Five: Communicating Brand Values
(EN: This chapter seems a long ramble without a specific topic related to brand psychology - so notes are scant.)
There is, quite literally, a global campaign against tobacco usage. Local and national governments have banned smoking in most public places, and even the World Health Organization has joined the propaganda campaign. Advertising is heavily restricted, and even packaging is subject to regulations to the point that the majority of the surface area of the package devoted to discouraging messages.
Unfortunately, the campaign has largely backfired - the melodramatic warnings of the dangers of smoking have only served to make the habit more appealing, particularly to teenagers. The tobacco industry does virtually no advertising at all, and there are saturation campaigns that broadcast anti-smoking messages - yet sales remain steady.
E-cigarettes have also been subject to the same restrictions. Although the device uses water vapor to deliver a dose of nicotine without the harmful tar and chemicals and eliminates second-hand smoke almost completely, they are still subject to many of the same bans and restrictions as regular cigarettes. Moreover, they have not really caught on: they are considered to be a healthier alternative to smoking, but it is clear that smokers do not care to be perceived as "healthy" - and many regulations prohibit them even from advertising that they are safer or healthier than smoking tobacco.
The chapter concludes with a list of marketing tactics that are used by brands in place of traditional advertising. (EN: much of this is entirely speculative and a bit specious.)
- Ambient Branding - Associating something (such as a logo shape) to a brand and then publicizing the symbol without any other reference to the brand
- Astroturfing - Sponsoring individuals to promote a brand to their peers. For example, giving free products to opinion leaders or paying ordinary people to mention products in their blogs gives a sense that the product is popular.
- Experiential Branding - Creating an "experience" associated to a brand. The factors of the experience other than the product itself create associations to the brand. Consider sponsored events as a common example.
- Graffiti Branding - Involves putting attention-getting posters wherever they may be placed, even (and particularly) in unusual places where advertising is often not allowed and the posters will be removed.
- Native Advertising - Creating promotional messages that pose as articles or blog posts, or embedding advertising messages in the body copy of articles or blog posts.
- Placement - Paying to have products present on television and movie sets where they are noticeable but not the point of focus, and thus become familiar or recognizable.
- Tissue Packaging - Paying to have placement of give-away items that are not the brand's own products (such as a logo on a matchbook or a packet of tissues)
- Undercover Branding - A form of branding that pays a spokesperson, generally a celebrity, to use the product in public places. It is similar to placement, only in real life.
- Viral Branding - Getting the brand promoted on social networks, often by sponsoring something (such as a video or a game) that gains attention.