Co-Creation: Marketing and R&D

I had the opportunity to hear how Nokia has been doing their co-creation. Jussi Mäkinen (@luovanto) gave a speech at a seminar on social media in marketing. Jussi is the marketing manager in charge of co-creation and launching of N900.

I especially liked a few points he brought up in his presentation.

I've talked (pardon, written) a lot about passion. So do Like Minds. The way I see it, these new social media "market squares" can be seen as tribes; communities that take form around one (or few) topics. They can be values, philosophies or ways to act. Most often, however, there is a core doing, something tangible that unites the people coming together.

But whatever that core is, most oftenly the brightest common nominator is passion.

Jussi brought up passion, too. In their search of the new, they came across high professionality, passion and freedom to create. On the other side, there are rigid hierarhcical structures of the official organization who has to cope with all kinds of regulations, even laws, restricting their R&D funcion.

Agility, to my understanding, is the main explanation to why unofficial structures are capable to come up with results and create faster than "the old school". How then does agility live inside our organizations? There's evidence that it doesn't.

There's talk about Facebook generation and High-Performance Teams and Radical Management. We need new kinds of structures to nurture these workers - creators - in their new ways of doing things. The same applies in the public sector!

Gone are the good old days of industrial management, eh?

Designing services?!

Helsinki will soon be the World Design Capital - and the media is waking up.

Last spring our Director General asked me to write a summary on our eServices: "It's for Helsinki WDC application". I have to admit, it took a while before I, a civil servant, was able to connect the dots.

But I loved the idea: Designing services! (F)

I was able to find the similar thinking as did Pete Kercher, the ambassador of Design for All Europe in last Sunday's HS Editorial (F)

I mean strategic design, using design to change the direction of the entire economy. What's happened in Finland past two decades is not a miracle. It is successful design.

Strategic marketing (F) focuses on the customer and his experience, instead of the product or a service. Designing services means the same: excellent user experience is the result of a service that has been designed (successfully). If the user experience is not pleasant, the whole investment of marketing communications is a waste.

Kercher summarized the concept of "Design for All": It is design that acknowledges that people are different, it promotes social equality and connect people into the community.

Another pro, service designer Satu Miettinen wrote in HS editorial (F) about service design in the public sector:

Service design challenges designers to work with people, hence new methods are needed. -- In the public sector it means change both in service culture and administrative procedures.

Taxation of individuals is a Design Service at its best!

We have designed the whole process of gathering data for taxation: money and information flowing from customers to businesses and Tax Administration. Have you ever given it a thought? Me neither, at least not before our Director General got the request to support the WDC applicant.

You take your Tax card to your employer for your taxes to be withheld from your salary and payed on your behalf. The data is also reported for your Tax return. This applies to all other monetary transactions, as well: the bank reports your interests for your housing deductions, while listed companies are liable to report your dividends and taxes withheld from them and so on.

There's a lot of collaboration behind the scene, and it all results as your pre-filled Tax return. All you need to do is to check it and fill in the blanks (if there are any) - do it in the web, if you like!

Good gets noticed!

Tax Return Online got us to the eGovernment Awards -finals. But that's not all: from the small country of Finland we had two posts: City of Helsinki was presenting her design beauty.

Helsinki Service Map is a great collection of services, search and maps, now including Espoo and Vantaa, as well. It is also communication: the user interface allows feedback. What a wonderful way to connect people with their community!

Next step is bound to cross the borderline between municipalities and the state. This was alredy planned in SADe (F).

This all is good news to the Brand committee appointed by the Foreign Minister. There's no reason to hold back the smile, even if the Financial Times does concentrate on the more traditional design..

BTW, Helsinki proudly presents Lahti, Espoo, Vantaa and Kauniainen alongside her as the WDC2012.

You can follow Helsinki and her WDC preparations in
web: World Design Capital Helsinki 2012
Twitter: @wdchelsinki2012
Facebook: WDC-fan page

Why am I blogging?

It's been a year since I started my new career as a blogger. I did it in Finnish, with a purpose of trying out something new. I wanted to promote the awareness of my employee's top products in my professional networks.

Semi-private, semi-professional..

I started with a question on what is the "reason to market in the public sector"? (F)

Earlier this year a network friend of mine, Nathan Hangen, encouraged me to do it in English. So did a Greek entrepreneur-friend of mine. Yes, they were right: I do have a lot of colleagues all around Europe, business acquaintances all around the world. We share a lot of thoughts but it's impossible for them to read me in Finnish. The final push came from another network acquaintance. Morten Juul asked in his blog: "What will you commit to today?" .. Sure, why not?

The biggest minus at the moment, is that I severely suffer from lack of time. Our recent projects, the big change we're in middle of.. all too much! But I look forward to a time of better balance, though.

Benefits of blogging

Anyway, this last year has been incredible in so many ways! To find something interesting has become of bigger value: I want to stash it in a more organized manner in order to be able to return to it when I need it. After all, everything is connected, and this piece of information is connected to that sector of A and B and now is the time to blog about it.. You know, how it goes. Thinking according themes is something I've grown more into, and more systematic search of information is my constant aim.

Writing is an excellent way to organize one's thoughts, too! Professional (even semi-professional so) networks are pure gold in exchange of information and other support. The biggest reward, however, in my everyday work, would be the collaboration that has emerged in this new media between different government agencies.

How to find the courage?

So thanks Hanne(F), for your share! You came up with the back door: if it's not nice, you can always stop, saying it was a project that lasted while the main product was on for the audience. No shooting ahead, should I fail. Loved it!

Thank you Anja(F): you offered me a concrete here's-what-you-need-to-do-plan for setting up a blog in your book Blogi tulee töihin(F). Thanks to your book, it only took me a weekend or so to get things going.

Thanks Merja! You were the impartial outsider who could point out the outstanding example I was able to set for many alikes in the public sector. Thank you for your warm support. Our network is brilliant.

"Why on earth should a public sector agancy market anything? Tax customership?! Fiddle-dee-dee! You don't have a choice! So what is there to market for?" Let's see..

The answer for the need of marketing is, with a year behind me, is that marketing really is about networking, relationships, creating value to others. Not looking for leads but seeing people. You can't do it in your chamber! And more than that, you just can't own all the wisdom needed in your (lonely) head. It's time to get out: open the door and step out to the market to grow wise.

Spread your wings and start networking!

Blogging is one way to get out in the market. There you can reach and embrace the wisdom of crowds. Let your passion catch fire with others like you! I chose my knowledge and experience as my currency. The big question was How do you network? How big is the net I already have? But most importantly, how do I bring along the whole organisation?

It was a bit like pioneering in the wild wild west. It's good to have someone out there first, and then let's see how things will work out for her. After that we learn from her mistakes and can start the business with smaller costs. There are a few sparks already in the air: top management chose blogging as a way of sharing the new strategy. It was too early to launch a novelty with blogging. Instead, customer service caught fire!

Customer service is spreading its wings!

A couple of tax offices, or rather, their communications, marketing and service managers chose new media. Since there simply is not enough people to answer all the phone calls one at a time, they chose to get out there where their customers already are gathered. The means are an Ask us -column (F) in the biggest network society in Finland and a blog (F) in one of the biggest web journal communities

Trust is the main thing. You must have passion for your cause. But, in addition, the most solid currency in this new media market is the ancient nobility of helping thy neighbors. Those who can, have open ears and they are willingly helping those in need. Trust is being born. You want to recommend someone that you trust. Word of mouth creates the most powerful marketing. I rest my case.

So spread your wings and start networking. Your expertise is needed!

Earlier posts on new malls, R & D and experts and brands, unfortunately in Finnish:

Markkinointi muodostaa asiakkuuksia (16 Jou 2009)
Jokainen on brändinkantaja (4 Kes 2009)
Asiakas on laumaeläin (26 Tou 2009)
Ajatuksia asiakaskeskeisestä tuotekehityksestä (Haku)

Great thinking on trust and sharing:

Protect your ideas or launch them by Nathan Hangen
Future of Search Is More than Social by Baekdal