Different is good. Good and different is a process, aka a trend. It is the trend setters, the innovates, the risk takers and the fearlessly bold who are able to successfully execute their crazy ideas and create powerful brands and industry-changing products.
They do this by thinking like artists. Acknowledgment of the "white space", what's not there, is important to discovering what people will want. This includes having the guts to be radically different from what is already out there and FAST.
An example of different thinking, combined with some serious ZAG:
Silly Bandz sells a slew of cheaply made bracelets that form shapes when you take them off. I began to notice the trend of Silly Bandz explode this summer. First, I saw tons of little kids wearing them, now everyone and their rebellious teenager has 230948 on one wrist. Cool that they were made to target children and have already expanded to such a varied demographic.
Vibram Five Fingers sells shoes with a separate section for each toe to provide a unique freedom for the feet. This was bold. They are hideous but so brilliant. Five Fingers was not afraid of hitting an anti-fashion, pro-comfort niche market and has become increasingly popular amongst the athletically playful.
Marty Neumeier, author of ZAG, describes a brand as "a person's gut feeling about a product, service or company."
Because my perception of these two brands clash with how I personally identify, I have chosen to avoid becoming apart of them. A brand will never appeal to everyone, and should never try to. Even though I am unwilling to sacrifice style for freakishly comfy frog feet or maturity for silly fun, I respect Five Fingers and Silly Bandz as brands because they have established value in their ability to be smart and bold.
Neumeier would agree that both the brands have a focused purpose, which are different and powered by a trend.
Start Zagging
