strategies for disunity

THE SOUNDPRESENTS

STRATEGIES

FOR

DISUNITY

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UNDERSTANDING DISUNITY

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Thepoliticalshocksof2016caughtmanyofusoffguardandrevealedsomeuncomfortabletruthsthatuntilrecentlymostwerehappytoignore.

Theyrevealedhowdisconnectedandpolarizedpeopleare,andhowradicallydifferenttheyseethefutureoftheircommunitiesandcountries.Mostcritically,theyrevealedhowpowerfulaforcedisunityhasbecome.

Ifthemarketofayearagowasatitsmostcompetitiveandcrowded,it’snowalsobecomefracturedalongsomeverywideemotionalandpoliticalfaultlines.

AtTheSound,goingbeyondtheobvious,honinginonthefringesandexploringdifAicultterrainisattheheartofourphilosophy.

Forthepastyearwehavebeenexploringthesefaultlinestogainadeeperunderstandingofhowdisunityisaffectinghowpeoplecommunicatewitheachotherandhowtheyseetheworldaroundthem.

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No Shared Narrative

Hidden Feelings

Universal Protest

Trust Deficit

Peoplenolongershareacommonstoryandthestoriestheyoncesharedarenowbeingtoldin

differentways.Thismakesithardertocommunicatetoentiredemographicsatonce,butalsoprovidesan

opportunitytodeBinethenewuniversal.

Fearofsocialbacklashandthepoliticizationofeverythinghasledmanytokeeptheiropinionsprivate;fromfriends,family,andcolleagues,anddeAinitelyfrompollsters,data-scrapersandfocusgroups.Thishasresultedinamassofopinion

goingunnoticedandunrecorded.

Trustingovernment,media,NGOsandbusinesshasreachedanall-timelowandcontinuesto

decline.Becauseofthis,brandsarereachingatrusttippingpointwhereonebadmovecanquicklyalienatelargesegmentsoftheiraudience.

Protestisnolongerleftorright,neworold,urbanorrural–it’severywhere.Ithasbecomeadailyactivitythatpeopleexpressthroughconversation,onsocialmediaand

wherevertheyspendtheirmoney.

Hyper-Tribalism

Culturalanxietyisleadingpeopletoabandoncivictraditionandrealignaroundnewideals.Theemergingpartisanshipisespeciallypronouncedamongyoung

people.

DisunityappliesaAilterofconAlicttohowwecommunicate,whichmeanseventhemostinnocentandsimplemessagescanbeinterpretedinradicallydifferentwaysdependingonwhoyou’retalkingto.

DISUNITED TRENDS

Thetrendsandphenomenonthathaveemergedfromthisstateofdisunityarenotonlychanginghowweseeeachother,butarehavingimmediateeffectsonhowpeoplerelatetobrands.



NAVIGATING DISUNITY

Peoplehavebecomeangrier,lesstrustingandmoreeagertopickaAight.They’vealsogrownmorepassionateintheirbeliefs,andmorewillingtostandupforthem.

Webelievethatthedefaulttoneofourliveshaschanged,andbrandsthatignorethistoneshiftwillloseground,whilethosethatembraceitwillthrive.

Thereisn’tanyprovenformulaforhowtonavigatethisnewlandscape,andunderstandingthisshiftcanbeoverwhelming,dauntingandchaotic.

ButatTheSoundwelikechaos,andwe’vebeenembracingitforawhilenow.

Hereare6strategiesthatwe’vebeenworkingontohelpyougetanideaofwherewe’recomingfrom.



1 / Prepare FOR BRAND ANARCHY 2/ Smash YOUR BUBBLE 3/ Rediscover YOUR AUDIENCE 4/ Restate YOUR PURPOSE 5/ Find A COMMON ENEMY 6/ Expand THE CONVERSATION

STRATEGIES FOR DISUNITY


1/ Prepare FOR BRAND ANARCHY

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Having a campaign or product become a meme is the holy grail of earned media, but the democratization of content breeds chaos, both good and bad – the same energy that can propel your brand to virality can also condemn it to villainy.

In a year where millions of casual bystanders engaged in meme warfare against multinational brands, Wendy’s was able to pull

off a massive social media coup.

The #Nuggsforcarter phenomenon saw a hungry 16-year-old hijack Wendy’s Twitter presence with his desperate appeal for free chicken nuggets – his original plea going on to become the

most shared tweet of all time.

In the end, Carter got his nuggs, and because Wendy’s embraced the anarchic nature of the event, they got their free

publicity – over $7 million dollars worth.

Viral events can amplify pre-existing feelings – understanding how your brand might already be in conflict with people’s values will help assess the context shaping their reactions and better prepare you for a crisis – or an opportunity.

Use in-depth consumer research to uncover the unexpected ways in which people relate to your brand and its category long before an incident triggers a response.

Example

WENDY’S

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2/ Smash YOUR BUBBLE

Disunity is the problem and empathy is the solution, but empathy isn’t born from dispassionate observation – it comes from listening, action and shared experience.

Go beyond secondary research and backroom monitoring and meet your core audience face to face by taking part in consumer connects. Working to break down the barrier between front and back rooms will help you better understand your audience’s POV and life story.

Get out of your safe space and embrace a culture of fearless bravery when it comes to interacting with your audience. More intimacy will lead to more insight.

Pantene admitted they had a problem: they’d been ignoring people. Specifically, women of color. This had been leading

them towards a biased understanding of what their product was and who it was for.

With their “Strong is Beautiful” campaign and newly launched “Gold Series” product line, they sought to bring about a more

inclusive approach to how they do business.

By acknowledging their bias and listening to new voices, they were able to celebrate all hair and build a bigger and stronger

space for their brand.

Example

PANTENE



3/ Rediscover YOUR AUDIENCE

If your audience was apolitical before, odds are that their politics have shifted – and these shifts may have impacted how they view your brand. You can challenge your in-house bias by running a hypothesis session on who your audience is and what they think of you.

Regardless of whether or not your brand is in any way political, people are looking to sort out what side you fall on. Learn about your brand’s political nuances by conducting ethnographic work that touches on how it is viewed within the broader political matrix.

Don’t shy away from integrating political understanding into your process - knowing your audience’s politics is critical to knowing how they will interpret your message.

With their new campaign, Worlds Apart: An Experiment, strangers with radically different views took part in a “social

experiment” to see if they could find common ground.

The campaign directly confronted disunity through the voices of these individuals, forcing them to work together to solve a

shared problem.

By being willing to take on the reality of individual politics, Heineken positioned itself as a timely unifier.

Example

HEINEKEN



4/ Restate YOUR PURPOSE

A clear, consistent and truthful purpose is the single most effective tool your brand can use to stand out against the noise of disunity. But it isn’t merely copy, tag lines or words at the start of an anthem campaign.

A purpose can’t be faked or be overly engineered – it needs to come from somewhere real. To find that realness, use a purpose workshop to discover what kinds of reasons for being live within your brand’s DNA.

Avoid ideas that are vague or convoluted and embrace the simple and actionable. A purpose should be easily grasped and serve as inspiration throughout the entirety of your brand and internal culture.

Starbucks is a liberal brand, with liberal customers and liberal employees.

By promising to support refugees, Starbucks not only stuck to their ideals, but it escalated them in

the face of credible boycott threats.

They were willing to alienate potential customers because they believed in what they were doing and

knew their audience would back them.

Example

STARBUCKS


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5/ Find A COMMON ENEMY

A safe approach is the surest path to indifference, while taking a political stance can lead to alienation. Focus instead on how your purpose aligns with your audience’s and help them fight back against a common enemy.

Enemies are not other brands, but cultural currents or attitudes that create a tension people are living with and against. Identify your enemies by doing a cultural scan that looks at the currents that are most deeply impacting the lives of your audience.

Understanding who your enemies are will allow your brand and audience work together in a tangibly meaningful way.

Everyone hates a scam artist. Banks especially.

With this in mind, Barclays’ “Digital Safety” campaign goes to war with fraudsters on behalf of its customers.

Not just a series of ads, the campaign includes a major drive to help equip Barclays’ customers with the tools to fight

back against fraud.

By targeting a shared enemy, Barclays was able to connect on a deeper level with their audience, a level on which they

work together to solve a common problem.

Example

BARCLAYS




Conversation marketing is crucial in attracting the elusive attention of Millennials and Gen Edge. But most brands mute their potential from day one of the research stage.

Don’t just talk to advocates, embrace neutrals and skeptics as well – engaging with those who have little or negative interest in your brand will help you better understand how your messaging will fare in the real world.

Understanding what the opposition thinks and how influential their arguments can be is critical. Brands that listen to a diversity of voices, even their haters, will have a better chance of defining the new universal.

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6/ Expand THE CONVERSATION

Johnnie Walker’s latest campaign, “Keep Walking America” sees the eponymous Scottish whiskey take a documentary-style trip

from sea to shining sea.

But it’s not the brand’s typical voices that are met along that journey: it’s ranchers, athletes, burnt-out nurses, musicians,

cowboys, soldiers, and a lot of everyday Americans.

Set to the lyrics of Woodie Guthrie’s “This Land Is Your Land”, in both English and Spanish, the campaign expands the dialogue

surrounding Johnnie Walker and repositions it at the new heart of a new type of Americana.

Example

JOHNNIE WALKER




strategies for disunity

Marketing