Disruption Across The Brand and Equity Landscape
From Member Brian Rappaport, CEO, Quan
During a time where disruption is necessary, what brands do you think have successfully taken up the charge of disrupting the status quo?
I personally love what Babe Wines has done during the past few months between partnering with Bumble and offering free moving services to those who have broken up during quarantine (along with free wine) – and partnering with The Fat Jewish to create a mobile manicure glass truck for free “touchless” manicures. Smart, relevant, disruptive. AWAY Luggage & their scented wild postings (unobjectively) that were ground level & appealed to pets for the release of their pet carrier…smart, traditional yet super creative/disruptive.
As demand for equity in the D&I space increases, what can companies do to impact the industry and workspace long-term?
It really comes down to leadership – and rethinking your board. You can’t just claim you want change…you need to do it. Create opportunities inside your company to further educate employees and your company. Hire speakers, contribute to important certain social justice initiatives. Leverage your relationships on the media side to contribute your resources to a cause (or causes) from a pro bono standpoint.
What are some of the obstacles that advertisers/marketers will face when producing disruptive creative content?
What happens it if backfires? Negative press, citations, not being pulled off correctly. Will it be received correctly by your core/target consumer? Has it been done before – or thought of in the past, but never executed? What about timing, the right partner, the right space (or channel)? All important questions that weigh heavily when you’re considering disruption from the brand standpoint.
How do you start the uncomfortable conversations that disruption requires? What advice would you give to other budding disrupters?
Do you want press? Do you want buzz? Do you want to create that 1:1 connection between the brand & consumer? You can do that through traditional media, sure…a billboard, a TV commercial, a FP4C ad in the NYT – but how much of an impact will that have? Think to yourself “If I’m this brand’s core audience….if I’m who this brand wants to reach….how can they reach me best? What’s going to make me say, wow…they’re smart.” You can’t ever think “no shot that can be done” because odds are 9x out of 10…it can be, you just need to create that concept, or take something that could be ordinary/traditional and think about what pushes that idea outside the realm into the “first to market” world.