Joy to the People
Five Challengers Who Transformed the Loathed and the Mundane. By Julian Aldridge, Founder, Enact Agency
We all know a picture of joy when we see it. This shot is of my son, Kaia, after a morning catching waves in San Luis Obispo. Joy is written all over his face, from ear to ear. It’s contagious, hard to fake, and pure magic when it happens
What gives you joy? You know, the type that results in whoops, hollas and a smile you just can’t wipe from your face? Or that makes the world around you seem like a wonderful, welcoming place? Or that reappears in the stories you tell for years to come? Or that instantly makes it onto your Instagram or Facebook page?
Is it skiing through some fresh powder and making your own tracks on a pristine slope? Is it moving your body to the music for hours and hours on the dance floor? Or piloting your board to ride the best wave of the day? Or conversing with family or close friends over food and wine? Or watching a pet as it eats, sleeps, or plays? Whatever your personal brand of joy, you know it, and it knows you.
Joy is Personal, and Every Person Needs Some Joy in Their Life
Humans crave joy. We need it, and so we seek it out. Sometimes in good places, and sometimes not. Since ancient times we’ve known that joy does something visceral to us. It tightens our stomach and gives us butterflies. It changes the temperature of our skin, as well as the color. It causes others to react to us differently, and us to see the world in a different light.
Modern day science has shown how our neurotransmitters release the joy drugs - endorphins, serotonin, and dopamine – when provided with the correct stimulus. Drug manufacturers, of the medicinal and illicit types, know that too; one of the chief reasons that Heroin, Coke, and the Opioids are so hard to kick.
In various studies over the years, one of the factors behind clinical depression are low levels of serotonin in the body. Simple acts like petting a dog, watching a sunset or children play, or going for a walk all boost the happy chemicals in our bodies.
There’s a common phrase used in UX design (user experience, to those not familiar with the term) as well as the designers of theme parks. It’s called:
“Surprise and delight”.
Sound simple? Well, it is, and it isn’t. Joy appears a simple pleasure, but, like many transformational experiences, requires incredible insight and ingenuity to actually create.
Challenger brands know how important joy is to our lives. The smart ones look at today’s joyless experiences and ask:
“How can I inject some joy into this awful or mundane scenario – such that people remember me, return to me, and tell the world about me?”
Here are five Challengers who turned the mundane into the extraordinary, or at least the reasonably pleasurable, and, in so doing, changed people’s expectations forever.
The iPhone 2007. I well remember my first experience with my first iPhone and the sense of wonder that things, well, connected. They actually worked together. I could look up a store, press the address, and maps would navigate me there. Or look up a cinema and dial the number by pressing it on the screen – without resorting to scrambling for a pen and paper to write it down.
Today, we all take these things for granted, but the iPhone challenged so many expectations all in one go that it was, for a while at least, a joy to use. Even if the actual phone in the first few versions was pretty iffy, and the address book god damned awful!
One Medical. Remember when going to the doctor involved trying to call and getting a voice message, then being told that they have an appointment in six days’ time at a far-away office, at a time you can’t possibly make, by which time your ailment will either have killed you or gone away. Well, that was then, and One Medical (and a host of other newer arrivals) are now.
Today, Tom Lee’s fourteen-year-old company has 72 locations across the US and counting. The One Medical experience integrates into our modern life seamlessly, with same-day appointments, video consults, reminders by text, a simple user-friendly website, and digital communications with your medical team. Yes, taking your medicine really can be a joy.
Virgin America. This is not the first time we’ve mentioned VX in our Challenger Brand discussions, a testament to how forward thinking so many of the components of the overall offering were. However, Virgin’s all-singing, all-dancing second safety video defines turning a loathed experience on its head.
Whereas every other airline safety demo was a thing to be consciously tuned out (preferably with headphones and some well-timed Metallica), Virgin’s video elicited smiles, foot-tapping, and conversation. Over ten million people sought it out on YouTube within a month of its release. Yes, they sought out a safety video to watch, by choice. How nuts is that.
Fit Freedom. Imagine this scenario: you are in charge of accurately measuring 200 cheer athletes so that they can have outrageous uniforms made by the one and only Custom Couture Cheer Company, Rebel Athletic. You know it’ll be worth it – but using fit kits and tape measures on hundreds of sweaty kids is no-one’s idea of fun. And it takes hours and hours.
Enter FitFreedom, an AI augmented app that takes two body scans (in form-fitting clothes) and converts those scans into 98% accurate body measurements, from neck to wrist to hips and inner leg. All in a few seconds, with zero contact, no tape measures and no silent cursing needed.
Mirror. Who remembers Jane Fonda videos on VHS cassettes? Ok, there’s nothing to be embarrassed about, so do I. Leg warmers and fluorescent leotards and all. Following on to a pre-recorded, one-size-fits all grainy video seems so yesterday compared to Mirror’s experience.
Brynn Putnam’s 21st century exercise sensation allows you a personalized version of Jane Fonda (without the leg warmers), tailored to your specific needs. Oh, and whereas aerobics as such may not be offered, cardio, boxing, strength, yoga, pilates and a host of other workouts are. Once again, prancing around in your living room is joyously socially acceptable. Just not to the soundtrack of Flashdance, please.
Kaia’s surfing still has a way to go until he reaches Laird Hamilton status, but that’s not the point. Being out in the ocean, learning to master a new skill, the rush of catching a good wave, the exhilaration of staying on the board, the camaraderie of the experience and the sharing of stories afterwards all provide joy. Lots of joy.
Sacrifice Comfort to Experience Joy
So, despite having to rise before sunrise. Despite the (occasional) hangover. Despite the cold of the central California coastal waters. Despite poor waves or poor form, he goes back again and again and again.
Which is the difference between a hobby and a brand experience. A hobby you will take the suckiness with the joy. A brand experience, not so much.
Today’s consumers expect your experience not to suck. Increasingly they expect it to be frictionless. Some even expect it to bring them some pleasure. The demanding ones ask for a little bit of joy. So, be nice. Give it to them. Disappoint at your peril.
Because those who deliver joy, always reap the rewards.
You can read more about Challenger Brands in Julian's new book - Illuminate: A Challenger's Handbook, available on Amazon now.