People are quick to say Steve Jobs’ mind was his strength. That his genius made him great. I say it was his heart. That’s what pushed him to share his genius with all of us. To push through the obstacles of his business and physical ills and to give the world everything he had in him.

Much will be written about Steve Jobs today and for generations to come. He won’t be forgotten ever. But I know how I’ll remember him. I’ll remember him as a man with heart first and a masterful mind second.

Thank you Steve Jobs for giving your heart to all of us for so many years. Let his legacy be a lasting guide to how all of us can do great things.

What is branding? Heart & Mind® Branding.

I belong to two movie club sites (gofobo and txtmovieclub) so I get the inside track on free local movie screenings.  Last week I went to a screening at the newly remodeled AMC Esplanade where I had the unforgettable “brand” experience of seeing a movie in a soft leather chair that reclined while eating a prime rib sandwich and parmesan fries both of which melted in my mouth.  When I was finished eating, my server brought me a hot, moist towelette to wipe my hands and a side of popcorn drizzled with what I think was white chocolate.  It was dark and all I knew was it was tasty.  As I exited the theatre the attendants wished me a nice day and offered me Ghiradelli wrapped chocolates from their silver platters.  I walked away with my  jaw literally on the ground.

After my AMC Dine-In Theater experience, you can imagine my excitement to learn about their “Free Movies for a Year” Giveaway to kickoff their grand opening.  I read about it on the movie club’s Facebook page; but, I also noticed this incredible offer was posted a number of places online. You can bet I was not going to miss out on this opportunity.  All I had to do was be one of the first 100 guests who dressed up as their favorite movie star or celebrity and they’d give me 24 free admission tickets and 12 free appetizers!  Check-in was at 6am, tickets at 8am, right in time for the morning news coverage.

I set my alarm for 5 am praying that a 30-minute lead time before check-in would be enough.  Well, as if it was the night before Christmas, I woke up repeatedly with excitement and nervousness. “What if I miss out?” “What if I get there too late?”  At 1:15am I decided to just give in and head to the theatre.

Understand, I have spent hours camped out in lines…Big REI member-only sales and iPhone & iPad launches, so you might say I am an experienced “waiter.” I have the drill down: Camping chair?  Check. Laptop? Check. iPhone, iPad and water? Check, check, check.  Oh, and let’s not forget the costume…

Not that Mary Lou Retton is my favorite celebrity, but I had some criteria and some advantages for making that choice. First I needed something comfortable and cool since it was after all, 2 am and believe it or not, still 90 degrees in Phoenix. I had the perfect blue & white lightweight comfort-wear and I’m built for the part–I stand a towering 5 feet.  With anxiousness I arrived at the theatre parking deck and noticed a few cars but certainly not 100, so I was hopeful.  I gathered my goods and headed to the theatre.

When I arrived I was SHOCKED! I was number 11 in line!  How could this be?  Didn’t the other moviegoers and lovers of awesome FREE things see this offer?  By 6 am we were moved downstairs where we were greeted by the press who of course were hoping for a larger turnout for their TV segments.  By 7:30 only 60 people waited in line.  I actually felt sad for AMC and for the people who missed out on this great opportunity. I texted everyone I knew and screamed on Facebook, “GET DOWN HERE!”

When I got to work, treasure in hand, I shared my story with the HEASLEY&PARTNERS team and of course we discussed how this whole episode fit with Heart & Mind^® Branding.  Here was a company that offered up a great movie experience and they staged a worthy promotion to build business. The problem was, unless you already knew how great the experience was the likelihood of you using your “treasure” also known as “sleep time,” to get some FREE tickets was pretty slim. Without the Experience, the Promise of FREE had little value.

At HEASLEY&PARTNERS, we define a brand as the Promise + The Experience. My story shows how important it is, as marketers, to make sure they work together.  I knew how great the experience was at this theatre, so I valued the FREE promise.  The theatre got news coverage out of the promotion and certainly that was an objective, so they scored there. But if their mission was to gain more trial, they did hit their 100 mark–eventually more people showed up once the news aired the story. But the point is, “the experience” is critical to brand success, even when you’re giving stuff away for FREE.  AMC won my heart with the experience first…then the promise. So there’s your answer!

What is branding? Heart & Mind® Branding.

The next funny look I get, particularly from the run-and-gun, tough entrepreneurial types happens when I say great companies have heart.  They immediately think that heart means soft, cuddly, weak or loving.  In business, it generally means none of those words. When I say a company with heart, I mean a company that has fire, intensity for what they are doing and more importantly, why they are doing it. It’s a company with a higher purpose and an unstoppable, unflappable drive to achieve it.

I’ve found most companies have some heart, but they keep it hidden like it’s too embarrassing or too unimportant to reveal.  How strange!  Particularly when you look at the truly great companies, the ones that have either broken through or redefined their industries. What do they have in common?  Most often it is heart.  Google, Apple, Patagonia, Whole Foods, Oprah, these are just a few of the great brands with heart.  In fact, heart is precisely how they got to the top.

But what are the other benefits of creating, building and running a heart-based company?  There are a lot, but when you read these, you’ll understand why heart is more than a ‘nice-to-have.”  You’ll find out why heart is the precursor to success.

• Heart-based companies attract the best talent – more and more today, people don’t want to work for the heartless corporate behemoth. Even though there might be a lucrative corporate ladder, the sacrifice of self and values along the way isn’t worth it.  Companies that can provide a values-based career path secure the best talent for less. And the better the talent, the better the results.
• Heart means higher purpose which means more productive employees – it’s true, when people are on a mission, they will care more, they work harder and they will produce more.  Companies with heart have employees that produce well beyond the norm.
• Heart-based companies have more buzz – wouldn’t it be great if other people did most of the horn-tooting for you?  How nice it would be.  Well, heart-based companies, when compared to ordinary mind-based companies, tend to connect better and more often with the people they serve.  And as people, we tend to talk about what and who we like. That’s buzz.
• Heart-based companies have more loyal customers – you’ve probably heard it costs more to get a new customer or client than it does to sell more to the ones you have.  The good news is that when you and your employees deliver your product or service with heart, the people you serve tend to stick around.  That’s good for business.
• Heart-based companies are more valuable – a brand that is heart based has a certain magic that makes the overall company more valuable.  You probably know that the greatest asset a company can have is its brand, and when created and managed with heart, your brand can bring you millions when its time to sell your company. Summer home in Tuscany, anyone?

More qualified and more productive employees, a company that generates more buzz, has more loyal customers, that sells more and in the end is more valuable as a brand? Those benefits are nothing to laugh at.  In fact, companies that are doing what they do with heart are laughing at the naysayers all the way to the bank.  And leaders who have cashed out big are raising their glasses and saying, “To our competitors, thank you for being so heartless! Cheers!”

What is branding? Heart &  Mind® Branding.