“The most powerful person in the world is the storyteller. The storyteller sets the vision, values, and agenda of an entire generation that is to come.” - Steve Jobs

Good stories have a common theme: they start in a world that is and show us a world that could be.

The narrative takes the hero from status quo to the envisioned destination.

Brand narratives can be constructed in a similar way.

Vision: What's Your Worldview?

For a brand, the vision is a world that could be.

• Tesla: A world run on sustainable energy
• SpaceX: A space-faring civilization
• Nike: Everyone is an athlete

A clear vision serves important functions:

• Direction: A vision shows a destination.
• Purpose: A vision outlines the payoff.
• Differentiation: A vision shows how you see the future.

Laddering: What Is My Worldview?

Big words. Visions of the future. A world that could be.

But how do we actually distill a vision?

One way is the laddering technique.

There are two ways of using the laddering technique:

• Laddering up: Ask why, why, why until you have the bird's eye view
• Laddering down: Ask how, how, how until you have the tactical steps

For vision development, we usually use laddering up.

This technique is commonly referred to as the "Five Whys".

Bottomline: Share Your Vision to Anchor a Destination

A vision is the starting point of a brand narrative.

It sets a direction, creates purpose, and communicates your own view of the world.

⛰️

This post is an excerpt from my online course Fundamentals of Brand Strategy where you learn how to build successful brands.

The self-paced online course contains 5 hours of video material and teaches you how to use the Brand Pyramid.

You can hit me up on twitter. DMs are open.

Further Reading

• 17 Truly Inspiring Company Vision and Mission Statement Examples (HubSpot)
• It Starts with a Brand Vision: 6 Key Components of Successful Models (Prophet)
• Like Father, Like Son: DJing as a Performing Art Form (Art Lapinsch)

Short Excerpts from the Course

These posts are short snippets of the course curriculum 👇

• A Pragmatic Look at Branding: What Is a Brand?
• Touchpoints and Brand Strategy: How do We Build Associations?
• Positioning and Differentiation: How to Stand Out as a Brand?
• Brand Vision: What Is the World That Could Be?
• Brand Purpose: Why Bother?
• Brand Promise: How to Communicate in One Statement?
• Mission Statement: How Do You Do It?
• Brand Attributes: How Does the Brand Present Itself?
• Frame of Reference: Where Is the Brand Placed?
• Target Customer: Who Is Your Audience?
• Customer Need: What Is Their Real Job-to-be-Done?
• Value Proposition: What Are You Offering?
• Reasons-to-Believe: What Are Your Proof Points?