Brand

Blog Entry 2: Questions to ask yourself about Brand$ -- the Dark Side?

Write a 300-word response to the No Logo video, using the following questions as guides.
List the top 10 points you got from this video.
Monopoly
Getting one’s attention
Form personal relationships between brand mascots and consumer
Sell ideas, and lifestyles; instead of products
Identify consumers thinking and experiencing while consuming product
Megabrands – be everywhere and everything
Live a life inside a brand – Disney - Celebration, Florida
Brand Nirvana
New ways to get attention – anything can be a prop for advertising
Pre-emptive censorship

What do you think of Branding/Marketing after viewing this video? Do the video's content disturb you? If so, why? What can be done about it?
Well, there are a lot of factors to consider in regards to making a good brand and successful marketing. I suppose that for a brand to be successful, it has to be unique, have its own ‘lifestyle’ or idea, and sell the experience to consumers instead of products.
The contents don’t exactly disturb me, but it sort of teaches me a new thing; something I’ve never heard before like Celebration Florida. Knowing that it is like a whole different world or era, and that a brand – Disney created it, is what ‘wows’ me.

Do you think the issues discussed are relevant to the industry in Singapore? How do these issues affect you as a designer in Singapore?
Yes, they are relevant. After all, what’s old is old. Old advertising ideas are common and ignored so new ideas need to come along. This can be applied to any country.
If I work in an advertising firm, I’d have to help companies design ads that portrays where the brand idea lives and merge with the ‘spirit’ of the brand. Old ways don’t work anymore and I’ll need to know that. What’s been used can’t be used again, so I’d probably have to take note of all advertisements and study them, see if they’re effective, but not copy any ideas.
Take note of what’s being produced in the industry.

What other issues stood out for you in this video?
The way Nike decides its workers – go for the cheapest. Some of the workers might have been mistreated or even paid less than a dollar for a day! By having cheap labour can mean more profits being reaped, but it shouldn’t be to this extent. If consumers come to know of such a fact, it might damage the brand’s reputation.