One of the biggest things most everyday companies are struggling with, in terms of branding, is how to “tell their story.” If you’re there, you’re not alone. Most everyone struggles with articulating their brand and its narrative. Archetypes can help. Here’s how.
This is a plea for an end to hip websites featuring photo shoots of cool “creative spaces” and not much else.
You know what I’m talking about: Parallax websites papered with empty reception desks with brand signage; macro shots of artisanal light fixtures; den-like flex spaces with artfully cast-off iPads and headphones; and perspective shots of touchdown workstations with knife-edge aligned Apple displays and funky task chairs.
Your homepage is now a cliché.
A couple weeks back I was commuting to a client meeting and was backed up at a four-way stop across from a familiar forest-green Waste Management garbage truck. For the first time I was able to read and fully comprehend a marketing decal that’s flashed by me countless times:
“Our landfills provide 17,000 acres of wildlife habitat.”
I actually laughed out loud.
If you want to be an effectively responsive and rapidly evolving culture, what could be more valuable and helpful than knowing the baselines; the “what and why” behind your business (your mission) and “where you want to go” (your vision)? In fact, how effective do you think your path will be without them?
It’s no wonder businesses today find it more and more difficult to discover a brand name and domain they can own. It’s increasingly more difficult with the proliferation of online businesses and online business presence. Being creative with your brand name likely makes it easier to find domain options that aren’t already registered…