COMM 150: Assignment, first paper on brand management

According to our syllabus for Communications 150, " Each student will write, (1) a documented term paper (at least 2,000 words or eight pages) on a subject to be chosen by the instructor on some aspect of mass communications, to be agreed upon ahead of time by the instructor and the student; or (2) two documented essays (at least 1,000 words of four pages each) reflecting on topics to be assigned by the instructor. So let's take advantage of spring break and get started now.

Here's the topic for the first paper. (If you make it long enough, it will also be your last paper because it will be your only paper; if you come up short, you'll write a second shorter paper in April. It's up to you which way you want to do it.) I'll state it as a question:

How does ________________ (*insert name of corporation or celebrity here) practice brand management? Our textbook by John Vivian doesn't say much about it, but a brand is the image a corporation or a product has with the public. So the Cardinals or the Cubs are not only ball teams, they're brands. How do they maintain their images? Think of other corporations that are in the news. Google. Apple. Toyota. Political causes. PETA isn't just an animal rights organization named People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. It's a brand, one with an off-beat -- and controversial -- way of attracting attention to its cause. Think of celebrities. Vivian mentions Paris Hilton. Is she really a brand? Is an entertainer a brand? Is Tiger Woods? Jay Leno? Are Bill and Linda Gates? Brad Pitt? Angelina Jolie? Some are very good at brand management. Others aren't. Some might get better at it if they paid attention in rehab. How do they -- or don't they -- keep a consistent image with the public?

Due Friday March 19, at the end of the week after spring break. Choose the right brand, and you can have some fun with this one.

The paper is documented. In my classes, that means sources of information in all of your writing must be attributed or documented according to an academic system like MLA or APA. Key concept: If you write down anything you didn’t know before, say where you found it! Failure to do so, even unintentional, is plagiarism. In our field, it may also be copyright infringement. Do not write just to fill up space. Create clear, concise, accurate, and relevant thoughts. And convey them to readers in a well-written, grammatical, engaging fashion.

Let's start working on it in class today.

John Vivian's discussion of branding defines the practice as: "Enhancing a product image with a celebrity or already-established brand name, regardless of any intrinisic connection between the product and the image" (332). He uses Paris Hilton as an example, citing "a Paris Hilton handbag, a Paris Hilton wristwatch, a Paris Hilton whatever."

Whatever.

True enough, but there's more to it than that. A good starting place is Vivian's discussion of "brand image" (330-332). He cites adman David Ogilvy, who pioneered the concept during the 1950s and 60s. A certain type of dress shirt (a Hathaway), a certain type of whiskey (Jack Daniels) was hooked up with a certain type of image (a pirate with an eyepatch, down-home sippin' whiskey, whatever). Whatever. It does sell product, though. Or does it sell product by selling the experience? See how all this stuff starts fitting together?

Vivian defines a brand as a "non-generic product name designed to set the product apart from the competition" (330). Ford. Chevvy. BMW. They're all cars. What's the image of each? The American Marketing Association defines a brand as a "name, term, design, symbol, or any other feature that identifies one seller's good or service as distinct from those of other sellers. The legal term for brand is trademark. A brand may identify one item, a family of items, or all items of that seller." Done right, branding reinforces in our minds something that marketing people call a unique selling proposition i.e. something that sets one product apart from all others. The Nike swoosh. "Just Do It." Tiger Woods. Oops! What's he doing to Nike's brand management program? What's he doing to his own image?

Wikipedia defines brand management as "the application of marketing techniques to a specific product, product line, or brand." Here's how it works:

[Brand management] seeks to increase the product's perceived value to the customer and thereby increase brand franchise and brand equity. Marketers see a brand as an implied promise that the level of quality people have come to expect from a brand will continue with future purchases of the same product. ...

If time permits, we can brainstorm on branding issues presented by different people, products and causes that have been in the news.