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PUBLICATIONS FINANCIAL FIRMS GOVERNMENT/NGO
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AUTOMOTIVE Chrysler Motors Corp. General Motors Mercedes-Benz NA Mercedes-Benz USA Mitsubishi Motor Sales Nissan North America Volkswagen of America Harley-Davidson TECHNOLOGY ENTERTAINMENT CONSUMER PRODUCTS
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I have two words for you this week. Corporatism. Anticorporatism. That was then. This is now. Corporatism is white. Anticorporatisim is not white. Definitions have gotten much more complicated since we got the shit kicked out of us in 'Nam. Especially political definitions. So let's not even go there, because Corporatism and Anticorporatism are far more sophisticated points of view than any random political discourse. This means that you are either a "Corporatist" or an "Anticorporatist." Of course, since most of you reading this earn your livings by doing the work of one or many corporate entities, it's fair to assume that you are currently categorized as "Uncommitted." You see, that's another thing about these two words. Most of us who would consider ourselves "Corporatists" are not really Corporatists in the full sense of the word. You really have to be a true believer in the Nike, Mitsubishi, or Apple "Way," to be considered a bonified Corporatist. You have to be more than just an employee. You have to be a member of the "faithful." THERE ARE ONLY A FEW CORPORATE CULTURES THAT ARE SO STRONG THAT THE CLASSIFICATION OF CORPORATIST COULD ACTUALLY APPLY TO THEIR CUSTOMERS AS WELL. Obviously, Apple is at the top of that list. Mercedes-Benz and perhaps Corvette still have a few true believers among their owner ranks. Readers of the New York Times and WSJ also have Corporatist traits if you scratch the surface. But this is about the next generation of troublemakers. And to pin those boys down you have to go to the very top of the corporate culture (not necessarily the corporate ladder) for the Corporatists. They make trouble just by their myopic (and yes, arrogant) decision-making practices. Then there is the other side of the coin. The Anticorporatists. Not the hard-core demonstrators that shut down entire cities for hosting the G8 Summits or spike trees to stop Georgia-Pacific from turning century old redwoods into boxcars of Brawny Towels. They're just the vocal and highly organized tip of the iceberg. I'm talking about the millions and millions of people who read and embrace works like, "Cluetrain Manifesto" and "No Logo," and then go to their closet and vow to toss out every pair of Nikes, or go to their fridge and look for Coca-cola products to jettison. Of course most of those folks never make it to the dumpster with their Nikes or Cokes. They just scratch those brands off their shopping lists for future consideration. That is the first step in their lives as Anticorporate activists. But here is what is worthy of our concerns as marketers. This singular act of economic protest makes them feel really, really good about themselves. So good that they begin to share the experience among their friends and family members. This past week Kellogg's announced that they were pulling $44 million in advertising support off of Nickelodeon and Cartoon Network for their products that were deemed non-nutritional by two national groups of Anticorporatists in sheep's clothing. Snap, Crackle and Pop got their asses kicked, big time by the Center for Science in the Public Interest and the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood. Now they have Micky D's in their crosshairs. Now all you guys and gals out there at the Urbana Campus of the University of Illinois, take note. You won't find this in any text book. By the time you are ready for the job market, this issue may well be the only thing that matters to the person you are interviewing with. But what does all of this mean for our side of the coin, right now? Well, for one thing, it looks like the days of the Imperial Corporation may be numbered. An article in BrandCentral.com, "The world's only online exchange about branding," stated that "In Seattle, it was these and many other accounts of cold-blooded capitalism and environmental disregard that eventually turned the frustrations of hundreds of protestors into a violent attack on the WTO. Indeed, such was the strength of public opinion that it immediately forced the boards of some of the world's biggest companies to rethink their strategies and consider a more ethical bias toward corporate policy. For some organizations however, it was already too late as while they were busy keeping a close eye on their margins, their competitors were embracing a paradigm shift that was changing the face of how brands were perceived." This is just one of the reasons that the practice of Adaptive Branding is receiving so much attention lately. The AB teams at GASP have had their hands full this month conducting half-day seminars for companies in and around Southern California to help them set up Adaptive Branding pilot programs to get familiar with the differences between Adaptive Branding and traditional advertising. Companies are well advised to consider the potential impact of Anticorporate sentiment upon the buying habits of the wired generation and those they influence. The days when a company can proudly claim that they stand for this product benefit or that service feature are drawing to a close. Corporatists beware. Stay tuned.
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