diplomat’s Middle Eastern speech to uncover possible solutions is just too taxing.

 That’s true for design too.   Photos and illustrations appear sans captions, and often are only somewhat relevant to the subject.  New brands take into account all colors of the rainbow, yet miss the product or company’s critical essence.  Web sites – ah, don’t get us started.

 All we’re saying is give simplicity a chance.  There’s incredible under-acknowledged power in being brief and to the point.  There’s drama, too, in the understated look and feel, one that matches the brand, its attributes, and its personality.   Even in the ethereal, consensus-driven business of crafting vision and mission statements, straightforward is beginning to rule.

 One example, touted by trend-watcher Fortune magazine:  Oracle.  In an industry that’s polka-dotted with jargon and acronyms that change daily, this California company is (and we quote) “masterful at using basic messages to communicate the complicated nature of its products.”  What does Oracle say about itself?  “Hardware and software, engineered to work together.” 

Expect, soon, an avalanche of simplification gurus, folks who’ll, for a fee, help whittle down words and pictures.    If that process trues up with what you and your company stand for, great.  

 If not?   We admit, it isn’t easy to clean up long-used language and visuals.  Owners and originators can bristle, understandably so.  Sometimes it involves almost literal wrestling matches with the message holders.   And sometimes, it makes sense to stand aside, fold our arms, and mutter one Yiddish word.  Ferblungit.*  

 Welcome to our world.

 

*[It’s simple:  Get the meaning from its sound.]