Adobe: Brand DNA
Professor Cheryl Dixon Communication and Global Brands
1
Executive Summary Adobe is a software company whose brand has always represented technological innovation, collaboration, and customer-centricity. Adobe has adapted to industry change by transforming itself from a software company to an integrated media solutions company. In light of these changes, Adobe would benefit from: 1) adjusting its trusted yet broad global positioning to include local significance in developed and emerging markets and 2) aligning brand perceptions with Adobe’s identity as an integrated media solutions company, and building trust and excitement around this new identity.
Adobe can achieve these goals through the following iconic moves: 1) running promotions that meet local needs 2) inviting businesses and influencers to tell their success stories explaining Adobe’s role in enabling their vision, 3) giving industry partners sneak peaks of Adobe’s latest innovations, and 4) challenging creatives to join design contests where participants will generate locally-impactful solutions using Adobe software.
Company Overview Adobe Systems Incorporated is an American multinational software company founded in 1982 in San Jose, California (ICD Research, 2014). In its early years Adobe was known for its pioneering work in desktop publishing and application software (ICD Research, 2014) Currently, the company sells software programs that fit under three segments 1) digital media, 2) digital marketing, and 3) print and publishing (ICD Research, 2014). Software includes programs like Adobe Photoshop (photo editing software), and Adobe Acrobat (PDF creation / editing software) (ICD Research, 2014). Individual programs are also grouped together and sold as software “suites” (bundles) that include multiple programs that cater to specific customer segments (ICD Research, 2014). The company distributes its software through retailers, software developers, and various others who license a large amount of the company’s product (ICD Research, 2014). Adobe has expanded its portfolio across geographies through strategic partnerships (ICD Research, 2014). The company operates in the Americas, Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) and Asia-Pacific (APAC) (ICD Research, 2014).
Global Target Audience
2
Adobe’s customers are digital media, digital marketing, and print and publishing individuals and professionals in businesses of all sizes. Other customers include knowledge workers, and original equipment manufacturers (OEM) (ICD Research, 2014). Digital media customers (which generate 71 percent of Adobe’s income) include “traditional content creators, web application developers and digital media professionals, and their management in marketing departments and agencies, companies and publishers” (ICD Research, 2014). Software designed for this group includes Adobe After Effects, Adobe Audition, and Adobe Business Catalyst and the flagship Adobe Creative Cloud, which includes 16 individual programs and four suites (ICD Research, 2014).
Digital marketing customers want to create, manage, execute, measure and optimize digital marketing campaigns and efforts. Customers in this category include “digital marketers, advertisers, publishers, merchandisers, web analysts, chief marketing officers and chief revenue officers” (ICD Research, 2014). Software designed for this group includes Adobe Analytics, Adobe SiteCatalyst and Adobe DataWarehouse (ICD Research, 2014).
Print and publishing customers. Are interested in e-learning technical document publishing, web application development, and high-end printing. Suites like the Digital Publishing Suite cater to this segment and programs like Adobe Authorware, Adobe Captivate, and Adobe ColdFusion (ICD Research, 2014).
Adobe supports end users through field offices and markets and distributes its products through sales channels in the Americas (Canada, Brazil, Mexico, and the US); Europe (Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Moldova, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Sweden Switzerland, Spain, Ukraine and the UK); the Middle East and Africa (Dubai, South Africa, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates); Asia-Pacific (Australia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Singapore, Taiwan) (ICD Research, 2014) (MarketLine, 2013). The Americas have consistently generated more than half of Adobe’s revenues and Europe, the Middle East and Africa consistently generate approximately 30 percent and the Asia-Pacific region generates approximately 20 percent (MarketLine, 2013) (CSI Market, 2014). 3
The Brand Brand Promise The Adobe brand promise is “changing the world through digital experiences.” (Adobe, 2013). Adobe’s brand promise is global by design, however, Adobe defines itself as a solution for creators and businesspeople globally rather than in specific ways locally.
A Powerful Tool for Creators Adobe defines its promise for individual creators as an opportunity for them to tell their story and realize their vision (MicronTechnology, 2019). Photoshop is a key equity for creators, which is famous to the point where photoshopping has entered popular culture and the verb “to photoshop” has become synonymous with photo editing (MicronTechnology, 2019). The Creative Cloud and Creative suite are two other important assets to the creative community (MarketLine, 2013). Other equities which are viewed as industry standard software include editing programs which cater to the needs of particular creators like illustrator, video editing software like Premier Pro, and web design programs like Dreamweaver (ICD Research, 2014). Adobe’s full portfolio encompasses more than 50 different programs (Humtog, 2020).
The All-in-One Business Solution Adobe adapts its promise to enterprises by casting itself as the all-in-one business solution that adapts businesses to the experience economy using intelligent data-driven technology (like Adobe Analytics) and also print and document solutions, accurately and productively (ICD Research, 2014). PDF files are a key equity (MicronTechnology, 2019) PDF is a signature technology invented by Adobe distributed through Adobe Acrobat, a program known and used widely by the business community (MicronTechnology, 2019).
Cutting-Edge Customer-Centricity Adobe’s cutting-edge customer-centric reputation is another key asset. The company has a history of iconic moves that give customers the impression that they can trust adobe to offer them cutting-edge solutions to their design and business problems. For example, the company invented postscript in 1997, an innovative document technology that greatly eased the process of printing what users see on their screen (MicronTechnology, 2019).
4
More recent moves include the company’s transition from a hardware model to a customercentric software model. Adobe used to distribute its software as individual CDs with standalone software through 12 to 18 month product cycles (MicronTechnology, 2019). Now, everything has been migrated to the cloud where all software are available for download wherever customers may be (MicronTechnology, 2019).The AI-enabled cloud technology studies the behavior of customers, offering updates that respond to their behavior in real time via free updates. The company’s adaptation of its technology for tablets is another customer-centric move that shows the understanding that customers are mobile, so their creative tools should be available “wherever inspiration strikes” (MicronTechnology, 2019).This move also shows that Adobe understands customers in emerging markets whose only available devices may be tablets (MicronTechnology, 2019). Finally, the touch screen technology mirrors the way creators actually draw using a pen, whereas desktop iterations of Adobe technology require drawing with a mouse (MicronTechnology, 2019). The company’s COVID-19 crisis accommodations were also customer centric, allowing customers free remote access to PDF and education software (MicronTechnology, 2019).
Trusted Leadership Position and Powerful Product Adobe’s greatest assets are its functional benefits, which give the company and its products a trusted leadership position and industry-standard customer-centric reputation (Althoff). The company’s wide geographical footprint, and service and support options enhance this leadership reputation. The software is known as the industry standard because it is powerful; once users learn how to use it, the software can produce an extensive variety of designs, impressive document productivity, and increasingly integrated digital services (ICD Research, 2014). The software have a reputation for easy compatibility across operating systems, frequent free updates that respond to the usage patterns of the user, and use customizable dashboards (ICD Research, 2014). The software also comes with service and training options (ICD Research, 2014). (MarketLine, 2013).
Cutting-Edge Community Commitment Adobe extends its brand promise of changemaking technology to the communities it serves. Examples include Adobe’s digital literacy partnership with Teach For America, 5
sharing its technology with organizations like Limbitless, which 3D prints bionic limbs for limbless children, and creating programs to allow employees to offer their design skills to nonprofit organizations near their local Adobe office (Adobe). These and other initiatives create a sense that Adobe authentically lives its values to its core beyond monetary gain. However, these initiatives are not highlighted often in company communications, and the majority of them seem to focus on the Americas.
Brand Weaknesses: Price Point, Learning Curve Weaknesses stem from Adobe’s products and services. The software has a somewhat intimidating reputation, because the software are not easy to learn (Jones, 2019) The products are also a perceived as a commitment, as the software is not particularly affordable, especially for individuals, especially in emerging economies (Adobe offers corporate and student product bundles), and single-app memberships are not available for all software (Jones, 2019). The lack of affordability has created situations in countries like India, where the company has market share, but low revenue, as low-income customers in those countries tend to purchase the least amount of software possible (MicronTechnology, 2019). The issues with lack of ease and affordability open the door for competitors.
Brand Personality: Polished, Creative, Authoritative, Slightly Intimidating Adobe’s presence on social media is professional and industry-facing. Adobe maintains accounts on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter (where Adobe has a major presence including 10 sub-accounts), and YouTube (which uses video to bring the power of Adobe’s software to life) (see Appendix). Adobe’s LinkedIn following (2,262,181 followers) is significantly larger than its following on other platforms (Facebook: 1, 294,108; Instagram: one million), implying an industry emphasis. Acrobat, a business-oriented software program, does not have its own social media account. Adobe’s social media often focus on press releases, new product releases, updates, partnership announcements, event promotions (including the Adobe Summit), occasionally highlighting corporate social responsibility. Partnership-related posts often discuss how businesses have used Adobe’s products and services to make a difference. One example is a blog post shared via LinkedIn that describes a digital agency’s Parkinson’s Disease detection app designed entirely on Adobe XD. Adobe seems to want to perceived as an authority, and Adobe’s blog and links to interviews with Adobe’s CEO seem to assert this authority through thought leadership. 6
Some social media accounts emphasize creativity. Examples include accounts for creativedriven software like Creative Cloud. Major sub-brands like Photoshop and Illustrator have their own dedicated social media accounts, whose followers exceed those of Adobe’s main account (for example, Adobe has one million followers on Instagram, exceeded by Photoshop’s 5.1 million Instagram followers). The personality of the creative sub-accounts is graphic and creator-driven.
Adobe uses social media to support and promote its community, creating a sense of authenticity. An Adobe Care account is dedicated exclusively to customer support. Adobe often promotes events on its social media that support entrepreneurs, for example Adobe’s Experience Maker awards. Adobe’s website has a corporate look and feel, with pages that follow the key areas of Adobe’s business, including sections dedicated to creativity and design, marketing and commerce, and PDF and signatures, business solutions (Adobe, 2020) (See Appendix). Product discounts and support options appear as well (Adobe, 2020) (See Appendix). Creative and community-related pages are not prominently displayed compared to the product content (Adobe, 2020) (See Appendix). The lack of a comprehensive guide to the software and the distinctions between them may seem overwhelming to a first-time purchaser (Adobe, 2020) (See Appendix).
The brand personality of the software is professional and polished. Creative flair appears in the load screens for each software, which showcase the work of individual creators (see Appendix). The workspaces are functional and comprehensive, but the overall effect feels slightly corporate and impersonal, which undercuts some of the excitement creators may feel. First-time users may also feel overwhelmed by the interface (see Appendix).
Competitors Intense competition in Adobe’s three segments The business and creative software space in which Adobe operates is increasingly competitive. Adobe’s software that targets the profitable digital media segment Adobe competes with companies like Apple (specifically, Apple Aperture the photo editing tool), Avid, the industry-standard film and video editing software, which directly competes with 7
Adobe’s premier pro (ICD Research, 2014) (MarketLine, 2013). Corel painter competes with Photoshop. Other players in this segment are Aviary, Corel, Microsoft, ACDsee, Aviary, Dell, Hewlett Packard, Sony and companies offering downloadable services for touch enabled devices at a lower price point than Adobe (ICD Research, 2014). Canva (a graphic design platform) is an interesting competitor, because it operates in the same creative space as some of Adobe’s creative programs (Althoff). Canva is a downloadable program that allows users to create graphics, presentations, etc with a simple pre-made library of fonts, templates, and designs with no prior knowledge of design (Althoff). Canva is challenging to Adobe, because it targets the learning curve associated and expensiveness that are associated with Adobe’s brand (Althoff).
The digital marketing segment, particularly marketing cloud includes competitors like Google, Yahoo! Salesforce Microsoft, Oracle, IBM, and more. Competitors in print and publishing include Pegasystems, Ultimus, TechSmith, etc (Marketline).
Market Trends Smart Computing, Customer Centricity, Partnerships and Acquisitions Adobe benefits from the overall robust economic outlook for technology companies (Deloitte, 2020) More specifically, Adobe has been early to adopt artificial intelligence (which is of increasing interest) into its subscription model (MicronTechnology, 2019). Adobe has also capitalized on the “unprecedented demand” for cloud technology (hosted services delivered via the internet) by migrating all its subscription services to the cloud (MicronTechnology, 2019) (Deloitte, 2020).
The move to cloud computing makes the experience more customer-centric due to increased customization that comes with the built-in real-time updates associated with the technology and arguably fights piracy issues that have affected Adobe (although cloud cybersecurity is an ongoing discussion) (Deloitte, 2020) MicronTechnology, 2019). The COVID-19 pandemic seems to have only accelerated the adoption of cloud technology as a way of enabling the use of the software to keep remote workers safe (Deloitte, 2020)
Analysts say it is important for companies that face intense competition to diversify. Adobe has achieved this diversification through geographical and product diversification (Marketline). 8
Adobe’s strategic acquisitions of Behance, the digital and social media portfolio display platform, the acquisition of Efficient Frontier (a digital marketing platform), Marketo, a (content marketing platform), and Thumb Labs (an app design agency), address market analysts’ advice to join forces with other organizations, and “merge tools” to create seamless business solutions rather than siloed products and services (ICD Research, 2014) (MarketLine, 2013) (Slefo, George P., 2019). Adobe’s integration of its software creates seamless solutions the bridge content creation and content management. Adobe has also used strategic partnerships for mutual amplification of brand equity for shared gain. One example is Adobe’s partnership with webinar companies to enable remote work (Skidmore, 2020)
Brand Opportunities
Insight
Opportunity
The Americas are a critical territory for
Promote Adobe’s US-based initiatives to Adobe’s
Adobe.
customers.
Industry leadership is key to Adobe’s
Cultivate industry thought leadership around digital media
brand.
and digital marketing and signature technologies and software.
Adobe’s brand is somewhat intimidating due to its price point and difficulty to
Use messaging that makes the brand more accessible and
learn, which is in conflict with Adobe’s
tangible.
brand of customer-centricity.
9
Adobe has a strong global presence with the creative and business community but
Create local relationships with key local communities and
has opportunities to cultivate a local
businesses (for example, Europe, the Middle East and
presence.
Africa) to generate trust (particularly for businesses) leveraging Adobe’s thought leadership and excitement (particularly for creators) through interactive experiences.
Adobe properties like Photoshop, have
Lead with established equity of established Adobe sub-
established equity, but there are
brands and partnered / acquired companies.
opportunities to promote media, marketing and publishing solutions, and
But also show how sub-brands integrate into Adobe’s
the technology behind them.
integrated solutions and the AI-enabled cloud technologies behind them.
There is untapped opportunity in creating
Create exciting interactive experiences that incorporate
messaging that excites the creative
Adobe’s technology, software, and leadership.
customer.
10
Iconic Moves
Industry
•
Move #1, “Adobe Impact”: Cultivate thought leadership through showing Adobe’s impact not just describing the impact. Use owned
Focus on large cities and developed countries,
events like the Adobe Summit as an opportunity for Adobe to
especially the Americas
showcase real people who used specific Adobe products like its portfolio of integrated media solutions to achieve specific business goals. Testimonial examples: “I got my first client when I showed my portfolio (which I designed on Photoshop and Illustrator) via Behance,” “I uncovered a key insight about my customers using Adobe Analytics”, etc. •
Take trusted industry partners and experts behind the scenes to show the new technologies and products Adobe will be releasing soon (in confidence). For example, if Adobe is working on a new augmented reality app that requires goggles, have the industry partners try them on. Focus on large cities and developed economies for this initiative.
Small Business
•
Focus on developing and
Move #2: Price-based promotions, flash sales through key channels that are important to emerging markets (for example WhatsApp)
emerging economies in
targeting the needs of those markets (for example, sales specifically for
Europe, the Middle East,
people who use design software on tablets) (The Economist, 2019)
and Africa
•
Promote these initiatives globally through Adobe’s channels.
Creators
•
Iconic move #3, “Adobe My Way:” There will be a global element to
Focus on developed and
this initiative, where influencers will take us behind the scenes
developing countries in
showing how the software enabled their vision, whether its coding
Europe, Middle East,
their website, or designing their newsletter, but getting granular about
Africa, Asia and the
which software, why, best practices, and how it made a difference.
United States
Could be a partnership with Masterclass
11
•
The local element will be design competitions like hackathons where teams will compete on design challenges that have local relevance and the winners from each country will participate in a global competition
•
Promotions may include Instagram, TikTok takeovers, branded live design tutorials at industry / arts events, etc.
12
References
ICD Research. (2014, January 05). Adobe Systems Incorporated : Technology and Communications - Company Profile, SWOT & Financial Report. London: ICD Research. MarketLine. (2013). Adobe Systems Incorporated MarketLine Company Profile . London: MarketLine, a Progressive Digital Media business. Adobe. (2013, September 04). Changing the world through digital experiences. Retrieved from Adobe Life: https://blogs.adobe.com/adobelife/2013/09/04/changing-the-worldthrough-digital-experiences/ CSI Market. (2014). Adobe Inc Sales by Country . Retrieved from CSIMarket.com: https://csimarket.com/stocks/segments_geo.php?code=ADBE Humtog. (2020, Feb 25). All 50+ Adobe apps explained in 10 minutes . Retrieved from YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7W0ISI3yqwo MicronTechnology. (2019, November 06). Powering AI Driven Business Outcomes. Retrieved from YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBmBmh03pjY Althoff, M. (n.d.). Illustrator vs. Canva – Understand the Differences Between the Two. Retrieved from mariahalthoff.com/: https://mariahalthoff.com/blog/illustrator-vscanva Adobe. (n.d.). Creating positive outcomes in our communities. Retrieved from Adobe: https://www.adobe.com/corporate-responsibility/community.html Jones, E. (2019, May 09). Adobe Creative Suite Competitors Review & Comparison . Retrieved from AMSCMedia: https://www.cms-connected.com/News-Archive/May2019/Adobe-Creative-Suite-Competitors-Review-Comparison Adobe. (2020, June 09). Home. Retrieved from Adobe.com: https://www.adobe.com/ Deloitte. (2020). 2020 technology industry outlook . Retrieved from Deloitte: https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/pages/technology-media-andtelecommunications/articles/technology-industry-outlook.html Deloitte. (2020). COVID-19 outlook for the US technology industry. Retrieved from Deloitte: https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/pages/technology-media-andtelecommunications/articles/covid-19-outlook-on-technology-industry.html
13
Slefo, George P. (2019, April 1). ADOBE: 'BUSINESS-TO-EVERYONE' IS THE FUTURE. Advertising Age, 90(7). Retrieved from Advertising Age. Skidmore, S. (2020, 04 21). Adobe Video Partners Support Collaboration for Teams Working Remotely. Retrieved from Adobe Blog: https://theblog.adobe.com/adobe-videopartners-support-collaboration-for-teams-working-remotely/?scid=bde961c0-b94e448f-8125-db30455c57e4&mv=social&mv2=owned_social The Economist. (2019, July 18). How WhatsApp is used and misused in Africa. Retrieved from The Economist: https://www.economist.com/middle-east-andafrica/2019/07/18/how-whatsapp-is-used-and-misused-in-africa
14
Appendix
Figure 1: YouTube is an example of an Adobe channel that brings the excitement of the company's work to life.
15
Figure 2: Instagram post from Adobe Photoshop. The account showcases artists and the designs they make using the software.
16
Figure 3: Adobe's homepage. Polished, well-designed, but could benefit from emphasizing Adobe’s initiatives and nonproduct offerings in addition to subscriptions and services.
Figure 4: Example of a load screen from Adobe Illustrator. Image credit.
17
Figure 5: Example of a dashboard from Adobe InDesign. Image credit.
18