Sascha Gerber Reflection – Storytelling

Challenge & Selection    As the Digital Strategy Consultant At the company I am working at, Frutos y Semillas, I needed  to conceptualize a new service for major clients of the automotive industry, revolving around the  improvement of after-sales processes and the customer relationship between buyer and the car  manufacturer.     In order to do so, I brainstormed on how to capture the attention and connect to the clients we are  dealing with. The new service will revolve around four corner points, (i) Digitalization, (ii) the Customer,  (iii) a Service Mind-set and (iv) the Automotive Industry.   Based on these pre-requisites, I become fond of the idea of creating a logo that encompasses elements  of Storytelling by visualizing the above corner points, as to connect to the client and give our customers  the chance to immerse him- or herself into the background story behind the actual logo and service.     Application    Given the selection of Storytelling and visualization, both me and the team sat down to discuss a variety  of concepts for the logo and the service that might draw the client into purchasing our new service. After  a longer discussion and several prototypes, we built a story-board to outline a concept for the service  presentation that will be presented to the client(s).     The idea is to create a logo that reflects our corporate identity and carries the message that we, Zulla  Consulting & Partners, are the client’s supporter for enabling successful after-sales processes which are  human-centered, digital savy, service-oriented and tailor-made for the automotive industry. This idea will  be backed by the long-lasting tradition Frutos y Semillas has within the automotive industry  and the many successful case studies we had with other customers, including Volkswagen, Audi, Porsche,  or Bentley.      Not only should the actual logo visualize these ideas, but in combination with the proposal, the clients  shall identify his or her current problems or challenges, as well as be appealed to the solutions we provide,  namely, preparing out clients for a digital age that demands human-centered thinking at any stage of the  customer journey.     Insight & Approach    In the development stage we processed many different prototypes for our logo that will transfer the  above concepts. In the very end, we decided to go for the following mascot carrying an USB-cable with  the icon of a wrench and a car. On the chest of the character we placed the corporate logo, as well as  we changed the hair color to fit with the corporate color scheme.

With this logo we went out to several partners and presented the idea behind the character to them, as  each part of the logo carries a certain message. The cable for instance reflects the digital century we are  living in and implies connecting to the customer. The emblem on the cable resemble the key elements  “Service” and the “Automotive Industry”, which we mainly address the service to. Last but not least, we  have chosen a branded mascot to give the reader the impression that we are the clients partner in  bringing excellent after-sales services for the digital age to them.    The feedback we received was incredibly positive and due to the fact that this was only a first draft, we  could sense that we are heading into the right direction. Now we need to implement the logo and build  a story around it via text and visuals together in one presentation.

now I can prepare ahead and think of stories that will assist me in presenting my ideas and best  illuminate them.    I have a design background, but I ended up as an entrepreneur in business. I had no idea this would ever  be considered an asset, but I am so very grateful that it is!

