Anti Branding, Content Marketing, and the Importance of a Strong Visual Voice
Anti-branding is an interesting topic and the concept of it is often confusing because it sounds like one of two things: you’re either systematically speaking out against a brand that you don’t like (exposing them for unethical practices, etc.) or disregarding the whole idea of branding altogether. But in this article, I’m focusing on a different theory.
Anti-hero, Anti-Brand
At this point, we’ve all heard of an antihero. If it wasn’t because of high school lit, then it was because of Taylor Swift. We know an antihero is still a hero, just not in a way that we typically consider heroic. A hero that we can see part of ourselves in, not necessarily heroic qualities.
Take that same idea, apply it to branding and you’re on the right track to understanding the anti-branding movement.
For as long as I can remember, my parents were anti branding -as in, they didn’t want their purchases to be obviously branded. So much so that my mom would cut the tags out of some of my clothes when I was a kid. She let me shop at stores like Rugby or Abercrombie & Fitch when I got to high school, but not without making her opposition to branded graphic tees or logos on products of any kind crystal clear on many occasions. The direction that advertising was headed wasn’t lost on Boomers and as a teenage millennial daughter, I was not permitted to participate in the circus of walking billboards.
Fast forward 25 years and it feels like we are drowning in branding, specifically branded content on social media.
So it’s ironic that I ended up more or less working with brand marketing, but since that’s the case, it’s not surprising that I came to it from a photojournalistic background and consequently favor content marketing. Specifically editorial style content marketing.
And this concept isn’t new. James Dyson (Dyson appliances) realized an editorial sold his products more than any ad he had ever run in a newspaper. Because it didn’t feel like an ad.
So what does this have to do with an anti-branding marketing strategy?
If you are in the marketing field and you’re reading this, you’ve undoubtedly heard the buzz around the word “authenticity.” (Read my post on authenticity here.) Authenticity is the core of anti-branding, but there’s more to it than that. It’s personifying the brand in such a way that the visual identity is the face of the brand and the logo is the signature.
I’ve written about this idea in a different context (Read that post here.) but essentially the heart of my philosophy around anti-branding is to put less emphasis on advertising and more emphasis on humanity. Or embrace editorial. Be aware of your conditioning to squeeze logos and product placements in where they don’t belong and rein it in. There is a time and place. The time and place just isn’t anywhere and everywhere, all the time. Use your content to tell stories and teach people useful information. Content marketing builds relationships. Think of it more like sharing information with a friend. Use genuine copy and images that are “on brand,” but not branded.* Don’t dilute the editorial value of your content by inserting obligatory brand plugs. Everything doesn’t have to be branded. Let that sink in.
You may ask, but if everything doesn’t feature the logo, how does anyone know what brand produced the content that they’re connecting with? Well, if it’s on the brand website, the brand name is in the header. If it’s on social media, there’s the obvious account name that links to a profile or even to the exact page of your website.
A brand identity is not just a logo
*But more importantly, use your visual voice. A brand identity is not just a logo. I can’t stress this enough. A hefty amount branding actually comes from visual voice and developing a coherent visual voice is often not given the attention that it should have. Visual voice is all of the things that contribute to brand identity: colors, style, mood, and so on. It doesn’t read as advertising the way that logos and product placements do. Your brand’s look has the capacity to connect with your audience if it’s done well. (Read my post on the 3 C’s of Branding here.)
This means investing in your visuals - graphics, photography, and video. Work with a brand designer to clarify a visual voice that embodies your brand. And work with a photographer/art director who resonates with that style. It is a lot to establish at first and the content may require more thought, but purpose and consistency develops brand loyalty. Pictures that reflect your brand’s personality constantly over time establish your authenticity. An audience will learn an aesthetic and associate that with your brand (like Face ID) without being subjected to ever persistent advertising (some advertising is okay). There is a lot of humanity in simply recognizing that.
