No point of view is the worst you can do

"Come with a unique perspective." Joshua Kissi, Street Etiquette 

It was great to hear Joshua Kissi talk about Street Etiquette's serendipitous vision and how passion fueled its launch. He is the type who is always making things worth paying attention to. And so it comes as no surprise I share his commentary given a world of such attention scarcity.

The convergent space of blogs aimed at fashion is flooded with noise much like anything else. But Kissi, who grew up in The Bronx, has such a unique perspective on high fashion that it ultimately won likes over the traditional hip-hop view. And so Street Etiquette offers something that isn't being talked about, which has attracted the attention of celebrated mags like GQ and Complex.      

Check out the Street Etiquette blog here.

Audience first. Reinvent second.

They collaborated with Warhol fans to create films. Even allowed us to walk the museum from the comforts of our home. And now they're exploring the communication between people and objects with, "Talk to Me."

The MoMA masters a way of engagement with exhibitions that uphold the museum-going experience. And at the same time create new ones by encouraging what might be seen as a museum-going killer.

Exhibits like Andy Warhol: Motion Pictures and The Google Art Project embrace technology by taking the experience online where traditional exhibitions aren't. But clearly where people are.

Conceiving ideas around audiences and reinventing ways of doing things makes The MoMA a brand like no other.

Founded on co-creation

"Our clothing is a collaboration, we enjoy nothing more than the customer feeling that they have ownership of the clothes we make for them." Thomas Bird, Creative Director

Prior to the birth of House of Billiam, the "hoodie" lost much of its staple-ness within British culture. The UK clothing line set out to revert the iconic clothing piece and so the brand ethos was born.

HoB combines suiting fabrics with modern styling to create unsuit-like pieces. They collaborate with customers by combining elements of indivdualism and commonality to design an exclusive clothing item like no other. Everything is customization in its rarest form, which in turn makes for empowerment and a "big name" feel amongst their customers.

Co-creation is seemingly the new black. But actually building a brand around it? An excellent story that's rarely being told.

Check out HoB here.

Make it an experience

Make it simple. Make it memorable. Make it inviting to look at. Make it fun to read. - Leo Burnett

Leo's comments came to mind after watching Coke's latest here, where they challenge you to unlock the secret formula. They do it by giving you bits of clues that lead you through an entire storyline. Only everything is transmedia.

Perhaps make it an experience is something Burnett would add if he were still around today. Great stuff from the aged brand.  

MoMa + Warhol + You

If you happen to be in New York over the course of the next two weeks check out MoMa's Andy Warhol: Motion Pictures Exhibition. It focuses on Warhol's non-narrative, silent black-and-white films from the 1960s. In true Andy fashion I like the direct involvement of willing participates. Compelling stuff sure to get people talking.

Check out the exhibition site here

Shop social this holiday season

If you're like most Americans you'll use your spare time to toggle between Facebook and online shopping this holiday season. Now you don't even have to leave Facebook because this week JCPenny becomes the first major retailer to develop a way for customers to shop, share and buy right within the social network.

JCPenny's move is the missing link between using Facebook simply for brand messages and tracking customers, to a means of generating income. And with virtually no overhead (no pun intended). Talk about gifts of (social media) ROI and conversion rates this Holiday season. I'm surprised more retailers haven't done the same. Happy Holidays. 

 

Heirloom quality

Check it, this is a video about two brothers who started a premium leather goods business back in 1999.

The Bray brothers create and sell heirloom quality leather goods, the kind of stuff you'd want to pass from generation to generation. If you ask me we need more heirloom quality goods in our world today (and less crap). These dudes are pure passion.

Brands as architects

One promotion encourages consumers to participate in real-time. Another turns London into a game board for aspiring runners.

How long before a bike brand develops a community of touring cyclists by providing them the ability to log mileage and share media from all the places they’ve visited? Or a retailer delivers a personalized shopping list the minute you walk through the door like your own personal shopper?

Developing ideas using social media is as simple as thinking through the possibilities. Implementing them is about fearlessly putting your brand out there with a willingness to learn from your most vocal audience.

 

Why an expedition should be part of your marketing spend

If you’re a vital component of your brand I’d quickly anchor an expedition to your marketing spend since your customers are spending a great deal of their time on what I call “the happy hunting ground” that is social media. Last February Facebook COO Cheryl Sandberg was interviewed by Tech Crunch’s Michael Arrington who noted:

“You realize it’s like 1 in 5 people in the world that are on the internet visit Facebook.” Sandberg replied, joking “So we have 4 in 5 more to go.”

The fact is Facebook and Twitter are still largely considered uncharted territory for many brands. For those who understand the dynamic nature of tracking consumers, this should be exciting. Ford and 7 Eleven are out there. So is UNIQLO. Learn from them and don’t lose sight of the fact that experimentation is no longer a luxury, it’s a cost of doing business. I realize exploration and experimentation imply uncertainty, doubt and risk, not things CFOs and COOs typically like to hear. Focus on the the insight, knowledge and value an expedition into uncharted territory will bring for your brand, I assure that you won’t be disappointed with what you find.

 

How social media helps small brands win

“Your staff forgot to give me my fries and I didn’t realize it until I got home. Not happy about that”

…is what I Tweeted the other night about a burger joint in town. They made a mistake so I figured I’d let them know… and see if they were listening. Moments later I received a direct message from the manager apologizing for the oversight and that she’d personally deliver my fries herself!

Unless you live under a rock, you know like I know that no longer is it enough to have a great product alone. Today it’s social media that often makes the critical difference in the minds of consumers. As illustrated in my case, social media served as a realtime customer service hotline, however for those willing to learn to leverage social media it can be so much more. Think of social media as your opportunity to become engaged, tell stories and create conversations with an audience that chooses to hear from you. By leveraging social media the right way you generate awareness for your brand. That awareness gives ways to dialog which can lead to increased capability. Maybe it’s a new product or a new way of doing business. Maybe its something big, often it’s the refinement of the little things. Show that you care and the sales will follow. One last word of caution: don’t fall victim to simply using social media for listening, it shows your audience you’re not there to contribute. Only those brands willing to listen, learn and react are winning with social media.