For better or for worse, we live in what has been called a brandscape - a branded world - today. We are at a time in history when brands go beyond being business platforms to becoming symbols of our times. An increasing proportion of our lives is mediated by brands like McDonald′s, Sony and Budweiser, which often reflect the changing values of our society. Brands are more than just advertising, they are part of our culture. Think of Andy Warhol and Campbell′s Soup and Norman Rockwell and Coca-Cola. Think of the digital brandscape with Google, Facebook and YouTube - brands knowing more about who we are, what we look like, who our friends are and what our dreams and wishes are, than any other brand, organisation or company, ever knew before. Products, people, countries - Britain, for example, tried to become a brand with its "Cool Britannia" slogan - and companies are all racing to turn themselves into brands - to make their image more likeable and understandable. Furthermore, brands dominate our working lives, and corporate logos are now in every civic space, from schools, universities and playgrounds to hospitals and art galleries. And this brandscape can be considered to be global: walk down a street in any city in the world and there will be enough brands to make you feel at home.
At the same time, brands and branding culture represents, among other things, an issue of culture and politics. In some cases, brands have rightly or wrongly become a political battleground. Most recently in 2007, demonstrating left-wing youths in Copenhagen smashed outlets of global food and entertainment chains, over a conflict with the city government that sold their youth centre (Ungdomshuset) to a Christian sect, which tore it down. Thus, to discuss the role and future of (international and global) brands in society has become even more important. The following text examines whether brands as we know them are dead and makes recommendations to brand-owners over and beyond corporate social responsibility (CSR).
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. The critique of the anti-branding movement
3. The cases of Coca-Cola and McDonald's
4. The importance of brands
5. The importance of culture
6. The future of branding and marketing - who will survive?
7. Conclusion
Research Objectives & Topics
This dissertation analyzes the growing challenges and public backlash faced by international brands in the 21st century. It aims to explore the tension between corporate branding strategies and the rise of anti-branding and anti-globalization sentiments, ultimately examining how companies must adapt their practices to align with changing societal values.
- The socio-political influence of global brands on contemporary culture.
- The motivations and strategies behind the anti-branding movement.
- The role of corporate social responsibility in mitigating consumer disaffection.
- The potential for brands to function as positive social agents in an experience-based economy.
Excerpt from the Book
The critique of the anti-branding movement
The anti-branding argumentviii has been popularised by a range of books, such as Eric Schlosser's Fast Food Nation, Robert Frank's Luxury Fever, The World is Not for Sale by François Dufour and José Bové – a French farmer who is best known for his protest against McDonald's, Hertz’s The Silent Takeover, Monbiot’s Captive State, Kalle Lasn’s Culture Jam (including the documentary film Culture Jam: Hijacking Commercial Cultureix by Jill Sharpe which was, among others, shown during the Leeds International Film Festival 2002), Rifkin’s The Age of Access, and Korten’s When Corporations Rule The World. The argument has, however, been most forcefully articulated in Naomi Klein's book No Logo. Not since Packard's The Hidden Persuaders, one could say, has one book stirred up so much antipathy to marketing. It has been called a manifesto, 'the Das Kapital’ (Wood, 2000) and ‘the bible’ (The Economist, 2001a: 9) of the growing anti-corporate and anti-globalisation movement, and it set out to document the aims and rationale of the group that demonstrated at Seattle and Prague, before those events had even happened. Its author has become the spokeswoman for a worldwide movement against multinationals and their brands and the Times newspaper rated her one of the world's most influential people under 35. It can be said that No Logo which had sold more than 200,000 copies in 12 languages worldwide by January 2002 (Clifton, 2002: 157) has touched a universal nerve.
Klein introduces the reader to the moguls of marketing, who, she says, decided in the eighties and nineties that companies should be "meaning brokers" rather than product producers. Thereby, the book is an analysis of a growing worldwide opposition to not much less than the global economic system. And like much of that opposition, Klein focuses her attack on the public face – and most prized possessions – of transnational corporations: their brand names. ‘Branding is a specific, predatory corporate ideology’, Klein (quoted in Bethune and Hawaleshka, 2000: 52) explains, characterizing what she sees as an effort to privatise common culture and public space.
Summary of Chapters
Introduction: This chapter provides an overview of the "brandscape" and the rising political and cultural significance of international brands.
The critique of the anti-branding movement: This chapter examines the intellectual and cultural roots of the anti-corporate movement, with a focus on Naomi Klein’s work and the rise of "culture jamming."
The cases of Coca-Cola and McDonald's: This chapter analyzes the specific challenges and financial struggles faced by these two iconic brands due to globalization and consumer backlash.
The importance of brands: This chapter discusses the essential social and functional roles that trusted brands play in society and why they remain relevant despite criticism.
The importance of culture: This chapter explores how advertising shapes everyday life and the capacity for consumers to exercise resistance through their consumption habits.
The future of branding and marketing - who will survive?: This chapter investigates how corporations can adapt to the "no logo" challenge by adopting authentic ethical and social responsibilities.
Conclusion: This chapter summarizes the main findings and argues that survival for brands depends on anticipating grievances and shifting toward a more humanistic, value-led approach.
Keywords
Branding, Anti-branding, Global Corporations, Globalization, Culture Jamming, Consumerism, Corporate Social Responsibility, Marketing, Capitalism, Public Space, Ethical Branding, Social Activism.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this dissertation?
The work examines the challenges and public opposition faced by international brands in the 21st century and how these companies must navigate a landscape of increasing consumer skepticism.
What are the primary thematic areas covered?
Key areas include the anti-branding movement, the cultural impact of globalization, consumer resistance, and the shift toward ethical or "citizen" branding.
What is the main research objective?
The study aims to unravel the paradoxes in current consumer attitudes and assess how branding can evolve to remain relevant while addressing social and environmental concerns.
Which scientific methodologies are employed?
The dissertation utilizes a qualitative analysis based on existing research in cultural studies, media critiques, and contemporary marketing literature.
What does the main body of the work cover?
It covers theoretical frameworks regarding consumption, case studies like McDonald’s and Coca-Cola, and the specific strategies marketers use to react to consumer demands.
Which keywords best characterize this research?
The research is characterized by terms like brandscape, globalization, culture jamming, consumer capitalism, and corporate social responsibility.
How is the "Mecca-Cola" phenomenon used in the study?
It is used as a case study to demonstrate how brands can act as political symbols and how consumers are using consumption to voice opposition to global events.
What does the author conclude about the future of branding?
The author suggests that brands will need to move beyond simple advertising and adopt a "humanistic" approach, focusing on tangible social responsibility to avoid obsolescence.
- Arbeit zitieren
- Florian Mayer (Autor:in), 2003, The death of the brand? Challenges facing international brands in the 21st century - an analysis with examples and recommendations, München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/13593
