LEGO turns 80: Brand storytelling at its best
August 24, 2012 § Leave a Comment
LEGO turns 80 this month and in tribute of the occasion, they have created a 17-minute animated short film sharing the history behind their iconic bricks. At 17 minutes, the film is rather long for the typical brand-inspired film, particularly considering the ever-shrinking attention span of the average person. And yet, the video has been watched by well over 2 million people. I don’t know about them, but I watched the entire video. All 17 minutes worth.
The film is a great example of brand storytelling done exceptional. A few of my thoughts on why:
- The founder’s story: tying any brand story back to the company’s origins (which are usually humble and involving personal hardship) tends to be interesting, especially when they are tied to a person who endured and persevered through hardships as those overcome by Ole Kirk Christiansen, the founder of LEGO. A strong founder’s story is inspiring, relatable, and even heart-wrenching. At its best, bringing a founder’s story to life is a powerful tool in strengthening emotional attachment of fans, and establishing a tie with those who are not yet fans. LEGO’s founder is someone that fans can relate to, cheer on and hope does well… even when we know he eventually must, as we know what LEGO is today.
- Emotive story themes: Personal difficulty, perseverance, hard work, innovation, and an unwavering commitment to quality – the hallmarks of a brand that every customer can get behind, and ones that not every brand can attest to. LEGO has wrapped layer after layer of their brand story in these elements, making the extra effort to tie their commitment to quality to the craftsman story of the original wooden toys LEGO created. Smart, because carpentry is something a customer can easily relate craftsmanship to. More so than the plastic block.
- Personal narration: The film is narrated by Kjeld Kirk Kristiansen, the grandson of Ole Kirk Christiansen. Initially, the narrator is unnoticed as just a voice, but eventually, it’s subtly and then not too subtly revealed that he’s a member of the family. Strong, because with the close familial ties to not only the founder but also LEGO, the narration, founder, and company suddenly become even more relatable and relevant. We’re listening to a man tell the story of his grandfather’s start and slow establishment of his company. Even though Kjeld is no longer the President and CEO of LEGO, it doesn’t matter. It’s still his family’s company, and as fans, we are more closely tied to his story because it is told through his eyes.
- Sincerity and authenticity: the story is told in a matter-of-fact sort of way that is approachable, simple, and authentic without any bells and whistles. Not to say that every story should be told in this way, but stories rooted in authenticity further resonate with fans. They are also more believable.
- Alignment to brand values: Alongside the story themes, which are compelling, and also selected in close alignment to LEGO’s brand values, the way LEGO’s story is told – methodically without too much excitement or embellishment – is also closely aligned to LEGO’s brand values. A brand story should always be consistent with the brand values and positioning. It seems obvious, but surprising how often it’s not well executed.
- Informative: Even for the biggest LEGO fan, the film offers you something new about the company you may not have known before. Did you know that LEGO comes from the Danish words “leg godt” for “play well”? LEGO also means “I put together” in Latin – a lucky, unplanned aspect of the name.
Apart from these aspects, the film is, of course very well executed in a Pixar-style animation. That level of quality in a video always helps.
In any case, happy 80th birthday, LEGO. I hope there are many more years of playing well to come.
The DIGITAL story of the Nativity
December 17, 2010 § Leave a Comment
In the spirit of the holidays, Excentric sent their clients a Christmas card featuring their own rendition of the Nativity story told through a digital lens of today. I wanted to share this as I thought it was a clever way of showing how times have changed. See for yourself!
Happy Holidays!
Selling socks with whimsy: Tabio
October 25, 2010 § Leave a Comment
I was quite enchanted by the recently launched Tabio UK interactive website. It was sweet, whimsical, and endearing, but most of all, it reignited a nostalgic childhood fascination and playfulness around a normally rather benign, everyday product: socks. The best part about the site was the wonderful blend of emotive playfulness with the barely noticeable transactional capabilities of the site. Increasingly, I think this blend of feel-good emotive integration into the buying and selling process is the norm.
The Guy At Home in His Underwear: Raising awareness for testicular cancer
October 16, 2010 § Leave a Comment
On October 6th, Stanfield launched “The Guy at Home in His Underwear” with the help of John St, Hard Citizen, and The Secret Location. The campaign is focused on raising awareness for testicular cancer, featuring Mark, the Guy at Home, wearing nothing but his skivvies on live camera feeds all day long. For every person who “likes” the campaign through Facebook, Stanfield’s will donate $1, up to a maximum of $25,000 to the Canadian Cancer Society.
From Day 1, the campaign took off. Within the first day, thousands gave their support by “liking” the Guy at Home in his Underwear. Since then, the campaign has gathered over 35,000 Facebook likes, managing to reach the 25,000 like and $25,000 donation goal within the first week. Stanfield’s decided to put up another $25,000 for the remainder of the campaign. Smart thinking, Stanfield’s! Since then, it seems every few hours, a few thousand more people jump in to like the campaign.
So why the huge uptake? With all the companies clamouring to “do digital” and to be the next viral sensation, what has set this campaign apart from some others that have not have met the same success? « Read the rest of this entry »
Baby Carrots’ junk food-esque marketing campaign
September 23, 2010 § Leave a Comment
Bolthouse Farms and Crispin Porter + Bogusky have assembled a great satirical marketing campaign for baby carrots in the style of junk food ads. Entertaining and fun. And if that’s not enough, the campaign comes with its very own microsite, and iPhone app that boasts of being “the world’s first ever carrot-crunch-powered video game. Ever.”
Future:
Indulge:
Extreme:
Effective Communication: Keep it simple (Part 2)
May 9, 2010 § Leave a Comment
Image credit: iStockphoto
In approaching mass marketing campaigns, so often, the communication focus is on reaching as many people as possible with our message or our client’s message… so much so that the underlying objective of understanding is lost. How do we get to them? Where are they already going to be? What are other ways we can reach them? Got that? Great. Now, let’s get them the message. And frequently, there’s a lot to say. We want people to know about the company, what the company is doing, that there’s a great promotion or initiative happening, and why people won’t want to miss out. Throw into the mix dates, locations, rules, participating partners, sponsors, prizes or donation opportunity, and even celebrity endorsement. But don’t forget the overall brand message… and campaign message. Oh, and also the partner sponsor brand and campaign messages too.
And that’s usually only the baseline of informational requirements. That’s already a lot.
It’s critical never to forget that although we want to reach people and get the information we want them to receive when we do – most often, less is more. Or actually, simplicity is key. Managing to fit all of the various points we want people to know doesn’t mean they will receive it when they see, hear, or read it. How do you ensure someone will walk away not only having been exposed to your message amongst all the other people and companies trying to get their messages out, but understanding it in the way you had intended it? You can’t, but you can certainly make it easier for them.
What are the one or two ideas you want someone to walk away with, and more importantly, if you could make it happen – what would you want them to do? That’s what should be in your communication, and everything about your design should support this. Your core idea and what you want someone to do with it.
A firehose of information is overwhelming and can result in more harm than good. Chances are people won’t listen to or read your full ad or write-up, or worse, get confused by it. The small act of keeping things simple – although easier said than done – can make all the difference, and well worth the effort.
Anthropologie’s ingenious customer waste reduction
April 19, 2010 § 2 Comments
I have always been very impressed with Anthropologie, but lately, even more so. Not only is their customer service personal, responsive and outstanding, but they have recently implemented a campaign that I thought was ingenious. At the end of a sale, they ask their customers if they are willing to forego the shopping bag, and by doing so, will have the opportunity to be automatically entered into a raffle for store credit.
Smart. Not only does it make the customer think about whether he or she really needs that bag, but it creates incentive for the customer to walk out without another unnecessary shopping bag in an oh-so-subtle and tactful way. Less bags means money saved for Anthropologie, less garbage and a chance to win store credit for the customer, and less waste for the environment. Everyone wins.
Really fantastic. I’m always a fan of waste reduction. Big points for Anthopologie for being thoughtful and responsible.
Free Pastry Day @ Starbucks: Marketing genius for so many reasons
March 24, 2010 § Leave a Comment
I was delighted to wake up to a Free Pastry Day at Starbucks this morning. In my mind, the only thing better than yummy, fresh pastry in the morning is FREE yummy pastry: a truly outstanding way to start the day. So as I walked down the street, pondering which one of three Starbucks locations I would get my free pastry from along my walk to work, I thought to myself, how interesting this is. Starbucks (and I’ll begrudgingly add, McDonald’s before Starbucks) is genius!
First, Starbucks had managed to reach me through their viral, word-of-mouth campaign. They had also managed to successfully obtain 100% of my morning pastry mindshare as I sailed past an array of charming coffee shops that smelled enticingly of fresh baked goods. Third, as I entered the store, I quickly realized that I didn’t want to be “that patron” who had just come in for a freebie, particularly under the purposeful gaze of the man behind the cashier. Since I don’t generally drink coffee, I walked out with an orange juice that even the Barista commented was expensive (but I enjoyed every sip of it). Finally, Starbucks had successfully gotten me in through their door and put their locations on the map for me for future reference.
So, for someone who normally doesn’t drink coffee, rarely enters coffee shops in the morning, and deliberately avoids the big-box franchises like Starbucks – Starbucks had accomplished a tremendous feat.
Interesting. Next ponderance… I need to do something about this pastry weakness.
