Some brands are just that – edgy. They refuse to fall into the regular set of imagery; they abhor the mundane; they detest normalcy. But interestingly they still do not repel the mundane, the normal, the commonplace customers! That is the paradox of being edgy. It is infact the cheapest way to acquire enigma. But the word ‘acquire’ is a bit of a misnomer for how on earth can you acquire something so inherent as an edgy DNA, which is either deeply internalized in the very construct, or consciously sought passionately, almost obsessively as a matter of self concept. In other words, either it is inherent in you or you have to be seeking it because that is how you are very particular about being seen.
Remember, I will never tire of saying that brands are like people. And this time round let us reverse the order of learning. Instead of starting with brands and likening them to people or personalities, let us do it the other way round, this time.
Just yesterday, two people made headlines and so let me lean on the most proximate history possible i.e. the headlines of yesterday, to illustrate the point.
Syed Ali Shah Geelani’s aquiline features and piercing blue defiant Kashmiri eyes stared out of TV screens in the reportage of a ‘separatists’ statement made on Kashmir. And then Arundhati Roy was reported to have protested about the Indian ‘colonisation’ of Kashmir. I watched these two events through the eyes of two television channels, with each having got in their own ‘expert’ commentators on the matter. In Times Now, the two personalities were roundly condemned without so much as a morsel of view from the other side. The blinding jingoism of Times Now made me pause longer, giving them TRPs for the wrong reason when compared to the pale moderation of an NDTV where an octogenarian Mr Dua equivocated on the pros and cons of the argument ending with the inference that we as a democracy allow people to speak and so Arundhati and Geelani may feel free to do so. Times Now on the other hands seemed to be of the view that the wordy articulation of Arundhati was nothing short of treason and implied that the Indian state would do well to level charges of sedition.
Well, this know your brand is not about who will root for whom amongst Times Now and NDTV. It is also not about whether we are fond of Geelani and Arundhati or whether we share Arnab Goswami's bilious dislike for them.
As we rise above the playing field of these dramatic personae, we see things from a lofty enough plane and thus retain an objective birds eye view of the spectacle below from a branding stand point. And this is what it tells us.
That there can be righteous people excessively concerned about human rights without an iota of fear in airing them. That there can extreme jingoism (under many more charitable names) and this too can be aired in full public view without a shadow of doubt or indeed an iota of thought! That windows itself to the same view can indeed colour a view and carve a perception. The supposed neutrality of the television window is a glaring case in point. This in fact evidences the power of indirect communication. News can be reported factually, directly. But coloured analysis thrives on indirect subtleties. That people will take sides not on the basis of their demographics, but by the burden of their beliefs, that will never allow them to embrace a counter thought.
With this small analogy, it is possible to bullet point a few random marketing principles:
l Demographic segmentation is meaningless and superficial and does not a make a brand.
l Indirect communication has far greater power, but requires expertise and practice. Direct communication achieves no positioning and is best used for only tacticals for it has no colour and so it cannot colour.
l Brands have to ride the wave of popular culture and align themselves to existing belief systems, if they have to inhabit the lives of consumers.
l Edgy brands lose on mass markets, but gain through the maniacal brand loyalty of their customers, who transact at a far greater frequency with them. So while they have fewer users, they derive more value from them and this reduces their need to hunt for more customers. This is why edgy brands are careful about seeking too much acquisition for that will only cause a leaking bucket to happen.
l Brands can connote values, but in their construct they must be secular, lofty, and accommodating of diversity and dissent, if they have to retain objectivity.
l Brands are not just about the product and its consumers, but it inhabit a unique eco system called the brand world which is a kaleidoscope of imagery and associations that affect each other in ways more complicated than immediately seen. (The next Know your brand shall be dedicated to just this point)
And with that, let’s simply draw a few analogies:
The Harley Davidson customer is not unique by his demographics and that is not just because Harley Davidson is very distinctive (we shall do one Know your Brand on this very amazing brand soon).
The Harley Davidson world is more than just the V Engine bike and its 200 pound customers. It has many indirect nuances rooted in the belief systems of the people it appeals to. Ever wondered how and when ‘cruising’ on a bike became more virtuous than ‘speeding’ on it? In fact ever wondered that more than the semantic difference, what does it say about the characteristics of people who have preference for one or the other? How edgy is Harley? In fact how bold is it? If you had to identify one colour with the brand, which one would it be? Can you even imagine a woman on it? Especially some lady in your house? I bet you laughed! What would be the reading habits of Mr Harley like? What would his house look like? Which rituals would he be fond of? Who would be his role models? The more one digs deep, the more it becomes possible to write a whole story.
Would Harley care two hoots about human rights, even though the word ‘fearless’ and ‘bold’ is not out of place here. Which means that verbs need to be qualified with adjectives, for brand attributes to be distinctly understood. Would Harley be a ‘patriot’ if it were a person or would it have the cosmopolitan soul of a traveler?
Ever wondered why slim fellows in India would never buy the Bullet from Royal Enfield. Well because it's meant for heavy people, is how many would infer. Which begs the question if the Bullet user has to carry the bike, or does the bike carry him!
So heavy people have a certain type of personality. In the same way there are heavy brands and light brands; masculine brands and feminine brands; colourful brands and dark brands; jingoistic brands and idealistic brands ( more on this soon); friendly brands and business-like brands. And most importantly 'edgy brands' that thrive on values that make them stand apart.
They could self deprecating like the VW Beetle that boldly poked fun at itself when it called itself in its advertising ‘the ugly bug’ catching the imagination of youth through this sporting type (not ‘sporty’!) appeal. They could be like the BMW on which much has been said! They could be like Pepsi that cannot desist from poking fun at Coke and this is what makes it tick. Back home, it could like Kingfisher airlines – all about beer and babes (Point to note: it is still has mas appeal)! They could be about like the Harley itself with its burly big dark indulgent side, it raw adolescent appeal because some men never grow up!They could be Virgin Airlines with its fabled massages in the sky! They could be like the Rolls Royce that continues to retain an anachronic design with almost a perverse sense of opulence caring two hoots for the blinding spotlights it places on its users. And so what should that say about the user himself! It could be a brand like Apple that refuses to be trapped in the clinical mundaneness of the technology category, breaking free almost joyously, celebrating form far more than function, thereby almost taking ‘function’ for granted. For computers are not supposed to hang and have viruses in the first place, are they!
Funny and surprising how people choose electronic gadgets on the basis of looks and not technology, yet manufacturers continue to look into their cocoons only!
A housewife buys a fridge for her kitchen not because she loves its compressor, but because she loves the kitchen!
If Apple starts making a TV, imagine the colour! And then the appeal. But then edgy brands are more about focus. Their customer loyalty is accordingly reciprocated unlike mass brands that simply cannot focus and have to flirt. Their customers merely return the compliment.
I once bought an HTC phone. Helluva looker it was. It has two problems however. One that you can’t hear voice. And two you can’t read anything on its dark screen. And so here I am with a good looking HTC phone which I haven’t thrown only because of the fear that some unsuspecting person may pick it up!
Sometimes looks don’t matter. But that’s true of people too, isn’t it?
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