Blum Blog. Welcome.

It was just a matter of time before I started a blog. Truth be told, this has been in development for quite some time, and despite my obvious need for self-expression, I’ve been hesitant to start a blog… You’re probably thinking, ‘just what the world needs, another blog…’ Well, no one is forcing you to read it, and I’m not promising to publish everyday at this point…unlike the machine that is Ed Cotton and his highly ranked Influx Insights Blog, I’m just not sure I generate enough content to share on a daily basis. I will certainly post regularly, and eventually, maybe even daily… The slant , the purpose – if you will – of Blum Blog will be my focus on the intersection of brands, experiences and commerce – how are marketers approaching this new paradigm and a collective consumer mandate for companies to stand for more than the sum of their brands.

Ever since I can remember, I have been fascinated with consistency – and in particular, I’ve always paid careful attention to how companies and products presented themselves. Stating the super-obvious, the Internet has changed everything. But at the core, it’s fundamentally changed the way companies communicate with and engage their customers. Marketers have shifted from talking at their customers to talking with their customers. The web has also introduced the notion of branded utility and value that extends well beyond traditional forms of marketing and advertising. In the past 5-6 years, as the web has technically caught up with our deepest and wildest imaginations, it’s become clear to me that this obsession with consistency has morphed from the consistency in appearance, to the importance of the consistency in experiences – and there is a profound and important difference.

As brands continue to attempt to engage their customers through more and more hyperactive mediums, it is the experience that holds them together, makes them feel truly seamless, and generates an almost inexplicable satisfaction that comes from this type of integrated brand experience. Just think about how you feel when you walk into an Apple Store, browse their site, or first experience removing an Apple product from its packaging – it all hangs together, right? This is not an accidental occurrence. Is this brand-building or experience-building? It’s clearly both, but it’s the entirety of the experience that elevates companies from brands to super-brands. The point is, as brands have become more intimately involved in their customer’s lives, a common color scheme or matching logo is no longer the standard for ‘marketing consistency or dare I say ‘integrated marketing communications’ – nor should they be. They are best represented by the fusion of inspired thinking and technical innovation that not only solve real business issues, but that also elevate the brand to a status or level that far exceeds the sum of their products or services… take NikeID, Nike+ and the Amazon/Target shopping basket integration, as just a few examples of brilliant extensions of their brands that create brand experiences that strategically addresses a real business challenge, while creating a broader brand halo to play under. Pardon the shameless self-promotion, but BSSP’s whimsical Epsonality campaign and online application is a recent example that not only delivers an entertaining experience, but an application that delivers a valid, personalized recommendation that connects consumers with their printing personalities, their Epsonality.

Before I log off and given this is my first entry, and I’d like to take this opportunity to thank several people for making Blum Blog a reality:

• Tom Coates, one of BSSP’s creative geniuses, came up with the name Blum Blog – among others – but it just stuck.
• Mike Shine, who was gracious enough to spend at least 45 seconds on the illustrated caricature that serves as my logo.
• Vince Montelongo, who designed the site turned the caricature into something useable – thanks again Mike.
• Joseph Piro, who built the site and who makes managing Blum Blog hassle-free.
• Ed Cotton, for inspiring me to broadcast my perspectives.
• And finally to all of the partners at BSSP who have encouraged and supported me in this endeavor.

So, that’s it…my first entry is behind me…whew, that took some doing. I hope you’ll bookmark Blum Blog, subscribe to the feed postings regularly. I’d also love to hear from you – comments, dissenting opinions, even requests – so please post publicly or send me an email, I promise to try and respond to all correspondence. Thank you in advance for reading – subsequent posts will likely be much shorter.