There’s exciting stuff going on with my Vitamin Water.

Allow me to set the scene: Seattle’s annual Capitol Hill Block Party showcases over 60 indie bands. It’s a summer weekend that turns a downtown neighborhood into a huge party with 3 stages of music, big crowds, and lots of sun.

Vitamin Water went to the CHBP, but they didn’t pass out free samples from the back of a van as expected.  Instead they rented a hip loft space and set up fans, bean bag chairs and a dance floor. A DJ spun tunes as cute bartenders served Vitamin Water cocktails. And of course…refrigerators were filled with as much free Vitamin Water as one could handle.

My friends and I had such a good time, we spent over 2 hours dancing, meeting people and taking glam shots in their photo booth—that’s us above cocktails in hand.  I appreciate that they created a distinct experience for us music fans by making sure everyone had a good time as a good party host should.

This is social branding at its best.  This company went to where their customers hang out and contributed what’s important to them. And this kind of understanding is the magic that creates a special camaraderie and drives more meaningful relationships with people.

Needless to say, we all went home with purses full of Vitamin Water excited for their next dance party.

- Bianca Abate

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For my hometown Red Sox, 86 years of Wait-Till-Next-Year ended in 2004 with the team’s first championship since 1918.  However, the Red Sox brand renaissance started long before three-plus million jammed the streets of Boston for that celebratory Rolling Rally.  In fact, Fenway Park hasn’t had an open seat since May 2003, a record streak currently standing at 551 consecutive sellouts. 

While a hundred years of brand history can’t be dismissed, much of the credit can be given to the fresh blood that bought the team from a family trust in 2002.  With a renewed focus on the customer (and organizational success on the field), the Red Sox have marketed themselves into a place in baseball – and business – history. 

Here are five lessons from Brand Red Sox you can use to hit your own branding home run:

LESSON 1:  Develop your brand around something you can control.

After 2004, experts were predicting the end of the Red Sox brand.  How could the ‘lovable losers’ ever overcome their greatest success?  How could the team replace the shared purpose that 86 years of losing had lent the fan base?

Simple – they built their brand around things they could control: history and tradition.  Some traditions are old (such as Friendly Fenway) and some are new (“Sweet Caroline” during the 8^th inning).  Today’s uniforms have been largely the same since 1933; ditto for Fenway’s unique shade of green.  These elements carry the weight of brand continuity regardless of who is playing (and whether or not they win).  The brand does not strive for relevancy; instead, it has defined what is relevant and what is not.

The lesson? Establish who you are as a brand and make that your own.  Just make sure that your associations are valued by your customers, are able to be owned over time and in the competitive marketplace, and are things you do well as a business.

LESSON 2:  Sell a customer experience.

Baseball is an emotional sell.  ‘America’s pastime’ has strong associations with a shared national history.  Consumers of baseball are not just looking for a winning team, they are looking for a story, a connection – and an experience.  Red Sox Nation (a team-sponsored fan club) was launched in 2004 and offers a selection of benefits including a ‘citizenship card’ and a variety of behind-the-scenes benefits.  But most importantly, it gives fans a deeper experience and a ‘card carrying’ identification with the brand.

Even if you sell emotionless widgets, you are still in the end dealing with customers who buy (or balk) on emotion and justify with their brain.  Examine your customer touchpoints for ways you can add and improve emotional experiences.  If, like the Red Sox, you have a subcontractor (their concessionaire is Aramark) remember that your customers don’t see that distinction.  If the beer’s warm, or the service’s rude, you’re still to blame.

LESSON 3:  “Yankees Suck!”

Other than the obvious lesson here, remember that competitive differentiation is important in every industry and that a little rivalry rarely hurts.

LESSON 4:  Make a commitment to yourselves and your customers.

Your brand is your promise to your customers.  What exactly is the level of service you provide?  Is your organization aligned and incented towards achieving these goals?

The Red Sox management team has succeeded in clearly identifying what they provide.  GM Theo Epstein has openly committed to building a team to win 95 games each year.  Similarly, new ownership quelled Bostonians’ fears shortly after taking over the team by committing to renovating Fenway Park rather than a tear-down-and-rebuild scheme that had been on the table.  Eight years later, Fenway is larger, cleaner, more accessible, and every bit as characteristic as it ever was (and is still the centerpiece of the brand).

LESSON 5: Have fun.

Beyond giving you a reason to get out of bed in the morning, bringing fun into your business will come through in your brand.  There are times to be serious, of course, but the more often you can say ‘Play Ball!’ with yourself, your customers, and your employees, the stronger and more resilient your business can become.  Be your brand – but be yourself as well.

–Dan Liska

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The brand that’s made me the happiest this year is Wolfgang’s Vault. I go there on a regular basis, often on Friday afternoons when I’m finishing up administrative tasks and need some ear candy. The more I listen, the more often I return. I’ve heard concerts by artists I wish I’d gone to and concerts from the same tours I saw “back in the day” by artists that hadn’t made it big yet. I started going to the site a couple of years ago to relive some great musical moments in my life—but now I’m getting much more.

I love that the Vault has branched out to newer artists and more recent concerts. Their A to Z list of performers is huge and inclusive, so I can experiment. There are artist interviews as well as concerts. There are lots of free downloads as well as ones you have to pay for. Plus concert listings in my area.

The website has improved steadily. It’s become increasingly easy to use and what Wolfgang’s Vault is adding, I’m enjoying. I must be in their target demographic—they’re hitting me in my soft spot and I love it!

What’s the brand lesson? Do one thing really well and build from there. Innovate around what you know and give your customers and fans an easy path to follow as you lead the way. If the substance is there and you demonstrate that you’re listening, you’ll keep your die-hards and win new ones.

Have a great 2010!

Beth Woolley

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Would having an online forum at this stage of our development (early-stage startup) provide any value add for users visiting our website?

We are just starting to push our new solution. What should we be talking about to start building a community?

The sooner you engage customers, the better. If you can engage prospects—even more better. Value add will occur if you referee an honest dialog about your product/solution—which includes incorporating feedback into product development and customer service, and calling that out via online communications. When customers experience that their opinions and needs result in actions, they experience you as a full participant in their community. This tends to make them stick with you—and tell others about you in their online and offline travels.

That said, how do you start building that community? Community-building online is as much about where as it is about what. Here’s a good, high-level article on the subject: http://mashable.com/2009/08/25/whole-foods/. It doesn’t matter how big or small your organization is, the key is to focus in on where your audience hangs out and add value to those conversations (whether it’s commenting on someone else’s blog or starting a Facebook page for your business). You can’t control a brand community but you can help shape it by delivering something of value to its members.

Anyone out there have some additional suggestions? Please comment.

And, we’re closing the survey at noon Wednesday, 9/2—so if you want to get your two cents in and have a chance to win that Flip video camera, take a few minutes to complete the quiz (scroll down a couple of entries and you’ll see the whole thing).

Beth Woolley

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• Keep your website content current and reflecting your brand
• Actively engage customers in ways that are meaningful to them
• Or, both

Which leads to this question posed by one of you:

• How can we get our customers and prospects more engaged on our blog and other social networks?

There’s no such thing as “build it and they will come.” Yes, first you build a website that gives visitors a true experience of your brand (through navigation, functionality, content and a visual look and feel that’s designed to meet your visitors’ reasons for coming to you in the first place). But the content is also important. It has to be meaningful, interactive, engaging and relevant (and somewhat fresh, so that they have a reason to visit more often than once). Content gives visitors a reason to believe that you are thinking through what’s most important to them.

Once you have your hub (your website) built and aligned with your brand, get out there and find, listen and engage in social networking. Just like you do for real-person encounters, research where your customers and influencers hang out online and start there. Join their community. Build trust. Say something interesting and drive them to your website or blog. If it is current, authentic and engaging that will inspire visitors to either join your blog conversation or mention you somewhere in their network. That’s how it works. It takes time, patience and a penchant for listening, but it pays off when you realize you are not just part of the conversation, but are the subject of conversation.

What are your thoughts? Do I make it sound too easy? What are the barriers you face in building your online presence?

If you haven’t taken the quiz yet, help keep the conversation going and give yourself a chance to win a Flip video camera all at the same time (just scroll down the page)…

Beth Woolley

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