CULTURAL

TENSION

STRATEGY Cultural Selling Proposition (CSP)

Brand planning 2.0 – Culture & Movement

By Nigel Rahimpour

GIANT CREDITS TO:

Douglas Holt & Douglas Cameron

for their inspiring work!

Conventional marketing ignores the wider context of culture, although it is becoming increasingly important for success. This document focuses on a systematic way to embed culture in the strategic process and its financial value. It looks at cultural tension strategy and grassroots marketing as tools of implementation in a new media world shaped by consumer activism. It’s about brands tapping into culture and succeeding.

PREFACE

"We need to reinvent the way

we market to consumers. We

need a new model.”

A.G. Lafley, Big Kahuna

at P&G

“Marketing theory is still largely based on the days when

P&G brands dominated America.

If they are

making more noise, it is out of

desperation.”

The Economist

Connect the brand with the consumer

THE CURRENT MODEL

The product

- Delivers a functional benefit

- Delivers an emotional benefit

Henceforth, meets the consumer need

What’s wrong

with that?

IT’S BASED ON FUNCTIONAL BENEFITS

REASON #1

“Tough on stains”

Bears no long term sustainability 1.  Product differentiators get quickly copied 2.  People are less interested in functionalities

than companies assume

3.  Often a justification for an instinctually-driven decision

THE FUNCTIONAL BENEFIT PITFALL

IT’S BASED ON EMOTIONAL BENEFITS

REASON #2

i.e. ATTRACTION

Many brands talk about the same emotion –

even outside the category

(i.e. “Attraction” used by cars, motorbikes, clothing, etc)

Courtesy  of  Jkakuzin  

THE EMOTIONAL BENEFIT PITFALL

What does all of this mean?

THE OLD MODEL HAS TURNED BRANDS INTO COMMODITIES

Invites private label brands to participate

The war of the benefits makes people believe

that most brands are the same

THE EMOTIONAL BENEFIT PITFALL CONSUMER APATHY IS THE RESULT

“When you act like a commodity, you’ll get treated like one!”

Kevin Roberts, Big Kahuna at Saatchi & Saatchi

THE EMOTIONAL BENEFIT PITFALL

WHY IS THERE A SEA OF

SAMENESS?

BECAUSE THE OLD MODEL IS SOLELY ROOTED IN PSYCHOLOGY

THE OLD MODEL DISREGARDS THE WIDER CONTEXT

Does not look at people & brands through a societal lens  

Out-dated

But still in use

IGNORES CULTURE, POLITICS & ECONOMICS

BECAUSE MARKETING LIKES TO SIMPLIFY

It gets dirty when you consider history, politics, culture and economics

IF YOU LIMIT YOUR VISION… YOU CONFINE YOUR ACTIONS!

THE OLD MODEL CONFINES BRANDS TO A VACUUM CALLED “CATEGORY”

Limits brands to the land of faster,

bigger, smaller, cheaper

SUCH BRANDS ARE UNABLE TO TELL A

BIGGER STORY

If you have any!  

SO THE BIG QUESTION IS …

SO THE BIG

IS…

SO THE BIG

ARE…

HOW DO WE ENSURE THAT IT NO LONGER DEPENDS ON CREATIVES TO CREATE A CULTURALLY RELEVANT STORY? What    

the  fuck?

Old Model Positioning Example:

The aroma that puts a grin on your face

HOW DO WE LAY THE STRATEGIC FOUNDATION FOR BRANDS TO TELL A BIGGER STORY?

Ideally become…

PART OF POP-CULTURE’S CONVERSATION

… AND TO CREATE INNOVATIONS BEYOND THE CATEGORY?

PLANNING 2.0

Planning 2.0

Connect the brand with the CULTURE

Brand Culture

Planning 2.0

Acknowledges the tenets of the old model -  The product’s functional benefit is… -  The product’s emotional benefit is …

But it places a cultural selling proposition

(CSP) at the heart of business

CULTURAL SELLING PROPOSITION Above functional and emotional benefits

USP

CSP

ESP

Cultural selling proposition

Emotional selling proposition

Unique (functional) selling proposition

WHAT’S A CSP?

CSP (Cultural Selling Proposition) is an ideology that gives a brand a role in

society, not just the category

(i.e. Apple’s ‘Facilitating Creativity’)

WHY CARE?

Cultural ideology creates financial value

FINANCIAL REASON #1: Differentiation

Where competition is limited to the product-level, cultural ideology provides differentiation lifting the brand above the category  

CASE IN POINT: Method Method places a cultural added value on top of functionality. The brand operates in culture, not the category.

FINANCIAL REASON #2: Culture enhances quality perception

When people buy into a brand’s culture, they like to think its products are superior, when in fact they are not  

FINANCIAL REASON #3: Culture can charge a premium

FINANCIAL REASON #4: Culture creates loyalty beyond reason

Cultural brands are anchors of our identity.

In financially tough times, they are the last

place where we cut costs

FINANCIAL REASON #5: Culture is the more efficient media strategy

Cultural brands don’t chase people,

they attract them

Wholefoods vs. Jewel Osco

Apple vs. Sanyo

Virgin vs. BA

FINANCIAL REASON #6: Culture creates new market space…

Conventional market definition: ‘Computers’  

Cultural market definition: ‘Tools for creative minds’  

Traditional market definition:

Based on products

Expanded market definition:

Based on culture

ESSENTIALLY WE ARE TALKING ABOUT

Operate in the category  Operate in culture  

EVERY BRAND CAN TELL A BIGGER STORY Twitter is more than a social micro-blogging service The Economist is more than information The iPhone is more than a phone Dove is more than soap

These brands stand for facets of our culture:

modernity, wisdom, creativity, natural beauty

GREAT! So how do we put all of that into practice?

GREAT! So how do we make it work?

CULTURAL TENSION STRATEGY

STEP 1 Identify the cultural opportunity

Traditional market definition:

Based on products

Expanded market definition:

Based on culture

KEY QUESTIONS: WHAT IDEA OR MOVEMENT IS RISING IN CULTURE THAT CHALLENGES THE CURRENT SYSTEM? CAN I CONNECT IT WITH MY BRAND?

Traditional market definition:

Based on products

Expanded market definition:

Based on culture

CULTURAL TENSION STRATEGY IS ABOUT IDEAS OR MOVEMENTS THAT CHALLENGE THE SYSTEM

Dominant Code Emerging Code

Traditional market definition:

Based on products

Expanded market definition:

Based on culture

WE WANT IDEAS/MOVEMENTS WITH CRITICAL MASS

Indie-Entrepreneurialism

Conspicuous Cultivation

Experiential travel

Tribal Football

Peer-to-Peer

Open-source

Fair-Trade

Mixology

You can use subcultural and dominant societal codes –

especially if the latter is ignored by the category

UNDERSTAND THE CULTURAL NORM

Oil is cheap. Credit is cheap.

The bigger the better. The car as a living room.

The code for the hummer is domination.

America is in love with big cars.

EMERGING CODE: Conspicuous Cultivation

UNDERSTAND THE EMERGING CODE

Democratization of Style  

Look for a structural change in culture, not just a fad

EMERGING CODE: Conspicuous Cultivation

UNDERSTAND WHAT’S INSIDE YOUR BRAND

Stylish British Auto Irreverence  

"Link

What’s Inside"Culture & Brand To Define Your

Cultural Ideology

Brand Culture

Consumer Culture

MERGE

Motoring Fashionista Fun

THIS GIVES YOUR BRAND A ROLE IN SOCIETY…

LAYING THE SEEDS TO BECOME PART

OF POP CULTURE’S CONVERSATION

LIFTING YOUR BRAND ABOVE THE FRAY

Via a larger and more relevant platform than

solely relying on traditional USPS and ESPS

BUT HOW DO YOU BRING A CULTURAL IDEOLOGY

TO LIFE?

STEP 2 Activate your consumer base Don’t just televise

Use grassroots actions and communications to create authenticity and value, so that people will

rally around your brand, not just purchase it

START A MOVEMENT

WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?

CULTURE IS SHIFTING

1990s Digital

Revolution

Anything goes As long as you don’t

go to jail

2000s Consumer

Activism Era

Belief-Driven Brands need to align

with my values

MEDIA IS FUNDAMENTALLY CHANGING

Interruption Age

Few channels Captive audience Media monologue Passive consumption

Participation Age

Tons of choices Elusive audience Media dialogue User-generated content

MOVEMENTS ARE SURFACING

Iran

BRANDS ARE TAKING ADVANTAGE

MANY WAYS TO GO ABOUT A MOVEMENT

Spark.

Lead.

Support.

Piggyback.  

USE GRASSROOTS TOOLS IN A 2.0 WORLD TO SET IT OFF

More authentic.

More credible.

More efficient.  

Remember: The people are the media

PEPSI REFRESH

Any brand, even one that stood for the old model, can

successfully align with a movement and lead culture

Pepsi has added a CSP on top of USP/ESP and used grassroots tools to successfully engage people  

FIESTA MOVEMENT

Fiesta Movement: In 2010, Ford began a grassroots campaign in the U.S. 100 influencers were handed a Fiesta and asked to document/share their experience via social media. The campaign spread like wildfire: -  6.5 million YouTube views -  50,000 info requests -  60% pre-launch awareness -  10,000 units sold in the first 6 days For a fraction of the costs of a traditional campaign.

Ford finally works with culture, instead of against it  

NIKE

Nike’s runner tribe includes over a million people

RED BULL The classic case: Innovated out of culture. Creates/sponsors culture. Uses grassroots to stay culturally-relevant

World Domination Red Bull has come a long way: From Thai truckers to the one & only energy drink in a category it created

THE CULTURAL TENSION STRATEGY APPROACH

COMBINE

Cultural Ideology

Grassroots Marketing

Authentic Movement

Purpose that people share

Participatory tools to attract people

Idea/Brand that lives in culture

Tools for success in this new era

1.  Understand  the  norms  in  your  category  

2.  Iden;fy  a  cultural  tension  –  a  movement/idea  that  challenges  the  system  and  is  credible  to  link  with  your  brand    

3.  Define  your  cultural  ideology  –  a  role  for  your  brand  in  society  

4.  Make  highly  targeted  efforts  to  seed  your  ideology  with  influencers  

5.  U;lize  grassroots  tools,  ac;ons  and  communica;ons  to  aKract  people,      create/host/connect  with  community  and  spread  the  word  

 6.  Use  mass  communica;ons  to  magnify  your  ideology  to  the  masses    7.  Use  direct  communica;ons,  tools  and  ac;ons  to  drive  purchase  

SEVEN STEPS

Breakthrough insights often come out of culture, which is why we can’t limit our search to the category. The old tools are still valid. But they are not the only. Creating cultural relevance and activation can’t be the default-product of creative people. We need a systematic, strategic way. That’s what this document intended to show.  

AFTER THOUGHT

SPECIAL THANKS TO: Douglas Holt Douglas Cameron Ilana Bryant Adam Morgan Pele Cortizo-Burgess Colin Drummond Alex Bragg  

Nigel Rahimpour Planner-Guy nigel.rahimpour@gmail.com Chicago & New York