Project Background

There are approxmiately 30,000 women working as prostitutes in The Netherlands, at least 70% of them are foreigners and many are victims of human trafficking.

Not For Sale is piloting a social enterprise project to provide these women with the opportunity to leave prostitution by giving them jobs and employable skills. The catering project, in Amsterdam’s Red Light District, will employ survivors of exploitation as chefs to prepare meals for delivery to other women working in the brothels.

In addition, Not For Sale will scale their operations to pilot commercial sales of the soups and bread in European superstores.

The brief

Not For Sale put out an open-call for agencies and individuals to create a brand identity for the catering venture and products. Uffindell’s was the winning submission.

The deliverable

We considered what this environment should mean to the women who are working there: a place of safety, a place where they are cared for and listened to, and where they can learn and feel empowered. For us, it was clear, this place should be called Home.

Home, a safe environment which offers security and refuge, a place of support. It represents a place for opportunity for a better future.

Home, is an internationally recognised word so there
is no need for translation.

The execution of the name was clear, simple and strong and used a warm red and orange colour palette and bold typeface.

The sheltering symbol above the ‘o’ in ‘home’ was added to visually signify safety and protection while also giving the brand an international look. This symbol became a powerful graphic which we used across the brand identity.

We named the retail products’ brand ‘Home Kitchen’ and individual products, ‘Home Soup’ and ‘Home Bread’, clearly linking them to the catering venture. The back of the packaging is also used to tell the story of the project and the women involved.

As well as being an extension of the catering venture brand, the words ‘Home’ and ‘Kitchen’ invoke images of wholesome, freshly-prepared food, which we reinforced with a picnic/ packed-lunch packaging design.

In our annual BrandLove survey of 2,000 people, we asked them to rate the quality of experience they have with the financial services companies they use. The research team then grouped answers against 3 factors – passion, intimacy and commitment – based on the work of noted US professor, R.J. Sternberg who examined human relationships to probe the secrets of long-term loyalty and love.

The 2012 Index will be published late February 2012. For more information please contact us.

25 years later the song could have been written for the way the media, many politicians and even businesses portray things today. But for all the current headlines of austerity, it’s time for talking about prosperity.

The modern world – even the last 25 years – has been shaped by some incredible innovations, individual determination and a genuine desire for progress. But success has always been defined in economic terms, not necessarily humanistic. When there is money to be made, there is often little time for anything else.
When change happens, be it political, economic, social or technological, it now happens faster than ever. It’s taking place with scant regard for different generations but influences our attitudes and motivations, leading us to think differently about the way things are and the way they could be. The end of the world as we know it today, perhaps?

So, what could businesses now think differently about to be relevant to future generations?

Money is not the motivator it once was, even for Gen X. The industrial revolution-esque work styles employed by many firms feel alien to Gen Y. And who knows what Gen Z will deem important. But promoting new measures of success that not only include wealth and economic growth but also personal freedom, social capital and quality of life has a positive impact on our overall wellbeing.

It’s called prosperity.

Growth and job creation are still vitally important. And liberal ideas may be a luxury for some time. But getting businesses to give greater emphasis to a few things other than money won’t be the end of the world.

And I’d feel fine with that.

The purpose is not only a compass to navigate by but is also the glue that binds organisations together internally. Research carried out by CIPD shows that a sense of purpose leads employees to feel motivated and committed to the organisation. The research goes on to say that employees in organisations with a strong sense of shared purpose find their work to be absorbing and meaningful and they are willing to expend discretionary effort. They are also more satisfied with their pay and want to stay with the organisation.

Google is a great example of an organisation that has a purpose bigger than business, The integrating force embedded in all Google employees is the sense that their work is ‘helping to shape the future of human communication’. This is much more compelling than the goal of making profit or meeting financial targets.

In this changing world, communicators and leaders should be actively developing shared purpose across their organisations and mobilising people’s energy towards it. It will be the organisations that galvanise stakeholders by connecting them with a shared purpose that will be successful in the future.

The adaptive capacity in most companies is in short supply. Companies invest significant money in creating new visions, business strategies and business models but fail to sense the deep shift in the society in which they operate. Many are not in tune with the conscious mind -sets of their customers and have failed to grasp this opportunity to align business with reality.

Take the Financial services sector. Neither the banks not the government have taken this opportunity to fundamentally ‘change the face of banking’. No one has stepped up to the plate and asserted new values, principles or approaches to a system that is flawed and a set of institutions that are our of step with their customers.

Businesses need to recognise they have the power to make the changes needed to create a more sustainable, fulfilling and prosperous environment for us all and it can only start from within. Large organisations are like tanker ships they set of in one direction and are hard to turn around or to set sail in a different direction. Starting with a reset of the dial on the core attributes and purpose of a company could begin to make the changes.

The adaptive company of the future will be the successful company of the future. The question is not can they adapt, but more importantly, do they want to?

But what is this paradigm shift and what are its implications?

Historically, business has been preoccupied with two things – profit and growth – often at the expense of anything (or anyone) else. But in the current economic climate this is proving more difficult as people are not spending as much on the things they provide.
Now, they (and Governments) are panicking because this isn’t happening.

Consumers (in other words people like you and I) are beginning to reject the need for more stuff. We’re recognising that enough can be enough and the value systems that brought us here need to change. The modern world has been born out of some incredible innovations, individual determination and a collective desire for progress. But progress has always been defined in economic terms, not humanistic. Where there was money, there was often little meaning.
And this is the paradigm shift.

They are systematically failing to connect with people on any level. But it’s more than simply being out of touch. It’s about meaning, relevance and authenticity.

Running focus groups may give some clues but the answers lie within these organisations themselves. As employee engagement continues to drop, net promoter scores fall and sales slow the common thread running through these results is one of meaning. Or lack of it.

As we move from the Piscean Age whose mantra was ‘I believe therefore I will experience” to the Aquarian age whose mantra is ‘I experience therefore I believe’, these organisations will have to recognise that people require them to be worthy of making money. And any business that refuses to acknowledge this paradigm shift will soon become a fish out of water.

For me, it’s a verb that’s always had a slight air of foreboding. OK, perhaps not quite like the United States Marine Corps where “Discipline is the instant willingness and obedience to all orders, respect for authority, self reliance and teamwork. The ability to do the right thing even when no one is watching or suffer the consequences of guilt which produces pain in our bodies, through pain comes discipline” but enough to feel slightly uneasy, at least.

I’ve long believed that people working with brands should really understand them, not simply administer them. Successful, sustainable brands cannot exist by formula. People who work with brands should understand the emotion inherent within them. Have a sense of the purpose and belief that drives a business. And see the inspiration behind the strategy.

Think of it like a song. You’re familiar with the tune, the lyrics and the artist but you don’t know anything of the story behind that composition. What was its inspiration, the experience of creation, the changes applied, the lessons learned? How different would it sound if you knew all this? It’s insight that’s impossible to get from the sheet music alone.

In a world taking a long, hard look at itself for a renewed sense of identity I believe companies should cultivate people and brands that truly, madly, deeply understand and respect their different environments. Sure, embrace an approach that protects the brand’s equity and investment but ultimately create a new type of brand practitioner.

One that can be proud to call what they do a discipline.

But when change happens, it now happens fast – be it social, political, economic and especially technological. Customers embrace these changes and they expect companies to keep up with them. Why wouldn’t they?

They often find themselves ‘behind the curve’. Strategy (and by implication the corporate mindset) needs to be adaptable and constantly in tune with the outside world. But it requires organisations to strengthen their adaptive capacity, generating greater awareness and understanding of (their place in) the external environment. It increases their ability to respond to changes in the environment, learn from them and ultimately become stronger.

Peter Blom, CEO and chairman of Triodos Bank is one person thinking differently about how businesses should evolve. Citing the way business schools teach students in preparation for the business world is out of sync with what needs to change.

“Today, we require a different sort of thinking, a systems thinking – or you could call it organic, or holistic thinking. It’s all about interconnections. We have to go beyond the linear thinking.”

So, what’s different about a living strategy?

You share your business strategy with people, being clear about your vision, your sense of purpose and where you are going (and where you won’t). You will only get there if your people understand.

It recognises that knowledge is powerful – empowering even – with multiple benefits across the organisation and avoids strategy and its execution becoming disconnected. This can in turn create more efficient workflows and encourage ‘dynamic corporate stewardship’ – where everyone takes responsibility – at all levels of the company.

A living strategy makes information readily available for the people who can use it most effectively. It builds in risk as an integral part of the decision making process, timely questions naturally born from a greater understanding the external environment, the vision, values and purpose of the company add value and lead to a greater competitive advantage.

By supporting a culture where people’s individual values are in sync with those of the organisation people trust each other to act and act responsibly without the fear of failure.

Adopting a living strategy really can turn change into an opportunity, not a threat.

Now… how soon is now?

Perhaps we can stop calling it chaos theory now. The wider, business eco-system has never felt so present or so potent. So alive.

So it is hard (or at least unwise) to continue to believe that when things go well, it is all down to their strong, bold leadership. We have reached the end of the era of the Great Captains – imperious and cold in their judgments, aloof and unquestioned in their high offices. We will no longer be dazzled by them; we are all paying much closer attention now. Leadership will not have permission to be cavalier with what they have inherited. They will be expected to grow the business responsibly. They will be measured by the extent to which they leave behind them a healthy, functioning organism.

In our hearts we all know this – and from the conversations we have had with our clients, most of us welcome it.

The politicians are now addressing this through an idea of Responsible Capitalism. But what does that mean? Fairness? Pay caps? For whom? And what issues will it address apart from a hysterical media headlines?

Yes, there is an issue in executive pay and reward but I believe that today’s environment now demands a more sophisticated perspective – a responsibility to consider the company’s balance with the broader social system and ultimately its long-term suitability to its environment.

The phrase, we’re all in this together has never been more apt.

Some industries known for consistently rewarding loyalty have been noted in recent research from Mintel Oxygen. They found that customers felt supermarkets were the best industry in rewarding customer loyalty, with 72% of those questioned saying they felt their loyalty was rewarded with financial or service rewards. In second place came mobile phone providers. However, both supermarkets and mobile phone providers don’t actually have loyal customers with the overwhelming majority of shoppers not limiting themselves to a single store or chain and two fifths of customers having switched mobile providers within the last two years.

If rewards are not enough to encourage loyal behaviour, what will motivate a customer to be loyal to your brand?

A San Francisco-based start-up called Loyal3 is pioneering the idea of customer stock ownership plans using social networking. They have based the idea on research that shows “customers who own a company’s stock spend 54% more on that company’s goods than average customers.”

If enabling your customers to invest in your business is a key driver of loyalty, does it have to be a financial investment? Not at all. The success of The People’s Supermarket based in London is one such example. Based on a dedicated system of volunteers, most of who pay for the privilege, they thrive on allowing members to contribute to the success of a shared vision and belief. Another example is the Butcher’s Arms in the Cumbrian village of Crosby Ravensworth, where for £250 you can become a co-owner of the local pub and contribute to the success of the business.

Customers may appreciate the two-way relationship of give and take that most loyalty programs are based on, but it won’t ensure loyal behaviour. What these examples show is the binding strength of investing in shared visions and goals. If participation builds loyalty, then the hard part is letting consumers in to be genuinely involved. Once there, they are likely to stick around.