Ideaworks

It was with great excitement that Jonathan and our photographer (daughter Polly!) set off to the launch of Ideaworks new Experience Centre on Wigmore Street.

We were introduced to Ideaworks by Andrew Zulver, to work with him to develop the brand positioning for the company as it refreshed to acknowledge its changing focus. Formally called 'Sound Ideas', the members of the company felt that this rather undersold their offer. They deliver the most wonderfully integrated interiors that, frankly, are quite mind-blowing.

Jonathan with Operations Director of Ideaworks, Chris Jones

The directors were a delight to work with, and everyone in the company was engaged, enthusiastic and above all highly talented. Their level of skill and attention to detail is both reassuring and impressive.

We worked closely with the team to realign their positioning and develop a name that linked to their very successful past and would fit them for wider vistas in the future - all about being amazing inside.  Zulver & Co went on to design and implement the inspired identity.

The evening was full of amazingness. In the window was an installation by leading international glass and chandelier designers Lasvit, ‘Superclover’ designed by Michael Young. An apparently living wall of jelly fish and one of the highest specification accessible private cinemas outside of the US, with the 4D effect of rumbling seats,were a couple of the highlights.

However the overwhelming message is one of seamlessness and ease. Rather than being a celebration of gadgetry, Ideaworks is all about empathy and simplicity. Their drivers are about frictionless experience - what sort of light would you like, how would you like your entertainment, what mood do you want to create? They are highly sensitive to individual customers and dedicated to making the user-experience as simple as possible, whilst mood creation makes the 'tech' invisible. Polly's text to me while she was there, "This place is amazing – I’m moving in."

Proud brand strategist and naming guru

Ideaworks will be hosting regular evening events at the Experience Centre, the next being an exciting new installation from Melogranoblu on the 18th July. For more information on the next event please follow the link.

The Experience Centre is now available for viewing by appointment. Please contact sales@ideaworks.co.uk should you wish to experience amazing inside.

Flash trending

Feet of a typical Generation X Mum (me) ...Sports Relief 2012

In praise of tomorrow's National Flash Fiction Day (as mentioned in today's g2) I am going to attempt a 'flash review' of Breaking Trends latest breakfast briefing last month.

The example of micro-fiction in today's g2 is reportedly written by Ernest Hemingway and very poignant:

For sale: baby shoes, never worn.

The Breakfast Briefing was at the Charlotte Street Hotel and, after being welcomed by Alec Howe, founder of Breaking Trends, began with a visual blast of everything that's important to know about strong, weak and emerging trends...

This is my slightly gnomic report, written in the dark, of the Breaking Trends blast:

Soft affluence
Web of things
Multi-channel retailing
Gesture > mind control
Limerence
Spider lives +
Telemuting
22-30 year old women earn more than men of the same age

And four points Alec thought worth highlighting:
1. Life is overwhelming for Generation X mothers (so help them)
2. How resourceful Generation Y are and how quietly confident they are about sorting it all out
3. How dangerously under motivated the West is as compared to the East.
4. The massive potential for social disruption - Europe up the creek, US companies ready to go - good balance sheets...

Your challenge is to work out how your brand can help people with the knowledge of what is happening. As Alec says, "Fluency with the future needs to be innate in your business." I think what really needs to be innate is your willingness to listen and your energy to respond and innovate in response to what you  hear.

To find out more do get in touch with Alec.

Dedicated to Service

Today the Queen has renewed her vow of service, "In this special year, as I dedicate myself anew to your service, I hope we will all be reminded of the power of togetherness and the convening strength of family, friendship and good neighbourliness." Sixty years since her accession to the throne, her message fits well with the current trend for austerity thinking, big society and a glance over the shoulder at a more responsible view of business.

On Radio 4's Thought for the Day on Friday, Lord Harries quoted the mission statement of what he referred to simply as 'an American company': "The business of business is serving society, not just making money. Profit is our reward for serving society well. Indeed, profit is a means and measure of our service—not an end in itself." What an astoundingly Good (with a capital G) and, well honestly, unlikely corporate motto.

After a bit of digging on Google, I'm not surprised that he was a little coy about who this 'American company' was. It was Dayton's, founded in 1902. In 1969 it merged with the J L Hudson Corporation to form the Dayton Hudson Corporation. In 2000 it took on the name of its discount retail arm, Target. So, the mission statement of Target now is: "To make Target the preferred shopping destination for our guests by delivering outstanding value, continuous innovation and an exceptional guest experience by consistently fulfilling our Expect More. Pay Less.® brand promise." 

Not so compelling. Not so memorable. Not so distinctive. And, OK, not so Good. But they do go on, "To support our mission, we are guided by our commitments to great value, the community, diversity and the environment." So not so bad either.

Some companies set up at the turn of the century by philanthropist businessmen do seem to have the potential for retaining a set of values that distinguish them from other, less great, companies. The over-quoted (and now hijacked by the likes of Nick Clegg) John Lewis Partnership's mission is actually spot on. It is so refreshing to see an organisation who maintains its value-led philosophy, "The John Lewis Partnership's seven principles define how we run our business. They are as relevant today as they were when they were set out by our founder, John Spedan Lewis, in our constitution."

The first of those principles is Purpose: "The Partnership's ultimate purpose is the happiness of all its members, through their worthwhile and satisfying employment in a successful business. Because the Partnership is owned in trust for its members, they share the responsibilities of ownership as well as its rewards profit, knowledge and power."

In the current turmoil of bonuses, incentives and salaries maybe we should all dwell on the idea of finding happiness through service. And hold dear family, friendship and good neighbourliness.

In this age of transparency...

A new wave of 21st century companies is emerging. These 'vanguard companies', a term coined by Rosabeth M. Kanter in 2008 at the Harvard Business School,  'are market leaders that are able to change themselves and the world because they put values at the center of their enterprise.'

The importance of values driven philosophies can never be underestimated. Our recent work with companies on engaging their (brand) customers with their 'corporate story', the obligations they have to deliver reports on CSR and sustainability, developed unexpected outcomes - rather than sustainability being purely a duty, a dragging anchor, it can become THE catalyst for innovation. So brands from companies committed to a wider view of their place in the world, a real commitment to genuinely making the world a better place, can also be those brands that are at the bleeding edge of inventing the future.

At the core of every successful, engaging brand narrative are a few empirical requirements: purpose, transparency, innovation, authenticity and provenance. The work of innovating around sustainability objectives can deliver solutions that both deliver tangible improvements in working practices and supply chain as well as customer benefits in branded products. For example, it is easy to see how goals of lighter, faster, cleaner can be both brand and sustainability benefits.

In this era of transparency every brand, every organisation, must constantly seek permission to exist from their customers. The concept of sustainability needs to shift from the green agenda to the agenda of good business. Where every other conversation includes 'responsible capitalism' how can we not be looking more holistically at our brand strategy and creating the responsible brand?

Trends spotted

The idea of being awakened to trends, as though knowing what's going to happen allows you to instantly exploit your marvellous insight, is always very appealing. But actually the point of trends is that they are happening, and things you notice happening to yourself are often because you are indeed in the midst of, or at the the start of, a trend. Trends are not predictions. Trends are happening now, and often continue for quite some time, and continue to build in the public sphere well after they've been spotted. Here's a few of my own observations (rather than the ones gleaned from trendspotting sellers...):

Interventionist practices are gaining in popularity
I didn't know what this meant either, but having been enrolled to help my son write an essay entitled "The role of participation in interventionist practices" I am now a bit wiser. Just think Occupy, and then Arab Spring. These are the broad brush illustrations of what's going on closer to home. My two examples are the Seedbombfactory starter kit I saw at home this week. An invitation to become a Guerrilla gardener. Which I love. Secondly, my discovery of PARK(ing) Day, which I am seriously considering participating in this September 21st. Watch this space.

British heritage with a twist
This one has been lurking up for a while, but like many good trends carries on getting bigger after you think it's done and dusted. Alexander McQueen have always been masters of this, Vivienne Westward is of course Grand High Witch of the dark magic and indeed even the likes of Boden play at it. The ones we've spotted lately are Grensons. Having been bought by Tim Little in 2010, an ex-advertising chap who set up his own shoe label in 1997, he is now CEO and Creative Director and injecting a certain flair into the product line. Heritage is having its moment in the fashion limelight, and, as Tim says, on LDN fashion,  'Heritage has always been important as it means authenticity. Recently it has become a fashionable word but really all it means is that “these people must know how to make a decent product as they have been doing it for a long time'. What starts making it cool is his eye for detail and the mixing of traditional materials like British Millerain wax cotton and soft Italian calf leather on the Glenn Military Boot.

Made in Britain
Not dissimilar to the trend above, but a more general pride in hand-made and British-made. Inspired by the economic downturn, everyone wants (for some of the time) to support British makers, tap into a little bit of 'post-war' patriotic warmth, buy things that have value beyond 'instant gratification' and feel part of a growing wave of artisanal products offering quality, taste and individuality. As Jane Parker writes in her article on The Foodie Bugle about Starch Green, 'Their website and blog are the apogees of that quiet, stylish, simple genre of "Made in Britain" arts and crafts for which the nation is increasingly gaining global recognition.'

i-connected machines
That sci-fi idea of machines that talk to each other and do everything for you - not so far away apparently. I remember, whilst working at BT in 1996 or so, talking about the increase in the amount of 'information' every individual would soon be receiving in 5/10/15 years, being quoted the likes of doubling every year, month, minute... We had no idea what we were talking about. Internet was essentially dial in, websites were in their infancy, no google, no Facebook, no twitter, no youtube. Now almost every piece of technology I deal with daily talks to each other. iCloud has enabled my phone to synchronise with my MacBook Pro and in turn my iPad. My diary synchronises with my colleagues' wherever they are, my email is available on all my devices - look no wires. The future sneaks up on you and you're living it - you don't need to know how. I received an email from a friend last night that signed off, 'sent from my dishwasher'.

Hockney-itis

The trend here, apart from everything now looking like 'Hockney trees' or 'Hockney iPad drawings', is art you can look at, enjoy and understand. It's about looking, drawing and painting. It affects you emotionally, viscerally. On the wave of illustration that has been growing over the last few years with the likes Rob Ryan, Jonny Hannah, Mark Hearld and Emily Sutton, ably fanfared by, for example, St Judes, Mainstone Press and Webb and Webb, figurative imagery is fast gaining traction. David Hockney's eye for colour, his draughtsmanship, obsession and prolificness is inspiring, breathtaking and, most significantly in this context, influential. Get down to David Hockney: The Bigger Picture at RA as soon as you can. And don't be surprised if you break out in Hirst-pox, too. Every Gagosian is full of every Hirst spot painting for the next month, as is the window of Uniqulo. More Hirst at Tate Modern from April.

What difference does leadership make?

Being a long suffering Queens Park Rangers (QPR) fan, I have been pondering the notion of leadership in the light of the recent dismissal of Neil Warnock, our erstwhile manager who has just been sacked following a run of poor form.

Neil Warnock

For those interested enough to carry on reading considering this is a football related post - albeit an extended analogy - QPR were promoted to the Premiership after 15 years in the 'wilderness' of lower leagues (my sons have lived almost their whole lives depressed at our non-premiership status - not easy). Neil Warnock was not a manager any of us liked much when he was managing opposing teams, but when he became one of us, and miracle of miracles took us up to the promised land of the Premiership, our views changed - he gave us back pride in our club - and importantly he was a leader who made us win.

A poor run of form, the usual combination of bad luck, averagely talented players and elevated expectations left us one place above the dreaded relegation zone and a transfer window open and ready for new players that would 'definitely keep us up'. Our recently arrived owner took the tough decision to give another manager the chance to spend the transfer budget and hopefully guide us into the safer waters of mid table obscurity.

So what has this all to do with leadership you ask?

Well it seems to me, like any leader, a football manager does two key things - manages his team of players, and plans the tactics for how they play each game. I'm sure there are other things he (and in football it is invariably a him) has to do, but those multifarious other activities - press interviews, community outreach, the odd appearance on A Question of Sport -   probably mostly get in the way of the two key things. A successful leader is wise to focus on the two key things as if his life depends on it. Win and you keep your job, keep your team up, and maybe win a cup or two.

Neil was known to be pretty good at the motivation thing - the 'man management'. A combination of team builder, bully, surrogate dad, stern headmaster, marriage guidance counsellor, financial advisor, agony uncle. The art is to get your players all up at the same time like a plate spinner - and keep them spinning for 90 minutes, and do it again 7 days later for a whole season.

Apparently it was the tactics thing, that Neil was thought to be not so hot at. That is about how you set out your team - the formation, the style of play, the combination and deployment of the skills and attributes of your players. There are anecdotes aplenty, but suffice to say in the cauldron of a 90 minute game, he who has the best game plan that he can get his players to stick with will win more games than he loses. Now I don't think Neil was tactically naive or unaware - but football at the highest level is a bit like chess, sheer physical power and fitness advantage is mostly cancelled out. Goals and wins are often the result of tiny tactical advantages and the odd bit of luck and moments of magical skill.

Brian Clough

Famously Brian Clough - 'the best manager England never had' - didn't really do tactics either, he often didn't even watch his players train - he left that to his tactical wizard Peter Taylor. Brian was the arch motivator - he made his players believe they could win, Peter Taylor identified the players the team needed and crafted the tactics. Brian made his players believe they had a very simple thing to do - 'this is your job, stick to it', and then the tactics of Peter Taylor blended each players 'singularity' into a perfect football machine - and Brian and Peter won more cups with average players than probably anyone else.

The thing is - and this is my point - having both the skills of leadership - the man management and the tactics is very difficult and very rare - it's rare in football, and it's rare in business.

Which is more important? It seems to me developing skills in man management is reasonably well understood, it doesn't mean any prospective leader will automatically be good at them, and there is certainly no 'one way' of doing it  - Steve Jobs was entirely different in style to say Richard Branson - but there are books and classes and seminars aplenty. Strategic skills are a bit more of a black art, maybe even innate. You can read up on it, but it is a combination of logical and lateral thinking, sound reasoning and creative leap. 

A really good leader is probably strong in either man management or strategic skill, a great leader has both - oh and a bit of luck. A really good leader will recognise where he or she comes up a bit short, and get help to fill in the gaps. With any luck this will turn a good leader into a great one (and by the way, we at Brand Guardians specialise in the sound reasoning and creative leap bit).

And it's always worth remembering what Samuel Goldwyn famously said - 'the harder I work the luckier I get'.

Ten inspiring things from last year

All thinking is about making connections between things. Some of the most creative and innovative thinking occurs when you start making connections between unrelated things with unexpected outcomes. So the places we get inspiration, the kick-start to creative thinking, can be diverse. I've put together a list of ten things that inspired me in 2011, in no particular order.

Diaghilev and the Ballets Russes at the V& A
The real excitement of this extraordinary exhibition was the sense of curation. Rather than taking an artist or movement, to assemble the thread of ideas of an impresario was both impressive and fascinating. The mixture of music, dance, art and film was almost mesmerising. The immense theatrical back drops, one by Picasso, were overwhelmingly beautiful. And then the photographic reportage of the artists painting them, using sweeping brushes to paint the huge canvases, really made you want to go and do something BIG. The drawings by Jean Cocteau, especially the poster of Nijinsky, just blow you away.

Autumn leaves
On a walk in the Isabella Plantation in Richmond Park we collected fallen leaves and made patterns. It never fails to delight and surprise me that actually doing these things makes you feel so good. Taking time to stop, look more closely, select and gather, place and compose, really does result in more than just a few leaves.

Yellowcraig Beach
Beaches always inspire with their windswept quality and vast seascapes. Being by the seaside is classically regenerative and curative. A place like Yellowcraig, on the East coast of Scotland near North Berwick, connects me back with my childhood and fills me with excitement for the future.

Feathers
So often used by artists and such a work of art in themselves. I love to collect them, and they often sit in a pot or pressed in the pages of a sketchbook until I get a moment to make a print or draw a study of them. Endlessly wonderful.

Children
There's nothing more inspiring than when your own children produce work that is delightful. With quite a range of children to choose from, the opportunities for delight are numerous. Polly's Rob Ryan inspired silkscreen for her GCSE was an absolute triumph. The other touching production I received for Christmas was an EP Ellen and Polly recorded for me - wow!

The National Museum of Scotland
Re-opened this year, fully refitted and refurbished, this museum is a lovely, uplifting space, with an old style collection of a bit of everything. There was even a piece of packaging I designed for Rabone Chesterman when I was at Design House. Worth a visit just to stand in the glorious hall and look at the amazing wall of everything. (Which reminds me of another inspiring event 'The Museum of Everything' and the Judith Scott show)

Askew Business Network
A few local businesses based around Askew Road, W12, have got together to create a networking group with the aim of - yes - networking - but also regenerating the immediate area around Askew Road. It is already feeling a lot more upbeat and there are a number of shops looking good - and we've even lured the lovely Ginger Pig into our patch.

Occupy, Arab spring and social media
Such a lot of change has been wrought with the help of social media. One can't help but be inspired by the individual efforts that have been made to instigate regime change, send messages to fat cats and unleash the power of the individual. Paul Mason wrote an excellent article last week in the Guardian, 'Global unrest: how the revolution went viral,' which explored the idea of the graduate with no future and the power of the network. The ability of people via Twitter, Facebook, youtube, whatever to transform local concerns into global issues is liberating.

Steve Jobbs
What sadness. What a legacy. I suspect seldom a minute of the day passes without me being in contact with an Apple product, and indeed the rise (and ups and downs) of Apple run alongside my own adulthood. And the tributes produced, as Michael Johnson writes in his Thought for the Week, included  'one of the images of the year.'

The Tomb of the Unknown Craftsman
Grayson Perry's wonderful exhibition at the British Museum revealed an artist far more interesting and far more important that I was expecting. His work is extremely engaging, and the juxtaposition of his work alongside artefacts from the museum's collections placed him in the context of a long tradition of storytelling. The extraordinary centrepiece, 'The Tomb of the Unknown artist' was beautiful, moving, clever and witty. Which puts me in mind of my favourite, and most re-used, quotation heard in the year, from Ed Barber at the London College of Fashion, "the whole fashion industry rocks and rolls on narrative."

It makes me smile...

With a few moments on his hands Jonathan came across some lovely little movies on the Boden website. Having worked with them last year we're very pleased to see the spirit of the brand still echoing through the many layers of their communications. All their photography is stunning and their natural warmth and wit brings a smile to your face.

How to be a Model is a masterclass in charm whilst Dad Dancing is just funny enough - and shows extraordinary bravery from a far too attractive and slim chap to be in any way embarrassing...

Room to fail

Time to play

Inspired by an article by Heather Peace in today's Guardian entitled, "No more can a detective sing," this is really an ode to the creative mind and hard work.

Her discourse is around the reasons why the BBC are unwilling to re-run The Singing Detective to celebrate its 25th anniversary, and the state of the BBC today. The bit that really got me thinking was the idea of giving writers time to be nurtured. And time to do a lot of work. She writes, "Writers are not born brilliant; they need to learn their craft by doing it, the same as any other artist or worker. New writers need room to fail." And she goes on, "Potter himself required years of writing Plays for Today – when he was permitted to explore and offend in the name of art and free speech – to develop the skills which enabled him to create The Singing Detective. Without those early hits and misses, he would never have risen to such heights."

So along with creativity and imagination, the other ingredient for great work is prolificness. I am always struck by how the greatest artists are often the ones who do the most. Ok there are a few exceptions, but just think of Picasso's relentless productivity and David Hockney's constant excitement about new and different ways to 'paint'. I can't wait for his Royal Academy exhibition in January with huge canvasses as well as iPad drawings.

It is so vitally important to give people the space and time to think, explore, mess around - and indeed in the great words of the goddess Nike, "Just do it." This is what we risk in these days of cuts, efficiencies, league tables and unemployed youngsters.

I was minded of a link between the BBC's nurturing of new writers being on 'the brink of extinction' and the genius of Picasso - the Attenborough brothers. Two great influencers and leaders of our time. Peace says in her article on the demise of single dramas and new writing,"David Attenborough wouldn't have let that happen when he was a controller."And just stare in jaw-dropping amazement at what he's inspired in The Frozen Planet. Richard, not only impressed his talent and leadership on the film industry but has also created an astonishing collection of Picasso ceramics started with a piece he bought in 1954 for £3. And they're from Leicester. Like me.

Let's hear it for those who value the creative spirit and allow themselves and their fellow playmates the time and failures to succeed.

Best ever slogans

Loving Creative Review's call for nominations for the best slogans ever. We love words as well as images - so following their 'best logos ever' in April it's nice to see them lauding the writer's art. One of my favourite's, that doesn't seem to have come up on the blog yet is, "A finger of Fudge is just enough to give your kids a treat!" I wonder why it's not used any more...

My favourite mentioned in the Creative Review blog comments is a cheese shop in Amsterdam called "Cheeseland" with the slogan, "Lots of cheese,"

Forever young...

Roxanne McAnn has just shared a rather good blog article with me called, '10 Old Brands That Managed to Stay Modern.' Enjoy...

Brand survival

Well - on the news is the fact that News of the World is closing down. A remarkable action to try and put right some wrongs. It is/was 168 years old, and apparently the most read English language newspaper. But now it's a damaged brand.

On You & Yours this morning a contributor (sadly I missed his name and can't 'listen again') gave good advice for brands facing a crisis, "act transparently, clearly, honestly and quickly." News of the World is part of a brand architecture where the damaged reputation of one part can seriously affect the rest. NewsCorp has acted to attempt to save their brand, and possibly News International. They have certainly acted quickly. With famous brands pulling out from advertising in the paper, public opinion was never going to come back. And I don't think James Murdoch's statement really captures the horror everyone else is feeling, "The good things the News of the World does, however, have been sullied by behaviour that was wrong. Indeed, if recent allegations are true, it was inhuman and has no place in our Company."

There's a thought that it's a political move to demonstrate they are taking this really seriously (well I should think so!) and therefore still a contender in the BSkyB deal. Really?

But I think with words flying round like "toxic" and people saying, "I think the country after Sunday will be a better place," there doesn't seem any place to hide. Zac Goldsmith has just described it as, "a sinister and bad organisation" with, "widespread corruption and criminality."

To say the discussion will run and run is rather an understatement - but I'm pretty sure it will be on the GCSE History syllabus in 20 years. And I'm not sure transparency, clarity or honesty will feature highly in the analysis.

ps I'm not going to put in a link to the News of the World website.

Screw up your business card

The coolest business card?

Martin Lindstrom's recent article in Fast Company challenges everyone to consider their business card as a vehicle for the essence of their brand. His rule of thumb for a well-managed brand states, "If a brand can describe its core values and philosophy on its business card without resorting to a detailed description, then the brand becomes a full representation of its vision."


In order to create such a compelling brand ambassador you need to 'crack the code of creativity.' We are absolute advocates of the use of creative thinking, problem solving and excellent design skills to fulfil the brief of the business card as brand billboard, making it stand out from the crowd, be remembered and convey the very heart and soul of the brand.

The business card designed for Swanswell by johnson banks as part of our branding project is just such an example of creative genius. The cards arrive in a little pad. When a Swanswell person wants to hand one out - it involves a little performance: they remove a card from the pad, scrunch up one end, then hand over a half-crumpled business card. A physical demonstration of their logo and their brand vision, 'change and be happy'- uncrumpling lives.


Brand success is, to paraphrase Lindstrom,  all about staying on message and maintaining focus on your core vision - all the time - in every situation - predictable and unpredictable.

Summer Fair Wars

Every year the quality of estate agent boards advertising (and sponsoring) school summer fairs seems to get better and better. And each year the rivalry between the schools, the sharp elbows of the PTA and the competitive creative streak gets greater and greater!

These three fine and tasteful examples are all up in my road now. All quite delightful. I will try to attend them all even though Greenside and John Betts seem to have been scheduled on the same day (heads will roll...)

A Brand Icon

Television Centre. Photograph: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

I admit I was upset when I heard Television Centre was to be sold. And I am conflicted about my feelings. I see the logic - I can't separate my emotional connection. I live near it, I love going by it, my memories of childhood are imbued with it, my kids have performed there, my dog has performed there, I've done work there. But I suppose it is just a building...

That's the thing about brands though. They aren't just places, or things, or stuff. They are a bagful of emotional content that gives each of us a personal connection with a brand. How a brand fits into your personal and individual life. Often those brands are made up of some significant iconic objects: the Coke bottle, the Levi's red tag, the Disney castle. They act as anchors to connect us with all the feelings that make the brand.

Charlie Brooker's article in today's G2 expresses excellently his/my frustration about the TVC development. I love his reference to Glaswegian comedy writer-performer Robert Florence (Burnistoun) who wrote that telling an aspiring comedy writer that TV Centre won't be around any more is like telling a budding astronaut the moon has disappeared. Read it and weep...

When naming was simpler

Strolling through the back streets of Leicester on Saturday I came across this piece of stationery taped to the door of a disused workshop. I was struck by the excellent brand name 'Kumfi Bedding'. This put me in mind of the joy of making up brand names that describe exactly what the product does and bring in three excellent rules of naming:
1. Mis-spelling
2. Concatenation
3. Hyphenation

My extensive research for examples runs to two that popped into my head, Sleepeezee and Krispy Kreme, both dating back to the 1930s, the La Z Boy recliner (as featured in Friends) and looking through a copy of Ideal Home magazine from May 1954 (the sort of thing I have to hand). This was a cornucopia of of on-brief brand names:

Nevastane kitchen equipment - true to the mis-spelling rule and has that knack of not looking like what saying it out loud means
La-Ze-Li luxury hammock - nicely combining all three rules
Rolakoton - it brushes in as it rolls as it paints (a paint roller to you and me)
Buttador - an ingenious compartment in a Coldrator fridge door that keeps butter at exactly spreadable temperature
Rely-a-Bell, Burglar and Fire Alarm Co Ltd - cleverly bringing in a fourth ingredient - the pun

These names came on a wave of post-war consumerism, influenced by American trends crossing the pond, and inspired by a more advertising savvy world of relaxed language and expansive ideas. There was a streamlining of brand names just as streamlining was an aesthetic (more than scientific) movement in design in the 30s. The names looked good as well as sounded good. They made good logos.

I think the joy of them today is that they are honest, capture a simple proposition, are authentic to their values and celebrate a direct customer benefit. Oh for a La-Ze-Li luxury hammock when you need one...

Customer Contact

Very impressed with the Unlocked Guides efforts to listen to their customers. Our youngest, 8-year-old Tansy, attended their Children's Board Meeting on Friday morning. Emily and Josh, the two Unlocked Guides Directors, led the meeting of 9 or 10 children to help them make some key decisions concerning next steps for the developing publishing business. They made a real effort to engage the children and get a real feel for what they wanted. Putting their customers at the centre of their business is excellent practice but rarely done with such verve and enthusiasm. And there were chocolate muffins and Haribo.

Expert Diagnosis

Explain the symptoms. Add a bit more background information. Answer a few questions. That's the way to engage an expert to help solve your problem.

My car windows wouldn't open. Just the front ones. The car wouldn't lock with the plip. After a flurry with Halfords and fuses to no avail I rang my regular, local garage, Smallbills. They are always polite, reasonable and even call me when it's service/MOT time to book me in. I explained my problem and the lovely chap said, ' Just drop in and we'll have a look. Probably a fuse.'

On arrival I was passed straight to a mechanic - lovely big greasy hands, smudged blue overalls and a rich, maybe Polish? accent. An expert in his trade. I could almost see his diagnosis brain clicking into action as he went through his mental flowchart and ticked off possibilities as he went. Click, click, click. He waggled a loose wire to the door and da da! His magic hands had worked their wonders. Nothing to do with fuses, then. And as the song goes, no charge.

When you talk to the right people, who've put in their 10,000 hours, their brains are programmed to solve the right problem. I hope we can offer that service too.

50 books for an 11-Year-Old

It's not always that a bit of outbound marketing arriving in your in box hits the spot, but this missive from Abe Books is quite delightful: 'Earlier this year Britain's education minister said an 11-year-old should be reading 50 books a year. That statement sparked a lengthy debate.We just know that 11-year-olds should be reading, so here's a list of 50 fantastic books that appeal to young readers.'

The link at learn more takes you to the most heart-warming personal piece by Richard Davies about kids and books and a selection of books from the near and more distant past. Reassuring, nostalgic, visually lovely. Indeed Abe Books can be proud of their tag line - Passion for Books.

About Abe Books: 'Launched in 1996, AbeBooks is an online marketplace where you can buy new, secondhand, rare and out-of-print books, as well as cheap textbooks. We connect you with thousands of professional booksellers around the world and millions of books are listed for sale.'

Passion Killer

 Polly's GCSE work inspired by William Blake and Rob Ryan

I'm not talking about socks in bed or cold showers. No, I'm talking about the over use of a once valid, and latterly brave, highly emotive word. The sort of Latin idea that would never pass the lips of cool business men or calculating politicians. Passion.

There was a little montage of David Cameron using the word on Newsnight the other evening. His passion for the NHS creates an unquestionable cloak of righteousness. He's passionate therefore everything he does must be right.

I was at an induction evening for a Sixth Form with my daughter a few weeks ago. The very enthusiastic headmistress stressed the importance of ensuring you choose A level subjects that you are passionate about. Well, Polly is keen to stay on for A levels, go on to University, pursue some of her interests, get the best start in life. She is also passionate about quite a few things: her hair, clothes, pretty shops, pretty boys, looking after younger children, tickling children, fashion photography, colour... to name a few. None of these translate directly into a neat label for an A level subject. She felt intimidated by the passion spewing forth from the Head and ebullient current students. The best she could do was name a few subjects she considered her least worse. I have no doubt that she will succeed beautifully in whatever she chooses to do, but implying the need for passion in your choice of A level subjects?

Don't get me wrong. I love passionate people. I love being passionate. I just worry about people talking about it too much. Requiring people to be passionate about something in particular. Setting out passion as an HR criterium. I think people sometimes think they have to be passionate about the wrong thing.

Matthew Rice's latest book

I went to a talk by Emma Bridgewater and Matthew Rice on Tuesday afternoon at the V&A. They just talked very nicely about their business and what's going on in Stoke, and how important the way they do business is for them. Yes, a great enthusiasm for pottery came through. Their love of the domestic came through. Their devotion to heritage, re-interpretation for today and respect for craft came through. Their concern for people, Stoke and the creation of work came through. Emma said, 'the most important thing you can make is jobs.' I looked at their website when I got back to the studio. The opening paragraph on their 'About us' page does mention passion. But a genuine and authentic passion. And not a forced or commercial passion: 'Find out more about Emma and Matthew, the things that inspire them and how their passion for family life has had such a huge influence on their designs.' It's all about the way they want to do things. The things they genuinely love.

In 'Forget Passion, Focus on Process' on the 37 Signals blog they start with, 'The problem with the “follow your passion” chorus: We can’t all love the products we work with. Someone has to do the jobs and sell the things that don’t seem sexy but make the world go round.' There's some seriously good sense here. One of the comments links to a TED talk by Mike Rowe celebrating 'dirty jobs'. I was also put in mind of Stephen Covey's 'Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.' Although not top of the behaviouralist's charts at the moment, Covey's point that excellence comes through a series of habits is well put and worth learning. Picasso was a genius - he was talented and importantly highly prolific. His work habits let his genius be seen.

Let's think before we expound passion. And let's not use it as a default requirement. But ensure that our process is fit for purpose and delivering excellence to our customers. I wouldn't mind customers being passionate about brands and services that we help develop and build. That would be a desired perception.