“Cities were mostly designed by people who didn’t use them.”

The nature of our business puts us in touch with some fascinating individuals. The quote I led with is from a chat I was having with Catherine Barratt, Managing Director of Furnitubes, a company based in England that produces urban outdoor furniture. Working with Furnitubes, and speaking with Catherine in particular, confirms that we don’t need to be engaged in the same business activity to share a set of values.

One of our shared obsessions is to do all we can in a way that has lasting impact because this makes the most sustainable use of resources. It preserves time, materials, and financial resources.

Another shared value is that all we do should benefit as wide an audience as possible. And in the case of Furnitubes, this is taken to mean absolutely everyone.

Consider the supply chain of outdoor urban furniture. The bench you sit on when you’re in a public space like a city square has been manufactured by a company like Furnitubes, directly paid for by the city council, chosen by an urban planner or designer, and finally you get to take a moment’s pause by sitting on it. It is you, this last person in the chain, who has indirectly paid for it all because it’s ultimately our taxes that build cities.

Despite this, for the longest time, cities have been designed by people who were designing for themselves. They didn’t consider other demographics, nor did they take the wellbeing of a large group of people into account. Cities were largely designed for the efficiency of trade and this meant that transportation was central to this design. We built cities around cars and us humans had to make the adjustments necessary to give traffic the highest priority.

In the past, we designed with humans in mind. Barcelona, for instance, was designed to take into account that a high population density will need more open spaces if they are to feel like they can breathe in the city. Cities like Rome and Athens were designed to leave a legacy of beauty behind.

The discourse surrounding the transformation of urban spaces is both timely and essential, as the delineation between indoor refuge and our time spent outdoors becomes ever more pronounced. As we spend more time indoors, the time we spend out of our homes becomes even more precious. And this serves as an imperative for our urban environments to provide us with a healthy dose of wellbeing.

Catherine is fully immersed in this sentiment. When speaking about the way they regard their role in society, she states that, “if you make an area welcoming and functional, it has ripple effects across the whole community. People look after spaces they value, crime goes down, and health indicators improve. We strive to build long-lasting products that benefit the public,” she says. “Our decisions are made with a better future in mind.”

How can the manufacturing industry participate in this movement?

Catherine believes the private sector has an important role to play. “The private sector has a moral imperative to lead this charge,” she contends.  “Businesses must demonstrate the potential and the value of sustainable, human-centric urban design. Every park bench, every planter, every element we introduce into the urban fabric should be a testament to our belief in a more beautiful, more connected future.” And this is the way she leads Furnitubes, to set an example through sustainable practices and innovative design that puts people first.

Peering into the future, Catherine adopts an optimistic stance regarding the trajectory of urban planning. 

She sees cities that embrace human-centric design, nurturing environments that are not only livable but also enriching and inclusive. This forward-looking perspective shows that well-conceived urban spaces can act as catalysts for community, creativity, and well-being

And this reflects a broader commitment to building cities that not only function efficiently but also resonate on a deeper, more personal level: “We have a responsibility to leave a legacy of functional beauty. Beautiful outdoor spaces add value to the lived experience of all those who make use of them. This is what great cities do.”

These are great platforms for us to build a better future on. Innovative design and manufacture around the world gives us a glimpse at what’s possible when manufacturing leads, rather than follows. A new generation of savvy customers are demanding better. The time for inspiring, responsible, and lasting manufacture is here. If we keep this vision in mind, we stand a chance at building the world that we and future generations deserve.

The post Manufacturing a better future appeared first on Switch - Digital & Brand.

If you couldn’t join the live session and would like to access the recording, click below.

Your company is brilliant. Your products are solid. So why is it so hard to articulate your value in a way that truly connects?

Join Ed, our Head of Brand Strategy, for a one-hour webinar designed for CEOs, founders, and business leaders.

We cover:

• The four common “crises” (comms, recruitment, culture, sales) that are really symptoms of a single identity crisis.
• The difference between having a logo and having a brand that builds real equity.
• A step-by-step brand framework to define your Ambition, Purpose, Values, and Personality.
• How to turn this internal clarity into impeccable differentiation in the market.

This session is for leaders who are tired of being misunderstood and are ready to build a brand that is authentic, powerful, and profitable.

The post The Power of Clarity [Webinar] appeared first on Switch - Digital & Brand.

We are not architects, but we are builders – of brands, strategies, and narratives that stand the test of time. We believe in sustainable growth that goes beyond buzzwords and bottom lines. It’s not enough to do less harm. Whether you are constructing buildings or businesses, true sustainability requires beauty, integrity, and long-term thinking.

So while real estate may not be our domain, designing with purpose definitely is. Here’s the perspective we’ve given Money Magazine on the illusion of sustainability in the built environment, and what it can teach us about creating better businesses too.

The illusion of sustainability

We throw the word ‘sustainable’ around and hardly ever stop to consider the full reach of its meaning. It has come to be associated with any activity, resource use, or process that has a lower negative impact on the environment than a comparable equivalent.

That isn’t really sustainable. Neither does it encapsulate the full meaning of sustainability. For something to be sustainable, it must be able to be upheld over time without causing harm or depletion to its environment, society, and the economic ecosystem it forms part of. It implies that our actions today do not impede future generations to meet their own needs.

The starting point

Let’s start from the most essential point of departure – that of our point of view. We depart from a grossly anthropocentric view of everything we do, and this is crucial when speaking about sustainability. While we are the species we are concerned about most, we are but one link in an intricately interconnected ecosystem. What might sustain us at the expense of any other species is not, in fact, sustainable for the entire ecosystem.

From there, we build upwards and consider the multiple ways in which our activities can be sustainable.

If we are to leave an inhabitable planet for our progeny, we cannot leave the old “do a little less harm” definition of sustainability on the table. We must wrap it up in recycled paper and deposit it in the recycling bin. Even a neutral stance is unsustainable. Unless we look at our constructed environment with a view to reverse the staggering amount of harm that we are causing to the natural environment, we are neglecting our duties towards future generations.

If we consider that global cement production is accountable for 8% of our CO2 emissions, we can see that the construction industry is a major contributor to the sustained damage to our environment. And that is simply the view of one side-effect of a single material (before we even consider the impact of its transport costs).

Beyond the environment

But sustainability is not just about the environment. A sustainable practice is one that can continue to exist from an economic standpoint. If I decide to spend 10% more than what I earn every year, it is easy to see that there will come a time when my spending becomes completely unsustainable.

As we continue to construct the world around us in a way that is decoupled from the realities of those who inhabit it, we know that we are heading towards an inevitable inflection point. When the supply side outstrips demand – mainly for reasons of affordability, the market finds a way of self-regulating. An easier way of saying this is that there is product on the market but no one there who wants to purchase or rent at unreasonable rates. The fact that we’re still keeping the two sides balanced does not mean the situation will remain as is indefinitely.

What goes up

A long term view of everything we do is essential. We’ve built, torn down, and rebuilt so much of what’s around us – especially when we were forced to look at what we’d built in a hurry. Sometimes there is very good reason to do so. Look at Rotterdam. The city was flattened during the second world war and rebuilt in a hurry. The haste was an absolute necessity. Since then, a large majority of panic building was torn down to be rebuilt in a way that is more practical and more beautiful.

We are, after all, an ostensibly intelligent species. We want our surroundings to be aesthetically pleasing as well as functional and practical. While a war may justify building a city twice within 5 decades, we don’t have too many other excuses to waste time, materials, money, and energy. Concrete is devilishly hard to repurpose and recycle so it usually ends up relegated to the mountains of construction waste that will endure beyond the expected lifespan of our species.

For good, in both senses

Building with a very long term view in mind is sensible and admirable. We are lost in admiration for the structures that have endured since ancient times – Mayans, Romans, Egyptians, Greeks, etc – all  built for posterity and the results of their efforts stand today as proud reminders of what happens when a long-term view is the primary focus of any endeavour worth embarking on. Buildings that look beautiful and last a long time benefit absolutely everyone. As Le Corbusier claimed, those who could not afford to live in buildings he designed ought to be able to benefit from their beauty as they passed by.

Aesthetics and longevity can and should be intertwined notions. We should build to last and we should build for beauty. There is no reason for us to walk through a street and be assaulted by ugly. It’s a challenge to be anywhere around a built-up area of our tiny islands, look around you, and be solely captivated by the beauty of the buildings that surround you.

When the majority of new builds are designed by accountants, it is no surprise that they have the aesthetic appeal of a spreadsheet. We’ve gained density and lost beauty. The Greeks and the Romans and the rest of our global civilisation-building ancestors would be appalled to know how we’ve perverted the example they left us a few millennia ago.

Beyond brick-and-mortar

The principles of sustainable construction extend far beyond cement and steel. Organisations themselves can be built with either short-term expediency or long-term resilience in mind. Just as we wouldn’t want our buildings designed primarily by accountants, we shouldn’t let our business models be dictated solely by quarterly results. Whether constructing physical spaces or building brands and companies, the foundation matters. And that foundation begins with the narratives and values we design into our organisations from day one. Truly sustainable businesses, like truly sustainable buildings, require thoughtful architecture at their core, with systems and structures designed to weather challenges while creating lasting value for all stakeholders.

We are actually in control

When we think of what we’re about to do next we know that the word sustainability is going to be expected of us. It is up to us to define the word in a way that is meaningful to those who come next. Luckily, there is plenty at our disposal to help us construct the world around us in a way that future generations will be proud of.

We have techniques and materials and best practices that have been developed over the years and that are there for us to use wisely as we design and build the spaces we need. There is also plenty we can do to use existing buildings wherever possible. The notions of adaptive reuse, retrofitting, infill development, and even what the Italians call the ‘albergo diffuso’. This involves using existing buildings that are spread around the town as a hotel – not only does it preserve the architectural vernacular but it saves on the material and energy costs of constructing a new hotel building.

Of course, pursuing these ideals comes with practical challenges. Initial costs for quality materials and thoughtful design are often higher, even if they pay dividends over many decades to come. Malta’s dense regulatory landscape, from planning permissions to heritage preservation requirements, can make adaptive reuse projects complex undertakings. Finding architects and construction contractors with experience in sustainable retrofitting or preservation-minded construction presents another hurdle. 

These challenges require creative solutions and perhaps revised financial models that account for long-term value rather than just upfront costs. But what will we think about a century from now? Will future generations dismiss exemplary builds by saying, “They could have saved 10% by skimping on thinking”? I don’t think so.

The post The Illusion of Sustainability in Real Estate: Why Building Less Harm Isn’t Enough appeared first on Switch - Digital & Brand.

Barcelona is a textbook example of genius planning – but that doesn’t prepare you for the overwhelming sensation of being in the thick of it. I could describe the thinking behind the Barcelona superblock, the hierarchy of its street widths, the perfect interplay of the rigidly planned grids of Eixample with the more organic medieval maze of the Gothic Quarter, and the visible presence of stalwarts like Gaudì, Miró, and even van der Rohe. It would enthuse anyone with an interest in shaping the future of our cities but it would not capture the essence of the city.

Spending 24 hours in the city, on the other hand, can imbue a visitor with the intangible attributes of the city. The sights, the sounds, and the scents. The way the city nudges your journey through it as you attempt to traverse its incredibly different neighbourhoods. The planned chaos of the Ramblas during the day and the quiet introspection possible at sunrise on your way back to your hotel after the city has swallowed you up for the night.

You will go back home and realise there is more to be said than any amount of research in advance can possibly provide. This deep-seated culture, the way that centuries of planners and architects and designers have contributed their fingerprint to the way a city feels, is all part of the organic, yet completely coherent, construction of a city brand that benefits from the accumulated experiences of generations.

But what makes a city more than the collection of buildings and streets that are evidence of its physical construction? What gives it a distinct identity? As with any brand, it is a complex and multifaceted combination of the history, the cultural values, the traditions, and the aspirations of all the people who have lived in the city and who call it home today. It is the collective sense of ownership and shared identity that is felt by all of its inhabitants. And since it is so democratic, it isn’t the kind of sentiment that can be forced from the top down. It takes time, gentle nudges, deliberate interventions, and the will of the many to make changes to the brand of a city.

Is all the world one city?

I am speaking of the city brand because it is the easiest way to exemplify the notion. A country brand is just as important but, in the case of most countries, this tends to be fragmented and influenced by the differences between city identities. Milan and Rome, Amsterdam and Rotterdam, Tokyo and Osaka… we can mention city pairs that show us how different a city brand can be from that of another city in the same country and how each is clearly distinct from the national brand.

Malta is a small country. Small enough, sometimes, to think of it as a compact city. But the realities of the country show us that trying to force a single communal brand to the entire archipelago would be to ignore the unbelievable diversity of attitudes and values that the tiny islands somehow present.

City brand by design

So far, the notion of a city brand may sound like much of it is left to chance. But it is the people responsible for designing the constructed environment that have the most impact on a city’s brand. Without deliberate intent, a city’s identity meanders through time, taking on the guise given to it by the next generation of planners and designers to make their mark.

There is a better way. As with a commercial concern, being deliberate about a city’s identity can provide a more fundamental and longer-lasting impact. It can shape the entire future of a city, committing great ideas to history. The design choices we make today, the ones that are so brilliant that they will stand the test of time, are the marks that our generation is responsible for committing to posterity.

We think of aesthetics when we think of deliberate design, but that’s just a logo. The real work contributes to the deep-seated narrative of the city and it is based on a thoroughly thought-out set of values, a deliberate contribution to the sense of place, and a democratic sense of what will create a better experience for those who live and work in the city.

Who’s cooking?

When we hear the words ‘city’ and ‘brand’ in the same sentence, we think of tourist boards. It is almost like they have been given the role of branding a city because no one else wanted to do it. It is also the most absurd place for this responsibility to reside. One must design and construct a city or country in a way that reflects its identity. Only then can we hope to attract visitors.

As self-evident as this is, we might need the numbers to back it up. The most visited country on earth is France, with 100 million people picking it as their holiday spot every year. France, the country that makes little effort to ask you to visit, has such a strong sense of national identity that we just flock there.

This places the responsibility of a strong and believable city brand firmly in the capable hands of designers, architects, and city planners. The tourist board will then package and communicate the result.

Purpose-driven design

Designing for a city requires intentionality that goes beyond the specific reach of the project one entity happens to be working on. It requires us to ask a set of questions that uncover the foundations of the city and lay them bare for us to respect and design for. It requires practitioners to think of the purpose of the space they’re working on and how it dovetails with the core values of the city. It broadens the question of who one is designing for, allowing the audience definition to extend beyond those commissioning a project. And perhaps even more crucially, it asks deeper questions about legacy.

When we consider the legacy of a city we think of functional buildings like residences or workplaces. But we must also think of third spaces – those realms that belong to everyone in the city and that are the in-between spots. City squares, parks, walkways, and even a tiny bench under a solitary tree. These are the spaces where connections are made. They are the spaces where we flourish as a species that is gregarious and that depends on human connection. The spots that turn a city into a living and breathing whole rather than a collection of unconnected individuals.

Design for good

There are more elements that go into purposely defining the identity of a city. As we evolve our notion of what constitutes a great city, we shift our performance indicators from those that were purely fiscal to ones that address the wellbeing of its inhabitants. We look at green infrastructure that incorporates flora and fauna other than humans, improving our sense of wellbeing as well as the air quality of our cities. We consider accessible and universal design that create connections for all, regardless of age or ability. We also think of a human as one that needs a healthy body for a healthy mind and create spaces and opportunities for activity such as walking, running, and cycling.

Mixed-use developments create more vibrant neighbourhoods by combining residential, commercial, and recreational spaces, and as we build denser cities these can just as easily be vertical. And the responsible preservation of existing structures serves to cement the history of the city while being sensible with the use of resources.

We’ve all got a part to play

Every aspect of city planning ought to be deliberate and every player can have a direct positive impact towards the construction of a city we can be proud of. We see it reflected, for example, in the work of companies like Furnitubes, a British supplier of urban outdoor furniture that prioritizes social connection and environmental responsibility in its design and manufacturing processes. They happen to be clients and our work within their organisation has given our agency first hand experience of how a thoughtful approach to the design of outdoor spaces can be a powerful tool for social good.

The city of the future

Ultimately, shaping a city’s brand is about more than aesthetics or economic development. A city, at its heart, is a collection of human stories. It’s the laughter in a playground, the quiet contemplation on a bench by the sea, the chaotic functionality of a flea-market, the shared experience of a community. 

Shaping a city’s brand is about crafting a legacy. It’s about creating a place where people feel connected, where communities thrive, and where the future is built on a foundation of shared purpose and thoughtful design. The choices we make today, from the grandest architectural gestures to the smallest details of street furniture, will resonate for generations to come. This presents an incredible opportunity: to design and build functional spaces that are also meaningful places which foster connection, resilience, and a legacy we can all be proud of.

The post Beyond aesthetics: Building a city brand for connection, resilience, and legacy appeared first on Switch - Digital & Brand.

One of the principles that defines the work we do at Switch is a long-term view – we strongly believe that all resources are put to better use when viewed over time frames that span more than quarterly results. This is a consideration we emphasise when onboarding a new client, and one that took on a life of its own when we started to work with Mattermake.

Early on in the relationship, it was evident that we had the same quarrel with the word ‘sustainability’ and the way it has become such a throwaway term. It’s right there at the top of every business agenda, and yet we see slow and incremental progress that’s mostly incited by regulatory frameworks. Rather than sticking to our internal views, we reached out to Mattermake because we know they are thinking in radically different ways about almost everything. It’s been a privilege to work with architect, designer, manufacturer, thinker, and innovator Steve De Micoli and a conversation with him is always stimulating and thought-provoking.

Are ESG frameworks too restrictive?

Steve is the founder of Mattermake, a fabrication-oriented architecture and design studio and, in his quiet and humble way, a rare visionary. When speaking about the word sustainability itself, particularly in the context of the ways in which we construct our built environment, Steve was quick to lament the issues with frameworks such as ESG because they lay out a prescribed set of policies that one must adhere to if they want to consider their efforts to be sustainable. These frameworks, he points out, allow the industry to simply tick the boxes without the need to innovate or even collaborate with other industries for a multi-skilled approach to the issues that surround us.

The construction industry has long focused on reducing its environmental impact through the use of recycled materials and energy-efficient designs. However, a simple “reduce and reuse” approach may no longer be enough to create truly sustainable and regenerative built environments. Steve believes that the key to meaningful change is not reduction, but regeneration.

This echoes the sentiment of another of our forward-thinking clients – Furnitubes – and we’ve been working with them to garner support from some radical new approaches to material choice that goes into the manufacture of urban outdoor furniture.

Cultivating abundance via positive impact

Their definition of sustainability is strikingly similar to Steve’s in that it breaks the mould of “doing more with less” – rather than merely lessening the negative impacts, the goal should be cultivating abundance through designs that actively enhance the ecosystems they inhabit. “Push for abundance, not frugality”, Steve insists. This shifts our mindset from one where we attempt to limit the impact of our activities to one where we think of maximising the positive impact we could have.

In the UK, new policies now mandate all construction to increase local biodiversity by at least 10%. We should consider this a baseline – the ambition is to vastly exceed these targets through designs that give back more to their environments than they consume.

The future may lie in unusual collaborations

Another issue is the compartmentalised view that most industries take to sustainability, patching up existing practices rather than looking outwards and seeking to make unusual connections. Collaborative thinking is a staple of thinking in our industry – we work with an incredibly diverse set of thinkers as a matter of course – but it is very unusual in the construction industry. Luckily, it is not completely unheard of.

One remarkable example of this approach is the use of waste fabric to reinforce concrete. This unlikely collaboration between the fashion and construction industries demonstrates that unusual allies are everywhere to be found. As Steve notes, “Once you start to see the infinite possibility of connections we haven’t yet made, you realise how much innovation is still untapped.”

Mattermake’s innovative projects embody this spirit of interconnectedness. One such project involves 3D printing organic-looking structures that can be stacked to create artificial “coral reefs”, which is a collaboration between Mattermake, Zibel & University of Malta. This pioneering work is intended to adhere to the submerged walls of concrete jetties, typically barren wastelands, transforming what was once a lifeless structure into a concentrated node of biodiversity by providing a habitat for a multitude of marine species.

By leveraging cutting-edge techniques and sustainable materials, Mattermake is redefining the boundaries of what is possible in construction. His studio is a playground for a vividly imaginative team that applies their minds to unusual solutions for sustainable dwellings, workspaces, and, apparently, the bits no one ever thinks about such as the invisible part of our constructed coastline.

Rather than focusing on individual dwellings or buildings, we can design entire cities that thrive in harmony with their surroundings

Steve De Micoli

We’re suddenly talking about permaculture. Steve draws inspiration from principles of permaculture and biomimicry – models that have existed for decades yet struggled to permeate mainstream construction. Just as regenerative agricultural practices enrich rather than deplete, Steve believes the built environment must transition to a symbiotic, interconnected approach. Combining this with a regenerative mindset, we can move beyond mere sustainability and strive for abundance, rather than compromise.

This paradigm shift has far-reaching implications. “Rather than focusing on individual dwellings or buildings, we can design entire cities that thrive in harmony with their surroundings”, is Steve’s take on this.

It’s clear that the construction industry is poised on the cusp of a revolution. The old paradigm of compartmentalisation and reduction is giving way to a new era of regeneration and abundance.

Steve, and the international community of like-minded innovators, are illuminating the path forward for a construction industry that is ripe for transformation. As we navigate the complexities of sustainability, it’s clear that the most profound innovations will arise from the intersections – between industries, disciplines, and ways of thinking.

Building the future of the construction industry

As we look to the future, it’s clear that the construction industry has a critical role to play in shaping a more sustainable, regenerative, and abundant world. And it has an obligation to do so. If we have the wisdom it takes to listen to the visionaries leading the charge, we can create a built environment that not only minimises its impact but actively enriches the world around us. 

Where does this leave us? We can all work on as much as is within our reach. At Switch, we can do what we do best, working with those who have technical brilliance and need the ability to communicate their mission with clarity and in a way that reaches the right audiences, no matter how unlikely they may be. When successful, it will be clear that the possibilities are endless. It’s up to us to create an environment that fosters unusual discourse with the intent of maximising our impact on the planet as long as it is a lasting and positive one.

If you think in terms of impact, people, and then profit, reach out. We’ve got a couple of slots open for collaboration with organisations that are driven by doing the right thing.

The post Beyond Sustainability: Constructing a Regenerative Future appeared first on Switch - Digital & Brand.

“Cities were mostly designed by people who didn’t use them.”

Catherine Barratt, Managing Director of Furnitubes

The nature of our business puts us in touch with some fascinating individuals. The quote I led with is from a chat I was having with Catherine Barratt, Managing Director of Furnitubes, a company based in England that produces urban outdoor furniture. Working with Furnitubes, and speaking with Catherine in particular, confirms that we don’t need to be engaged in the same business activity to share a set of values.

Shared Values

One of our shared obsessions is to do all we can in a way that has lasting impact because this makes the most sustainable use of resources. It preserves time, materials, and financial resources.

Another shared value is that all we do should benefit as wide an audience as possible. And in the case of Furnitubes, this is taken to mean absolutely everyone.

Consider the supply chain of outdoor urban furniture. The bench you sit on when you’re in a public space like a city square has been manufactured by a company like Furnitubes, directly paid for by the city council, chosen by an urban planner or designer, and used by a member of the public (yourself, in this case). And it is you, this last person in the chain, who has indirectly paid for it all because it’s ultimately our taxes that build cities.

Despite this, for the longest time, cities have been designed by people who were designing for themselves. They didn’t consider other demographics, nor did they take the wellbeing of a large group of people into account. Cities were largely designed for the efficiency of trade and this meant that transportation was central to this design. We built cities around cars and us humans had to make the adjustments necessary to give traffic the highest priority.

This is not always the case. When planning Barcelona, Cerdà took into account the amount of air we need to breathe properly and recognised that high density urban areas weren’t conducive to wellbeing. Even when the horse-drawn carriage was the staple mode of transportation, Cerdà devised a grid based on wide avenues and octagonal blocks with chamfered corners to give more space and more visibility to the pedestrian, effectively founding the study of urbanisation.

Long-Term Vision

Then there are the aesthetics of a city. As a civilisation we are judged by what we leave behind – a notion we are entirely familiar with when judging our past but often seem to ignore when constructing our present. The same people who marvel at the remains of Greek and Roman cities are usually responsible for planning buildings on a spreadsheet, constructing a depressingly dystopian environment.

Roger Scruton, perhaps ambitious in his regard of beauty as a fundamental virtue, placed the responsibility on our shoulders to consider the wider-reaching impact of our actions, “We do not merely study the past: we inherit it, and inheritance brings with it not only the rights of ownership, but the duties of trusteeship.”

The discourse surrounding the transformation of urban spaces is both timely and essential, as the delineation between indoor refuge and our time spent outdoors becomes ever more pronounced. As we spend more time indoors, the time we spend out of our homes becomes even more precious. And this serves as an imperative for our urban environments to provide us with a healthy dose of wellbeing.

Urban Planning Revolution

The narrative of urban planning is undergoing a profound evolution, transitioning from designs that prioritized vehicular movement to those that advocate for human scale and environmental sustainability. We can observe this shift as the more enlightened cities are driving gradual reclamation of spaces for pedestrian use, the proliferation of green infrastructure, and the heightened emphasis on accessible, welcoming public realms. Cities such as Rotterdam and Paris exemplify this shift, with their innovative approaches to urban redesign and commitment to enhancing the quality of life for their residents.

Catherine is fully immersed in this sentiment. When speaking about the way they regard their role in society, she states that, “if you make an area welcoming and functional, it has ripple effects across the whole community. People look after spaces they value, crime goes down, and health indicators improve. We strive to build long-lasting products that benefit the public,” she says. “Our decisions are made with a better future in mind.”

So how can cities accelerate this transition? Catherine believes the private sector has an important role to play. “The private sector has a moral imperative to lead this charge,” she contends.  “Businesses must demonstrate the potential and the value of sustainable, human-centric urban design. Every park bench, every planter, every element we introduce into the urban fabric should be a testament to our belief in a more beautiful, more connected future.” And this is the way she leads Furnitubes, to set an example through sustainable practices and innovative design that puts people first.

Looking Forward

Peering into the future, Catherine adopts an optimistic stance regarding the trajectory of urban planning. She envisions cities that wholeheartedly embrace human-centric design, fostering environments that are not only livable but also enriching and inclusive. This forward-looking perspective champions the idea that well-conceived urban spaces can act as catalysts for community, creativity, and well-being, reflecting a broader commitment to building cities that not only function efficiently but also resonate on a deeper, more personal level: “We have a responsibility to leave a legacy of functional beauty. Beautiful outdoor spaces add value to the lived experience of all those who make use of them. This is what great cities do.”

There are bright spots to build on. Innovative urban projects worldwide offer glimpses of what is possible. And a new generation of planners, designers and citizens is demanding better. “The time has come for urban spaces that welcome and uplift us all,” Catherine concluded. “If we keep this vision in mind, the cities we get are the cities we deserve.”

The post Value-based Brand: Planning the Urban Spaces We Deserve appeared first on Switch - Digital & Brand.

If you don’t have the time to read this article now, you can download the PDF version of Brand Storytelling Trends in 2024: Back to Basics for free by clicking below. Otherwise, just keep reading.

Narrative is the most human trait. 

It defines us as a species – we are able to tell stories to each other with the intent of changing someone else’s mind. Without the ability to convey a narrative, we are just free-range monkeys.

Since it is that old, one may argue that narrative doesn’t change much – in essence it either tells us a story to motivate us (you will look great in this outfit) or to scare us (protect your business from cyberattack).

But the stories that surround us, the ones that get us to pay attention and eventually change our behaviours or beliefs, are the ones that are in tune with what’s going on around us.

The word on the street, the zeitgeist, the meme du jour, the trending tweets (fuck X), this hour’s TikTok dance… while these might all fit within the structure of a core narrative, they speak to us about what’s going on right now. 

And we live right now.

As 2023 comes to a close, here’s a look at the narrative trends that could shape 2024. 

After all, a year is just a collection of the stories that it leaves behind.

As always, strong narratives will win the game. 

When the ‘noise’ gets louder, as audiences are bombarded by even more messages from even more sources, it is the strong stories that will stand out.

Think of it as signal-to-noise ratio. Our stories need to be a strong signal if they are to stand out from the noise.

And it isn’t just about the narrative. It’s about how that narrative gets to where it needs to be. It’s about how that story lives in whatever medium it is told in.

Audience-driven insights

There are three underpinning insights that will most likely dominate narrative trends in 2024.

The general frustration in a post-truth era. 

Not knowing what narrative is true, having stories that reach us devoid of crucial context, and faced by an overwhelming stream of contradictory information, audiences will respond positively to anything that appears unequivocal. This is further complicated by the era of generative AI. As audiences are exposed to more content that’s generated by minds made of silicon, their ability to discern what’s real, what’s human, and what’s been made up by machines continues to sow doubt.

Lack of time, lack of interest

Consumers oscillate between being very busy or being bored – both states welcoming brevity over depth. While this has plenty to do with the behavioural shift towards doomscrolling, it still favours concise storytelling that grabs attention.

Data privacy determinism

Finally, there is the reluctance of audiences to go on trading large amounts of information about themselves in exchange for products such as social networks. This trend is, for now, on the fringe compared to the other two but it will have consequences on the way we tell our stories.

Market-driven insights

Particularly in B2B marketing, more marketers are citing a lack of resources as their major stumbling block. With an ever-expanding set of tools at our disposal, the spectre of a recession, and narrower margins almost across the board, this comes as no surprise. 

There has also been a steady rise in the use of paid media. While smart content marketing and first-party data strategies reduce the dependency on paid media, a surprising number of marketers admit to operating without at least a 12-month plan, let alone a strategy for sustainable communication.

On the other side is the ubiquity of artificial intelligence, giving small marketing teams the tools they need to punch well above their weight, saving money on content writing, planning, and even the need for additional human resources. This is a big thing – AI has become part of the marketing tech stack within a shorter timeframe than any technology has.

This time last year we weren’t speaking about AI unless it was in very specific and very tech-oriented spaces. This year, 3 out of 4 of those working in B2B marketing say that they use at least one AI tool at work.

As resources appear to shrink and new tools emerge to help the industry do more with less, we should be seeing briefer, more punchy pieces of content that, happily, suit the ever-shrinking amount of time audiences are willing to give up.

On top of this is the sheer volume of data that is available to anyone who wants to communicate. Narratives that are driven by data will be the ones that reach their target with the highest degree of precision, winning on cost-effectiveness and efficacy.

Narrative Trends in 2024

Trend 1: Inter-ACT

• Interactive content saw 52.6% more engagement than static content
• 52% of marketers find interactive emails as the most effective form of marketing.
• 88% of marketers see interactive content as a way to differentiate themselves

The data is clear on this and it isn’t surprising. In an era where most of our distribution platforms are interactive, there is little reason to produce static content, particularly when interactive content sees over 50% more engagement than static content. 

The same applies to interactive emails, with over half of marketers experiencing more engagement from interactive emails than static ones.

What is surprising about this trend is that it sounds obvious and yet marketers seem reluctant to go the extra mile and think in terms of interactivity. Broadcast media like TV and radio had a good run that lasted decades but their time as dominant players is over. Thinking like broadcast is the only method of reaching an audience is to remain stuck in a time when today’s tools aren’t available.

You’ve seen influencers try their hand at interactivity: “What’s your favourite ice-cream flavour?” As simple as this sounds, it is an invitation to interaction with the lowest barrier to engagement possible.

Let’s learn from this practice (but implement it better) by thinking of friction. If we produce interactive content, we must give audiences the pathway to reach out that has the least friction possible. Let us make it easy and interesting for our audiences to interact and be sure to offer a good reason (read ‘reward’) for them to reach out.

In a sea of one-way comms, interactive content is a chief differentiating factor. It tells your audiences that you’re up for conversation and, done well, it tells them what kind of chat you’d be happy to have. It turns your brand into that person we’d meet for a coffee, knowing a good conversation is to be had. 

And that’s the start of a friendship right there.

Trend 2: Authentically Human

• 51% of marketers consider differentiating their content the biggest challenge with the rise of AI tools.
• 54% find the amount of content available overwhelming, but find the quality lacking
• 31% of marketers find AI-generated content quality to be lacking

During the time when fast-food restaurants were on the rise, traditional restaurants tried to differentiate themselves by writing ‘home-made lasagna’ on their menu boards. 

We knew it wasn’t true but we willingly bought into the distinction.

As AI-generated content improves in its coherence and quality, it is becoming harder to tell what’s been made by a person and what’s been generated by an AI. Meta has launched a series of AI influencers, each able to interact with millions of humans at the same time without missing a beat.

The chances are that a third of the content you’ve read today has been, at least in part, created by an inanimate device. And this is set to increase as more and more of the workforce climbs over the perception hurdles and adopts this tech in some form or another.

The result is that there will be more efforts to distinguish AI-made content from human-made content. 

And content that can be verifiably created by a human will score points for authenticity.

This is not to say there is anything wrong with machine-made content. It is simply an echo of the way humanity reacts to new technologies. When every leather handbag was stitched by a human hand, there was little to distinguish one from the other. Now that machines stitch most bags, the handmade becomes more valuable.

This blog was written entirely by a pair of human hands and a kitten’s paws      sfl,,,,,.                                 Bv jik eeeerrrrttt

Trend 3: Brevity is the soul

• 94% of marketers agree that short articles is the most popular form of content
• 95% of all content distribution happens on social media
• 47% of marketers put all their content in images

We are all competing for attention all the time. We are also afflicted by an epidemic of ever-decreasing attention spans.

This ushers the era of short headline-style content that conveys as much information as possible in as short a consumption moment as possible. By ‘headline-style’ we mean any form of content that one can consume in a very short time. Memes, gifs, zero-click content, images, and short videos all qualify. 

What about long-form content? Longer reads, in-depth podcasts, long-form video, and other forms of narrative that are involving or longer to consume still have their place in telling a complete story. 

We just need to lead to them with a much shorter hook.

This should not be an issue for content creators. It is good practice to find the shortest possible way to convey a message while retaining clarity and all necessary information. As the trend towards brevity gains more traction, cunning storytellers will find new ways of telling short-form narratives.

Ultra-short form, the blink-and-you’ll-miss-it form of content, is something of a novelty in mainstream comms but it has been quite standard in niche and closed-group circles, especially those composed exclusively of Gen Z and younger individuals. The move from niche to mainstream is inevitable and we will see more content that’s ultra-brief, usually depending on a link to an established narrative that we, the audience, are already aware of. Think of this kind of content as a mass-appeal in-joke.

Another useful angle to this trend is the creation of micro-moments within longer narratives. These serve as little breaks, giving our audiences a short reprieve from longer form content in the shape of a snack-sized piece of content that’s there to distract for a moment. Micro-moments can be informative, entertaining, or even a simple change in content delivery method (like a 5 second video within a blog post) and that help keep our audiences engaged for a little longer as they skip down the path of your defined user journey.

In essence, however, brevity is an ever-appreciating commodity:

1. Scrap useless words (or scrap words completely)
2. Lead with a benefit
3. Consider the appropriate platform
4. Link to a wider story
5. Grab attention in 5 seconds or less

Trend 4: Data destiny

• Data storytelling has increased by 233%.
• 93% agree that data storytelling boosts revenue.
• Consumers are 63% more likely to remember data if it’s presented as a story.

We’ve had accurate and real-time consumer data available to us for decades now. We’re used to data feeding into accurate targeting, consumer insights, and campaign optimisation, to mention just a few ways in which data carves the messaging we create. But having much more data available to us is not enough to form an emerging trend.

The trend is being shaped by data storytelling itself. Presenting data alone isn’t enough. There is no story to a statement that says “62% of consumers prefer this drink to its competitor”. A story alone is interesting but it is much more captivating when backed up by real numbers. And this is the basis of data storytelling – the way we can use data as a component of an engaging narrative.

Over the past 5 years, data storytelling has grown by 233%. Which forms the shape of a gentle trend but this is set to grow significantly next year as the technology that’s available to us boosts this trend from multiple angles.

The intelligence that was needed to properly harness data for storytelling purposes was reserved for companies with deep enough pockets to afford powerful Business Intelligence and market research capabilities. As AI services become affordable to all, the ability to spot behavioural patterns in huge datasets reaches the masses.

Tugging this trend from a completely different angle, but pulling it in the same direction, is the ever-increasing epistemological crisis – we simply don’t know what the truth is any more. Data-driven storytelling is one way to let the market know that what you’re saying is rooted in an unquestionable truth.

Another way of looking at this trend is a shift of narrative from the ‘what’ to the ‘why’, particularly in the case of B2B narratives. It takes us from “this is what people do with this product” to “this is why people change their minds and here is the data to prove it”.

Finally, there is much to do with the way our brains are wired. While we tend to understand the numbers, we don’t remember them. We are 22 times more likely to recall a story than numbers alone. The linking of story and data is a combination that bends credibility with memorability and it is this confluence that will create powerful narratives going into 2024.

There’s more

The trends that have been shaping up over the past few years are digging in deeper and turning from trends into mainstays of commercial narrative.

The desire for authenticity and transparency isn’t going anywhere. If anything, it is being reinforced by the difficulty our audiences experience with being certain about what is real. Deep fakes, AI personalities, the distorted narratives around politicised events, and all other forces that distort the stories that describe our world raise more questions than they answer. Demonstrable authenticity, aided by data-driven storytelling, will form the mainstays of the stories that matter.

This demand for authenticity will favour human-led narratives and put even more value on the local and the hyperlocal. The closer to home a story appears to be, the more likely we believe it to be authentic and relatable.

In the same vein, the humanity of our narratives, the ability of our content to be consistent with who the organisation is, what it stands for, and how it is different from all others, will be the currency by which the greatest stories are measured.

Finally, we remain ever hopeful that this will be the year of A/V/XR, the year when the market finally sees excellent VR hardware at mass-market pricing, paving the way for truly immersive content. Apple’s launch of their high end device is little more than a proof of concept and was aimed at studios and content developers but a launch of this nature usually portends a shift towards a more widely accessible product. When it happens, a third dimension will really be added to the content we produce and consume.

2024 the year of human lore

The art of storytelling won’t suddenly become more important in 2024. It has always been the way we stood out from the rest of the animals on earth and will continue to do so.

But there are trends that will define the year and they will be greatly influenced by the tools we have at our disposal and the general behavioural patterns of the market.

More than ever before, stories backed by facts and figures in a post-truth world will win on authenticity. We do have more data available to us. Let’s use it wisely to reach the right people with the right message.

The right message is never noise – it feels personal and stands out from the rest of what’s being said by appealing to us in a way that’s respectful of our time (brevity), of our intellect (clearly useful to us), and of our identity (a match in fundamental values).

The right message is also one that honestly promotes diversity, equity, and inclusiveness (DE&I). While this was a brand trend a few years ago, it has gone from the fringe to the boardroom and that will strongly influence the narrative of 2024.

And while this is nothing new, we must endeavour to differentiate by telling a unique story. It seems like one out of every two pieces of content is a repost from another channel. And half of that again is a poor rehash of a trending topic. In a sea of sameness, the original will stand out.

Keep it short. Keep it relevant. Keep it human. Keep it unique.

The post Brand Storytelling Trends in 2024: Back to Basics appeared first on Switch - Digital & Brand.

If you don’t have the time to read this article now, you can download the PDF version of Brand Trends 2024 for free by clicking below. Otherwise, just keep reading.

Brand behaviour plays a game of cat and mouse with whatever is happening in the world around us. 

Most brands follow the zeitgeist. 

Some act in a way that shapes it.

Brand trends in 2024 are a mixed bag. Some trends will simply build on the momentum of trends that are already being shaped while others could surprise us.

One of the trends that will shape brand narratives as we roll into 2024 is brevity. In anticipation of that trend, this will be as concise as possible. If you want to dig deeper into any one of these trends, reach out and we’re happy to provide more context.

Trend 1: Authen-tick

What makes audiences tick? There is a sea of faceless brands and sterile products out there so the ones with a real story stand a better chance of engaging the curiosity of our audiences.

Brands that show authenticity and transparency will come across as human. As we recoil from the overwhelming wave of tech that is cresting, authenticity delivers a clear differentiating factor over brands that are so large that they inevitably collapse into a diffuse narrative of corporate speak and hollow promises.

As always, it is great to lead with benefits. We are, after all, selfish creatures. But we don’t form long-term relationships with benefits alone. For us to form an emotional relationship there needs to be authenticity and a narrative that we can identify with. This will be more important as we enter a period of uncertainty about what is human and what isn’t.

The great thing about this trend is that the majority of brands started with a great story. Sometimes, all it takes is to step back and turn to the original reason for the brand to exist, building an authentic narrative around this in a way that suits the audiences and channels of today.

Trend 2: Immersion 

We are finally entering the golden age of omnichannel brands. VR and AR are one consumer product away from changing the way we interact with the world around us again.

As the porosity of the wall between IRL and virtual experiences continues to increase, the possibilities for brands to be where the audiences are in a rich and immersive way are also in plentiful supply.

Omnichannel immersion is not the death knell for retail. We’ve seen the way consumers behave when a new channel is made available. Online retail did not kill IRL retail. On the contrary, the two channels are entirely complementary. For some, while the final purchase is online, in-store interaction is a decisive factor. Others prefer to browse online and then make a purchase IRL. 

This hybrid is a reflection of who we are as a species. Individually we might have defined preferences but as a whole we are beautifully messy and often unpredictable.

So, while I might want to use AR to see what a pair of Danish speakers will look like in my living room, I will most likely visit a brand store for the final purchase.

VR will add a significantly immersive layer to the spread of experiences available to consumers. With Apple making inroads and Meta stepping up their hardware game at consumer-friendly pricing, 2024 could be the year that sees VR finally become a mainstream reality. And the brands that are ready and waiting will be the ones with significant first-mover advantage.

Trend 3: Personal-AI-zation

As marketers, we have access to huge amounts of data. We also have unprecedented access to very, very intelligent machines. Together, they usher the era of hyper-personalised marketing.

This is not new. We have been progressing, in fits and starts, towards the hallowed audience-of-one. What we have at the output end is machines that can converse in language that approaches that of an average person. This brings conversational marketing for personal customer interaction to the masses. 

The AI-powered customer service rep that’s tuned to our specific personality could finally be the rep that we will actually like.

The gold rush of 2024 will be shaped by those who make the most creative use of the technologies that are flooding our landscape to harness the data that’s already available to us.

Trend 4: Diversity, Equity & Inclusiveness (DE&I)

We have been feeling our way around on these values. Most brands can be accused of missteps but we are finally making proper headway.

While many larger companies thought it was fine to pay lip service to DE&I, consumers are now demanding that these values be more than a marketing campaign. The thinking in the boardroom must wholly embrace a more equitable view of the world and this is the way beliefs are changed. This is the way beliefs lead to appropriate behaviour and communication. This is how everyone feels represented and respected.

Of course, there will be those that attempt to buck the trend – the right-wing  anti-woke will dig in and make their voice heard. And the stronger this faction digs in, the better for the trend in favour of DE&I because contrast is a powerful driver of perception.

Trend 5: Sustainability / Ethical practice

The idea of putting all the ‘doing good’ into one bucket and hoping for the best is slowly going out of the window. We are splitting environmental and ethical manufacture from social issues and, in the longer term, there will be even more fragmentation. 

This is a good thing.

We rebranded CSR to ESG when CSR was seen for what it truly is. CSR was a bolt-on set of activities that companies paid for to divert attention from the truth about their activity. And ESG will also see its day but it won’t be this year.

2024 will see even more demand for sustainable practices as consumers put their money where their mouth is. More and more consumers state that they are prepared to pay more for a product that is ethically manufactured. And once consumers put their hands in their pockets, brands will deliver on the demand.

Trend 6: Less is again more

This has more to do with brand expression, with a particular emphasis on visual identity and brand communication. Historically, we have gone in cycles that broadly swing from maximal to minimal. The excesses of Art Deco gave way to a pared back Art Nouveau. The gradients of the nineties were replaced by flat vector illustration when we’d had enough of it. 

It appears as though we’re diving right back into the minimal end of the cycle. This means a search for memorability through symbolism and meaning rather than maximalism, with strong colour palettes to keep the excitement going.

This ties in with the overall fatigue that could very well be afflicting our audiences. With so much going on all the time, a minimal approach to visual expression could present itself as a soothing break from the constant visual stimulation.

Trend 7: Get shorty

One more expression of the trends that are in favour of brevity and minimalism is the rise of the micro-moment – short videos, memes, tiny brand experiences, and other snack-sized pieces of content that serve as a little distraction.

To be more specific, microinteractions give a little dose of instant gratification – they deliver a tiny shot of dopamine that keeps audiences’ attention focused. 

Micro-moments can take the form of a clever or unusual CTA, cute error messages, unusual UI behaviours, or any form of little reward that is at least mildly surprising or unexpected.

Trend 8: Purpose-full

More than ever before, purpose-driven brands will be the ones that emerge victorious in 2024. This is a trend that’s adjacent to authenticity but it is not the same thing. Brands that are led by purpose more than anything else are visibly committed to their reason for existence.

This drives a clear sense of focus in the minds of its audiences. A brand that digs deep into its reason for existence and acts purely in accordance with this purpose is one that is evidently out for more than profit. 

Of course, without profit a brand cannot exist. 

But that cannot be its only goal.

Too many brands lose their way after a while. These are the ones we vaguely remember but don’t consider as part of our lives any more. 

A few brands keep their purpose alive. Think of Toms, Lego, The Body Shop, GoPro, and other brands that have been unwavering over decades. These are the ones we have a continued relationship with. They are the brands we think of as having a clear space in our minds. They benefit from the almighty one-two combo of focus and differentiation. We know their place in our lives and we know what makes them different from every other brand in their space. These are purpose-driven brands.

Why do brand trends matter so much going into 2024?

While it is always important for brands to be fully in tune with their purpose at all times, it counts more when the going gets tough. 

The spectre of an economic downturn is looming. 

We’d be reckless to ignore the metrics and hope for the best. In times of strife, our audiences are more cautious with their purchases and will limit these to those entities they feel they can have a personal connection with – the entities that have a clear resolve.

The Wildcard

This is not really a trend for 2024. It is more a hopeful speculation based on the way we see the world around us.

Take this with a bucket of salt. 

But if you are responsible for a brand that has clout, think about it as a possibility.

Never has there been so much technological and economic advancement. And yet, all this plenty isn’t having the impact it should on our environment, on economic equanimity, and on social justice.

In the absence of the political will to address these issues, a handful of brands out there are taking matters into their own hands and driving the change they would like to see around them. We are privileged to work with a couple of clients that think this way and it drives us to do some of our best work. Even if this ‘trend’ is no more than a little stir, it is a start.

Brand Trends 2024: Wrapping it all up

2024 will see brands look inwards for a good look at their purpose and the truth behind the stories they tell. It will also see brands look outwards at the preferences of their audiences and put more focus on brevity and short-term gratification. 

Bringing these two viewpoints together will be the mighty and unstoppable force that emerging technologies are bringing with them – AI and A/V/XR giving us unprecedented granularity and immersion.

The post Brand Trends 2024 appeared first on Switch - Digital & Brand.

We inherit the wisdom of those who came before us. It is then up to us to challenge this and add to it, with the intent of leaving something more valuable for the ones who will take on our wisdom.

This does not happen half as often as it should.

Take the word ‘brand’ itself. We have inherited this word from the farmer who thought that using a red-hot piece of metal to mark his cattle was a good way of keeping tabs on his property. It was a barbaric practice, but we just carry on using the word regardless.

It is also a slightly useless word. To some it means ‘logo’. To others it means ‘the very fundamentals upon which a company’s reputation is built’. Until we have a single definition that we can all abide by, it remains a little too broad for comfort.

Brand is not marketing

Today we will start with another myth about brand – that the responsibility for brand resides with the marketing department.

In the beginning, brand was lumped with marketing because it included a logo and a colour palette – traditionally the marketing people were weird enough to enjoy that stuff – and there it stuck. In time, the word ‘brand’ and the word ‘logo’ were used interchangeably.

However, brand is much more than a visual expression. 

Brand is behavioural. It is the sum total of the behaviours of every individual who works for the company (or product), if we want to get a little more specific. That, along with the product/service itself, make up the totality of the brand.

While this might sound like a very inclusive definition – it is. In reality, brand also resides in the hearts and minds of its audiences. It is what they say it is. And they perceive our brand as a result of their experiences with our product and the humans they interact with along the journey from demand to purchase to post-purchase.

Brand does have an aspect of it that is handled by marketing but it is a small part of what the term represents. We can trace all the elements that a brand is composed of and figure out which parts should reside with the marketing people.

It starts in the boardroom

Working from the inside out, brand makes its way to marketing this way:

• Every team member is motivated by the reason for the existence of the company – this is brand purpose. Brand purpose starts in the boardroom and trickles outwards from there.
• Every team member behaves in accordance with the brand’s core values or principles. This, too, must be lived by the board and executive branch of the company.
• Products and services are designed to fulfil the brand’s purpose.
• Products and services are aligned with the brand’s values.
• Communication is designed and produced in accordance with the brand’s values as well as its personality and tone of voice.
• Communication is finally given the brand identity treatment – its colours and logo and fonts and all other aspects of its expression are prepared in accordance with the brand guidelines

Using this journey from the boardroom to the billboard, we can see that it’s the last two steps in the journey that are the responsibility of the marketers.

If your boardroom does not get brand, there is a strong chance that your organisation is not growing at least at the pace of the market. In many cases, this is equivalent to a slow slide backwards.

The boardroom is also solely responsible for growth of brand equity. Trying to pawn this enormous burden onto the marketing department is tantamount to abdication.

I was chatting with a friend and the subject of running shoes came up. I suggested a brand and a model that I felt would be the best ‘fit’, as it were, for the purpose. She said she’d never purchase a shoe of that brand locally and that she either orders them online or buys the brand when she’s abroad. I was intrigued and asked for a detailed reason why. It turned out that the brand is represented by a chain of sports stores that ran a body shaming campaign about five years ago. The campaign, in her memory, said something like ‘your ass looks big in those shorts’.

This account shows us that clients view marketing as the final expression of the way a company thinks and behaves. The campaign tells us that the boardroom is fine with this kind of thinking.

Someone thought about this campaign, someone approved the production and the budget, someone saw it in the wild and was fine with it. The company simply wasn’t aligned with the values of its audience. And now, if it is to win a client back, it has to work at least twice as hard to change their mind.

Truth be told

Brand starts in the boardroom. It is an honest manifestation of the core beliefs of the organisation’s leadership. Whether the executive arm of the company is aware of it or not, they are responsible for the way every person at every touchpoint conveys the spirit of the organisation. It is indeed a great burden and the biggest brands in the world are the ones where this awareness drives every decision.

From the boardroom, the principles and the ethos work their way, steadily and deliberately, to marketing. The reverse direction is a recipe for eventual dilution of brand equity, and this is a best-case scenario. At worst, it can spell disaster for a brand – and when it does spell disaster, reparations will, once again, start in the boardroom and then make their way to marketing.

We should indeed update the wisdom we’ve inherited. The sooner we shift the responsibility of brand from anywhere in the company onto the boardroom table, the sooner that organisation can see a steady and sustainable growth in brand equity.

And we know that brand equity counts. While it falls under the appalling misnomer of ‘intangibles’ in accounting terms, it accounts for the largest proportion of value of the most powerful companies on earth.

The post Brand is Not Marketing appeared first on Switch - Digital & Brand.

New tools have come and gone and the way we think of design has, while zigging and zagging, remained consistent over millennia. From the first tools and temples to the cities designed by the Greeks and the Romans and the Mayans, we have endeavoured to keep a healthy balance between form and function to solve the problems that surround us.

The printing press did not change the way we think about reading but it did give reading to the masses. A single new ‘design’ gave way to widespread literacy, changing the world and arguably leading directly to the internet.

But the longer answer relates to how we engage with design. It deals with the way the new tools are heading our way and how these could result in a significant shift in the way we perceive our roles in the design process.

Design thinking is expanding in scope

Design is a term with an immense scope. From drug design to graphic design, from residential interiors to Mars rovers, and from movie sets to fashion design, designers the world over apply their knowledge and the principles of good design to coming up with the stuff that shapes our world. All of these areas of practice are already making use of AI assistance. We have been successful in training machines to take on the problems that are too big for us to solve and to leverage huge computational power into solving the issue for us.

This is not new thinking. When we ran out of the limitations of our arms and legs, we designed and built the machines that carved out the industrial revolution. We could build taller structures, make more stuff and do so quickly, travel faster and farther, and in general unshackle ourselves from the physical limitations of our species.

Now, with AI taking a shape that more of us can use and understand, we are taking the next logical step and reaching beyond the limitations of our minds.

AI has been around for a while

AI is not new and it has been in use for a relatively long time in tech terms. If you use banking, social media, air travel, even the power grids in more advanced countries, you have been making use of neural networks with machine learning ability. The most efficient and hard-working systems that silently make our lives easier and more convenient are running some form of artificial intelligence but we are not able to look under the hood and notice.

What’s changed is that we can now ‘talk to’ an AI and get it to do our bidding. You’ve probably heard of DALL-E – the first image generator that we could speak to using plain English and that would generate images in a matter of seconds. A few months later it was the time for ChatGPT to make waves.

AI tools are more accessible than ever

But there are many, many more examples of AI-powered tools that are available to us, most of which have the ability to perform a single function very well. The easiest to get to grips with are the tools that exist as a subset of tools we use every day.

Take all the new neural filters that are inside Photoshop, or the integration of ChatGPT within Notion and Bing, the way photography stock libraries are giving access to generative image AI services, and other examples of the ready availability of AI that’s already making our lives easier.

There are also the useful tools that are making our workflow quicker and easier, the apps that take the repetitive or the boring and just make it happen while we’re doing other things. Designs.ai, Adobe Sensei, UIzard, Sketch2code, and all the apps out there that put a machine learning system at your disposal to automate the drudgery are there to give our minds better things to do. One could argue that these tools should and will become more pervasive as we apply our minds to really creative work.

Shifting behaviours

From a design perspective, there are more creative tools out there that are changing the way we work and, sometimes, the process with which we reach creative choices. Take using Midjourney or ChatGPT as a sparring partner, as a tool with which you can share ideas and dump the contents of an absurd idea onto to see what comes out. This is a behavioural shift. We previously ‘edited’ these ideas and then shared them with our peers. We pitched writing prompts, shared early sketch work, showed prototype models, sent over advanced drafts of a research paper… usually when it got to a point where we were seeking affirmation of our thinking more than anything.

Of course, doing so with an open mind, and selecting the people who we consider like-minded, made the process an integral part of the creative journey. Most design adds onto the work of our peers or of those who came before us.

Machines don’t judge, don’t get tired…

In the case of using AI as a member of the creative team, there is no need for affirmation, there is no fear of exhaustion or rejection or judgement – one can simply dump their intentions on whatever tool is available and see what comes out at the other end. Many times, it’s rubbish. Sometimes it’s predictable. But there are those times when the AI misfires in a way that is genuinely inspiring and this is where the magic can happen. At its least useful, it shortens the delay between thought and execution. And when we see it at its best it is a beautiful synergy between human and machine that creates what we’re already calling art.

This has been seen across the world of design. The impossible architecture, fashion, urban contexts, graphic art, and photography that is being created by the sudden rise of the AI artist is already an inspiration. It sows fear in those afraid of change but, to those with a grasp of the way the world works, it is a source of inspiration and imagination.

Work with the tools, not against them

The best work out there is being created by those who have taken to the tools like a fish takes to the sea and they have learned how to wrangle these unpredictable, often infuriating tools into submission, coaxing beauty out of the right combination of seed images and text prompts.

Once again, this is not new. Given the same paintbrush used to paint the Mona Lisa, I will still create a terrible stick figure. The best design has never been about the tools. It has always been about the brains that put the tool to task.

This time around, it’s a more complex and almost literally a more cerebral set of tools we’re dealing with so the knee-jerk reactions will be stronger. But it doesn’t change the way we think about design. It changes the way we integrate with the tools. And the sooner we realise that it’s up to us to make our silicon-based progeny help us create our best work, the sooner we will get to sharing it with the world.

The post 2023 is the year of AI. Could it change the way we think of design? appeared first on Switch - Digital & Brand.