It’s only a matter of brand differentiation
All businesses can go from okay to outstanding if you understand that delivering outstanding results begins with standing out as a brand.
The company IT Relation, established in 2003, is a great example of just that. Seven years of hard entrepreneurial work had taken the company from the original 4 employees to 25 in 2010.
This is the kind of progress I consider okay but not outstanding.
The young CEO of the company, Henrik Kastbjerg, was far from satisfied with the current state of things. He was extremely eager to make a bigger impact and drive growth.
In January 2011, Henrik Kastbjerg and I gathered the company’s employees for an informational meeting under the title “Meet Your New Colleague.”
This new “colleague” would prove to be the most impactful “employee” in the company’s subsequent explosive growth.
It wasn’t an ordinary employee being introduced. It was IT Relation's new visual mascot: an IT Superhero with a cape, a mohawk, and a big smile.
A figure that would serve as an internal role model for the organization and, outwardly, as the symbol of the company’s unique identity. This was the day we launched the Everyday IT Superheroes, the brand differentiation strategy that has been crucial to the company’s success: From 25 employees in 2011 to over 1,900 employees in 2024.*
* In 2024, the company rebranded from IT Relation to itm8 (m8 = mate), and we are now 1,900 “teamm8s” expanding across Europe.
Get shit done
Back in 2011, IT Relation didn’t have a large budget to spend on branding. But we were well aware of the necessity of standing out strongly from the crowd of competitors, and we had the courage to execute marketing activities that attracted a lot of attention.
We commissioned two complete IT Superhero “outfits” from a local seamstress for 5,000 DKK.
The helmet was hand-cut from fiberglass, and it was nearly impossible to see out of it, breathe in it, or take it off once it was on.
The IT Superhero is, without a doubt, the most profitable marketing investment I’ve ever made.
When we sent out video invitations for the annual “Golf Company Day,” we had Henrik Kastbjerg hit out of the sand bunker wearing the helmet. It wasn’t easy, but it was fun to watch.
When we sponsored events like handball games, we had an employee in the IT Superhero suit join the warm-up alongside the players with so much energy that he eventually had to be escorted off the field (we may have asked him to push the limits, and he did just that).
The IT Superhero ended up being everywhere.
On ice skates in the hockey rink, on LED boards, and in lounges at soccer matches. On stickers and all kinds of merchandise for employees. There were even homemade knitted versions of the IT Superhero scattered throughout the office.
We fused brand identity and company culture to support each other. The Everyday IT Superheroes and the No Problem culture (Say yes with a smile, Keep your promises, Think like a leader, Make your colleague better) were, in all modesty, a perfect match.
Monday morning pep talks in a circle. Hall of Fame for the IT Superhero of the Quarter. DNA Days as onboarding for new employees. Constantly “walking the brand talk.”
All supported by a unique rhetoric with statements like:
Blah Blah Blah Does it work or doesn’t it?
Proactivity Get shit done!
A bit too much for some.
This exact bold, “all-in” approach helped customers understand that, at IT Relation, they could get optimal IT solutions and ultimate customer service at the same time.
Exactly the brand differentiation needed to create one of the greatest growth stories in the Scandinavian IT industry.
Just remember to start by mixing up the syllables in the word outstanding, and it’s possible to drive remarkable growth for most companies.
