Brand Innovators’ Post

A recent case study on Mary Kay, reminded me that the beauty industry is also a constant battleground of innovation. From serums promising eternal youth to personalized makeup palettes curated by AI, brands constantly fight to stay ahead of the curve. But what about legacy brands like Mary Kay, built on a foundation of in-person connections? Their brand story offers valuable insights for any company navigating the digital revolution and innovation. Mary Kay's success is built on a strong foundation – a loyal network of Independent Beauty Consultants (IBCs) and core values of empowerment and community. However, the pandemic forced a shift towards digital tools and online sales. This presents a unique opportunity: how can tradition and innovation co-exist in a digital world? Mary Kay isn't alone. Many established brands grapple with the question: how do we stay true to our heritage while embracing change? Here's how I think Mary Kay is tackling this: Product Innovation: Instead of solely following trends, Mary Kay is considering becoming a leader in product development. This means catering to evolving consumer preferences for ingredients and formulations, while still aligning with IBC needs. Digital Transformation: Equipping IBCs with user-friendly online tools for demonstrations, consultations, and sales is crucial. However, striking a balance between virtual and in-person interactions is important to maintain the human connection that's a Mary Kay hallmark. Communicating Core Values: Mary Kay's message of empowerment, diversity, and entrepreneurship resonates deeply. The challenge lies in effectively communicating these values to a younger generation with a shorter attention span. Investing in engaging digital content and collaborating with relevant influencers could be key. Key lessons Learned: The Importance of Adaptability Mary Kay's story reminds us that: Digital fluency is no longer optional. Brands need to meet customers where they are, which is increasingly online. Embrace innovation, but remember your core. Successful transformation involves calculated change that strengthens your brand identity, not dilutes it. Invest in your people. Equipping your salesforce or network with the right tools and training is vital for success in the digital age. What do you think? How can established brands bridge the gap between tradition and digital transformation? Share your thoughts in the comments below! You can also access the full case study in the link. #marketing #strategy #digitalmarketing #digitalization #innovation

Mita Mallick is a passionate storyteller and has spent over 15 years leading iconic brands like AVEENO, AVON Color Cosmetics, Chapstick, Vaseline, Suave and Dove. She is a Wall Street Journal and USA TODAY best selling author with a mission of crafting brands with purpose. As a kid, she loved watching commercials instead of actual TV shows (and still does). She loved going to the store with my mom, studying all the new packaging and products on the shelf, testing and trying new things. But as a kid, she didn’t see many stories being told that included people who looked like her. That’s why throughout her career, she fought hard to ensure all types of people were included. Ensuring Black and Brown people were represented in campaigns. Ensuring products were created for all skin tones. Ensuring stereotypes are not being reinforced. Mita’s bestseller “Reimagine Inclusion” teaches us that when we show up as more inclusive leaders, we have the power to change our organizations, ultimately creating a ripple effect across our ecosystem. “When you have all those points of views, life experiences, and cultural backgrounds coming together around a table. Colliding, clashing, and collaborating- that’s when magic happens.” Mita is committed to diversity of thought and believes that it cannot happen without diversity of representation, “That’s when we come up with that one break through innovative idea, campaign, innovation- to authentically and purposefully serve customers and communities.” How will you use Mita’s principles to transform your perspective of your organisaiton, your industry and the way you craft your strategies to engage with your audience and customers? Nucleus Vision Digital and Design Legends A full-service Marketing and Design Agency hero@nucleusv.com https://lnkd.in/dfjBCQMC #branddevelopment #digital #digitalmarketing #digitaltrends #marketing #marketingagency #marketingplan #marketingresearch #marketingtactics #marketingtrends #NucleusVision #NucleusVisionDigitalAndDesign #marketersyoushouldknow #brandmanagers #SMEowners

One of the more thorough articles I’ve read on how inclusive brands fuel growth. It includes a Brand Inclusion Framework that sheds light on the systematic and structural changes needed to become an inclusive brand. I think there are many ways to guide a brand to intentional representation and business practice transformation, but the framework is useful food for thought. The framework outlines : 💥 How to SEE the market - making the needs of historically underrecognized communities part of the regular investigation and configuration of market opportunities 💥How to SERVE the market- this involves designing new products, developing new services, and other commercial activities that improve your product-market fit with underrecognized communities. 💥How to BE in the market - how a brand shows up in the market, specifically in managing the customer experience, communication channels, and brand advocacy efforts. These are often the most visible areas of action and the easiest to implement. In summary, the authors outline: “Inclusive brands are intentional in defining their customer base, developing product offerings, and taking action in the market in ways that serve historically underrecognized communities. “By serving the needs of HUC consumers (historically under recognised communities ), they unlock new sources of business value.” “At the same time, they cultivate inclusivity in the market and nourish a greater sense of representation, respect, and belonging in our society.” Link to article in comments 👇🏾 ——————————— As part of my work as an inclusive marketing consultant, I can help you look at ways to systemise inclusion into your brand and marketing process in ways that will help your brands win and make your consumers feel seen. DM me for more details. #InclusiveBrands #InclusiveMarketing #InclusiveLeadership #NetPositiveBrands

65% of marketers are afraid of ‘getting it wrong’ according to research from the Unstereotype Alliance. While creativity has long adopted the language of bravery, the uncomfortable truth is no matter how many ‘feel the fear and do it anyway’ posters we put up in our offices, as organisations and individuals we are afraid. With this in mind, we asked industry leaders to look beyond the surface and consider if that fear of ‘getting it wrong’ is holding brands back creatively. Article features insights from: Ije Nwokorie, Chief Brand Officer, Dr. Martens plc, Taide Guajardo, Chief Brand Officer - Senior Vice President Brand - Europe, Procter & Gamble, Sebastian P. and Ishani Rege, Inclusion Consultants - Strategy, Creative Equals, Rachel Lowenstein, Global Head of Inclusive Innovation, Mindshare Read the full article via the Creativebrief platform: https://lnkd.in/e_HfmvbM

Crocs and Stanley are two brands that have experienced remarkable turnarounds. At the heart of this success is an irresistible deep narrative 🧲… In 2020, Terence Reilly left his role as Crocs's chief marketing officer and became president of Stanley, a producer of steel drinkware. Reilly had made Crocs fashionable again through daring and engaging collaborations with influencers like Post Malone. He replicated his strategy at Stanley, a company over 100 years old. The strategy is about taking a good but unappealing product and making it trendy in pop culture with new audiences, more colors, influencers, and social media. In Reilly’s words, the transformation at Stanley was “...from male, green, and hot, to female, colorful, and cool.” If this is so evident, why do people still flock to these brands as if they were movements? Because they adhere to a timeless master narrative of redemption: from tragedy to triumph. This process includes openly acknowledging your challenges. This is how Reilly described Crocs before its revival: “At the time, Crocs was a meme. The meme was that those holes are where your dignity leaks out.” Regarding Stanley: “We were known mostly for our hammertone green iconic bottle, which primarily appealed to a subset of men in the Pacific Northwest.” Admitting to a challenging situation holds much power. It makes it much easier for leaders to steer change toward a new goal. A strong organization always has a destination—a promising and new vision that attracts employees, customers, and investors. The current level of achievements is not as important as our belief that the future will be better than the past. So, if you face an engagement problem with your audience, it may not be about trying even harder to engage but about admitting the challenges first. One of the most inspiring and motivating speeches I ever heard as a young consultant started with “We are in a deep shit…” What do you think? Does your organization openly talk about its challenges? #communication #marketing Pictures: Stanley and Crocs

This Women's Month, let us spotlight the visionary leadership of Livia Wang, now group CEO at Access Brand Co. (Access Corporate Group), and one of the winners of the ‘Empowered Women in Plaforms’ award at MARKETECH APAC’s Empowered Women Awards 2023. By championing a predominantly female team and embodying the company's values of "wellness reimagined" on a daily basis, Livia exemplifies leadership that is centred on disruption, innovation, and staying ahead of trends. Let us draw inspiration from Livia and all the empowered women leaders who are shaping the future of their industries and communities. #marketing #agency #womenempowerment #womensmonth ------ -[Awards] MARKETECH APAC is launching its inaugural "Marketing Technology Awards" where we recognise the groundbreaking achievements in marketing technology, uniting the brands and tech organisations within the region’s marketing community. Learn how your brand can be a part of it by checking it more details HERE: https://bit.ly/3SVtoIa -[Report] Learn how brands can strategically implement conversational commerce and leverage these platforms to craft exceptional and personalized customer experiences in this in-depth report: https://bit.ly/3SSKVCG

Brand evolution for Insight HRC Ltd 🚀 After months of work behind the scenes, the fabulous team at Insight unveiled their new brand identity this week. We're thrilled to see it live and that they collaborated with us to develop their brand strategy and identity. Insight delivers psychology-based development and assessment solutions that focus on developing positive cultures, high-performing teams and exceptional leaders. Their purpose is to make work happier and more human. Following a management buy out, the leadership team at Insight were keen to have their values, personality and culture represented through their brand identity. Our repositioning work saw us redefine their verbal and visual identity and website look and feel with the brand idea 'The Next Level of Possible'. This statement is used internally and externally, as it captures the ambition of the team whilst also framing the services and impact Insight provide its clients. Our services included: → Brand Strategy → Brand Identity & Guidelines → Tone of Voice → Sales & Marketing Assets Thanks again for choosing to work with us, Insight HRC Ltd. We've loved helping you get to the next level of possible 😀 -- Full Case Study coming soon. -- #BrandStrategy #Rebrand #Branding #BrandPositioning

Our Founder and CEO, Jennifer Stephens Acree discussed with Chief how CMOs and comms teams can work together to take smart risks and help their organization stand out in the sea of brands. She shares, “It’s imperative that the CMO and CCO are in lock-sync,” highlighting the importance of collaboration over competition. “The comms function can really add a layer of strategic counsel at the beginning of the creative process that can in a lot of instances help mitigate risks.” Check out the full article from Molly Cohen to hear more of Jenn’s valuable insights on creating successful brand strategies: https://lnkd.in/geyVhxai

I attended an amazing (sadly, last) session with Chief UK on brand building by Allyson Stewart-Allen and came away with some valuable takeaways! First, use marketing principles on yourself to build trust by being consistent with your intent. A great tool to achieve this is shown in the visual selling yourself like a brand people know and why your attributes align. Second, identify who is already advocating for you to help build you as a trustworthy brand. Third, determine your 5-7 core values to ensure alignment in all aspects of your brand. (More people can’t remember) Lastly, to be authentic, share both the good and bad to be more relatable. People who share the same values are more likely to align. While I always trust my gut and might not always follow these ‘rules’ ;-), these insights from Chief are definitely worth considering. Thanks to the team for yet another brilliant event and for all the great content and insights over the last year. You have truly helped us grow and I will miss it dearly. The uplifting conversations and thoughtfulness of this group of women is what I will always take away. #personalbranding #authenticleadership #womenempoweringwomen

What is the collective mindset of world-class brands? 💫 World-class brands are... 1️⃣ CRYSTAL CLEAR: World-class brands have a clear and well-defined identity. They know who they are and what they stand for, which helps them resonate with their target audience. 2️⃣ Investing in internal ALIGNMENT: These brands prioritize internal, on-brand alignment among their systems, processes, culture and leadership. When all processes, the venacular, and flow of organization is consciously operating according to the brand's values and promise, it strengthens its ability to deliver a consistent brand experience - and become who they want to be known for. 3️⃣ Investing in their EMPLOYEES: World-class brands celebrate their employees as a crucial part of their success. Fostering brand ambassadors every day, they actively instill in them the importance of walking the talk and ensure they appreciate, value, and desire to showcase the brand's value position as 'owners' it. 4️⃣ Committed to their BRAND PROMISE: These brands make promises that are unwavering in their commitment to deliver. This consistency builds trust & advocacy with all their stakeholders. By embodying these qualities, world-class brands maintain their excellence and stay at the forefront of their industries during any type of economic fluctuation. 💫 Do you have 'World-Class' brand characteristics? Which of these resonates with you the most? #branding #personalbranding #growth #employeeengagement