Brand Reflection
The brand that I have created is designed to take several elements from who I am and sum them up into a single element or commodity that has meaning for the public viewing my brand. In order to identify how my project addresses the relationship between culture and commodification we need to consider culture and commodification themselves. Culture itself, according to Raymond Williams, is “ordinary” and that “every human society has its own shape, its own purposes, its own meanings…”(SFU Surrey 2005). Commodification is giving an element economic property, essentially the exchange of buy and sell. The result of this is the sacrifice of individuality therefore eliminating the small grid of intimacy and further exploiting the big grid. My brand takes the authentic values that revolve around the desire to win (which exists in athletes or competitors for a more general term) and has turned it into a product. Ultimately, I have extracted this element that is at the heart of competitive culture and turned it into an expressive common attitude, purpose and meaning. The brand Moment attempts to exist between the big grid and small grid. In terms of the big grid, it is appealing to people who think it is cool to wear due to several possible influences. On the other hand, it reaches for the small grid as it challenges the consumer to prove he or she is the ‘hero’, and it’s that element that brings it to an individual level because it was the individual that made the moment that it is.
According to Marx, ”in this process of commodification, the alienated products have become disassociated from the work that went into creating them, and as a result, become desirable beyond their actual use value”(SFU Surrey 2005). This is the essence or act of fetishization. The brand that I have created based on my identity attempts to enrich the fetishization experience by pulling in the competitive aspect of the consumers (or human kind in general). The products created only provide a limited level of physical use, but the bigger picture concept is to build a desire and mentality in the consumer originating from Moment's brand values that fulfills their needs to represent that this is who they are.
The brand mythology that I use is heavily based on archetypes, but at the same time it provides a frame work for the individual consumer to make a story. What I mean by that is that the idea behind Moment, in short is to prove that you have the strongest will to win and be in control of the moment. That is the frame-work for the story of the individual’s process of achieving this. Back to the archetypes, Moment focuses around the Hero archetype as the brand helps people by inspiring them to push their limits and act courageously. According to Introspective Designs Consulting, “the most authentic brands are those where there is no gap between the purpose of the company and its actions, no gap between what it aspires to be and how it acts every day”(Introspective Dsigns 2004).
Works Cited:
Introspective Designs. (2004). Brand Mythology
Accessed on the World Wide Web Oct. 23. 05
http://www.introspectivedesigns.com/documents/brand_mythology_handout_2004-11-18.pdf
Kwan, T. (2005) Branding You project
Created Oct. 21, 2005.
Seabrook, J. (1997). The Big Sell Out
Accessed on the World Wide Web Oct. 23. 05
http://www.booknoise.net/johnseabrook/stories/culture/sellout/index.html
SFU Surrey. (2005). Cultural Icons
Accessed on the World Wide Web Oct. 23. 05
http://www.sfu.ca/~culticon/
This is based off of my previous self branding project. Since my identity is an established element, the following is a modified text that I previously wrote based on my identity and branding. However, I have taken a different element of my identity to brand for this.
According to Marx, ”in this process of commodification, the alienated products have become disassociated from the work that went into creating them, and as a result, become desirable beyond their actual use value”(SFU Surrey 2005). This is the essence or act of fetishization. The brand that I have created based on my identity attempts to enrich the fetishization experience by pulling in the competitive aspect of the consumers (or human kind in general). The products created only provide a limited level of physical use, but the bigger picture concept is to build a desire and mentality in the consumer originating from Moment's brand values that fulfills their needs to represent that this is who they are.
The brand mythology that I use is heavily based on archetypes, but at the same time it provides a frame work for the individual consumer to make a story. What I mean by that is that the idea behind Moment, in short is to prove that you have the strongest will to win and be in control of the moment. That is the frame-work for the story of the individual’s process of achieving this. Back to the archetypes, Moment focuses around the Hero archetype as the brand helps people by inspiring them to push their limits and act courageously. According to Introspective Designs Consulting, “the most authentic brands are those where there is no gap between the purpose of the company and its actions, no gap between what it aspires to be and how it acts every day”(Introspective Dsigns 2004).
Works Cited:
Introspective Designs. (2004). Brand Mythology
Accessed on the World Wide Web Oct. 23. 05
http://www.introspectivedesigns.com/documents/brand_mythology_handout_2004-11-18.pdf
Kwan, T. (2005) Branding You project
Created Oct. 21, 2005.
Seabrook, J. (1997). The Big Sell Out
Accessed on the World Wide Web Oct. 23. 05
http://www.booknoise.net/johnseabrook/stories/culture/sellout/index.html
SFU Surrey. (2005). Cultural Icons
Accessed on the World Wide Web Oct. 23. 05
http://www.sfu.ca/~culticon/
This is based off of my previous self branding project. Since my identity is an established element, the following is a modified text that I previously wrote based on my identity and branding. However, I have taken a different element of my identity to brand for this.
posted by SFU-TK at
6:46 PM
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