A BRAND STRATEGY for Cellink
Written by Tehilah Auramo Ronald Clays Kevan D’Agostino Rae Yong Kim University Of Gothenburg Master’s of Business and Design Integrated Projects Gothenburg, Sweden May 29th, 2016
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ABSTRACT
1 INTRODUCTION
2
2
2
CONTEXT AND PROBLEMATIZATION
2.1 COMPANY BACKGROUND 2.2 BRIEF TO REBRIEF 2.3 PROBLEMATIZATION 2.4 RESEARCH QUESTION 2.5 LIMITATIONS
2 3 4 4 4
3
5
THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
3.1 BRAND STRATEGY OVERVIEW 3.2 BRAND PLATFORM 3.3 BRAND IDENTITY 3.4 BRAND ARCHITECTURE 3.5 BRAND PORTFOLIO 3.6 BRAND VOICE & BRAND PERSONALITY 3.7 LOVEMARKS 3.8 INNOVATION 3.9 FUTURE SCENARIO PLANNING
5 6 6 7 8 9 10 10 13
4 METHODOLOGY
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4.1 VALIDITY AND RELIABILITY 4.2 PRIMARY RESEARCH AND RESULTS 4.2.1 Models 4.2.2 Customer Journeys 4.2.3 Interviews 4.2.4 Future Values Workshop
14 14 14 16 17 18
5
ANALYSIS & DISCUSSION
19
6
BRAND STRATEGY
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6.1 BRAND PLATFORM 6.1.1 Vision 6.1.2 Mission 6.1.3 Values 6.2 BRAND ARCHITECTURE
7 REFLECTION
22 22 22 23 23 25 25 27 28 28 29 30 30
8 CONCLUSION
31
9 REFERENCES
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6.3 6.3.1 6.3.2 6.3.3 6.3.4 6.3.5 6.4
BRAND COMMUNICATION Brand Positioning Brand Voice & Personality Brand Identity Brand Management Brand Portfolio IMPLEMENTATION PLAN
APPENDICES C
ABSTRACT
T
he following report handles a research process on creating a brand strategy for Cellink AB, a bioprinting company spunoff from research at Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg, Sweden, in pursuance of moving from a startup to a global company through brand awareness and a sustainable brand platform. In the accelerating and dynamic bioprinting industry, Cellink’s brand and communication is currently not built upon a strategic platform, plan or brand awareness. This makes their brand identity and communication inconsistent with their present offerings, potential future plans and development. Throughout this process the following research question was constantly revisited: “How might a sustainable brand strategy based on a cohesive identity and effective communication strengthen Cellink’s position in the dynamic 3D bioprinting industry? By the use of methods such as interviews, workshops, actor network mapping and various other models, information from different perspectives on the company and the industry were gathered. Our research scope in branding touches upon brand strategy, platform, identity, voice, personality, architecture and portfolio. It is then connected to related theories in the area of innovation, lovemarks and future scenario planning and branding. In the results we aim to highlight the importance of an effective brand strategy, in relation to a dynamic industry where small yet strong companies should focus on clearly structuring brands and products in order to control external communication and pursue new market possibilities.
1
“We want to prepare and coach Cellink to be a strong market leader in bioprinting.� - excerpt from rebrief
1. INTRODUCTION
findings and Discussion in turn, is how to translate them into a proposed solution. This report
One of the biggest drivers in the medical industry,
presents the process of the Integrated Project,
if not the strongest one, is within technological
a course within the master program Business &
development; it facilitates research and opens up
Design at the HDK Academy of Design and Crafts
application possibilities. Companies do research
and the School of Business, Economics and Law,
to come up with solutions that benefit our world
under the University of Gothenburg, Sweden.
and the people living in it.
In collaboration with Cellink AB, the project is carried out by master students: Tehilah Auramo,
Cellink AB is one of those companies contributing
Ronald Clays, Kevan D’Agostino, and Rae Yong
technological innovation in pursuance of helping
Kim. Constant guidance and support was given by
those in need by the means of 3D bioprinting.
tutor Sofia Wallner while the course was led by
However, as in every technological advancement,
Oriana Haselwanter.
more companies are joining the movement as competition grows in line with extending market possibilities. This early phase needs a balance
2. CONTEXT AND PROBLEMATIZATION
between collectively constructing the market and individually acquiring a share within. Therefore, to ensure a leading position in this expanding
2.1 COMPANY BACKGROUND
industry, a strong brand will be integral.
Cellink AB is a bioprinting company founded in During the past seven weeks our group worked on
March 2015 by a young team of researchers at
creating a brand strategy that is intended to help
Chalmers University of Technology in Gothen-
steer Cellink towards a leading position within the
burg, Sweden. Their core business is to develop
bioprinting industry. Starting off from the prob-
and sell cost-effective 3D bioprinters, universal
lematization, the report explains how we used
and cell-specific bioinks together with supporting
the research question to navigate throughout the
consulting services. Cellink has been profitable
process. The theoretical framework touches upon
from the start, and today their business is fully
every piece of theory and literature used such as
financed by sales to academic institutions and
brand platform, brand architecture, and lovemarks
global companies in the sectors of biotechnology,
theory. The methodology describes the different
cosmetics and hygiene. Through close relations
methods and tools that were used during this
and alliances with industrial partners, Cellink
project. Analysis brings up some of the first key
develops innovative products and services.
2
Figure 1: Cellink Team They identify themselves as a solutions company
company stated potential issues to tackle such as:
and are therefore currently investigating new
the needs of new relevant markets, design require-
potential markets.
ments of the 3D printer, branding of the product and financial aspects. After visiting Cellink’s
The bioprinting industry currently consists of
office, we discussed our new direction and in turn
approximately twenty global companies, while
answered with a re-brief for which the project was
the competition is increasing since the focus is
launched with. The following is an excerpt from
shifting from research to commercialization. The
our re-brief (see appendix A, for its entirety):
industry is forecasted to be worth one billion dollars by 2019 (Rovelo, 2016).
‘We want to prepare and coach Cellink to be a strong market leader in bioprinting. With this goal in mind we will focus on establishing a brand plat-
2.2 BRIEF TO REBRIEF
form that will help create a cohesive and sustain-
Due to unforeseen problems we were unable to
able identity for the future of Celllink, which also
continue the integrated project with our initial
can embrace their potential products and services.
client. During a short but intensive search for new
Also, we will look into Bioverse, an open source
collaborators we came up with various potential
community for Bioprinting, and how this can be
clients. After receiving a first introduction to Cel-
an integral part of Cellink’s vision and marketing
link through a video chat with one of their team
strategy. To attain these goals, we will conduct
members, Hector, we decided to work together
research around the company’s current envi-
with Cellink. We received a brief wherein the
ronment, use various methods to gather insight,
3
create foresight from future scenarios, and deliver
is an essential aspect when communicating
proposals for structural and visual solutions.’
externally.
2.3 PROBLEMATIZATION
2.4 RESEARCH QUESTION
Cellink’s brand and communication is currently
With these problems in mind, our goal was to
not built upon a strategic platform, plan or brand
establish a research question that allowed for
awareness. This, in turn, has made Cellink’s brand
us to understand the impact and importance of
identity and communication inconsistent with
a brand strategy on such a new and disruptive
their present offerings, future plans and develop-
industry. We asked ourselves how can a company,
ment. As well, the values that Cellink are trying
built upon research and innovation, move from a
to deliver are not successfully manifested into
position as a regional startup to a global company
these offerings. Seeing the company’s accelerating
through brand awareness and a sustainable brand
growth rate, it is becoming important to estab-
platform. From this our research question was
lish a clear and appropriate identity in order to
formulated as below:
position themselves within the biotech market, both locally and globally. Having such an extensive
“How might a sustainable brand strategy based on a cohesive identity and effective communication strengthen Cellink’s position in the dynamic 3D bioprinting industry?”
product line that includes inks, printers and consulting services within several markets like education, academia and the medical industry shows the diversity of their offerings. However, their current communication strategy has been ineffective in establishing a clear message that solidifies these offerings to potential target customers, partners and investors. Cellink has been success-
2.5 LIMITATIONS
ful in Sweden, partly due to their association with
The initial company our group was supposed to
Chalmers, however as this industry expands and
work with during this project fell through due to
more competitors join, their brand awareness
unforeseen problems. The amount of effort and
will play an important factor in order to establish
time that was given to the first client, and after-
better recognition and a reputation that will help
wards to establish a partnership with Cellink,
them stand out in potential future markets.
directly affected our ability to start and in terms of time, it should be taken into account.
Cellink is looking for ways to better align their products and services with a branding strategy
Working with Cellink we attempted to gather
that will help them establish the market with a
several perspectives from different industries, yet
sense of clarity and grow into a desired direction.
were subject to whoever was available during the
Our task is to create this strategy. This includes
three weeks we conducted interviews. As well,
both structural and visual suggestions in order to
except for the employees of Cellink, the inter-
help Cellink approach local and global markets
viewees had various degrees of knowledge on the
with confidence built upon brand awareness and
biomedical industry and on Cellink in general.
tools for a sustainable development. As with any
Also, the company’s existing customers couldn’t
fast moving startup, prioritizing a focus is inevi-
be contacted due to a lack of information pro-
table, thus aligning the current values internally
vided by Cellink. Finally, the bioprinting industry 4
“Brands are valuable intangible assets that offer a number of benefits to customers and firms and need to be managed carefully.� - Kotler & Keller, 2012
is substantial and complex with many areas of
branding touches upon brand strategy, platform,
knowledge and consideration, which made it a
identity, voice, personality, architecture and port-
challenge to fully immerse ourselves given the
folio. It is then connected to related theories in the
seven weeks time span of the project.
area of innovation, lovemarks and future scenario planning.
Therefore our focus has been to gather as many perspectives as possible to understand the bioprinting industry both through the lens of an
3.1 BRAND STRATEGY OVERVIEW
emerging startup, Cellink, and other established
Brand is an asset. According to Aaker (2014), a
actors, for example Sahlgrenska Academy. The
brand is an organization’s promise to a customer
industry is still in a disruptive stage and research
to deliver what the brand stands for not only in
on brand strategy within this industry has not yet
terms of functional benefits but also emotional,
been developed thoroughly, therefore we had to
self-expressive, and social benefits. But a brand
lean on our own professional knowledge. Addi-
is more than delivering on a promise. It is also a
tionally, existing examples on brand identity and
journey; an evolving relationship based on the
transparency of knowledge were used to help
perceptions and experiences that a customer has
compare different competitors. We prioritized our
every time he or she connects to the brand. The
research by understanding the many actors and
meaning and function of a brand has shifted from
their roles within the industry before moving into
the classical point of view, from which brand was
understanding the key competitors and outside
perceived as a visual representation, such as a logo
perspectives through methods such as interviews
that stands for the company. As Kotler and Keller
and customer journeys.
(2012) mentions, brands are valuable intangible assets that offer a number of benefits to customers and firms and need to be managed carefully.
3. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
However, the value of brand and its communication is still often underestimated, and in Brands and Branding (Clifton, 2009), the lack of under-
By using several theoretical frameworks from
standing, terminology, ownership and the tangi-
professionals within the field of branding, inno-
bility of brand are suggested as possible reasons .
vation and strategy we will shed some light on
In order to be a brand that successfully communi-
how these terms direct our approach to better
cates their values and fulfills their brand prom-
understanding the project. Our research scope in
ise, a brand strategy has to be structured in the
5
early stage of business and such effective brand
the vision in more practical terms in the short run.
strategy provides a unified idea around which
The brand platform in this sense should be realis-
all behavior, actions, and communications are
tic and straightforward (Thompson, 2009).
aligned (Wheeler, 2011). A brand strategy emerges from a company’s values and culture, and reflects
By locating the brand platform in the core of the
in-depth understanding of the customer’s needs
business and manifesting the values into every
and perceptions. It defines positioning, differen-
possible aspect, a company can build brand aware-
tiation, the competitive advantage, and a unique
ness, which also means educating the customers
value proposition (Wheeler, 2011). It needs to
in what needs they can expect the brand to satisfy
start with clear business deliverables and how it
(Keller, 2001). The platform has to be revisited
can be crafted as products, services and corporate
throughout business decisions in order to avoid
operations that results in sustainable competitive
scattered perceptions and messages of the brand,
advantage(Clifton, 2009).
and should be delivered from the inside to the outside. Having the same brand vision in all contexts
The vision, mission and values, which can be
has enormous advantages in coordinating brand
called the brand platform, are the core of the
efforts across product categories and markets,
business that support inside-out communication.
scaling brand-building programs, and gaining
Determining the way brand elements are used
internal clarity for the brand (Aaker, 2014).
among a company’s offerings is part of a branding strategy (Kotler & Keller, 2012). In order to manage and position a brand, companies can adapt
3.3 BRAND IDENTITY
different strategies, which will largely depend on
Brand identity is the manifestation of a company’s
the firm’s business goals and how they want to
vision, mission, values and is used to communicate
position their existing brands in order to maxi-
with the customers and stakeholders. It not only
mize the overall potential of the company.
means visual representations but also conveys the essence of the business. It is a blueprint, a relationship, an agreement, a nature, and a distinctive
3.2 BRAND PLATFORM
element of your business.
A brand platform consists of brand vision, mission, and values (see figure 2). The aim of creating a
Moreover, a brand identity is tangible and appeals
brand platform is to align the messages that the
to the senses. It fuels recognition, amplifies
company wants to deliver to the customer in a
differentiation, and makes big ideas and mean-
consistent and cohesive language. The vision of a
ing accessible. A well-established brand identity
company is a well-articulated description of the
takes disparate elements and unifies them into
aspirational image for the brand; what you want
whole systems (Wheeler, 2011). By communicating
the brand to stand for in the eyes of customers and
through consistent brand identity, the process cre-
other relevant groups like employees and partners
ates brand equity, which is defined as the differ-
(Aaker, 2014). While the vision of the company
ential effect that knowing the brand name has on
is more visionary and ambitious by framing long
consumer response to the product or its market-
term goals, the mission of a company defines the
ing (Zackariasson, 2016). Successful generation
company purpose and talks about how to reach
of brand identity and its communication starts
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Figure 2: Brand Platform (Thompson, 2009)
from defining your brand, shaping the promise
architectures (see figure 3); corporate branding,
into an identity, and then strategically using it to
house of brands, and mixed branding.
position the brand. Brand identity can be perceived differently from the outside, but it is critical
Corporate branding, which is also called ‘Branded
that the company’s key messages and values are
house’, use the corporate name across the whole
received in relatively similar ways by the external
range of brands and products. The dominant
stakeholders.
brand endorses every product and service by using the whole or part of the mother brand’s name. Such architecture can benefit the busi-
3.4 BRAND ARCHITECTURE
ness by reduced marketing budgets, increased
Brand architecture refers to the hierarchy of
brand awareness, and promising customer loyalty
brands within a single company. It is the interre-
(Kotler & Keller, 2012).
lationship of the parent company, subsidiary companies, products, and services (Wheeler, 2011).
A house of brands architecture has a mother
Depending on the brand strategy and character-
brand that embraces all products and services.
istics of the company, the brand architecture can
The company does not use its corporate name
be constructed in different forms. According to
for branding its products or services, so the sub-
Laforet and Saunders’s (1994) scheme presented
brands are usually not immediately linked to the
in Manifesting brand strategy (Vithala et al, 2004)
parent company. Each of their visual identities are
and alternative branding strategies from Kotler
tailored depending on the market or segment that
& Keller (2012), there are three types of brand
they will be positioned in. The major advantage
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Figure 3: Alternative branding strategies(Laforet and Saunders, 1994)
of such structure is that even though a product or
distinctly positioned brands, and therefore each
service fails or has poor performance, the parent
brand creates its own brand equity and custom-
company’s reputation is not tied to it and other
ers. The downside is that such strategy requires
sub-brands won’t suffer (Kotler & Keller, 2012).
additional costs on managing each brand, and
Examples are brands such as Dove and Lipton,
when introducing new products and services. The
which is marketed by Unilever, and Pampers; and
mixed brand architecture integrates both benefits
Crest marketed by Procter & Gamble.
of corporate branding strategy and house of brand strategy. The structure gives the opportunity to
Mixed branding, also called ‘Hybrid model’ is a
create separate product-class associations for dif-
combination of the branded house and the house
ferent brands. This type of strategy can help pre-
of brands. This model takes in the positive aspects
vent cannibalization of the firm’s other products,
of both models, enabling the company to com-
if a company wants to operate with more than
pete in different market segments with different
one brand in the same market. As Wheeler (2011)
products, with little or no relation with the parent
mentions: it is important to bring consistency,
company. Firms typically employ a set of house or
visual and verbal order, thought, and intention to
family brands, such as subsidiary names in their
disparate elements to help grow and market more
brand portfolio, in addition to using the corporate
effectively.
name for certain products (Vithala et al, 2004). For example, Pepsi operates Mountain Dew and Aquafina brands, and uses individual brands for its
3.5 BRAND PORTFOLIO
subsidiaries such as Tropicana and Frito.
In addition to brand architecture strategy, a company also needs to carefully look into brand
Laforet and Saunders (Vithala et al, 2004) explain
portfolio strategy in order to strengthen their
that these three types of brand architectures
offerings within the market. If a company’s offer-
result in different benefits and shortcomings. The
ings includes more than one particular product
‘corporate branding’ strategy brings efficiency in
or service within a specific market segment, it
managing brands and creating brand equity. This
is important that they look into strategic brand
can also help brand extensions, however there is a
portfolios. A brand portfolio is the set of all brands
risk of losing the brand identity if a firm happens
and brand lines a particular firm offers for sale in
to overstretch a brand name into product cate-
a particular category or market segment (Kotler
gories that do not match the brand’s established
& Keller, 2012). And a brand portfolio strategy,
associations. In contrast, the ‘house of brands’
mentioned by Aaker (2004), specifies the struc-
architecture provides possibilities to create
ture of the brand portfolio and the scope, roles,
8
“Don’t just give your customers something to talk about, give them somebody to talk about.” - Jay Baer (Convince & Convert, 2014)
and interrelationships of the portfolio brands. The
in combination with all the other brands in it.
goals are to create synergy, leverage, and clarity
Looking into the brands as one team is beneficial
within the portfolio and relevant, differentiated,
in many ways, including helping a company make
and energized brands. A brand portfolio strategy
challenging choices to avoid confusion and incon-
that is confusing and incoherent can hinder a
sistency. As mentioned above, creating relevancy
business strategy (Aaker, 2004).
within the company can foster organizational and market synergies by differentiated and empow-
Aaker (2004) suggests that brand portfolio strat-
ered brand assets. A strategic brand portfolio
egy involves the following steps:
expands the company’s market coverage, but minimizes brand overlap. It means that the com-
1. Add, delete, or prioritize brands or sub-brands
pany offers a clearly differentiated and appealing
2. Extend a brand into another product category with a descriptor or a sub-brand, or as an endorser
product or service to a sizable marketing segment
3. Extend a brand into the ‘super premium (higher in price or value than a premium product)’ or ‘value space (opportunity area)’
that also justifies its marketing and production costs (Kotler & Keller, 2012).
3.6 BRAND VOICE & PERSONALITY
4. Use the corporate brand on an offering, or expand its use as an endorser
Having a certain, consistent tone and sensibility
5. Develop a brand alliance
a brand voice. A brand voice is simply the words,
6. Define or associate with a new product category or subcategory
phrases, tone and characteristics that set a brand
7. Create and/or dial up a branded differentiator, a branded feature, ingredient or technology, service, or program that differentiates
cessful brand voice, a brand is required to take on
8. Develop a branded energizer, a branded sponsorship, product, promotion, or other entity that is linked to the target brand adding associations,
Jay Baer of Convince and Convert Marketing
across the company’s touch points means it has
apart from the others. In order to create a sucsome of the personality of an actual person.
Advisors (Lee, 2014) states the value of brand voice:
interest, and energy Such strategy implies each brand has the ability to maximize the company’s brand equity
• You cultivate a voice that delights your customers. • Delighted customers talk positively about your brand, essentially creating new content.
9
• This content reaches other customers and prospective customers, delivering your brand’s message for you. The fundamentals of brand voice comes down to the brand personality. Brand personality, sometimes called ‘Brand-as-person’, can be defined as the set of human characteristics associated with the brand (Aaker, 2014). Kotler and Keller (2012) define it as the specific mix of human traits that we can attribute to a particular brand. Brands that have a personality create an emotional bond with customers, especially when people who consider that the brand’s personality matches their own (ibid). Brand personality can be beneficial in many Figure 4: Love and Respect Matrix (Roberts, 2004)
ways by helping companies communicate their core message efficiently, which can then affect the perception of the brand and behavior of custom-
A deep emotional connection with customers is
ers. Just like human personality, a brand with a
what distinguishes a lovemark from a brand (ibid).
personality stands out and endures within exter-
In order to create it, a brand must incorporate
nal influence, since a story and memorable associ-
three elements of experience in their offering, that
ation is attached to the brand, which then custom-
is, mystery, sensuality and intimacy. The original
ers feel familiar to and start to trust and connect
ideas by the author Kevin Roberts (2004, 2006)
with. This is considered especially important to
are presented in appendix B, as summarized by
keep in mind when it comes to using social media
Eunjoo Cho (2011).
as a communicating channel. As Aaker (2014) says, personality-based brands have advantages in terms of gaining and keeping visibility, differenti-
3.8 INNOVATION
ation, and loyalty because it is usually difficult and
Innovation can play an important role within a
ineffective to copy a certain personality.
brand. The meaning of innovation has changed, from developing technology to delivering the message and brand value to the customer and partners
3.7 LOVEMARKS
(Abbing & Gessel, 2010). Brands have become
According to a recent theory, a lovemark is a brand
strategic assets for businesses, and inspiring and
that enjoys higher customer loyalty by enforcing
solid drivers for innovation. Great brands inspire
feelings of love and respect among consumers
both innovation, ideation and action in the sense
(Cho, 2011; Roberts, 2004, 2006). While products
that companies are pushed to make decisions and
only capture low levels of love and respect, and
to frame the future in an increasingly complex
brands low levels of love but high respect, love-
world (Abbing & Gessel, 2010). It is considered as
marks perform high in both aspects, see figure
a rewarding process, that by focusing on innova-
below (ibid).
tion a company can become better at what they do and discover new areas of excellence. It is
10
“Innovation mostly fails. It doesn’t need to. You shouldn’t let it. Innovation almost never fails due to a lack of creativity. It’s almost always because of a lack of discipline” - Larry Keeley, 2013
now believed that innovation should be driven
offerings and your enterprise.
from the inside, rather than merely responding to customers and other stakeholders, even trends.
Larry Keeley’s Ten Types of Innovation (2013)
It is a matter of being proactive and flexible, and
highlights the term innovation, and its inherent
being initiative in creating meaningful change. As
ability to result in real change within organiza-
Abbing and Gessel (2010) say, innovation domain
tions. the “ambition is to make innovation a system-
within organizations need a common internal-
atic approach, moving the field from a mysterious
ized vision of what the organization is and how it
art to more of a disciplined science” (Keeley, 2013
is connected to its changing environment, in the
p. 18). Keeley (ibid) argues that the term has been
present and the future. Innovation strategy and
overused and misused so frequently that the word
brand strategy has to be merged to create sustain-
innovation has essentially lost its meaning. The
able business and authentic relationships with
two definitions set out by Keeley (2013) below
customers.
were directly cited from his book and by his definition will help establish a nuanced understanding
Such brand-driven inside-out innovation
of what innovators actually do.
approaches can be further explored by adopting Larry Keeley’s Ten Types of Innovation (2013).
Innovation(1) Is the Creation of a Viable (2)
According to Keeley (ibid), brand innovations
New (3) Offering (4)
help to ensure that customers and users recognize, remember, and prefer your offerings to
(1) Innovation Is not Invention: Innovation may
those of competitors or substitutes; great brands
involve invention, but it requires many other
distill a “promise” that attracts buyers and
things as well—including a deep understanding of
conveys a distinct identity. They are typically
whether customers need or desire that invention,
the result of carefully crafted strategies that are
how you can work with other partners to deliver
implemented across many touch points between
it, and how it will pay for itself over time.
your company and your customers, including communications, advertising, service interac-
(2) Innovations Have to Earn Their Keep: Simply
tions, channel environments, and employee and
put: innovations have to return value to you or
business partner conduct. Brand innovations can
your enterprise if you want to have the privilege
transform commodities into prized products,
of making another one some day. We like to define
and confer meaning, intent, and value to your
viability with two criteria: the innovation must be
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Figure 5: Ten Types of Innovation (Larry Keeley, 2013)
able to sustain itself and return its weighted cost
lithium depends far more on knowing where to
of capital.
dig than on the digging itself. Identify the right innovation opportunities and be very clear about
(3) Very Little Is Truly New in Innovation: Biolo-
the nature of the innovation you intend to create
gist Francesco Redi established the maxim: “Every
before you begin a project.
living thing comes from a living thing.” Too often, we fail to appreciate that most innovations are
(2) Tackle the Hardest Problems First: Don’t look
based on previous advances. Innovations don’t
for low-hanging fruit. Instead, target big, gnarly
have to be new to the world—only to a market or
problems with no easy answer. This isn’t about
industry.
what’s easy for you; it’s about solving deep problems for your customers. When innovating, focus
(4) Think Beyond Products: Innovations should
on the hardest parts of a concept you have to get
be about more than products. They can encom-
right. The easy stuff can wait until later.
pass new ways of doing business and making money, new systems of products and services, and
(3) Refuse Incomplete Answers: Having embraced
even new interactions and forms of engagement
big challenges, be patient and work to create
between your organization and your customers.
comprehensive solutions. Look for ways to resolve tensions instead of defaulting to trade-offs. This
Innovating Requires Identifying (1) the Prob-
requires you to be comfortable with ambiguity and
lems That Matter (2) and Moving through Them
to wait for the answers to emerge.
(3) Systematically to Deliver (4) Elegant (5) Solutions.”
(4) It Doesn’t Count until It’s in the Market: You haven’t finished the process of innovating until
(1) Knowing Where to Innovate Is as Important as
you bring the offering to market and you’re get-
Knowing How to Innovate: Striking oil or mining
ting revenue for it. Or, for social or government
12
“A good ‘scenario’ is powerful yet challenging, well prepared, open-minded, easy to grasp and entertaining.” - Jörgen Jedbratt (personal communication, November 5th, 2015)
contexts, you have helped your stakeholders in
studies relationships and causalities, but with-
a new and better way that can sustain itself over
out going too much into statistical modelling. Its
time.
beauty lies in the flexibility to allow multiple likely possibilities without the risk of basing important
(5) Turn Complexity into Simplicity: It’s easy
decisions on extensive calculations and factors
to take something simple and make it complex:
that easily could change (Enzmann et al, 2011).
politicians and lawyers seem to do it for a living.
According to the theory, a good amount of strate-
Yet very few innovations are championed for their
gic flexibility is necessary in all questions where
intricacy. Most are known for bringing elegance
a company’s future partly depends on things that
and simplicity to even the thorniest problems.
the company cannot control. Kairos Future (ibid) has been successfully using it throughout the
At the heart of Larry Keeley’s research is the
years to help and consult various companies such
Ten Types of Innovation Framework, which was
as IKEA, Kraft, Volvo, Kinnarps and Google, and
created using over 2,000 examples of the most his-
in 2003 they established and shared some of the
torical examples of innovation. The framework is
methods in more detail in the book Scenario Plan-
structured into three color-coded categories (see
ning: The Link Between Future And Strategy.
figure 5); the types on the left side of the framework are the internally focused and distant from
Through a series of steps, for example, with the help
customers; as you move toward the right side, the
of TAIDA method (see figure 6) that Kairos Future
types become increasingly apparent and obvious
frequently uses themselves a company is encouraged
to end users; “to use a theatrical metaphor, the
to create a number of alternative futures.
left of the framework is backstage; the right is onstage” (Keeley, 2013).
The process of scenario planning starts with ‘archeology’ and looks over what useful insights can be learned from the past. Trends are ranked
3.9 FUTURE SCENARIO PLANNING
in importance so that unnecessary complexity can
According to Jörgen Jedbratt at Kairos Future
be removed. Jedbrant’s (ibid) advice is to better
(personal communication, 2015-11-05) scenario planning is a theory and method to generate strategic insights in a situation with one or more uncertainties. The method combines tools from market analysis, trend analysis, and storytelling. It
Figure 6: TAIDA Method (KAIROS Future)
13
underestimate trends in the beginning and overes-
key categories (academy; community, product,
timate trends in the end.
service and bioverse). This method helped us to quickly understand Cellink’s position as a young and modern, flexible company within the 3D bioprinting industry and gave us insight in where
4. METHODOLOGY
to look next.
4.1 VALIDITY AND RELIABILITY
business model canvas: After understanding
In any research, it is important to state if the
more about the industry and Cellink, our group
research is reliable or viable. This gives the indica-
moved towards using the Business Model Canvas,
tion if the research is trustworthy enough to use in
created by Alexander Osterwalder (2008). The
other work. The methods used involved practical
use of the Business Model Canvas helped to create
models and in-depth interviews to help explore
a holistic view of Cellink’s business. It functioned
Cellink from a variety of angles in order to create a
as a checklist for our understanding of Cellink’s
thorough understanding of their business. Due to
Key Partners, Cost Structure, Key Activities, Key
time limitations, we were only able to have some
Resources, Value Proposition, Customer Relation-
of the models be agile and only had access to a
ships, Channels, Revenue Streams and Customer
limited number of people to interview. However,
Segments (see appendix D). This allowed our
our group made an attempt to include a group of
group to understand and see the value proposition
interviewees that was diverse, ranging from indus-
and key activities more clearly within our pro-
tries within health, engineering, and academia.
posed service in order to look at the strengths and
Considering that the biomedical industry is so vast
weaknesses more effectively.
and new, we were unable to fully understand all perspectives within this industry, and the effects
research question: With this information
Cellink’s offerings had on various industries.
in hand, our group decided to create a research question in order to move forward with clarity. Through the early analysis of the industry and
4.2 PRIMARY RESEARCH & RESULTS
Cellink’s position, we eventually led to the following research question:
4.2.1 Models actor network mapping: In order to fully
“How might a sustainable brand strategy based on
immerse ourselves within Cellink’s world, our
a cohesive identity and effective communication
group started by creating a actor network mind
strengthen Cellink’s position in the dynamic 3D
map that outlined the different stakeholders and
bioprinting industry?”
partnerships (see appendix C). A mind-map is a common method that uses brainstorming to gen-
We have revisited this question by means to keep
erate ideas for the diverging part of the double dia-
our focus during the process. A fixed, thoroughly
mond model (Norman, 1988). Each team member
considered research question helped us navigate
was encouraged to put ideas or thoughts on the
ourselves effectively, converge out of diverging
board using post-its. By doing so, we were able to
periods, and filter out the essential elements from
create themes that helped divide Cellink into five
our research and ideation.
14
swot analysis: The next step was to create
This way, even if the price and volume informa-
a swot Analysis (see appendix E), which high-
tion was not available for all of these companies,
lighted the strengths, weaknesses, threats and
we were able to use the original idea of the model,
opportunities. A swot analysis involves specifying
in other words, to compare the perceived quality
the objective of the business venture or project
of the different players’ offerings on the market
and identifying the internal and external factors
and how Cellink could improve theirs.
that are favorable and unfavorable to achieve that objective (Valentine, 2001). By doing this, we were able to define and prioritize some of our key learnings from the ‘business model canvas’ and ‘competitor mapping’. competitor matrix: Since we were not familiar with the 3D bioprinting industry, it was imperative to understand the market in terms of competition. Our group went into great detail trying to understand the 3D bioprinting market both locally and globally from the perspective of brand identity. By setting parameters regarding their business, our group compared over 25 different (see appendix F) competitors
Figure 7: Competitor Performance Diamond (web)
from smaller scale to larger service oriented companies.
value proposition canvas: After we were able to understand Cellink’s offerings more
This process helped us understand and learn
clearly, we used a Value Proposition Canvas to fur-
about the bioprinting industry from the bigger
ther investigate Cellink’s value proposition. The
picture. Discussing and analyzing each company’s
Canvas was created by Alex Osterwalder (2008),
offerings, identity, and ways of communication,
the same authors as the Business Model Canvas,
which generated an understanding of their indus-
however it works as an extension to this model in
try in order to give suggestions based around their
a way that focuses more on the value a product or
assets.
service gives to a customer directly. It maps out the customer’s pains and gains, and how the pro-
brand positioning map: After we gathered
posed service or product can directly offset this.
insights from our Competitor Matrix, we filtered the 27 competitors down to 10 based on how
By adopting the value proposition canvas (see
closely they were linked to Cellink’s product and
appendix G), we were able to acknowledge how
service offerings. We then filtered the competi-
Cellink’s offerings could be enhanced in terms of
tors further down to five, based on how well they
customer jobs and needs. It provided us with an
performed when we analyzed their web presence
overall view, but also in-depth touch points, that
in aspects of visual communication, transparency,
could be improved upon or resolved in order to
usability and product information (see figure 7).
stabilize Cellink’s business and assets.
15
“A customer journey map is a very simple idea: a diagram that illustrates the steps your customers go through when engaging with your company” -(Richardson, 2010).
4.2.2 Customer Journeys
after leaving the website (www.cellink3d.com)
Our group conducted two controlled customer
and moving to their second website (www.cellink.
journeys in order to understand the clarity and
eu), which had an explanation of who they were as
usefulness of Cellink’s websites. The first observed
a company. Product shots were useful in helping
and commented on the overall experience of Cel-
them understand that they were a biomedical
link’s website from a user interface perspective.
company and that they sold printers and inks. The
The second mimicked the experience of ordering
user mentioned how the website was very hard to
products from their website. As well, all of our
navigate as “the images were so out of scale, it was
interviewees also experienced the website (www.
hard to understand where I was, and the placement
cellink3d.com) in preparation for their interviews
of the buttons and menus were confusing that I
and were asked about their experiences, sugges-
ended up just clicking randomly until I found what
tions and interpretations, which were highlighted
I was looking for” (Mcgrath, personal communica-
further in the interviews (4.2.3) within our report.
tion, May 10th, 2016). After this, the user wanted to try and purchase a printer, and spent at least 30
In the first example, we shadowed an average
seconds trying to find where to navigate to find a
customer, who normally purchases goods online,
printer.
and asked the user to use Google to search for Cellink. The task for the subject was to gather insight
Our second user’s task was to try and order a
about the company in general by moving through
printer. The second user has a deep understand-
their website. In this particular example the user
ing of visual communication. The same situation
was not sure what Cellink’s primary and second-
was created: the user was asked to start from a
ary websites were, as the two that they found
simple google search and go from there. The user
essentially gave the same information, but with
searched for “Cellink Bioprinter,” which resulted
different URLs. As the user commented on various
in several results on the front page. Everything
aspects they liked and did not like about the site
from recent articles to the same websites found
while moving through these sites. First looking at
by the previous user came up. The user clicked
the negatives, some problems occurred with the
on the first result, which was the www.cellink.eu
cohesive nature of the site, where the images were
website. The user first scrolled through the entire
not effective in explaining what they do as a com-
site from top to bottom looking for a link or image
pany. Finally, the user was able to ground them-
that would be associated with the purchasing of
selves in understanding what the company was
a printer. After realizing that she could not find
16
anything that instantly helped her on her mission,
finance and design. The interviews were split up
she moved back up to the top of the site. After this,
first to understand the internal culture at Cellink,
she was eager to click on the menus at the top (in
and then moved outwards towards understanding
hopes that they would move her externally from
the external perspective of Cellink’s approach and
the page). After quickly realizing that each menu
current strategy. Each interview lasted between
only linked internally to different sections of the
30 minutes to 1 hour and gave us valuable insights
page, she was discouraged and actually left the site
that helped shape our proposed brand strategy.
and googled it again. After not wanting to click on the site again, she ventured to the second site
Insights from the interviews with the Cellink team
(www.cellink3d.com). After about 10 seconds, she
members (see figure 8) were the importance of
found a link on a web banner which directed them
the interconnectivity between the printer and the
to another website (www.cellink.weebly.com).
inks. Cellink’s current strategy lies in the spread
Here she was confronted with products she could
of their Inkredible printers in order to create and
buy. The menu had the options of “Shoppink,”
broaden their market for bioinks that hasn’t really
“Cellular Bioinks Kits,” “Contact,” and “Inkredible
taken off yet. Currently Cellink sells mostly print-
Printers.” Our user clicked on “Inkredible Print-
ers to customers located in North-America. Being
ers” only to come to a blank page with an image
situated in the context of academic research, the
of a printer. Again, she clicked on every menu
principle of repetition gives them an advantage; in
until she found something. Finally coming to the
order to repeat a research experiment, a scientist
“Shoppink” section of the site, she had the option
is most likely to use the same tools and methods
of purchasing a printer. However she expressed
that were used in the original experiment. Also,
her disappointment in the imagery and efforts put
the locking effects of customers using recom-
forth by Cellink in terms of making the product
mended inks for particular printers are important
viewable. It was also hard for them to understand
as the customers are prone to follow this behavior
exactly what the purchase would include as a lot
in 90% of the cases, as estimated by Cellink’s CFO.
of the products only contained a graphic and no image. The user asked questions like, “Can I buy a warranty?”, “How large is the machine?”, “Will I need other things to get me started?”. Of course, this was partly because our user was not a biomedical engineer. However, the questions were valid in the sense that these were general questions one might ask when going through any purchase. Finally the user pushed checkout and was asked to fill in their information.
Figure 8: Cellink Interview List
Within five years Cellink wants to have their 4.2.3 Interviews
printer in the operating rooms and help, for
The interviews were conducted with professionals
instance, burn victims. Depending on the cus-
within the industries of biomedical engineering,
tomer’s immersion in the 3D bioprinting market,
entrepreneurship, medicine, tissue engineering,
Cellink is able to provide a custom package of
17
expertise and/or printers and/or bioinks. The
over the world are subject to follow. This further
company values customer relations and trust
exemplifies the concept of “seeing is believing,”
building. Erik and Hector: “Customers are very
where success is based on whether or not an
important, we are available whenever they need us
experiment actually worked.
and drop everything else.” From the interviews conducted with external
4.2.4 Future Values Workshop
experts (see figure 9) we gained great insight on
3D Bioprinting has many questions that relate to
each expert’s field. In terms of branding, except
its future. What will the world look like in 10 or 20
from the interview with subject A, it was import-
years? Will 3D bioprinting actually help eliminate
ant to find a balance between descriptive and dis-
the organ donor list? What will future customers
tinctive brand elements, depending on the matu-
and markets look for in a company, and how will
rity of the industry and the leverage power of the
those brands have to communicate? These ques-
company. Heiden talked about the learning curve
tions were taken into account when setting up a
for researchers to implement this technology into
future scenario planning workshop (see figure 10).
their workflow and how important it is for Cellink
Our group created scenarios and personas that
to communicate their solution to overcome this
took place in the year 2030 from the perspective of
hurdle.
doctors and patients (see appendix H). Both personas were situated within two different scenarios. One future that represents an individualistic yet careful world when it comes to human testing, versus a future where 3D bioprinted organs are transplanted in routine operations by surgical robots. Learning from the Scenario Planning the-
Figure 9: Expert Interview List
ories and the lecture with Jedbrott, this was our way to keep the scenarios simple and also consider
From a doctor’s perspective, main insights were
how new trends might accelerate in unknown
skeptical. ‘Seeing is believing’ could synthesize
speeds in the future. In total, four scenarios were
his view on the 3D bioprinting industry one of
created and tested with this group of 20 partic-
the main reasons being, that organs are of highly
ipants. Next to this we prepared a package con-
personal and individual nature. The brand of any
taining 15 different values, each on a small piece of
3D bioprinting company seemed to be important,
paper. We asked to partner up in pairs. Each group
however more prominently concrete examples
was given a persona-scenario combination and
seemed to be more convincing. The interviewee
the time to embrace their role to fully immerse
did not think 3D bioprinting organs would be pos-
themselves. We wanted to know their answer to
sible within the next 5 or even 10 years, which is
the question “What would make you trust and
different to the current general beliefs of Cellink.
choose a bioprinting company?” The values were
Additionally our interviewee suggested that there
provided to paste around the word “trust”, putting
is benchmarking within the industry. For example,
it closer if it is regarded more important within
if a hospital successfully implements 3D bioprint-
the given persona and scenario.‘
ing in the EU and the US, many other countries all
18
Figure 10: Future Values Workshop
5. ANALYSIS & DISCUSSION
• Service-based providers of 3D printing services The 3D bioprinting companies right now either
market and competitors: The knowl-
directly try and sell their customers a do-it-your-
edge-intensive 3D bioprinting industry was overall
self turn-key solution in terms of inks and print-
very secretive which made it harder to approach
ers; or they use printers and inks in-house to
and grasp. By studying Cellink’s competitors, how-
provide customers with advanced research and
ever, we established our first bigger insight; that
consulting. We have seen surprising new business
Cellink’s closest competitors can be divided into
opportunities emerge in several new markets,
three following categories based on their product
such as the food and automotive market.
or service offering: first branding insights: The brand of • Product-based providers of printers, ink and accessories
1-year-old Cellink has not enjoyed the focus of
• Knowledge-based research companies and consultancies
finds the name and website slightly branded.
these busy entrepreneurs so far, although Bowman
19
Many of Cellink’s competitors are in the same
making good business, improving the experience
position, having put little or no effort in branding
based on every customer journey touchpoints will
with clearly consistent values and visuals. Many
hopefully open the door to recurring ink sales.
of these companies had clear errors or inconsistencies in their web communication, like Cellink
According to Lovemark ‘mystery’ trajectory, a
that currently runs three active homepages. It
brand can win customers by telling great stories.
was therefore difficult to understand the full
We’ve noticed that stories are not that present
potential when it came to the quality output and
in Cellink’s current brand. Thorough our project
the differences between them. Cellink’s current
we’ve noticed, however, how disruptive technolo-
vision is to save lives, and we are not sure if this is
gies really have the tendency to push imagination
flexible enough to help and brand them in other
out of the boundaries of what’s possible today, and
than the biomedical industry. Another finding
this provides at least in theory, some wonderful
was that most of Cellink’s closest competitors
opportunities to merge fantasy in any brand rep-
apply tailored pricing for their customers, and
resenting these technologies. We have got carried
this came to hinder our further analysis. With the
away imagining the possibilities of 3D printing e.g.
price information missing, we were not able to
extinct animals and human clones.
get a clear overview of the different competitors as suggested by brand positioning map. Instead,
‘Sensuality’ and senses could easily be incorpo-
we analyzed in what quality perspectives Cellink
rated in Cellink brand because the company works
could possibly improve against its competitors. We
within life sciences and thus bringing different
will show all results from this comparison as part
senses to life. Even if we believe that their current
of the proposed solution in the following chapter.
clinical look and feel sells well within the biomedical industry, we see potential in embracing senses
lovemarks: When it comes to the different tra-
more when it comes to Cellink’s products and web
jectories in the Lovemark theory, it seems Cellink
presence. With our proposals we will embrace the
is currently only focusing on the ‘intimacy’ part.
sense of vision by suggesting a larger color palette,
They work very close to their customers, and thus,
as a symbolical and strategic move, but more of
empathy is very important in the relationships
that in chapter 6 - proposed solution.
between Cellink and its customers. The commitment from customer’s side could be better, since
During our work, it became a burning question
no recurring sales have happened so far during the
if the imagination or a more realistic approach
year that Cellink has been on the market. How-
should be applied in the marketing and branding
ever, since both the company and the bioprinting
of Cellink. People love to dream, but they also
industry are very young, we estimate that the real
need a good level of reliability in the technology
level of customer commitment will show in the
that they are investing money and probably health
long run. It is positive that Cellink has identified
in. If Cellink decides to focus on biomedical solu-
the need for a new generation of 3D bioprinters
tions even in the future, our results suggest that
and are working on the product (and web) design,
reliability should overweight imagination as a key
since this can remarkably increase what Lovemark
selling point. Imagination represents a ‘nice-to-
theory refers to as ‘customer enjoyment’. As the
have’ whereas it’s the reliability that supports a
web as well as the product is used as a tool for
customer through a purchase decision. From the
20
benchmarks we’ve learned that real-life human
‘robotic future’), whereas all of the respondents
stories are used often in marketing. A compromise
in the ‘robotic future’ voted ‘price’ very import-
that we then believe would be beneficial for the
ant (100% - compared to 43% in ‘careful future’),
Cellink brand is to tell real-life success stories of
but on a lower priority level than ‘research/
what’s already possible to do with this technology,
background’.
without going too much in with speculation. It is also relevant in our brand strategy to consider reliability and responsibility (inter-
elements such as ethics in order to fully embrace
views): During our interviews it came up that
and predict the uncertainties people have with the
the only time that Cellink doesn’t want to sell to
concept of bioprinting organs for example. It is a
its customers is when they feel that a customer is
really prominent time for Cellink to start estab-
not conducting proper testing. This is aligned with
lishing and communicating a platform of values
the workshop results that show ethics to be among
that doctors and patients can relate to, so that the
the three most important values for a company to
technology wins more trust on the market as a
establish trust in the relation with both doctors
whole.
and patients. The interview with the doctor (subject B) again suggested that what the market needs
innovation: Considering the importance of
now is real-life examples of successful operations.
brands and how it empowers innovation, we see synergies with more systematic and continued
trust comes from research, ethics and
work within the Cellink brand especially bearing
clear communication (future scenar-
in mind that the company is still in the early stage
ios): The Future values -workshop gave our group
of development, now is the best timing to process
insight to some of the most important elements
such essential steps..
in terms of trusting a bioprinting company in the future. This collection of 20 participants allowed us to synthesize common threads throughout the results. (see appendix I) The top three most
6. BRAND STRATEGY
important values were ‘research’, ‘ethics’ and ‘clear communication’. All personas regardless
Cellink needs to establish a cohesive and sustain-
of scenario asked for ‘research and background’
able identity and a strategic communication plan
(response rate 100%). What was different between
in order to stay competitive, and with this goal in
the results of different personas was ‘ethics’, that
mind, we suggest a brand strategy. We believe this
was identified more important by patients (100%
solution would help position Cellink as a strong
- compared to doctors’ 67%). Doctors in turn
market leader in the bioprinting market, which
required more web presence and advertising in
would also enable the company to explore poten-
different channels such as social media. Doctors
tial products and services. The following strategy
also valued more reputation, company vision and
is our proposal, which is formulated as a ‘Cellink
market success stories. When looking into dif-
Brand strategy Guidebook’ and can be found in
ferences in results between the different futures,
appendix J.
‘media coverage’ was identified more important in the ‘careful future’ (86% - compared to 0% in
21
6.1 BRAND PLATFORM
organ printing. We believe that their vision should
As mentioned in the theoretical framework,
be modified as an overarching statement, which
having a well-constructed brand platform can
embeds Cellink’s existing goals and embraces the
help a company communicate their internal values
possibilities of untapped opportunities. Therefore,
in a coherent way with the external stakeholders.
we suggest the following sentence as Cellink’s
We find it necessary for Cellink to enhance the
vision:
efficiency and consistency of their business by setting up vision, mission, and values and revis-
“To leverage the power of technology and science in ways that contribute to the evolution of life.”
iting them them continuously to keep them in the core of the company. This process will also help Cellink create a firm base, which will allow them to generate new ideas based upon it, explore future possibilities, and tackle fluctuations
According to our research, Cellink can benefit
and difficulties.
from having an even more universal brand vision in all contexts, as this has proven to bring enor-
Considering the fact that Cellink is based on the
mous advantages to other companies, especially
bioprinting industry, which people are not yet
in the purpose of coordinating brand efforts
entirely familiar with, we emphasize that certain
across product categories and markets, scaling
emotional value-driven communication is needed
brand-building programs, and gaining internal
in order to increase the increase the demand.. By
clarity for the brand.
winning over more more consumers that start thinking positively of all opportunities provided by such technology will ultimately increase Cel-
6.1.2 Mission
link’s potential market, and establishing a strong
The mission of Cellink should express a more con-
brand platform will bring the potential custom-
crete, practical goal in a short term perspective,
ers to Cellink will ultimately increase Cellink’s
compared to the vision:
potential market, and establishing a strong brand platform will bring the potential customers to Cel-
“We seek to develop and provide accessible, ethical and life-changing solutions, to become the world’s most innovative and trustworthy bioprinting company.”
link. Additionally, we framed the following three elements based on Cellink’s future possibilities into other markets:
6.1.1 Vision A vision shows where the company sees itself in a
As above, we suggest that Cellink’s mission should
long-term perspective. Cellink has an incredible
be a detail, down-to-earth statement that shapes
asset in 3D bioprinting technology, which is to
what the business is aiming for. Cellink’s asset lies
make specific bioprinting technology and medical
in 3D bioprinting, and in order to embrace future
treatments accessible to those in need. However,
market extension possibilities, the mission does
Cellink’s current vision does not include the
not particularly mention the clinical practices.
possibility to explore new markets rather than
However, it implies that Cellink seeks to make
22
Figure 11: Cellink Brand Platform
such technology accessible and sustainable to
in the face of changing market trends and fluctu-
anyone in need, including patients and potential
ations as a firm ground, combined with the vision
customers.
and mission. These are honest and easy words, ready for a story to enliven them. Such simple and communicative words will open up to new
6.1.3 Values
relationships and partnerships by making Cellink
Putting into consideration that values are like the
an earthy and sensible brand. It also is a base to
morals and ethics of an individual, something that
create brand voice and personality, which will
captures the spirit of the brand and reinforces the
then manifest the values to keep the business
vision and mission, we suggest the following four
energetic and brand communication alive.
values for Cellink: The importance of using a brand platform (see • trust: Keeping the promise to deliver great support and valuable experience to customers
figure 11) lies in implementation. We suggest it to
• commitment: Doing best to meet the needs of customers, being at the forefront of development
cation and manifestation, including product, ser-
• integrity: Keeping the transparency of research and offerings as the priority when building relationships
it will provide Cellink efficiency and internal
be embedded into every aspect of brand communivice, visual communication, customer relationship and so forth. By using as an agile tool to revisit, clarity when determining decisions and measuring practices.
• discovery: Believing in science and how it can change human lives, based on academic ground
6.2 BRAND ARCHITECTURE Cellink faces several difficulties on brand architecture due the company’s technological strength: the universality of the Cellink bioink. This provides
The four values of Cellink should remain constant
multiple application possibilities that can be found
23
Figure 12: Cellink Brand Architecture
in different segments, markets and industries. To
In case of discrepancy between two or more
be able to respond to these different opportuni-
markets, the brand architecture must be set up
ties, Cellink must set up a brand architecture that
to avoid damaging the brand identity by negative
anticipates strategic actions in the future and is
associations. This is the same for different target
responsive to change.
groups inside a same market. In case of similarity between two or more markets and or between
We suggest Cellink constructs a mixed branding
target groups within the same market, the brand
architecture (see figure 12). As mentioned in the
architecture must be set up to transfer the values
theoretical framework, a mixed branding strat-
of positive associations.
egy enables the company to compete in different market segments with diverse products or
In reality Cellink will use overlapping approaches
services. The association of the product or the
to these different markets. Finding a balance to
service does not necessarily connect to the mother
control the perception of different customers that
company, which implies that such structure helps
adds value to the company and avoids damage is
Cellink explore new markets and extend their
an important aspect of the brand architecture and
brand portfolio.
must be set up from the start.
The applicability of the Cellink bioink opens the
Next to the effects of the product, Cellink provides
door to markets other than the current medical,
different types of products and services such as
cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries, for exam-
the Inkredible printer and the Cellink bioink that
ple the food industry. This approach to different
are both combinable as well as stand-alone. This
markets can and will bring pros and cons.
may become problematic in perceiving the brand. No clear hierarchy or structure between different
24
brands and/or products within a single company
Brands are often defined as something in the
can confuse the consumer and cause a reduced
crossroads of price and quality. From before, we
brand awareness and lack in customer loyalty
have learned that it can be strategically meaning-
(Kotler & Keller, 2012).
ful to map a company’s price and quality against competitors’. However, it was impossible for us to retrieve systematic price information from com-
6.3 BRAND COMMUNICATION
petitors because, as we have learned during this
Brand communication occurs every time a cus-
project, this industry doesn’t apply off-shelf pric-
tomer interacts with your brand. It is effected
ing but more tailored offerings to every customer.
across a variety of channels including your visual
Price was then never the focus of our research.
communication, your product or service, how
Our proposed brand positioning map therefore
others view your brand content through social
explains why and how Cellink should position
media, advertising and reviews as well as when
itself quality-wise. We base our ideas on the initial
customers meet your brand in person. A brand’s
market analysis and what we refer to as ‘compet-
communication strategy is about internally craft-
itor diamond’, including four aspects relating to
ing the messages you would like to be received,
Cellink’s web communication.
and sending them out to your external audiences and stakeholders.
How does web communication relate to strategy, except allowing Cellink to release man-hours from
Successful brands have the ability to use their
customer service? As we learned from the Future
internal values to effectively communicate with
values -workshop, doctors hope to find more
their audience, and deliver this with clarity and
information of new technologies and companies
confidence. The strongest brand communications
through different digital channels. This confirmed
can work at the levels of “information, fame cre-
our belief that now during the digital age the first
ation and by creating (often unconscious) associa-
impression often is created online, and thus the
tions” (Clifton, 2003, p. 228). Those elements are
brand should be very well communicated on the
harder to measure, however are most often the
homepage.
most important (ibid). Brand communications can do four things for a brand: they can provide infor-
Aligned with Cellink’s core values, we suggest
mation about the brand, familiarize a brand, create
Cellink to invest in several key quality aspects on
distinctive patterns of associations and establish
their webpage - namely visual communication,
meanings that make the brand more attractive
usability of web page, product information and
(ibid).
transparency - and deliver to its core values of trust, commitment, integrity and discovery.
6.3.1 Brand Positioning In this chapter we hope to answer questions such as: What are the competitors’ positions? Where are we aiming for Cellink to be? What kind of
• In short-term the proposed strategy for Cellink is to deliver at least the quality of its best industry benchmarks found in each aspect. • In long-term the proposed strategy includes performing perfectly in all aspects.
move do they need to do? Where are they located now and where will they be?
25
If and when this will be done will give a head
the webpage, and is linked to all of Cellink’s core
start to Cellink that other companies will start
values. We show it separately because we have
benchmarking their businesses to. The grand
seen the importance of hard facts when targeting
idea behind this strategy is to make the technol-
scientists. By providing information of the real
ogy more accessible to all, which will eventually
capacity of Cellink’s products, and demonstrat-
change how the market will develop and how
ing what their products are practically capable of
open people will be for 3D bioprinted organs or
doing, will generate more trust and reliability for
other material in the future.
this yet very disruptive technology. Stay honest, and focus on educating the customer at the same
usability of the website: This aspect links
time. According to our research, Biobots (see
to Cellink’’s core values of ‘trust’, ‘commitment’
figure 14) could be a valuable benchmark in this
and ‘discovery’. With better user-friendliness and
aspect.
quality on their webpages, Cellink will appear more professional and trustworthy in the eyes of both old and new customers and other shareholders; Cellink will show respect and commitment by creating positive customer experiences along the entire customer journey, that nowadays often starts on the company webpage. Accessibility is one of the things that will be remarkably improved. As a result, more people will be able to learn and discover. Our benchmark within
Figure 14: BioBots Website
this aspect is Regen HU (see figure 13), with a best-practice to clearly communicate about differ-
transparency: Transparency Is meant to
ent applications for their offering.
communicate Cellink’s ethics and build trust in relationships with all stakeholders. Our leading benchmark is Bio3D Technologies (see figure 15) that performed best in eightout of ten critical questions regarding transparency, corporate ethics and sustainability. • Values or goal, clear vision and mission • Are they clear in what they do, product, service etc • It is made very clear, if this is a commercial company or not
Figure 13: RegenHU Website
• Who do they target information of products and services:
• Product description and/or patent portfolio
Product information including technical details
• Personnel incl. names and pictures
could be seen as part of the overall usability of
• Partners, owners or other stakeholders
26
• Annual or other financial reports • Sustainability reports • Industry news and links to other material that might lead a visitor to a representing a confident approach
Figure 16: BioBiots Website 6.3.2 Brand Voice & Personality In the field of bioprinting, as more competitors establish their stake inside this industry, there will be a growing need for others to invest heavily in Figure 15: Bio3D Technologies Website
how they communicate their brand. Companies that are able to establish a brand personality are more likely to create an emotional bond with their
• visual communication: According to our
customers, especially when customers who con-
research, Biobots (see figure 16) is currently
sider that the brand’s personality matches their
leading the market in this aspect. Our group
own (Aaker, 2014). In Cellink’s case, we suggest
distinguished some 8 key characteristics that
the values of Trust, Commitment, Integrity and
helped establish Biobots as a distinct front-run-
Discovery in order to align themselves with what
ner within visual communication.
we have learned about them as an organization
• Their use of color is consistent with their brand identity
and the bioprinting industry as a whole (see figure
• They have a distinct separation between different areas of the website
brand personality, he mentions that the personal-
• They use color effectively to guide the reader to specific areas on the website
create a lasting impact and will be less likely to be
• They have used hierarchy to display information clearly through text and image • Their choice of typography is clean and consistent with brand • Their brand personality is evident throughout visuals and copywriting • They use negative space to give a sense of calmness and clarity • They provide the user with a sense of reach for specific items such as buying and contact
17). Referring back to Aaker (ibid), who speaks to ity-based brands essentially have the capacity to mimicked or copied. Because the bioprinting industry is quite disruptive at this time, and they have and will have many more unforeseen ethical complications in the future, Cellink’s values and brand personality will be an important aspect when establishing their voice across multiple channels; this, among many other suggestions will help keep their brand more cohesive, trustworthy and approachable from the perspective of the customer, where they will know what to expect when engaging with the brand.
27
Figure 17: Cellink Brand Personality
With these values in mind, it is important for any
sensory applications should be developed outside
organization to establish the descriptions that
of this. Communication and brand management
stem from these values in order to follow through
processes built upon such coherent brand identity
with their goals. As in figure 17, our values contain
leads to long-lasting and memorable relationships
brand voice and personality suggestions above in
with partners and customers, also within the
order to keep them attainable. Each four values
internal community as well. External stakeholders
are embedded in four characters of human person-
of Cellink will be aware of what the company is
ality; Sincerity, Caring, Professional, Passionate.
like, in a combination of visual and emotional rec-
We suggest Cellink to keep the brand personality
ollection. It is effective; therefore, to have a brand
model agile, to assess communication strategies
identity guideline that Cellink keeps as an agile
and the way the company phrases sentences
tool to use whenever it is needed, while embedded
when speaking to the customers. This includes
into the company culture.
the website, social media, words and sentences when communicating with external stakeholders, and also the visual representations and emotions
6.3.4 Brand Management
combined with them.
Brand management involves the maintenance and improvement of the brand and brand strategy.
6.3.3 Brand Identity
In order for Cellink to effectively continue their successful evolution, the brand and brand strategy
In order to make Cellink’s brand values and beliefs
must be managed continuously. Herein the brand
tangible and appealing to customers’ senses, a con-
management takes on a leading role in commu-
sistent brand identity is a must. As of right now the
nicating internally, making sure every decision
company’s brand identity and trust still lies within
with regards to content communicated externally
the people working there. However, In order to
aligns with the construct of the brand strategy, and
create associations and emotional attachments to
the brand platform. Brand management needs to
the brand and the brand community, visual and
intervene and guide whenever decisions tend to
28
“Personality is an important dimension of brand equity because, like human personality, it is both differentiating and enduring. Once established, it will provide benefits over a long time horizon.” - Aaker, 2014 damage and or alter the brand and the way it is
for the brand management to maintain, improve
perceived externally in every form. It also needs to
and uphold the company built on a strategy that
guide and position certain progression to the strat-
ensures the brand is favorable to all actors.
egy in case of beneficial innovations. It is important that brand management is the overarching discipline translating the different languages from
6.3.5 Brand Portfolio
marketing and finance to product development,
As we have suggested to adopt the mixed branding
packaging, communications and more.
architecture, it opens up broader possibilities to explore new markets with different products and
For Cellink this means the brand management
services. In addition, we suggest that it is critical
makes sure a common awareness and under-
for Cellink to establish a brand portfolio strategy
standing of the brand and it’s strategy is present
that solidifies the company from shifting trends
amongst all of the team members. Cellink employ-
and constantly changing market situations. It is
ees carry out the brand personality’s core values:
likely that Cellink has various future possibilities
Trust, Commitment, Integrity and Discovery,
connected to bioprinting, not knowing what will
in every action. This does not mean valuable
be the next emerging market within the indus-
exploration should be dismissed because of a
try. Therefor a concrete brand portfolio that can
strict plan for the future, especially in the case of
include more than one product or service is essen-
Cellinks young and powerful start. It means every
tial to the business. Cellink now has bioinks and
step towards the development of the company is
bioprinters, each under a different brand name.
understood through the lens of the brand where
In order to create additional brands with different
clarity, coherence and construction are the main
offerings, the portfolio strategy has to be merged
driving actors. The Cellink members are part of
with the mixed branding architecture suggested
the brand, as well are the products, the services.
above, keeping the openness to adopt changes and
Wheeler (2011) explains that unifying disparate
trends. Also, Cellink should keep in mind that ‘Cel-
elements into a whole system creates a well-estab-
link’ as a company brand and as a product brand
lished brand Identity, means that brand manage-
should stand strong as the business core apart
ment continuously reflects on, communicates and
from additional sub-brands including Inkredible.
manages this system. Throughout the upcoming
We see a possibility to develop extended products
period Cellink needs to anchor the brand platform
and services under the company umbrella and the
29
Figure 18: Cellink Brand Strategy Implementation Plan
bioprinting industry, but it does not necessarily
group was assigned to Adicals, a startup company
need to be associated with the bioinks, which is
in the advertising industry. Unfortunately we
Cellink’s main asset. Brands as a team will sup-
were not able to continue this collaboration due
port Cellink AB’s growth and generation of brand
to a lack of key components. Adicals appeared to
equity, but there is still an openness to embrace
be an entrepreneurial idea based only on a mon-
different trials and market explorations.
etary driver. There was no previous experience in the advertising industry from Adicals or other resources, no mission, vision, or assets. We there-
6.4 IMPLEMENTATION PLAN
fore decided to stop the collaboration after having
As seen in figure 18, the implementation of our
a meeting. The required work to start an advertis-
proposed strategy should be built by starting from
ing agency from scratch did not fit into the scope
the inner layer to the outer layer. The key fact to
of the integrated project.
keep in mind is to establish the brand platform (brand vision, mission, values) first, which will
The search for a new client began with the help
then be consistently embedded in every layer as
of tutor Sofia Wallner and course supervisor
we move on, until it successfully reaches external
Oriana Haselwanter whereupon we added our
stakeholders. .
individual networks. We were able to come up with a list of potential clients that we then filtered down to a selection of the three most interesting options: DigitasLBi, ODD Company and Cellink
7. REFLECTION
AB, all three companies are based in Gothenburg, Sweden. Digitas recently invited the programme
This project started out with a hurdle. Initially our
to come and take a look at the company, mainly
30
focusing on their virtual reality (VR) research and
industry experts. Even though the group consist-
development department. Therefore there was a
ing of students, professors and tutors from HDK
possibility to start a project in the field of VR in
Business and Design master program or Sahl-
collaboration with Digitas. ODD is a young startup
grenska Academy, were all representing a more or
working on a free rental service for cargo bikes
less homogeneous group, it clearly showed us how
in Gothenburg. The concept is to provide several
quickly and efficiently someone can jump into and
cargo bikes across the city for different types of
empathize with specific scenarios. It was reward-
usage. This way adding on the overall awareness of
ing to imagine and co-create the possible alternate
and shift to a more environmentally smart society.
futures, and interview talented people in unique
After contacting via mail, telephone, video chat
positions, on the forefront of technology, entrepre-
and meetings, we decided to use a SWOT-analy-
neurship and science.
sis on each of the potential clients in relation to our personal desires considering the seven weeks collaboration. As a result of our voting, we chose to work with Cellink AB.
8. CONCLUSION
During this unforeseen period, juggling possibil-
During this project we tackled Cellink’s inconsis-
ities, we gained experience on how to find poten-
tencies within their brand communication, which
tial clients in the future. The search and selection
was due to their lack of a strategically constructed
process taught us how to critically analyse oppor-
brand platform and communication strategy.
tunities. Using existing resources and fast but
Therefore our objective was to help Cellink
efficient decision making eventually resulted in a
strengthen their current position and prepare for
valuable project to take on.
establishing a leading position in the dynamic bioprinting industry.
It was as challenging as we were expectting to work for a real company. The initial lack of vision
We approached this challenge by researching the
in Adical’s case turned out to be an opposite kind
bioprinting industry in general, next to better
of problem with Cellink that works day and night
understanding Cellink AB. We conducted inter-
to save lives. Understandably, these busy entrepre-
views with experts that gave us insight on the
neurs answered some of our questions later than
complexity of young and disruptive industries. A
we expected, leading for instance, to the unfor-
competitor analysis focusing on communication
tunate factor that we couldn’t include some of
showed a general lack of accessible information
the most valuable insights, namely the opinion of
for relevant actors. When analyzed further from
Cellink’s existing customers in our proposal. Com-
the perspective of participants in our future sce-
bined with the limitations mentioned earlier, our
nario workshop, we can conclude that the desires
research results are just surfacing the opportuni-
and offerings don’t currently match. This creates
ties of a viable branding strategy for a company in
an opportunity for Cellink to strengthen their
Cellink’s position.
position by differentiating themselves through a well communicated brand; the market is growing,
What went unexpectedly well was the support
yet few competitors are effective with branding
that we got from our tutor, our class and the
as a whole, even if some good benchmarking
31
elements can be found among the companies. Cellink’s brand architecture and brand platform will have to be restructured to better facilitate sustainable growth during future market ventures and avoid external miscommunication towards different actors. Therefore we suggest for Cellink to adopt a mixed branding architecture together with a potential vision and mission statement that could guide the company in the future. We recommend Cellink to take ownership of the proposed strategy that should be manifested, maintained and improved by future brand management. FUTURE RESEARCH: Our recommendation is that future scenarios should be practiced more within the academic community, because it has proven to be an effective tool in bridging academic knowledge with practical challenges. We believe that it helps to understand practicalities and immerse into complex areas like medical, clinical industries, and so forth. The concept of multiple likely futures represents a very creative approach, and leads to more democracy and participation in society. As well, Cellink should experiment with some of our proposed methods; such as Customer Journey, Future Scenarios, Ten Types of Innovation and the theory of Lovemarks as some of these are very effective tools for generating strategic insights in the contemporary 3D bioprinting context.
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33
9. REFERENCES
AAKER, D.A. (2014). Aaker On Branding. Virginia: Morgan James Publishing. AAKER, D.A. (2004). Brand Portfolio Strategy. New York: Free Press. ABBING, E.R. & Gessel, C.V. (2010). Design Thinking: Brand-Driven Innovation. New York: Allworth Press. CHO, E. (2011). Development Of A Brand Image Scale And The Impact Of Lovemarks On Brand Equity [doctoral thesis]. Iowa: Institution of Apparel, Merchandising, and Design, Iowa State University. [online] Available at: http://lib.dr.iastate.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2951&context=etd [Accessed: 16/04/16] CLIFTON, R. (2009). The Economist: Brands and Branding. Wales: Creative Print and Design. ENZMANN, D.R., BEAUCHAMP, N.J. & NORBASH, A. (2011), Scenario Planning, Journal of the American College of Radiology, vol. 8, no. 3, pp. 175-179. KEELEY, L. (2013). Ten Types Of Innovation: The Discipline Of Building Breakthroughs. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley. KELLER, K.L. (2001). Building Customer-Based Brand Equity: A Blueprint for Creating Strong Brands. Marketing Science Institute. [Online] Available from: http://www.effentiicorp.com/wp-content/ uploads/2014/08/ CBBE.pdf [Accessed: 16/05/16]. KOTLER, P. & Keller, K.L. (2012). Marketing Management, 14th edn, New Jersey: Prentice Hall. LEE, K. (2014). How To Find Your Social Media Marketing Voice. [online] Available at: https://blog.bufferapp.com/social-media-marketing-voice-and-tone [Accessed: 19/05/16]. LINDGREN, M. & BANDHOLD, H. (2003). Scenario Planning: The Link Between Future And Strategy, Palgrave Macmillan, Basingstoke, Hampshire. NORMAN, D. (1988). The Psychology Of Everyday Things. New York: Basic Books. OSTERWALDER, A., Pigneur, Y., Clark, T., & Smith, A. (n.d.). Business Model Generation: A Handbook For Visionaries, Game Changers, And Challengers. RICHARDSON, Adam (2010). Using Customer Journey Maps to Improve Customer Experience. Harvard Business Review. November. ROBERTS, K. (2004). Lovemarks: The Future Beyond Brands (1St Ed.). New York: Powerhouse Books. ROBERTS, K. (2006). The Lovemarks Effect: Winning In The Consumer Revolution. New York: Powerhouse Books.
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ROVELO, P. (2016). 3D Bioprinting Market: Global Industry Analysis And Forecast 2015 – 2021. [online] Available at: http://3dprintingindustry.com/2016/04/17/3d-bioprinting-market-global-industry-analysis-and-forecast-2015-2021/ [Accessed: 11/04/16]. THOMPSON, A.B. (2009). The Economist: Brands And Branding: Brand Positioning And Brand Creation. Wales: Creative Print and Design. VALENTIN, E. K. (2001) Swot Analysis from a Resource-Based View, Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice, 9:2, 54-69, DOI VITHALA R., Manoj K., Agarwal, and Denise D. (2004). Manifesting brand strategy, Journal of Marketing. Vol.68, 126-141. WHEELER, A. (2011). Designing Brand Identity: An Essential Guide For The Whole Branding Team. New Jersey: John Wiley and Sons. ZACKARIASSON, P. (2016) Marketing Strategy [Lecture to Business & Design Year 1] - School of Business, Economics and Law, University of Gothenburg. 29/02/2016
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36
APPENDICES
APPENDIX A: PROJECT REBRIEF
P R OJ E C T B R I E F COMPANY: Cellink AB BUSINESS AND DESIGNERS: Tehilah Auramo, Ronald Clays, Kevan D’Agostino, Rae Kim TUTOR: Sofia Wallner
BACKGROUND
Cellink AB is a bioprinting company founded in March 2015 by a young team of researchers at Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg, Sweden. Their core business is to develop and offer cost-effective 3D bioprinters, universal and cell-specific bioinks together with supporting consulting services. Cellink has been profitable from the start, and today their business is fully financed by sales to academic institutions and global companies in the sectors of biotechnology, cosmetics and hygiene. Through close relations and alliances with industrial partners, Cellink develops innovative products and services. They identify themselves as a solutions company and therefore are currently investigating other potential markets. The bioprinting industry currently consists of approximately twenty global companies, and the competition is increasing since the focus is now shifting from research to commercialization. The industry is forecasted to be worth one billion dollars by 2019.
GOALS, AIMS AND BUSINESS OBJECTIVES
Cellink’s vision is to facilitate in eliminating the organ donor list by providing products to bioprint organs for the human body. The bioprinting will be done by using the patient’s own cells, specifically created to fit and bind naturally with their body. Their mission is to develop their existing technology further in order to facilitate bioprinting of more complex 3D tissues and organs, expanding the opportunities of the technology. Parallel to this, Cellink aims to make this technology more accessible by approaching potential customers through a community based platform. Also, by using their deeply rooted academic base and connections, they are foreseeing their possible collaborations with various organizations within the industry.
APPENDIX A: PROJECT REBRIEF
SCOPE
Cellink’s brand structure and communication are not currently consistent with all their company’s present offerings and future plans/development. However, seeing the company’s accelerating growth rate, it is now the perfect time for them to establish a core for their identity and position themselves in the biotech market. As this industry expands and more competitors join, this will be an important factor to establish better recognition and reputation with their current and future customers. As with any fast moving startup, prioritizing their focus is inevitable, however fundamentally constructing a brand identity and communication strategy is essential to continue their prosperous future.
DELIVERABLES
We want to prepare and coach Cellink to be a strong market leader in bioprinting. With this goal in mind we will focus on establishing a brand platform that will help create a cohesive and sustainable identity for the future of Celllink, which also can embrace their potential products and services. Also, we will look into Bioverse, an open source community for Bioprinting, and how this can be an integral part of Cellink’s vision and marketing strategy. To attain these goals, we will conduct research around the company’s current environment, use various methods to gather insight, create foresight from future scenarios, and deliver proposals for structural and visual solutions.
STAKEHOLDERS
Cellink, B&D Master students (Tehilah Auramo, Ronald Clays, Kevan D’Agostino, Rae Kim)
TARGET AUDIENCE
Cellink’s brand, product and services are targeted to anyone involved within bioprinting, from professional implementation to educational exploration. By creating a culture around an open platform, Cellink will meet the needs of potential customers from within different parts of society i.e. hospitals, universities and other businesses
IMPORTANT DATES AND DEADLINES
20 May - draft report ready 27 May - final report ready 1 June - Final presentation at Lindholmen Science Park
APPENDIX B: LOVEMARKS ELEMENTS (CHO, 2011)
APPENDIX C: ACTOR NETWORK MAPPING
41
APPENDIX D: ACTOR NETWORK MAPPING
APPENDIX E: SWOT ANALYSIS
brand
T
T
T
Advanced Biomatrix "Innovative 3D matrix products"
Aspect Biosystems
T
T
3D bioprinting and tissue engineering. Only consulting?
(Similar to 3D Biotek) Provides 3D applications for tissue culture, cell assay, and cell proliferation
3Dynamic Systems Manufactures 2 na generation of printers (clever names: Alpha and Omega). Officially "3D Bioprinting Technology for Tissue Engineering Research and Testing" ... "hydrogel-based materials"
44
T
Aspect Biosystems is working towards a future where doctors determine which drugs work for their patients before prescribing them, where animals are no longer needed for the development of new therapeutics, and where lifesaving transplant organs are created, not harvested.
Very clear and modern web
OK, nothing surprising but nothing clearly bad
For example, na desktop 3D printers sold for 999 - 4900 USD, but there's a wide variety of 3D printers for Professional and Production use under the series called: Stereolithograph y SLA, laser Sintering SLS and Direct Metal Printing (DMP)
3D printing NOT bioprinting. "3D Systems provides comprehensive 3D products and services, including 3D printers, print materials, ondemand parts services and digital design tools."
3D Systems Support page available from all parts of the homepage. Separate support lines for different continents: North-America, Europe, Japan, Asia-Pacific
Tech support includes both email and telephone. They encourage customers to contact them. Also, tutorial video available on homepage.
Web - super (not applicable) easy! although only in Russian. Product na/intended for internal use only
Usability (web Support and product if possible)
(printer not for 3D Biotek's Very simple. sale. products offer Easy to find Accessories solutions for products and prices only others to test contact info. available at and develop login. According their bioprinting to their own blog with. The "affordable") company seems to be a member of American Association for Cancer Research.
"3D Bio has clearly stated the objective of 3D printing a functional and implantable human organ in the near future."
What it costs? Learning outcome
Most of all, this (not for sale seems to be a internal use research lab! only) Manufacturer of bioprinter "Fabion". Experiments with 3D printed organ implantations in mice. The company was in the news in November 2015 when the world's first implantation turned out to be successfull.
What it does?
3D Biotek - "Add Manufacturer and extra dimension to distributor of your innovation" scaffolds, pipets, plates and other accessories for bioprinting.
3D Bioprinting Solutions - "By creating opportunities for future"
Cellink
Who studies what Competitor name
Target group
Partners with University of British Columbia
Stock listed, easier to gather finances. Old company with established partners e.g. General Motors and Lotus F1.
B2B especially medical companies and dentists
"3D Biotek is a Researchers leader in 3 dimensional scaffold design and fabrication"
Is already Students & testing artificial Investors organs in living mice.
Differentiator
Transparency? Criteria for best points (10) requires good company description with what, how, why? Links to industry news
Medical and simple. Looks like a blog. Not so advanced.
Awesome!
Modern, active, Yes... "patientinteresting, specific surgical helpful instruments"
Webpage looks Yes. like a blog, incl. weird ugly bolded letters. Old-school ugly webshop
Vancouver, Canada
Rock Hill, South Carolina, USA
http://aspectbiosystems.com/
https://www.advancedbiomatrix.com/
http://www.bioprintingsystems.com/
http://www.3dsystems.com/
653 million USD (2014)
(no data)
(no data)
Part of a Yearly turnover company group? Mother company name?
http://www.bioprin (no data)
Homepage, link
New Jersey, USA http://www.3dbiot (no data)
Moscow, Russia
Customisization HQ and other possibilities locations (how flexible is the design)
Pastelly, fresh (na) and modern, regularly updated. Pages designed separately for students and investors.
Visual - what does it look like? (the brand) - SEE FOLDER COMPETITIVE PHOTOS
USD
Currency
5,3 milliard SEK (2014)
Yearly turnover in SEK
(no data)
12 employees acc. to personnel webpage
Number of employees
APPENDIX F: COMPETITOR MATRIX
K
K
K
T
CMC Microsystems
Cyfuse Biomedical
K
K
BioBots creates 3D bioprinters and bioinks that are unleashing the biological revolution.
BioBots
Develops beautiful Not available prosthetic legs acquired by 3D Systems - a company that lives in almost all industries for 3D printing - 3D Systems plans to integrate Bespoke into its growing healthcare solutions services and leverage its integrated scan, design and print technology and knowhow to develop and commercialize a full range of innovative, ventilated and lightweight custom fit prosthetics, orthotics and orthopedics.
Bespoke Innovations
K
Develops products Not available that help isolate, without grow, and analyze registering living cells and tissue for genomics, proteomics, drug discovery and development, oncology and immune systems
BD Biosciences
Bio3D Together, we have Two-tiers Technologies created world's first (VERY RELEVANT) and Singapore's first Educational & true scientific and Research biological 3D printer specific with multiple print products heads, modular design, nozzle-toplatform autoalignment, remote viewing and control etc. We are also the first to integrate an anti-vibration levitating platform into a 3D printer.
45
K
The Regenerative $700 - $1200 group of products US use innovative technology to harness the most effective means of wound healing and skin regeneration. Helps use own cells to speed up skin healing from major burns
Avita Medical
very similar to Cellink
/
/
What it costs? Learning outcome
"3D design, engineering and entertainment software. Since its introduction of AutoCAD software in 1982, Autodesk continues to develop the broadest portfolio of 3D software for global markets"
What it does?
Autodesk
Who studies what Competitor name
Loads of support technical, training and sales ordering
Easy usability - contact page clear and nicely mapped out in terms of products
easy to navigate customer login - not design + community heavy though support
Lots of products - a bit busy
Lots of products - different uses ranging from cell analyzers, softwares and sample preparation
Product: Easy to Support form use - comes in a contact form kit to doctors several offices Website: easy to navigate
Usability (web Support and product if possible)
Target group
easily accessible
easily accessible
beautiful designs
Offer turn key solutions?
both researchers + educators
Clinical and research
Specific on Anyone with a healing wounds need for skin from burns regrenerating could move into the acne market
Old and established company
Differentiator
Transparency? Criteria for best points (10) requires good company description with what, how, why? Links to industry news
great layout relevant brand
3D Systems (parent) only available
Very clinical
Logo is disappearing? unsure if I see this as positive or negative website is friendly - has videos for description - a bit templated looking
Visual - what does it look like? (the brand) - SEE FOLDER COMPETITIVE PHOTOS
lots of options within the inks and printers
/
/
Comes in premade kit
http://www.bdbios ciences.com/eu/h ome
Philadelphia, US
https://www.biobot s.io/
http://bio3d.tech/
Rock Hill, South http://www.3dsyst 3D Systems Carolina, United ems.com/ + States + Offices in www.bespokeinno other continents vations.com (although this is now not available)
Ontario Canada, Also on every continent except Antarctica
11.6 million USD (2014) (net)
Part of a Yearly turnover company group? Mother company name?
http://www.autodesk.com/
Homepage, link
UK, Australia and http://avitamedical / + US .com/
Customisization HQ and other possibilities locations (how flexible is the design)
Not currently displayed
Not currently displayed
Currency
Yearly turnover in SEK
Number of employees
APPENDIX F: COMPETITOR MATRIX
46
EnvisionTEC Has a family of 3D (partner of Cellink) Printers, especially the '3D-bioplotter' is for bioprinting.
Helisys Inc.
InSphero AG
Ra
Ra
Ra
Producing 3D Insight Microtissues, Liver, Tumor, cells, consulting, testing
Manufactures 3D printers, apparently, but no clue of what the company is like, and what the product can offer
DTM
Ra
3D printing for cars?
Accessibility, how the product is presented
customizable, detailed cellprinting technology and using their intellectual recognition in entering the business
How they present their work, values, and background knowledge is clear and cohesive. Testing results, research can be individually attained by contacting them. Seems like they are keeping transparancy on what they do.
$14,995 Poorly branded/commu nicated Cubic Technologies? Helisys?
Digilab is a globally Needs contact recognized franchaise with intellectual property protected products and unsurpassed application knowledge. Digilab expanded its product offerings to include the identity, a high thorughput Raman reader, and the Celljet, a unique 3D printer for living cells with a ~95% cell viability.
Digilab (Huge company)
Ra
What it costs? Learning outcome
What it does?
Who studies what Competitor name
Differentiator
Terrible website, No clue poor communication, maybe direct information of price is their only differentiator
EnvisionTEC 3D Hearing aid printers have industry(60% of comprehensive the world material, printer market), jewelry and software design industry, platform. So it is fast, precise and smooth. Load your STL file and instantly begin printing without hesitation.
Target group
Has numerous Partner network. B2B consulting partners from Organotypic, different fields to standardized 3D advance models, Rapic compound de- turnaround, fully risking and to customizable, support the strict growth and confientiality, success of the Thorough company. consultation & (Hamilton reporting robotics, Integra Biosciences AG, Luxcel Biosciences Ltd, Perkin Elmer Corp, Promega Corp, Biognsys AG, Protea Biosciences Group, SCREEN holdings, Seahorse Bioscience Inc, Sirion Biotech Gmbh, Solemtim Ltd, etc)
Integrated technology with '3Shape' in the hearing aid market, with 'Dental Wings' in the dental market
Digilab’s Exclusive proprietary distribition agreement with liquid 'Insion'(German dispensing technology, y), Strategic partnership with offering both onHitachi, the-fly and dropby-drop nonprovides exclusive sale contact cell and servicing of printing while Hitachi's entire maintaining the molecular viability of even the most spectroscopy delicate cells. product line. Distribution agreement with ThermoFisher to sell product in China. Demo lab at Northeastern Univ, Boston. Partnership with Repco to offer 3 party service on Digilab products in USA. SpectraCode(20 06), offers core competence and products in high growth applications. Genomic Solutions(2007), broadens Digilab's global footprint in both Life sciences research preanalytics market and solutions.
Usability (web Support and product if possible)
Transparency? Criteria for best points (10) requires good company description with what, how, why? Links to industry news
Homepage, link
Part of a Yearly turnover company group? Mother company name?
Switzerland
Torrance, CA
Dearborn, MI
http://www.insphero.com/
http://www.cubicte chnologies.com/in dex.htm
http://envisiontec. com/
Marlborough, MA http://www.digilab Digilab is global.com/produc identified by- and ts-celljet built on- the excellent reputation of its acquired brands including Genomic Solutions, Investigator, GeneMachines, Cartesian Dispensing Systems, BioRobotics, SpectraCode, and Maia Scientific.
Customisization HQ and other possibilities locations (how flexible is the design)
Website is not Yes excellent, but has everything essential, and delivers a consistent, clear language and information about their work and products. You get to learn as you surf through the website.
The website design/branding is not appealing, but interestingly, you can check the detail information/spec of the printers. Tech tip videos are easily accessible as well.
Product brand and Company brand is different, but it is quite clearly mentioned/show n that the printer is a part of the company's products. Though, the detailed aspects of the product is not shown directly on the website. Also difficult to find specific info related to how it can be bought, and how it is currently used
Visual - what does it look like? (the brand) - SEE FOLDER COMPETITIVE PHOTOS
Currency
Yearly turnover in SEK
Number of employees
APPENDIX F: COMPETITOR MATRIX
Consulting company. A hightech enterprise cofounded by outstanding biomedicine scientists, 2008. Production and sales of regenerative medicine materials and regenerative implantable medical devices, using 3D printing and nanobionics technology.
MedPrin
Modern Meadow
N3D Biosicence
Ra
Ro
Ro
/I think this 'product' is still in development and the company is in the research phase
47
TeVido Biodevices TeVido BioDevices / is a privately held biotechnology company using 3D bio-printing of a woman’s own living cells – to build custom grafts for breast cancer reconstruction.
Ro
Conventional / additive 3D-printer company (3Disonprinter), now entering the bioprinting market. The company appears to be focusing initially on the bioprinting of human skin tissue, a technology which could change the way patients are treated for a variety of ailments from burns to diseases, to even cosmetic surgery.
Rokit
Ro
They design and / create functional human tissues using proprietary threedimensional bioprinting technology. Their goal is to build living human tissues that are proven to function like native tissues.
Organovo
Ro
Very specific part of the industry: breast cancer reconstruction
They got a 3Mil grant from government to enter bioprinting market
I think they didn't commercialised their knowledge into a product to sell
Differentiator
They provide a whole section for investors. It feels like the website is there purely for online presence for investors and shareholders
Website Contact form, provides basic press & media information to coverage get a view on their activity, nothing precise, it's there for the online presence but then again not very accesibly done
/Nothing to find / online but an article on them announcing a $3 million government grant for the development of bioprinting technology from July 2015.
I think they provide a service and research as an outsource or collaboration with clients
They give a lot of information on the website, but all in jargon
/
Markets in need of sustainable, more ethical alternatives for leather processing
Target group
The company's background in traditional 3D printing market (3Disonprinter) can give them a technical advantage on printing techniques
Breast cancer patients
Focusing initially on the bioprinting of human skin tissue, a technology which could change the way patients are treated for a variety of ailments from burns to diseases, to even cosmetic surgery.
/ Big / Investors, no research/service direct sign of company commercial targeted at big application investors/clients possibilities , not a customer usability/accesib ility approach
/ To specific. n3D’s BioAssembler™ technology is pattented though
/I think leather Contact form Biofabricated will always be and internal leather part of the organisation/tea fashion, so if m overview this product is able to provide the industry with a more 'ethical' and sustainable alternative (for some types of leather), it's a good opportunity to engineer the product in a way it has an added value over traditional leather.
Branches in US, Germany and China
Usability (web Support and product if possible)
Very specific /They sell kits part of the industry I THINK
3d bioprinting opens up various possibilities as it can subsitute less sustainable products in all sorts of markets
Clear values "innovation, cooperation and mutual love", and to "play a leading role in science & technology capacity and quality and constantly keep sound integrity to save more lives." YET, it is quite difficult to figure out their products/specs
What it costs? Learning outcome
They sell kits and $750 or $1250 services for 3D cell culture. Their core kits technology is the magnetization of cells, which can then be directed using magnetic forces. In this manner, they can either levitate or bioprint cells.
They combine design, biology and engineering to produce the world's first biofabricated leather for a more sustainable product and industry
What it does?
Who studies what Competitor name
Transparency? Criteria for best points (10) requires good company description with what, how, why? Links to industry news
/They talk about Brooklyn, NYC engineering the product so its application is more diverse then conventional leather
Frankfurt, Germany
Customisization HQ and other possibilities locations (how flexible is the design)
Part of a Yearly turnover company group? Mother company name?
http://www.moder The CEO is also Co-founder of Organovo
/
/
3Disonprinter is / a daugthercompa ny (?) that sells conventional 3D printers online
branded to a certain level
Austin, Texas, USA
South Korea
San Diego, CA, USA
http://tevidobiode /
http://en.3disonpri Daughter https://3dprint.co company (?) 3Disonprinter
/
/
http://organovo.co they have a / daughter company: Samsara sciences
/
/
http://www.medprin.com/en/index.aspx
Homepage, link
Visual / to specific to get Houston, TX, USA http://www.n3dbio / communication in to looks very unaccesible
The visual brand ID looks 'medical', 'organic' but does not visualy represents to the product
Clear visual communication (very coherent and consisent), fairly good use of graphic in showing company history, culture, application in technology, etc. YET, poor at showing what their products are and what they are for. and some graphics are broken.
Visual - what does it look like? (the brand) - SEE FOLDER COMPETITIVE PHOTOS
/
/
/ US Dollar?
/ US Dollar?
/ US Dollar?
Currency
/
/
/
/
/
Yearly turnover in SEK
3+
/
Number of employees
80
6
5
APPENDIX F: COMPETITOR MATRIX
Ro
48
Regen HU
Create complex organ models for automated tissuebased in vitro assays for clinical diagnostics, drug discovery, and drug toxicity and complex in vitro models of human diseases.
/ Create tissue and organ models with BioInk®, our biomaterials supporting cellular growth, in combination with our BioFactory® bio-printers to generate threedimensional constructs of cells, proteins, and extracellular matrix components.
United Therapeutics / Corporation is a biotechnology company focused on the development and commercialization of innovative products to address the unmet medical needs of patients with chronic and lifethreatening conditions. We have five approved products on the market today and are relentless in our pursuit of “medicines for life”®.
United Therapeutics
Ro WTF, GET A GRIP!!
/
Usability (web Support and product if possible)
Big competitor! Website looks / very accesible. Product looks very industrial and unaccesible
No idea how they do it
What it costs? Learning outcome
What it does?
Who studies what Competitor name
Printers + ink
/
Differentiator
Companies & organisations with big capital
/
Target group
Transparency? Criteria for best points (10) requires good company description with what, how, why? Links to industry news
Professional
looks like bankrupcy
Visual - what does it look like? (the brand) - SEE FOLDER COMPETITIVE PHOTOS
Very flexible I think
/
Switzerland
Silver Spring, Maryland, USA
Customisization HQ and other possibilities locations (how flexible is the design)
http://www.regenh Biosystem Architects
/
/
Part of a Yearly turnover company group? Mother company name?
http://www.unither /
Homepage, link
/
/
Currency
/
/
Yearly turnover in SEK
/
5+
Number of employees
APPENDIX F: COMPETITOR MATRIX
APPENDIX G: VALUE PROPOSITION CANVAS
APPENDIX H: FUTURE VALUES WORKSHOP
YO U ARE A
PATIENT I N TH E
YEAR 2030
F L I P PAG E
APPENDIX H: FUTURE VALUES WORKSHOP
PATIENT 1: PERSONA + SCENARIO 2 PM Wednesday, you took the afternoon off because of a doctor’s appointment. You hear your liver is failing and needs to be replaced in the upcoming 2 months. Today it’s common to have an artificial, 3D-printed organ; this is routine operation conducted by surgical robots. Most of your friends have a 3D-printed organ and you’ve never heard them complain. Their opinion is important for you, because in the middle of the high-tech age you have started valuing the well-being of your immediate community the most. Your doctor works for a hospital that collaborates with different bio printing companies and has send you a document with links to the websites of each company. You are not stressed and you know everything will be alright even though this is an unpleasant situation. You are given the time to look into the different companies and choose one you trust to produce a liver that you will use for the rest of your life. QUESTION What would make you trust and choose a bioprinting company?
PATIENT 2: PERSONA + SCENARIO 2 PM Wednesday, you took the afternoon off because of a doctor’s appointment. You hear your liver is failing and needs to be replaced in the upcoming 2 months. Today it’s not yet very common to have an artificial, 3D-printed organ, because the market has been very careful to do any tests on humans. However, both the technology and international standards are finally in place, which opens up the hyper-global marketplace, where you don’t even know where in the world you will be enjoying dinner. Luckily so, because the donor list is increasing in tact with the increasing individualism in society. Your doctor works for a hospital that collaborates with different bio printing companies and has send you a document with links to the websites of each company. You are not stressed and you know everything will be alright even though this is an unpleasant situation. You are given the time to look into the different companies and choose one you trust to produce a liver that you will use for the rest of your life. QUESTION What would make you trust and choose a bioprinting company?
APPENDIX H: FUTURE VALUES WORKSHOP
YO U ARE A
DOCTOR I N TH E
YEAR 2030
F L I P PAG E
APPENDIX H: FUTURE VALUES WORKSHOP
DOCTOR 1: PERSONA + SCENARIO 2 PM Wednesday, you have just enjoyed an afternoon coffee with the head of the hospital to discuss new directions with 3D Bioprinting. Today it’s pretty common to have an artificial, 3D-printed organ; this is a routine operation with low risks, that you have been doing for the past 10 years with the help of robotics technology. Since you have recently switched employers, and given your experience in the field, you’ve promised to help your new hospital to set-up a supplier base of different bioprinting companies. You are looking for a company to support the workflow at the hospital as well as your individual research. In the end of the day, you’ll consult with your family and friends because in the middle of the high-tech age you have started valuing the well-being of your immediate community the most. QUESTION What would make you trust and choose a bioprinting company?
DOCTOR 2: PERSONA + SCENARIO 2 PM Wednesday, you have just enjoyed an afternoon coffee with the head of the hospital to discuss new directions with 3D Bioprinting. Today it’s pretty new to have an artificial, 3D-printed organ; because the market has been very careful to do any tests on humans. However, both the technology and international standards are finally in place, which opens up the hyper-global marketplace, where you don’t even know where in the world you will be enjoying dinner. Luckily so, because the donor list is increasing in tact with the increasing individualism in society. Since you have recently switched employers, and given your experience in traditional transplantations, you’ve been appointed to help your new hospital to set-up a supplier base of different bioprinting companies and lead a team to implement this new practice. You are looking for a company to support the workflow at the hospital as well as your individual research. This is an opportunity to take a head start and establish yourself and the new hospital in the 3D bioprinting industry and may provide future, worldwide possibilities for your career. QUESTION What would make you trust and choose a bioprinting company?
WHY IS IT MOST IMPORTANT TO YOU?
TRUST
PRICE
ADVERTISING
RECOMMENDATION FROM OTHERS
TRANSPARENCY
ETHICS
SUPPORT
STATISTICS
VISUAL IDENTITY
SOCIAL MEDIA
SECURITY OF PERSONAL INFORMATION
CONSULTATION/ ONE ON ONE
RESEARCH/ BACKGROUND
CLEAR COMMUNICATION
WEBSITE
MEDIA COVERAGE
APPENDIX H: FUTURE VALUES WORKSHOP
APPENDIX I: FUTURE VALUES WORKSHOP RESULTS
APPENDIX J: BRAND STRATEGY BOOK
THE FOLLOWING PAGES IS OUR FINAL PROPOSAL TO CELLINK AND ARE ALSO PART OF APPENDIX J THE BRAND STRATEGY BOOK WILL BE PRESENTED ON JUNE 1ST