This is the annotated version of my presentation on the future of brand communications strategy. It was written for the Breakfast At Jerwood event at The Jerwood Space, London, on 2 December 2010.

1. War of the Worlds and the new principles of brand communication Ian Thomas www.newtradition.co.uk

2. Back in 1938 – on the eve of war in Europe – a radio broadcast by Orson Welles’ Mercury Theatre Company caused widespread panic in the USA

3. Their production of H G Wells’s ‘War of the Worlds’ began – without any formal announcement – with a series of ‘eyewitness’ reports of Martian landings

4. It’s an event that provided momentum to a – now extensively debated – ‘hypodermic syringe model’ of mass media effects

5. It’s a model which suggests that, if you possess the means to generate and control delivery of content...

6. …then you enjoy a powerful position of control in relation to the recipient – and even over them

7. But it is a pervasive idea

8. It’s why a promotional model of communication – which helped spawn the world’s advertising and public relations industries – exists

9. It’s why entire industries of media organisations exist to sample and judge the content that is suitable for mass consumption

10. But I’m not sure the ‘War of the Worlds’ example is just about media effects

11. Boundaries

12. Boundaries It was alsoabout the way in which traditional boundaries – like the continuity announcement between programmes – were disregarded in order to play with listener emotions

13. In other words, Welles and the Mercury Theatre Company deliberately disrupted the conventions of continuity

14. And that had the effect of blurring the distinction between fiction and reality, and between broadcaster and listener

15. Welles successfully traversed the boundaries of convention – as well as the apparent physical barrier between the radio-set and the listener

16. So if you tuned in, you became part of Welles’s drama – just as the headlines show

17. So let’s fast forward to 2010

18. Rapid changes in media consumption mean audiences are able to subject brands and media owners to the kind of experience Welles exacted upon on his audience back in 1938

19. Because media consumption preference are profoundly shifting, it’s creating an increasingly fragmented and ‘lawless’ environment in which it is impossible to successfully exert any kind of reputational ‘control’

20. Not only that, but the ease with which individuals can access publishing platforms means that fans and critics alike, have the potential to influence your reputation whether you like it or not

21. But what’s happened and why?

22. I’d suggest that there are three converging reasons for this

23. The first is the banking crisis and the subsequent crisis of trust among consumers over the integrity of corporate governance

24. Almost overnight, people who felt relatively secure, suddenly lost their sense of security and the comfort of continuity

25. And the reason for that was the apparently irresponsible behaviour of financial services businesses

26. But the effect has been to generate a widespread sense of distrust of business in general – and not just financial services businesses or the private sector

27. Second, there’s been a huge growth in use of mobile platforms and devices which effectively disintermediate traditional media formats and channels

28. No longer do you have to sit by a radio or in front of a TV or pick up a newspaper in order to gain access to content

29. All the information you may need is probably in the palm of your hands

30. And then there has been the technological and social phenomenon of the rise of the social web

31. Free to use and easily accessible, the social web has encouraged individuals to formalise offline social connections via web platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter

32. Enabling individuals to publish and share content entirely free of charge

33. So not only do you possess the potential to access the content you want via the media you want, when you want

34. It’s highly likely that your networks have become increasingly influential in editorialising your consumption of content

35. All this has serious repercussions for organisations and businesses who are keen to manage the reputations of their brands. And why?

36. Because it means organisations and businesses need to consider the very idea of brand ownership and control.Or, put another way…

37. What makes you think it’s your brand?

38. The way in which individuals used the social web to adopt, adapt and propagate Obama’s campaign message – without losing the tone of his appeal – is remarkable

39. Whether Obama’s team intended it to happen or not, they did not appear to behave like a conventional brand owner and seek to prevent it from happening

40. Obama’08 serves as an example of an emerging approach to brands and branding – the ‘adaptive brand’

41. It requires organisations behind the brands to relinquish the idea of ‘control’ and, instead, adapt to a continually changing social landscape in which brands are merely participants

42. Which doesn’t necessarily mean that it is easy to tolerate or results in positive or desirable reputational outcomes

43. But in an environment where peoples’ trust in the motives, claims and behaviour of organisations and brands has become so easy to express and spread…

44. How can a brand gain trust when 95% of consumers already distrust their advertising and promotions? Here are some suggested principles

45. From push to share

46. In the past, organisations enjoyed the ability to dictate the terms of engagement for the people that used their products and services

47. Consumers had to to dial in to a customer service phone number

48. Or write a letter – or e-mail – to a particular address for complaints, help and information

49. Sharing means organisations are able to adopt more transparent means of support

50. Not only do these encourage peer-to-peer customer self-service

51. but they also deliver a rich source of insight about a business’s product and service

52. Brands like Threadless are going a step further

53. They are setting up customer support where their customers are likely to be

54. Rather than insisting that their customers visit a destination elsewhere on the web

55. From promotion to propagation

56. T-Mobile has embraced the idea of propagation by creating participative events which encourage participants to share their role in the event with others in their social groups

57. Participants voluntarily ‘seed’ links and mentions via their social web statuses and activity. In turn, this generates what’s described as ‘earned media’ coverage (but is, frankly, just ‘word-of-mouth’.)

58. But propagation strategies don’t necessarily require huge levels of investment in production

59. Twibbon enables organisations to create ‘ribbons’ for Twitter avatars

60. Enabling Twitter users to display their support for a cause, event or idea

61. Twibbons can be created either free of charge or at low cost

62. And propagation by supporters is, of course, free

63. From purchase to participation 82% of people are more likely to tell others about products or services which they have helped brands design

64. In the past, brands have relied heavily on market research to test potential products or services

65. But organisations like Lego have begun to encourage their fans to create and share their ideas

66. Not only does it provide Lego with new product development ideas

67. It also encourages Lego fans to feel part of the brand

68. Research by Alterian suggests that participants in product development are more likely to tell their social connections about the resulting product or service

69. In addition to the ubiquitous iPod and sensor, Nike have built an iPhone app which helps runners create and monitor running routes

70. It’s an example of how brands are increasingly using technology to help consumers do what they want to do and so build affinity with their brand

71. It’s a strategy in keeping with John Kay’s idea of ‘obliquity’: Nike and Apple are not directly pushing their products, they are cementing a connection with a consumer who may or may not purchase a product at a later date

72. Brands themselves are also able to grow thanks to participation of both individuals and businesses

73. Open source platforms like Facebook have enabled developers to build businesses and enrich the features, applications and tools of Facebook itself

74. Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg has recently suggested that the popularity of applications like Zynga’s Farmville have been a big factor in the growth of Facebook’s user population

75. From generation to association

76. The fragmentation of media has created collaborative ways in which both brands and artists are able to create and associate with original content

77. Steve Coogan and Armando Iannuci’s ‘Mid Morning Matters’ is original content that is created in collaboration with Fosters

78. It enables Coogan and Ianucci to create original content in a format that does not suit traditional broadcasting – episodes are approximately 13 mins long, for instance

79. And it allows Fosters to expand its existing association with comedy but in a role that’s more akin to a ‘patron of the arts’ than a sponsor

80. Elsewhere, ‘Stormys in a Teacup’ is a photographic caper that is being produced in aid of Shelter

81. But the Shelter story is simply an extension of Stormys existing photo series which, by all appearances, is a just-for-fun project

82. Seeking out like-minded people and organisations, or inspiring and interesting ideas with an existing following…

83. ..is likely to yield a lower cost and more compelling way to easily communicate or associate your organisation or brands with ideas worth spreading

84. How can a brand gain trust when 95% of consumers already distrust their advertising and promotions? Here are those principles again…

85. Share Participate Propagate Associate

86. Picture credits and links War of the Worlds and the new principles of brand communication by Ian Thomas @mrianthomas @newtradition_ www.newtradition.co.uk New York Times headline image from Denofmystery.blogsport.com'Buckshot: War of the Worlds’ Syringe image: Thomas Weidenhaupt at Flickr Money note image: PhotoGraham at Flickr iPhone image: William Hook at Flickr Obama campaign images (from top left to right): Official campaign logo from ‘Obama logo ideas that weren’t chosen’ at Logo Design Love; ‘New Game’ from piccsy.com; ‘Stonewashed’ from Cafepress images; ‘Obama Pride’ from BarackObama.com; ‘Fuzzy felt’ by Boltron on Flickr; ‘B&W button badge’ from Koolbadges; ‘Donut’ from Profy.com; ‘Hope’ poster art from Highsnobiety.com; ‘Hope’ by Shepherd Fairey from Marksandmeaning.com; ‘The Dream’ by Ray Noland from Gotellmama.org Avatars via (from left to right) Greenpeace.org/kitkat; @BPGlobalPR and the UK’s Creative Review Call Centre image from Nationwide media centre library Screengrab of Apple UK iPhone support at Apple.com/uk Screengrab of Threadless support at Facebook.com/Threadless T-Mobile images: Main image (left) from Theapofcrap.com; (Top right) Screengrab of T-Mobile YouTube channel; Screengrab of Guardian.co.uk coverage (bottom right) Screengrab of Twibbon.com Mad Men focus group image via IliketowatchTV.blogspot.com Screengrab of Lego UK’s Create and Share Screengrab of Nike UK’s Nike+ iPhone app Screengrab of Zynga’sFarmville homepage Screengrab of ‘Mid Morning Matters’ at Fostersfunny.co.uk’s YouTube channel Stormys and a guiness from Stormy Little AdventuresandStormys in a Teacup 1 4-9 23-26 27-29 38-41 42-43 46-48 49-51 52-54 56-57 58-62 64 65-68 69-71 72-74 76-79 80-83 References 1 44, 64, 68 & 84 74 ‘Obliquity’ by John Kay (Profile Books, 2010): At Amazon Statistics drawn from research published in Alterian’s ‘Your brand. At risk or ready for growth?’ Downloadable at Alterian.com Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg’s comments on role of gaming in Facebook’s growth were made at the Web 2.0 Summit (15-17 Nov 2010)