8: How We Consume Fear in a Time of Crisis, and the Brands That Change the Story

03/19/20 • 74 min

Times of uncertainty have a way of revealing the mindset of a society, and today’s imminent threats - from COVID-19 to political instability and global warming - are revealing a mental shift that emotion-led brands are responding to.

A new league of brands has created businesses around beautifully designed, high style, premium disaster kits and products that are suddenly relevant in a space that’s gotten very little attention in the past. Meanwhile, the world’s elite have invested in luxury bunkers, exotic real estate and indulgent doomsday plans.

When did disaster preparedness become so fashionable? What can these companies teach us about branding in a time of crisis?

We speak with BBC and Vox journalist Colleen Hagerty, eschatologist and end-of-world expert Phil Torres, and founders Ryan Kuhlman and Lauren Tafuri of the popular disaster kit brand Preppi to explore the different narratives and deep rooted human beliefs that make sense of this trend.

Don’t be misled by beautiful design and luxury veneers. There’s something going on in the subtext here that can explain a meaningful shift in our cultural values.

Links to interesting things mentioned in this episode:

Check out our website for more brand strategy thinking, and come connect with us on Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.

When did disaster preparedness become so fashionable? What can these companies teach us about branding in a time of crisis?

Don’t be misled by beautiful design and luxury veneers. There’s something going on in the subtext here that can explain a meaningful shift in our cultural values.

Links to interesting things mentioned in this episode:

Check out our website for more brand strategy thinking, and come connect with us on Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.

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7: Cultural Constructs Are The Real Brand Opportunity

Brands like Ring and Billie leverage the uncertainty of our changing value systems to create new interest in old paradigms. In other words, they play with cultural constructs: arbitrary systems determined by our culture or our community, rather than a truth that stems from an immovable aspect of human nature. They prove that when constructs start to change, real brand opportunities start to emerge.

In this house episode, Jasmine and Jean-Louis talk about some of the biggest constructs defining our lives right now, from the nuclear family and privacy to gender and personal hygiene. These are constructs in limbo, creating a new brand whitespace for smart companies to play in.

They are also constructs that affect our everyday decisions. Some may seem inconsequential, others may seem like they are fading, but don't be fooled. Many of our archaic constructs are alive and well, dictating how we move within our lives.

Links to interesting things mentioned in this episode:

Check out our website for more brand strategy thinking, and come connect with us on Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.

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9: What should brands be doing in the time of COVID-19?

The big question: how is a brand supposed to act during a pandemic? How can CEOs and brand owners serve their users in a meaningful way while still struggling to survive themselves? It’s a difficult situation that requires sensitivity, listening and an open mind.

In this house episode, Jean-Louis and Jasmine survey the current brand landscape for examples of companies that are doing it right. From Marriott’s open display of vulnerability to Parsley Health’s implicit giving of permission and Cameo’s smartly aligned feel-good content - the answer to this dilemma is never as simple as “We’re here for you” founder letters and reduced prices.

To really serve your users, you have to read the room and know one thing: business may be slowing, but culture is accelerating.

While all of us are holed away in our homes and commerce quiets down, our norms and beliefs are silently evolving in the background. Among other things, automation will change our relationship to work, a retreat to nostalgia will further the divide between Gen Y and Z, and a sense of self-sufficiency will change how we view our most intimate spaces.

Throughout the episode we try to predict what the future may hold in a time of quarantine because, like all strategy, you can’t see your next move if you can’t envision how the world will change.

Links to interesting things mentioned in this episode:

Check out our website for more brand strategy thinking, and come connect with us on Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.