Let's talk branding

In this episode, I talk with Austin Franke, brand strategist and founder of consultancy firm Woopunch. Austin has quite an unconventional approach to branding, using knowledge from behavioral science and other evidence-based fields. We talk about some ugly truths in branding and how we can move beyond the typical branding cliché's. Check out Austin's business and make sure you subscribe to the newsletter. WoopunchFind the full list here on the blogpost, or watch the video on Youtube (dropping the 17th of march).Want to learn more about branding  & strategy? Subscribe to the newsletter on letstalkbranding.comLooking for more videos? Check out my Youtube channel. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letstalkbranding.substack.com

In this episode, we talk with Cedric Engels, author of the amazing book 'the power of sound' and co-founder of the sonic agency 'Sonhouse'. We talk about the importance of sound for brands but also how sounds affect the human brain (and soul). Cedric brought with him a bag of epic sounds so it's a fun little ride through sonic land. We talk about:Cedric's book, the power of soundThe agency Cedric co-founded: SonhouseSonic branding & sound strategyFor the Youtube version of this episode, subscribe to the channel hereIf you like this episode, please give me a rating on Itunes, as it will help to  spread the word. If you are interested in learning more about branding & brand strategy, check out  letstalkbranding.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letstalkbranding.substack.com

In this episode, I interview Michiel & Jan-Pieter from Antwerp based brand & design studio WeWantMore. We talk about their award-winning branding case for Neuhaus. It won a bronze 'Effie' award, which is an award focussed on the 'effectiveness' of creative campaigns, not just 'creative idea'.  We talk about:The studio: WeWantMoreThe rebrand case for Neuhaus, a Belgian chocolate brandHow they went from brand strategy to packaging & identity designHow it impacted the sales for NeuhausThe Effie case study There is also a video version of this interview, with more visual and supporting material. Feel free to check it out at my Youtube channel.  This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letstalkbranding.substack.com

Interesting links: Focus Lab: https://focuslabllc.com/Bill on Twitter: https://twitter.com/BillSKenneyIf you're interested in more branding & strategy stuff, visit letstalkbranding.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letstalkbranding.substack.com

In this episode, I talk with my strategy hero, JP Castlin. We talk about the upcoming Castlin manifesto and how its perspectives on strategy will be quite controversial. For decades, 'deliberate' strategy has been the norm in the different strategy disciplines of marketing and branding, but JP offers an alternative view, 'emergent strategy'. Interesting links:If you want exclusive access to the manifesto, shoot an email at hello@rouser.se. Your email won't be used for any other marketing purposes. JP was so kind as to offer this for the listeners because the manifesto won't be free forever. Check out Dave Snowden's views on complexityCheck out JP's business: RouserFollow JP on twitter This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letstalkbranding.substack.com

A brand is a distinctive experiential promise that represents a business.Distinctive: it has its own character, it's recognizable and different from competitorsObservable: it is experienced through visual, auditive, and tonal assets that are ownedPromise: it's not just those assets, it also holds a certain guarantee in it, a story, a problem solved, a job done, This is where we make the bridge with the left side of our quadrant, to promise something you need to somehow understand the promise will sound 'promising' to the consumer. Also, a promise needs to be repeated over time and can evolve. And mostly, the promise works as a familiarity bonus, you know Coca-cola will taste the same, over and over again, it makes it easy to buy it again and againIt represents a business: I think brand should be used in the relevant context of business, whether that's a personal brand, a nation thinking about customers, a non-profit organization wanting more donors, or just a regular business. I think talking about a brand in a purely 'cultural' way makes it become to useless and vague, everything and anything can be a brand, but that doesn't help our disciplines. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letstalkbranding.substack.com

In this episode, I talk with launch and brand strategist Julia Braga. Julia is an educator on Instagram and helps businesses grow their personal brand and sell products through social media content. We talk about social media strategy, launching brands, and the funnel. Interesting links:Julia's Insta: https://www.instagram.com/thejuliabraga/  This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letstalkbranding.substack.com

In this solo episode, I talk about competitive analysis, what it is, why and how I approach it, and what are some of the specific phases to go through. I also highlight how I use it as a base for branding and marketing efforts and the difference with business strategy.Notion template: https://www.notion.so/weareollie/LTB-competitive-analysis-template-cfae88e869ef4c418bd9faa328eaf402Phase 1 collect: workshop, google searchesPhase 2 profile: messaging layer, visual layer, positioning layer,Phase 3 group: sub-categories, segment per style, per offer, messaging stylePhase 4 insights: what can we learn from these different competitors, from the category?If you are interested in more juicy stuff, go subscribe to the newsletter at letstalkbranding.com This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letstalkbranding.substack.com

Michael Keplinger is a partner at SmashBrand, an agile brand strategy agency for consumer packaged goods that specializes in a complete approach to market research, product design, and testing. We talk about how to 'test your brand design' with real-world customers and how to apply that to brand building.We talk about:Smashbrand, the agencyTesting packaging design with real-world customersHow to research consumer behavior and develop a brand strategyHow categories can be completely differentHow to test on a budgetIf you liked this episode, I would really appreciate a rating on Itunes. Make sure to subscribe to the podcast to get the weekly episodes at your doorstep. If you want the deeper, juicier insights you can also subscribe to the newsletter here. This episode is sponsored by Holabrief, The go-to platform  for creative briefs. If you want to subscribe, you can use the code LTB and get a 20% discount. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letstalkbranding.substack.com

We talk about:The definition of attentionAttention as a filterRobert heath: low attention processingPaid advertising vs organic contentDigital vs traditional advertisingThe value of the marketing funnelFind Faris:Faris on Twitter: https://twitter.com/farisFaris his book, Paid attentionGenius Steals, his company: http://geniussteals.co/ This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit letstalkbranding.substack.com