Branded: Culturally Dismantling Individualism

Values, those easy to feel but hard to define emotions governing thought and action. But, how much of what we consider personal values are actually influencing our individual identities? Are our emotions and thoughts truly our own? We cling to our beliefs and values with a fierce vengeance. Yet, much of our excessive social expression, supposedly caused by our emotions, is, ironically, brought on by our participation in a carefully constructed manipulation to convert our personal emotions into a shared indoctrination of categorical beliefs designed to support power-hungry agendas. What we call social identity, is more aptly defined as a subtle, cumulative, brand identity.

Branding is intentionally, or sometimes unintentionally, setting oneself—specific ideologies, products, services, or anything really—apart from everything else (Ries & Ries, 2002). It is the means and methods used to attract attention, identify authority, and even manipulate others into feeling comfortable supporting, purchasing, or possibly giving their lives for, a carefully constructed cause.

Intentional Cultural Branding

Most branding is intentional. Law enforcement is a great example of an intentional brand. Police Officers are considered on-duty when they are wearing their uniform, carrying their badge and gun, and unless they are working undercover, their uniform and vehicle is branded with the name of the city, county, or other organization they are employed by, showing that they are legally bound and privileged to collect taxes and enforce the laws of that locale. It is imperative that their outward expression matches their branded intention, both for their own awareness of their authority to act on behalf of the law, but also to imbue trust and respect into the hearts and minds of the citizens they are protecting and serving; at least that’s the idea.

During World War II, the Nazi leader, Josef Goebels, used intentional branding to distinguish Jews from the rest of the German population by marking Jewish people with a gold star, sewn into the middle of the star was the word Jew. This branding initiative was designed to culturally authorize Nazi’s with the right to control, persecute, and even destroy, the Jewish population, and the wearing of the gold star by Jews was legally enforced in the Netherlands, France, Croatia, occupied Belgium, and of course, Germany (Jewish Badge: During the Nazi Era, n.d.).

The Nazi party also used specific colors, symbols, and a myriad of other stylistic choices, much of which can be found in their seventy page branding guide providing “examples of virtually every Nazi flag, insignia, patterns for official Nazi Party office signs, special armbands for the Reichsparteitag (Reichs Party Day), and Honor Badges” (Edwards, 2011) to further embed their authority into the minds of the German people. The Third Reich approached everything very purposefully, and with the intention of not only setting themselves apart, but in designing a past, present, and future filled with their values and programs. They used “the power of design the power of symbols the power of typography to alter behavior, to influence behavior” on every level, both corporate and nonprofit, even in a benign and malicious way (Edwards, 2011).

Most of us do not comprehend the extent to which those in power will go to protect their power, or in other words, safeguard nationalism, wealth, and status, on many different levels to protect and perpetuate their so-called brand. Ancient and modern governments have and still use stylized, intentional branding guides to design an identity of state others will recognize and follow (Edwards, 2011).

With the expansion of technology, cultural branding has become a global phenomenon. Where one cultural distinction could only be found in one small section of the world, many cultural branding symbols can be seen on a wide variety of people around the world. For example, Traditional Polynesian tattoos have become popular among American youth, many of which have no Polynesian heritage connections (Bastos & Levy, n.d.). However, what the tattoos represent, is becoming more universally appreciated and desirable. British royalty has long set social upper-class standards for dress, behavior, language, and more. King Tut continues to inspire generation after generation with the popular blunt, bob haircut, large gold jewelry, and the heavy black painted eyeliner. Signs of intentional branding are hard not to spot as cultures become part of a greater global community.

Unintentional Cultural Branding

Branding influences and changes individual and cultural identity. In many ways, branding is identity. However, most people do not think of themselves or their country as a brand. Yet, regardless of the awareness (or lack of it) that personal choices, like what you choose to wear or eat, affects cultural norms, much of what shapes our modern American identity is a result of, what you might call, unintentional branding.

With our easy access to media, many are adding their influence to the larger cultural brands of the world. Through the social media phenomenon—Youtube, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter—many an obscure individual has gone from being completely unknown to well known, even famous, in a matter of months; people like Tay Zonday, a Ph.D. student whose Chocolate Rain video went viral, or a vlogging family, known as KittiesMama, who slowly built a following and in 2017 were voted by Forbes magazine top social media influencers (Scutti, 2018).

Because branding is a successful formula and could even be argued to be an innate or natural method for finding acceptance and success within the human family when followed, either intentionally or unintentionally, the results are the same: converting personal emotions—individuality—into shared indoctrination, what we call culture.

The Branding Formula

The branding formula is a simple pattern, first and foremost, and includes a few key ingredients:

(a) an authentic intention or the defining values, beliefs, and motivating ideas that drive a person or people to take certain actions,

(b) the markings or distinguishing signs or features that illustrate physically the values and beliefs of the person or people,

(c) knowing and understanding the people or audience a person or group is trying to influence,

(d) a high level of controversy and shock displayed to that chosen audience,

(e) and engaging the chosen audience in all aspects—emotional, physical, mental, etc.—of the brand experience (Ries & Ries, 2009).

There are countless examples of the branding formula at work in both our modern world, and throughout history (Moore & Reid, 2018). But rather than focusing on the generalities associated with brand identities—the step by step process of branding—it is much more important to understand the intentions behind the brands. “Branding is a strategic point of view, not a select set of activities” (Holt, 2016).

The Branding Formula At Work

To both understand how branding is changing and forming identity, and in many ways dismantling individualism, we have to take a backdoor approach to breaking down the branding formula. Because branding is both an identity, as well as the method and means used to form and manipulate identity, it’s of greater import to focus on the values and missions of those forming brands, rather than the brands themselves.

Why is a brand identity key to a successful, cultural identity campaign?

Branding is designed, first and foremost, to reach past the barriers of individual value systems conforming personal beliefs into publicly accepted dogmas. This is most often accomplished by using shock-based stimuli, like emotionally provocative, unsolvable problems that work to elevate public fear, which in turn allow those who manage the brand to introduce new values and solutions that redefine societal values and beliefs to support the brand.

Shock naturally raises an individual’s emotions to a state of frenzy or upheaval, loosening up deeply held beliefs, sifting them to the surface, and making the observer vulnerable to suggestion. Once the observers emotions are shaken up, carefully planned marketing strategies, offering solutions to those seemingly unsolvable problems, step in and work to reframe emotional turmoil into brand loyalty.

Shock and fear are the most effective fuel driving a brand’s propaganda machine.

Personal beliefs often change when cultural values shift (Sobkowicz, 2012). However, if you want to shift cultural values, you must first challenge personal beliefs.

Pop Culture Branding

Instead of changing popular culture or belief, most branding enthusiasts look for ways of riding the wave of whatever pop cultural swell is happening at the time.

In the mid 1970’s, Britain was experiencing a small cultural revolution. Where the royal family and conservatism had been the only voice allowed on mainstream media, “the poor working-class youth” (Tyreman, 2009) wanted and needed representation. The disillusionment of these kids from the “God Save the Queen” political struggle (Savage, 2018) and class-boundary norm, left a pop-culture gap large enough for a new musical brand.

A British weekly, called the New Musical Express, in order to turnaround their failing sales, took a big risk and began focusing their content on this burgeoning scene called Punk Rock. They hired two new writers who began reaching out to the disaffected youth.

Their new branding intention, or how they would choose to ride the pop-culture wave, was to rally and appease the “Hip, Young Gunslingers and Rude, Obnoxious Anarchists” (Tyremand, 2009). This new focus quickly sent their publication to number one. Born from this new movement was a young and relatively unknown band called, the Sex Pistols.

Through a series of brand driven choices and ads in the New Musical Express, using this rude, obnoxious, anarchistic theme, they found a “talented, sneering, angry musician” name Johnny Rotten, to represent the band’s image and brand as the lead singer, landing the band the right manager and later making the band and its brand “one of the most famous bands in history” (Tyreman, 2009).

A clear intention, aimed at the right audience, at the right time, it would seem, is the fuel for success.

Another interesting example is the pop-culture icon, Lady Gaga. In the early years of her career she was known by her birth name, Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta. Although talented musically, she was just another ordinary girl, attending Catholic school, and dealing with the struggles of adolescence (Lady Gaga Biography). She performed in clubs, studied at the Tisch School of Arts, but dropped out to pursue her career more authentically (Levy), and in her own words, “master the art of fame” (CBS News). Lady Gaga began building her unique persona while singing back-up for more popular bands, intentionally forming a cultural identity around her name, taken from a Queen song called, “Radio Gaga” (Levy).

The key to understanding Lady Gaga’s success, is similar to that of the Sex Pistols. First they developed a clear, yet shockingly controversial intention—one which speaks directly to a specific audience—and, then, that value system and emotionally stimulating GPS becomes the foundation for every action taken.

When an individual or a group can communicate the emotions that others feel but find difficult to articulate, that singular act can be the difference between excessive influence and complete obscurity.

Although riding whatever the pop-culture wave can help create a successful brand culture, it’s certainly not the only way. However, it is certainly easier than attempting to excite emotion in those who are not already feeling it.

Adolf Hitler used the heightened emotions of German’s suffering after World War I to stir up emotions and feed them a new identity. It was much easier to build the Third Reich on values and needs that already existed, then to build it from scratch.

Tapping into an emotional identity that already exists allows a leader to become its voice or the physical icon promoting the much-needed identity change. A very powerful move indeed.

Why Individuals Buy Into Branding

In his book, The Lies That Bind: Rethinking Identity, Kwame Anthony Appiah, identity philosopher, eloquently explains that,

“Having an identity can give you a sense of how you fit into the social world,” because identity offers you “reasons for doing things” (Appiah, 2018).

The genius behind any good brand is the affirmation of identity.

Lady Gaga, with her ‘you’re good enough as you are’, suicide, drugs, and discrimination discussions and controversial public displays, like wearing a dress made entirely of meat, offers her audience the emotionally stimulating beliefs and values that they need to feel they fit in, and that they can belong in the greater social world authentically. She is their voice. She is their representation. She, then, is their brand, and in many ways has become their social identity.

But, not all cultural branding is as, seemingly, harmless as the entertainment industry’s ‘be yourself’ movement, especially branding intent on challenging and changing our individual identities—or, the ability to clearly articulate and express, on our own, who we are and what we’re all about—into social identities.

There are much more subversive attempts to brand a cultural identity that perpetuates destructive notions, like nationalism or patriotism, sold to us with the oppressive, yet often elusively seductive, dissolution of individualism, brands that immortalize prejudices and bolster fear for the sake of the greater good; brands that make us question the intentions of those who are supposed to be acting for and in behalf of the whole, not against it.

The Donald Trump Brand

From the beginning of his entertainment career, Donald Trump has developed an extremely controversial, yet successful, brand identity. From his bankruptcies, (Lee, 2016) to his “You’re fired!” (Keefe, 2019) days on the Apprentice, his gruff and insincere back-slapping has earned him a place in the brand Hall of Fame.

For many Americans, and non-Americans, it’s difficult to comprehend his election to the Presidency. Yet, from a branding perspective it makes perfect sense. But, instead of asking how did he get elected and who voted for him, the more important question is why? Who is he truly representing, and why is this harsh and public display of Trump-type nationalism being spread?

The knee-jerk reaction of many is to point a finger of blame to their, so-called, idiotic neighbors who voted for him, or, perhaps, look for some error in the voting system (Russia para.2). But the bigger question is, what power-agenda or social reconstruction is taking place behind the emotional battleground that desires and designs a person like Trump to be its elected icon?

The deeper and more poignant, and often disturbing, branding questions are frequently buried or tossed out during fear-based identity brawls; all, at least from a branding perspective, according to plan.

The Goal of Cultural Branding and Nationalism

The overarching goal of a successful brand is to challenge and change identity, to socialize it, and to make those who are buying into and feeding on its publicity feel stronger as they participate in the feeding-frenzy (Levy 14).

When individual identities are weakly formed and unsupported, the need for stronger, more powerful identities become greater; demoralized and weakened individual identities present a natural necessity for strong, supportive brands.

The more the masses feed on external brands instead of increasing and defining their own internal values and beliefs, the easier it is for them to buy into and unwittingly embrace—even become indoctrinated into—a brand’s stronger and more emotionally potent, agenda-laden values and direction.

Raising emotion helps shift emotion so that it becomes more easily manipulated, disassembled, and reconstructed into an emotional identity that will conform to the strongest brand (Bettencourt & Hume, 1999).

Appiah (2018) explains that, “Among the most significant things people do with identities is use them as the basis of hierarchies of status and respect and of structures of power.”

Cultural branding is intentional, even when it begins unintentionally. The power of a successful brand will always be perpetuated with a willful struggle to keep it.

When an individual or a group can control the identity of a nation, they also control the mission, economy, and strength of that nation.

Are our emotions and thoughts truly our own? Has the value of individual identity been replaced with a carefully designed social identity? And, how does one tell the difference?

Like a strong brand, one that has staying power and exceeds the competitive advantage to the point of superseding the need for competition all together, individualism is not prone to excessive bouts of anger, intolerance, and oppression. It is in the masses we find mob-brutality and emotional frenzy.

The difference between a healthy altruistic society made up of devoted individuals and the turmoil of manipulative social conditioning is a simple one, it is merely the willingness of each individual to take full responsibility for their own actions, and to expect the same of others. When a society is chalked-full of capable, grounded, and sensible individuals, it is very difficult to create a frenzy, and without turmoil, people remain rooted in their sensibilities.

Where individualism is allowed and encouraged to thrive, peace and prosperity are not simply cultural norms, but are, instead, intuitively and individually chosen value and belief systems that govern every individual without force or manipulation.

Albeit hypothetical in nature—as individualism is often misunderstood and misrepresented by those in power—peace, in an individualistic society, would not be institutionalized and governed by fear-mongering, but would be established by every individual, because of their deep and abiding desire for it.

Individualism is not, therefore, the downfall of a nation but the last vestige of hope dwelling inside every lover of peace and freedom.

Works Cited

Tyreman, David. (2009). World Famous: How to Give Your Business A Kick-Ass Brand Identity. New York: AMACOM.

Ries, Al., & Ries, Laura. (2002). The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding. New York: HarperCollins.

Appiah, Kwame Anthony. (2018). The Lies That Bind: Rethinking Identity. New York: Liveright Publishing Corporation.

Bastos, Wilson., & Levy, Sidney J. (n.d.) A History of the Concept of Branding: Practice and Theory. Marketing Department, University of Arizona: Tuscon, Arizona. Journal of Historical Research in Marketing, Vol. 4 Iss 3 pp. 347 – 368.

Moore, Karl., & Reid, Susan. (2008). The Birth of Brand: 4000 Years of Branding History. Munich Personal RePEc Archive.

Bettencourt, Ann B., & Hume, Deborah. (1999). The Cognitive contents of social-group identity: Values, emotions, and relationships.” European Journal of Social Psychology. Eur. J. Soc. Psychol. 29, 113-121.

Sobkowicz, Pawel. (2012). Discrete Model of Opinion Changes Using Knowledge and Emotions as Control Variables. PLoS One 7(9): e44489. Doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0044489.

Holt, Douglas B. (2016). Brands and Branding. Cultural Strategy Group. Retried from https://Culturalbranding.org/cb2016/wp-content/uploads/Cultural-Strategy-Group-Brands-and-Branding.pdf

Lee, Michelle. (2016). Fact Check: Has Trump Declared Bankruptcy Four or Six Times?. The Washington Post. Retrieved from https://washingtonpost.com/politics/2016/live-updates/general-election/real-time-fact-checking-and-analysis-of-the-first-presidential-debate/fact-check-has-trump-declared-bankruptcy-four-or-six-times/?utm_term=.28e9e8c02629

Scutti, Susan. (2018). Accidentally Famous: The Psychology of Going Viral. CNN. Retrieved from https://cnn.com/2018/03/16/health/social-media-fame/index.html

Jewish Badge: During the Nazi Era. (n.d.). United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Holocaust Encyclopedia. Retrieved from https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/
jewish-badge-during-the-nazi-era

Edwards, Jim. (2011). Hitler as Art Director: What the Nazis’ Style Guide Says About the ‘Power of Design.’ CBS News. Retrieved from https://cbsnews.com/news/hitler-as-art-director-what-the-nazis-style-guide-says-about-the-power-of-design/

Keefe, Patrick Radden. (2019). Donald Trump As An Icon of American Success.” The New Yorker. Retrieved from https://newyorker.com/magazine/2019/01/07/how-mark-burnett-resurrected-donald-trump-as-an-icon-of-american-success

Savage, Jon. (2018). The Sex Pistols: British Rock Group. Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved from https://britannica.com/topic/the-Sex-Pistols.

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