As we slowly (so slowly!) start thinking about a post COVID world, brands will be thinking about getting back to growth. Scaling brands are looking to cross the chasm from niche to mass appeal in order to secure meaningful growth. For others, regaining a position of leadership is the challenge: When hard-won share is lost to competitors, it must be regained swiftly or they risk insurmountable loss.
What many brands do next will either lead to mainstream mediocrity or mass success.
Instincts will tell you to listen hard and often to your brand’s audiences, and tell the story in the most relevant way to persuade new people to buy into your brand. And that’s a strong instinct (especially the “often” part). Do it and do it now.
But it’s not the whole story — literally. By exclusively prioritizing relevance, we often miss out on creating a story that’s different, new, and surprising, which is actually more valuable over time. To create a salient story — and achieve lasting growth and success — scaling brands need to hold on to their differentiation tight as they grow their audience base. And for leaders who need to reclaim share, it’s best to reassert what it is about them that is unique and appealing to surprise their audience.
Moving into truly differentiated territory feels risky for those who are nervous about disrupting the status quo.
The answer lies in really understanding how stories scale brands. At FIG, we are deeply invested in why and how stories work, and we use Story Data™ to give confidence for courageous creativity. With holistic analysis of a given category, we can identify new spaces for our clients’ brands to thrive.
Over the last 8 years, FIG has mapped the three levers of growth, and we have defined this as Story Data™. Here are the three pillars:
Message: Discover how unique or similar the specific language used aligns with key category drivers and your competitive set.
Media: Learn how your channel mix compares to others in the industry and who is poised for growth and who is a threat.
Execution: Inform distinct and relevant creative decisions by understanding the executional devices used in your category.
We have found that grounding our work in Story Data™ helps instill the confidence and courage that are necessary to truly stand out and successfully scale. By understanding the levers of growth and making deliberate decisions about the stories we tell, FIG aims to elevate our clients’ brand positions in the market and consumers’ minds — not just in the short term, but for the long haul.
ABOUT FIG:
FIG are Storytellers for the Information Age. We exist for growth-focused CMOs who share our belief that stories scale brands, and want to harness the outsize effectiveness of jaw-dropping creativity.
The integrated media & creative agency has been recognised by Inc Magazine and AdAge as one of the best places to work in the US, by Inc Magazine in 2019 and again in 2020 as one of the fastest growing privately held companies in America, and is on the Adweek 100 list as well as the AdAge Agency A List for the last 3 years. In October, FIG was named on LinkedIn's 2020 Top Startups List, which ranks the 50 U.S. companies that have stood out this year, attracting investment, employees and attention, and included breakthrough brands like Masterclass, Brooklinen and Robinhood. Based in NYC, FIG is 100% independent.