You Brand

Corporate-identity programs are the expression of a corporation’s culture, personality and the products and services it has to offer – the very symbol and signature of the values that should inspire trust with consumers, employees, clients, suppliers and the financial community. Names, logos, colors, fonts, slogans and architecture have been an essential part of major branding strategies since the middle of the last century (Marc Gobé: emotional branding).

Corporate identities were developed to enable brands to make a more or less permanent visual statement about themselves. It was hoped that those statements would in turn define consumer perceptions. Many, especially premium brands, developed a rigidity bearing a resemblance to the Ten Commandments. Their headquarters and showrooms felt like modern interpretations of Cathedrals. The objective in both cases was to communicate in a convincing and at times dazzling manner that the brand and only the brand was in control. Individual interpretations by the believers, i.e. consumers, were not an option. Aspiration was cultivated, automatically including a portion of ‘hard to get’.

The social Web has fundamentally changed the relationship between brands and consumers. Consumers have been empowered by the Web and turned into ‘prosumers’, i.e. they are both producers and consumers. Brands are loosing control, as ‘prosumers’ shape them, influence their value more than ever before and effectively acquire co-ownership.

Brands need more flexiblity, because ‘prosumer’ tastes are changing more often. Not only that, tastes are often different from one ‘prosumer’ to the next. Identities have to be emotionally connected, rather than written in stone. Brands need to incorporate values like social, fresh, immersive, transformative, democratic and trustworthy. Otherwise they will fall into oblivion.

The first consequence for corporate identity is apparent: Brands must include the ‘prosumer’ globally in defining the identity, rather than leaving it to an agency. Crowdsourcing would be a good way to start. What do you think?

The other day I was watching an old Western film. At some stage there was a close-up of a horse and I noticed the brand. Back then it was common to mark a horse and other livestock with a branding iron. The resulting brand identified the owner.

Nowadays our individual mobility mode has changed. We don’t ride horses anymore, we drive cars, at least for the time being.

Have you taken a close look at your car recently? Have you noticed how many logos there are – logos being the modern interpretation of the ‘brand’? They can be found everywhere: on each wheel, on the engine hood, on the trunk hood, on many parts in the engine compartment and of course in the passenger compartment – the most prominent location being the steering wheel. In many cases you will also find it on the car key.

Whilst we are grateful that they discovered an alternative to the branding iron, one burning question remains: Are we comfortable with the inflationary use of logos? Does it add value for us? Does it add value to the brand in question?

I personally don’t think so. Especially in today’s world where less and less consumers are relying on brands to beef up their own public image. How do you feel when being excessively branded?