The new brand culture

8/13/2019 The new brand culture.

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/the-new-brand-culture 1/21

L IQ U ID A G E N C Y

A WH ITE PA PE RON THE VALUE OFBUILDING A BR ANDDRIVEN CULTURE.LIQUID AGENCY

T H E N E W

B R A N D C U L T U R E

M O D E L



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LIQUID AGENCY

This whitepaper draws upon the anthropological concept of cultureto introduce a new model for brands. The old brand model, whichadvocated the creation of an external brand image to inuenceconsumers, is a thing of the past. We think it’s time to do thingsdifferently. In the new model a company’s true values replace theexternal brand image. In other words, looking good is no longerenough. To compete in today’s fast paced landscape, brands must

be better from the inside out. They must embrace a cultural shift.We call this new model Brand Culture—and we think it has thepotential to transform companies into truly amazing brands.



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LIQUID AGENCY

The theory of Brand Culture waspartly informed by Douglas Atkin’sgroundbreaking book, The Cultingof Brands ,1 which was one of the rstbooks to apply anthropological theoryin understanding how certain brandswork—specically “cult” brands. Whilecults, by denition, are experiencedby the few, every human experiencesculture, and every brand has thepotential to develop a brand culture.

Our concept of Brand Culture has alsobeen inuenced and validated by therecent writings of some really brightanthropologists who are studying theway consumers use brands. 2 And welove reading stuff written by really brightanthropologists. Don’t you?

Please let us now what you think. We’dlove to hear your thoughts on the matter,so feel free to send me a note or—betteryet—visit our blog, where you canparticipate an online discussion aboutthe Brand Culture model.

Dennis Hahn

Vice President of Strategy

PARTICIPATE IN THE DISCUSSION ONLINE CLICK HERE

http://www.liquidagency.com/blog/the-new-brand-culture-model-a-whitepaper-by-liquid-agency/

http://www.liquidagency.com/blog/the-new-brand-culture-model-a-whitepaper-by-liquid-agency/

mailto:dennis%40liquidagency.com?subject=



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Neanderthal DaysBack at the dawn of the twentieth century, back beforethe internet, back when there was still a thing calledprivacy, a nearly impenetrable shell surrounded everycompany. It was a shell of darkness and silence.

The consumer had no idea what was really going oninside a company, and the company had no real way ofcommunicating with the consumer. Companies needed

a way to talk to their audience.

Advertising was essentially invented to accomplish just that, rst announcing that the product or serviceexisted, then promoting the price of the product orservice, and eventually touting some superior featureor unique ingredient that made a certain product orservice supposedly better than all the rest.

Fickle, Fickle Truth Science has taught us that truth is pretty muchtemporary. Just look at the shift from the Copernicancosmos to the Galilean. Or the leap from Newtonianphysics to Einsteinian relativity. The Copernicanand Newtonian systems were each believed to beabsolutely, positively, and unchangingly “the truth.” Thatis, until the new system came along which proved therewas a truer truth.

It’s the same with modern-day branding, which, untilfteen or twenty years ago didn’t exist as a businesscategory, even if in fact its underlying concepts werebeing practiced by inspired marketers for some time.

Over the last hundred years, as the art of creatingbrands has evolved from designing logos and placingads to the more complex integrated endeavor known

as branding, we see a constantly shifting sense ofwhat is true. We believe it’s time for another oneof those shifts.



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The Creative RevolutionJump forward to the glory days of the CreativeRevolution, when Bill Bernbach commanded the

Volkswagen account. Advertising was not exactlytreating consumers as intelligent beings. Ads werefull of trumped-up claims and hard-sell messages.Bernbach discovered that if you took a good productand peppered the magazines, the newspapers, and thethree television networks with unprecedented ads tellinga story in a smart, sassy, and bluntly-honest voice(“Lemon,” “Think Small,” etc.), you would sell product.His insight was that people would be wooed by adswhich spoke to them in ways they always wanted tobe spoken to—intelligently. He believed people wouldconclude that Volkswagen as a company was likeable.He was right. And many Volkswagens were sold.

Bernbach’s genius was the realization that people

didn’t just want product features shouted at them. They wanted the product story told in a compellingand satisfying way. He knew that, given a choice,people would patronize a company that spoke to themintelligently—as long as the product was good. In thesixties, the only three ways to experience Volkswagenas a brand were to read or watch the ads, to talk to

Volkswagen owners, or to buy the car—all of whichproved to be highly positive experiences. Bernbach,in effect, created an external brand image—onethat existed outside of the company—that told the

company’s story in an unmistakable voice and stylethat people enjoyed. Such a controllable externalbrand image was fairly easy to create back in thosedays because there were so few other sources ofinformation about a company.

Consumers either paid attention to the ads or theydidn’t. They either liked the message or they didn’t. Ifthey paid attention and liked the message, odds were

good they would at least try the company’s products orservices. Awareness, a well-told product story, and trialwere enough to drive sales.

WHEN THIS

AD WAS FIRST

PUBLISHED, IT

WAS NOTHING

SHORT OF

REVOLUTIONARY.



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One Revolution Deserves Another The second Creative Revolution, led by Chiat/Day,Wieden + Kennedy, and other agencies in the eighties,took the external brand image to an entirely new level.

People distrusted what advertising said to them.Most ads were lame, boring, and unbelievable.

The second Creative Revolution turned advertisinginto a series of engaging and entertaining events that

didn’t overtly speak about the product or service, butinstead gave consumers an experience they loved. Thisexperience was what separated one competing brandfrom another.

The famous Apple “ 1984 ” spot and Nike’s “Revolution”are perfect examples. It was like building a stageand putting on plays for consumers. It was a way ofdemonstrating the brand rather than telling a product or

service story. If your play caught consumers’ attentionand pleased them—and if your product was good—consumers embraced your brand and were loyal to itbecause it gave them an experience they appreciatedand remembered.

APPLE'S 1984 AD WAS - AND

REMAINS - ONE OF THE MOST

TALKED ABOUT ADS IN THE

HISTORY OF ADVERTISING. IT

WAS MORE OF A MANIFESTO

ABOUT THE APPLE CULTURE

THAN AN AD ABOUT A

PRODUCT.



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WHY DOI EXIST?

Now, whether the play being shown had anything todo with the company who owned the theatre wassometimes beside the point. In the worst cases itwas like bad vaudeville desperately trying to nd an actpeople liked. Take, for instance, the Dr. Pepper brand.What does it stand for? Who is it talking to? Why does itexist? God only knows. The only reason anyone drinksDr. Pepper is because they like the taste or possiblythe high caffeine—or both. The brand certainly hasno greater meaning than the product itself—no soul. Ithas tried on dozens of different advertising campaignssearching for something meaningful to say. The effortshave been embarrassing. All they’ve managed to do isremind people that Dr. Pepper exists.

In the best cases, as with Nike and Apple, theadvertising accurately depicted the soul of thecompany, and the brand and the company were

congruous. But the advertising still fundamentally reliedon creating an external brand image that delivered amonologue to its consumers, counting on memorability,awareness, and affection to drive sales.

So, doesn’t that still work today? Sorry Charlie. Firstof all, there’s no such thing as a controllable externalbrand image anymore. Thanks to the internet,consumers now have an unprecedented view intoa company and access to its most sensitive internalsecrets, not to mention instant word-of-mouth reports

from people who’ve tried a company’s product orservice. For a long time a company’s brand couldsay one thing and, internally, safely protected by theimpenetrable shell, the company could act anotherway. Not any more. It’s as if a company’s walls arenow made of glass and everyone can instantly readeveryone else’s minds around the world. If you doubtthis for a second, think back to when Nike’s brandwas suddenly threatened by alleged unfair treatment

of foreign labor.

Second of all, people don’t want an act, they justwant honesty. They don’t want a manufacturedbrand that tries to pander to their tastes. Theywant something real.

Yes, Bernbach and company were right. People do

long for more than just product features and salesmessages shouted at them. But what has changedis that people aren’t just shopping for a good productor service anymore. They are no longer satised withbeing entertained by memorable brand advertising.

That’s because people today are using brands in waysBernbach and others could never have anticipated.



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Papa Got a Brand New Model of Branding.Let’s say the old philosophy of branding revolvedaround the creation of an external brand image.

And let’s say, in an era where “transparency” isthe word of the day, consumers will no longer buythe external brand image we create, but will takeit upon themselves to nd out what a brand reallystands for by probing for their own truth. And if theycatch a whiff of contradiction, they will bolt. Thereal question is, why? Why are they bothering toprobe? Why is it that, no matter how cool the Nikeadvertising was, people were outraged over whatthey believed was unfair treatment of workers atNike’s factories in Asia? And what does this haveto do with sneakers?

Here’s where anthropology comes in. CliffordGeertz, a seminal cultural anthropologist of the

latter twentieth century, and who continues toinspire the latest generation in his eld, has saidthat all human behavior is symbolic action. 4 We arenot a species concerned with mere transactions.We are creatures of meaning. From the time whenNeanderthals began burying their dead, we havebeen concerned with the larger meaning of life—who we are and why we’re here. Throughout historyand, presumably, pre-history, these questions ofmeaning and identity have been primarily answeredby the culture in which we grew up. Our cultures

have given us the symbolic tools we needed tocreate our own sense of identity.

Today we’re seeing that certain issues which couldbe considered secondary to a brand are suddenlyprimary. People are not just choosing the best,the fanciest, or the cheapest. They’re choosingbrands that have the right meaning. For instance,a few years ago Nike built a decent skateboarding

shoe that was certainly as well-made as an Etniesskateboarding shoe. Yet the hardcore skaterwouldn’t be caught dead in Nikes. Why? Because,in the rebel world of skaters, Nike stood for TheMan. The Etnies founder is a famous skater wholives and breathes skater culture. Nike doesn’tcome from that world. Nike didn’t embody thebeliefs of skater culture. And a pair of Nikes wouldhave sent a conicting message to the skater’s

friends—if he dared wear them to the skate park.Nike had the wrong meaning—a few years ago.

Then Nike launched a new line of skater shoes,called Nike SB—essentially Nike’s third attemptto break into the skate market. But this time theysomehow got it right. They hired the right peoplewith the right street cred and deep understandingof skater culture. They plucked these people fromthe “legit” skater brands and put them to workcreating an internal culture that aligned with their

“ In a consumer culturepeople no longerconsume for merelyfunctional satisfaction, butconsumption becomesmeaning-based, andbrands are often used assymbolic resources for theconstruction andmaintenance of identity.”

ELLIOTT & DAVIES 3



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LIQUID AGENCY

audience, and they created a series of shoes that nallyundermined the “corporate” image and quietly grewthe Nike SB brand. Then, in 2005 , they launched their6.0 line of shoes designed for the multi action sportaudience (skate, snow, surf). Some shoes were issuedin small, limited editions, and this put Nike over the top.

As of today, Nike offers the hottest shoes in the skateand action sports category. They didn’t pull this offwith a classic TV and print campaign. They startedfrom within, built a legitimate skater culture, built theright shoes, built the right team of riders, sold onlyto the small core shops, and built a culture that coreskaters wanted to belong to. And it worked.

Another example: a Columbia Sportswear polareece vs. a Patagonia polar eece. People whochoose Patagonia could hardly call it a difference inquality at this point—at least when it comes to polar

eece. And the Patagonia eece is more expensive. Yet Patagonia has a customer base that, while smallerthan Columbia’s, is absolutely committed to Patagonia.Why? Patagonia donates money to environmentalcauses. Patagonia gives its employees surng breaks atwork. And Patagonia was founded by Yvon Chouinard,one of the greatest climbers in history. Patagonia is alsoa serious high-performance brand. In this case, it’s notthat Columbia Sportswear has the wrong meaning,it’s that Patagonia has more of the right meaning for

this audience. The Patagonia consumer, like those ofso many other brands, is making a choice based onmeaning, not just quality, features, or price.

“Right,” you could say. “Two great examples ofsuccessful brand image campaigns.” Well, not really.Because neither Patagonia nor Nike SB and 6.0 haverelied upon the old model of creating external brandimages. Instead, they’ve drawn upon their core beliefs

and values to create views of the world and ways ofacting in the world that have become their centraltruths. These internal beliefs have replaced externalbrand images. Their brands are created by livingthese beliefs inside the company and letting thesebeliefs drive external communications and consumerexperiences. And consumers are attracted to themeaning embedded in those beliefs.

THE NIKE SB BRAND

WAS CREATED BY

FIRST BUILDING A

LEGITIMATE SKATER

CULTURE INSIDE

THE COMPANY.



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The Traditional Self Geertz uses the concepts of ethos and worldviewto describe how cultures create a seamless, uniedsystem. The ethos (an understanding of how we shouldact in the world) is supported by the worldview (apicture of how the world really is), and vice versa. 6 In a sense, ethos and worldview are what differentiateone culture from another. And it is the culture thattraditionally gives individuals their denition of self—whothey are, what they believe, and how they should act.

Two hundred years ago, if you were born in a Dayakvillage on the island of Borneo, you were likely to liveand die without being exposed to anything other thanthe Dayak culture. Your ethos and your worldviewwould be essentially the same as those of any otherDayak Indian. The practice of headhunting, for instance,would be a part of your everyday life, intimately tied to

your religion and your social practices. And, while everyculture has allowances for individual personalities, yoursense of self, beliefs, and values would be generatedprimarily by your Dayak culture.

That’s the traditional role of culture. It’s the systemthat denes the world and how we should act. It is thematerial we use to shape our sense of self. It’s probablysafe to venture that these dynamics have been in placesince human kind evolved. Things get much moreconfusing, however, when we see multiple culturescoming together, as in cities, for instance, wheretraditional single cultures start to break down andmingle with other cultures. By the time we reach themodern industrialized world, people begin to gain moredecision-making over who they are, what they believe,and how they act. The traditional culture starts to loseits authority and choice enters the picture.

“ A people’s ethos is the tone,character, and quality of theirlife, its moral and aestheticstyle and mood; it is theunderlying attitude towardthemselves and their worldthat life reects. Their worldview is their picture of theway things in sheer actualityare, their concept of nature,of self, of society. It containstheir most comprehensive

ideas of order.” GEERTZ 5



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The Do-It-Yourself Self Today, a Dayak Indian could attend a missionaryschool and be exposed to western culture and religion,go to college in Sydney, Australia and study Greekphilosophy, join a punk rock band, and then take acareer in banking. Rather than describing himself asa Dayak, he now might describe himself as a post-modern-ex-headhunting-neo-Platonist-rebel-capitalistwith animistic tendencies. In other words, he could

make all the choices most of us face when it comes toshaping our own ethos, worldview, and sense of self.

In fact, we all are in the continuous process of deningour sense of who we are and what we believe. We areconstantly building and rearranging our mosaic of theself. This is possible because we have unprecedentedchoice in terms of religious beliefs, moral systems,philosophies, worldviews, places to live, careers,

friends, income levels, lifestyles, and personal codes ofbehavior. We are not limited to the traditional choicesoffered by the culture we were born into. And this iswhere contemporary anthropologists see brands takingon a new and intriguing role.

“ The self is conceptualized inpostmodernity not as a givenproduct of a social systemnor as a xed entity whichthe individual can simplyadopt, but as something theperson actively creates,partially throughconsumption.”

ELLIOTT & WATTANASUWAN 7

R

A N D



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The Brand as Meaning As people in the post-modern industrialized worldare creating this mosaic of the self, the questionanthropologists have asked is: what role does brandand consumption play? The answer many of them arereturning is: brands are symbolic units which are used,along with other symbolic units drawn from career,music, fashion, religion, etc, to create this mosaic ofthe self. Given how fast competitors can copy each

other, the world of branding has moved way beyondfeatures, benets, and entertainment. Brands are nowcreating value not just by the products or services theyrepresent, but by the meanings they generate. 9

This meaning is being adopted by consumers toexpress who they are and what they stand for.Meaning, in fact, may be the most important product abrand creates today.

Go back to the difference between Patagonia andColumbia Sportswear for a minute. By choosingPatagonia, the consumer is saying, I believe many ofthe same things Patagonia believes in, and I am using

Patagonia as an expression of who I am. I am attractedto the meaning of Patagonia. And my sense of self ispartly represented by Patagonia. This dynamic hasbeen prevalent in the luxury category for some time,and cars, for instance, have always been an expressionof identity. But what is crucial today is for companiesto understand that it’s what their brand believes in,stands for, and does in the world that is being judgedby consumers. Apple’s challenges with foreign labor is

a perfect example of this.

It seems that many of us in the post-modernindustrialized world have moved beyond the needsat the lower end of Maslow’s pyramid—survival andsafety—and are focused more on the higher needs ofesteem and self-actualization. Therefore brands aren’t

just about the product or service they provide, but the

“ A brand may be viewednot solely as a sign addedto products to differentiatethem from competinggoods, but as a semioticengine whose function isto constantly producemeaning and values.”

HEILBRUNN 8

CORPORATE

VALUES

CUSTOMER

VALUES

THE BRAND’S

VALUES ARE

COMPATIBLE WITH

THE CUSTOMER’S VALUES.



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meaning they represent, which people are using, inturn, to represent themselves. Think of the owner ofa Toyota Prius who wears eco-friendly Nau clothing,buys fair-trade coffee at Whole Foods, carries a Pradabag, and wears blood-free diamonds from Tiffany’s.

This person is borrowing the meaning from thesebrands to tell a story about herself that ranges fromher commitment to social responsibility to her love ofquality and dedication to style. If she chose differentbrands, even if they offered the same quality levelbut did not represent her social consciousness, shewould be telling a different story about herself. Shewould be, in effect, representing a different person.

The Brand as a Culture There are a myriad of anthropological denitions ofthe word “culture.” The most useful one, from ourperspective, is Clifford Geertz’s denition, which is “…ahistorically transmitted pattern of meanings embodiedin symbols, a system of inherited conceptionsexpressed in symbolic forms by means of whichmen communicate, perpetuate, and develop theirknowledge about and attitudes toward life.” 11

We believe that a brand, in order to be relevantto consumers and sustainable over time, mustoperate much like a culture. This is the opposite ofmanufacturing a series of external brand images in thehopes that one of them will eventually be attractive tothe target audience. A company must gure out its corevalues and understand why, beyond the prot motive,it exists. This means that, essentially, a company must

develop (or unearth) an ethos and a worldview thatit absolutely believes in, and then perpetually act inaccordance with that ethos and worldview. Everythingthe company does—every product or service it offers;every public statement, advertisement, and website itgenerates; every internal policy, memo, and businessdecision it makes—must be congruent with that ethosand worldview.

“ In a ‘desecularized’context, economicentities (and mostlybrands) have takenthe symbolic place leftempty by the retreatof the divine.”

HEILBRUNN 8



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Consumers who are shopping for meaning are eitherdrawn to that ethos and worldview or not. But if thebrand truly represents an ethos and worldview thatare attractive to consumers, those consumers will not

just patronize that brand, they will not just prefer thatbrand, they will not just be loyal to that brand, they willembrace that brand as part of their own identity. Theywill, in essence, join the brand’s culture and participatein that culture as a way of expressing to the rest of the

world (and to themselves) who they are and what theybelieve in. They will also join the culture because, indoing so, they are enacting their own values and votingwith their pocketbook.

The value of this to a company in terms of dollarsshould be absolutely obvious. Think of the stranglehold

Apple has on the MP3 player category. (Rememberback when the term “ MP3 player” was still used?) It

started with the iPod, which was not just a product,it was a way of life. The iPod didn’t just put all otherMP3 players to shame when it came to usability andfunctionality, it killed the category. Within a few years,

Apple was seeing growth in their computer salesbecause of the iPod. People were buying into the Appleway, the Apple experience, and (duh) the Apple brand.By October of 2007 Apple jumped from owning 2% ofthe personal computer market to owning 8%, with a64% increase in prots for the year. And we all know

what’s happened since then with the iPhone launch. Apple stands for a courageous, inventive, rebelliousand intuitive approach to life, and that’s converted PC owners to Mac owners and, most importantly, to the

Apple way in general.

Belief, passion, commitment, identication. Peoplewant to belong to something bigger than themselves.People want to stand for something that matters.

People want to champion good over evil. Peoplewant to do the right thing.

In the supermarkets, consumers are choosing to paytwice as much for eggs from humanely-treated cage-free chickens because of their values, not because it’s abetter egg. They do this because they don’t want to bethe cause of any mistreatment of chickens (caged birdswith their beaks clipped and all that).

WHEN BRANDS ADD

AUTHENTIC MEANING

TO PEOPLE'S LIVES

THEY BECOME A

PART OF PEOPLE'S

IDENTITY.



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They don’t want to support such practices withtheir dollars, and they don’t mind spending moredollars to do so. People are carefully considering theconsequences of their actions, and they want brandsto do the same. When a consumer connects to abrand that aligns with their most deeply-held beliefsand sense of identity, they are essentially both pullingthat brand into their own world and entering the worldof that brand. What’s vital is to create a world that the

consumer can enter.

This is the idea behind Brand Culture. If you lookat what Harley Davidson has done, they have createda rich body of meaning and embodied that meaningin a system of symbols and actions. Whether it’s justwearing an ofcial Harley jacket or riding your hog toSturgis for a week, there are a multitude of symbols,rituals, behaviors and objects that perpetually invite

people to join the Harley Davidson Brand Culture. And Harley Davidson doesn’t even have to run thebrand culture—it essentially runs itself. They justhave to make sure the Brand holds up its end ofthe bargain and operates in keeping with the Harleyethos and worldview.

I L L U S T R A T I O N O N S H I R T D E S I G N E D B Y 1 3 T H F L O O R D E S I G N

http://13thfloordesign.com/


















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“We argue that moving awayfrom product to corporatebranding means moving froma communications/marketingdriven activity towardsadapting a brand-basedstrategy for managing theorganization. Corporatebranding implies that thewhole organization serves asthe foundation for brandpositioning...”

ELLIOTT & WATTANASUWAN, 1978 13

Brand Culture is the driver.Here’s a dirty little secret. We’re nding that, moreoften than not, when we sit down and have an honestconversation with the CEO and executive leadershipof a company, their biggest problem is not how theoutside world sees them. Sure, that’s an issue. But thebigger issue is how to mobilize the company internallyaround one single vision and purpose. Whether it bethe result of growth by acquisition or just a nasty case

of internal siloing, it is rare for a company to be uniedwith everyone pulling together in the same directionand for the same reasons.

Why is this? Sometimes there isn’t a strong,clearly-articulated set of core values driving behavior,so employees feel rudderless and adrift. Or, if thereis, employees don’t see anyone living those values andthey become cynical and demoralized. Coca-Cola is agreat example. Here’s one of the world’s most enduringbrands, but internally there is severe inghting andmultiple conicting agendas. It hardly seems they areliving their brand values, and the company’sbrand equity continues to decline while Pepsi’scontinues to grow. 14

BRANDVALUES

EMPLOYEES CUSTOMERS

THE SAME CULTURE

THAT ATTRACTS

CUSTOMERS WILL

ALSO ATTRACT AND

KEEP EMPLOYEES.



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Johnson & Johnson is an excellent example of anorganization that lives its brand values. Every decisionthe company makes is vetted against a statementcalled “Our Credo” which makes their number onepriority the welfare of doctors, nurses, patients,mothers, fathers, and all who use their products.

The Credo was written in 1943 and is still guiding thecompany’s decisions today.

Johnson & Johnson’s voluntary discontinuation of Tylenol in capsule form after the highly-publicizedpoisoning episodes cost them $100 million. TheirCredo—their values—wouldn’t have allowed them todo anything else, even though the company and theproduct were blameless. Johnson & Johnson hascreated a powerful ethos and worldview that drivesboth their internal behavior and their branding efforts.

You’d better believe consumers are attracted to a brand

with such strong values. And employees want to workat a company that’s driven by its values—beliefsthey share.

Start with values and the rest will follow. Branding today must be a company-wide initiativebased on core values. A company’s performance in themarketplace usually starts with the internal dynamics ofthe company. And if a brand sprouts from an internaltruth rather than a manufactured image, then the brandstarts here as well—on the inside of a company.

Executive leadership must realize that branding is no

longer solely the province of the marketing department.Companies must build a brand culture that is rootedin the heart of the organization and radiates outwardas a natural set of actions based on a common ethosand worldview. This brand culture will not only uniteemployees in a common purpose and vision, it will alsoattract consumers and engage them in a deep andmeaningful relationship that transcends the traditionalmarketing goals of brand preference and brand loyalty.



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Appendix

1 Atkin, Douglas. The Culting of Brands: Turn YourCustomers Into True Believers. Portfolio (Penguin),2004 .

2 See our various footnotes.

3 Elliott, Richard and Davies, Andrea. “Symbolic Brands

and Authenticity of Identity Performance.”In Schroeder, Jonathan E. and Salzer-Mörling, Miriam.Brand Culture. Routledge, 2006 .

4 Geertz, Clifford. The Interpretation of Cultures. BasicBooks, 1973 .

5 Geertz, Clifford. The Interpretation of Cultures.Basic Books, 1973 .

6 ibid.

7 Elliot, Richard and Wattanasuwan, Kritsadarat.“Brands as Symbolic Resources for the Constructionof Identity.” International Journal of Advertising, 1998 .

8 Heilbrunn, Benoît. “Cultural Branding BetweenUtopia and A-topia.”In Schroeder and Salzer-Mörling. Brand Culture.Routledge, 2006 .

9 McCracken, Grant. Culture and Consumption II.Indiana University Press, 2005 .

10 Heilbrunn, Benoît. “Cultural Branding BetweenUtopia and A-topia.”In Schroeder and Salzer-Mörling. Brand Culture.Routledge, 2006 .

11 Geertz, Clifford. The Interpretation of Cultures.Basic Books, 1973 .

12 New York Times, October 27, 2007.

13 Elliot, Richard and Wattanasuwan, Kritsadarat.“Brands as Symbolic Resources for the Constructionof Identity.” International Journal of Advertising, 1998 .

14 Lesley Kump, Kurt Badenhausen and Maya Roney.“Beyond the Balance Sheet.” Forbes Magazine,June 20, 2005.



About Liquid Agency



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An overview of Liquid Agency.Our mission is to transform companies into amazing brands through Silicon Valley

Thinking. What this means is that we’re not satised with just making our clients lookbetter – we want them to be better. After all, who does not want to be amazing?

Over the years we’ve crafted branding programswith some of the most innnovative people in Silicon

Valley. In the process we have learned what ittakes to build the kind of brands that attract thebest talent, make amazing products, and turn agood prot while making a positive difference in theworld.

We’ve had the distinct pleasure of working withwell-known brands, like Adidas, Anheuser-Busch,

Cisco, HP, Hitachi, Jeep, Intel, Microsoft, Sony, T-Mobile and Visa. And, we have also worked withlots of lesser known brands, including Amyris,Meebo, Olive, Plastic Jungle, and others.

Our work has received numerous regional, nationaland international awards, including multiple ADDYs,ROSEY’s, REBRAND Awards, RedDot Awards,and awards from other respected institutions.

Most importantly, we take great pride in doing workthat gets results for our clients. Whether we aredeveloping a new brand identity or an integratedproduct launch campaign, we enjoy working withpeople who aspire to do work that is innovative,memorable, fun and effective.

Our headquarters are in Silicon Valley (CA), and wealso have ofces in Portland (OR), New York (NY),Nottingham (UK) and Santiago (Chile), allowing us

to provide services to clients with a global footprint.

If you’d like to learn more about us, please visit:www.liquidagency.com

Our services include:

• Brand strategy • Brand identity • Environmental branding • Retail branding • Internal branding • Digital branding

http://www.liquidagency.com/

http://www.liquidagency.com/



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We’d love to hear from you.

If you’re interested in learning more about Liquid and how we could help yougain a competitive advantage, please feel free to contact:

Scott GardnerCEO and President, WW

T 408.781.2729E [email protected]

Alfredo MuccinoChief Creative Ofcer, WW


Randy BassoExecutive Vice President, WW


USA EUROPE

LATIN AMERICA

Marty NeumeierDirector of Transformation, WW


Dennis Hahn Vice President of Strategy, WW T 503.330.4332E [email protected]

Philip MascherClient Ambassador, WW


Mark ShawPresident, EU

T 00 44 (0) 7973 932717E [email protected]

Cristián MonteguPresident and Chief Creative Ofcer, LATAM T (56.9) 9 433 3000E [email protected]

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