Problem
ELEAGUE is one of Turner Sports’ newest offerings, covering the emerging space of esports. The space is constantly evolving, and we were having trouble staying in sync with “who” ELEAGUE is and how it fits into the space.
Goal
Achieve a common understanding of ELEAGUE as a brand.
Process
I was noticing in conversations with colleagues people saying, “We’re ELEAGUE, we should do it like this…” or “That’s not something ELEAGUE would do”. Were those comments true? I reached out to ELEAGUE’s General Manager and asked if I could get the leadership group to participate in a Brand Sprint to help get everyone on the same page.
The Brand Sprint, created by Jake Knapp (who also pioneered the Design Sprint), is a framework for talking about key aspects of your brand. It’s a six part workshop, all meant to be completed within a three-hour period.
I took the team through each exercise, writing everything down on super-sized sticky notes hung all around our conference room.
The What, How, Why exercise reminds you why your organization exists
It took a little bit to get everyone comfortable with the process, but as we moved through the sprint, I was able to draw out people’s differing opinions in a safe space for conversation. The last two exercises, “Personality Sliders” and “Competitive Landscape”, really brought everyone together. Comparing ourselves to other brands helped us to literally find ourselves within the esports and entertainment landscape.
Results / Next Steps
Reviewing the day’s work
We were able to make the ELEAGUE brand more tangible than it had been before. The team was energized and couldn’t wait to use their gained understanding in their day-to-day activities. One person even intimated to me that we had done more in this exercise than in an entire two-day long leadership off-site they had a few months back.