(Here’s my latest “brand experience brief” — insights and analysis of new and interesting restaurant and retail concepts.)

Steak ‘n Shake Signature in New York City’s Times Square is not your father’s Steak ‘n Shake.  With a retro-contemporary feel and upgraded menu, the classic diner change is trying to win over burger aficionados.  Check out my take on whether or not they’ve succeeded.

related brand experience briefs:

• Patagonia’s Tin Shed
• ihop express
• Subway Cafe

Today’s interview takes a peek behind the curtain at an extraordinary company, Patagonia. 

Patagonia is known worldwide as an outdoor clothing and gear brand, but I wanted to better understand the company’s retail strategy.  Who better to ask than the head of marketing for the North America Retail Division at Patagonia, Vickie Achee. A twenty-plus veteran of the company, Vickie has held many marketing and branding positions throughout her tenure and has the inside scoop on the company’s current push to grow retail (opening 15 stores this past year), including its new concept, Tin Shed.

Take a listen to learn how Patagonia is taking on a grand experiment in retail, opening its mindset to different types of markets and retailing models.

Later this week I’ll be posting photos and notes from when I visited the Tin Shed location in the Upper West Side of Manhattan, so check back soon to get even more inside scoop.

related content:

• What Your Underwear Says About You
• Brand Value Creation — Learning & Growth
• Tiffany Vandemark on Chobani Fit

brand as business bit:  Phil Rosenthal‘s analysis of Eastman Kodak’s failure in yesterday’s Chicago Tribune is quite insightful — particularly in its juxtaposition of Kodak and R. R. Donnelley & Sons Co., the commercial printing company that’s been shedding its legacy and reinventing itself.  Most telling is the quote from Donnelley’s CEO and President Thomas J. Quinlan:

“The real trick is to not get wrapped up in evaluating individual technologies…For us, it’s: Where are the emerging trends, and how is that going to affect communications?”

This points to the importance of having a customer/market orientation vs. a technology one.  A successful path forward comes from focusing on what people are going to want to do, instead of which technology is best.

The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) can be an intoxicating experience.  Drinking in all the devices on the show floor, it’s easy to be dazzled by cool features, brilliant designs, and products you never even dreamed of.  Speakers captivate your imagination as they describe bold visions and demo the newest products.

But amid all the hype, a sobering truth must be acknowledged:  Too many people in the industry get so caught up in the technology of the digital devices that they forget about – or ignore — the people who use them.

With this in mind, I offer the following “Digital Device Manifesto” – a call to arms of sorts to get – and keep — the industry’s focus where it should be:  the user.

Realize we’re the ones who are stupid.  Bill Campbell, Apple’s CEO, exhorted his employees at Steve Jobs’ memorial service, saying, “When we make things that people can’t use, we think they’re stupid.  But Steve Jobs said, ‘When we make things that people can’t use, we’re stupid.’”  Our job is to make technology easy to use.  It’s not the user’s job to figure it out.  If we don’t make it easy to use, we’re foolish – or delusional – or both.

Ask what we can take out of the device.  More features and capabilities tend to complicate the user experience.  In one of the sessions of this year’s Fitness Tech Summit at CES 2012, an engineer enumerated the long list of features in his new product, explaining that his team asked themselves, “What else can we put into this device?”  How much simpler and more elegant might it have been if they had remembered the adage, less is more.?!

Spend more time working on how to get people to use device.  We stunt the potential of a new technology when we assume people will want to use it.  A recent New York Times piece featured “the start-up whisperer,” Reid Hoffman.  He’s observed, “Entrepreneurs spend too much time creating products and too little figuring out how to get people to use them.”  Innovation isn’t only about generating ideas; it’s also about generating demand.

Care what people do with the data.  Device makers think agnosticism toward services, software, and apps makes the appeal of their products more universal.  In fact, one CES Digital Health Summit panelist boasted that he “didn’t care” what people did with the data that his device produces.  But the reality is, device manufacturers become more valuable when they help people extract the value of the data by curating, integrating, and/or developing all aspects of the user experience.

Don’t talk down to people – but don’t set them up to fail either.  We make people feel like dummies when we limit their options or prescribe the way they should use our products.  But people also feel dumb when we don’t educate and equip them with the information and tools to make decisions on how best to use them.  There’s a fine line between empowerment and abandonment.

related content:

• Digital Health & Fitness at CES 2012 – video recap
• Crossing the Digital Health and Fitness Chasm – published by CE Vision magazine
• Will 2012 Be “Like 1984?”

Check out my recap of the technologies at the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show in the next wave in consumer electronics:  digital health and fitness.

brand as business bit:  At CES last week, I couldn’t help but feel a little like I was in Apple’s 1984 commercial.

People seemed transfixed by screens -- and the 3D glasses made it even creepier.the crowd transfixed by LG display

no grey uniforms but...

I could only take comfort in knowing that adoption of wearing glasses to watch TV will never cross the chasm into the mainstream — they’re impractical, they’re too invasive, and they detract from the shared viewing experience.

(The following is the first in a two-part blog-exchange I’m doing with Stephen Denny, author of Killing Giants: 10 Strategies to Topple the Goliath in Your Industry.  Because Steve and I are among those teaching the upcoming Marketing Profs University course, Marketing Your Small Business, we decided to address retailers’ issues and opportunities in these posts and focus specifically on small businesses.  

The following are questions I posed to Steve, his answers, and my follow-up.  My post will appear on Steve’s blog next week.  Steve kicks off the MPU course next week – so register now and use my coupon code BRANDASBIZ to receive $200 off!)

Denise:  How are small businesses uniquely suited to win “in the last three feet” of retail?

Steve:  Small businesses win in the last three feet by understanding that there’s always time left on the clock. By not going away, in other words.

Giants, by their very nature – from their rewards systems to their staffing plans – are built for the “start” and rarely for the “finish.” They’re great at throwing agencies and dollars and fluff into the air, but they’re also on the hook for the rest of their quarterly objectives. Executives in giant companies don’t stay to the end. Executives – and founders – of Giant Killers do, because it’s their life’s work.

How do small businesses win in the last three feet? They spend other people’s money. They take the foot traffic or the eyeballs that were purchased at great cost and recognize them for what they are: qualified prospects, courtesy of someone else’s marketing budget. They don’t make the false assumption that they’re brand converts unwilling to hear about another solution.

Does it always work? Who knows. But if you can turn what was once a slam dunk and turn it into a jump ball, the possibilities for growth are endless.

Denise:  How are mobile and other retail trends making winning in the last three feet more challenging?

Steve:  Augmented reality, the quick merging of online and offline and the built-in disadvantage of having to pay for a brick and mortar presence all loom pretty large over this conversation, don’t they? And Amazon’s price checker app certainly hits this nail on the head pretty hard.

If I had to pick the one most significant structural shift I’ve seen in the “Winning in the Last Three Feet” world, I’d pick the technological one – specifically, the smartphone in your pocket. The rise of the ubiquity of the mobile internet and location based services have created a self-service culture very comfortable with on-the-fly purchase decisions, often – as in the case of the Amazon app – while the customer is face to face with the physical product in someone else’s storefront.

Is this “against the rules”? Yes! Dirty as hell. And Amazon can do it, so it will. Last I heard, Amazon wasn’t in the business of installing that 72” flatscreen – but I do hear rumblings that they might be looking at opening retail stores of their own.

Denise:  QR Codes — Is there something here? What are we to do with this opportunity disguised as utter confusion?

Steve:  QR codes are the modern day El Dorado, unfortunately, as most marketers don’t know quite what to do with them and virtually all consumers ignore them, so the evidence today suggests. Many marketers much more knowledgeable that I am on this subject declare the jury to be out, which really is too bad – I want this to work because it seems to be such a wonderful opportunity for people to stop what they’re doing and watch the video I want them to watch. With regret, “compliance” isn’t always a first reward of marketing anymore, is it? This may be the reason QR codes are still in the dark, frankly.

But I’m not giving up hope. The one project I’m working on today puts QR codes and mobile-friendly videos they point to in the hands of in-store retail evangelists so that the newest of new schools is supported by the oldest of old school techniques: the original “social” media, meaning real live people. Using QR codes as the in-person double-click – aided, in this case – is a step that makes sense in this particular case. More on this as it develops! It’s still in its early phases.

Denise:  I really like your answers, Steve, and see a common theme running through them – that is, the need to think different – to zig while others zag. Whether it’s focusing on the “finish,” breaking the rules, or using technology to provide more personal service, there’s always value in doing what others don’t!

related posts:

• how to succeed in small business
• six best practices in retail

brand as business bit:  Businessweek’s piece on Lego‘s attempts to crack the girl code describes how the company used anthropological research methods to understand its users:

“You could say a worn-out sneaker saved Lego. ‘We asked an 11-year-old German boy, ‘what is your favorite possession?’ And he pointed to his shoes. But it wasn’t the brand of shoe that made them special,’ says Holm, who heads up the Lego Concept Lab, its internal skunkworks. ‘When we asked him why these were so important to him, he showed us how they were worn on the side and bottom, and explained that his friends could tell from how they were worn down that he had mastered a certain style of riding, even a specific trick.’

“Lego saw it had drawn the wrong lessons from computer games. Instead of focusing on their immediacy, the company now noticed how kids responded to the scoring, ranking, and levels of play—opportunities to demonstrate mastery.”

“Encouraged by what it had learned about boys, Lego sent its team back out to scrutinize girls…Beauty, on the face of it, is an unsurprising virtue for a girl-friendly toy, but based on the ways girls played, [researcher] Groth says, it came, as ‘mastery’ had for boys, to stand for fairly specific needs: harmony (a pleasing, everything-in-its-right-place sense of order); friendlier colors; and a high level of detail.”

Designing research to include observation (in addition to asking) and examination of artifacts (like old sneakers) allows you to get beneath the surface, understand the why behind behaviors and attitudes, and uncover rich insights that enable you to really connect with people.

2012, according to the Chinese calendar, is the Year of the Dragon.  In Chinese tradition, each year is dedicated to a specific animal and predictions for 2012 are for a dragon-like year of excitement, unpredictability, exhilaration, and intensity.

With this expectation in mind, I’ve selected several brands to keep my eye on.  They’re likely to shake things up, surprise customers and the Street, and make for an overall exciting year:

Smashburger – By most accounts, 2011 was the year the “better burger” category went mainstream.  I predict 2012 will be the year that separates the category men from the boys.

While growth is on the menu for big chains like Five Guys and smaller ones like Burger Lounge and The Habit, the darling of the industry in 2012 is likely to be Smashburger.  With 143 existing units and 450 franchise agreements on the books, Smashburger is on a roll (pardon the pun!)

But don’t take my word that Smashburger is a brand to watch — Forbes Magazine recently named the chain “America’s Most Promising Company.”  To make the list, Smashburger had to pass muster as a privately held up-and-comer with a compelling business model, strong management team, notable customers, strategic partners and precious investment capital.  The Forbes write-up reported on key differentiators such as the chain’s “blend of thoughtful product design and deft execution” and great service.

What makes Smashburger particularly interesting to me is its unconventional company culture.  At the 15th Annual UCLA Extension Restaurant Industry Conference, CEO Dave Prokupek explained he’s modeling his culture after Google’s and Netflix’s and hiring half of his employees from outside the restaurant industry (read more in my Brand New Perspectives column in QSR Magazine).  The concept seems to be firing on all cylinders – 2012 will reveal whether it has the right ammunition to take down some of its formidable competitors.

JC Penney – Will Ron Johnson’s gamble on JC Penney be a boom or bust?  We’ll get a good idea in 2012.

The former head of Apple retail has put all his chips in on the department store chain.  He’s recruited key people from Apple and Target, where he fueled that chain’s design strategy by bringing in a line of household items designed by Michael Graves. And he’s already signed a deal with Martha Stewart to create an e-commerce site for cross-licensed products and develop shop-within-a-shop retail spaces.

Building a stronger brand portfolio is only one aspect of Johnson’s efforts to “transform JC Penney into America’s Favorite Store.”  Other planned moves include restructuring its home merchandise-dominated online business, instituting a new pricing strategy, and focusing on the 18 to 35-year-old market.

All of these are smart, much-needed changes, but it’s Johnson’s vision for brick-and-mortar stores that stands out to me.  In an interview in the Harvard Business Review, he explains, “A store has got to be much more than a place to acquire merchandise. It’s got to help people enrich their lives. If the store just fulfills a specific product need, it’s not creating new types of value for the consumer. It’s transacting. Any website can do that. But if a store can help shoppers find outfits that make them feel better about themselves, for instance, or introduce them to a new device that can change the way they communicate, the store is adding value beyond simply providing merchandise. The stores that can do that will take the lead.”

Such comments not only reveal clues to how Johnson plans to jumpstart JC Penney in 2012 but also how other retailers might revive their own businesses in the coming year.

Chipotle – Chipotle appears on my list of brands to watch for the second year in a row because it continues to grow, innovate, and set the standard for the QSR industry.

The chain has grown spectacularly, from 16 units in 1998 to 1,200 today – quite an amazing feat considering its an ethnic concept and has a limited menu.  And it’s expected to increase the number of its stores by at least another third in the next few years, while McDonald’s (which has been doing quite well lately) is struggling to find growth markets.  In the litmus test of growth, Chipotle increased its valued by 6x over the past 5 years (McDonald’s only increased by 2x.)

Chipotle’s innovation has come in the form of a new concept, ShopHouse Southeast Asian Kitchen, which opened in the D.C. area this past fall.  With recipes inspired by the cuisines of Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Singapore in a store modeled after fast food kitchens in Asia, ShopHouse is billed as serving “delicious, stylish, natural, nutritious, and affordable” food “lightening-quick.”  No expansion plans have been announced, but we’re sure to see another location (or two or five) pop up in 2012.

And, in regards to setting QSR standards, Chipotle Co-CEO and founder Steve Ells has been on a crusade to make fast food good and good for you.  As an investor-judge on the America’s Next Great Restaurant reality TV show earlier this year, Ells declared, “Just because it’s fast doesn’t mean it has to be a typical fast-food experience.” As a strong advocate of “natural” food, Ells urged Congress just last month to curb the overuse of antibiotics in meat production. And after a government crackdown earlier this year found the chain had hired hundreds of illegal workers, it has become an unlikely champion of immigration overhaul.

Chipotle may reach its peak in 2012, but I expect it will be quite a summit.

Bluetooth and ANT+ – Wireless will take a huge leap forward in 2012, thanks to Bluetooth v4.0 (aka Bluetooth Smart Ready) and ANT+.  These lightweight, low-power technologies are going to revolutionize wireless devices and applications, particularly in digital health and fitness.

Digital health and fitness is a trend to watch on its own.  It’s the fastest growing segment of the consumer electronics industry, and if the buzz leading up to the Consumer Electronics Show next week is any indication, technology innovations in healthcare and fitness are going to steal the show.

Now with new wireless capabilities, digital health and fitness is crossing into the mainstream market:  Wireless sensor data streaming enhances people’s activity-tracking – everything from how many calories you burn to how well you sleep each night — and assists in the real-time monitoring of personal medical statuses and record keeping, the need for which increases as health problems like diabetes and obesity grow.

The ANT+ technology has been around for over 10 years and its alliance members include prominent brands like Garmin and adidas.  Bluetooth, with a Special Interest Group of 14,000 members, just launched v4.0.  In 2012 according to IMS Research, over 35% of smartphones will be shipped with dual-mode Bluetooth low energy, and over 10 million ANT+ enabled phones will be shipped.

There’s a lot of debate as to which technology will prevail – Bluetooth or ANT+ — but with the market growing as quickly as it is, both are sure to be winners in 2012.

***

I’m sure each of these brands is hoping http://chinesenewyear2012.net/ is right in its description of 2012: “Dragon years are lucky for anyone thinking of starting a business or initiating a new project of any sort because money is easier to come by for everyone.”

related posts:

• companies to keep an eye on in 2011
• Robin Raskin on living in digital times
• 2011 year in ideas