Linking and Thinking

A combination of a nasty flu bug, heavy workload and generally too little free time means that a heavy case of blog-neglect guilt has set in around here. I always get stressed when I don't update this regulary, but sometimes time just slips away.

At any rate, there have been some really great discussions and posts around the plannerweb and beyond that I've been meaning to write about.

Umair of Bubblegeneration has begun posting at the Havas blog (he was recently appointed as head of their Media Lab). As usual, he has been writing about brands, marketing and the economics of the Edgeconomy. Here's a short clip that reminds us of the nitty gritty of why branding has fundamentally changed

In Umair's language, "cheap interaction" between consumers has changed the game

when interaction is cheap, the very economic rationale for orthodox brands actually begins to implode: information about expected costs and benefits doesn’t have to be compressed into logos, slogans, ad-spots or column-inches – instead, consumers can debate and discuss expected costs and benefits in incredibly rich detail.

This may seem pretty obvious to those of us that spend a lot of time thinking about networks, communities and social media, but I think that for a lot of agencies that have a very traditional understanding of their role as "brand stewards" (and the role that their creative output of :30 second spots, print ads and the like have in compressing the idea of the brand) this is still being resisted. That's how I see it, at least.

But networks, communities and "cheap interaction" between consumers is not the only thing pressuring brands to do things differently (and there isn't a simple answer to how that is best tackled, anyway). Consumer interaction is taking place at the same time that brands are awakening to the reality that they need to be thinking about the interactions and experiences that they are crafting. What they do for consumers is becoming more important than what they say to consumers, and the problem is that designing those interactions/experiences/services isn't something that is learned overnight. The nature of brand behaviours with respect to experiences and interactions (in other words, what they do, as opposed to what they say) is just as challenging.

As Gareth, Paul and others have been pointing out, the dual practices of interaction design and experience design are emerging as key crafts to traditional storytelling. And in my opinion we're fortunate to have people like Adrian and Leland share their thoughts on this stuff. But it's a huge challenge. And it's a challenge that is being tackled by the continuum of traditional agencies, design shops, interactive agencies and even PR companies all at once, each coming at it from a slightly different angle.

Again, how (and indeed whether it is possible to) fold these skills within the practices of traditional agencies is a key issue (well, at least it is for those working in traditional agencies). It demands a different model and way of working, and I've been really curious to see more examples of where it has been done well (it's only a matter of time until someone brings up Nike Plus when this comes up).

At the very least, thinking of the how this all comes together (networks, communities, brand behaviours, interaction and experiences) is pretty exciting. Even when you have hardly had any time to update your blog.