You’ve finally realized that your business is a “show business”…explored how your customers have changed…and accepted the challenge to deliver them with the “Ultimate Customer Experience” that they demand.
Yet, a critical question remains…
How?
- How do you connect with your customers and employees during these crazy times?
- How do you communicate and establish those critical emotional connections with them?
- How do we grab the customer’s attention?
You take the “High Concept” approach.
The High Concept is a short, powerful, attention-grabbing phrase that interests and involves your audience.
- “Bomb on a bus.”
- “Clown with a red balloon.”
- “Kids bring a board game to life.”
- “Shark attacks terrorize a small ocean community.”
- “Teenager travels back in time and back again using a car.”
- “A band of unlikely companions on a quest to destroy a ring.”
- “A small group of soldiers must find the lone surviving son of a family and escort him safely home from World War II.”
How long did it take you to guess that I was talking about Speed, It, Jumanji, Jaws, Back to the Future, Lord of the Rings, and Saving Private Ryan?
These phrases are proof that the “High Concept” works. They could even be as short as one word. The mere mention of the word “Shark!” evokes the image of the movie, Jaws. Just saying “Genie” makes you think of all the wishes you could make as Aladdin did…while hearing “Iceberg” instantly makes you relive the horror of the Titanic sinking.
There’s power in communication. These short phrases or even single words can make you feel a range of emotions because they make you remember a movie that left a lasting impact on you.
The same concept can be applied to business – in your “show business.”
Domino’s revolutionized the pizza business with their simple High Concept. Thanks to Domino’s, we expect all pizzas to be delivered in “30 minutes or less.” We may even ask the delivery guy from an entirely different pizza chain if our pizza is free when they arrive “late.”
When we say something “keeps going and going and going and going…” – do you expect the Energizer Bunny to suddenly pass by in front of us and interrupt our conversation? Even Gatorade has somehow taken the word “quench” and made it their own, and now we feel that only a brightly-colored sports drink can truly satisfy our thirst. And when you hear someone tell you to “have a break,” do you suddenly want a Kit-Kat?
The High Concepts are more than just taglines, they’re powerful words or phrases that have been ingrained in our minds and taken on a life of their own. In many cases, these brand High Concepts have become more popular than the brands themselves.
The best High Concept statements are incredibly difficult to craft – but powerfully important to have.
Because your High Concept should describe the lifeblood of the unique culture and offerings of your company, it must become something that has deep and lasting roots in your organization.
