Why creativity always wins in branding

When I say ‘brand’, I’m basically talking about the identity of your organisation – from the way it looks, to how it engages with customers.

Meanwhile, I like to think of ‘creativity’ simply as lateral thinking— the ability to find non-obvious solutions to problems as well as be engaging and unusual.

Here’s a great example:

In 2006 British chocolate brand Cadburys was suffering from a huge product recall due to salmonella exposure in it’s product manufacturing. With sales quickly dropping, the innovative team at Fallon London were engaged to develop a creative advert which was as ‘effortlessly enjoyable as eating the bar itself.’ The resulting 90 second clip had no references to chocolate. The revolutionary advert was an instant success, single-handedly returning Cadburys to pantry shelves. More importantly, the Cadburys brand was once again a family favorite.

Plenty of research exists linking creativity to increased success of brands and by extension, their advertising. This article from Harvard Business Review explains how German researchers have gone so far as to develop a financial model that predicts the impact creative investments will produce for advertisers.

We know that customer perceptions of brands are influenced by the way they’re presented. The question is, how do you use creativity in your branding to communicate your value clearly and compellingly? Allow me to get you started:

Tap into the DNA of your business

You’ll find more creative inspiration for your brand ‘in the trenches’ than locked in a boardroom with executive leaders. Established businesses that are re-branding should seek input from all staff, creating a groundswell of ideas that can propel you in exciting directions.

Be value-led

This is two-pronged. Strong creative branding will grow from a deep understanding of your values as an organisation (what you believe in) along with the value that you offer the world (how you help people) – this was ‘creating enjoyment’ in the Cadburys example. Once established, both sets of values should be a prominent feature of your communications strategy.

Establish your expertise

When setting or repositioning your brand, you should also be establishing your level of expertise, which often requires you to become more focused on your activities (i.e. participating at events, guest speaking, blogging and online thought leadership). Once the market knows what you’re an expert in, it becomes easier to use creativity to determine which activities are best for expanding your brand.

Focus on experiences

This is where branding and creativity can intersect in the most innovative ways. Your brand is not static – it goes far beyond your logo and email signatures. Your brand permeates all aspects of your business – from the way customers interact with your website, to the experience they have actually using your products or services. Focus on what it’s like to engage with your business as a customer at every step of the journey and embed ways to creatively enhance the experience – from small value-ads to grand gestures. Just make sure you stay true to your brand’s values. We all know Apple is a benchmark brand but it’s not just because to their familiar logo, a big part has to do with the way they interact with their customers.

Be consistent

Obvious, but important. A strong brand is consistent. Every person in your organisation should present and be able to explain what you stand for in the same way. This is where a brand charter comes in handy.

Hire an expert writer and designer (seriously)

The words and images that accompany your branding are critical. Don’t skimp in this area. The best creative branding interacts with customers on a subconscious level – whether it’s appealing to their ego, sense of pride, fear, aspirations or otherwise. Expert writers and designers can help create this cut-through with designs and concepts that connect deeply. Poor creative choices in this department will usually have the opposite effect.

Be human

Your customers are human and will relate to the people behind your brand. Allow authenticity to shine through, using human-centred design, storytelling and honesty in your communications, and you’ll engage your audience in an enduring way.

Get some inspiration

Finally, an important step in injecting your brand with creativity is to benchmark yourself against others who’ve done the same. We can learn so much from the success (and failure!) of others, both within our industry and beyond.

On the topic of success, one of my favourite creative branding examples is Airbnb which imagined a world where people can belong anywhere (and swept-up a stack of marketing and advertising awards in the process).

In 2014, Airbnb trended on Twitter for eight hours with the launch of their rebrand, creating a ripple around the globe. They’ve changed the way the world travels and have formed a globally recognisable symbol of belonging in the process (using most of the tips mentioned above).

Read the Airbnb branding story and then go and create one of your own.