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Is the Wolff changing it's spots?

As far as branding agencies go, Wolff Olins is right up there with the very best. In fact Wally Olins and Michael Wolff pretty much invented Branding and Corporate Identity back in the 1960's.

Since the haydays of the 90's, however, the relevance of traditional branding has been increasingly under question.

The 'top down' controlling approach to branding (and to be fair, advertising too), nicely described by a colleague as 'LogoCop' is clearly out of sync with the emerged consumer seeking control.

I'm very glad to see the Wolff Olins response, relieved even. Visually, the new website is refreshing and the message is that as it puts consumers first in the conversation... 'we think brands need to be less controlling' - exactly, and I like the idea of brands being 'practical platforms for action'.

Take a closer look, there's no actual WO 'logo' per se. The skeletal approach to London 2012 and NYC identities (provide an outline - you choose how to fill it) is taken one step further. The logo company has no logo.

What I find particularly refreshing and is that it looks as if they actually GET that real design is moving from décor towards CORE, more than the visual - the traditional craft aspect of design, but developing the fundamental product or service proposition strategy towards something tangible.

"As consumers are invited not to buy but to work, functionality really matters. Creating a brand, and designing the service behind it, are becoming inseparable".

Mind you, that shift from décor to core is not an easy one to make, Sure it can have a similar strategy vs. production mix but it needs a different, highly collaborative approach, a shift in culture, different skills and tools.

That's where I think Wolff Olins might find the next big challenge - how to actually start innovating the services behind the brand.

It's a fuzzy, difficult, even scary place to be - sparsely populated by smart design folks and the businesses who really know what they're doing.

But it's also a place where value is just waiting to be created, which makes it a great place to be.

The people bit of Service Design and Going Native

I'm attracted to this article in November's Fast Company magazine. Alex Frankel quite literally goes 'native' in order to understand the value that front line employees play in adding value to the brand. His book, Punching in: The Unauthorized Adventures of a Front-Line Employee is published in December through Collins.

In the design of services,  it often comes down to the role you expect your employees to play, and Alex worked (or tried to work) at Gap, Starbucks, UPS before finally landing a spot on the shop floor at Apple.

Me? I've been a lift boy, delivered carpets, sold hi-fi, worked on company exhibition stands... not much and I'd be the very first to admire the people skills required in retail.

And it's far more than just selling. Retail is detail - as I've heard.

These days truely great retail has more in common with the emergency room than the sales floor - triage, diagnosis and even empathy, are today's skills in understanding your customer - and building a (valuable) long-term relationship.

Apple apparently employ Position: Permission: Probe. which is where Apple co-workers explain to customers that they have some questions to ask, get permission to fire away and then just dig away to figure out which products will be best.

Have you been on the receiving end of this transparent approach? Did it work? What are your stories?

Of course iTunes is a classic and often quoted super example of great Service Design, but it's easy to forget the nuances at work on the shop floor.

Training of Apple store employees is like the iPod user interface - carefully designed...

Apple store are almost over-staffed, so no one has to wait too long.

Apple staffers also hand out business cards like in a high-end or bespoke clothing store.

Such are the insights gathered when Alex worked on the front line; and it's not just authors or ethnographers who can benefit. Here in the UK Pret a Manger regularly sends out new exec hires to work the floor.

Maybe Service Designers should give it a go too, there's obviously plenty to learn.