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Brand APIs: How brands can act like middleware

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The Difference Engine
The Difference Engine

A talk I've given at Circus Festival in Sydney in March 2013, at Google Sandbox in Cannes in July 2013, and at Reactive's Adweek event in October 2013.

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brands like apis
Hi, I’m @farrahbostic ! ! I run...
“You need to add value to people's lives, not just expect them to participate because you goddamn well asked them to.” Mel Exon, BBH Labs “Stop communicating products & start making communication products.” Gareth Kay, Goodby
it’s cool in advertising to steal software development metaphors Google #Firestarters: Do Agencies Need to Agile Planning Think Like Software Companies? Agile creativity, think with google
execution is important. but figuring out what to build is hard.
so, uh, what’s an api?
you probably know this api the best
an api is something a lot of our brands could build or use. An application programming interface (API) is a protocol intended to be used as an interface by software components to communicate with each other. An API is a library that may include specifications for routines, data structures, object classes, and variables.
Brand APIs: How brands can act like middleware
but - because this is still true:
Answer questions Watch a Demo Find a Retailer Get your recommended movies Home Page Create an event Like the Facebook Page You end up doing something like this:
which isn’t bad. i suppose.
how brands (should) use apis To identify & Learn about your customers ! To expand opportunities to transact with your brand ! To open up your value chain
skype & SINGLE SIGN-ON Skype in the Classroom uses Skype’s single sign-on. So not only do they know how teachers are using the education service, they also know how teachers are using the core Skype service - including their propensity to pay for services.
BE WHERE YOUR CUSTOMERS ARE. DELIVER WHAT THEY WANT. eBay used the BBYOpen APIs for its Gifts Nearby holiday program so eBay shoppers could find last minute gifts in-stock at retailers nearby, and complete a Best Buy purchase without leaving the site.
support your value chain & your customers If an airbnb host hasn’t responded to a request, the twilio API is set up to send an automated SMS with information about guests, dates, and price. Hosts can reply via SMS as well. VOICE SMS CLIENT SOLUTIONS + DOCS HELP LOGIN 3/17/13 Automated Customer Communications at Airbnb - Twilio Case Study Case Studies Projects Developers To match travelers and hosts with ease, Airbnb turned to Twilio for efficient mobile communications with SMS. Airbnb is an online marketplace that enables private residents and commercial properties to rent out extra space to travelers looking for a hotel alternative. The company slogan "travel like a human" captures the essence of the unique experience Airbnb provides to travelers looking for affordable, creative, or unconventional lodgings. HIGHLIGHTS Text message confirmations increase the number of successful bookings Automated messages remove the need for customer service reps to manually contact hosts Flexible integration allows Airbnb to easily launch new features WEBSITE http://www.airbnb.com/ Pairing travelers and hosts for unique travel experiences Airbnb enables hosts with an available room or property to post listings, and potential guests ENHANCE CUSTOMER COMMUNICATIONS Connect with customers in innovative ways using voice and SMS messages Enable detailed exchanges for scheduling and collaboration Boost customer satisfaction with high touch updates and information MORE TWILIO CASE STUDIES Streamline Notifications Media Temple Call Tracking for Lead Generation Avvo Tree
open up the value chain Inventory & fulfillment Payment processing Hosting & analytics
but some brands actually behave like apis. ! and more brands should.
so what does it mean to ‘act like an api’?
For a brand to act like an API, it must make available to its [users/consumers/customers] a set of common assets and instructions that the [users/consumers/customers] can use to create something of value for themselves.
i’m not talking about ugc or ‘participation’.
UGC/participation are designed to extract value from your audience, not create (or co-create) value for your customers.
Brand APIs: How brands can act like middleware
IKea Consistent retail experience. Modular, flat-pack furniture and parts. You build it. And you can hack it, too. (I did)
ideas that spread
operationalized culture
WHAT THIS COULD MEAN FOR YOU What if more brands embraced the ethos of an API and created or worked with them?
start with small experiments ifttt.com
look at existing partnerships Starbucks meets Passbook American Express meets Foursquare Spotify meets Blue Note Records meets iTunes Store MTA meets Google Maps meets Augmented Reality
we could transform marketing into ‘MAAs’ Marketing could become a service for customers. It could make [buying, using, owning] a product or service easier, more rewarding, or just better. It could make the brand experience a more successful one.
thanks - this was fun.

More Related Content

Brand APIs: How brands can act like middleware

  • 2. Hi, I’m @farrahbostic ! ! I run...
  • 3. “You need to add value to people's lives, not just expect them to participate because you goddamn well asked them to.” Mel Exon, BBH Labs “Stop communicating products & start making communication products.” Gareth Kay, Goodby
  • 4. it’s cool in advertising to steal software development metaphors Google #Firestarters: Do Agencies Need to Agile Planning Think Like Software Companies? Agile creativity, think with google
  • 5. execution is important. but figuring out what to build is hard.
  • 7. you probably know this api the best
  • 8. an api is something a lot of our brands could build or use. An application programming interface (API) is a protocol intended to be used as an interface by software components to communicate with each other. An API is a library that may include specifications for routines, data structures, object classes, and variables.
  • 10. but - because this is still true:
  • 11. Answer questions Watch a Demo Find a Retailer Get your recommended movies Home Page Create an event Like the Facebook Page You end up doing something like this:
  • 12. which isn’t bad. i suppose.
  • 13. how brands (should) use apis To identify & Learn about your customers ! To expand opportunities to transact with your brand ! To open up your value chain
  • 14. skype & SINGLE SIGN-ON Skype in the Classroom uses Skype’s single sign-on. So not only do they know how teachers are using the education service, they also know how teachers are using the core Skype service - including their propensity to pay for services.
  • 15. BE WHERE YOUR CUSTOMERS ARE. DELIVER WHAT THEY WANT. eBay used the BBYOpen APIs for its Gifts Nearby holiday program so eBay shoppers could find last minute gifts in-stock at retailers nearby, and complete a Best Buy purchase without leaving the site.
  • 16. support your value chain & your customers If an airbnb host hasn’t responded to a request, the twilio API is set up to send an automated SMS with information about guests, dates, and price. Hosts can reply via SMS as well. VOICE SMS CLIENT SOLUTIONS + DOCS HELP LOGIN 3/17/13 Automated Customer Communications at Airbnb - Twilio Case Study Case Studies Projects Developers To match travelers and hosts with ease, Airbnb turned to Twilio for efficient mobile communications with SMS. Airbnb is an online marketplace that enables private residents and commercial properties to rent out extra space to travelers looking for a hotel alternative. The company slogan "travel like a human" captures the essence of the unique experience Airbnb provides to travelers looking for affordable, creative, or unconventional lodgings. HIGHLIGHTS Text message confirmations increase the number of successful bookings Automated messages remove the need for customer service reps to manually contact hosts Flexible integration allows Airbnb to easily launch new features WEBSITE http://www.airbnb.com/ Pairing travelers and hosts for unique travel experiences Airbnb enables hosts with an available room or property to post listings, and potential guests ENHANCE CUSTOMER COMMUNICATIONS Connect with customers in innovative ways using voice and SMS messages Enable detailed exchanges for scheduling and collaboration Boost customer satisfaction with high touch updates and information MORE TWILIO CASE STUDIES Streamline Notifications Media Temple Call Tracking for Lead Generation Avvo Tree
  • 17. open up the value chain Inventory & fulfillment Payment processing Hosting & analytics
  • 18. but some brands actually behave like apis. ! and more brands should.
  • 19. so what does it mean to ‘act like an api’?
  • 20. For a brand to act like an API, it must make available to its [users/consumers/customers] a set of common assets and instructions that the [users/consumers/customers] can use to create something of value for themselves.
  • 21. i’m not talking about ugc or ‘participation’.
  • 22. UGC/participation are designed to extract value from your audience, not create (or co-create) value for your customers.
  • 24. IKea Consistent retail experience. Modular, flat-pack furniture and parts. You build it. And you can hack it, too. (I did)
  • 27. WHAT THIS COULD MEAN FOR YOU What if more brands embraced the ethos of an API and created or worked with them?
  • 28. start with small experiments ifttt.com
  • 29. look at existing partnerships Starbucks meets Passbook American Express meets Foursquare Spotify meets Blue Note Records meets iTunes Store MTA meets Google Maps meets Augmented Reality
  • 30. we could transform marketing into ‘MAAs’ Marketing could become a service for customers. It could make [buying, using, owning] a product or service easier, more rewarding, or just better. It could make the brand experience a more successful one.
  • 31. thanks - this was fun.