In the Service Design reference book, This is Service Design Thinking, 5 principles are identified:

• User centered: Services should be experienced through the customer’s eye.
• Co-creative: All stakeholders should be included in the service design process
• Sequencing: The service should be visualized as a sequence of interrelated actions.
• Evidencing: Intangible services should be visualized in terms of physical artifacts.
• Holistic: The entire environment of a service should be considered.

Isn’t that what the business world has been seeking for years?

Yes it is.

And it’s a race to the top with disruptive innovations to be expected, even if not seen, as the design will go on behind closed doors in organisations (such as Sabio).

And only new clients will know the full breadth of user centred, co-creative, sequenced, evidenced holistic service deployment that results.

From my experience, Service Design based Marketing is the crest of the wave for customer experience management and competitive differential development.

In a nutshell:

It’s good for business because it’s really good for customers.

Check out this Service Design Tools repository.

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And they tend to get in the way of quality marketing and advertising.

Just take a listen to David Ogilvy in this video if you don’t already know the debate between high graphic brand advertising and long copy direct response marketing.

The philosophy I adhere to, is that design (‘how it looks’) is far LESS important than what an advert says (the words).

Take for instance the example of a thirsty man in the desert.

Is it necessary to advertise a bottle of water with high graphic images demonstrating the thirst quenching effectiveness of said water based product?

No.

All that’s necessary is a visible sign that says:

‘Get Water Here’

Visual Marketing seeks to deploy visuals in a way that appropriately supports the relevant communication, does not distract, does not necessarily entertain, and most certainly does not lose the message within its creative waste (a few TV adverts of coloured balls bouncing around town supposedly advertising quality colour TVs comes to mind).

Visual Marketing seeks to hone the viewers attention precisely on the message, to emphasise the message, and let the message speak for itself.

Cartoons in Marketing

Drawing Attention by Stu Heinecke is an excellent introduction to the application of cartoons to marketing.

Caption could be: “[Firstname], you’re the friendliest competitor I’ve ever known. Thanks so much for the new chair!” 

There is huge potential for the use of cartoon style visuals in marketing, although as Stu Heinecke explains, it really has to be done right or else we fall into the traps as so poignantly identified previously by David Ogilvy.

But for digital media, we can even move one step further with…

Animation in Marketing

I really like the attention grabbing power of cartoon animations with overlay narrative, like this:

There’s something mesmerising about this technique.

And it’s actually not complicated to duplicate. Use a big enough white canvas, fix a camcorder looking down, prepare your presentation and then just draw it out whilst recording on video. Then, record the voice over and using video software, speed up the animation to match the voice over. Ok, it’s kinda complicated… but any digital marketing person could figure it out. Or outsource it.

The point is, if the message really is the right message, then visuals can help emphasise them, or at least draw attention to them, as visual marketing through cartoons and animation has enough novelty factor that it can help grab attention.

BUT, again, the message absolutely must be the right message. That’s where market insight and direct response copywriting comes in.

Learn to Draw

I’ve set myself the ambition of learning to draw. Betty Edwards comes recommended.

I’ll let you know how I’m getting on in due course.

This image comes from a 50 minute video on story telling in user experience. I can’t find the video and it wasn’t so great anyway, but this diagram gives useful insight.

Click to see it in full.

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Peter says:

“I’m not saying we don’t have our set of problems — climate crisis, species extinction, water and energy shortage — we surely do. [But] ultimately we knock them down.”

And in another of Peter’s TED Talks:

“The difficulty is there needs to be a real market place to drive the investment.”

“The most critical tool for solving Humanity’s Grand Challenges… it isn’t technology, it isn’t money. It’s only one thing… The committed, passion of the human mind.”

http://www.diamandis.com/

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Technology

• The Singularity Summit
• Global Future 2045 (Russian Mogul Plans to Plant Our Brains in Robots and Keep Them Alive Forever)

Personal Evolution and Insider Networking

• Global Information Network (highly recommended)

Political / Social Structure

• Twelve Visions Party (one to watch)
• Neothink Society (may seem quirky but the insights are revolutionary)

Globalization

• Peter Diamandis on rising global abundance

More to come…

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[The marketing concept] introduces the marketing person at the beginning rather than at the end of the production cycle and integrates marketing into each phase of the business.

Thus, marketing, through its studies and research will establish for the engineer, the design and manufacturing person, what the customer wants in a given product, what price he or she is willing to pay, and where and when it will be wanted.

Marketing will have authority in product planning, production scheduling, and inventory control, as well as sales, distribution, and servicing of the product. (1952, 21)

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GavrielShaw.com will now cover more of a professional angle, with eyes on marketing, business, globalisation and strategic thinking.

For the sites previous content plus everything new for Lifestyle Design, Manifestation and Global Awakening (outside of the ‘professional’ boundaries), visit Success-Matrix.com.

In this excellent book, Michael Robert, originator of the phrase ‘strategic thinking’ lays out example after example of how companies have actually implemented strategy for great success.

Here are some notes.

A key impediment of success is inability to distinguish strategy from operations.

Key difference between winners and losers is the ability to think strategically.

Operations is not Strategy

Mooney said “At first everybody thinks they understand strategy, yet they confuse operations and the vision”

Increasing efficiency for how a company currently does things is operational and does not help determine what it wants to become in the future.

Operational effectiveness / efficiency is necessary, but not sufficient for strategic success.

Michael says “Many executives associate strategic thinking with long-term planning and consider operational planning as short-term. Our work indicates that nighty type of thinking is time-related”

Strategic Process

The strategic thinking process determines what an organisation should look like in the future. Strategic planning systems help decide how to get there. (Theory of Constraints calls this Strategy vs Tactics.)

According to Michael Robert, strategy must come from the top (CEO Vision) and come down. Not bottom up.

The strategic thinking process is qualitative, not based on current quantitative performance.

Profit is the result of strategy, not its objective.

On Leadership

Jack Welch, former CEO OF GE explains leadership;

A leader is someone who can develop a vision of what he or she wants their business their unit, their activity to do and be. Somebody who is able to articulate to the entire unit what the unit is and gain through a sharing of the discussion listening and talking j- an acceptance of that vision. And then can relatnelessly drive implementation of that vision to a successful conclusion.

On Mission Statements Dilbert said “A mission statement is defined as ‘a long, awkward sentence that demonstrate4s mngemnt’w inability to think clearly’, e.g. We enhance stock holder value through strategic business initiatives by empowered employees working in new team paradigms.

The most important element of thinking strategically is a concept called ‘driving force’ or strategic drive.

How to construct a meaningful business concept

The first sentence must clearly describe the driving force of the organisation. Isolate that specific component that gives a distinctive advantage.

Second, delineate the line of demarcation between the nature of the products, customers, markets segments, and geographic markets that the driving force lends itself to and those to which it does not.

Finally, reflect future intent and present condition.

Competition

A distinctive strategy that makes the competition irrelevant. Sometimes, competition is irrelevant.

To identify a competitors strategy needs 2 elements. Competitive driving force and the business concept they are practicing.

Imitation strategy is weak. Attack competitors strengths and turn their strengths into market weaknesses (just as Subaru did to Volvo by saying ‘if you want an accident, get a Volvo, if you want to avoid accidents, get a Subaru).

Never compete against the market leaders established rules.

Neutralize the competitors strategy by attacking the competitors very reasons for existence. This is the Vince Lombardi school of management. He had teams spend the first 6 plays of the game attacking the very strengths of the competing teams. If they could crack that, they had the game won.

General Sun Tzu said

‘what is of supreme importance in war is to attack the enemy’s strategy’.

The best way is to change the rules of play within the market. TOC calls this a Mafia Offer. An offer the market can not refuse.

One CEO identified “I’m not interested in spending my money to make my competitors stronger”. Because attacking their weaknesses encouraged / motivates them to strengthen them.

Critical Issues

Critical issues are the bridge to the strategic profile of the future and have 4 key areas: structure, systems/processes, skills/competences, and compensation.

Real-Business Insight

Whilst pinpointing principles and highlighting false assumptions from academics and many other so-called strategic consultants, Michael Robert’s book Strategy Pure and Simple is recommended for anyone who wants or needs to consider business strategy at the highest levels.

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