ABB – Unleashing power and productivity for a better world
From 2011 until the end of 2014, when I moved to New York City, I led the ABB account team at Interbrand Zurich and was in charge of strategy across all projects on the account. During that time we realized more than a hundred projects for ABB in the areas of portfolio strategy, brand strategy and positioning, brand valuation, graphic design, product packaging, trade fair design, naming, messaging as well as diverse specific touchpoint activations and ongoing strategic advisory and support, at all times working as a close partner to ABB’s global branding team, other corporate departments, multiple business units as well as the CCO directly. The ABB account was one of Interbrand Zurich’s biggest and most important clients with at times more than 30 different projects per year.
Account background
When ABB, one of the world’s largest engineering companies, asked our team at Interbrand to review its positioning and identity, the team rolled up their sleeves and developed a plan to build and strengthen the brand for the long-term – resulting in a long-lasting partnership between ABB and Interbrand.
Emphasizing not on what the company had been, but what it is was becoming, the team created a new strategic brand platform that had both clarity and relevance. This strategic platform informed and inspired the development of new a corporate design, communication, digital platforms, engagement concepts as well as comprehensive brand management tools to guide the creation of ABB’s brand experience, foster customer loyalty and employee engagement, and strengthen communication overall.
Ultimately, we armed ABB to transition from its focus on product communication and embrace a more powerful position as a thought leader. With a stronger identity as a cutting-edge innovator as well as a state-of-the art brand experience, recognition followed: MIT recognized ABB as one of the top 50 most disruptive companies in the world in 2013. Furthermore our redesign of the ABB.com received a recognition at the 2014 REBRAND 100.
Selected highlights: Optimizing the ABB brand experience in the digital space
ABB’s global website records over ten million page views each month, making it ABB’s most important customer touchpoint. However, customers did not have a satisfying experience and couldn’t find what they were looking for.
Our team at Interbrand was asked to not only do a “paint-job”, but redefine ABB’s brand experience in the digital space. The goal was to develop a forward looking website concept and vision that optimized usability, content and design for the digital age – all working together to deliver a seamless brand experience that brings ABB’s business strategy to life. Designed to be fully responsive and ready to deal with the challenges of the ongoing technical revolution, we created the first holistic ABB brand experience in the digital space.
Based on our concept and vision, the updated ABB website began to rollout in early 2013. Around 500,000 pages and over 70 language portals needed to be brought to live in order to complement ABB’s new web experience. The positive internal and external feedback was overwhelming and highlighted ABB’s ability to set benchmarks for the entire industry.
Selected highlights: The search for a name for ABB’s future robotics generation
ABB’s engineers had been working for years on a new and groundbreaking dual arm concept robot that was soon to hit the market. The ABB team asked our team at Interbrand to help them create a new name that would become the synonym of an entire robotics generation under development. Through close collaboration with the ABB team, and after down-selecting from hundreds of potential name candidates – YuMi was chosen and a new generation of robots born. Based on the idea of human and machines working closely together, the new name was chosen to ensure ABB’s robots weren’t perceived as a replacement of human workforce, but as enabler and helpful addition to the team.