Module 1 – Getting Started
We have a lot of problems in the world: a climate crisis, unemployment, over-consumption, systemic racism, global health inequality, to name just a few. It's enough to keep you up at night.
But what gets me up in the morning are all the amazing people who are launching great ideas, products and services to turn some of those problems around.
Products and services in renewable energy, climate change policy, family planning, sustainable fashion, employment, and mental health for instance.
In a perfect world, these great ideas would spread, purely on their own merit.
But this is not a perfect world.
Many ideas for change fail. Why is that?
After speaking to hundreds of founders, and speaking to the investors, funds, incubators and accelerators that support them, I've found that it's usually not because the product isn't good.
It's because they fail to reach the right audiences at the right volume.
Without an audience to drive the business model, you can't have a sustainable initiative. And without the audience, no impact.
We need to change the way we think about branding
We invest a massive amount of resources into the development of ideas, products and services for change, and very little into the process of 'selling' it well to the world.
This is what we call the 'fingers crossed' brand strategy.
Cartoon: Sidney Harris, used with permission
The fact that we don't invest more resources into building a strong brand is a great shame, because if you don’t sell yourself well, you can’t get these products adopted, and that means you are not making an impact.
I argue that we should be investing just as much time into selling these products as we do into developing them. But we’re not.
In order to make real change happen, we need to be smart about how we get people on board with ideas, products and services for change.
Brand is often misinterpreted as styling or misused as a cosmetic cover-up.
Instead, we see it as a way of thinking that can help advance people, products, services and ideas for good.
What brand can do
On the consumer side, the case for branding is well known. Brands can attract higher margins, preference above other offers, loyalty and repeat purchase.
Less well known are the direct benefits to your team:
you're more attractive to the best talent for new job openings
you are more likely to partner with other brand name partners and negotiate better deals
brand gives direction to the team and its activities, like a North Star or compass
a brand is an asset on the books (this is called brand equity)
a strong brand makes it easier to raise funds: investors see a strong brand as an indicator of customer loyalty in the future
Both the external and internal benefits of brand could be a big contributor to the success of products and services for social and environmental progress.
What the world needs is stronger brands for change. Let's make yours!