360 - Jack Morton Worldwide's Experiential Marketing Blog

I (heart) LEGO and LEGO (hearts) NYC

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 19:44:21 +0000

Another great example of why LEGO is an experience brand.

Check out more photos here.

Sweating the details: a brand experience story

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 16:35:58 +0000

I got this great brand story from my colleague Eric Sauter, Senior Technologist in Jack Morton's Technical Services group: "My son is a projectionist at a local Cineplex. Not a career AV gig, but decent part-time work while he and his new bride are in school. Sunday morning when I saw him, he had a branding story with camera-phone images as documentation. When a 3D film comes in to the theater, it is accompanied by a sheet detailing various specifications that must be set on the projection gear for the images to work properly. This normally takes the form of an 8½x11 piece of paper, sometimes with a studio or movie logo at the top. This weekend however, Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland opened. Disney does things differently. Being one of the more brand conscious companies on the planet, Disney sent the projector settings as part of a kit, printed full bleed in process color on heavy paper stock that mimics parchment, with every insignificant detail carefully adhering to all graphic standards and branding guidelines put forth for this movie release. This document would never see the light of day, only the projection rooms of theaters where the 3D version of the film is being shown. For this very tiny audience of 3D projectionists, Disney put the time and money into making sure that the same face shown to the public at large is seen in every document. I’m impressed. Disney sweats the details, sometimes better than others, but always with an eye toward the brand. They know that marketing goes beyond the TV spot, printed piece, or consumer experience; it is something that lingers in the subconscious, influencing us even when we may not realize it. A friend of mine refers to this as being “between the frames”, as explained here. It is a short yet worthwhile read that I’d recommend. On any given day we represent a multitude of brands. Our clients. Jack Morton Worldwide. Sometimes sister agencies. You are always representing yourself and your own personal brand. Every so often, it may be worthwhile to take an inventory of what details we sweat vs. slide. Remember the 3D projectionists, and what happens in between frames."

$1.3 billion category crying out for brand experiences!

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 15:59:10 +0000

Brandweek reports that the adult incontinence category -- worth $1.3 billion and growing given aging Boomers in the US -- is an increasing focus of marketing spend, with big campaigns running for Kimberly-Clark's Poise and Depend as well as rival Tena. My two cents: this is a category crying out for brand experiences, for at least 3 reasons: 1. Given all the embarassment and bad jokes surrounding the adult incontinence category, you can practically see those expensive ads being skipped, fast forwarded and otherwise tuned out. 2. Brands need to offer consumers a combination of education to overcome misunderstanding and anxiety, plus samples. 3. Research shows that Boomers are receptive to live brand experiences as a way to learn about new brands.

Potato Poh-tah-toe

Mon, 08 Mar 2010 18:22:37 +0000

There’s been a lot of debate recently about ‘experience brands’ and ‘brand experiences’. To some people, it seems nothing more than semantics. But there’s actually an important distinction between the two. Pick a bank, any bank. It doesn’t matter because it’s imaginary. Now let’s walk through the branch. You can only go in there at lunchtime Just like everyone else. So the first thing you notice is the huge queue snaking out of the door. When you’re finally inside you notice that two of the tellers aren’t working. Guess what, they’re on their lunch break too. While you’re queuing you decide to fill in a paying-in slip. But none of the pens work You’ll have to do it at the counter. Finally, a teller becomes free and you get tutted at for not having filled in the paying-in slip beforehand. You ask to withdraw some money but get told that you need two forms of ID for that transaction. Storming out of your branch, vowing to change banks at the soonest opportunity. You’ve just had a brand experience. A terrible one. But a brand experience nonetheless. An experience brand, on the other hand, is a brand that knows how it feels to be in a frustrating queue. And does something about it. An experience brand focuses on the behaviours it exhibits at every single touchpoint with anybody and everybody. An experience brand makes every interaction a differentiator that people will remember for all the right reasons. Now, can anyone lend me a tenner – I just can’t face going to the bank.

Intel -- a great B2B experience brand

Wed, 03 Mar 2010 15:26:39 +0000

Since we published our article about experience brands last week, several people have asked for more examples of B2B experience brands. Here's an obvious one: Intel. Going all the way back to the 1990s, Intel famously transcended the traditional just-the-facts, plain Jane, features and benefits approach of B2B branding with its "Intel Inside" campaign--which forever made Intel a household name among consumers. The brand redefined the experiences available to tell its story to its communities--for example, creating one of the world's most recognizable sonic brands with its five-note jingle. It keeps telling fantastic stories to be relevant to consumers, whether that's its online storytelling or its fantastic "Rock Stars" campaign (gets me every time). But as a B2B brand, Intel also invests in engaging its core developer and engineer communities in ways that stand out among technology brands. It has continually enhanced and extended its brand experiences, live and online--the Intel Developer Forum being a terrific example.

2010: The Year of Experience Brands

Thu, 25 Feb 2010 17:31:53 +0000

Today we launched the first in a series of articles around the idea that 2010 is the Year of the Experience Brand

What Is An Experience Brand Jack Morton

View more presentations from Jack.

We also talked to 13 of our own employees and asked them "what does experience brand mean to you?" Check out what they had to say. What do you think makes a brand an experience brand? What are some of your favorite experience brands? Why? We'd love to hear!

Event Marketer Features Two Jack Morton Experts

Mon, 22 Feb 2010 22:46:28 +0000

Event Marketer assembled more than 30 of the top event agency experts for a look at what’s up and what’s hot. Two of the experts were Larry Deutsch, Managing Director of Jack Morton’s Chicago office and Jeb Blatt of Jack Morton’s Boston office. Take a look at what they had to say: www.eventmarketer.com/article/partner-perspective

GREAT IDEA FOR THE DAY

Fri, 19 Feb 2010 18:10:47 +0000

What if you could offer a true training “experience” that provides newly hired or promoted first time leaders the skills they will need to effectively delegate work, set and execute direction, establish constructive dialogues, build trust and credibility, motivate their teams, and work effectively in the agency environment? Here’s an answer: TASL.

Could be the ride of your life...

Fri, 12 Feb 2010 10:38:40 +0000

Considered by many to be the grand daddy of experiential marketing, Bernd Schmitt argued that brands are the rides and the products are the souvenirs. I like this analogy a lot, but I'd like to build on it as I can't help feeling that it's lacking a little something. The way I see it (with my squinty vision of course) is that brand is the fairground itself. It's the blare of the music, the scream of the crowd and the flash of the lights. The smell of the popcorn and the sweet taste of the candy-floss. These elements are all experiences that we have with the brand. As for the product, well, that's the price of admission. Whether it's a day pass or a hand-full of ride tokens. There's a value exchange taking place here, where you pay to gain entry, and the experiences are the world you gained entry to in your relationship with the brand. The important thing is that it so much more about the value of the experience than the cost to get in. But you'll never forget the thrill of the ride. Now where are those giant tea cups?

Google Buzz: Hype! or Hype?

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 22:07:08 +0000

Google announced its foray into social media today with Google Buzz: Is it compelling enough to make people leave Facebook? Not yet, but word is that Google is putting a lot of resources against it. And when the most innovative company in the world puts its "best and brightest" on a project...only good things can happen.

JimCarrey.com: A Well-Designed Experience

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 19:55:42 +0000

When designing an online experience, designers and developers must consider key factors such as usability, aesthetics, functionality, bandwidth and content accessibility. In most cases, the main goal is to make a site load as fast as possible while providing easy access to the content in an aesthetically structured layout. Enter jimcarrey.com, the strange and bizarre site of actor/comedian Jim Carrey, in which online best practices are thrown out the window, in favor of a slow-loading, visually-striking online experience that forces the user to find content through exploration.

Hey Pluto!

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 19:54:39 +0000

You could argue, but I know you are too nice to argue So I’ll argue, that the first true ‘experience brand’ was Disney. Walt wanted to create an immersive multi-sensory world that brought the assets and values of his brand to life for families to enjoy. He knew that memories are made from great experiences. Over fifty years later, consumers are still looking for memorable experiences from their experience brands. There is nothing Mickey Mouse about that

You can keep your money

Thu, 04 Feb 2010 21:29:27 +0000

We love experience, we value them more than we value money. They enables us to come together and share something real. But don't just take my word for it. A recent study by Ryan Howell, an assistant professor of psychology at San Francisco State University, found that buying experiences gave people more happiness than buying material things. He found that:- Money doesn't make us happy - experiences do Experiences increase happiness because they are social in nature They leave us feeling of invigoration and inspiration That to me is a whole raft of positive memories. A return on our investment in anyone’s money

The Apple iPad: Less is More

Wed, 03 Feb 2010 20:16:13 +0000

On January 27th, 2010, Apple launched the iPad amid a massive amount of speculation, rumors and media hype the likes of which hadn't been seen since the launch of the iPhone. Based on the amount of media coverage, it's almost as if they were announcing a cure for all of the world's ills. Nothing so groundbreaking was announced, but the iPad launch is still an important stepping stone for the technology world, and more importantly, for content producers.

The future's so bright...

Wed, 03 Feb 2010 19:52:06 +0000

We are moving to a world that will be populated by experience brands, brands that express themselves through their behaviour and we will all be invited to join in. How do I know? Its already happening. Words and promises can only get you so far and even then they need to be backed up by a reality that can be experienced. Whether you want to build your brand, create growth or transform your organisation, you need to engage and inspire people as individuals. To be inspired by a brand promise or a business ethos, people need to experience, feel and share the reality of that promise or ethos. Positive, interactive and involving experiences create the belief, confidence and insight that inspire people to spread the word - and take positive action. So for those of us whose job it is to create brand experiences, better get those shades ready