Tom Peters, one of the most influential business thinkers of all time, described the first edition of Lovemarks: the future beyond brands as “brilliant.” He also announced it as the “Best Business Book” published in the first five years of this century. Now translated into fourteen languages, with more than 150,000 copies in print, Lovemarks is back in a revised edition featuring a new chapter on the peculiarly human experience of shopping.

The new chapter, Diamonds in the Mine, is an insightful collection of ideas for owners of small stores and operators of superstores, for producers and consumers. So forget making lists! Shopping, says Kevin Roberts, is an emotional event. With this as a starting point, he looks at the history of shopping and how it has changed so dramatically over the last ten years. Using the Lovemark elements of Mystery, Sensuality, and Intimacy, Roberts delves into the secrets of success that can be used to create the ultimate shopping experience.

“Ideas move mountains, especially in turbulent times. Lovemarks is the product of the fertile-iconoclast mind of Kevin Roberts, CEO Worldwide of Saatchi & Saatchi. Roberts argues vociferously, and with a ton of data to support him, that traditional branding practices have become stultified. What’s needed are customer Love affairs. Roberts lays out his grand scheme for mystery, magic, sensuality, and the like in his gloriously designed book Lovemarks.”—Tom Peters

Kevin Roberts is CEO Worldwide of ideas company Saatchi & Saatchi, one of the world’s largest and most successful creative organizations, handling more than fifty of the world’s most valuable global brands. Heading a team of more than seven thousand people in eighty-two countries, Roberts led Saatchi & Saatchi to become both Advertising Age and Adweek magazines’ Global Agency Network of the Year in 2003. He is the author of the best-selling book Lovemarks: the future beyond brands (powerHouse Books, 2004), which has now been translated into fourteen languages, with more than 150,000 copies in print.

TRANSFORM WITH INTIMACY

The sensitivity that Intimacy demands of us means that of the three elements of Lovemarks, Intimacy responds fastest to change. Take the mobile phone. What used to be the symbol of hardcharging business has become the closest companion of millions. This transformation alone shows the

passion people have for emotional connection.

ONE:TAKE ACTION

One phrase to strike from your vocabulary is “I hear what you say.” Hearing is one thing, but doing is another. How about taking a deep breath and saying, “I’m going to act on what you just said.” Too often priceless consumer insights sit forgotten on someone’s desk or hard drive until they are archived, then trashed. I remember a client showing me a stack of forms. They were from a survey done two years before, but never analyzed. I looked at the top sheet and there in careful handwriting was the comment, “You need to take more notice of your customers.” The key to Intimacy? Listen, listen, listen, and act.

TWO: BUILD IN LAYERS

Intimacy and Mystery have many connections. The special sense of belonging that Intimacy brings is created by revelation, not explanation. Explore your brand to find resonances consumers can uncover. It could be a thoughtful comfort like a luminescent drink holder for night driving or a bench in exactly the right place in the store.

THREE: REMEMBER BIRTHDAYS

Relax. I’m not talking about printed messages in corporate greeting cards. Remember the times when a gift touched the sweet spot and fired up unforced enthusiasm? How does this happen? It’s simple. The perfect gift is all about the person who receives it, and it’s all about you at the same time. It is a great emotional connection tied up with a ribbon. Your consumers can’t love what you produce unless they can see you love it too.

FOUR:LEARN TO LET GO

Customization is the pragmatic face of Intimacy. The bar has certainly been raised in a world where people can customize anything from their sneakers to their automobiles. The big question to keep asking is: where can consumers get more involved? People like to participate when they have meaningful choices. The father who shows a son how to paint a wall, but never hands over the paint brush is missing the point.

FIVE:GET INSPIRED BY FAMILY

Love is two-way. Forget this and people drift away. Use the idea of family as an inspiration in your business. Identify the stories and language that show why your organization needs to do what it does, rather than what must be achieved. Sharing is the foundation of family. Sharing is how you create a family that is emotional, proud, and fiercely loyal. Sharing is the essence of Intimacy. view abbreviated excerpt only...

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