Conscious Brands/WokeBrands

The term Woke has a political origin derived from African-American protest movements. It is used as an idiom that refers to having an awareness of social and racial injustice problems in the United States. The concept derives from the expression “Stay woke” within the Black Lives Matter movement. This movement fights against violence and systematic racism towards the African-American population in the United States. It was triggered by police brutality against them, coupled with racial inequalities in the American judicial system. In this context, the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter emerged in social networks after the murder of the teenager Trayvon Martin in Florida, followed by similar events in New York. The call to be alert (“Stay woke”) in the aftermath of these attacks was highlighted in digital media with a hashtag replicated by top-rank celebrities. As a result, it became an abbreviation (Woke) used in traditional media outlets such as MTV, Businessweek, and The New York Times.

This branding trend emerges as a response to new consumers empowered by a high level of social awareness, well informed (primarily through social networks), that demand high moral and ethical standards to brands on social issues (^{Bernard, 2019}; ^{Roper & Fill, 2012}). The woke trend has a “citizen” point of view and therefore may be confused with related concepts, such as Corporate Social Responsibility⁴ or brand activism (^{Dauvergne, 2017}), despite their differences

An alternative understanding of the WokeBrand movement has been endowing brands to a purpose, i.e., providing prominent value orientation and entangling brand work with a determined value (^{Fromm, 2020}). However, the difference with the Woke-type position lies in the political and activist component of a brand takes. While brands endowed with a purpose subsidize or promote an ideology from a transversal value (^{Sassatelli, 2007}), WokeBrands do so from a critical and partisan stance and frame on a particular social-political phenomenon (^{Beckman & Dalsjö Åström, 2019}).

The emergence of brands endowed with purpose and political conviction understands companies as “great institutions capable of generating social change” (Fyke et al., in ^{Austin et al., 2019}) in matters where governments and NGOs fall short.

From this expectation, companies that adopt a Woke posture ascribe -as a corporation- to a social dimension as agents of change (^{Gaither et al., 2018}). Such interest transcends and exceeds the turn and responsibility of the operation itself (^{Dodd, 2018}), as understood from sustainability or environmental mitigation (scope of Social Responsibility), but which also addresses a greater variety of dimensions and complexities (for a good classification, see ^{Garriga & Melé, 2004}).

The aforementioned corporate stances related to Woke causes are usually controversial, becoming corporate activism in response to government policies or social issues (^{Dodd & Supa, 2014}). Thus, it has been argued that brands and corporations are then involved in a political dialogue that supports or opposes a particular cause (^{Clemensen, 2019}), such as feminism or discrimination of a minority group.

The previous definitions contrast with previous conceptualizations regarding the corporations’ roles within society that advised brands and corporations to maintain a neutral position on controversial issues (Korschun et al., in ^{Austin et al., 2019}). While research on these topics is relatively new and there is not yet abundant literature discussing the matter (^{Austin et al., 2019}), some work suggests that companies that adopt a social cause strategy have increased their consumers’ respect and their positive valuation (^{Dodd & Supa, 2014}; ^{Korschun et al., 2016}).

Taking a political stance implies -by transitivity- having an opinion based on a set of determined values, that is to say, from a cultural and critical studies perspective, to adopt an ideological approach (^{Holt, 1995}, ²⁰⁰²). Under this prism, taking a political stance helps brands insert themselves within society through a story that articulates a symbolic function in the constitution of the subjects inserted in that group (^{Holt, 1995}, ²⁰⁰²).

Accordingly, the political narrative assumed by a corporation operates as a symbolic representation of a particular social group (^{Hall & du Gay, 1996}), arranged in a discourse that psychologically and socially models a group of individuals in a political and cultural context (^{van Djik, 1998}). Consequently, this narrative affects a social consciousness that transcends the structure of the individual text by normatively establishing a representation, style, and order of a larger discourse (^{Fairclough, 2003}). In other words, political discourse represents a specific group and shapes them in its narrative.

In increasingly global contexts, the possible relationships and associations attributed to a corporation are attached to its brand. Brands are the greatest exponents of a company’s symbolic representation. They can be understood as a moderator, a cultural symbol that -through associations of representation and rhetoric- creates frames and meanings to those consumer groups (^{Cayla & Eckhordt, 2008}; ^{Lury, 2004}) through a story that gives a sense of time and space. In addition, brands create a social effect (^{McCraken, 1986}), such as supporting or rejecting a cause or a particular social movement.

While understanding brands from particular social values that generate loyalty among customers is not new (^{Sassatelli, 2007}), the originality of an emphasis on woke brands lies in its politicized point of view (^{Wenger-Trayner, 2017}). This political statement is established as a moral position (^{Salzer-Mörling, 2010}) by which brands take a critical stance on aspects of social life in general (such as feminism, racism, etc.).

This position translates into an opinion and thus into communication which is consistent with the brand’s vision towards a specific subject. An example is the case of Nike, in which the brand assumes in the person of Colin Kaepernick not only a position against racism in the United States but the affiliation to the Black Lives Matter movement (^{ND J, 2018}). This brand alignment triggered a great social debate, which ultimately resulted in increasing the company’s value by nearly six billion dollars post-Kaepernick campaign (^{“Nike is embroiled in a doping scandal”, 2019}). According to Nike CEO Mark Parker, the campaign has generated record engagement (a way of measuring people’s involvement with a message) both in North America and the rest of the world (^{Salpini, 2019}).

Following Nike, another global brand followed a similar strategy. Gillette changed its traditional slogan “The best men you can get” -used for the last 30 years- to “The best men you can be”. The company launched a commercial that placed the brand against bullying, violence among children and women’s abuse, adhering to the demands of the Me Too movement. This shift leaves behind years of investing in successful athletes and famous male models, taking a stand against toxic masculinity, leaving behind the “macho tradition” within the brand values. On the contrary, the campaign calls for attention and awareness to leave male stereotypes behind, redefining masculinity as a social value when it can stop injustice and modify threatening social behaviors. The campaign calls to enter Gillette’s website, making a manifesto about the cause, and calls for nonprofit organizations to join forces around this matter.⁵

To the extent of our knowledge, there is no academic research regarding this topic in Chile. However, in the realm of advertising campaigns, it is worth highlighting the case of WOM; a domestic telecommunications company that entered the market with a brand proposal based on the appropriation of social trends that have impacted brand communications beyond its industry.

In 2015, a new competitor in the telecommunications industry entered Chile, mounted on the ruins of Nextel, which was never a success in Chile. The new brand had an aggressive campaign, offering the lowest price in the market and a disruptive communication and advertising strategy, which positioned WOM as a fighter against social injustices (^{“WOM, a case study”, 2018}). Bannister, one of the main WOM’s investment partners, based the social analysis behind the brand strategy on the concept of social injustice, mainly supported by a sense of abuse of power by the government, politicians and business people.

WOM finally entered the market with a tariff of 40% less than the industry average, forcing the rest of its competitors to react and even modify their product and service offerings (^{Burgos, 2017}). In conclusion, WOM had a brand discourse based on a controversial, rebellious and revolutionary image, using national contingency to elaborate subversive messages through non-traditional means that provided immediate brand awareness (^{Álvarez, 2018}).

For example, WOM projected its logo on the corporate buildings of their competitors (Entel and Movistar) and asked people to upload photos to social networks to participate for the most original one. This action was the kickoff campaign of #tuladowom (#yourwomside) as a social expression willing to report abuses on the socio-political system (^{“Chris Bannister, CEO de WOM”, 2017}), which positioned WOM as a Challenging Brand (^{Equipo de corresponsales, 2018}).

Precariousness of the industry

The informants describe the advertising industry as precarious in different dimensions. The most relevant refers to an imbalance of power between advertising agencies and their advertisers, which results in the agencies’ loss of innovation, independence, and creativity:

Getting involved in this issue is complex; these are debates deeply rooted in the main decision-makers (advertisers). Yet, we get the tactical downgrade, and we remain in a discourse that lacks depth, warning that they may fall into a brutal inconsistency (Interviewee 12, Strategy director).

This quote infers a theme that will be recurrent in the online and face-to-face interviews: decision making and leadership are processes carried out by corporations, leaving out the advertising industry as a generator of ideological change and adopter of new trends:

I don’t see it as very possible for a brand to stick to an ideology in Chile... We are more functional, and we look for specificity, like exclusivity. Besides, Chilean executives are afraid of changing when tested formulas are already successful. Adopting a brand strategy with an ideology or a purpose requires a more profound act in the business models themselves. That is a matter of corporate governance and not necessarily to a particular area (Interviewee 21, Advertising agency partner).

In addition, the industry is described as having difficulties in terms of working conditions, with few incentives, low salaries, and heavy workloads. Precariousness also encompasses the difficulties faced by the advertising industry in an environment where the market is becoming more complex, and consumers are unwilling to listen to messages:

In a context where advertising is invasive, it ceases to be preponderant, and brand value lies in a new relationship parameter. That is where brands with a position that integrates people may have a place (Informant 24, Market research agency manager).

This last quote introduces the second relevant result: the diversity of new advertising trends that distinguish brands whose value no longer lies in a differentiation based on the product but socially relevant issues attractive to consumers. Here, the answers are varied and range from technological changes that allow new formats and digitalization of content and trends associated with what is understood as brands with purpose, new economy, and new ways of communicating. As expressed by this respondent:

Some brands have democratized the use of the Internet, bringing connection to places with fewer resources. However, I have also seen the concern from brands and specifically Influencer Marketing. Brands are solving in various ways how to show people that what is done in influencer MKT is Advertising too. It is more organic, but it is still advertising (Informant 19, Deputy manager of digital marketing).

This category also includes environmental awareness, gender identity issues, anti-consumer trends, and digital disconnection.

Change in the industry and the environment

Interviewees agree that the industry is going through a period of dizzying change. Change is happening in terms of the social issues they are in charge of (directly derived from Chilean and global social changes) and in the advertising industry itself. The industry is facing radical technological changes, such as digitalization, that influence the work of advertisers, defines generations and makes their daily work more complex. Words such as transformation, evolution, and change are the concepts used to describe the advertising moment:

[There is a change] Digital platforms now concentrate more advertising expenditures than TV, which used to be the leader, and this responds to the new consumption trends, in which people stay connected all day long. The industry is also trying to reach consumers through credible individuals, hence the success of influencers (Interviewee 19, Assistant manager of digital marketing).

This period demands a constant evolution of brands -and those who manage them- to understand and adapt to the new social environment. It also requires an adaptation of strategy, given the more competitive and atomized market that works as an incentive to differentiate by anchoring with the new social trends:

I think advertising is an industry facing an increasingly competitive scenario. There’s a reduction of fees. The significant differentiation lies on the in agencies’ creative capacity and their capability to advise strategically, based on the use of data and new forms of research, to build socially relevant brands (Interviewee 12, Strategy director).

In this competitive context, in which strategy, creativity, and socially relevant brands are needed, informants see Wokebranding as a way to face a complex market and be concerned with those issues important for consumers’ identification. Thus, they understand Wokebranding as an extension or mutation of two previous brand trends: brands with purpose and corporate social responsibility.

The truth is that I didn’t know it (Wokebranding) by name. But I was aware that today there are campaigns focused on social responsibility, which are controversial since they touch upon moral issues. I think it is a good trend because brands concerned with social issues and larger audiences may help society evolve. I think this trend is a consequence of the new generation evolution, technology, etc. Today, we are more equal in terms of information access, which allows consumers to be more demanding towards brands (Interviewee 4, Planner’s assistant).

Moreover, the interviewees perceive that this type of trend dates back to the 20^th century and constitutes an inherent debate within modern advertising:

Brands are aware their core is to be corporate citizens. This is an issue for brands; since the 1920s, it is not a new thing. They used to be called insights that inspired communication; today, they guide a brand’s discourse and actions. Advertising has always been called to be a mirror of society, and it evolves and matures in social issues, which is reflected in the brands themselves. Therefore, the debate on brand ideology is typical of this century (Interviewee 23, VP strategic planning).

Strategic and ethical dimensions of Wokebranding

The interviewees identify the Woke trend in two complementary but distinct dimensions that eventually constitute an essential part of brand building within the current consumer market and advertising industry.

A first dimension refers to Wokebranding as a strategic brand response to environmental changes, addressed by adaptation (to the new environment, consumer, and social changes), and differentiation (necessary due to the homogeneity provided by technological advances). Therefore, interviewees perceive the adoption of this trend as a strategic process: “I think it has been a process, like everything in communication and marketing. This is the result of a path of changes and searches for effectiveness” (Interviewee 13, Commercial executive). For example, it is seen as “another way of seeking relevance in the face of an audience that is increasingly resistant to conventional advertising” (Interviewee 20, General account manager).

Therefore, adaptation translates into a better connection and engagement with these new consumers, based on a better understanding:

It is the best way for brands to connect with new consumers... I think it is necessary for brands to understand their consumers and imitate this way of communicating... this trend means that advertising has to join more disciplines to communicate better and understand the market better (Interviewee 11, Creative director).

Moreover, they believe brands need to adjust to these new trends to achieve sustainability on a long-term basis:

The consistency of a brand ideology should be measured in its business consequences. In my experience, it (brand ideology) is the main reason for the growth of the brands in my portfolio. Having a clear definition of the brand’s social position makes all the difference when managing a brand (Interviewee 22, Advertising agency partner).

The second group of respondents privileges the ethical mandate of adopting these trends. From this perspective, Wokebranding is understood as a brand’s ethical duty to face social changes. For example, one of the informants expresses that:

I think it is a very relevant issue to address; it should become a basic moral principle for each brand... I think it may be due to the increasingly relevant social responsibility… New generations are more concerned (with the socio-political environment) and take care of social actions. Today, we see how young people are supporting the Cop 25 to improve the world; Generation Z is the most socially committed; the new generations are showing us that we must improve as a human race… Therefore, woke advertising makes more sense than ever (Interviewee 19, Deputy manager of digital marketing).