Since the mid-nineties, I’ve been sporadically nodding my head to the electronic beats created by the Parisian duo, Daft Punk. But it wasn’t my ears that were first drawn to the band, it was my eyes. Ask anyone to tell you the first thing they think of when you mention Daft Punk and nine times out of ten, it will be the helmets.
Pretty much from the beginning, Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo and Thomas Bangalter had a very clear vision. Everything the band were involved in, from their incredible costumes, spectacular stage shows, hypnotic music videos, even the way they conducted interviews – all sat together perfectly to evoke exactly the same tone across every single thing they created.
How many brands could say the same about their own work?
With so many products offering such similar benefits, it can be difficult to differentiate one from another. One of the greatest tools any brand has at their disposal to stand out from the crowd is their personality.
But ‘standing out’ is what so many brands fail to do. They spend a fortune creating a ‘brand world’, laying it all out in a beautiful brand book, but if you create a world that’s the same as someone else’s, how are you going to be unique?
To help make my point, how many times have you opened a brand book, scrolled down to the tone of voice page to be met by the words – friendly, approachable and human?
You have to dig deeper, find a way to set yourself apart and stand for something else. Otherwise, you’re just wallpaper.
Daft Punk, One More Time at Wireless ‘07
Wichita Adman 