OILTANKERS VS SPEEDBOATSPositioning Your Studio - AIGA Breakfast Talk 04.14.15

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I’M JAMES, A STRATEGIST AT LARGE.

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WHAT DO I DO? INVENTIVE DIGITAL STRATEGY AND

CONCEPTUAL CREATIVITY FOR COMPLEX BUSINESS CHALLENGES.

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HELP BUSINESSES NAVIGATE AND CREATE CULTURE BY CREATING IDEAS, PLATFORMS AND STORIES THAT NAVIGATE A FAST CHANGING WORLD.

HOW DO I DO IT?

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(THAT WAS SUPER DIFFICULT TO WRITE).

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POSITIONING YOUR STUDIO IS POSSIBLY ONE OF THE HARDEST THINGS YOU CAN DO STARTING OUT. BECAUSE IT ASKS YOU TO TRULY, D E E P L Y , Q U E S T I O N A N D UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU DO, WHERE YOU DO IT AND WHY YOU DO IT.

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POSITIONING - A SUPER BRIEF HISTORY

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1950’S - ROOTED IN BUDGET PLANNING AND FINANCIAL CONTROL. AKA SUPER BORING

1960’S - ADOPTED BY HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL. ‘SWOT’ ANALYSIS IS BORN

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1980’S - EVERYONE READS “THE ART OF WAR” AND LOSES THEIR MIND FOR STRATEGY

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1990’S - M&A’S MAKE EVERYONE CRAZY FOR POSITIONING THAT LEVERAGE CORE COMPETENCIES

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2000’S - POSITIONING GOES MAINSTREAM. THE RISE OF BRAND POSITIONING AND BECOMES A COTTAGE INDUSTRY IN OF ITSELF.

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2010’S - DIGITAL CULTURE MOVES POSITIONING FROM CORPORATE TO CULTURE. PURPOSE OVER PROFIT

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WHY SPEEDBOATS AND OIL-TANKERS?

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WHY IS A POSITIONING SO IMPORTANT?

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A GOOD POSITIONING IS A WAY TO REPEAT SUCCESS.

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WHAT MAKES US DIFFERENT? WE’RE FULL SERVICE! WE’RE INTEGRATED! WE HAVE A WIDE RANGE OF EXPERIENCE! WE’RE CREATIVE! WE’RE STRATEGIC! WE’RE NIMBLE! WE’RE MEDIA NEUTRAL! WE’RE DEDICATED! WE’RE YOUR MARKETING PARTNER! WE ASSIGN ONLY SENIOR PEOPLE! WE GET RESULTS! WE’RE FUN!

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“THE COMMON FAILING AMONG AGENCIES SEEKING N E W B U S I N E S S I S T H E I R I N A B I L I T Y , O R WILLINGNESS TO NAME WHAT THEY STAND FOR”

Bob Lundin, R3/JLB

AND THE TRAP OF NOT TAKING A STAND

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WHAT DOES A POSITIONING LOOK LIKE?

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AKA - DO WHAT YOU DO BEST.

VARIETY-BASED

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EXAMPLE VARIETY BASED POSITIONING

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AKA - DO EVERYTHING, BUT ONLY FOR A PARTICULAR GROUP OF PEOPLE.

NEEDS-BASED

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AKA - GO WHERE YOUR CUSTOMERS ARE.

ACCESS-BASED

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DEFINE A VALUABLE AND UNIQUE POSITIONING INVOLVING A DIFFERENT SET OF ACTIVITIES TO MAKE YOU DISTINCT.

THE KEY?

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SO HOW DO I MAKE MY POSITIONING DISTINCT?

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YOU GOT INTO THIS FOR A REASON. TELL PEOPLE WHAT THAT IS. BE YOUR PURPOSE.

LISTEN TO YOUR CALLING

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“THE ESSENCE OF STRATEGY IS DECIDING WHAT NOT TO DO”Michael Porter - Harvard Business School

BE SELECTIVE

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DEFINE YOUR OPPOSITIONAL FORCESTAY ON TARGET

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FOCUS ON FINDING THE RIGHT PEOPLE THAT FIT YOUR VALUES FOCUS FOR WHAT TYPE OF CLIENTS YOU WANT RIGHT NOW

DON’T LOSE FOCUS

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“EVERYONE IS SO BUSY DOING WORK FOR THEIR CLIENTS THAT THEY FORGET TO DO THE SAME WORK FOR THEMSELVES.”

UNAMED AGENCY CMO

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CONCENTRATE ON DEEPENING YOUR POSITION VIA YOUR EXPERTISE, AND CONSTANTLY DEMONSTRATE AGAINST IT

GO DEEP

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BUILD CONSENSUS, AND COMMUNICATE YOUR POSITIONING IN CLEAR, INSPIRING, AND COLLABORATIVE TERMS.

ALL FOR ONE, ONE FOR ALL

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CLIENTS BECOME FELLOW TRAVELERS.THESE TRAVELERS, BECOME YOUR GREATEST ASSETS.

BUILD THE FELLOWSHIP

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A SUSTAINABLE ADVANTAGE CANNOT BE GUARANTEED BY SIMPLY CHOOSING A UNIQUE POSITION, AS COMPETITORS WILL

IMITATE A VALUABLE (IE. SUCCESSFUL) POSITION.

THEIR WILL BE COPIERS

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WRITE A SENTENCE THAT ARTICULATES YOUR DISTINCTIVE

ADVANTAGE, NOT JUST A BUNCH OF SUPERLATIVES. KEEP

HONING IT UNTIL IT'S CLEAR AND FEELS RIGHT. RUN IT PAST

WITH CLIENTS FOR CONFIRMATION THAT IT CONVEYS THE

COMPELLING REASON TO DO BUSINESS WITH YOU.

STARTER FOR 10

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“KNOW THE USER, KNOW THE MAGIC, CONNECT THE TWO”

GOOGLE CREATIVE LAB

THANKS FOR LISTENING!

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