Let's talk branding

Haris, the creator of the purple, chef-hat-wearing monster mascot, Calvin Cooks, discusses the impact of AI in mascot creation, the use of AI tools like Midjourney and Dali, and the power of mascots in B2B marketing. They also explore the future of AI in branding and marketing.

Summary* 📈 David Taylor discusses distinctive brand assets: their importance in branding and the gap between understanding their value and effectively managing them.* 🌎 Taylor's experience: Over 22 years with The Brand Gym, helping brands from banking to biscuits grow, and running the Brand Gym Academy for training.* 📊 Research insights: Despite unanimous agreement on the importance of brand assets, only 15% are truly distinctive, revealing an 'implementation gap.'* 🛠️ Challenges in brand asset management: Subjectivity in decisions, an obsession with novelty, and difficulties in amplifying assets across channels.* 🚀 Strategies for success: Importance of cross-agency collaboration, brand archaeology, and leveraging underutilized assets like sonic branding and mascots for brand growth.Important links* The paper we discussed* David on LinkedIn Learn more about brand strategyActivate your strategic brain and level up your creative business. Find courses on brand strategy, brand workshops, and brand strategy presentations. You can use LTBPODCAST to get a 20% discount. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letstalkbranding.substack.com/subscribe

Jacob Cass, Founder of Just Creative, discusses current trends and challenges in the branding industry, including the impact of AI, rise of design tools like Canva, changing pricing strategies. AI's influence and role in branding, personal branding and online presence importance, and future direction of branding industry including authenticity and personalization.

Chris Walker, Founder and CEO of Refine Labs, shares his journey from engineering to B2B demand generation. He emphasizes the distinction between demand creation and capture, advocating for engaging content over aggressive sales tactics. Chris critiques traditional ROI methods, urging companies to assess overall business impact instead. He discusses how to build brand awareness through strategic storytelling and the creation of valuable educational content. Additionally, he explores the role of events and communities in understanding customer needs.

Brand strategy expert Jenni Romaniuk discusses the importance of brand health and brand tracking using survey tools, highlighting the different metrics and common pitfalls. She emphasizes the significance of starting early with brand tracking and offers alternative metrics for measuring brand health. The conversation also touches on the potential challenges of relying on self-reported data and the upcoming projects and research at the Earnberg Bass Institute.

James Hurman, brand strategy expert, discusses the different lifestages of a brand and the importance of aligning external representation with internal values. The podcast explores brand architecture challenges, the brand building mindset of successful companies like Liquid Death and Patagonia, and the integration of purpose into brand strategies. It also delves into messaging, channels, ROI, scaling up challenges, and marketing routes for growth.

Max Ottignon, branding expert and co-founder of Ragged Edge branding agency, discusses topics such as the strategy and research behind developing a unique brand, the rise of brand mascots, distinctiveness vs differentiation, and the impact of AI on branding in this entertaining podcast.

Lee Rolston, chief growth officer at JKR, discusses the crisis of identity in the marketing industry. Only 15% of brand assets are truly distinctive. The importance of brand recognition and awareness in a fragmented world. The positive impact of AI on brand consistency. The resurgence of brand mascots in fashion and streetwear. The significance of color in branding and breaking through traditional norms. The challenge of maintaining brand distinctiveness while driving conversion.

Important links* Julian Cole’s course with LTB discount here* Julian on Twitter* This episode is sponsored by Creative business company. Find your free no-bs brand-building guides here.The AI summaryI asked Notion AI to summarize our podcast transcript in 10 key lessons:* Use AI at the beginning and end of the strategy process, not in the middle.* AI can be used to gather research and prompt ideas at the beginning of a project.* Use AI for word craft at the end of a project to improve language and make it more succinct or creative.* AI can help identify consumer problems and generate insights, but always cross-validate the results.* AI is not a replacement for human nuance in strategy.* Use AI to jailbreak prompts and get to unconventional insights.* Use analogies and metaphors to make strategy more memorable and visual.* Don't use AI for research validation.* AI can't replace human truth-sayers or cultural context.* AI language models like GPT are probabilistic and require human input and context to generate useful insights.The brand audit templateAs a brand strategist, I’ve often noticed that a brand audit is one of the most overlooked and valuable services for a brand. Check out my fresh brand audit template on Holabrief and explore many more creative/strategic exercises.Learn brand strategyActivate your strategic brain and level up your creative business. Find courses on brand strategy, brand workshops, and brand strategy presentations. You can use LTBPODCAST to get a 20% discount. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letstalkbranding.substack.com/subscribe

Important links:* ‘Frank’ on Twitter, Instagram or LinkedIn* G’day Frank websiteThe AI summary:Captivating Moments of Connection: Lessons from a Branding Pro* A brand is not just how it looks, but a captivating moment of connection between the consumer and the business.* Branding is an extension of that connection, finding clarity and how to captivate attention.* Authenticity is essential for a brand to connect with consumers.* Brand strategy is not the same as a mission or vision, but rather finding clarity and connection with the target market.* Brand strategy involves researching the market, segmentation, targeting, positioning, and objectives.* Marketing and branding strategies are the same thing, just called different names by different professionals.* It's essential to listen to branding experts who have put in extensive research and time into understanding branding and marketing.* Branding is a continuous journey of trial and error.* The importance of distilling complex branding concepts into simple terms for clients.* The evolution of branding involves being open-minded, understanding market orientation, and being willing to learn.The brand audit templateAs a brand strategist, I’ve often noticed that a brand audit is one of the most overlooked and valuable services for a brand. Check out my fresh brand audit template on Holabrief and explore many more creative/strategic exercises.Learn brand strategyActivate your strategic brain and level up your creative business. Find courses on brand strategy, brand workshops, and brand strategy presentations. You can use LTBPODCAST to get a 20% discount. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letstalkbranding.substack.com/subscribe