Brands On The Therapy Couch– new book exploring link between brands and psychology

 

“Brands on the therapy couch” (which you can find on this link for inquiry and purchase inside and outside Lebanon) is literally a book like no other. Co-authored by Ali Agha with Tarek Chemaly and Geoana Hobeiche, the book says what it does on the tin: It treats brands as humans and goes to analyze their disorders. The book is divided into two sections, the first is BanDisorders where the authors play psychotherapist (sometimes dividing the word into three) with the brands – and yes, the authors are aware that at times the word brand was used as a substitute to companies – detailing the logic behind their ailments and psychological disorders. The second part AntiBrandiotics offers a clear and – at times surgically precise – way to assess a possible way out of the maze along with very pointed questions to put the situation into focus.

Commenting on the book, internationally-respected brand counsel Quirino Malandrino said: “You had me at page 1 when you say “…treat brands as if they were humans, each with its own unique struggles … placing brands on the metaphorical therapy couch to explore their disorders”. Brilliant perspectives that are extremely helpful in diagnosing the issues, and then a clear examination of targeted problem-solving action and tools. I will definitely use these notions in my corporate branding work.”

Also giving his thoughts about it, Mark Tungate, editorial director of the Epica Awards commented: “An intriguing, thoughtful and entirely original approach to branding, this book requires your full attention. It is not for the faint-hearted, but whether you are consumer or a brand owner, it is a deep voyage into the psyche of brands, the ailments that weaken them – and the solutions that will allow them to thrive.”

The book, written literally while Lebanon was at war and Syria was experiencing upheavals (which is an indicator to the nationality of the authors) is nothing but a proof of Agha’s, Chemaly’s, and Hobeiche’s resourcefulness. You are truly invited on this trip which explores an unexpected, completely human and humane aspect of branding and psychology.

The book can be bought digitally here.

Moskvitch is back - no news about Trabant

Taking a break from the seat-gripping (no pun) elections result in Lebanon (and no, you cannot pin Jad Ghosn's 88 vote loss on me, I don't vote in Metn).

So to quote a satiric comment "Russia has invented a time machine".

Moskvitch is back.

OK, first the story. Renault is pulling out of Russia - like many other major brands following the Ukraine war. But in order not to leave 45,000 people in its factory jobless, it decided to sell their Moscow plant to the municipality for one rouble (with the option of buying it back in 6 years - by then either the war would have ended or the public opinion in the world would have shifted. Whichever comes first).

So Moscow is back to building the car it knows how to build, the Moskvitch. Symbol of all things related to the USSR, the car actually won some design awards, some races, had its line expand to Belgium at one point (with a fully factory there). Sure, the brand was eclipsed by the better-built Lada eventually.

Of course, if one can bring the Moskvitch back, my stomach is tickling about the East-German Trabant. If you have not seen the Trabant scene in the movie Goodbye Lenin, please do, it's comedy gold. 

Actually why not watch Goodbye Lenin here... 

Brands and the hypocrisy of values

Artwork by Tarek Chemaly

In David Foster Wallace's book "Infinite Jest" (a writer's writer book if there was any) years are referred by the name of their corporate sponsors called "revenue enhancing subsidized time" (and yes, trademarked). Recently, a piece ran in The Guardian newspaper entitled "why corporate social responsibility is BS" by Robert Reich (who was a former US Secretary of Labor no less) and today in the much-hyped sneaker/streetwear bible Highsnobiety a frontpage article entitled "Should brands even be speaking about values".

Look, by enhancing their bottom line (selling one extra shirt or pair of trainers or a butter packet) brands are insuring their sustainability, and whereas - mind you this does not apply yet in markets such as the Arab world - young consumers support companies that share their values (in 2019 there was a report by Deloite worth reading, here) so when  Nike went into the Colin Kaepernick debacle (read here) they knew who was buttering their bread - and no, it was not those aging conservative older demographic who would buy one pair of trainers a year. However, in real life, Nike got caught flat-footed with the pregnant women ad (see here). In short here's Nike's position: They support women who are pregnant, as long as the pregnant women are not on their roaster of athletes such as Alysia Montano and Kara Gouche.

Classic example. Values only apply where and when it makes financial sense to be "on the right side of history" and let's face it "on the right side of the finances". Sure, some companies do mean it - I think of Patagonia for example - which no longer accepts adding corporate logos to its much-popular fleece vests allowing the clothes in question to be passed on to other people, or reworn outside business hours, or resold more easily at thrift stores. 

Remember, I am part of the Epica awards, and every year I see tons of ads about "good causes" brought to us by brands that expose their cases in very detailed presentations (mostly soundtracked by silly sad pianos) and how these acts changed the whole society they were part of (no kidding, a Lebanese agency claimed that it increased women's representation in the parliament because they changed a word in the national anthem making it a bit more feminist). But let's be honest, just as I said changing a law does not imply changing a mentality (see here), a silly short-termed Corporate Social Responsibility act is not going to change the life of a whole society, what it will do - it will bring consumers to thinking that their favorite brand is aligned with their values.

Welcome to the year of the Whisper-Quiet Maytag Dishmaster.