Crafting Concepts e-learning

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

INSIGHT: Seek inspiration and opportunities from all corners of the brand
triangle…

Through the Purpose Through the lens of
perspective of the (Brand your brand and its
product POV)
possibilities The People purpose
We Serve
Through the eyes
of your people:

their lives and their
culture

Product Human
Truth Truth

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

…to get to powerful INSIGHTS that fuel bestsellers and behaviour change

In a world of pseudo-science,
even pleasure needs proving

Purpose
(Brand
POV)
The People
We Serve

Product Human
Truth Truth

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

…to get to powerful INSIGHTS that fuel bestsellers and behaviour change

The problem Purpose
with meatballs (Brand
is that they fall POV)
apart when I try The People
to make them. We Serve
So I don’t.
Product Human
Truth Truth

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

…to get to powerful INSIGHTS that fuel bestsellers and behaviour change

Purpose People who need to use a
(Brand deodorant every day are those
POV) that don’t wash regularly or
The People who are always out and about
We Serve in the heat. I shower every
morning, which keeps me
fresh all day.

Product Human
Truth Truth

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

We need to create fertile space for generating fresh connections and IDEAS

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

Work with the detail to get to the simple:
Universal appeal starts with A SPECIFIC IDEA

To end up …you need to
here (broad start here
appeal for a
mass-market (a specific and
brand)… interesting
idea)

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

Capture ideas not just as words – make and draw the idea so to make it
more real and impactful!

Why don’t we just Is this how the
write people’s Starbucks idea
might first have
names on the cups, been expressed
like this.. when someone
thought of it?

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

Prepare space, time and stimulus for ideation, remembering:

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

When you look at the stimulus in an ideation session, ask yourself:

What have I seen that we are aware of but not used (under utilised insight
or idea)?

What surprised me or made me think twice?

What made me most excited?

What did I see or hear that I don’t quite know what to do with but couldn’t
help it lodging in the back of my mind?

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

Capture the idea and its ’roots’

When you capture ideas, remember to also
capture the observation that sits behind it and

the insight that you believe it responds to
Sometimes the idea,
comes before the
insight..

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

Inspire ideas & insights: MAKING CHOICES

JtbD or Business
Opportunity

INSPIRE Branded idea, rooted Explore many ideas to get to chosen few
Insights in an insight, that
and Keep stimulus rough – emphasis is on
ideas fascinates our people exploring, understanding and selecting, not
validating

Use visuals, sketches and rough prototypes

Understand which ideas & elements
fascinate and WHY

Your CMI partner will help you identify the
right methodology

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
What makes a Build your Inspire Shape the Craft
great concept? Insight and proposition the Concept
brand Ideas

INSPIRE SHAPE CRAFT

Insights Proposition Concept
and ideas

4

Unlock the Magic
Shape the
Proposition

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

Shape the proposition: THE STARTING POINT

Branded idea, rooted in
an insight, that

fascinates our people

SHAPE
The
Proposition

Single-minded, clear and people-
centric proposition that captures

the magic of the idea

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

What are you proposing to the person in front of you?

Bestseller Concept

A fuller, beautifully crafted proposition fully visualised

Proposition

The idea expressed, in words, as a tight
offer or benefit that the person will get

Idea

A fresh connection

Insight

Powerful truth
that changes the
way we see things

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

Why are propositions so important? 4
Why don’t we just go from idea to concept?

Without the sharpness and clarity
of a proposition as a starting point,
it becomes very difficult to write a

strong, single-minded concept

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

‘IS, THAT, FOR’: a simple approach for creating sharp, single-minded
propositions

One sentence
written for her.
On brand (very)
Single-minded.

Think
‘is..that..for..’

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

An example: Magnum Infinity

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

Digitally born brands do this well: look at these PPC ads – they are all
effectively clear & motivating propositions

WHAT MAKES A GOOD PROPOSITION? Let’s have a go at judging some 5

Over to you: mins
Judge the propositions on the next slides.

Are they good or bad?

What makes them good or bad?

Over to you:
Good or bad? Why?

Over to you:
Good or bad? Why?

Over to you:
Good or bad? Why?

Over to you: Do you agree with these comments?

This is clear but the language feels like
marketing rather than consumer-speak.

This is a slogan, not a proposition. It is
impossible to know what is being offered

(it’s a deodorant).
Writing straplines and slogans is
probably the most common mistake

when writing propositions.

This is clear and single-minded.

Over to you:
Take the concept you are working on, or most recently worked
on and put it into the ‘IS, THAT, FOR’ format.

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

Shape the proposition: MAKING CHOICES

Branded idea, rooted in Only pursue propositions that
an insight, that fascinates • are truly people centric
• offer a new and differentiating
our people
benefit
SHAPE linked to the brand
The • retain the magic of the original idea
Proposition • can be expressed simply in ‘normal-
speak’ (ie not marketing slogans)
Single-minded, clear and
people-centric proposition Run your propositions past a colleague
or a friend – it’s easy to lose
that captures perspective!
the magic of the idea

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
What makes a Build your Inspire Shape the Craft
great concept? Insight and proposition the Concept
brand Ideas

INSPIRE SHAPE CRAFT

Insights Proposition Concept
and ideas

5

Craft
the Concept

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

Crafting the full concept

Single-minded, clear and people-
centric proposition that captures

the magic of the idea

CRAFT
The
Concept

A fully crafted concept - language
that captures hearts, visuals that

speak a thousand words

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

From the PROPOSITION, we craft the CONCEPT, making sure we don’t lose
the magic and power of the INSIGHT and IDEA

Bestseller
A fuller, beautifulCly ocrnafcteedpprtoposition fully visualised

Proposition

The idea expressed, in words, as a tight
offer or benefit that the person will get

Idea

A fresh connection

Insight

Powerful truth
that changes the
way we see things

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

Building from the proposition:
How do you craft an inspiring & simple concept?

Tell a coherent story Bring your benefit to life Move beyond words
through layers of richness
Like stories, concepts need to be Show it, don’t tell it.
coherent and engaging. Don’t complicate the simplicity Persuade.
of the proposition.

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

Let’s start by focusing on the logic of the concept

The logic Tell a coherent story

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

The hard facts from Bases: Storytelling and logic matters

Concept Hook
(Insight statement)

Source:
Bases

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

The simplicity of a concept comes from its COHERENCY AND LOGIC:
introducing simple framework to road test the LOGIC

Concept Hook

Bestseller Concept

Proposition
Idea
Insight

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

All great concepts have magic and logic.

Make sure that the magic of the insight and idea is captured in the benefit

Concept Hook

Bestseller Concept

Proposition
Idea
Insight

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

Unpicking the elements of the concept:
The hook – inviting people into your story

Concept Hook Benefit & RTB

The invitation TThheeempaotyioonfafl Emotional
to the concept b(wenhetafhittehriHesesOripn)OonKitdfsotor Benefit

ThTehefufunnccttiioonnaal l Functional
bbeenneffiittuunndedreprinpsitnhse Benefit

tehmeoetiomnoaltbioenneaflit
benefit

ThTehReTRB esuapspoonrtTs othe Reason to
Befulniecvtioensaul bpepnoefritts believe

the benefit

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

The Hook is not necessarily the same as the INSIGHT but is likely to be
inspired by it

Insight

One of the hardest things
about ageing is that your
body ages faster than your
mind – you look older to the
people around you than you

actually feel.

Hooks tend to be (hook from Dove Hair concept)
product/category
generic. Insights tend Concept
to be much broader Hook
human truths.

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

Unpicking the elements of the concept:
The benefit: What does your product do and why would people want to use

Hook Benefit & RTB

The invitation The pay off Emotional
to the concept (what is in it for Benefit

her)

The functional benefit Functional
underpins the Benefit

emotional benefit

The Reason To Reason to
Believe supports believe

the functional
benefit

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

Before we write: Bestseller benefits should…

Be emotionally compelling, not just functionally relevant
Be differentiated from existing offers, truly incremental for users
Be competitive, better than and more desirable than others
Build our brand equity consistently, so credible

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

Concepts must go beyond purely functional benefits to seduce and fascinate

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

Unpicking the elements of the concept:
The Reason to Believe – credibility persuades

Hook Benefit & RTB

The invitation The pay-off Emotional
to the concept. (what’s in it Benefit

for her)

The functional Functional
benefit underpins Benefit

the emotional
benefit

The Reason To Reason to
Believe supports believe

the benefit

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

Reasons to believe – less is more..

Multiple RTBs are the biggest source of overload- often means multiple ideas –
no single-mindedness.
RTBs can become a trap with details that excite you but leave consumers cold.
Manufacturers love ‘technospeak’, but real people don’t…
The best RTBs may be visual, especially showing mode of action. Prompt
sensorial cues. Understand semiotic meaning.
A coherent story is often the best way of making your benefit believable

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

Crafting the concept: An example from Knorr

Will I remember it? Can I say what it Will it motivate me to
is about? do anything different?

NB created for training purposes

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

Crafting the concept: Grounded in a true insight & idea

Bestseller Concept The
specialness of
Proposition family dinners
Idea
Insight to mothers

Being able to do a good roast NB created for training purposes
chicken is important because
it’s a dish that is carved and
shared around the dinner table.

It’s one of the foods that
many women associate with

childhood and the love
of their mothers

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

Crafting the concept:
The proposition is written by and FOR a real person (not marketing speak!)

Bestseller Concept

Proposition
Idea
Insight

NB created for training purposes

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

Crafting the concept:
Road-testing the LOGIC of the concept through the framework

Bestseller Concept My roast chicken never Roast chicken
tastes as good as my the way my mum used
Proposition mum’s used to to make it so that my

Idea whole family find it
delicious
Insight
Perfectly juicy &
tender

The seasoning mix &
baking bag lock in the

moisture & flavour

Introduction 1: What Makes a Great Concept? 2: Build Your Brand 3: Unlock the Magic – Inspire Ideas and Insights 4: Unlock the Magic - Shape the Proposition 5: Craft the Concept

Make your concepts mini stories. It is the greatest driver of persuasion.

Over to you: De-construct and ‘road-test’ this OMO concept,
using the LOGIC framework on the next page

Over to you:Write the headings of the boxes on a piece of
paper and start to complete them

Do you agree with this?

Why do you think the
emotional benefit is absent?