In a business world of bottom lines, fees, fines, negotiations and contracts it’s easy to be…well…for lack of a better word, boring.

If it’s a serious matter that you’re dealing with, there’s no room for humour – right?

Well, actually I think that’s wrong.

Why do we have to sound like clerks and solicitors all the time?

Why no de-formalise things from time to time and have a bit of fun?

Now, I’m not saying that you should go to your next board meeting in a clown suit, but in a busy and noisy world…perhaps sounding a bit ‘fun’ and a bit ‘humorous’ might actually be a good way to stand out?

Take Netflix for example.

A big brand who are in the middle of battling a very competitive market. They were one of the forerunners when it came to ‘on demand’ programming and as other competitors rise they’re doing all they can to stand head and shoulders above them.

One of their big pushes at the moment is their own shows. One of them being ‘Stranger Things’ – a show that I’ve never watched, but hear a lot about thanks to social media.

Anyway, without asking Netflix’s permission, a pop-up bar in Chicago opened up and named themselves after one of the fictional worlds in Stranger Things.

Which is copyright infringement.

Netflix’s lawyers were informed and, instead of sending a threatening letter, they sent out this genius response:

(Credit: https://www.inc.com/)

I think Netflix got it right here. They knew that they were dealing with fans of their brand, and dealt with it accordingly.

Read the full article here.

Ashley Brown 2017