Brand strategist. Author of @leanbranding. MA in Design Mgmt @SCADdotedu PhD in Psychology [email protected] Sign up for tips ↓
USA - Colombia
Joined February 2009
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In customers’ eyes, it’s the same brand building the product they use and the ads that led them to that product in the first place. To them, there are no compartments, no org charts, no project managers. There is only one experience, one #BrandSystem.
Enter the Brand System: a shared library that defines the brand’s story, symbols, and strategy. @laurabusche explains how you can help avoid fragmentation, confusion, and exclusion within teams.
↬ Aligning Teams Around A Common Story
smashingmagazine.com/2019/06…
Laura Busche retweeted
The only software that will matter in the future is the software with an opinion.
AI will make functionality incredibly cheap. Anyone will be able to build another app, replicate another feature, or generate another interface within minutes.
The only thing that remains is taste, philosophy, and conviction.
Opinionated software is built on deliberate choices, by a team with strong principles and the freedom to disappoint some people to serve others exceptionally well.
As the cost of building software approaches zero, the value of deciding *what* deserves to exist will only increase.
Couldn't agree more:
My hottest take is that brand marketing is going to be THE major differentiator and one of the most prized assets for a company going forward.
And, I’m not talking about launch videos or pouring money primarily for “aesthetics” simply to pump the valuation. You still need retention before attention.
I’m talking about thinking through what a company stands for and understanding the “vibe” of what’s happening in the market. Being relentless on the long term goal while also thinking through how to showcase the company in the short term. And doing it every week.
Especially if you think agents become the primary user for most products, then to get the attention of a rapidly attention deficit audience (aka humans) you’ll need to stand out consistently in how you present the company.
These folks primary have been given tier 2 roles and passed up for CMOs many many times. I think this will finally invert in the next 10 years where you’ll hire these folks as cofounders or at least give them a big seat at the table.
Normally the design centric CEO tends to be this, but those are rare and you’ll need to learn how to hire for this role. Just like a good product marketer, these are exceptionally rare so you have one hold them close!!
Laura Busche retweeted
Some people love the version of you that performs.
Others love the version of you that tells the truth.
Learn the difference.
Laura Busche retweeted
As a Designer, if you care about making well-designed things, you should surround yourself with well designed things in your life.
You'll absorb more than you think.
The watch you wear, your furniture, the car you drive, the software you use... everything you passively use throughout the day becomes a reference point, or think of it as a baseline of the standard you hold yourself to in your own work.
And no, this doesn't mean only buying expensive things. Well designed doesn't necessarily mean costly, it just means well considered.
Live among things made by people who deeply cared, because its contagious (:
Your customer is asking a hundred tiny questions.
And design is answering most of them in microseconds.
No pressure 😌
Laura Busche retweeted
“Make it feel human”
That’s something I’ve been hearing more and more lately. Clients asking for work that feels hand-drawn, more organic, less polished.
Shapes that aren’t mathematically flawless. Colors that feel grounded and warm instead of hyper-saturated purples and glowy gradients. More texture, more character.
It’s interesting to watch the shift. For years, we leaned heavily into ultra-smooth, gradient-heavy, almost sci-fi aesthetics (Think Stripe, Linear). Everything felt crisp, precise, and digital. But now, as AI-generated design becomes better and more accessible, that kind of perfection feels easier to replicate.
And therefore it stops being special.
Brands are moving toward something that feels more real. More ownable. More personal.
You can already see it happening with brands like Granola. There’s personality in it. It doesn’t scream "look at me". The tone feels grounded.
Personally, I’m all for it.
Laura Busche retweeted
Happy 36th Birthday Adobe Photoshop!
On February 19, 1990, Adobe Systems released a raster graphics editor called Photoshop 1.0.
ALT Adobe Photoshop 1.0 in 1990
Laura Busche retweeted
Self-refinement through the wisdom of the ages – New Year's resolutions from some of humanity's greatest mind: Seneca, Maya Angelou, Alan Watts, Bruce Lee, Carl Sagan, Virginia Woolf, and more: themarginalian.org/2015/01/0…
Laura Busche retweeted
How to Become A Millionaire:
Hire smart people. Pay them well. Leave them alone.
Sunsets: when you’re truly there, time feels like it bends *just enough* to let you take it all in. Presence expands experience. It brings out the colors in life, the quiet details that algorithms would rather you scroll past 💨🌇
*HEX color codes linked in bio
Laura Busche retweeted
Emotionally rigid: Keep your head down, one eye on the prize, the other on the bottom line, no matter the cost.
Emotionally agile: Realize your circumstances have evolved, and make a values-aligned choice to change course.
These questions can help you reevaluate your goals.
It's begun: as if our collective manners weren't already messed up, here comes,
Humans prompting each other.
We're EI, not AI. Do better.
Laura Busche retweeted
Once you reframe discipline as self love, everything changes.
You wanted to get up early to write?
Love yourself enough to do it.
You wanted to get to the gym?
Love yourself enough to do it.
You wanted to build your side hustle?
Love yourself enough to do it.
If you're going through one of those days where you just need someone to say "I see you, you're doing great", that someone is you.
I repeat: that someone is you.
There it is, hiding in plain sight, the unmistakable mark of a lasting brand: caring. Caring profoundly. Caring for customers, team members, suppliers, the world. Caring so much that the world cares back.
ft. @iamjohnmackey ‘s #consciouscapitalism
Laura Busche retweeted
“Character — the willingness to accept responsibility for one’s own life — is the source from which self-respect springs.”
Remembering Joan Didion, who left us two years ago today, with her classic on self-respect themarginalian.org/2012/05/2…
