Bet the farm
I recently read a story about a local developer in the Minneapolis, MN market who made a huge investment (in the millions) to build and advertise their new branded development. Comparatively, most developers and builders don't even consider a budget of this magnitude.
The story as told in the newspaper describes the creative process taken by a local advertising firm to develop the image. Yes, they believed that an image could lure couples to the development. Despite the objections of the developer, the agency continued down the path of developing a broad reaching brand.
The objections centered around the history of the actual property. Once the biggest farm in the state with prize-winning horses, a growing dairy business, and housing of German POW's during WWII. The desire was to keep an appreciation of the land in what would be a high-end farmstyle home development (in the vain of other traditional neighborhood designed communities).
"You can't live in the past. You can't have $750,000 to $1,000,000 homes with old technology". "You want a house in the 21st century. In the end, this is not a historic site." And with a brush of these words the history was revised -more like eliminated by the advertising agency.
The developer originally dreamed of making this a nostalgic place to live. A place were people feel grounded, and feel a sense of history in a neighborhood dotted by authentic and historic buildings.
In their rush, if you call a 1 year development plan a rush, the creative folks threw out the baby with the bath water. What had tremendous potential for an experience based community, was dashed by the limited imagination of an advertising agency. In their limited worldview they did not think the essence of the site was relevant - more important were fonts, colors, and image selections.
We wish the developer would have stuck to their guns and built the experience they new in their gut. However, they deferred to the "wisdom" of the marketers. And as a result the site has forever been re-branded in the name of ego, and a resonating message of the developments history erased.
Experience destinations are a growing phenomena, and will continue to grow in scale and numbers in the years to come. And, this scares the hell out of many marketing folks - not all, but many. So, consider your options carefully when assembling your next projects creative team. At a minimum, you will want to include an experience architect.
By the way, the first couple through the doors were from the area, new the property, and just wanted to stop by and see it themselves. Not a stich of advertising brought them through the door...
The story as told in the newspaper describes the creative process taken by a local advertising firm to develop the image. Yes, they believed that an image could lure couples to the development. Despite the objections of the developer, the agency continued down the path of developing a broad reaching brand.
The objections centered around the history of the actual property. Once the biggest farm in the state with prize-winning horses, a growing dairy business, and housing of German POW's during WWII. The desire was to keep an appreciation of the land in what would be a high-end farmstyle home development (in the vain of other traditional neighborhood designed communities).
"You can't live in the past. You can't have $750,000 to $1,000,000 homes with old technology". "You want a house in the 21st century. In the end, this is not a historic site." And with a brush of these words the history was revised -more like eliminated by the advertising agency.
The developer originally dreamed of making this a nostalgic place to live. A place were people feel grounded, and feel a sense of history in a neighborhood dotted by authentic and historic buildings.
In their rush, if you call a 1 year development plan a rush, the creative folks threw out the baby with the bath water. What had tremendous potential for an experience based community, was dashed by the limited imagination of an advertising agency. In their limited worldview they did not think the essence of the site was relevant - more important were fonts, colors, and image selections.
We wish the developer would have stuck to their guns and built the experience they new in their gut. However, they deferred to the "wisdom" of the marketers. And as a result the site has forever been re-branded in the name of ego, and a resonating message of the developments history erased.
Experience destinations are a growing phenomena, and will continue to grow in scale and numbers in the years to come. And, this scares the hell out of many marketing folks - not all, but many. So, consider your options carefully when assembling your next projects creative team. At a minimum, you will want to include an experience architect.
By the way, the first couple through the doors were from the area, new the property, and just wanted to stop by and see it themselves. Not a stich of advertising brought them through the door...
3 Comments:
What a great and tragic example of the negative power of ego over spirit.
As you say here, Kyle, in the rush of our lives we lose so much that is of value because we cover up what we really believe and defer to "the powers that be."
What's really funny is that it's all made up anyway! Let's alter "reality" and make up a new game with our organizations and our families and start using all three of our brains - our heart brain and our gut brain in addition to the head brain, which usually has that darn ego attached.
" (in the vain of other traditional neighborhood designed communities)."
I'm sure you mean "vein".
I have been following the Brandtjen Farms story through the St. Paul Pioneer Press for months now, and you are spot on. From the start of the project, the developers had a very clear idea of the type of neighborhood they wanted to create. They wanted to take the best of city neighborhoods; sidewalks, alleys, houses close the the strreet, etc. and apply them to a new suburban development. To see the ad agency miss the heart of the project is distressing, especially since I would imagine most of the creative types at the agency are city people and brag to their suburban colleagues about how great it is!
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