Space.
For most of us, it is defined by two metres.
But when we get back to where we once were, crushed shoulder to shoulder on trains, living in shoebox apartments, in open plan offices where one short desk blends into the next and the next, space will become more precious.
When we are confronted with urban spread, carparks, noise, and the ever dwindling thing called nature, space will be part of our survival.
By 2050, it is estimated there will be almost 10 billion of us on our tiny blue dot. Two metres will seem like acres.
We need and crave space.
Space to think, to write, to chat, to read, to watch. Space to call our own.
Space to breathe.
It’s important to our planet, to us and yes, even to brands.
Brand space is as precious to business as personal space is to us.
Most companies seem content to play in the same space as countless competitors. Not to search for new frontiers but to be where others have gone before and many continue to remain.
I guess there’s a feeling of safety in familiarity. But a safe place in not somewhere brands need to be right now.
They need to find their own space which means define their own category. Rather than be obsessed with what competitors do, be obsessed with finding a place to play that is yours.
Strangely, with more people and more brands, there are more opportunities to create a space that is not based on yesterday and comfort, but based on today and relevance.
While the human mind has room for much, there isn’t enough space in there for everything, or every brand.
To find space for your brand, there are certain parameters. It has to be relevant, must have empathy, should offer something other than itself, be trusted, and to fight your way in and keep the space, your brand must be disruptive.
Space is the one universal need. People search hard to find it. Trees soar into the sky to reach it. Animals and birds migrate up to thousands of miles each year for their space on this earth.
And yes, brands need to find space. It is out there.
You just need the will to want it, and the creativity to own it.
