Strands of Genius: Food Brand Archetypes, The Silent Child, What Nearly Dying Taught Me About Life and Unicorns

Guest curated by Nassia Karanikoli, Strategic Planning Director @ DDB Athens

Sep 21, 2023

:: A BIT MORE ABOUT GUEST CURATOR, NASSIA KARANIKOLI :

LOCATION: Gerakas, Greece

Hello everybody! I am a strategist in the making. I have started my career path in qualitative consumer research almost 20 years ago. Talking with consumers for 4 hours at a time, sitting on the floor, eating pizzas and using a tone of projective techniques, never directly using the word WHY. I remember people asking me if I was a psychologist. I wish I was. But I wasn't. Maybe I will be at some point. Flash forward, 2023, working in the same ad agency since 2008 as a strategist. Actual brand and comms work is a big part of my daily tasks, but keeping team members motivated and behaving well to one another is perhaps the biggest. Sometimes, it does feel like being a group therapist after all.

Editor’s Note (Genius Steals): We totally agree, Nassia! We often joke that it’s like therapy but without the fancy white coats — and hopefully without the formal, beige, and uninspiring setting (though unfortunately that’s still too common!). Thanks for being here today and we’ve got our fingers crossed we’ll get to meet up in Athens one of these days!

:: THE LINKS ::

FOOD BRAND ARCHETYPES

Lots of helpful thinking and mapping on food branding. Allows for lateral thinking when you have to tackle positioning of quite a few similar food brands at work. Since “a rose by any other name would NOT smell as sweet" I have used this site for inspiration when I had to work for food products of the same category with identical product attributes and no real brand differentiation. Different personas, different propositions, different tones of voice and in a way that can make sense to the marketing team as well. (The Culinary Edge)

THE SILENT CHILD

It always amazes me to discover so very many different shades of thinking when deep diving into a sub-culture. I was deeply affected by the drama or both parents and kids when it comes to using or not the sign language. Having worked on a project for the hearing-impaired community made me, once again, realize how easy it is to get it wrong when peering into a subculture as an outsider. Always remember to double check your sources; is it someone from the community doing the talking or an outsider talking about the community? Is it someone merely describing or someone trying to comprehend? Easy to get fooled, especially when in a hurry… (YouTube)

WHAT NEARLY DYING TAUGHT ME ABOUT LIFE AND UNICORNS

An ex stand-up comedian (now a sit-down comedian) standing up for her right to continue being the person she used to be before her near-death experience. Not a work-related link this one, but one of my favourites to watch. I started watching stand-up comedy because it kept coming up in strategy sources that it helps with insights. I am not sure stand-up comedy has turned me into a better strategist but I do feel that it has turned me into a more likable person. (YouTube)

Looking for more from Nassia Karanikoli? Coming Friday, look for an interview from her in your inbox!

:: AND NOW… SOME FAST FAVORITES ::

:: Game :: Duolingo - I know it is not strictly a game but it has allowed me to play around with my ignorance in French language. Very strongly recommended!

:: City :: Oxford - the exact opposite of unstructured and multiversed Athens (Greece) that I live in. Everytime I visit, I get transported to another possible life I could have.

:: Book :: Seeing Voices by Oliver Sacks - a journey into the world of Deaf culture, and the neurological and social underpinnings of the remarkable visual language of the congenitally deaf.

:: Podcast :: Where should we begin? with Esther Perel - deep human insights to apply at work and life.

:: QUESTION OF THE DAY ::

Are you more in love with your past or your future?

Thank you for reading everybody. I hope any of my links and likings sparked an interest and sent you off to a new path out there.

Many thanks to Genius Steals for asking me to contribute.

- Nassia Karanikoli

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