Clean Technology: Tomorrow’s Brands

Clean technology: tomorrow’s brands A review of opportunities for brand positioning, identity and communications to contribute to the success of cleantech companies

Contents SECTION 1

The clean technology sector

2

SECTION 2

The role of brand

6

SECTION 3

Examples of cleantech brands

14

SECTION 4

Building foundations for a strong brand

20

SECTION 5

Why is now the right time to think about this?

22

SECTION 6

Conclusions

24

Dragon Rouge is a global agency helping organisations exploit the full extent of their capabilities and opportunities through expertise in brand strategy, innovation, design and communications. We have been working for many years with companies to align commercial and sustainability goals.

Clean technology has been described as the most significant technology revolution of the 21st century—the next Industrial Revolution.

Political focus on the importance of the sector is growing globally. The commitment of governments to invest is high. In the US, President Barack Obama has included a huge stimulus for this sector in his economic recovery package, with 5 million ‘green collar jobs’ promised. In Europe, Prime Minister Gordon Brown is setting out plans for a ‘lowcarbon recovery.’ Heads of state across Europe are adding their voices to the call for innovation. The consensus appears to be building that it is essential both for the economy and the environment to get the clean technology boom going.

Clean and green technologies have the potential to help radically transform our lives. But at this tipping point, clean technology companies need to connect and communicate with stakeholders effectively if they are to succeed. As with the dotcom boom, enthusiasm and finance could easily trickle away unless investors and customers alike are convinced of their soundness and ability to last.

The winners will be those that not only have smart solutions, but can also create compelling brands.

We carried out this review to explore the case for companies within cleantech using the tools of brand development to support their growth. We interviewed a wide range of people involved in the sector, from investors to advisers, cleantech companies to government agencies; their views are reflected in the quotes included in the review.

All agreed that brand development could play a significant role in the success of individual companies, and even of the sector overall.

Dorothy Mackenzie Chairman, Dragon Rouge, London

CLEAN TECHNOLOGY: TOMORROW’S BRANDS

1

SECTION 1

The clean technology sector

Clean technologies (cleantech) are technologies—including products, services and processes—that reduce or eliminate the environmental impact of currently available technology through increasing resource efficiency, improving performance and reducing waste.

Agriculture and nutrition Air quality

TYPE

KEY FEATURES

EXAMPLES

Cleantech SMEs

Smaller companies that apply already developed technologies or provide other ancillary services. They may not have very fast or high growth potential but are a vital part of cleantech value chains.

– Wind and solar household installation – Niche green products (e.g. construction)

Technology start-ups

Young companies commercialising technologies into products and entering markets with good growth potential.

– Ceres Power – Nanosolar

Pure Play cleantech

Cleantech firms that have developed into significant independent corporations, usually publicly listed and making the majority of revenue from cleantech as core business.

– Vestas – Iberdrola Renovables – Climate Exchange

Traditional environmental goods and services

Water utilities and waste management companies, including large private or public firms and a wide range of smaller waste management companies, environmental consultancies, contaminated land remediation etc.

– Severn Trent – SITA

Subsidiaries

Business units within major corporations involved in cleantech, which form a small part of the overall business.

– General Electric – Mitsubishi – BP Alternative Energy

Enabling technologies Energy related Environmental IT Manufacturing/ industrial Materials and nanotechnology Materials recovery and recycling Transportation and logistics Water purification and management

2 CLEAN TECHNOLOGY: TOMORROW’S BRANDS

Source: Forum for the Future

(Cleantech Network definition)

Inevitably there are different stakeholders, organisations and levels of maturity within the sector—from investors to policy makers, start-ups to major multi-nationals representing diverse technologies and tackling different environmental issues.

THE MARKET FOR CLEAN TECHNOLOGY The Environmental Goods & Services (EGS) sector was valued by the UK government at £3T in 2008. Total investment in clean and low carbon technology—usually measured as part of EGS—exceeded $150bn for the first time in 2008.

Growth forecasts vary for the cleantech sector going forward, but in January 2009 the World Economic Forum called for $515bn investment every year until 2030 simply to hit current global environmental targets.

Traditional images of a cleantech company might conjure up university spin-outs, start-ups or SMEs looking to deploy a technology, but the reality is far from just this. Stable and mature cleantech ventures exist within utility companies and large multi-national corporations are also present in this sector. For example, Mitsubishi Electric Group recently announced plans to achieve sales of $13bn in 2016 from clean technologies such as solar systems, heat pumps and other energy efficient power devices.

I would say a strong brand and good communications are important for early stage start-up companies right through to mature global corporates.

Graeme Purdy, Ilika

The US dominates the cleantech market, closely followed by Japan, India and China. Germany leads Europe, but the UK is emerging as something of a hotbed. It is a European leader for cleantech funds and investments and a recognised centre for excellence for technology development and start-up. Within the UK, EGS is valued at £105.5bn employing over 880,000 people, with cleantech making up part of that.

CLEAN TECHNOLOGY: TOMORROW’S BRANDS

3

THE CHALLENGES Whatever their scale, success for companies in the cleantech sector will depend on their access to funding and to markets. Despite the long term growth potential, the current funding crisis will constrain the availability of finance for business expansion, and even highly promising new ventures will have to compete very strongly for finance.

Sources of finance, whether venture capital firms or large corporates, will look for clear evidence that the company will succeed in the market. They will want to see a level of professionalism, commercial realism and clarity of purpose that might not have been necessary a year or two ago.

Companies tend to go through a series of stages in seeking funding—meaning they will need to look at the attractiveness of the proposition in a variety of ways and to different audiences at different times.

What can cleantech companies do to be best prepared for the scale-up and expansion stage— whether they are divisions of large companies, start-ups looking for seed funding or SMEs looking to secure investment to grow?

So far, this sector has, unsurprisingly, been very focused on technology and product—and there are lots of challenges here, especially in scaling up new technologies. There has been less focus on customers and markets, marketing and communication. But the companies that succeed in the long term will be those that not only have great technologies and a strong management team but also a clear vision, a competitive positioning in the market, a strong identity and coherent behaviour and communications—all important components of a strong brand.

A strong brand can help as a company heads towards expansion. It will be a critical part of this.

Alex Hook NESTA

THE SUSTAINABLE ENERGY FINANCING CONTINUUM

TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH

TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT

MANUFACTURING SCALE-UP

ROLL-OUT (Asset Finance)

Government Venture Capital Private Equity Public (Equity) Markets Mergers & Acquistions Credit (Debit) Markets Carbon Finance Source: UNEP 2008 4 CLEAN TECHNOLOGY: TOMORROW’S BRANDS

Brand is the most important factor when assessing the future potential of a company.

Warren Buffet, November 2008

As an investor I always say ‘if I can’t explain it to someone in a couple of sentences, it makes it very difficult for me to sell the idea to others’.

So far however, companies in the cleantech sector have displayed mixed approaches to this.

Rachael Nutter, The Carbon Trust

The findings of our Clean Capital report do support the need for good branding and communications—as we found there was often a mismatch between what cleantech start-ups say and what investors are looking for. They don’t always get their story right and can often over emphasise the environmental benefits of their technology or focus on saving the planet rather than on them being a sound business proposition.

Having a strong brand is not only important in cleantech start-ups and SMEs looking to catch the eye of investors. It is also emerging as critical to corporates beginning to play in this space—to make these new divisions and business units fit into their host organisation and ensure the new technologies are palatable and understandable.

Notable cases are BP’s Alternative Energy division and Toyota’s ‘Hybrid Synergy Technology’ that powers the dual-fuel engine in its famous and award-winning Prius and which they now licence out to other car companies.

Alice Chapple, Forum for the Future

It is vital for the health of the economy and the planet that the clean technology sector flourishes, and therefore the companies within the sector need to be exemplars of professional brand management to maximise their chances of success in terms of attracting funding and building a market and a customer base.

CLEAN TECHNOLOGY: TOMORROW’S BRANDS

5

SECTION 2

The role of brand

Having a strong brand for new players in a new sector is a crucial part of building confidence among stakeholders. Brand is not simply a route for connecting with customers. It is a way of crystallising a statement of intent about the organisation’s focus and future for potential investors, employees and commentators. It is a tool for guiding and inspiring development and, as the organisation grows, a strong brand can be a valuable asset on the balance sheet. All of this means that ‘brand’ has to involve more than a recognisable name and a professional website, although these have a role to play.

The brand needs to be defined in a way that is robust enough to direct what the organisation says and does through all the different communication and behavioural channels available to it: policies, product and service development, recruitment and reward, visual and verbal expression and broader communication.

It is a way of setting out the reputation the organisation wishes to develop with its audiences and a means for managing the delivery of its promises. It has a value over and above the specific product or technology being developed at any one time.

Managed well, the brand should help build awareness and create preference—and ensure that the organisation takes advantage of the benefit of the doubt should anything go wrong.

As with biotechnology, IT or the New Economy, there will be intense competition for resources—and successive shakeouts will favour the strongest brands with the best underlying performance, as has been the case with Google.

John Elkington, Volans

The brand can play an important role in attracting talented employees and then in ensuring they are fully engaged with the organisation. The brand should capture the culture of the organisation and help to express why it is good to work for. This will be a vitally important factor as cleantech companies seek to attract the best recruits to drive their future development.

Strong brands have to be built on a foundation of sound business practice and a positive experience.

If these are in place, having a clear, compelling story and identity and a sense of momentum will help drive both shareholder value and sales. The visual identity is of major importance at a time when impressions are formed from experience of organisations through multiple media.

If you are an investor you see maybe 200–300 companies a year and invest in only three or four. It is about getting across immediately why them, why the technology, why the management team, etc... Branding does help get across how serious they are about the business.

Mark Campanale, Four Elements Capital

6 CLEAN TECHNOLOGY: TOMORROW’S BRANDS

A brand is an asset that will be perceived and interpreted by customers and stakeholders through each stage of the company’s evolution. It is a powerful tool for promoting who we are, our relevance and the value we deliver to target markets.

Joel Hagan, Onzo

THE VALUE FOR THE CLEAN TECHNOLOGY SECTOR Having a strong brand is important for success in almost any sector, but there are some issues specific to cleantech that make it particularly important to consider brand development very carefully as an important contributor to business success.

It is not a substitute for great technology, sound management, intellectual property or regulatory changes to encourage cleantech development.

But it will be a way to differentiate and compete for funding with other sectors and with other companies—as a complement to these. In other sectors, a powerful brand often allows a premium to be commanded for goods or services.

In the cleantech sector, a strong brand can help in six areas:

as well as for customers. One role that brands can play is to make choices simpler—particularly for people who are not experts in the category.

Cleantech companies who have succeeded in building awareness of their brand, with a clear set of associations, will be one step ahead of others when it comes to establishing the credibility needed to secure finance or sales.

It’s about portraying the business as a company of strength… that it is robust and durable. It’s about instilling confidence and impressing bigger companies and investors.

Alex Hook, NESTA

The company has got to convince deeply sceptical people that they are worth investing in, especially at the moment when people are holding on to their money. A brand can help get over this.

Mark Campanale, Four Elements Capital

1. CONFIDENCE AND CREDIBILITY 2. DIFFERENTIATION AND COMPETITIVENESS New ventures need to inspire confidence in their ability to last. Companies created on the basis of a technical invention can run the risk of being seen as limited in their potential. If the technology is superseded, can the company continue? Does the company have a vision that goes beyond one product—a broader based proposition that focuses on the benefit offered to customers, or on the unique capability and experience of the organisation?

Although there may appear to be almost unlimited long term growth potential, with room enough for all to be successful, the reality in cleantech is that there will be considerable competition for funds 8 CLEAN TECHNOLOGY: TOMORROW’S BRANDS

Clever technology or interesting features won’t sell themselves. It’s essential to explain why the product is different from others, and how it better addresses customers’ needs.

Where there is a new technology, newer or developing markets there’s potential for lots of confusion or lack of understanding... That’s where good branding plays a strong role. If you look at something like energy efficient lighting, there’s total confusion. There are particular issues here where branding can help.

Rachael Nutter, The Carbon Trust

Look at any crowded cleantech sector —like solar—and see if you can tell one company from another. Hard, isn’t it? Thin-film, concentrators, inverters and renewable are all buzzwords and generalities that quickly blur.

Precision. Clarity. Simplicity. There’s a premium on these issues in emerging markets with new product and service offerings. If people can’t understand what you really have—or you make them work extra hard to figure out why they should care—that’s sufficient reason for people to move on to something else, especially given tight budgets.

Steve Weiss, cleantech marketing guru

The key branding and communication challenges for cleantech companies are about getting across the message that this isn’t just about green, it’s about progress, efficiency, effectiveness, profitability and excitement.

John Elkington, Volans

3. DEMONSTRATION OF THE COMMERCIAL POTENTIAL Because cleantech companies offer the potential for environmental benefits—and many have been established by entrepreneurs for whom this is the key motivating driver—the compelling business vision may not be clear to those outside the company.

Getting the story right for investors and customers will be crucial to realising the potential of the business. Any pioneering sector runs the risk of being seen as populated by people whose passion for science outweighs their passion for business.

Presenting the face of a well managed, business focused organisation will be important to inspire confidence.

I think brand is most relevant as a company is entering the market. That’s the key point when a strong brand can help. That’s just as companies are trying to convince customers to part with their cash. The brand will be an embodiment of the company, its employees, its technology, everything. I think it’s somewhere between early and expansion stages.

Alex Hook, NESTA

The key is the pre–IPO stage (expansion capital) if cleantech companies want to go that far... when institutions start looking at investing, they want to see a strong concept carefully set out.

Mark Campanale, Four Elements Capital

4. INTERNAL COHESION DURING GROWTH Many cleantech companies will go through periods of rapid growth, where many new employees join, and new activities are undertaken. The sense of direction and culture created by the founders and original visionaries needs to be ‘codified’ through the brand so that it is readily accessible to all and can act as the glue to keep the organisation to the same purpose and commitment as it scales up.

Onzo had a brand manager at its earliest stage of development and devised and documented a corporate strategy and a brand strategy within its first few months, both of which have stood the test of time. Onzo’s first two non-executive directors brought brand/ communications and marketing expertise to the table. This has ensured that throughout the organisation there is an understanding that actual customer needs are paramount to the success of the company.

Joel Hagan, Onzo

The key to a successful cleantech brand?

The first thing would be the message – having a crystal clear, easily digestible and memorable message of what your organisation stands for. Plus what your customer stands to get from your technology.

Another thing would be a clear vision or mission that resonates with your customers and end-users. I think a final thing would be the use of engaging imagery that is appropriate to the sector and technology and that customers can identify with.

Graeme Purdy, Ilika

CLEAN TECHNOLOGY: TOMORROW’S BRANDS

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5. MAKING THE TECHNOLOGY STORY ACCESSIBLE AND COMPELLING Though some new clean technologies will prove vital to our future, and lucrative for those who bring them to market, the sector can appear obscure and unglamorous. Pinning your hopes to or communicating only around a key technology can prove tricky if it is complex, new or associated with some form of social taboo. While generating energy from bovine excrement may be highly sophisticated and exciting, the story behind this will need to be carefully crafted to overcome initial scepticism.

A compelling story, and an inspiring way of telling and showing this could be crucial in demystifying or normalising unknown technologies. Many completely new, technically very complex, products and services in digital and information technologies were quickly adopted when delivered by accessible brands. Companies like Apple, Sage, the international software company, and Blackberry have succeeded by making a virtue of using their brand to make technology accessible and simple. The visual style that emerges from the cleantech sector will have an important role to play in helping to inspire broader stakeholders about its potential.

A key challenge for cleantech companies is converting the benefits of the technology in their sector into messages that resonate with end-users to solve their issues and challenges.

12 CLEAN TECHNOLOGY: TOMORROW’S BRANDS

I think that fuel-cell technology is faltering a bit here, whereas solar technology has been stronger in engaging with people on how it fits into domestic or commercial environments, into their homes, etc.

Graeme Purdy, Ilika

Technology companies are often too focused on the technology, and need to spend more time articulating the benefits to the customer.

Rachael Nutter, The Carbon Trust

6. MAKING IT WORK FOR AN EXISTING CORPORATION Larger companies investing in cleantech face specific challenges. How should they position themselves on these new and green technologies?

What is the role within the portfolio? How closely should it be associated with the rest of the business? Is it a minor, hands-off experimental joint venture, or does it represent the new strategic vision for the whole company? The story behind the new venture, and how it is expressed through elements like name, look and feel and language need to be considered carefully to ensure they are consistent with the strategy.

GE is top of mind... Eco-magination has it, ABB has bits of it. Momentum and scale, excitement about the future, energy, connections, welcoming, reliable, intriguing.

John Elkington, Volans

Complex technical or new business solutions can best be understood by having them presented simply and sharply. If the ‘answer’ or the cleantech story can’t be reduced to a phrase or picture, customers or investors may miss the point. Simplicity of the concept is key.

Mark Campanale, Four Elements Capital

SECTION 3

Examples of cleantech brands There are a number of cleantech companies who are demonstrating that they understand the role that a clear, robust brand can play:

SOLAR CENTURY A recognised pioneer and standard setter in photovoltaics. Strong sensitivity to the contexts in which it operates – both global environmental and end-user applications.

– Total coherence in look and feel – A clear personality—human, accessible and futuristic – Serious and significant, but with a light touch – A well-told story with clear end-user explanations and benefits

Solar Century do this well. They are clearly punching above their weight in the sector.

When people think of the UK and solar, then Solar Century wouldn’t be far behind.

Alex Hook, NESTA

They’ve made a good job of addressing all the interests of the different people that adopt their technology. I think that’s accessible branding and think they are probably one of the forerunners.

Graeme Purdy, Ilika

14 CLEAN TECHNOLOGY: TOMORROW’S BRANDS

DEEP STREAM

GOOD ENERGY

Infrastructure components for energy management—presented within the vision of ‘shaping an intelligent future’.

Independent, ethical energy company selling 100% renewable energy in a transparent, accessible and differentiated way.

– Makes the prosaic inspiring and distinctive – Clear explanation of technology and markets in which they operate – Smart targeting of different customer needs – Business-like but inspirational language— ‘Leading the revolution’

– Brand integral to business growth – Reflects culture— young, fresh, new kid on the block – Clear proposition: makes the complex simple – Accessible and appealing graphic style

For those consumers who want a green electricity supply, pure and simple, this is probably the closest they will get to it.

National Consumer Council, green tariffs review

16 CLEAN TECHNOLOGY: TOMORROW’S BRANDS

ONZO

VEOLIA

Sells energy monitors to utility companies but recognises the need to make the products appealing and aspirational to the end consumer to drive demand. The ‘ipod’ of cleantech.

A major global environmental services business.

– Great product design as well as good communications – Engaging iconography – Sets the agenda: opinion and thought leadership pieces

Companies should stop thinking exclusively about their technology and think about the benefits that they bring to customers. Onzo has done that. We help people save money and save the planet. That’s clear, simple and increasingly attractive. One of Onzo’s observations is that the cleantech sector lacks an iconic product to which the hopes of a sector can be pinned. We hope that iconic product will be the energy display that we have devised.

– Brand in tune with global scale and ambition and key audiences – Strong focus on results – Maintained clarity through merger and acquisition and consolidation – Makes the unglamorous dynamic

This identity reflects their coherence & complementary characters and establishes this single brand name as a worldwide benchmark.

Veolia press release, June 06

Joel Hagan, Onzo

CLEAN TECHNOLOGY: TOMORROW’S BRANDS

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G24 INNOVATIONS

QUIETREVOLUTION

Next generation solar cell manufacturers and product developers —‘personalising energy for the global community’.

The elegant design of the wind turbines perfectly expresses the brand—functional, modern, stylish, unthreatening—an attractive neighbour.

– Focus on the end benefit—“imagine what it can do”, rather than on the technology – Present their technology and expertise as tackling the big challenges – Right balance between lifestyle design and scientific excellence and robustness – Inspiring and imaginative identity and imagery – Employer branding on website makes G24i an attractive place to work for scientific talent

– Powerful brand name – Vision and mission linked to a larger movement/ trends – Simple, authoritative, positive language and tone of voice

I would say the sector needs to engage more with the end-customer to sell the sorts of solutions available to improve energy efficiency and reduce the impact on the environment.

Graeme Purdy, Ilika

18 CLEAN TECHNOLOGY: TOMORROW’S BRANDS

Improving efficiency can be quite a technical process, which is not necessarily engaging. It is important to find the human angle and represent the solution to the problem that is being addressed by the particular technologies being developed within the cleantech space.

Rachael Nutter, The Carbon Trust

SECTION 4

Building foundations for a strong brand Clean technology companies need to establish credibility and plan for growth. This means creating a strong foundation to guide brand development and communication, rather than simply creating a short term badge.

1 ESTABLISHING THE DIRECTION

2 DEFINING THE STORY

3 ARTICULATING THE PROPOSITION

This ‘whole organisation’ perspective Market understanding, and insights into

provides the grist for creating the story

Products and services need a clear

the attitudes and needs of customers

that describes what the organisation

proposition, based on a thorough

and other stakeholders will be essential

is all about, its vision for the future

understanding of what motivates

to understand the expectations

and what it is like to work with. This can

customers. What makes the offer

the company must deliver against.

then be crystallised into an easy to

better than other options? Does it

Given this, how should the company

articulate core idea. The story should

meet customer needs in terms of other

describe itself and its ambitions? The

be sharp, focused on the specific

features such as design, convenience,

way the company is organised and

strengths and distinctive characteristics

service support? Why should the

its management style and culture will

of the company, rather than reflect

customer believe in it?

influence how it should present itself. It

category generics.

is important to understand the physique and personality before trying to create

Defining the story needs to be led

a presentation style.

by the management team, but with input from employees and external stakeholders.

PHYSIQUE

PERSONALITY

PRESENTATION

Activities

Practices

Visual identity

Organisation

Policies and standards

Branding

Products

Management style

Services

Behaviour

Appearance of company staff and operations

Locations

Culture

Employees Performance 20 CLEAN TECHNOLOGY: TOMORROW’S BRANDS

Image of communication materials

4

5

6

MAKING THE BRAND A REALITY

DEVELOPING A COMMUNICATION STRATEGY

REGULAR REVIEW

The story and idea provide the basis

A good communication strategy

The brand is an asset for the company

for guiding behaviour within the

ensures that the right style, channels,

and its performance should be

organisation, through a simple set of

and media are used to support the

reviewed regularly. This can be done

principles for employees, setting out

delivery of business objectives in a

through surveys of the company’s

‘we are’ and ‘we are not’. This gives

way that allows a new company or

main stakeholders to test awareness,

everyone a clear understanding of

venture to ‘punch above its weight’. It

understanding, strengths and

what is expected of them, and can

should allow the company to maximise

weaknesses.

help to build a cohesive culture as the

the value of the media and material

organisation develops. The story and

it already has at its disposal (such as

idea are also the starting point for

website, printed collateral and PR) as

the creation of the visual and verbal

well as evaluating the right mix of paid

expression—and often the name—

for media, such as advertising. Putting

that will define the brand identity.

the brand guidance at the heart makes it easier to ensure that messages are

The visual and verbal identity should

delivered coherently and effectively.

be used carefully to create a consistent impression of the brand.

Investing resources in a rigorous brand definition and communication programme at the outset will deliver returns as the company develops

CLEAN TECHNOLOGY: TOMORROW’S BRANDS

21

SECTION 5

Why is now the right time to think about this?

The clean technology sector should play a vital role in addressing environmental and economic challenges—quickly. It is therefore in everybody’s interests that good companies here are successful, that brilliant new technologies can attract the funds they need to scale up and that both business customers and end-consumers are excited and inspired enough to switch their purchasing decisions to support clean technology solutions.

Branding and communication can play an important role in this, helping individual companies to be more effective and successful, but also helping to build positive associations around the entire sector. The visual representation of the sector, through the style of the companies within it, will play an important role in shaping the attitudes and expectations of the many different stakeholders on whom the success of clean technology ultimately depends.

Cleantech has to be projected as something that is edgy but mainstream, about new forms of growth, new forms of opportunity.

John Elkington, Volans

UK firms in particular have a challenge to face in meeting the strong competition from the US and emerging players in China and India. While the UK has a strong research base and sees high activity in start-ups, it is trailing in creating successful cleantech corporations. So far, none of the top 10 global firms are UK based.

22 CLEAN TECHNOLOGY: TOMORROW’S BRANDS

THE WORLDS FIRST CLEANTECH BRANDING? The century-old London Underground roundel—the bar and circle that identifies every tube and bus station in the London public transport system—has become one of the most recognised logos in the world and the flagship symbol of a corporate visual identity justly loved by design enthusiasts worldwide (including this one!).

What is less obvious is that it may be the world’s first example of cleantech branding.

The roundel and the rest of the Underground’s visual identity—the iconic map, the careful signage, the brightly lit stations, the witty posters—were all carefully developed by the LU’s first publicity manager and later Chief Executive, Frank Pick, in order to increase passenger numbers after making large capital investments into expanding and electrifying what must have then been a somewhat frightening mode of transport: descending hundreds of feet into the ground to board cars pulled by locomotives speeding through a narrow tunnel...

Patrin Watanatada, SustainAbility

So millions of the new jobs of the future can be low carbon jobs. I don’t think we will have the strength of recovery we need unless it is a low carbon recovery.

So the task we face is to win a very big share for Britain of a fast expanding global market for low carbon goods and services.

Gordon Brown, March 2009

SECTION 6

Conclusions

We believe that clean technology represents an essential and exciting industrial revolution, and this fast emerging sector offers an ideal opportunity to demonstrate the contribution that brand can make to business success.

As a consultancy with considerable experience in working with organisations in ‘far upstream’ industrial sectors, we understand that markets and customers can frequently appear to be a long way from the ‘real business’ of the technology and the processing or manufacturing. But we have seen what a significant difference can be made to organisational effectiveness by a clear and compelling definition of the organisation’s ambition, and by aligning the behaviour and the communication of the company around this.

Our experience in downstream sectors, connecting with end-consumers, reinforces our belief in the importance of influencing demand through inspiring people with the possibilities technology can offer and engaging their emotions through products and services that are well designed and imaginatively presented.

If you would like to discuss the role that brand development can play in building more value from your organisation, please get in touch.

Dorothy Mackenzie E dorothy.mackenzie@dragonrouge.co.uk T +44 (0)20 7262 4488

24 CLEAN TECHNOLOGY: TOMORROW’S BRANDS

About Dragon Rouge Dragon Rouge is a global agency with a positive view on the world. We always believe there are opportunities to be found.

THANKS TO Mark Campanale, Four Elements Capital Alice Chapple & Will Dawson, Forum for the Future John Elkington, Volans

Independent in ownership and outlook we have the insights, imagination and freedom to look at things differently, challenge standard expectations and help clients and their brands to be the best they can be.

Joel Hagan & Neil Tierney, Onzo Alex Hook, NESTA Graeme Purdy, Ilika

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Patrin Watanatada, SustainAbility

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