Burberry re brand

Following on the notion of how regardless of quality, it is how brands advertise their products that changes our perception of the brand, the Burberry re brand is a famous example of this. 

The Burberry brand is defined by its authentic British heritage and is globally recognized by the iconic trench coat, trademark check and Prorsum horse logo. In the 70s the brand became associated football firms, hooliganism and later on "Chav" culture. Fake garments of the brand with the iconic check pattern were sold to the masses and as a result lowered Burberry's exclusivity and high desirability. The significant turn around for the brand happened in 2006 when the fashion house appointed Angela Ahrendts as their CEO.
Following a six-month tour of the brand’s global locations, Ahrendts found that the customer experience was anything but consistent. In the process of global expansion, the company had completely lost its focus and its exclusivity. Ahrendts’ first strategic move in starting Burberry's road to success was to centralize design and revive the brand’s heritage. In order to engineer a pure, global luxury brand that would compete with its much larger rivals, Ahrendts appointed Christopher Bailey to the position of global design director. Ahrendts was very clear in her mission: “Anything that the consumer sees—anywhere in the world—will go through his office. No exceptions.”

The success of Burberry’s re branding is seen in its ability to adapt current styles while still celebrating its history. The company continually launched digital marketing initiatives, such as Burberry Acoustic, Art of the Trench, and a partnership with Google, to bring the brands relevancy up to date with the new generation. By branding itself digitally Burberry successfully appealed itself to a younger consumer. Burberry also sought to use the power of celebrity endorsement to bring back that aura of exclusivity and high end appeal. 

In society, celebrities have always been a source for entertainment and idolisation. This then creates a Midas touch for whatever the celebrity endorses. When Burberry adopted celebrity endorsement in their campaign, it inevitably elevated their brand's status both in perceived quality and desirability. Burberry effectively used its celebrity endorsement campaign by selecting models that were current and high profile. Having models such as Cara Delevigne allowed for Burberry's brand image look current, edgy and exciting. This greatly appealed to the younger generation because of the emotional connection they share. Appeal is a major key in a brand's success because the more likely the consumer likes the advertising, the more likely it creates favourable attitude towards the brand. Furthermore by having these high gloss, celeb endorsed ads, it increased Burberry's exclusive appeal and made them look like a luxury product once again. 

In terms of the Brief, what Burberry's use of celebrity and digital endorsement represent is their shift in public perception. By using these two methods of advertising, Burberry are effectively appealing to its younger consumer, i.e Millennials, that other fashion brands had forgotten about. A digital platform for its advertising is an effective way to appeal to a generation where most of their time is spent on the internet. The rise in digital technology and social media,  means that Burberry's adverts are given greater exposure as their audience are on the platform which they spend the most time on. It is also because millennials are so exposed to the internet that celebrities are more exposed as a result. Combining these two ultimately increases their overall brand image and thus shifts their public perception.

Illusion of Free Choice

Luxxotica is a company that creates nearly all of the designer eyewear consumers can purchase on the market today. According to Forbes, Luxxotica made 75 million glasses in 2012, including brands such as Prada, Tiffany & Co, Coach, Versace, Bulgari, Chanel , Dolce & Gabbana, Ray-Ban and more. Luxottica produced 46.6 million sunglasses and 26.1 million prescription frames. Then it sold them through one of its 7,000 retail stores like Sunglasses Hut, Pearle Vision or LensCrafters around the globe.

What this highlights is the marketing techniques of fashion brands in order to appeal to its target audience. Take for example the differences between Ray- Ban and Prada. 

In the Ray-Ban advert, the attractive models are seen to be enjoying their environment, laughing, whilst dressed in everyday clothes that the normal consumer can see themselves in. The black and white filter over the image gives Ray-Ban a more refined aesthetic that elevates the brands social status. This is further emphasised by the line of copy on the top of the ad which explicitly states that Ray Ban is a cool brand, a brand that celebrates independence of character and being true to yourself. With this in mind, it is clear that Ray-Ban wants to appeal to a wide target audience, as evidenced by the female and male model, and because of this wide appeal, the sunglasses are priced as such, if not appealing to a slightly more upscale crowd. 

Compare this to an advert by Prada. 

Unlike the Ray-Ban advert, Prada does not try to sell a lifestyle that the sunglasses can create but rather focusing on the sunglasses which are the focal point of the advert. Prada also conveys a high fashion aesthetic through its clear use of a runway model, an objective/neutral background, clothing accessories that compliment the sunglasses colour scheme and a simple statement of just "Prada Eyewear". The seemingly effortless advertising made by Prada communicates a brand that appeals entirely towards it intended audience. That audience being those that are more fashion conscious, those that probably attend fashion shows, those who want to have an air of sophistication through their perfect make up and hair and most importantly those who have money and higher in the social ladder. Prada is an esteemed and established fashion house in the industry. They do not need a tagline to advertise their products unlike Ray-Bans. When this is all factored together, the advert effectively communicates the fact that Prada is an expensive, high fashion brand. This is evidence through their pricing of their actual sunglasses.

The significance of demonstrating this example is to show how brands advertise their products to appeal to a certain target audience which then dictates their pricing point. It would be logical to think that the higher the brands value, in this case Prada, the higher the quality of the product. This is because more expensive materials and skilled manufacturing process would have been used to justify the high pricing point. However if Luxxotica are manufacturing and distributing these sunglasses, this would break the illusion of choice as the quality of the sunglasses are not a determining factor. When the quality of the sunglasses are not a factor anymore, it is how these two brands use advertising to sell a certain identity to the consumer. The consumer then aligns his/her perceived self image to the brand and buys the product, bearing in mind if Luxxotica is taken into the equation. The consumer may still have preconceived notions of the brands quality if he/she does not know of Luxxotica. 

In terms of the practical work, what this means is that the advert should focus on advertising techniques. How the brands communicate a certain identity onto the consumer rather than relying on the brands heritage or quality to sell the product.