Published on: Friday, January 07, 2011

Robert Brunner on Innovating Ideas into Objects

Posted By: Robyn Greenspan
Filed Under: world innovation forum, robyn greenspan, innovation, risk, brand, design, robert brunner

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What draws diehard Microsoft users toward some Apple products? Or tempts someone with little interest in cooking to purchase a Fuego grill? Why, when we have a choice between similar products, are we often more likely to have a stronger feeling for one over the other? To Robert Brunner�s mind, it is the design. But what is design?

Design is the interface between a company and its constituents, and Robert Brunner, who has partnered form and function for Apple Computer and now runs Ammunition Group, a brand and product design firm, integrates emotional connection into his work. Brunner stressed that "Design is ideas, not objects," and reminded that while "Objects are important, there needs to be more." Design is "about an experience and what we feel." "Why do you care if Apple goes out of business? It's because of how the company makes you feel. Would your customers shed any tears if you were gone?"

In his presentation at the 2010 World Innovation Forum, Brunner, co-author of Do You Matter? How Great Design Will Make People Love Your Company, said there are three elements that matter to him:

Connection: Whatever you create has to speak to people.
Partnership: As a designer, it is easy to create one thing that is perfect. But to create a million things, you need a partner with whom you share mutual respect and understanding.
Disruption: Design can be an extremely disruptive force in a positive way. Use it to find new ways to connect with new people.

Companies are challenged today to create connections with consumers on two levels: as a brand and with their products. And "design or die" is Brunner�s shorthand for how design-driven companies make those connections. Design or die revolves around four central ideas:

"Great products are more than objects:" Apple�s iPod is more than the pretty little case we all think of. Rather it's everything that Apple brings to the iPod, which includes the product design, the interface, the brand, the communication, the retail experience, and all the materials that make up "my music." If you strip all that out, just looking at the packaging or what is traditionally considered "design," all you have is a well-executed object.
"Your brand is not your logo:" Brunner cautions that brand is "not your corporate identity guidelines or retail display. It is a gut feeling; it exists in people's hearts. When it exists in more than one person, you have a brand. You cannot define it; you can only influence it." Brand loyalty can't be taken for granted, must continually be earned, and it doesn't guarantee the same allegiance to product lines. "Our BS meters have become finely tuned. We have access to lots of information, professional reviews, peer reviews. Be yourself; just be a good one."
"In a design driven company, everyone in the room is a designer:" Recognized brands produce products that require management, marketing, design, engineering, manufacturing, operations, sales, distribution, and customer service. That is the design chain. But that doesn't mean decision by committee. Every company needs a CEO to drive a design vision across the design chain.
"Risk is not a four-letter word:" According to Brunner, "Innovation equals risk. Not taking risks is the risky play. If great design came from research, there'd be more great design."

As Brunner looks to the next level of innovation challenge, he is working to apply his design aesthetic to alternative energy solutions. By building upon the ubiquitous solar panels in calculators, Brunner, with Regen, is developing ReNu, a solar panel that sticks to the window collecting energy and can charge devices like iPhones and iPods through USB accessories and docks. "Powering your iPhone by the sun probably won't save the world, but it will give people the opportunity to participate in producing their own energy and get people thinking about energy in a different way," said Brunner.

To deepen the connection between the product and the mission, Brunner said there is also an iPhone app that collects data so that Regen users can compare their usage to each other. "We're creating a community that creates energy. It's all about innovating in ways that connect to people's lives in a meaningful way."

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Robyn Greenspan's avatar Robyn Greenspan
Robyn Greenspan is the Editor-in-Chief at ExecuNet, where she is responsible for setting and driving the editorial content engagement strategy across the private business network's publications and expert-led programming. She is also a Huffington Post blogger. You can follow her on Twitter @RobynGreenspan