From ‘This is it’ to ‘Here I am’

Soft
Copy
THANK YOU EVERYBODY FOR
SHARING SO MANY INSIGHTS.
NOW IT‘S MY TURN. ENJOY.
JOHANNESSCHUBERT@GMAIL.COM

FROM ‘ThiS iS iT’ TO ‘heRe i AM’

FROM
About the author:

As a graduate of Design Factory Hamburg, Germany (with one term at International
School of Communication Design, Zhuhai, China) Johannes can look back to studies
which included advertising and design and has won a couple of international awards
in both fields.

‘This is iT’
At the same time he has gained experience in the professional life working for traditi-
onal and digital advertising agencies (including Jung von Matt, Proximity, BBH and
Mother London) as well as design agencies and is operating a wide range of communi-
cation projects under the label schatzi&schatzi with his partner Annabel.

Johannes will complete his studies of MA Advertising
at Bucks New University in 12/2009. Johannes Schubert

TO the metamorphosis towards
holistic brand communication

‘heRe i aM’

johannesschubert@gmail.com Johannes Schubert Bucks New University Faculty of Creativity & Culture
UK +44 7551 581 606 October 2009 Tutor: Dr. Ray Batchelor Word Count: 8000
GeR +49 93 19 46 04 MA Advertising Wycombe College Module: ADM02

FROM ‘ThiS iS iT’ TO ‘heRe i AM’ 3

Table of contents

Acknowledgment 5

Introduction 7

1 The digital age 9
The everyday life of digitally empowered people 13
A new kind of media is turning consumers into ‘prosumers’ 15
Moore’s Law is determining the progress of digital reality experiences 17
it is about technology in a human context 19

2 What does this mean to brands? 25
The end of marketing as we know it 27
Are there any rules on this bazaar? 29
Don‘t be evil 33
Marcus Aurelius Roman emperor 1 From designing products to designing brand experiences 35

Of each particular thing ask: 3 What do the people want? 37
People are seeking the great experience of being alive 41
What is it in itself? What is its nature? Rules for authentic communication 45

4 Crisis. What crisis? 47
Dead men walking? 49
Time for Titanium 53
Silos and Strawberries 55

5 What is our job? 59
Making clients succeed through strategic creativity 63
A new way of working 67
Creativity that fits in 69

Conclusion 71

Account of sources 73

Dear Reader,

Rather than following the convention of including tangentially relevant information into
formal appendices or footnotes, I have elected instead to put these parts into coloured
‘information boxes’ throughout to create a magazine-like experience.
This is why pictures are not numbered on the page. An overview of the used illustrations
classified by page-number is part of the Account of sources.

Here you are.
Johannes Schubert

1
Global Oneness, Marcus Aurelius <http://www.experiencefestival.com/a/Marcus_Aurelius_-_Roman_emperor/id/5275301> accessed on 02.05.2009


Acknowledgment

Bucks New University:
Bruce Sinclair
Dr. Ray Batchelor
Waqar Riaz
my fellow students at Bucks New University

London:
Martin Runnacles, Ultegra Consulting
Ian Haworth, Rapp
Stuart Outwraight, Mother
Sara Tate, Mother
Adam Arnold, BBH
Maximilian Gerdau, BBH
Johannes Hermann
Matt Pyke Artist 2
Hamburg:
The more connections I make, Michael Hoinkes
Götz Ulmer, Jung von Matt
the further I can reach across the world Stefan Walz, Kolle Rebbe
Tobias Schupp
finding inspiration in every person
New York:
that I meet. Simon Kelley, Keith Blanchard and Michael Perry, Story Worldwide

Many thanks to AKQA, AMV BBDO, BBH, EHS Brann, Elvis, IDEO, Jung von Matt,
Landor, M&C Saatchi, Mother London, Rapp, R/GA, Story, Volume and Wunderman

Special thanks to Tim Brown and Aradhana Goel, IDEO
Bob Greenberg and Nick Law, R/GA for sharing knowledge.

Helge Tennø, Russel Davis, Faris Yakob and many many more
for continually blogging me up to date

Dedicated to the wife of my dreams and our great families
with thanks to the one who is the A and Ω.

2
Vimeo, Nokia E71, Universal Everything - 6 billion people, 6 billion colours <http://www.vimeo.com/2818289> accessed on 17.04.2009


Introduction

The opening of the world wide web by Tim Berners-Lee on August 6th of 1991 at CERN
is seen nowadays as the entry into the current digital age. His invention, the Web 1.0 which
is connecting digital devices has spread all over the world and become a part of our lives on
both private and professional level. The rise of the humanized ‘Web 2.0’ (Tim O’Reilly)3
which is connecting people, enables internet consumers to actively participate in its creation.
This democratization of the media landscape is ‘shifting the power away from the editors, the
publishers, the establishment, the media elite.’ (Rupert Murdoch)4

This documents aims to explore the nature of this transition and its consequences for brands
and the creative industry from design to advertising by starting with an analysis of the impact
of digital technology within the western society (Europe and US). As we realize the shift from Tim Berners-Lee
a communication principle which can be characterised by the words ‘This is it.’ to a model of
‘Here I am.’ which puts people and brands on equal level, we zoom into the resultant chan-
ges in the world of brands. Analyzing the behaviour and expectations of today‘s consumers
Anonymus we can understand in what way the end of the traditional mass-media dominance presents a
challenge to the current setup of commercial communication.
The one who has the power over the images
The author then explains the recent reactions of agencies, portraits their changing way of wor-
also has the power over the people. king and presents different ground-breaking case studies of creative brand communication
that create appreciated value in people‘s life. This document is based on intensive research in
the creative industry of London and Hamburg (centres of European Communication Design
and Advertising) including various meetings with different types of professionals (i.e. Creative
Director, Copywriter, Designer, Planner) of internationally reknown agencies (i.e. Mother,
Jung von Matt, BBH, Rapp, Landor), studies of relevant literature (books and periodicals)
and a continuous and extensive global web research (mainly journals, blogs, speeches and
presentations). The content of his current postgraduate studies of Advertising at Bucks New
University as well as discussions with professionals from the client side of Marketing (i.e.
Lufthansa) and research from this perspective have assured the author about the accuracy of
his observation of a tendency in commercial communication from ‘Product Marketing to
Marketing Products’.

3
Wikipedia, Web 2.0 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_2.0> accessed on 21.07.2009
4
Slideshare, Online Trends August 2009 <http://www.slideshare.net/belm/online-trends-august-2009> accessed on 19.09.2009

1

Roy Amara former President of the institute for the Future 5
The
digital
People tend to overestimate the effect
of a technology in the short run and
underestimate the effect in the long run.

age
5
Campaign Viewpoint, Faris Yakob, The invisible web <http://www.campaignlive.co.uk/news/features/855000/Digital-Viewpoint-invisible-web> accessed on 14.02.2009

1 - The digital age 11

Take a minute to
think about how And what about
you experienced Michael Jackson
the death of in 2009?
Lady Di in 1997.


The everyday life of
digitally empowered people
Today when we set up a video conference on Skype, comment on our friend‘s holiday pictures
on Facebook (to announce that we just booked a trip on Cheapflights.com to another inte-
resting location we didn’t know it existed some hours ago, before looking at some impressive
pictures by ZhengHan87 from Shanghai at flickr) or simply explore the new collection of a
New Zealand based designer of eatable jewellery on ebay, we are mostly not aware that our
power of communication is crossing borders that seemed insuperable only years ago.

In the age of semiconductors (processing power), ferromagnetic compounds (storage), and
fiber optics (bandwidth) that progresses towards unlimited information and total intercon-
nection, the world without Google’s help is hard to imagine. This is why the company which
was founded only in 1998 with the mission ‘to organize the world‘s information and make
it universally accessible and useful’6 generally tops rankings (i.e.: Milward Brown Optimor7,
FastCompany8, Good Brands9) being the most powerful and innovative brand alive. The ri-
sing popularity of online search advertising is benefitting Google, which owns 73%10 of the
market share.

The digitalization of cameras and camcorders has equally changed the way we picture the
world as the conversion from physical records to audio-downloads, from videos and TV-
Broadcasts to High-Definition and media on demand is influencing the way we culturally
explore it. Both powerful and user-friendly software such as Apple‘s iLife (coming with every
Mac) promises to provide everyone who wants to become a movie director, music producer
or graphic artist with the essential tools required for creative expresion.

Mobiles that have a vast range of functions beyond making calls are becoming tools empow-
ering us to lead our everyday digital life. Being multi-media content creators we capture and
share ideas and impressions with our global friends and are able to access information from
every corner of the earth at all times.

The promise of Apple‘s tagline promoting the iPhone
application store summarizes the impact of digital on
our daily lives: ‘There is an app for everything.’10

6
Google, Mission statement <http://www.google.com/corporate> accessed on 29.05.2009
7
Milward Brown Optimor, BrandZ Top 100 Ranking, pdf (April 29th 2009),
<http://www.millwardbrown.com/Sites/Optimor> accessed on 01.06.2009
8
FastCompany, Fast 50 <http://www.fastcompany.com/fast50_09> accessed on18.08.2009
9
PSFK, Good Brands Report <http://www.psfk.com/psfk-good-brands-report-2009> accessed on 18.08.2009
10
Apple Homepage <http://www.apple.com> accessed on 29.05.2009


A new kind of media is turning
consumers into ‘prosumers’
Interviewing Stefan Walz11 (Creative Director, Kolle Rebbe, The star of traditional local and national TV and Radio stations and newspapers seems to
Hamburg, Germany) who has won a number of Awards (inclu- fade at the same time that the digital age is dawning on the media industry. The web can be
ding Cannes-Lions, ADC of Germany and Europe, LIAA and classified as a new kind of massmedia as it enables both a fusion of texts, voice, pictures and
One Show) for his works which go to the edge of digital com- video for diffusion to a wide group of individual recipients as well as its bi-directional charac-
mercial communication, about his work he underlines the im- ter allows unique interactivity.
portance of providing made-to-measure content to the people
and the need for active engagement. Another of its aspects is, that it blurrs the line between non-commercial and commercial
communication. Every user of the internet can take an active role and broadcast his or herself
The internet is the perfect media for an interactive society (the promise of YouTube). On the other hand established publishers can lose their influence
that participates and is full of people that want to see and be in controling the media when their predetermined structure of media products is identified
seen by sharing, commenting and rating content. as being distant, inconvenient and dictatorial compared to digital citizen media channels
sharing relevant User Generated Content (UGC) which are regarded as being close, personal
He describes the changing media behaviour with the example of and democratic. This fact has helped small businesses that have nothing to loose to become
a 16-year girl old who has stopped watching TV, as she can use succesful when they understand the situation and make it a part of their concept. Companies Stefan Walz
YouTube (which has become the second biggest search engine) like myMuesli have grown very quickly, as they totally incorporate the UGC (User Generated
to create her own playlists and avoid annoying ringtone-ads. Content) in their community building business and communication strategy.

Advertising agencies therefore have to switch from creating The shift is going from one-way pushed messages that are communicated by professional
traditional ads to creating relevant and engaging content – a broadcasters to a number of consumers, to an enlaced viral network of scores of amateur
discipline where they can learn from digital agencies who broadcasters12 (charts p.14). This change can also be described as the transition from broad-
are used to convince users to deliberately access websites and casting to narrowcasting. Although we have to consider that some people have so many fol-
establish a positive attitude towards the brand which does lowors, that they can actually be considered broadcasters. Ashton Kutcher famous for the
something for them or starts a conversation.11 BlahGirls.com (an interactive, animated Web series that focuses on celebrity gossip, fashion,
relationships and life as it happens)13 has 3,588,467 followers on twitter to ‘pull’ from him.14

MyMUeSLi.COM, The ONLiNe ShOP TO ORDeR yOUR OWN BLeND OF MUeSLi As a consequence of the democratisation of tools and the defining culture of sharing all kind
of information at increasingly no-cost, citizens of the digital world from being passive consu-
By interacting very personal on social networking sites such as Facebook the three mers are turning into interactive ‘prosumers’. At this occasion let us quote Wikipedia16 - the
founders of the company are establishing a lifestyle around the brand that attracts a big free encyclopedia that anyone can edit, which has become the largest (more than 13 million
number of friends. The community around the german start-up enterprise of the year articles15...) and most popular (... in over 200 languages14) general reference work on the
2007 is now sucessfully growing internationally. Internet and is continueing to grow at a rate of 156 articles/hour15): ‘The description prosu-
mer describes the converse to the consumer with a passive role, denoting an active role as the
individual gets more involved in the process.’16

+ US newspaper circulation is down 9 million over
the last 25 years. But in the last 5 years unique + More video was uploaded to youTube in the
readers of online newspapers are up 30 million. last two months than if ABC, NBC and CBS had
+ There are more than 200 million blogs been airing new content 24/7/365 since 1948.17
54% of bloggers post content or tweet daily

11
Stefan Walz, Creative Director, Kolle Rebbe, Hamburg, interviewed on 23.04.2009 in Hamburg
12
Martin Runnacles, Lesson at Bucks New University, MA Advertising at 09.03.2009
13
BlahGirls.com <http://www.blahgirls.com> accessed on 17.08.2009
14
Twitterholic, statistics of Ashton Kutcher <http://twitterholic.com> accessed on 17.08.2009
15
One-Way Communication ‘Peer to Peer‘ Communication Media Convergence, Promotional video for Conference hosted by The Economist <http://mediaconvergence.economist.com> accessed on 17.08.2009
16
Wikipedia, Prosumer <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prosumer> accessed on17.08.2009
17
YouTube, Social Media Revolution <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIFYPQjYhv8> accessed on 28.07.2009


Moore‘s Law is determining ... digital reality experiences
the progress of ...
Still being a teenager the internet has already had an overwhelming impact on our global
civilization, but with both faster connections and more availability through the rise of black-
berries, the iconic iPhone, pdas, netbooks and many more devices (as the ubiquitous internet
of things is step by step arriving) its importance is becoming even more fundamental.

The continuous developing digital reality is becoming the home for a ‘global society’18 that is
technologicaly empowered and interconnected and because of that able to change the world.
(Gordon Brown)18. Its citizens are both explorers of the digital sphere as well as their architects
acting as multi-media content creators, capturing and sharing ideas and impressions with
MOORe‘S LAW illustrated by the their global ‘friends’ (bear in mind that the social network Facebook with its more than 300
development of intel processors million users19 has enhanced the concept of what the term ‘friend’ can mean). Increasingly Martin heidegger
at former analogue and ‘offline’ environments (the so called ‘first life’) we are confronted by
digitally influenced situations (such as the shown Lego Packagings using Augmented Reality)
Real-time services such as Twitter or the upcoming GoogleWaves redefine our understanding
of what is a conversation is. As a consequence the seperation between the digital and the real
world has already become an out-of date concept.

20 years after inventing the World Wide Web, Tim Berners-Lee20 is asking the world to provi-
de raw data for a new type of web which links data. The bigger the amount of the linked data
provided the more powerful computerized analysis which is to play a fundamental role in our
daily life by helping us to make sense of the shared knowledge of the world. One hope for this
Web 3.0 is, that it is to be a groundbreaking tool in countless areas of research and culture,
such as the fight against diseases on a TED-conference in February 200920. Of course it is the Faris yakob
content of many discussions if it is one big step towards computerized intelligence (the Web
4.0 is expected to arrive around 205021).

We can be sure that this evolution digital technology will
enhance our reality. Faris Yakob (EVP Chief Technology
Strategist, McCann Erickson New York) describes that the
more invisible the web turns the more powerful it is beco-
ming, giving the philosopher Martin Heidegger’s example
of the blind person’s cane which becomes like an organ for
the user to experience his environment:
WiRiNG A WeB FOR GLOBAL GOOD
Gordon Brown speaks on 21 July 2009 The social impact of the web will only become evident
at a TeD conference in Oxford, UK when it is ubiquitous – a tool used so intuitively by the
generation that grows up once this happens that it is no
longer a tool, but an extension of yourself.22

Augmented Reality with Webcam in-Store Use of Augmented
Campaign for BMW Z4 Reality by LeGO

18
TED, Gordon Brown, Wiring a web for a global good <http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/gordon_brown.html> accessed on 24.07.2009
19
Tagesschau.de, Facebook macht erstmals Gewinn <http://www.tagesschau.de/wirtschaft/facebook136.html> accessed on16.09.2009
20
TED, Tim Berners-Lee, The next web <http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/tim_berners_lee_on_the_next_web.html> accessed on 14.03.2009
21
Karl Fisch, Scott McLeod, Did you know 3.0 <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpEnFwiqdx8> accessed on 17.01.2009
22
Yakob F., The invisible web


It is about technology
in a human context
Heidegger‘s dynamic can be observed already today, as we are fading into a post-digital24 age
(Russel Davis) where for example ebooks are becoming books, and IM (digital instant mes-
sages) become ‚message‘. As the reality of space (i.e. through GPS or digital compassing) and
time (there is no past on the searchable web) melt into the experience (SPIME - the device
knows when and where it is), digital is becoming more transparent. Just as phoning is no longer
about the technological experience of making a phone call, social research25 analyses that

NO, This is NOT people tend to go online to find people they know and tend to replicate, at least in part,
TwiTTeR laNguage. ANyALyZe your family their social performances online.These performances, the communities that they occur in
videotapes, or read your and the dialects that they represent and produce should be the critical loci for research in
first emails and you the postdigital age, not the technologies themselves.25 Russel Davis
notice how language is
changing over time. As an open document of the international 52group26
(teachers reflecting on teaching in digital times) descri-
bes this transition from an educational perspective:

The speed of the change, however, has left us with
the mistaken belief that social change was somehow
‘created‘ by the digital rather than simply played out
on a the canvas of the digital; that the digital itself is
the main driver of change.

We would argue the opposite. This ontological error
has had us move towards placing technology at the
forefront (think e-learning as distance learning) and
moving our focus away from the people involved
in these processes; the needs that they have and the
skills that they bring.26
Thinking PeOPLe first
‘We are stuck with technology when what we really want is just stuff that works.’27

Maybe this quotation of Douglas Adams explains the groundbreaking success of the iPhone
which not only transformed the smartphone market but can be seen as one of the forerunning
products in human-centric communication design.

SixThSeNSe is a wearable gestural interface that augments the physical world around us
with digital information and lets us use natural hand gestures to interact with the information.

By using a camera and a tiny projector mounted in a pendant like wearable device, SixthSense
sees what you see and visually augments any surfaces or objects we are interacting with. it
projects information onto surfaces, walls, and physical objects around us, and lets us inter-
23
act with the projected information through natural hand gestures, arm movements, or our Pranav Mistry, SixthSense, <http://www.pranavmistry.com/projects/sixthsense/> accessed on 23.02.2009
24
interaction with the object itself. 'SixthSense' attempts to free information from its confines Russel Davis, meet the new schtick <http://russelldavies.typepad.com/planning/2009/01/meet-the-new-schtick.html> accessed on 18.01.2009
by seamlessly integrating it with reality, and thus making the entire world your computer.23 25
Department for Continuing Education at the University of Oxford <http://tallblog.conted.ox.ac.uk/index.php/category/society> accessed on 12.08.2009
26
52 Group, Open Document <http://docs.google.com/View?id=aqv2zmc9bgm_51ft65rbn2> accessed on 16.08.2009
27
Virtual Strategy Magazine <http://www.virtual-strategy.com/December-2008-Executive-Viewpoint/Executive-Viewpoint-Tom-Joyce-Akorri.html> accessed on 24.01.2009


People are becoming brands just
as brands are becoming people
Before we enter the second chapter which will talk about brands in the digital age let us analyze
the american presidential election campaign of Barack Obama (who is sometimes refered as the
first internet president) that represents the literal bridge between a brand and a person.

His approach to include various audiences in order to become a true people’s spokeman and
spread the optimistic and involving message of ‘Change’ and ‘Yes we can.’ was more than a
financial success (650 Mill $), assured by donations of in average only $100 given by private
individuals.28 All other candidates before had mostly relied on the support by higher donations
of companies or rich individuals. In terms of communication the ‘marketing’ of Obama can be
seen as a ground-breaking modern political campaign with global reach and wide participati-
on. Media was the engine and people were the fuel of this multi-layered masterpiece creating
a people‘s president.
David Droga
More than half of U.S. adults used the Internet to participate in the 2008 election and
around 55 percent searched for political news online, researched candidate positions, deba-
ted issues or otherwise participated in the election over the Internet. 45 percent of Internet
users watched online videos related to politics or the election; 33 percent of Internet users
shared political content with others, 52 percent of those on a social network used it for
political purposes.29

Through the use of various online channels Obama achieved to gain the respect of large
amounts of members of the growing part of the ‘long tail’ (see p. 32) of american voters who
don‘t show a clear social affiliation to the democratic or republic party including ethnical and
religious minorities as well as groups with special interests. The integrating spirit in his com-
munication when he was talking about what ‘we’ can do instead of talking what ’he’ would do,
created a historical movement of the american people by establishing an empowering group
feeling expressed in the distinctive tagline: ‘Yes, we can.’ This big thought could be sensed in
every fractal of the brand architecture.

This campaign which ‘parts created something which was bigger than
the sum of them’31, (David Droga, Droga5) is winning unprece-
dentedly many creative awards (including both the Titanium and
Integrated Grand Prix of the 2009 Cannes Lions, Grand Clio, etc.).

Professionals in commercial communication study this movement
as it ‘changed business as usual for everyone.’ (Fast Company32).

Learn about the visual identity of Obama‘s campaign
in a Neewsweek interview with MiChAeL BieRUT,
Graphic Designer and Critic at Design Observer

http://blog.newsweek.com/blogs/stumper/archive/
2008/02/27/how-obama-s-branding-is-working-on-you.aspx

28
Campaign Magazine, supplement March 2009, Digital Essays
29
Reuters Online News <www.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUSTRE53E6FP20090415> accessed on 15.04.2009
30
Cannes Lions 2009, Press Conference Titanium and Integrated Lions <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rfiBQJCSdZw> accessed on 05.07.2009
31
FastCompany, The Brand Called Obama <http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/124/the-brand-called-obama.html> accessed on 15.04.2009


From to
‘This is it’ ‘Here I am’

2

What
A.G. Lafley CeO and Chairman, Procter & Gamble 32

Consumers are beginning in a very
real sense to own our brands and
participate in their creation.
does it
mean to
We need to begin to learn to let go.

brands?
32
Slideshare, TBWA on Change <http://www.slideshare.net/MADblog/tbwa-quote-compilation-on-change-1226374> accessed on 23.04.2009

2 - What does it mean to brands? 27

The end of marketing
as we know it
Commercial communication follows consumers. Companies investing in branding and mar-
keting their products or services recognize this fact as well as agencies that build bridges
from brands to people. Analyzing the history of commercial communication (comparing for
example content and tonality of ‘public information’ spots in the 50s to current viral movies)
we notice why advertising can be seen as a mirror of society and how brands are continually
drawing nearer to their consumers.

It is obvious that the sender-receiver monologue communications principle has to be ret-
hought which sucessfully generated ‘brand fans’ (Scholz&Friends, Berlin)33 in an ancient age
characterized by few brands. Their mostly packaged products were equipped with clear USPs,
which simplified the decision process of easy to reach consumers in the few supermakets. The
branding could focus on corporate identity and the packaging design while mass media do-
minance and high advertising acceptance were a paradise for marketing.33
Martin Runnacles
Nowadays in an age of ‘atomized and parallel media consumption’33, brand choice is com-
plex as we have become brand sceptics that are more difficult to reach because we suffer from
sensory and mental overload (more than 3000 messages per day)33 which leads to ahigh ad-
vertising rejection rate, (actually 65% of the people feel constantly bombarded with ads)33.
The market is flooded with many (often exchangeable) brands, as everything (no matter how
untangible) can be a product today (the German market saw a flop rate of 70% in 2008).33

As a consequence only 18% of traditional TV campaigns generate a positive ROI (return on
investment).34 The decay of prize for Adspace in TV or Print is an indicator that traditional
media space is loosing importance at the same time as online advertising is rising. So how
to talk to customers in an information age where digital is turning the world of commercial
communication upside down and ‘Everything a brand does that connects to the consumer is
media’35 (Lee Clow, Director of Media Arts, TBWA Worldwide)? Lee Clow

Russel Davies Strategist & Author 36

There‘s a limited amount of attention in the world.
If more of it is going to personal, non-commercial,
un-advertised media, less of it will go to advertising.

New wave COMMuNiCaTiON MOdel by Martin Runnacles, ultegra Consulting

With the shift of power from broadcasters and brands to people many communication
models are running out of date. Runnacles‘ marketing hypothesis does not primarily
consider the digital space as an advertising possibilty but shows the potential of hos-
ting the complete customer journey including raising awareness to purchase.

33
Scholz&Friends, Dramatic Shift in Marketing <http://blog.envision-grp.com/2009/01/scholz-friends-dramatic-shift-in.html> accessed on 04.06.2009
34
YouTube, Social Media Revolution
35
Slideshare, TBWA on Change
36
Russel Davies, 2008 - the year of peak advertising <http://russelldavies.typepad.com/planning/2008/01/2008---the-year.html> accessed on 22.01.2009

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5yGc4zOqozo

Are there any rules
on this bazaar?
The Cluetrain Manifesto compare today’s marketplaces to a global bazaar. In order to be eco-
nomical it is important to raise a matching voice to become a part of the global conversation.
People are put in a strong position in which they can freely decide what they like and share
with their friends and what they don‘t recommend.

A number of bad online reviews on important platforms can harm the launch of a new pro-
duct or service. A good proof for this point are the highly discussed attempts of doctors in the
US trying to remove their footprint of negative patient reviews on rating sites such as Zagat’s
and Angie’s List.37 There is no space for dark secrets in an information enlightened age. As
people rate and comment on almost everything, the internet is ‘shifting the power away from
the editors, the publishers, the establishment, the media elite.’ (Rupert Murdoch).38

Just like the doctors who try to stop their patients from sharing online reviews by giving them
waivers which they have to sign vowing to stay silent, companies remaining in the model of
ancient brand behaviour to tell people what to think about their products will eventually
come into serious image problems as the processes of companies marketing are getting de-
mystified. Not accepting this reality can easily leave a participator (whether it is a company or
an individual) being considered arrogant and distant. Murdoch, one of the most influential
global media entrepreneurs states the fact that ‘now it‘s the people who are in control.’38

Companies have to ensure that they are customer-relevant in order to prosper. Services or
products have to be useful and available when and where people need them. A study in the
second quarter of 2009 published by Microsoft for Europe (‘Europe logs on - European Inter-
net Trends of Today and Tomorrow’39) predicts that by June 2010 the use of the internet will
top the use of TV. 65% of the time is spend on news, video and communication platforms
while e-commerce is taking the second place with 33%. Now is the crucial time for brands to
make this medium their home. That is why factors like SEO (Search Engine Optimization)
are becoming a crucial part of modern product marketing and brand management. Rupert Murdoch

eaT OR be eaTeN siNgeR geTs his ReveNge ON uNiTed aiRliNes aNd sOaRs TO FaMe

Tools like the social barometer measuring brand conversations below indicate how strong United Airlines Dave Carroll couldn't get compensation for damage to his guitar – until he named and
was ‘virally infected‘ by the youTube-Video which also got coverage in global traditional media (TV, Press). shamed the airline in a youTube video Next time an airline loses or breaks your luggage,
try shaming them with a song and a video. That‘s what a little-known Canadian country and
western singer did after he claimed that his Taylor acoustic guitar had been damaged by
baggage handlers at Chicago‘s O‘hare airport last year.

United Breaks Guitars has become a youTube sensation and provided Dave Carroll with
the biggest hit of his career. The song - which chronicles his vain year-long attempt to win
compensation from United – has had almost 4m hits on youTube and fans have been cla-
mouring for the song at gigs where his band, Sons of Maxwell, has performed. (...)40

37
MSNBC,Docs seek gag orders to stop patients’ reviews <http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29497619> accessed on 05.03.2009
38
Slideshare, TBWA on Change
39
CPC Consulting, Internet überholt TV <http://www.cpc-consulting.net/Microsoft+Studie+Europe+logs+on--n795> accessed on 18.05.2009
40
The Guardian, United Breaks Guitars Video <http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/blog/2009/jul/23/youtube-united-breaks-guitars-video> accessed on 29.09.2009

2 - What does it mean to brands?
THE TOP 100
31 *

2009
This is Google in Millward Brown Optimor’s BrandZ Top 100 **
**

TOP 100 Most Valuable Global Brands 2009 TOP 100
# Brand Brand Value % Brand Value # Brand Brand Value % Brand Value
09 ($M) Change 09 vs. 08 09 ($M) Change 09 vs. 08

1 100,039 16% 26 21,294 85%

2 76,249 8% 27 21,192 9%

3 * 67,625 16% 28 20,059 67%

4 66,622 20% 29 19,395 5%

5 66,575 34% 30 19,079 3%

6 63,113 14% 31 18,945 N/A

7 61,283 7% 32 18,233 N/A

8 59,793 -16% 33 17,965 -25%

9 53,727 45% 34 17,713 -8%

10 49,460 33% 35 17,467 -20%

11 41,083 19% 36 16,353 N/A

1997
This is Google at Stanford University

12 38,056 36% 37 16,228 -34%

13 35,163 -20% 38 16,035 10%

14 29,907 -15% 39 15,776 5%

15 27,842 -9% 40 15,499 -14%

16 27,478 100% 41 15,480 -53%

17 26,745 -9% 42 15,422 1%

18 23,948 -15% 43 15,076 7%

19 23,615 9% 44 ** 14,996 -3%

20 23,110 -3% 45 14,991 -9%

21 22,938 -1% 46 14,963 -40%

22 22,919 6% 47 14,961 -1%

23 22,851 4% 48 14,894 -22%
®

24 22,811 16% 49 14,608 -52%

25 21,438 -6% 50 14,571 -12%

17


Don‘t be evil

Contrary to a scientific ideal experiment, in the real world all variables are unlocked. In a
changing economy and a changing media landscape the definition of a what a brand is has
become the subject of countless discussions. Janice Capewell (Senior Marketing Manager,
Leo Burnett Group)42 thinks that the old definiton of brands as landing points in which we
follow our needs and invariably end up at a brand is changing. ‘The days of the static brands
are increasingly numbered as they become a means and not an end. The brands of the future
will be vehicles and not just destinations.’42

More and more companies understand that the important process of ‘brandbuilding’ is hap-
pening on the side of the consumer. Jeremy Bullmore (Millward Brown) describes the role of
marketing and design experts as ‘helping people to build brands as attractively as possible.’43
This understanding also leads into the three criteria ‘Innovation’, ‘Responsibility’ and ‘Com-
munity’ of PSFK’s Good Brands Report listing ‘40 Brands that we can all learn from.’44

With a continuous closer integration of brands into peoples life behavioural economics (sug- Jeremy Bullmore
gested reading: ‘Predictably Irrational’ by Dan Ariely, MIT Media Lab) are providing essential
ChRis aNdeRsON (editor in Chief of wired magazine)
market understanding as technical economics the focus of businesses is shifting from exclusi-
vely monetary value to alternative currencies such as ‘Attention, Reputation and Network’43
The Long Tail 40 describes the niche strategy of mainly digital businesses. (Aradhana Goel, IDEO) which are drivers to success.
If we look for example at the sales of Amazon.com or the iTunes Music Store we can see that companies are able to sell
only small numbers of a large collection of unique items (Anderson calls this derivat of the Pareto Rule the Long Tail). Although using different paramaters for measuring brand value, there is wide consensus
This is possible as the storing costs in the digital space approach zero.40 among reknown business rankings about which is the most powerful brand alive (i.e.: Mill-
ward Brown Optimor’s BrandZ Top 100 43, Fast Company’s Fast50 46, PSFK’s Good Brands 44).
In his current book Free 41 Anderson, who is sometimes called a ‘digital prophet‘ analyzes the importance of free products and Most awards for being leading in both innovation and market value are topped by Google
services in today‘s economy and explains various models based around the price of $ 0.00. Here are three of the most important. which has developed ‘from a search engine to a way of life.’44 (Good Brands). ‘They are the
provider of a vast array of services that enable work, play, learning and more.’44 Often Google
+ The freemium strategy which means that standard service is free but customers will be charged for is mentioned as the role model for the ‘ability to promote innovation among its staff’44 as well
premium services. As an example a basic flickr account is free while a professional account will cost extra. as it includes the community (i.e. through beta-testing). This approach has made it become Aradhana Goel
+ One of the most succesful examples of the gift economy a greenhouse for fast experimentation with a culture of embracing failure. According to their
(totally free and not for profit) is the open-source dictionary Wikipedia. motto ‘don’t be evil’47 accessibility and usefulness are at the heart of the customer experience.
+ The key to the financial success of Google is hidden inside its business strategy to ‘help people succeed and when they do
so soes Google‘. Its diverse free services are built around pay-per-click advertising revenue which is continuously growing. 41 From the way Google is using the ‘negligible cost of distribution through the web’44 (p.32)
in order to ‘expand into areas including health, telecom, software, news, and advertising,’44
companies can learn how people-centered communication devices can be designed into the
products of a company.

40
Anderson C., The Long Tail: Why the Future of Business Is Selling Less of More, Hyperion, New York,
NY, United States of America, 2006
41
Anderson C., Free: The Future of a Radical Price, Hyperion, New York, NY, United States of America, 2009
42
YouTube, Leo Burnett Group Predictions 2009, Future Trends in Marketing
<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4SklqUWXa4> accessed on 27.01.2009
43
Millward Brown Optimor, BrandZ Top 100 Ranking
44
PSFK, Good Brands Report
45
Aradhana Goel, IDEO, Presentation at IDEA 2008 Conference on 08.10.08, From Inidividuals to the Collective
<http://www.slideshare.net/whatidiscover/from-individuals-to-the-collective-presentation> accessed on 17.08.2009
46
FastCompany, Fast 50
47
Wikipedia, Don‘t be evil <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don%27t_be_evil> accessed on 18.08.2009


From designing products to
designing brand experiences
In an era of rapid cheap fabrication (described by MIT professior Neil Gershenfeld in his
book FAB) which is filling with a exponential number of new products and services everyday,
designer Matt Jones (Schulze&Webb) analyzes a post-digital dynamic which he calls the New
Negroponte* Switch.48 ‘Services are becoming tangible products and products are becoming
intangible services as fast production and pervasive networks are allowing them to switch
places and mingle.’48 Among his examples for this theory are on the one side magazines that
The Progression of economic value by Joseph Pine48 are printed from the data of blog posts, flickr shares and twitter feeds and on the other side
illustrating the shift from products to services urban bikesharing and carsharing companies.
If we understand the medieval markets as the birthplace
of capitalism we can analyze four steps in the progression Philippe Starck, one of the most famous designers of the world foeresees that the profession
of economic value through customization. (chart) The of a designer in its current nature will soon no longer be needed.49
writer Joseph Pine explains, that the commoditation of Philippe Starck
services to goods creates a need for staging experiences Design will dissapear. There are two reasons: Design will melt into all kinds of projects or
in today’s economy of mass-customization, ‘where con- processes that the term design becomes obsolet. The seperation of blueprint and produc-
sumer sensitivity is reaching for authenticity.’48 tion is disappearing. Everything will be design, even more than it already is the case today.
But there is also another reason why it will disappear: The history of our civilization shows
that we are continually creating more powerful technologies and at the same time dissolve
its materiality.49

This progress can be demonstrated if we compare the changes in size of computers. Starck
goes on to say that ‘in a few years they might be integrated into our bodies as everything is
getting smaller and is relocated to the internet. Maybe the role of a designer in the future is to
Philippe starck: lOuis ghOsT be a personal trainer who is in charge of diet and gymnastics.’49

Starck who has designed an extraordinary wide range of Well, we should not expect to see the transition into this working style within the next years,
objects is considered often as one of the most influential but the direction which Starck is talking about fits very well into our analysis about Moore‘s
designers of the world. His famous Louis Ghost Chair for Law (p.17). As mentioned at the beginning of the first chapter everyone can access today
Kartell is a dematerialising reinterpretation of a classical professional tools of creative expression. So what does it mean that ‘creativity has become a
Louis XV. style furniture.
commodity’50 (Alex Burgusky, Creative Head, Crispin Porter + Bogusky) to the creative in-
dustry itself? Will advertising still be advertsing and will design still be design ? According to
Tim Brown (IDEO) Design has become small.The term design has entered the lives of brands
as a nametag symbolising ‘Ah! Exclusive!’ and is becoming ubiquitous part of the shopping ex-
perience. But if we see three pairs of designer socks at Primark for 1.94£ we could ask ourself
this question: Who did design my socks, if not a designer? We can see that the word design is
finding itself falling into the same category as the word digital.

48
Gershenfeld N., FAB: The Coming Revolution on Your Desktop--From Personal Computers to Personal Fabrication,
Basic Books, New York, NY, United States of America, 2007
49
TED, Joseph Pine, What consumers want,
<http://www.ted.com/talks/joseph_pine_on_what_consumers_want.html> accessed on 04.02.2009
Jannis Kounellis Artist 47 50
seen in a video about the Artist, Tate Modern, London on 22.08.2009
51
Slideshare, The New Negroponte Switch <http://www.slideshare.net/schulzeandwebb/the-new-negroponte-switch>
The material almost accessed on 19.07.2009
52
SZ Magazin, Philippe Starck, Dem Design fehlt Idealismus und Moral
always leads to the immaterial. <http://sz-magazin.sueddeutsche.de/texte/anzeigen/28948> accessed on 19.07.2009 * Nicholas Negroponte is the author of
53
Slideshare, Creative Planning at Miami Ad School ‘being digital’. in this book which was al-
<http://www.slideshare.net/theplanninglab/creative-planning-miami-ad-school> accessed on 24.09.2009 ready published in 1995 he explains that
54
TED, Tim Brown, Tim Brown urges designers to think big wired things will become unwired and
<http://www.ted.com/talks/tim_brown_urges_designers_to_think_big.html> accessed on 02.10.2009 unwired things become wired)
55
Negroponte N., Being Digital, Vintage, Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group (Vintage Series), New York, NY, 1996

3

What
helge Tennø Strategic Director, Screenplay 56

As the air around our citizens thickens
with unwanted messages and interruptions,
the goal should not be to add to the
do the
people
unwantedness, but to create deliberate
and appreciated value.

want?
56
Slideshare, Helge Tennø, Post Digital Marketing 2009 <http://www.180360720.no/index.php/archive/post-digital-marketing-2009> accessed on 14.08.2009

3 - What do the people want? 39

2001 2009
This is the first iPod in This is what people feel about the iPod in

From ‘This is it’ to ‘Here I am’

From ‘This is it’ to ‘Here I am’

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