Comfort zone is a brand trap
Build Mode™ Issue 07.2024
I’ve noticed a shift.
On a drive with my family to the South Coast of Massachusetts where I grew up, we often pass through Fall River and right by this enormous, wavy, concrete monument sign that reads ‘Fall River Industrial Park’ in pushed-in letterforms with a high contrast serif typeface painted green. Each time we pass, I think, 'hmm… industrial park? Now that’s an outdated term.'
The latest developers think so too. As the industrial park has grown, they’ve added a new roadway called Innovation Way with new development sites called The Campus at Innovation Way. The naming reflects changes in business from primarily manufacturing and heavy industry to knowledge-based and technology-driven.
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Over the past 20 years, we’ve seen this change all around us. Kendall Square went from an industrial area to now the ‘the most innovative square mile on the planet.’ The Boston Design Center was repositioned as the Innovation and Design Building to attract progressive, technological, creative firms and startups. And every new development looking to attract and cultivate top-tier talent puts innovation front and center. The new Bolling Building in Roxbury houses the Roxbury Innovation Center, providing innovation and entrepreneurship resources in state-of-the-art offices. And the new Assembly Innovation Park in Somerville is pitching to bring the most progressive companies in life science to the area.
These examples are just in Massachusetts but this is surely happening everywhere.
Business has rebranded. The shift from ‘industrial’ to ‘innovation’ reflects a broad cultural shift towards valuing creativity, technology, and forward-thinking businesses.
Out with industry. In with innovation.
What is brand innovation?
It's clear. Innovation is a priority for nearly every modern organization. To evolve with the times, you must adapt (or plan to be a relic of the past). However, to continue to be successful in your business, you not only need to innovate, but to make your innovation visible.
Ask yourself, ‘is my company innovative?’
You’d probably say, ‘yeah, of course!’
What if we asked your customers?... ‘is this company innovative?’
How would they answer?
‘Umm, maybe?’
‘Not sure. We only use them for X.’
‘Possibly, but I don’t know. I haven’t seen it.’
There’s a likelihood that the stakeholders inside a company – leadership, management, employees – are working incredibly hard on new initiatives, new processes, and they all have the sense that innovation is exuding from deep within their soul!
But, if their innovation efforts aren’t communicated effectively… they’re missing out. There’s a mile-wide communication gap between what a company and its staff feel internally, versus what clients and prospects experience and perceive externally.
Brand innovation is the process of developing new and creative ideas that create leverage for your business.
These creative pursuits enhance your brand’s identity and perception in the market. Through strategic differentiation, unique products or services, proprietary systems, or deep resonance with your target audience, you reflect the innovation that exists within your organization to the external world.
If your brand fails to effectively market and communicate its innovation efforts, your clients will continue to remain unaware of your amazing feats and struggle to evolve their perception of your efforts.
It’s time to bridge the gap.
You are now entering the ‘zone’
My oldest daughter plays the bass, and has been for a couple years. She can play just about any genre of music given to her and participates in her school’s orchestra, jazz band, and even set up a rock band with a friend.
She’s quite used to playing music by the book.
Keep your eyes on the chart.
Play what’s written.
Stay in time with the conductor.
Hit every note.
Jazz combos, however, are entirely different.
Last week, she attended a week-long jazz improvisation workshop and was challenged to improvise a solo while playing a classic jazz chart with her combo. There were no charts. Music was learned by ear. And the students were taught approaches to feel the music and improvise within the parameters of the chart.
She stepped outside of her comfort zone and stretched her skills to improvise with creativity and innovation.
There’s a model for the kind of learning that pushes us beyond what we think we’re capable of.
It’s a psychological framework called the Learning Zone model and it contains three distinct areas: Comfort Zone, Stretch Zone, and Panic Zone. While the model is primarily used in educational settings – like a school classroom or a jazz improvisation camp – to encourage individuals to step outside their ‘comfort zone’ and into a growth mindset, I’d like to use this model as a framework for brand innovation. Let’s look into each zone.
Comfort Zone (ie. Status Quo)
In personal development, the comfort zone represents a place where things feel safe and familiar (like reading music that’s been rehearsed), avoiding risks and challenges. It fosters stability but limits personal development.
In brand innovation, the comfort zone is equal to keeping the status quo. It reflects a brand's tendency to stick to the familiar – the same products, strategies, and market segments. The comfort zone is secure and safe for the brand because it’s staying within known parameters and operational efficiencies. The downside is, that while it provides stability and efficiency, it can also lead to complacency and missed opportunities for growth.
Stretch Zone (ie. Innovation)
The stretch zone is where individuals push beyond their comfort zone, taking on new challenges and learning opportunities. It involves moderate levels of discomfort (like taking an improvisational jazz solo) and fosters growth, resilience, and skill development.
In brand innovation, the stretch zone involves exploring new ideas, technologies, and market opportunities that go beyond the brand's current practices. It encourages creativity, experimentation, and adaptation to changing consumer preferences and competitive landscapes. Brands in the stretch zone actively seek to differentiate themselves with a willingness to take calculated risks.
Panic Zone (ie. Risk)
Danger! Danger! We’ve entered the panic zone! The panic zone occurs when individuals face challenges or situations that are overwhelming. It leads to high levels of stress and anxiety. When you reach this level of challenge, you’ve hindered any potential learning and will need to step back to regain your footing.
In brand innovation, the panic zone is where things go wrong. It’s when brands venture too far beyond their capabilities – they take on too much, or go too fast, and lose sight of their objectives toward innovation. When brands get overzealous and enter into the panic zone, new ideas can fail, clients might feel alienated, or operations may go haywire, causing a need to reassess, pivot, or scale back their plans. In the process, brands may damage their brand equity.
Enter the panic zone and you’re entering business risk, susceptible to poorly aligned strategies, ineffective marketing, alienating your customers, or negatively impacting the perception of your brand.
Stay in your comfort zone, and you risk stagnation that limits your opportunities. Without an eye on continuous improvement and innovation, you may lose relevance with your clients and prospects.
Aim to operate in the stretch zone of innovation, exploring new ideas, processes, products, and market opportunities that align with your core values and strategic objectives.
What you can do next to innovate
The problem with most brands is that they don’t recognize the stretch zone, the zone where innovation happens. They think any amount of change is risky, so they operate in a continual state of comfort, making small, incremental, safe changes without ever exiting their comfort zone and pushing the envelope.
Now that you know about it, use it. Find areas where you can stretch outside of your comfort zone, into your stretch zone (but not the panic zone), to achieve brand innovation.
Identify the areas where your internal values are expressed externally. Areas like:
Brand identity
Brand messaging
Digital presence
Product and service packaging
Marketing
Experiences
Partnerships
Customer service
Events
Employee engagements and office culture
Project delivery
Are any of these areas sitting complacent in the comfort zone? Are there opportunities to innovate – to push the envelope by exploring new ideas and opportunities with creativity, and a moderate level of risk and discomfort?
Here are some tangible examples:
How could you be more innovative with brand identity?
Instead of following design trends, develop a unique identity that reflects the brand’s innovative spirit. Focus on originality and develop a look and feel that is a radical departure from other industry players.
How could you be more innovative with product and service packaging?
Use your service offer as a differentiating factor through innovative models, like bespoke services for a more personalized approach, or subscription services for long-term partnerships, or strategic alliances to offer cross-functional benefits, or experiential events to provide additional value and engagement.
How could you be more innovative with brand messaging?
The stuff you find boring in your own organization is probably fascinating to your ideal customer (with the right storytelling). Use compelling narratives to highlight successes, share behind-the-scenes at your operations and teams, and ensure your messaging consistently reflects your values.
Once you take a crack at finding one area of potential innovation, let me know what you’ve come up with and how you imagine taking your business to the next level. I’d be excited to hear where you go from here!
That’s all for this issue of Build Mode! Thanks again for being here.
If you have any ideas to share, or questions to ask, reach out. I’m open to hearing your thoughts and making this most useful message in your inbox this week. If you think this might help a friend, feel free to forward it to them and encourage them to join us.
Wishing you a wonderful month ahead.
Best.
Kenny Isidoro
See my latest on Instagram, LinkedIn, or feel free to book a call.
Do one thing every day that scares you.
— Eleanor Roosevelt
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