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Fit For Future Campaign
Bosch
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SAP and HT Brand Studio
What's Your Codeword Campaign
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Words that boggled our mind in 2018

1. Floccinaucinihilipilification

Meaning: Act or habit of estimating something as worthless (noun)

It won’t be legit to start talking about words and not mention Mr. Shashi Tharoor. So while introducing his new book “The Paradoxical Prime Minister”, he also introduced this 29-letter word which left everyone awestruck.

2. Hippopotomonstrosesquipedaliophobia

Meaning: Name given to phobia of long words (noun)

And just a day after “Floccinaucinihilipilification”, Shashi Tharoor did it again, making Twitterati open dictionary.

3. Webqoof

Meaning: a person who believes every word or information on the Internet and social media. (adj.)

In the era of fake news and the disastrous impact it has on the audience, “Webqoof” has to be highlighted. In fact, The Quint launched its fact-checking initiative, Webqoof. It’s a newsroom-wide effort, with journalists producing informative articles and videos about spotting ‘fake news’ and working closely with regional and local media and a handful of fact-checking sites to debunk hoaxes and false claims.

4. Phubbing

Meaning: the practice of ignoring one’s companion or companions in order to pay attention to one’s phone or other mobile device. (noun)

The term was coined as part of a campaign by Macquarie Dictionary to describe the habit of snubbing someone in favor of a mobile phone. This term is highly relevant for the year 2018 where almost all of us have been guilty of “phubbing”.

5. Gig economy

Meaning: An economy where organisations and businesses rely more on freelancers and independent workers, contracted on a short-term basis, than they do on permanent staff. (noun)

This phrase was introduced due to a major change in the traditional foundations of the global economy which we’ve had since the industrial revolution, which relies on permanent employment.

6. Bingeable

Meaning: Having multiple episodes or parts that can be watched in rapid succession : suitable for binge-watching (adj.).

To say that the internet has played a massive role in the shaping of global society is a bit of an understatement, really, but one area that often gets overlooked is its influence on language. Taking a step further , Merriam-Webster has now formally included “bingeable” in the dictionary.

7. Textrovert

Meaning: One who feels an increased sense of bravery over texting, as opposed to in person. (adj.)

When you meet a ‘textrovert’ in person, he or she is like an introvert — very shy and has very little to say. But when this individual starts texting, he or she becomes a totally different person. He or she comes across as an extrovert, sounds confident, speaks his mind and has many interesting things to say.

#words #wittywords #wyttiyear #WordsOf2018

Must-Read Books for Personal and Professional Growth

So many books, so little time!

Every year tons of books are released and sometimes people give up on reading books just because they don’t know which ones to read. We bring to you a carefully curated list of top 10 books released recently that will help you manage your growth, your finances and your life in general. Here’s to books which teach you to be a better you!

To make your life easier, here are the links for each of these books (in no particular order, all these books are brilliant!) :

1. Crushing It

2. Let’s talk money

3. When

4. Stories at Work

5. This is Marketing

6. Lost and Founder

7. The Myth of the Nice Girl

8. The Million Dollar One-Person Business

9. The Motivation Myth

10. Thinking in Bets

Best online collaboration tools for shared works & collaborations

With remote work culture gaining popularity, here we have featured the best tools which can help to boost your team’s productivity.They simplify how people interact with each other and empower the workforce.

1. Slack

This popular communication focused collaboration tool streamlines your work with integrated tools. It offers instant messaging, file transfers and powerful message search.

2. GoToMeeting

This reliable and easy to use online video conferencing software has millions of users. It allows screen sharing, conference calling and recording meetings.

3. Asana

It is a project management tool which helps organizations in being organized, stay on track and hit deadlines. You can monitor the status of key initiatives in real time, manage your team’s workload and track company’s goal and milestones. This popular tool is used by companies like Uber, Pinterest, Deloitte, Salesforce and many more.

4. Basecamp

It is a premier project management and internal communication tool. It includes features like message boards, to dos, schedules, docs, file storage, real time group chat and automatic check in questions.

5. Clickup

This collaboration tool helps in process management, task management, time management, collaboration, reporting and integration with other tools. This fully customizable platform, let us keep everything from design to development in one place.

6. Flock

This collaboration tool helps to connect with your team on messages, video calls, to dos, group discussions, polls and reminders. It allows user to search through messages, files and links.

7. Zoom

A communication tool for video conferencing, online meetings and group meetings. This easy to use platform provides high definition video and allows screen sharing.

8. Trello

It is a project management tool that allows to organize projects on a board. The interface of this tool resembles the card game, Solitaire. Every stage of the project is on a board with each column representing a part of the project.

Do let us know about other tools you have worked upon.

Happy collaborating!

Confirmation Bias in Marketing: What is it and How Brands Use It

We’ve all been there. Arguing with somebody, knowing fully well their views won’t change. What we often dismiss as stubbornness or hard-headedness, might actually be a term called ‘confirmation bias’. There’s a reason that some people are more inclined to believe one set of views more than the other. It’s because the former lines with the worldview that already exists in their head, and is easier to accept.

Confirmation bias is a psychological pattern that warps our perception and leads to a systematic assimilation of only that information that is in line with our existing beliefs.

The 2020 US Elections were a close call. States that were coloured red for days turned blue before the verdict. Have you ever thought about why politics is so polarizing? For a dedicated follower of one party or candidate who wholeheartedly believes that all the information is clearly pointing to their chosen candidate being the best suited option, it becomes next to impossible to imagine why somebody would think otherwise when the opposition is such a blatantly wrong choice. But that’s just it. Not all of us consume or process information in the same manner.

Confirmation bias can show its cunning head in many ways – in the ways you gather information, in the ways you recall information, in the ways you interpret information and in the ways you reject certain pieces of information and accept others.

Even doctors fall prey to confirmation bias. Doctors who begin to subconsciously link a patient to a diagnosis after only hearing the first few symptoms, are more likely to miss key components in the further symptoms that could be a red light pointing to a different diagnosis.

So by now, we’ve gotten a surface level grasp on confirmation bias as a psychological loophole. But how exactly is it useful to marketers? How do brands use it to their advantage?

1. Using stereotypes to their benefit

What is the first thing that pops into your head when I talk about Italians? Probably hand gestures, a love for food and a vigor for life. This is due to the fact that that’s how you’ve seen Italians depicted in popular culture. While stereotyping is not the best practice from an open minded generational point of view, it helps brands sell!

If people already have preconceived notions that Italian food is the gold standard, simply stating that their food product is manufactured there or utilizes their produce, could help marketers raise a lot of eyes and turn a lot of heads their way!

2. Focusing on brand loyalty and customer retention

‘Apple’ is a great example of brand loyalty. Every new product launch is followed by a flood of memes and jokes over the inflated price that doesn’t equate the inflation in features. But what it is also followed by is lines of people in front of Apple stores, maxing out pre-orders of the product and loyal customers exchanging their older versions of Apple products for the new ones.

This is a great example of confirmation bias leading to brand loyalty and customer retention. How does a brand achieve this? By starting off with a bang! Apple established its place early on as the leading tech company. By not getting into the market with sub par products and then improving upon them, but rather building an image as the game-changer, the trailblazer, the one to look out for from the get-go helps brands a ton. A focus on quality, ingenuity and uniqueness in the products or services that they offer is at the heart of why customers are attracted to a brand. Once an image has been formed for a brand and they’ve satisfied customers with their quality, people will be more willing to continue to buy from the same brands rather than challenge their previous views to try out a different one.

The quality of products or services cannot be stressed upon here enough. Brands carry out enough market research, R&D, and trial and error to ensure that they enter the market space with the best of the best. If their quality speaks volumes, it helps prevent buyer’s remorse in customers and keeps them coming back for more.

Also, rewarding returning customers for their loyalty is another trick that brands use. Offering add-ons, freebies and additional discounts and sales to loyal customers to attract them to maintain that loyalty is a proven source of customer retention.

3. Making advertisement their main center of attention

With the market space being flooded with more and more products in the same categories, advertisement has become the bread and butter of any successful company. A proven best way to set up an advertisement campaign is to focus on the pain points of your target audience and showcase them in the campaigns.

Targeting pain points is what sells. The best products/services rise out of a necessity, and that is directly proportional to sales. The most successful brands understand what the needs of their target market is and keep highlighting them.

Suppose you’re a brand targeting women managing a family and a career. Display them in ad campaigns. Exhibit their struggles. Show content that will allow them to see themselves in your ad campaigns and associate your advertisements with themselves. It is easy to imagine how this will allow your audience to visualize your product or service in their lives and inculcate it seamlessly into their routines.

4. Leveraging the power of testimonials

Customer reviews, testimonials, money-back guarantees all while may not seem like an immediate necessity, ultimately are a huge guiding light to sales because they target the psychology of buyers.

Believing that their money is going in the right place and will not be spent with no use is a big chunk of what drives customers to buy.

If enough customer reviews say that a product does what it says it does, the brain tells you to go the easy route and believe them. If enough testimonials are positive and the brand has concurrent ratings to show for it, customers will be much more likely to buy the product or service.

5. Being immune to falling prey to confirmation bias themselves

While marketers are aiming to target the confirmation bias psychological hack of customers, they too can overlook certain details due to their own prejudice relating to their product.

For example if brands conduct market research with already a notion of what the audience will say in their minds, they will be more likely to reject the information that hints otherwise no matter how glaringly obvious it may be. Triumphant brands listen to their customers sans any bias.

Conclusion
Psychological hacks are one of the biggest hidden weapons that marketers can use to their advantage, and confirmation bias is one of the easiest cognitive distortions to target and leverage.

It allows customers to seek only those products and accept only those ad campaigns that do not pierce their comfortable bubble of premade worldview and marketers that are able to toy with this knowledge are much more likely to sell with a layer of ease.

Foot in the door technique: What is it and How Brands Use It

Leveraging the hacks of psychology in the trade of marketing has been an age old occurrence. Rewind back to the time of door to door marketing. To ensure being heard, marketers would quite literally put a ‘foot in the door’.

But figuratively, the term has been used to describe a psychological bias that was first depicted by Jonathan Freedman and Scott Fraser. It states that consumers are more likely to accept a bigger request if marketers can get them to comply with a smaller request beforehand.

In 1966, was when the first experiment exemplifying the ‘foot-in-the-door’ technique was carried out. The stated two men of Stanford University, made a small request via telephone to subjects asking them to report on what type of household cleaning products they use. The second and bigger request was for subjects to allow a researcher into their home to examine their household products brands and usage. When compared with the control group, who was only asked for an in-home product analysis, subjects who had first responded positively to the first request were 135% more likely to respond positively to the second request.

Since then, the technique has made its way into different aspects of our culture.

Digging deeper – Understanding ‘Foot-in-the-door’

One theory as to why this works is that behavior can actually shape one’s attitude. For example, if a marketer can convince a consumer to sign a petition for safe driving, this ‘behavior’ of the consumer will shape their ‘attitude’ towards the cause of safe driving and they will be much more likely to comply to a bigger request of the same kind, say the erection of a safe driving sign board close to their house.

This is simply a “If I did it, I can do it again” philosophy that plays with consumers’ minds. A steadfast rule of this mechanism is that the first action of the consumers must be voluntary. If the first action was forced somehow, they will not feel tempted to repeat it.

But now that the concept of door to door marketing is long gone, how exactly do brands take advantage of this technique in their day to day marketing?

The craft of persuasion – Applying ‘Foot-in-the-door’

Brands that wish to adopt the ‘foot-in-the-door’ technique to their marketing do so by following a distinct and succinct 3 – step outline that forms the root of the technique. This includes –

Deciding what the smaller initial request will be and what the second bigger request will be. The initial request is usually something that users easily say yes to, while the bigger request could be something more sales and conversion based. For example, asking for the customers’ email address could be the first request and then asking them to download the brand’s software, or buy their product could be the second request.

Pitching the smaller request. Once customers agree, a way is created to pitch the second request. Usually the second means is inculcated in the first request. Like in our example, since the email address is already asked in the initial request, and a means (mail) to pitch the second one is created.

Pitching the second, bigger request. The bigger request is usually backed with the best of marketing, content, testimonials etc. since it is a larger ask.

A hack well used – Examples of ‘Foot-in-the-door’

There are many examples of this psychological hack being used by brands in our day to day g experiences, that often go unnoticed.

OTT platforms the ‘foot-in-the-door’ technique to increase their consumer’s screen time and enhance their experience. The ‘Recommended for you’ list based on your previous choices (first request) are the second bigger request that consumers are more likely to opt for since they have opted for something similar before.

Bigger online stores like Amazon and nearly every clothing retailer online provide sections like ‘customers who bought this also viewed’ or ‘you may also like’ or ‘view similar’. This is a use of the aforementioned psychological technique where the initial request is the first purchase or the initial tap on a product and the second request is perusing through or buying similar products.

A basic way in which nearly every online brand uses ‘foot-in-the-door’ is for building their mailing list. Brands could ask consumers to fill out a survey (first request) and then subscribe to their email list (second list). Another, is the common practice of a ‘free trial’ and then a subscription.

Charitable organizations first ask potential donors for a small request, like signing a petition.

Then, they ask them for a donation. Similarly, they also make use of the hack by asking people for a small donation, then asking them for their contact information to send them a monthly email, before asking for a larger donation or a bigger investment in the organizations.

Conclusion – The Takeaway

A much more subtle technique than it sounds, ‘foot-in-the-door’ is a great marketing hack that has survived the test of time and stuck around since the time to door-to-door marketers.

Tricking the consumer’s mind into believing that they want to opt for a second product or service just because they previously opted for something similar out of their free will, forms the crux of the technique. Brands get their ‘foot-in the-door’ before you slam the door in their faces to ensure they get represented.

Social Proof : What is it and How Brands Use it

When browsing through any online forum for shopping, what is it about a product that draws you? When looking for an eating joint, what is the first thing you notice about it? Chances are, a big part of what gives you the confidence to spend your money on a product or service is the ratings, the testimonials, the reviews or the amount of crowd that has come before you.

Have you ever thought about why you are lured to make your own decision based on somebody else’s experience? The answer is that there is a distinct psychological technique at play here that tugs at you, known as ‘Social Proof’.

Social proof is a psychological phenomenon where people assume the actions of others in an attempt to reflect correct behavior for a given situation.

This is visible in all aspects, big or small, of our day to day lives. We often are more likely to copy actions that the masses are doing, or more personally, do as our friends or family members see fit due a preconceived notion that their actions or behavior are correct. In fact, this is how ‘trends’ work, perhaps the most well known phenomenon in popular culture.

Brands left and right recognize humans’ wish to follow the herd and leverage it for their marketing. The following article details some of the ways in which brands successfully use the concept of ‘social proof’ to their advantage.

1. Calling on experts

Consumers always want the best of the best. But how do we know what’s best? Surely we can’t possess the knowledge needed to differentiate between good and bad about every product and service under the sun. So, more often than not, we are not experts on which product to buy. The next best thing? Trust someone who is.

Colgate calls on professional dentists to advertise their products. A testimonial from an expert on the issue stating how they recommend it to patients and see results, works well enough for consumers.

2. Celebrity status

Nearly every brand shelves quite a bit of money on acquiring celebrities for their advertisements. Every other print or television advertisement includes actors or sportspersons. The owner of one of the most googled fashion brands, Fashion Nova, states that getting the social mogul Kylie Jenner to promote for them drove up the sales by $50,000.

Not just this, half of social media is steadied on the shoulders of ‘influencers’. Influencer marketing has been considered the fastest-growing consumer-acquisition channel. This is because we associate them with niche celebrity status and apply the same principle of social proof i.e. we relate the products they promote to the positive attributes we see in them.

3. The power of the masses

Brands are now more than ever concerned with numbers and they aren’t afraid to show it. Brands showcase the number of visits to their sites, the number of followers they have on their social media profiles, how many people have bought a particular product or service all to compel customers to follow the choice of the masses.

There is a knowledge that following on social media pages is much tougher to go from zero to say the first thousand, whereas the next thousands come easier. This is also an instance when social proof is in play. It is our natural instinct to possess a ‘herd mentality’ and trust the voice of the crowd.

4. The stamp of approval

Oftentimes, brands display and flaunt if they’ve been featured on some news article, or some listicle by print media, that certify them as being good at what they do. Restaurants advertise the number of Michelin stars they have, the certifications they’ve received, the good press they’ve received for the same reason.

In fact, certification has taken a whole new level in the world of social media ‘blue ticks’. Blue ticks of verification on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook etc. make an account seem more legitimate and popular and attract a higher number of followers.

5. User testimonials

Testimonials and reviews from customers help enhance sales. This is a technique called user social proof. User social proof is when current users recommend products and services based on their experiences with a brand.

Nearly all brands display user reviews, ratings, testimonials on their shopping forums. They also reply to user’s comments, address their complaints and engage and interact with users in public to showcase their above par customer service.

Brands also repost all mentions and tags that their brand receives on their own account. This acts as a mirror of all the people enjoying and sporting their products/services, urging customers to believe that if other users are pleased with the product/service, it is worth a try.

Conclusion
The psychological technique of social proof is visible in various shapes and forms in our day to day lives interacting with brands. As a way to influence customers into believing that other people’s experiences will mirror their own, this technique works well for marketers to attract a bigger following.

Psychographic Analysis : What is it and How Brands Use it

If you’ve ever had any exposure to the teachings of Sales 101, you’ll know that one of the foremost things required is an understanding of your audience. This is often carried out by the creation of a ‘customer profile’. A customer profile consists of the traits of your ideal customer. But not all of your audience will fit into one mold. A more individualistic approach is studying each member of your audience based on their specific qualities. Some of these qualities could be simple and straightforward like demographics – age, location, ethnicity, education etc.; while some are more complicated and are aimed towards understanding more intangible qualities like attitudes, values, notions, desires etc. The latter is what we call psychographic criteria.

Psychographic analysis is the qualitative methodology of studying consumers based on psychological characteristics and traits such as values, desires, goals and aspirations, interests, and lifestyle choices.

This might seem like a page from a psychologist’s handbook but more often than not, this type of analysis is used by marketers. With broad spectrum advertising, brands might feel like they’re shooting in the dark to an ocean of unknown faces and personalities. However, with an understanding of the consumer’s emotions and beliefs, brands are able to market with a more accurate aim at known droplets in the aforementioned ocean.

For example, say your presence on social media hints that you’re an avid fan of yoga. Not only will it be more fruitful for companies marketing yoga related goods or services to market to you but also, say a nutritional supplement selling company could mold their marketing to promote how the supplement helps with maybe flexibility and posture.

There are a few common ways that brands use psychographic analysis. These are –

1. Prioritization
One way of streamlining their process of marketing that brands apply is prioritizing their customer base. Out of the entirety of the target audience, there will be some who are more likely to purchase a product or service than others.

The psychographic analysis of a lead will help determine their status of likelihood to convert into a paying customer. By using your habits to understand the circumstances that have led you to seek out a brand, it is determined how likely you are to invest in the solution. This allows brands to not only differentiate between their customer base based on priority but also leverage the circumstances to their advantage while advertising.

2. Understanding what’s important to you
Getting a peek into your interests and choices basically gives brands a window into your thought process. This also helps them forge a map of how you take decisions. Which criteria are most important to you and which, the least.

For example, when buying a phone, some customers might focus entirely on cost effectiveness, others might have more leg room in the price area but would not be willing to compromise on the features; some might only search for brand value, others for practicality.

This allows brands to target their ads based on what’s most important to you.

3. Targeting emotions
Pulling at the heart strings of your customers can definitely lead to better conversions from the advertisements.

What might appeal to some might be indifferent for others. A psychographic analysis allows brands to get an insight into what will draw a customer’s emotions.

Psychographic data can reveal a great deal about your target market, allowing you to write emotionally powerful ads – negative or otherwise – that may improve your conversion rates considerably.

4. Buyers’ action process
There are multiple elements that go into a customer finally making a purchase. Starting from the pain points, to who or what factors influenced their decision, to how they discovered your brand to what (if any) resistance they faced while making a decision to ultimately taking the leap.

Psychographic analysis helps in getting a better understanding of all aspects of this process which allows brands to be a step ahead with their marketing strategies. For example, finding out what the major barriers were in the way of you completing the purchase can give brands an idea of how to market better so that the resistance from buyers is minimum or absent.

5. To increase open rates of emails
Brands use psychographic analysis to focus on email marketing as well. Targeted and relevant email campaigns increase the open rate of emails. Data can show which subject matter in emails is most likely to resonate with which customer based on their interests.

Brand use this to create inviting subject lines, tag lines and email content to maximize the conversion rates from email marketing.

Conclusion
A relatively complete profile of a person or group’s psychographic make-up is called a “psychographic profile”. Psychographic profiles are used in market segmentation as well as in advertising.

Getting a better understanding of the customer base’s psyche helps brands get an edge in targeting them with ads relevant to them.

The Most Ridiculous Trends Of The Decade

The internet has given us many priceless things – the power to research without going through endless books, to listen to your favourite music whenever and wherever, and to connect with anyone across the globe at the tap of a finger. But along with the miracles, came somethings we could not overlook. We’re talking about trends that took the internet by a storm – but should probably never happen again.

 

1. ALS Ice Bucket

Started as a challenge to raise awareness towards the challenges faced by individuals affected by ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis/Lou Gehrig’s Disease), The Ice Bucket challenge seemed to lose its purpose somewhere along the way. While the challenge requires an individual the volunteer to dump a bucket of ice-cold water on themselves and nominate others for the same, people on the internet were often seen throwing water over unsuspecting friends or using normal (not ice cold) water for the challenge. While challenges such as these are important for raising awareness, they lose their purpose when they are carried out without an understanding of the reason behind it.

2. Harlem Shake

It’s playing in your head now, isn’t it? That ludacris electronic drop with a roomful of people going berserk. The dance challenge came out of nowhere and the world threw their hands in the air and care to the wind. While we definitely enjoyed the videos and many of us even participated in the challenge, the dance challenge doesn’t follow any rhyme or reason. It is absolutely ridiculous (and we love it!).

 

3. Mannequin Challenge

A whole crowd stands still as if frozen in time. Make that global and you have yourself a Mannequin Challenge. Much like the Harlem Shake Challenge, the mannequin challenge made no sense and was done solely for the purpose of entertainment – and entertain it did, indeed.

4. 2012

I guess we all remember the time we all almost died. The Mayan calendar, known for its accurate predictions, predicted the end of the world on December 21, 2012. This sent the world into a frenzy, who started brainstorming the apocalyptic scenarios we might be faced with within a matter of months. And then of course there was a movie by the title 2012 and “end of the world” parties. The trend probably got out of hand when some people died due to heart attacks which were caused by the stress of the impending doom. Yikes!

5. Contouring

It doesn’t take a makeup artist to say when a trend has gone overboard. While contouring does have its upsides, an overly-contoured face is something straight out of a horror flick.

 

6. Gangnam Style

An overnight Korean hit took the world by a storm with its unique music, funky costumes and absolutely ridiculous (and fun) moves. For many months to come, the song was a staple at every party and even weddings.

7. Remakes & Remixes

I think we speak for everyone when we say – enough is enough! What might have started off as a LIVE action remake of Jungle Book has now become an avalanche of rebranded old scripts peddled in the name of nostalgia or tributes. The worst affected by this trend is probably Bollywood with remakes of movies from the 90s and early 2000s making their way to the silver screen. Bollywood is also a solo culprit of remixing (read: ruining) old classics with new hip-hop and electronic beats.

 

8. Tide Pods

This one was straight out of hell. Started by a joke about how Tide Pods looked like brightly coloured candies, the trend ended up landing a lot of teens in hospitals. The internet was taken by a storm with people now raising concerns about the sensibility of trends and how easily these trends were influencing the youth. Tide even released a statement asking people to not consume the product.

 

9. Neon Clothes

Neon is fun. They pop to the sight, they definitely stand out and they glow in the freakin dark. And while it’s fun to have these colours handy to add a pop of colour to your wardrobe, all-neon attires are just plain cringe.

 

10. VR Experience

Now, we don’t want to sound like “technology is bad” grannies, but the overuse of this beautiful piece of technology poses some serious health threats. Such close exposure to screens for extended or repeated durations of time can dry out one’s eyes and cause serious damage. While we all love the experience it brings, we’d suggest treading with caution and in moderation with this one.

 
 

11. Death-selfies

Selfies were all good and fun before people of the internet decided to risk their lives for some stunning clicks. Between 2011 and 2017, about 250 people succumbed to their deaths while trying to click the “perfect” picture in dangerous locations. Love your selfie, sure, but love yourself first.

 

12. Transparent/Plastic Clothing

Be it the sight of Kim K’s toes being squished to death in her transparent shoes or transparent jackets and t-shirt on the runway – we don’t wanna see them (pun intended). They provide no comfort, or sense of aesthetic to the attire and honestly look like neatly creased shower curtains most of the time.

 

Some we loved, some we would not curse upon our worst enemies, but these were some of the most ridiculous trends we picked from the past decade. Do you agree with our picks? Did we miss something? Let us know in the comments below.

Leaving A Mark: Cultivating Brand Recall To Make Your Brand Unforgettable

When we think of brands such as Ford, McDonald’s, KFC, etc. our minds are flooded with logos, ads, franchises, and even taglines. How many times have we caught ourselves remembering ad jingles that played between our favourite shows as a child. That shows the impact brands are capable of having on our minds. Needless to say, this is the ultimate goal of every brand – to become unforgettable.

 

In marketing lingo, this kind of market presence where potential clients can recognise your brand through its visual identity or product/service is called Brand Awareness. We’d often associate excellent brand awareness with the brand becoming synonymous with their product/service (think Xerox and Google). However, for brands of different fields and sizes Brand Awareness can also mean:

  • The customer is aware of your brand

  • Search Engines using your business name in their search options

  • Your followers on Social Media platforms engage with/recognize your brand

 

What is Brand Recall?

 

Brand Recall is a very important component of Brand Awareness, which is used to measure this “imprint” your brand leaves on its customers. When a customer comes across a component of the brand, visual or audio, and can instantly and accurately associate it with a brand or its products and services.

 

Notice how it wouldn’t take you a fraction of a second to associate a giant yellow ‘M’ with McDonald’s, or the tagline ‘Finger Lickin’ Good’ with KFC. This shows the brand’s reach and authority over their respective USPs, as well as their ability to build a connection with their audience. But these are fairly old brands that have built their legacy over the decades. Should we talk about some ‘modern’ brands? The “da dum” of Netflix or the a-to-z arrow-smile of Amazon are etched into our minds; apps such as Ola and Uber have replaced the term “cab/taxi” in our dictionaries.

 

This makes you wonder… How do they do it??

 

A one-word word answer to that is – consistency. However, it’s not that simple. It takes cultivating an organic dependable relationship with one’s customers over time. Allow us to take you through some of the factors that contribute towards building a connection with the customers that could lead to good brand recall in the long run.

 

How You Can Build Good Brand Recall For Your Brand

 

There are many elements to a brand – visual (logos, social media templates, posters, and hoardings) and audio-visual (taglines, jingles, advertisements). Being able utilise both these mediums to offer the customers a brand they can connect with is the goal of cultivating a positive Brand Awareness. So

 

1. Shaping the Brand: Cultivating a well-rounded presence in the market starts with establishing the brand’s identity. This would include designing a neat logo that depicts your brand accurately; building a story surrounding its origins, growth, aspirations, and values; and communicating the same with consistency in all of the brand’s communication.

 

2. Managing Brand Reputation: Once in the market, sticking to the brand’s core values becomes essential. A well-rounded brand cannot showcase inconsistency in their tone or their inherent values (supporting environmental organisations and using ecologically detrimental raw materials in their factories). Once the communication with the customer has been established, all efforts should be made towards maintaining consistency in the tone and voice of the brand.

 

3. Humanising the brand: No customer wants to deal with a brand that’s mechanical or lifeless. In order to connect with its customers, one needs to be able to showcase emotions and share in the customer’s journey. Some successful methods of doing so could be narrating a story, observing festivities and celebrations, and connecting with causes and movements that one’s customers support.

 

By aiming at cultivating excellent brand awareness and recall, not only can a company boost its sales and gain a competitive edge, but it can also take a larger market share and step forward as a leader. It is essential for a brand that is looking to build a legacy and leave its mark on the market. It is not just a marketing tool but an investment.

The Entrepreneur’s Digest: 8 Books You Must Read If You Plan to Lead

The journey of an entrepreneur is filled with learning and personal growth. Becoming a student of life and embracing change are practices that anyone aspiring to be a leader must cultivate in themselves. Seeking holistic guidance, aka guidance that encompasses the mental, emotional and professional wellbeing of the individual, can play a crucial role. If you are an entrepreneur looking to expand your knowledge or aspiring to be one someday, here are a few books from some noted names from fields of personal development and philosophy.

 

1. “Art of War” by Sun Tzu

 

Regarded as one of the most potent works in the philosophy of leadership, Art of War is a book by the Chinese general Sun Tzu. He is known to be one of the most powerful generals in Chinese history and in his books he guides fellow men on the Art of leading an army to victory. In doing so, he sheds light on the qualities that make a leader, strategy and managing a team. Sun Tzu’s wisdom from the field of war has been applied by many leaders today to guide their teams towards the desired outcomes.

 

2. “Tao Te Ching” by Lao Tzu

 

The ‘tao’ or ‘dao’ means ‘the path/way’, and is used to explain the eternal nature of life. As the central philosophy to the practice of Taoism/Daoism, Tao Te Ching is philosophical work by the ancient Chinese saint Lao Tzu, whose advice guides an individual to live in harmony with one’s life. The core philosophy is based on principles, such as going with the flow and surrender, that may seem counterintuitive to today’s hustle culture but can prove very beneficial in pursuing a more holistic path of growth and entrepreneurship.

 

3. “How to Sell Yourself to Others” by Elmer Wheeler

 

The phrase ‘selling yourself’ has a negative connotation attached to it, which can often hinder entrepreneurs from positioning themselves in competitive markets. In reality, we are constantly selling ourselves to those around us – be it convincing a team of HRs to hire you, a new person to be your friend, motivating a team towards the targets, or your audience towards buying your products. In his book, Wheeler removes the negativity attached to the word selling and addresses it as an essential skill that entrepreneurs must learn in order to be successful.

 

4. “The Psychology of Money” by Morgan Housel

 

Money makes the world go round and can very well send our heads for a spin. Many of us are guilty of viewing money in less than realistic lights – either idealizing, demonizing, or, as I like to call it, divinizing it (attaching it to fate, god, luck, etc.). None of these cultivate a healthy relationship with money and keep us at a distance from mastering the art of money management. In Psychology of Money, Housel breaks down the concept of money and how we interact with it in order to make it more real-world. “Financial success,” he says “is not hard science. It’s a soft skill, where how you behave is more important than what you know.”

 

5. “Zero to One” by Peter Thiel

 

A seasoned entrepreneur and an intelligent investor, Peter Theil has his name linked to some of the most popular brands, such as SpaceX, Airbnb, and LinkedIn, and was the first outside investor for Facebook. It should be safe to say that the man knows his start-ups. In his book, Zero to One, Theil outlines his strategy and wisdom for building a flourishing start-up. He touches many aspects of the start-up life, ranging from the advent of technology, legalities, and monopolies which offers the reader an insider’s view of the game.

 

6. “Start with Why” by Simon Sinek

 

Simon Sinek is a very popular name amongst entrepreneurs and his philosophy of ‘starting with why’ has repeatedly been cited by budding leaders as a guide towards clarity and direction in their journey. In his book, Sinek dives into how a start-up should define its role to the customers in order to serve them better. The ‘why’ is used to design a strategy for success and helps the company gain a clearer sight of its vision and mission.

 

7. “Meditations” by Marcus Aurelius

 

Marcus Aurelius was a Roman emperor and a renowned stoic philosopher. His teachings, compiled in multiple publications, offer insight into self-discipline, management, integrity, and humility. Marcus Aurelius, in his book Meditations, discusses his ideology for what makes a good leader. Many refer to teachings for personal development and his stoic principles on discipline are quite popular amongst leaders from different fields, eras, and backgrounds.

 

8. The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin

 

A founding father, an innovator, and a true source of wisdom, Benjamin Franklin is a name that might not need any introduction. But what most people are not aware of, are his thorough efforts at self-reflection, discipline, and ethics. His Autobiography is known for the account of his daily routine, and his meditations on self-discipline and ethics, and is popularly referred to for the author’s insight into time management.

 

These are, of course, a few out of many books that can help guide an entrepreneur onto a holistic path of leadership and self-growth. We have covered some others in our earlier article – Must-Read Books for Personal and Professional Growth, and we will share more as we find them.

 

If you’ve read any of these books, do share your reviews with our readers below, and feel free to recommend any other books that helped you in your journey of entrepreneurship and self-development.