Wildfire branding is all about smart marketing and non-traditional thinking. Marketers have to show something, they shouldn’t just talk about it. This was the thesis of Michelle Kristula Green, president of Leo Burnett Worldwide’s Asia Pacific region and Arc Worldwide at the recently held 20th Philippine Advertising Congress in Subic.
Green’s talk was both entertaining and in-depth and packed with fresh, brave and innovative ideas. She shared the experiences of Wildfire thinkers like Cardbury and Facebook, which sustained their presence using an integration of wildfire thinking and tools. “Wildfire brands are driven by technology and the value of human connection more than ever before. They sear themselves into the public consciousness due to service, trust, and community — rather than traditional advertising,” Green stated.
Green believes that risk taking and creative intuition are among the keys to business success. “Agencies are reminded to act less like a ‘jealous brand guardian’ and instead assume the role of intellectual property magnate,” she underscored.
To create wildfire brands, Green shared these tips for marketers who should be taking more risks in today’s new media world:
• Virals must be “rewatchable” and reasonable. To ensure your viral communication spreads like wildfire, remember, “rewatchability” is key, but the “sendability” factor must be even greater. Content is always king and can circumvent the need for a huge media spend.
• Advertisers: relinquish control. Citizen media and consumer-generated content are here to stay, so marketers must learn to let go of the control they think they have over their brand in the open marketplaces of ideas.
• Diversify your portfolio. Brands must diversify beyond the 30-second spot to tell longer stories and engage on deeper levels. If you find the right outlet for your brand, the payoff is huge.
• Own the screen, every screen. With the proliferation of portable screens, there are huge opportunities for marketers in this arena.
• Execute to perfection. Brilliant ambient ideas prove there are no boundaries in this technologically enabled world where word-of-mouth and experiential engagements are powerful tools.
• It’s all about ideas, as usual. The best, integrated campaigns show the power and the business value of creativity, unrestrained by media. Your core strategic insight must work across a range of platforms, so make damn sure it’s a good one. Big ideas rooted in smart strategic thinking cross all channels, continents and cultures and weave themselves into the social fabric.
• There is ROI in being courageous. “New” marketing works, and it’s the marketers who are willing to play in this new space that will see results and not get burned.
Gaiman As Dreamweaver
Most novelists do not want to do screenplays in the same way most comic writers avoid doing novels. After all, it is rare for fictionists to also be gifted jacks-of-all-writing.
In the United States, however, a man who is very passionate about his craft has learned how to foxtrot from one writing genre to another. Neil Gaiman, in his inspirational talk at the 20th PAC shared how he broke barriers and gave in to his own whims of producing top-caliber written masterpieces for different audiences. “Imagination is key in the creative process,” Gaiman says. “It’s like a mirror showing the world in different angles. It can also hide, distort and vanish things. Contrary to the typical notion, it is not special, magical, nor is it only for the blessed.”
Impressed with the incredible creativity of Filipinos, Gaiman nixes the notion of the Philippines as a backwater of creativity, since many great American comic books were drawn by Filipinos: Alex Nino, the late Alfredo Alcala, Nestor Redondo and Tony de Zuniga.
Born in England, Gaiman lauds the potential of young Filipino artists and writers, and adds that the country has the “coolest folklores in the world. Someone should herald to the world such literary gems. All it takes is to cater to international taste and move towards global acceptance,” he urges, and jestingly warns, “If you guys won’t do it, I will.” He encourages Pinoy creatives to “walk towards your mountain and stay the course. Resist any temptation to walk away, and you will get there.”
Here is more Gaiman-speak:
• See things for the first time. Sometimes you look at something 999 times, and think nothing of it. Then, on the thousandth time, you will suddenly see it for the very first time. When this happens, ponder and even question the very idea of that object.
• Daydream and ask what if? Making stuff up leads to inventing, creating and innovating, not just in science fiction but also in companies like Google, Honda and Microsoft. After all, everything that exists now was imagined first.
• Everyone can conceive great ideas. Creativity is not limited to the gifted. All of us daydream, but like writers, keep track of when and where your mind drifts.
• An idea doesn’t have to be a plot notion, just a place to begin creating. Sometimes it’s a person, a place or an image. Often, ideas come from two things that have never come together before.
• Escapism is good. Go to places you’ve never been before. Breathe new air. Gain new skills and new points of view. When you return to reality, you may realize it’s no longer the same place you left, because you see it through new eyes.
Today, Gaiman’s novels have become must-haves among fantasy fanatics. His playful and uncanny style made it possible for him to reach out to varying age brackets and inch his way into the hearts and minds of different cultures.
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E-mail bong@vasia.com or bong_osorio@abs-cbn.com for comments, questions and suggestions. Thank you for communicating.