Today I updated my marketing/retail/fashion knowledge by exploring the concept of “branded content” as presented by Mashable, my favorite Facebook social media feed. What in the world is “branded content” you ask? The answer is a blog or website sponsored by a retail brand that does not necessarily sell a product but rather sells a lifestyle; the lifestyle of the sponsoring brand. It is subtle advertising that sells by using all the power of available to the marketing gurus. It is seductive, effective and somewhat disturbing. I love it and hate it because I know how powerful this form of marketing can be.
I am listening to the music that accompanies Burberrys, Art Of The Trench website. The site contains photos of people in trench coats. Viewers can comment on these images. I am not sure if you have to photograph a Burberry trench to be included but if you are part of the “global creative community” submit your photo and if Burberrys likes it they will display it on their website. If you need a stronger personal branding experience take a peek at the Louis Vuitton sponsored site, NOWNESS .Go online in the privacy of your home and see what is new and important in the Louis Vuitton world. Discover what music to listen to, where to travel and what your interests should be if you are a Louis Vuitton kind of person. No direct selling of handbags, please!!!!! This is a branded content lifestyle site.
When I hear guitar accompanied folksy songs I wonder if I will think “Burberrys?” Will I see an ostentatious display of wealth next time I see a Louis Vuitton bag or will I think there goes a cultured person who sees the world as I do. Louis Vuitton is hoping the latter. Lifestyle branding creates an image of a brand and an image of its customers. Branded content sites often skip advertising the brand altogether and focus on the consumer. The purpose of the site is to sell the viewer on the lifestyle; a lifestyle the brand will then claim is that of its customer. The lifestyle site wants you to feel you have finally found others of your own kind, a gathering generously sponsored by Burberrys, Louis Vuitton or numerous other retail companies.
We can see on these websites who a company’s customers really are and how these companies want their customers to be. Most likely detailed analysis was done on Louis Vuitton’s customer database before the” lifestyle” was developed. Strong correlations were most likely shown between Louis Vuitton’s customer base and all of the topics on the site. Then a little tweaking was done by the marketing department not to mention the contributors themselves. The customers became more beautiful, more interesting, and more intelligent. The customer’s claimed interests are revealed in the topics, the seller’s dream of who actually buys their product, in the beauty of the stories and photos. Put it all together and a beautiful lifestyle emerges, a life filled with fashion, art and of course the best in luxury products.
We are all walking advertisements, especially when we wear or carry visible labels. The college sweatshirt, Burberry plaid or Disney tote serve to advertise these brands to anyone who sees it when it is worn. People who deal in images and symbols know this and realize the impact of repeated brand exposure on consumers. The more a brand name is seen the more it is remembered. Music, atmosphere, store design and now branded content websites all assist the retailer in increasing awareness and sales of their product. The product also sends a message of its own. The message can be, “Come to Disney” or “I cost a lot.” (In the case of Disney I receive both messages) Louis Vuitton obviously wants its products to say,” I am worn by intelligent, creative people with a variety or interests, who appreciate and can afford the best.” My guess is they do not want the message, “I am a pampered poodle who has more money than you” nor “I am a slave to status fashion.” Their website is much too interesting for the pampered poodle or the status junkie.
The consumer gets involved in this branding process. We buy a Lexus because we want to be the wealthy, happy couple portrayed in Lexus advertisements. Disney fans begin to think of themselves as part of “Team Disney” even though they do not work for the company. We wear college apparel to identify ourselves as fans, alumni or students of a college or university. We all want to belong to something. Lifestyle branding allows us to develop a sense of belonging and identify others who are like us by the bag they carry or coat they wear. My problem with lifestyle branding is the retailer is really only trying to make a buck, not form a real team or create a community. Customers who buy into the lifestyle campaign begin to use an advertisement as a blue print for their lives. Real emotion can and does result from these marketing campaigns. This is their purpose. A bonded customer is a loyal customer. There is no team, merely a very good marketing department. The relationship is one-sided; the customer begins to believe that which is merely a creation is reality. While the retailer is trying to sell handbags or coats, the customer believes she is participating in a community whose values and code are shown on the website. Really all the consumer is experiencing is the work of a clever retail brand marketing department. The lifestyle does not exist.
So why is this exciting yet frightening, this trend of branded content. The ease of experience frightens me. In the past we were exposed to media marketing assaults by walking into a store or watching a television commercial. Now we can access multiple branding experiences through our home computer. Think about how jarring it is leaving a retail store that plays music you enjoy or where you find the décor calming. This is because music and sound affect emotion and define our shopping experience. The color of walls, displays, and smell of a retail store is designed to define your perception of the brand and encourage you to spend. The full marketing assault using music, images, symbols, and words previously only occurred in a store or during a television commercial. Regular programming or leaving interrupted the experience. Online branding experiences occur uninterrupted. A consumer does not need to leave to go home. There is no other programming and the branding experience can last much longer than a thirty second commercial spot. Marketing works, so does lifestyle branding, which is why it is being increasing developed.
Lifestyle branding is now presented in depth and without interruption on branded content sites and product Facebook pages. Press “like” and any number of retailers will bring the latest from their product line to your Facebook page on a daily basis. While most product pages on Facebook are product oriented, the lifestyle branding message comes through loud and clear. The lifestyle associated with the brand is on display right next to the newest product in the store. The message is enhanced by the ever increasing visual and sound capacity of laptops and home computers. The media assault is stronger and more beautiful than ever before.
I am sensitive to music and atmosphere. I notice colors, music and design. I am not unique but I am overtly aware of the assault on my senses when I shop or watch visual media. If you are not overtly aware of the impact images and sound have on you, be assured your subconscious is registering colors, your environment. These elements are used to impact your perceptions which in turn impact your decisions. Today your favorite brand can sell you their image of who you should be, whenever you visit their website. I think this is an exciting time in to attempt to influence behavior with images, words, and music. I think it is also a little scary that I do not even need to get dressed to submerge myself in a beautiful world of music, symbols, art, and words all designed to tell me who I should be and what bag I need to buy so I can find others like me. I want to be to be a member of the beautiful creative global community, don’t you?
