Innovation Protocol

Intelligent Business Demands

Innovation Protocol

Intelligent Business Demands

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    Humans Aren’t Rational

    People will forget what you said … what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel. — Maya Angelou

    There is a concept in economic and social studies called the rational actor theory. It suggests that, when confronted with a decision, people assess their options and then make the choice that is in their best self-interest. In economics, that self-interest is usually defined in terms of financial value or gain.

    The rational actor theory allows us to build models to study human behavior. The only problem with the theory is that we humans are not rational actors. We place higher value on things that are hard to quantify – feeling safe, feeling inspired, feeling sexy.

    It’s true that we do make some decisions based on rational criteria, in limited circumstances. Those decisions tend to be rote, and they tend to take place in categories where providers have not invested much in helping consumers understand how they should feel about their choices.

    The best thing your brand can do is give people a reason to believe. This requires you to abandon your marketing of highly imitable features and benefits – like product formulation, or delivery speed, or price promotions – and instead focus your communications on what your customer is announcing to the world when they choose you. Indeed, the only thing people pay a true premium for is how it makes them feel when they buy or use your product.

    After all, we are not rational actors.

    We are rationalizing actors.

    Honoring Legacy While Moving the Business Forward

    Reimagining and redefining your company’s brand can be empowering and enjoyable, but also a very vulnerable experience. Many clients, especially those who have been in business for generations, express a fear that evolving their brand will alienate existing customers.  

    Change can be exciting and uncomfortable. Brand development should never be an exercise in abandoning your legacy, absent a PR crisis that necessitates such a drastic approach. Durable brands require a balance between honoring the past while allowing the brand to grow into its future potential.  Defining the brand requires a strategic approach built on a deep understanding of the unique characteristics of the competitive ecosystem, the company, and the competition. 

    Manufacturing is a prime example of an industry with enduring legacy companies feeling pressure to modernize. During our partnership with Custom Pipe & Fabrication Inc., a national water pipe manufacturing company established over 50 years ago, we faced this pressure. With a rich legacy, they’ve cultivated relationships that have spanned decades. And while they wanted to be seen as modern, they also wanted to nurture and retain the current customer base. 

    Through careful research, we discovered a core company truth, recognizable and attractive to both their current and potential customers. Custom Pipe is not just a pipe manufacturer, they are experts in creating connected ecosystems. This is their legacy, their present operation, and their guidepost for leadership into the future. Custom Pipe needed to own their legacy as playing an undeniable role securing society’s foundation for our greatest resource, water.  

    As experts in connection, they transform raw materials into vital systems to transport water from point A to point B. Along with refined language, we refreshed their visual system to reflect precision, sophistication, experience, and approachability – all core components of who they are as a company.  

    At Innovation Protocol, we uncover and illuminate the real reasons why customers keep coming back and what makes your company truly special. Codifying a value system will allow both your core and target audiences to understand who you are today, where you’re headed, and why you matter to the world. 

    EI vs. AI in Brand Strategy

    Certain things you just know to be true—you can feel it in your gut. Artificial Intelligence (AI) and tools like ChatGPT have made significant advancements in the business world, streamlining processes and providing valuable data-driven insights. The problem with AI is that it has no gut; no visceral, intuitive senses honed over thousands of years to interpret the 90% of communication that is non-verbal.  When it comes to creating a uniquely differentiated and credible brand strategy, there are three important reasons why AI and tools like ChatGPT can’t provide the same level of human empathy and insight as a trained consultant: 

    #1. Lack of Emotional Intelligence: Emotional intelligence plays a crucial role in understanding and relating to a brand’s intended audience. A trained consultant can understand and process emotions, which is crucial in creating an effective brand strategy that resonates with people. AI and tools like ChatGPT lack this ability and can only provide data-driven recommendations. This is why a recent study by Harvard Business Review found that human empathy is still an important factor in creating an effective brand strategy, despite advancements in AI. The study found that when creating a brand strategy, it’s important to consider not just the data, but also the emotional needs and wants of the target audience. 

    #2. Limited Cultural Understanding: A trained consultant has a deep understanding of different cultures and their norms, values, and beliefs. This knowledge is critical in creating brand strategies that are culturally sensitive and effective in the space. AI and tools like ChatGPT, on the other hand, lack the ability to fully understand cultural nuances and can potentially create strategies that are culturally insensitive or inappropriate. 

    #3. Inability to Adapt to Unpredictable Situations: A trained consultant has the ability to adapt to unpredictable situations and make decisions in real-time. This is an important factor when creating a brand strategy–especially in the B2B space–as markets and audience needs can change rapidly. AI and tools like ChatGPT lack the ability to think creatively and come up with unique solutions on the spot, making it difficult for them to adapt to changing circumstances. 

    I have a confession to make: Aside from the first paragraph and the one you’re reading now, everything you just read was written by ChatGPT. With a little coaching the AI was able to make a compelling case for why it will always be at a disadvantage compared to a human brand strategist. While ChatGPT, by its own admission, is lacking social skills and empathy—two crucial components of Emotional Intelligence—at least it’s trained well enough to know its limitations and simulate another of EI’s five key components: Self-awareness. 

    Talking AI: New Technologies Optimizing Creative Efficiency

    Artificial Intelligence (AI) is redefining marketing as we know it. From text, image, and voice generators to pre-trained algorithms designed to provide optimized campaign content, AI technologies are adding more efficiency to marketing teams. With AI adoption in its early stages and so many options from which to choose, how can marketers make the most informed decisions about adding AI technologies to their creative process? To help answer this question and offer some much needed perspective to marketing professionals, Innovation Protocol presented its first Digital ForumAI @ Work on Apr. 26th2023.

    During the AI @ Work webinar, our founder and CEO, Sasha Strauss, was joined by guest panelists Scott Friedman, Co-Founder and Executive Creative Director of digital agency Wildlife, and Tony Crisp, Founder and Chief Strategist at creative consultancy CRISPx to highlight practical examples of how emerging AI tools are being used to add more efficiency, speed, and economy to creative teams of all sizes. 

    The use of AI technologies in marketing is a rapidly evolving field, and it’s important for marketers to stay up-to-date with the latest trends and tools. The efficiency and economy gains that AI tools offer are reason for excitement, but AI tools aren’t a miracle pill. On the one hand, AI can help improve the accuracy and efficiency of tasks such as data analysis, content creation, and customer segmentation. On the other hand, relying too heavily on AI can lead to less original thought and devalue the creativity that is the currency of marketing innovation. 

    Although the landscape of AI technologies is highly fragmented, one thing is clear: AI can be a powerful tool when used strategically and thoughtfully. The panelists featured in the AI @ Work Digital Forum shared insightful anecdotes and creative case examples to highlight how marketing creatives could combine the strengths of AI with the skills of human marketers to work more effectively and open up new avenues for creative expression.

    Interested to see how AI is impacting how marketing is done? View the recorded AI @ Work webinar on LinkedIn. 

    To learn more about emerging technologies featured in the webinar as well as a curated list of articles and videos to show the powerful potential of AI technologies, download the companion Innovation Protocol AI @ Work Resource List. 

    We’re always interested to hear from you. Contact us to let us know how we can help strategically align your brand and your business. 

    Navigating the Ethical Use and Ownership of AI-Generated Output

    AI has emerged as a critical component of pop culture in 2023. Pervasive and promising, it is infiltrating all aspects of our personal and professional lives. AI is a complex and layered topic that is met with varying degrees of excitement and skepticism. At IP, we’re approaching AI with curiosity, learning about ways we can thoughtfully and intelligently incorporate AI tools into our workflow in an ethical manner. The topic of who owns the output produced by AI remains top of mind for us. 

     The collaboration between humans, algorithms, and databases of existing work (images and text) can make it complicated to determine ownership when AI is used to create images or text. Factors such as the degree of creative input and decision-making can influence who owns the rights. This complex process has significant legal and ethical implications. Viewing AI as a tool for generating ideas, not definitive answers is essential. 

     One action users can take is to carefully and closely read the terms of service and licenses that accompany AI tools. These agreements provide essential details about copyright ownership, permissions, and limitations. Reviewing them thoroughly can prevent potential issues and ensure compliance with the terms. As AI technology advances and ways to apply AI proliferate, laws are evolving to address the unique challenges it poses. Copyright laws are being reinterpreted and modified to accommodate content created by AI. Midjourney, a widely-used text-to-image AI tool, allows creators to use the images generated but not claim copyright over them. 

     While AI has many practical applications and is advancing by the minute, it does not have an empathy filter. Intelligent users and brands will use their awareness and expertise to evaluate and validate AI-generated outputs for accuracy and emotional relevance and resonance. Staying mindful and curious as we navigate this new world of AI will allow us to reap the benefits of AI while thoughtfully and responsibly moderating its implementation and strategic application, ensuring compliance with societal and ethical standards.