Dirty Butterfly

Image: Wikipedia. A mathematical visual rendition of chaos theory, the Butterfly Effect.

Martin Lindstrom in Fast Company on what triggers cravings, i.e., strong needs within the mind of a consumer. Triggering needs in this way is key to sales and branding, and subliminal effects such as these are highly interesting. Just talking about subliminal hints and cravings has got me wanting a Coke. [Fastcompany].

Now is the age of discovery, information is all around and consumers themselves seek out and discover what they are after. These are key points for marketers to keep in mind in how to market toward consumers when they can choose on their own what information they want and when they want it. [Fastcompany].

Don't work on your brand, work on being who and what you want to be for your customers, and they will in turn work on your brand for you. "[I]t’s consumers who create the value intrinsic in brands: We all judge companies by the things they say, the things they do, and how those two things match up." [Fastcodesign].

Nicely put on how product, service and brand intertwines: "a product is an experience that occurs in the moment. A service is a relationship that extends over time and across platforms and mediums. A brand is much more than the logo; it is the pattern our brains expect based on everything we have previously heard, seen, and felt. All of these components roll up into the larger experience." [Fastcodesign].

The case of Refinery 29, and how to draw inspiration to your own branded content campaigns. [Mashable].

Why there will always be superbrands, even in the age of conversational marketing. [Doktorspinn].

Fortune 500 CEOs don't really "do" social media, but they should. Why – because "82% of [consumers] are likely or much more likely to trust a company whose CEO and team engage in social media. And an amazing 77% of respondents are likely or much more willing to buy from a company whose mission and values are defined through their leaderships’ involvement in social media." [SAP].

The value and growth of social media, and determining ROI for campaigns. [Fastcompany].

As companies come to realize the scope of what social means, they shift beyond focusing their social efforts on marketing only to implementing it throughout the organization and its relationships with key counterparts. [Marketingprofs].

Storytelling as a key component of all brand communication: "If your story does not reveal something personal and unknown about the person or brand, it’s going to be boring. If your story does not tap into a specific emotion – whether it be fear, desire, anger, or happiness – it will not move people to action. If your story does not take people on a journey where there is a transformation between the beginning, middle, and the end, it’s not a story." [John Bell].

July 31