As I sit writing on Groundhog Day, which has brought me nothing but a
throbbing headache, I am especially happy to see these last lines from Punxsutawney
Phil:
Phil's official forecast as read 2/2/07 at 7:28 a.m. at Gobbler's Knob:
“On
this Groundhog Day we think of one thing.
Will
we have winter or will we have spring?
On Gobbler's Knob I see no shadow today.
I
predict that early spring is on the way.”
Good work, Phil!
Winter is one headache
I’ll be more than happy
to see on its way.
What’s the best way to get decision makers all on the same page
when important marketing and communications outcomes are at stake? What
can you do when design and branding decisions need to be made by a group—especially
by a group of people who don’t necessarily value the creative process?
It’s important to help people make connections.
A method is needed to help make the connection between the unspoken, emotional aspects of people’s feelings and perceptions about a company, product, or service, and the visual representation of it—a tricky thing to understand for many people.
The problem
Often, brands, logos, and graphics are created by outside marketing firms
without executive level input, and are based on a designer’s
interpretation of communication value. There is often
a substantial gap between the designer’s natural understanding
of the creative process and the lack of this understanding on the part
of the individuals in the company who are purchasing the creative solution. This
gap causes company management to relate to the visual representations
on the surface, out of context, and with knee-jerk reactions—even if they understand
the objectives used by the designer to develop the solution. In the
absence of a process to bridge this gap, personal likes and dislikes
are used to evaluate the appropriateness of the creative solution,
as individuals have little else on which to base their reactions. When
you’ve got a group of decision makers to satisfy, this is bad
news. As everyone’s personal likes and dislikes are going to
be different, coming to agreement can be very difficult.
The solution
The solution is to bring the people responsible for the approval and
ultimate use of the visual solution into the creative process at the
beginning and have them involved
in the creative development. With
the group’s participation, everyone’s input is prioritized
and put into context, and relationships between graphic elements and
their purpose can be explored. This process helps to bridge
the communication gap and match specific objectives with visual
interpretation and/or wording in a way that makes use of each person’s
valuable insight about the organization, its products and/or services,
and its objectives for the future. Understanding, agreement, and ownership
are all outcomes of this method.
The process is relatively simple. An initial session can take between two and three hours to complete, depending on the amount of discussion that is a byproduct of the session.
When to use it
Obviously, you wouldn’t use this process for every marketing or
communication project that comes across your desk. But for the larger
ones, like branding
your organization or major marketing campaigns, the
addition of a process like this can save time and large amounts of resources
in the long run, allowing you to avoid multiple expensive false starts.
How it works
There are three main parts of the session: 1.) determining where
everyone stands at the start, in terms of understanding the objective
and why it’s being undertaken, 2.) identifying everyone’s
current perceptions regarding the objective, and 3.) identifying where the
group wants to end up in terms of future perceptions for the initiative.
After all of these elements are identified through exercises, discussion
uncovers similarities and direction that can be agreed upon. These
will be the basis for the creative direction.
The details
2 to 3-hour working session
Attended by everyone who has a voice in the outcome
No more than 25, no less than 4 attendees
Baseline Brainstorming -- the group will participate in a working session to identify individual understanding of the objectives.
Current and Desired Perceptions -- this two-part exercise helps to identify current and desired future perceptions of the initiative.
Emotional Tests -- The group “reacts” to common graphic and communication elements as they relate to previously defined desired future perceptions. The group rates and categorizes communication elements for appropriateness for the initiative.
Summary and Review
Progress and direction are reviewed
Next steps defined
Results Report and Creative Development
Information gathered at this session is condensed and organized into
a report for team approval of direction.
After approval of results report, creative conceptualization is begun
by design team.
Group Assessment
Group critiques creative solutions
Direction approved, or
Feedback is given for further development
When embarking on major marketing or branding campaigns, organizations that take the time to lay the groundwork with this critical process will pave the way for group buy-in, saving time and large amounts of resources. It’s all about helping people make connections.
Learn more about strategic branding, brand process, and brand case studies at www.hoeck.net.
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excellent! Not
only are they creative, they work quickly, and never seem to mind when
there's a glitch in plans or deadline. H.A! is always part of the solution.
Deb Lewis as well as others we work with from Hoeck are always available.
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1. Check it out
Before diving in, look around at public blogs and leave a few comments,
to get familiar with the way things work. Then, consider setting up a
test blog with a limited audience so you can work out some of the biggest
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Strategic Branding:
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Part 1: Finding Your Brand Values
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Part 2: Your Brand’s Character and Personality
Published by Hoeck Associates, Inc.
© February 2006 All rights reserved
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Toledo, OH 43623
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