The much-anticipated EventLAB 2021 took place on Wednesday 24th November 2021. Going hybrid for the first time, we welcomed over 450 eventprofs in-person at Central Hall Westminster and digitally on Arena for our annual thought-leadership event, this year focusing on what the events world needs to build back stronger than ever.
During the day we welcomed some incredible speakers from across the industry to share their expert knowledge and advice across a range of discussions. One of these experts was Kuba Wieczorek, Co-Founder and former CMO of eve sleep, who led the opening keynote on how to build a successful brand.
Watch the full session below and read on for the key takeaways.
Table of Contents
1. Watch The Discussion
2. Key Takeaways
3. About The Speaker
Watch The Discussion
Key Takeaways
The future hasn't changed
The short answer to the question 'What is the future of brand building?' is that it's exactly the same as it always has been: the fundamentals of building a brand haven't changed in 200 years.
So, what exactly is a brand? A brand is not a logo, a product, or a visual identity. To quote David Ogilvy, a brand is the consumer's idea of a product, which is an extremely important notion to bear in mind when building your own brand.
Know your consumer
One of Kuba's top three lessons is to know who you're talking to! It's so easy to become wrapped up in your product and forget who your consumer is. One of the best examples of a brand that truly knows their consumer is the Umbro goalposts campaign. The ad shows a variety of different settings, whether that's an old fence, two old men sat on two benches, two vans etc, with no explanation or context to what it is.
The genius of this advert is that only their consumer, in this case football lovers, will understand it - all of these seemingly-unconnected objects can be seen as goalposts by those who are passionate about football. Not only do football fans understand this advert, but they are taken back to happy nostalgic memories from their childhoods, which is extremely powerful. Watch the ad.
"When I say know your consumer, I don't just mean demographics - this ad could appeal to 10 year olds as much as it could to 90 year olds. It's not an age thing, it's not a demographic thing, it's an attitude thing."
Kuba Wieczorek
Have a point
Kuba's second brand building lesson is to make sure you have a clear view of what you're trying to achieve, and to not lose that. The world is changing, and the brands that will survive are those that absolutely know who they are, and who hold onto that. For example, the genius of Nike isn't their logo or their products, it's the fact that they've been plugging their slogan 'Just Do It' for 40 years consistently. They know who they are, they stick by it, and that's what makes them the iconic brand they are today.
Be authentic
Closely linked to the second lesson, the final branding lesson from Kuba is to stay true to who you are from the get-go. True authenticity will shine through and is so important in today's society.
An example of a raw, authentic display of a brand's identity is the Channel 4 Superhumans campaign for the 2012 Paralympic Games, which Kuba himself worked on and which was crowned Campaign of the Year at the British Television Advertising Awards and also by Campaign magazine. This campaign doesn't sugarcoat disability, it celebrates it, and shows the incredible strength and talent of the Paralympic athletes. Watch the ad.
"A truly authentic brand will make the consumer feel something, and commodities will make the consumer do. If you can make them feel, you can make them do much more easily."
Kuba Wieczorek
Remember these 5 marketing principles
As well as the above three branding lessons, Kuba also shares 5 marketing principles that every marketeer should remember.
- Have a genuine purpose. Know why your brand exists and this will help build brand equity and trust.
- Freedom to be different. Act with confidence, be different, and you'll stand out more.
- Confidence to be consistent. Consistency builds brand awareness and consideration.
- Customer experience first and always. If you invest in customer experience, you'll see the payback in many different ways.
- Invest in long-term brand equity. Not only is this the only long-term defence in categories with low barriers to entry, but it also increases the efficiency and effectiveness of performance marketing spend.
With these principles, you can build a really great brand that's remembered for all the right reasons.
"Don't tell me how good you make it, tell me how good it makes me when I use it."
Leo Burnett
About The Speaker
Kuba Wieczorek, Co-Founder and former CMO, eve sleep
Kuba started his career in the world of advertising, somehow being lucky enough to land in several of the world’s most awarded creative agencies. After landing his dream job of working at Channel 4 Creative, Kuba spent 2 years working on the 2012 Paralympics Superhumans campaign (still his proudest professional moment) and then a further 2 years on the Channel 4 rebrand. In 2014 he left agency life behind to found the sleep start-up eve sleep plc with his wife and cousin. Eve IPO’d in 2017 - the fastest retail float in UK history. Kuba is now running Kuba & Friends - a design and creative agency.
We hope you found Kuba's talk useful. Make sure to check out the rest of the EventLAB 2021 session writeups over on the Hire Space blog, read our recap of the whole day, and follow us on social to keep up to date with EventLAB news and updates.
If you're looking to plan an event of your own and need a little help, our event experts are on hand to share their advice and help you create the perfect experience. Book a call below to get the ball rolling.
Author
Izzie Lachecki
Izzie brings a deep understanding of the events world to Hire Space, and keeps busy by writing lots of Hire Space and EventLAB content and managing the Hire Space social media presence.
