Buzzing on brands: never has image made so much difference in business. From logos and corporate identity to consumer trust and perceived value, the buzzword is "brand" - Special Advertising Section; Advertising, PR and Branding

Japan, Inc., April, 2003 by Gavin Blair

IN TODAY'S CORPORATE WORLD there is surely nothing as incorporeal and yet so crucial as a company's brand. Difficult to quantify but now acknowledged as a key determiner of a corporation's profitability, brands and branding have gravitated to the top of the business agenda. Yet even finding an accepted definition of what constitutes a company's brand is a challenge. One way a brand can be viewed is as the set of impressions that stakeholders have of a company. This description encompasses the fact that it is not just customers but also employees, business partners and investors who will have a range of reactions to a company, which will be emotional and intuitive as well as rational. Hence everything that a company and their representatives do, or are even perceived as doing, goes toward the ever-changing notion of that brand.

Yet as brands are becoming increasingly treasured within the business community, they are simultaneously becoming the focal point of enmity for those who see them as symbols of all that is wrong with 21st century global capitalism. From considered critiques such as Naomi Klein's No Logo: Taking Aim at the Brand Bullies, to the less considered concrete-block-through-Starbucks-window, which is now apparently de rigueur at anti-globalization demos, brands are also under attack. (It's interesting to note the apparent shift in protestor's targets from politicians, governments and institutions to McDonalds, Nike and Starbucks -- or does their omnipresence just mean they are easier to access?) The spate of corporate scandals over the last few years has also shattered faith in big business across large swathes of the consumer population. At a time when cases of financial wrongdoing are coming to light so frequently that people are beginning to think CEO actually stands for Chief Embezzlement Officer, the building and maintaining of trustworthy brands has become a more challenging task than ever.

There is no doubt that brands wield a huge influence in today's society, but it is this very fact, it is argued, that empowers both consumers and activists of various shades. Companies that are seen to be damaging the environment, involved in dubious business practices, associated with exploitative employment conditions, or a host of other sins, suffer crippling damage to their brand and thus ultimately to sales. Nike was so concerned about the 'sweatshop' tag successfully attached to them by protest groups, it undertook a major review of conditions at manufacturing sites in developing countries. This is one of an increasing number of cases where a company has been forced to react directly to potential harm caused to brands by pressure from activists; in some ways this ends up greatly increasing accountability.

Here in Japan, the reaction to Snow Brand's myriad of misdemeanors has been a collapse in trust (more vital in the food industry than perhaps any other) and subsequently in sales. Flying Color, a marketing consultancy concentrating on helping leading brands in Japan integrate interactive media, Internet, mobile and email into their marketing and branding initiatives, is taking a strident approach to the issue. CEO Todd Newfield says, "We as an organization have made it policy not to work with any brand that lacks a social and environmental consciousness -- and we have a 10 point checklist to decide. We have also recently launched a new retail/advocacy brand called BlueSky. It's a triple bottom line organization (meaning we look at profits, social contribution and environmental contribution equally). BlueSky is building an advocacy 'agents of change' network among 30-40 year olds married with kids, educated women in Japan; marketing only products and services that meet the triple bottom line and promote a bett er world now and for future generations. We expect to reach the one million strong Advocate mark in 3 years -- and, through consumer activism and purchase decisions, send a big message to brands and organizations that those who lack substance and responsibility will not be tolerated, no matter how cute their logo and TV ads are."

Beacon Communications, an agency established in 2001 through the merging of Leo Burnett and D'Arcy Japan operations along with a business unit and a significant number of employees from Dentsu, sees the issue as companies' response to problems that arise. According to Beacon president and representative director, Michelle Kristula-Green, "Brands that are honest can survive huge problems and come back strong. However, in many instances companies dissemble, refuse to comment or even lie. They lose the public trust. That is what kills the brand, i.e. Firestone tires, Enron."

The concept of brands is at the heart of Beacon's entire approach. Beacon's Kristula-Green states, "What differentiates Beacon from other agencies is the way we build brands. The brand is central in everything we do and the way we organize ourselves. Each floor is dedicated to a customer: male, family, female. Cosmetic brands like SKII and Max Factor or hair-care brands like Vidal Sassoon are on the female floor. Scotch whisky is on the male floor. Rather than organize by function, we organize around the brand. The people working on a specific brand, whether they are an account person, planner or creative, sits with the other members of that team, rather than in a departmental silo." Beacon's executive director of strategic planning, Han Van-Dijk, also sees the techniques of retail and consumer branding being increasingly employed in the business-to-business marketing arena. 'Traditionally, brand building in the B2B environment has been more of a left-brain exercise. Arguments were rational and factual, total ly functional and to-the-point. Today, however, we see B2B branding adopting more emotionality in their approach. Corporate marketing especially is using more of the techniques from the consumer marketing world."