Emotion by Design - Book Summary

Dive into the art of emotional design and elevate your brand's reach.

Picture this: your business transitioning into a phenomenal brand - one valued at millions, recognized globally, and admired by countless individuals. Yet, as you dream about reaching such heights, a stark reality waits: an ocean of competition constantly trying to pull you down.

Welcome to the world of "Emotion by Design". In the fast-paced business landscape where standing out is no longer optional, Emotion by Design introduces an essential strategy—designing products and services that strike deep emotional chords within consumers. When emotion becomes your leading component, your brand takes flight towards enduring success.

Allow us to walk you through some insightful nuggets shared by author Greg Hoffman—a key contributor to the rise of Nike. Hoffman reveals the captivating blend of creativity and strategy that enabled him to establish profound, enduring connections with consumers worldwide.

Master the power of empathy and curiosity

As legendary Duke University basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski says, gaining an edge lies in the "vision advantage". It's the ability to perceive nuances, subtleties that most might miss, and use them to craft captivating narratives that stimulate emotions in your audience.

So, how do you cultivate this critical "vision advantage"? Two critical ingredients stand out: empathy and curiosity.

Empathy allows you to slip into the shoes of others, to perceive the world through their lenses. This heightened sensitivity to others' feelings, desires, worries, and latent needs, equips you with a fresh outlook — enabling you to weave a brand story that lays bare the brand's values and instigates paradigm-shifting changes.

Fostering empathy requires a diverse team. The more varied your team members' backgrounds, the wider your world view becomes. Hence, aim for inclusivity, welcoming underrepresented groups into your team. Their rich, unique life experiences can add vibrant colors to your brand and deepen your creativity.

An exemplar in harnessing empathy's power is Nike, through their "Equality" campaign. Launched at the 59th Annual Grammy Awards in 2017, months after the devastating shootings of Black Americans Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, the campaign marked Nike's bold stand against the enduring injustice faced by Black Americans. It featured a short film underscoring equality's importance — not only within the court's confines but across life's expanses. Aired globally, the film ignited a broader campaign for equality.

The second key to honing your "vision advantage" is curiosity. It uncovers your latent creativity, propelling you towards unexpected inspiration sources. Like a muscle requiring regular exercise, you must nurture curiosity to develop an explorer's mindset.

Three simple steps can put you on this path.

Firstly, maintain a visual journal. An archive of images capturing things that ignite your creativity. When something piques your interest, snap a photo and add it to your journal, making it your go-to source of inspiration.

Secondly, plan your journeys around three pivotal questions: Who to meet? What to see? Where to go? Whether it's a business or a personal trip, the goal is to absorb inspiration from your surroundings.

Lastly, share your moments of inspiration with your team. Your experiences and discoveries can spark creativity in your team members in ways you might never have anticipated. It also helps keep everyone in the loop, especially those who rarely venture outside the office.

At Nike, curiosity is kindled through unique explorations. Whether watching chefs at work in restaurants or observing other creatives in their element, they continuously draw inspiration from various creative professionals in their natural environments.

In a nutshell, leveraging the "vision advantage" can supercharge your team's creativity. With a dash of empathy and a sprinkle of curiosity, crafting narratives that deeply resonate with your audience becomes a breezy endeavor, setting your brand apart in the marketplace.

Dare to risk: The key to breakthroughs

Imagine trying to ride a wave without getting drenched. Sounds impossible, right? Success operates much the same way. It rarely comes knocking unless you dare to venture into the unknown, embracing calculated risks.

If you're a fledgling business, you're no stranger to the realm of risk and the need for fearless experimentation. It is often through these daring ventures that you can orchestrate industry-defining breakthroughs. So, during your business's infancy, you put on a brave face and leap into the void of uncertainty.

Sadly, many brands curb their daring spirits as soon as they achieve their initial goals. They retreat into the safety net of the status quo, focusing more on safeguarding their current wins instead of striving for more. That's a trap you'd rather avoid. As your business expands, you should foster a culture that celebrates risk-taking, for that's how you unearth newer and more effective ways of engaging and communicating with your customers.

Take Nike for instance. By 2014, it had already emerged as a towering giant in the sports industry, but it still had a mountain to scale: becoming the market leader in football. The 2014 World Cup presented the perfect opportunity to accomplish this feat. However, such an audacious goal demanded an equally audacious move. They needed to engage with their customers in an unprecedented way, and their usual campaigns wouldn't suffice. Hence, they veered off the trodden path and created a five-minute animated film titled "The Last Game".

"The Last Game" starred illustrious football players like Ronaldo Nazário, Wayne Rooney, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Zlatan Ibrahimović on a mission to salvage their beloved sport from impeccably skilled but risk-averse clones, the creations of an evil scientist.

Producing "The Last Game" was a gamble for Nike. It spanned over a year, the longest production time the brand had ever committed to. They exceeded the standard commercial runtime of five minutes, investing valuable airtime into a narrative that didn't directly promote any specific product. But in the end, Nike reaped the rewards of their risk. They emerged as the 2014 World Cup’s most-viewed brand, with "The Last Game" crowned the most shared video on Facebook.

This narrative serves as a testament to the adage that to scale the highest heights, one must dare to risk.

Carve out a distinctive brand identity

Imagine introducing yourself to someone new — you'd naturally reveal your true self, your values, your life's purpose. Doing so lays the groundwork for an authentic connection. This analogy holds true for businesses as well. To kindle an emotional bond with your customers, you need to unveil your brand's authentic self — its values and raison d'être. This underpins the importance of a well-crafted brand identity.

Your brand identity is like a fingerprint — unique, distinct, a testament to your brand's individuality. Its beating heart comprises visual elements such as your logo, color scheme, and typography, which collectively create a coherent, recognizable visual imprint associated with your brand.

While every visual element holds its importance, your logo deserves extra attention. Its design should be simple yet impactful, telling a captivating story at a single glance. It could reflect the technology underpinning your brand, or perhaps, feature your brand's initials. But beyond these artistic considerations, your logo should embody your brand's values and purpose. Devoid of this emotional resonance, your logo becomes merely a picture, devoid of meaning.

Your brand identity, especially what your brand espouses, should seep into every facet of your product presentation. Each creation from your brand should carry the echoes of its identity, triggering emotions in your audience. Take Michael Jordan’s renowned Wings poster, for instance. With Jordan's wingspan fully spread and accompanied by William Blake's inspiring quote, "No bird soars too high if he soars with his own wings," the poster encourages consumers to aim for the skies and nurture lofty dreams.

On a superficial glance, you might attribute Nike’s brand identity to its name and logo, discreetly nestled at the poster's bottom. But it extends far beyond that. The entire image, with its potent message, circles back to what Nike stands for — the belief that greatness is within everyone's grasp, not just athletes.

Your brand identity serves as a powerful instrument to mould perceptions, cultivate connections, and steer consumer behavior. Craft it thoughtfully.

Weaving tales that resonate: Make your brand unforgettable

A well-crafted tale doesn't merely inform — it stirs the soul, leaves an indelible imprint on our minds. The same philosophy should underpin the stories your brand spins. They must evoke an emotional response, tethering your audience to the brand, carving out a special place in their memories.

Each story you curate must be tethered to one mission — to unveil the values your brand stands for. The methods to narrate these stories are as varied as the colors of a rainbow. For instance, you might consider producing an engaging film, much like Nike's 'Find Your Greatness' campaign. Launched amid the 2012 London Olympics, the campaign included a film showcasing athletes from cities named London across the globe, reinforcing the message that greatness isn't the sole domain of the elites, but a potential in every corner of the world.

Music, especially timeless classics with a contemporary twist, is another emotionally charged storytelling medium. For the 2002 World Cup, Nike released a film depicting a clandestine football tournament. The soundtrack? None other than a groovy remix of Elvis Presley's "A Little Less Conversation" by JXL, a Dutch DJ.

Never limit your brand stories to conventional TV commercials. Embrace the limitless potential of emerging content platforms, expanding your audience reach and inviting them into your brand universe.

Nike's Kobe System campaign exemplifies this paradigm shift. Launched in early 2012 for the Nike Kobe IX, the campaign sought to present Kobe Bryant in a fresh light — not the steel-nerved athlete he was on court, but an unexpected humorous avatar. To achieve this, Nike stepped away from the beaten track of TV commercials, opting instead to create a series of short-form content pieces. Platforms like Twitter and YouTube served as the perfect stage for showcasing these pieces.

Remember, films, music, and emergent content platforms are just a handful of tools to craft engaging brand stories. Harness these resources to spin narratives that evoke powerful emotions, captivate audiences, and etch your brand into their memories.

The charm of authenticity: Be original, not a trend follower

Ponder for a moment about your aspirations for your product.

Perhaps, like countless other entrepreneurs, you dream of your product making its mark — millions using it, lauding it, year after year. You want your product to ascend to the iconic status of the Ford Mustang or the iPhone, and you’re willing to do anything to turn this dream into reality. However, before you embark on this challenging journey, grasp this essential truth — authenticity is the golden ticket to cultural-icon status.

Embracing authenticity means steadfastly adhering to your brand’s unique identity and purpose, and not merely trailing the latest trend to blend in with the masses. If your product is a mere clone of the trendy offerings out there, it'll lose its emotional pull — the very essence that draws consumers.

Instead, zero in on your brand’s mission — this is your brand’s unique code, the magnetic force that pulls your audience toward you. Strive to create a product that embodies its purpose. In doing so, you can forge an authentic and profound connection with your customers, who, in turn, will elevate your product to iconic status.

Nike's Air Force 1, launched in 1982, is a testament to this approach. Rather than striving to position it as a cultural icon, or going overboard with marketing gimmicks or player endorsements, Nike's goal was simple — to create a basketball shoe that players would love to wear. But without any high-octane commercials, the Air Force 1 clinched a cult status after Philadelphia 76ers' Moses Malone clinched a championship victory donning them.

The sight of players succeeding in those shoes sparked a massive trend. Soon, AF1s became a common sight not just on basketball courts, but on streets too. The gradual yet unstoppable rise of the shoes to an iconic status was irrefutable. Fast forward several decades and 1,700 shoe iterations, and the Air Force 1 remains everyone's favorite pair — a shining testament to the compelling allure of authenticity.

The powerful allure of purpose: Highlight why, not what

Imagine this: You've developed a remarkable product, laden with cutting-edge features. Your initial impulse might be to flaunt these attributes to anyone willing to listen. However, this approach won't necessarily kindle an ardent fan base. Truth be told, consumers are less interested in what your product does and more in how it can enhance their lives. This understanding should be the lighthouse guiding your marketing expeditions.

By elucidating your product’s purpose and its potential to enrich their lives, you draw consumers closer. Once they start to believe in it, they'll morph into your brand evangelists, convincing others to believe in your product. Gradually, your fan base grows, one believer at a time.

Designating a brand ambassador can effectively highlight your product's purpose. Your ambassador should be both inspiring and relatable, someone others would be motivated to follow.

The 2017 launch of the Apple Watch Nike+ exemplifies this focus on purpose. Rather than trumpeting about its futuristic features, Nike underscored its mission — to spur non-professional athletes to take up running. To engage with this demographic, Nike needed an influential ambassador who, although not a professional athlete, was deeply passionate about running. Comedian Kevin Hart was the perfect fit.

Kevin's personal running journey is a tale of motivation and relentless passion. In June 2015, he sparked a running movement, inviting the residents of Boston to join him for a run before his performance in the city. With 300 locals participating, Kevin's influence was hard to ignore.

In the ad campaign for Apple Watch Nike+ featuring Kevin, the spotlight was not on the gadget's technical specs. Instead, it centered around a simple, compelling message — "Running just became a lot easier." The campaign featured clips of Kevin persistently running through a desert, spurred by his watch to keep going.

By accentuating your product's purpose and roping in relatable ambassadors, you can cultivate a community of customers that truly believes in your brand, fostering a passionate movement around it.

Wrapping up

Achieving brand supremacy is within your reach, provided you understand and engage with the emotions of your consumers. It's by fostering emotional connections that you can build loyalty, advocacy, and enduring relationships transcending mere transactions. Irrespective of your industry, size, or financial capacity, the creative insights shared can guide you on this path.

Ultimately, the most critical factor is your readiness to embrace authenticity and transparency, showcasing the human aspect of your enterprise to your audience.