Hive Health

Just spent a very interesting afternoon at an APG event entitled ‘What do you do to win, when you can’t afford to lose’. An excellent panel guided us through (to a greater or lesser degree) their thoughts on strategy and what it takes to devise a plan. Present were General Sir Mike Jackson GCB, CBE, DSO, DL, Dave Droga, from Droga 5, Alastair Campbell, who we all know, and Jeremy Gilley, the founder of Peace One Day.

What was apparent was that all of them had an inert fear of losing, so winning really was the only option available and although it wasn’t really a ‘winner take all’ extravaganza, I thought that on balance the General came out on top, if for no other reason that he taught all their present the excellent expression ‘rot you up’! (As in those dirty rotters trying to trip you up, or at least that was my outtake.)

Evident from all those on the panel was that there really isn’t any magic solution to devising strategy and in fact those long, sometimes lonely hours we spend churning stuff around is all par for the course. It requires passion, energy and the endless questions of why and what if, but there’s no escaping the fact that it can take time – as the General put it, it’s about ‘thinking long and thinking big’.

In my mind it was refreshing to have a few pre-conceived thoughts I had, smashed. Who would have thought that a soldier would have been talking about doing things differently (and embracing Russians!) and a creative director talking about everything we do having to have a purpose (as opposed to just looking good). But I guess this is what has separated them out and allowed them to get to the top of their respective trees – the fact that they don’t just follow the norm and try and find alternative ways to engage – whether that be physically or from an emotional connection point of view.

More from APF Worlds collide here and here.

The beerground.

A while back our account management were charged with working on a pitch – internal training with a difference. The brief was beer – something the majority of our lads and ladettes (at least after a few jars I’m told) have experience of, if not marketing it, then certainly on the consumption side. In a nutshell the brief was to develop a brand that would achieve differentiation in the crowded beer market. What would it be called, who would they target, where would it be sold and where would they pitch it as far as price? They were split into teams (‘master brewers’) of two and had 15 minutes to share their thinking with us.

The big day.

Pitch day was yesterday and I think I’m right in saying that everyone, not least the panel, had a really enjoyable day, with a few lessons learnt. Sure, there were a few late nights and it came ‘at just so the wrong time’, but as we all know this is part of real life pitching. And as with real life pitching there was an upbeat, post pitch mood and a few beers had.

The panel consisted of myself, my learned colleagues Tim Scorer and Emma Jarvis and two old battle hardened ad lag friends of mine and now friends of Hive, Matthew Howells and Dom Lyon. Now I’ve spent many an enjoyable afternoon in pubs with Matthew and Dom, but never have I judged anything with them, with maybe the exception of the local talent.

In fact it wasn’t overly different, just that the talent took on a different form (ideas, although it is true to say some had ‘legs’ and could probably go the distance), but didn’t cost an arm and a leg (what is it with bloody legs) in buying them drinks all night and didn’t leg it afterwards (struggling with my third leg analogy!).

Over legs and back on form.

So we had 5 teams presenting to us in the upstairs room of The Blue Post Pub. There were thrills, spills (literally – poor Helen managed to soak herself in beer that had been intended as a taste test) and some ideas with a difference.

We, the panel, scored them on presentation (i.e. delivery), product idea and strategic argument – to a set criteria including market context, defining the need state, critical discussion points, strategic recommendations and generally challenging conventional thinking and reaching breakthrough ideas.

Breakthrough ideas versus broken glasses.

Overall the quality was fantastic – a real pleasure to observe.

We had fantastic innovative ideas – such as self-chilling beer – which would no doubt bring yet more peace and utter harmony to our tree-hugging festival going friends.

We had fantastic names such as ‘Bucking Fear’ a real alternative for penniless students and ‘Cavalry – you know when it’s time’, a combination of beer and guarana – the healthy option tackling, drinkers dip and maybe even brewers droop.

Some very clear cut targeting with ‘ETE’ and a female target, in this traditionally male market. The female audience was also embraced with AIG – the Goddess of Health – a sophisticated and conscientious alternative to vino collapso.

Learning.

It’s fair to say that there was learning on both sides of the room.

From the judging point of view it was great to see how much effort had been put in. Pitch theatre, as long as it’s relevant, really does help in dramatising ideas and if there are a myriad of agencies pitching no doubt helps stand-out. Also, the fact that no presentations were delivered via powerpoint did mean there was nowhere to run, nowhere to hide – ‘face to camera’ type scenario.

From the pitchers point of view I hope they walked away proud of their efforts and hopefully with a few leanings on how they may have done it differently – it’s only through trial and error than we can up our game.

Many thanks to Matthew and Dom for their excellent feedback to the teams. Well done to Clare and Matt for their winning pitch – ‘Cavalry – you know when it’s time’. They are now the official agency brewers and will be making their beer for real – soon to become our agency beer of choice.

Next time you’re passing feel free to drop in for a jar.

This is the acoustic version of an article that appeared in this months Pharmaceutical Market Europe (Ootober 2011) magazine that I was lucky enough to be asked to write. Thanks to Linda and the team at PME for the request and their intelligent editing.

The route to audience, their community of relationships and the purity of our crystal clear, brainstormed messages is under threat. We are midst a revolution, a chance to throw it all in the air and start again. This is a Darwinian moment; those that are adapting fastest will top-trump the dinosaurs. Our ability to do new stuff is now a competitive advantage not a dangerous countercultural diversion. It’s the Wild West all over again, except with worse shoes.

Why idea?

The point of having an idea in communication is straightforward. Ideas are bread and butter to marketers. They seek to be different, striving to connect a product with a defined audience. Find a point of difference, make it come to life and get it delivered to an audience that stands some chance of impacting your bottom line.

Secret ad men

In the days of old, lunches lasted until way past 2.30pm, golf was cool, procurement focused on toilet rolls and agencies had loads of sex. This approach was fine. Ads were king. They ruled. Despite the environment changing the ad as first port of call for ideation has proved a tough, tenacious little sucker to bump off. Despite this tactic proving incredible restricting when looking for broader ideas.

It’s a shame to say that secret ad men still surround us. We still see ‘the ad as the primary brand communication’ touted all over the place. For some it’s an attitude that’s retarding our progress as communicators and as plan makers. We have moved on. Those consumer-focusing guys who piled into healthcare a while ago seem to have ignored the changes that have occurred to their old manor. TV is midst decline and that poster off the M4 has been augmented by permission based and experiential disciplines; by a channel mix that looks nothing like it did 10 years ago.

Not dead just suffering

I don’t want to consider this the death of the ad. I think it’s in manageable decline rather than on the floor choking. History tells us media don’t die, they just become increasingly unloved. After all, we do still carve words into stone, 1000 years after it was our dominant media. But as soon as we considered the requirements of the marketing mix more than the double page spread the end started. Those early days, when marketers, sought integrated campaigns and assessed them by whether all shapes and sizes of tactics spread out on a meeting room table matched or not, make us smile now. Was it all really about 4 key messages and a frequency calculation?

The beginning of the end

The beginning of the end saw agencies strive to find new terminology to cope with the changes. The birth of the horrific word; adcept, summed it up. A sticking plaster over the cracks in the idea generation landscape, a way of getting ad focused teams to come up with bigger ideas than the media booked was capable of holding. Without spilling the beans that their ‘precious’ is looking a bit sickly as the dominant tactic.

Stretch required

Perhaps our world doesn’t need another tweeting digital bore. But the proliferation of channels have done their bit to jump start evolution. One could argue that the evolution of direct mail, or sales forces could have contributed as much to this decline as digital. The ad man didn’t really grasp the requirement for the brand to be pushed into these spaces in a way that it could really work.  Why? Because what makes a great ad – doesn’t often make a good media neutral idea. The interaction that these channels require and the opportunity that they have is vastly different to a 4 second A4 connection required in the BMJ. So why use your lowest common denominator tactic to develop you idea?

It strikes me that to accuse digital of being the cause of this evolution is a bit naïve. Selling has continued to evolve at a startling pace taking in its stride the bicycle, penny post and TV. Digital although arguably more intangible, and certainly fast is not going to change the fundamental way people connect with brands. Humanity is the rate-limiting step. The need and ability to form relationships is cultural and hardwired. The way audiences assimilate attributes, experience and value remains. You could argue that brand strategy has finally caught up with humanity?

The rise of experience transparency

What digital has changed is the control we have as marketers over our messages. We are no longer the only ringmasters. Every customer we have has a platform to communicate their experience, they, are closer and more vocal to other prospective customers.  Consequently we better get our brands anchored in something more than abstract positioning. Ideally anchored in a defined idea, encompassing a need that can be supported and championed by the audience. If our views on the product and the audiences don’t match then it’s going to die. Regardless of the cunning uniqueness of the positioning.

They’re for the journey

To thrive we need to be bothered about our customers not just at point of decision but across a broader space. This means our idea has to work beyond the moment of customer acquisition. It’s not just about a tipping point. We need to make sure that the wider customer experience is known to us. If additional needs exist, we need to see them as service opportunities. Consider them part of our product offer lest they become the low point of our customer’s product experience.

Change the people, or change the people

Thankfully, most of the adcept touters have fallen by the wayside. A new type of creative has emerged – the integrated conceptualiser. Not just an ad award hungry beast but also someone who is as passionate about every opportunity along the customer’s journey. One that knows the ins and outs of channels, how each works and what elements of the story is best delivered in each. These guys are dead easy to spot. They don’t need to draw an A4 box on their pad before conceptualising. The idea is conceptual, not confined to a given media space.

Idea planning

To cope with this change, new forms of idea planning have sprung up. New models force us to consider ideas as an adhesive wrapper for our uniqueness and supporting messages. With this have come some of the most exciting aspects of strategic development. The onus has been placed on marketers to consider their product story, the channels available to them, and deliver it. For products with a package of differentiation rather than one clear superiority this is a huge advantage. We can tell more complex stories and as long as they are based on real need not conceptual space available all is well. Models that look at splitting the story, and delivering it the audience in chunks across the channels are exciting us hugely. And its getting to the stage where you can quite easily see a time where the complete brand story exists only in two places; in marketing and in the mind of the customer. In between it’s fragmented and efficiently distributed by the best channels available. The level of planning is adding a further dimension to brand strategy where implementation and strategy are blending. Creating real challenges for those that consider 4 key messages delivered 4 times to be the best guarantee of behavioural change and early adoption, and really messing up a world where ads come first then your tactical plan.

How we cope with the changes is the next big question.  If you want to embrace these exciting times, like any moment midst change, it’s best to find a partner who is comfortable to tell you that all the answers are out there, but not yet in our grasp. Work towards a real connecting story, ways of delivering it efficiently and be comfortable with informed risk.

Tim is one of the founding partners of Elf, a group of innovative healthcare agencies. Including Hive, Ebee and Pollen that launches in September. Tim blogs regularly at hivehealth.com spend most of his time at Hive partnering a pretty awesomely progressive set of client’s. Any enthusiasm for this article or offers of work should be sent to tim.scorer@hivehealth.com, corrections or points of difference can be made direct by email to ian.busby@hivehealth.com or in person to Jas Hummel.

Last night saw Mike and the delights of www.findwine.co.uk come and visit. Every month or so we have an entrepreneur in for a session on hunches, business strategy and decision making. We kick off with a presentation on proposition, model and plans, and follow  with us posing loads of questions.

These are fascinating sessions that we all get loads from. Delving into Findwine.co.uk’s price/style simplification concept, built on insights gained during the time Mike spent in the retail wine trade. Their plans to grow and expand into new areas through strategic partnerships, and international ventures proved a great opportunity for us to discuss, brands, ideas, and growth.

We were joined by more of the agency, when Mike stayed on for an evening helping us choose the wine for Hive over the next 12 months. We covering 3 styles of sparkling, white and red. The naive intention was to have a civilised evening, but what resulted was about 18 glasses of wine each and 10 of us seeing the night off in Hix for Oyster Ale galore. Our blurred choices for 2011 are;

• For mid day effervescence - NV Giacoma Montresor Rose Royal Spumante Brut Pinot noir (Rich toasty aromas of bread, mingle with flower blossom, ripe apples and luscious cherries. Elegant and balanced palate, with some complexity. Jas; “tastes like Sherbet dip dabs”)
• For more celebratory events that require Krug like refined bubbles - Zuccardi Alma 4 Chardonnay (Golden, rich well rounded & yeasty with citrus & biscuity notes & a lovely creamy finish. Jas; “tastes like custard”)
• For white with attitude – 2009, Some Young Punks Monsters Attacked Riesling  (An absolutely sublime Clare Riesling, crisp and limey with a dollop of residule sugar for easy drinking. Anna; “tastes like something I used to drink in the park – in a good way”)
• For late night red – 2008 Cervoles from Costers Del Segre in Spain (a velvety, rich delight, filling the mouth with berries and summer fruits. Morgaine; ” I don’t really like alcohol”)

A lovely evening and huge thanks to Mike for opening up his mind for the entrepreneurs in the flesh session and for opening up the bottles and guiding us so amusingly for the remainder of the evening.

Needless to say we could recommend Mike and Findwines enough if you fancy brilliant, delicious and interesting wines, delivered with simplicity.