The year was 1997. Apple’s prospects were dim. It had suffered more than $1 billion in losses in the prior four quarters, demand for the Mac, its biggest moneymaker, was sinking, and the Cupertino, California-based company was on the brink of bankruptcy.
Steve Jobs was back as CEO with the task of finding a path for survival. He would find it in renewed, unwavering focus and a disruptive campaign known as “Think Different”. Time would reveal just how critical it was to pulling Apple out of the darkness.
Jobs closing remarks at Macworld in August of that year were designed to rally the faithful and reinforce the campaign that resonated with so many. “I think you still have to think differently to buy an Apple computer and I think the people that do buy them do think differently. And they are the creative spirits in this world. They are the people that are not just out to get a job done, they’re out to change the world. And they’re out to change the world using whatever great tools they can get. And we make tools for those kinds of people.”
From Flame To Fame
When the “Think different” campaign launched, Apple immediately felt the boost despite having no significant new products. Within 12 months, Apple’s stock price tripled. A year after the “Think different” launch, Apple introduced their multi-colored iMacs. The computers represented revolutionary design and they became some of the best selling computers in history. But without the “Think different” campaign preceding and supporting them, it’s likely the jellybean colored and gumdrop shaped machines would have been viewed by the press and general public as just more “toys” from Apple.
Nearly twenty years have passed yet the lessons of Apple’s meteoric return to relevance are far from fading. Today, where disruption looms in every direction, deep, disruptive campaigns can help earn brands the future they seek. Rob Siltanen was Creative Director and Managing Partner at TBWA/Chiat/Day and at the center of the “Think different” campaign. The copywriter for “Here’s to the Crazy Ones” will share its DNA, his methods for gaining buy-in with Steve Jobs and the requirements for building a disruptive campaign at marketing’s only issues-based, problem-solving event.
For 50 marketers that see themselves among the crazy ones, The Blake Project and Branding Strategy Insider have designed a uniquely powerful experience for brand leadership in the age of disruption. We call it The Un-Conference: 360 Degrees of Brand Strategy for a Changing World.
It’s unlike any other branding or marketing conference you’ve attended before:
- Everyone in the room is an expert and gains from the sum of the expertise in the room.
- Our competitive learning format is fun, energized and impactful.
- The walls are down, there are no podiums or stages, there is no hierarchy – your uniform is jeans.
- The focus is on learning outcomes, not ticket sales.
- Small is powerful, with only 50 marketers participating in hands on learning.
- As in your marketplace, some will win, some will lose, all will learn.
No Attendees. Only Participants.
The best pathway for learning is through participation, not observation. The Un-Conference: 360 Degrees of Brand Strategy for a Changing World will challenge your thinking about brands and brand management. To do that, we’ll put you on a team of 10 and offer you opportunities to compete, lead and learn alongside other marketers in a unique environment. The challenges you’ll tackle are based on and influenced by the actual issues that you and other participants are facing.
In May of 2017, our 5th event, we are focused on: Disruptive Marketing Trends, Building Emotional Connections, Encoding Brands In The Mind, Brand Storytelling, Brand Leadership, Digital Strategy, Customer Experience, B2B Brand Strategy and more.
It all takes place at The London Hotel in West Hollywood, California May 1 – 3, 2017.
Our schedule…
Monday, May 1st – Kickoff Mixer: 7- 9pm at The London Hotel Rooftop Pool
Tuesday, May 2nd – Day 1: 8am – 5pm, at The London Hotel / 6:30pm – ? Team building event and dinner
Wednesday, May 3rd – Day 2: 8am – 5pm, at The London Hotel
Who Should Participate?
We have reserved these two days (and a kickoff mixer on the evening of the 1st) for 50 senior B2C and B2B marketers who see professional growth and value creation as a mandate for success and who seek a learning experience superior to last century’s format of marketing conferences:
-Marketing oriented leaders
-Marketing professionals (brand managers, product managers, directors, vice presidents, CMO’s, brand strategists etc.)
-Advertising agency professionals (account executives, planners, creatives, agency heads)
-Marketers facing brand strategy issues
-Marketers seeking a competitive advantage
-Professionals in charge of brand building, brand management, human resources
-Professional brand consultants, digital consultants and researchers
-Marketers who prefer participation over observation
-Marketers who don’t believe that last century’s format of marketing conferences advances them as leaders.
Every year a wide range of marketing oriented leaders and professionals from around the world join us representing startups, emerging, regional, national and global brands. Past participants include AAA, Bayer, Bloomberg, Humana, Land O’ Lakes, Liberty Mutual, Pilot/Flying J, RJ Reynolds, TD Ameritrade, GlaxoSmithKlein, Wounded Warrior Project, Monsanto, Ogilvy, Kawasaki, GE and many more.
Only 50 marketers can participate. To secure a spot for you or your group at The Un-Conference: 360 Degrees of Brand Strategy for a Changing World call me directly in Los Angeles at 813-842-2260. Or simply email me.
Special pricing for MENG / Marketing Executives Group and American Marketing Association Members.
I do hope you can join us.
Sincerely,
Derrick Daye for The Un-Conference, Branding Strategy Insider and The Blake Project
