Okay, I came across this fun little quiz and I just had to share!
What kind of grammar nerd are you?
I'm pretty chuffed with my result - "The Enlightened Grammarian."
Brand Crush: theSkimm
"The Skimm has an absolutely pitch-perfect voice that blends information, sense of humor, and readability in a great way."
This is how JPMorgan Chase Chief Marketing Officer Kristin Lemkau introduced the founders of theSkimm at a recent JPMorgan Chase Marketing & Communications Team event, and I couldn't agree more.
For those that have never heard of or read theSkimm, it is a daily e-newsletter aimed at millennial women that gives them "cliff notes" of every important thing going on in the world - politics, foreign policy, business, celebrity, novelty, etc. - so that they can stay informed and participate in water cooler talk every day.
I'm an avid reader of theSkimm, and it is one of the few brands that I actively evangelize. Whenever I fall hard for a brand, I try to get to the bottom of why.
I came across this awesome video and Q & A with theSkimm's founders a couple of weeks ago as I was logging out of my Chase.com account after an online banking session. [Sidenote, but kudos to the Chase digital marketing team for hooking me with this extremely valuable piece of content.]
In the piece, founders Danielle Weisberg and Carly Zakin discuss how they were able to turn a news and information site into a lifestyle brand. Here are my two takeaways:
1. They got specific
"We decided we didn't want to be everything to everyone. So we chose a really specific audience and wanted to create a product which was meant for them."
As female millennials themselves, Danielle and Carly started by meeting the needs of the market segment that they knew most intimately - their own. As broadcast news producers, the two business partners noticed that their young, ambitious, professional girlfriends weren't watching TV news. Weisberg said:
"… we took a step back and started thinking about the habits of this audience. There wasn't anyone giving them real news in a way that fit in with their lifestyle."
Enter theSkimm.
2. They crafted a unique "voice"
"We created a voice that is that friend that you have that is your no B.S. friend, that tells it like it is and they are a little bit sarcastic and they always seem to have a comment on everything that is going on."
On the back of their laser-focused targeting, theSkimm was able to craft a tone of voice that completely delights their audience. This sarcastic, edgy, witty voice is what sets them apart. Though they deal with real issues they manage to present the news in a way that completely sets them apart.
I got a lot out of the video and Q&A and hope you do as well. To view and read both, go to the Chase website's new section here.
Portfolio: Articulation Intensive | Teach To Lead
Intro:
Developed as a signature service, the Stark & Splendor Articulation Intensive is a monthlong brand key messaging workshop. Leadership developer and Founder of Teach To Lead (T2L) Shayna Hammond recently went through the process. Here is a snapshot of how clearly defined communications have helped her move her brand and business forward .
The Brief:
Shayna approached me in November 2014 with the need to get clear on who T2L was and how to convey that message in a clear, concise, and memorable way.
Established in 2012, T2L was already successfully helping charter school principals develop into more effective leaders but, ever the visionary, Shayna's sights were set on impacting leaders well-beyond the education sector. She needed to establish brand key messaging that would prime T2L for growth.
The Work:
In January 2015 Shayna and I embarked on a bespoke, monthlong Articulation Intensive that not only addressed T2L's pressing communication challenges but also how to differentiate the organization from its current and future competitive set.
The Deliverables:
- New, clearly defined brand essence
- New internal positioning language
- New mission and vision statements
- Refreshed value statements & brand pillars
- New brand tagline - "Leading with the lights on."
- New brand key messages
- New service key messages
After the Articulation Intensive, Stark & Splendor then collaborated with T2L on a number of writing projects including sales proposals, print collateral, course descriptions, and most recently e-marketing campaigns.
The Results:
Stark & Splendor continues to work with Teach To Lead but the deliverables of our first phase of collaboration are already having a positive impact on the organization. In Shayna's own words:
"The Articulation Intensive was incredibly invaluable for me and my organization. The process invited me to journey back to the genesis of Teach To Lead in a deliberate, compelling, and surprisingly succinct way. In a very short period of time, Stephanie was able to thoroughly understand and synthesize the distance between where our organization is and where we want it to be 25 years from now. As a result, we have powerful messaging that authentically speaks to both who we are and what we're here to accomplish. I have better clarity about our unique positioning power and can better articulate it to my team and clients. I highly recommend this process for early stage entrepreneurs who are preparing to grow!"