Brand Vision: What Is the World That Could Be?

“The most powerful person in the world is the storyteller. The storyteller sets the vision, values, and agenda of an entire generation that is to come.” - Steve Jobs

Good stories have a common theme: they start in a world that is and show us a world that could be.

The narrative takes the hero from status quo to the envisioned destination.

Brand narratives can be constructed in a similar way.


Vision: What's Your Worldview?

For a brand, the vision is a world that could be.

  • Tesla: A world run on sustainable energy
  • SpaceX: A space-faring civilization
  • Nike: Everyone is an athlete

A clear vision serves important functions:

  • Direction: A vision shows a destination.
  • Purpose: A vision outlines the payoff.
  • Differentiation: A vision shows how you see the future.


Laddering: What Is My Worldview?

Big words. Visions of the future. A world that could be.

But how do we actually distill a vision?

One way is the laddering technique.

There are two ways of using the laddering technique:

  • Laddering up: Ask why, why, why until you have the bird's eye view
  • Laddering down: Ask how, how, how until you have the tactical steps

For vision development, we usually use laddering up.

This technique is commonly referred to as the "Five Whys".


Bottomline: Share Your Vision to Anchor a Destination

A vision is the starting point of a brand narrative.

It sets a direction, creates purpose, and communicates your own view of the world.

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