Thursday, October 17, 2013
Unknown
The word Monozukuri has only been in use for almost 15
years. In 1998, the Japanese Prime Minister’s Office set up a "Monozukuri Kondankai", in order to reverse the trend of deindustrialization and hollowing out that Japan was experiencing after the end of the Japanese financial bubble by affirming Japan’s strengths in manufacturing. In general, monozukuri is the "art, science and craft of making things." While monozukuri is used to describe technology and processes integrating sustainable development, production and procurement, it also includes intangible qualities such as unique craftsmanship and dedication to continuous improvement. In the Japanese tradition of Monozukuri, when
an item or human effort is taken into use, there needs to be a benefit for the
society as a result while, at the same time, the balance between production,
resources and the society should be maintained. Monozukuri should therefore be
an inspiration for most global organizations in the 21st century in their effort
to create strong, innovative brands, which deliver compelling content through
their media channels, especially then it comes to branding and brand
storytelling.
Toyota and Nissan lead the way
Companies such as Toyota and Nissan have already tried to
elevate their brands or the company’s core interests by creating unique content
that exceeds infomercial-like self reverence.
Back in 2011, Toyota chairman Fujio Cho said that Toyota’s
mission is to “preserve the Japanese Monozukuri". What does
"monozukuri" mean here? It probably captures the Toyota perception of
sustainability. According to Toyota monokuzuri, the person doing the making is
de-emphasized and the attention is on the ‘thing’ being made. This subtle
difference reflects the Japanese sense of responsibility for using ‘things’ in
production and their deep respect for the world around them both animate and
inanimate. In its application of Monozukuri to the production of automobiles,
Toyota has pursued a sustainable method of making its cars ever more safe,
environmentally friendly, reliable and comfortable and circulating this
perception to its customers.
At Nissan, brand storytelling has been dubbed “kotozukuri,”
complementing the Japanese manufacturers’ mantra of “monozukuri”. Brand
agnostic stories, intentionally omitting reference to the parent firm or its
competitors, or in Nissan’s case, look to raise the profile of the people,
products, technologies and relationships as part of infotainment.
Why? Actually, it's about Nissan's recognition that traditional
media and consumer engagement face more challenges as well as expense amid a
growing range of choice. Meanwhile, internal communications, often constituting
corporate media or house TV units until now, have expanded from a parochial
approach to include more content for mass distribution. The relationship with broadcasters and print media, who
often have their own on-line presence, has evolved to include video embeds,
undeniably showing return on investment versus the cost of similar paid media
exposure. Use by the blogosphere or consumers also has powered the metrics of
successful marketing, as “shares” and “likes” offer potential for viral
exposure.
It seems that every organization may perceive Monozukuri in a different way. However, "Many names now describe the trend such as brand
journalism, corporate narrative or 21st Century Kotozukuri, but all require
more sophisticated storytelling and delivery, making ties to traditional
agencies" (Dan Sloan, Nissan Global Media Chief).
Back to storytelling
Storytelling is a well known and ancient art form.
Persona-focused storytelling is essential to branding. When it comes to
creating a powerful brand narrative, the persona – the articulated form of the
brand’s character and personality – comes first, and all other elements unfold
from there. A compelling brand starts with a strong, well-drawn, and quickly
recognized persona, the essential connection between what a company says and
what it does.
This brand persona creates a long-lasting emotional bond
with the audience because it is instantly recognizable and memorable, it is something that
people can relate to, and it is consistent. Nike, McDonald’s, FedEx are all examples of
brands with personas that fit these criteria. In each case, there is a clear
personality associated with the brand. These companies understand that it is
their clear articulation of their brand persona and their discipline in placing
that persona into stories that work with and help strengthen that brand persona
is what makes the difference between strong and weak brand associations.
That long-lasting and implicit trust is what distinguishes
the great brands from the rest of the pack. It will also protect the brand when
it makes a misstep. Nike has a strong brand persona that is all about
performance and winning. Their long-used tagline, ‘‘Just do it,’’ is instantly
recognizable as is their logo, the swoosh. In 2006, Nike teamed up with skier
Bode Miller, which seemed like a good idea at the time. After all, he had won
two silver medals at the Olympics in 2002, four gold medals and a silver medal
at the World Championship in 2003, and in 2005, he became the first American in
22 years to win the World Cup title. His performance trajectory was clear. If
anything, it seemed that the difficulty would be in finding words to match his
expected performance.
There was no shortage of words: in TV spots for the 2006
Winter Olympics, Miller was shown talking about performance, talking about his attitude, and
talking some more. But there was not much ‘‘doing’’ – he fell short in all five medal
attempts. Worse, he did not even seem concerned with winning, an attitude that did not match well
with the Nike brand persona. This created a disconnect between the audience and the brand,
since the fit between Bode and Nike clearly was not right. Monozukuri here, as a unique
value proposition for the consumer, through storytelling, went wrong.
Brand my brain
Brain studies have shown dramatic effects of branding. In
one famous study, researchers used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)
to see how subjects’ brains responded when they were given Coke or Pepsi. Some
of the subjects were given the soda without knowing which brand it was, and
were asked to give their preference on taste alone. Others were given the soda
and then an image of Coke or Pepsi was flashed at them before they took a sip.
The result? The blinded tasting resulted in no preference
for one brand over the other in the group, some preferred Pepsi, others preferred Coke, but they
did not know which was which, so the overall results were what you would expect in
two chemically and physically similar drinks. The unblinded tasting was something else
altogether. While there was no influence of brand knowledge for people who thought they were
drinking Pepsi, there was a very strong brand influence when they were shown an
image of Coke. Their belief that they were drinking Coke actually altered their
experience to the point where some areas of the brain lit up only when they
believed it was a Coke that they were drinking. Clearly, branding is a real,
measurable effect. Coke lit up the hippocampus and the dorsolateral prefrontal
cortex, areas of the brain related to memory, control of action, and
self-image. Our brains love Coke even more than our taste buds do.
How is it connected to storytelling? Actually, a lot of it
has to do with the fact that Coke has been telling a good story, using an
exciting yet accessible brand persona that people easily relate to.
Storytelling has been engaging listeners and readers for ages and Coke figured
out how to make that work to their advantage. Researchers have shown that
successful storytelling (as a correct Monozukuri version) strengthens the
connections consumers have to brands to a great extent.
Conclusion
When it comes to brand development, a unique perception of Monozukuri for each organization may lead our audience in the brand story and
its actions. Marketing strategists should always perceive and apply Monozukuri in the
optimum way to genuinely connect with the audience and ultimately convert them
into loyal customers.
