How Brands Become Icons

1. Iconic brands perform identity myths that address cultural contradictions

Identity myths are useful fabrications that stitch back together otherwise damaging tears in the cultural fabric of the nation.

Myth as cultural salve. Iconic brands succeed by performing myths that resolve acute tensions in society. These myths provide imaginative solutions to the identity desires and anxieties people experience in their everyday lives. By addressing collective anxieties shared across a large fraction of citizens, iconic brands create extraordinary value.

Anatomy of identity myths. Effective brand myths are simple fictions that:

• Address cultural anxieties from afar, in imaginary worlds
• Draw from populist worlds as source material for authenticity
• Provide symbolic resolutions to contradictions in national ideology
• Allow customers to experience the myth through ritual consumption

Historical context is crucial. The power of a brand's myth depends entirely on how well it fits a particular historical moment. As society's ideologies shift over time, brands must evolve their myths to remain relevant.

2. Cultural branding differs from mind-share, emotional, and viral branding

Cultural branding turns this approach to communications on its head. In cultural branding, communications are the center of customer value.

Paradigm shift. Cultural branding fundamentally differs from conventional branding models:

• Mind-share: Focuses on owning abstract associations
• Emotional: Emphasizes forging emotional connections
• Viral: Relies on influential consumers to spread the brand

Key differences of cultural branding:

• Prioritizes myth-making over persuasion
• Values specific cultural expressions over abstract associations
• Adapts to historical changes rather than maintaining consistency
• Leads culture rather than chasing trends

Strategic implications. Cultural branding requires managers to develop cultural knowledge, identify emerging contradictions in society, and direct the creation of resonant myths. This approach demands a different skill set and organizational structure than conventional branding.

3. Brands compete in myth markets, not product markets

Identity brands compete with other cultural products to perform myths that resolve cultural contradictions.

Redefining competition. For identity brands, the competitive landscape extends beyond product categories to include all cultural products that address similar identity desires. Brands vie with films, music, books, and other media to provide compelling myths.

Anatomy of myth markets:

• National ideology: Shared values and aspirations
• Cultural contradictions: Tensions between ideology and lived experience
• Populist worlds: Authentic subcultures that serve as raw material for myths

Strategic targeting. Successful iconic brands identify the most opportune myth market by:

1. Analyzing emerging cultural contradictions
2. Assessing the brand's cultural and political authority
3. Selecting a populist world that aligns with the brand's identity

Brands must be prepared to shift targets as cultural disruptions create new myth markets and render old ones obsolete.

4. Cultural briefs direct the creation of compelling brand myths

Cultural branding requires strategic direction that pushes commercial artists toward creating the right kind of story for the brand and rules out inappropriate stories.

Redefining the creative brief. The cultural brief replaces conventional positioning statements with specific direction on myth creation. It consists of three key elements:

1. Myth treatment: Outline of the plot, characters, and setting
2. Populist authenticity: Strategy for establishing credibility within the chosen populist world
3. Charismatic aesthetic: Distinctive communication style organic to the populist world

Strategic guidance. The cultural brief provides creatives with a roadmap for developing myths that:

• Address the most pressing cultural contradictions
• Draw authentically from relevant populist worlds
• Employ a distinctive and compelling aesthetic

Balancing act. Managers must provide enough direction to ensure strategic alignment without stifling creative expression. The goal is to channel creativity toward the most culturally potent expressions of the brand's myth.

5. Brand equity stems from cultural and political authority

When identity brands are successful, they accrue two kinds of assets: cultural authority and political authority.

Redefining brand equity. For iconic brands, equity is not based on owning abstract associations, but on the brand's reputation for telling certain kinds of valuable stories. This equity takes two forms:

1. Cultural authority: The right to author similar types of myths in the future
2. Political authority: The ability to address the identity desires of a specific constituency

Strategic leverage. Managers can increase brand equity by:

• Identifying opportunities to extend the brand's existing cultural authority
• Adapting myths to address new contradictions faced by the brand's constituency
• Maintaining authenticity while evolving the brand's political stance

Navigating disruptions. When cultural shifts render a brand's myth obsolete, managers must leverage the brand's accumulated authority to craft new myths that resonate with emerging cultural tensions.

6. Brand loyalty functions as a social network with three constituencies

Brand loyalty is held together by the relationships between these different types of customers.

Three key constituencies:

1. Followers: Core customers who strongly identify with the brand's myth
2. Insiders: Gatekeepers from the populist world who bestow authenticity
3. Feeders: Cultural parasites who thrive on the brand's popularity

Interdependent network. Brand loyalty stems from the interactions between these groups:

• Followers depend on insiders for legitimacy
• Feeders rely on followers for identity value
• Insiders need both groups to maintain their status

Strategic implications. Managers must:

• Nurture relationships across all three constituencies
• Balance the needs and expectations of each group
• Recognize that alienating insiders can undermine the entire network

Understanding this social dynamic is crucial for maintaining and expanding brand loyalty over time.

7. Culture industries and populist worlds coauthor brand myths

Iconic brands are built by cultural activists. Yet, while many companies would love to create a Nike, a Budweiser, or a Mountain Dew, most are organized to act as cultural reactionaries, whose practices are the opposite of the activism that is required.

Collaborative myth-making. Iconic brands often rely on external coauthors:

• Culture industries: Films, music, news media that circulate brand stories
• Populist worlds: Subcultures that provide raw material for authentic myths

Strategic opportunities:

• Identify and leverage relevant cultural texts that align with the brand's myth
• Establish authentic connections with populist worlds
• Collaborate with culture industry partners to extend the brand's story

Managerial challenges. Brand managers must:

• Develop cultural literacy to engage effectively with coauthors
• Balance control of the brand's story with authentic collaboration
• Navigate potential conflicts between commercial and cultural interests

8. Advancing the myth requires creative evolution and cultural sampling

To extend a powerful myth, the brand's communications must steer a path between two traps: milking the myth to capitalize on its popularity, and abandoning the myth entirely to pursue the next big trend.

Creative evolution strategies:

1. Develop plot and characters: Treat the myth as an ongoing story
2. Sample new popular culture: Incorporate relevant cultural artifacts
3. Speak from new populist worlds: Engage emerging subcultures
4. Push the myth's boundaries: Explore innovative interpretations

Balancing act. Managers must:

• Maintain the core elements that make the myth resonate
• Introduce fresh material to keep the story engaging
• Avoid formulaic repetition or chasing unrelated trends

Cultural relevance. Successful myth advancement requires:

• Deep understanding of emerging cultural tensions
• Ability to identify and integrate relevant popular culture
• Willingness to take creative risks while staying true to the brand's essence

9. Cultural activism is key to building and sustaining iconic brands

To systematically build iconic brands, companies must reinvent their marketing function. They must assemble cultural knowledge, rather than knowledge about individual consumers.

Organizational transformation. Building iconic brands requires:

• Developing cultural knowledge: Understanding societal shifts and tensions
• Strategizing culturally: Identifying myth markets and crafting cultural briefs
• Hiring cultural activists: Recruiting talent with cultural literacy and creativity

Four types of cultural knowledge:

1. Brand's cultural and political authority
2. Followers' identity projects
3. Populist world immersion
4. Emerging cultural contradictions

Managerial implications:

• Shift focus from individual consumer insights to broader cultural trends
• Develop skills in cultural analysis and myth-making
• Restructure marketing organizations to prioritize cultural activism

By embracing these principles, companies can cultivate the capability to systematically build and sustain iconic brands that lead culture and create enduring value.

Last updated: November 19, 2024