American Apparel: Building brand identity through controversy

By Mike Witham

American Apparel is no stranger to leveraging sex in advertising. Their latest contest titled “Best bottom in the World” gave another example of how the brand is managing to build its identity by pushing the envelope.

In the contest, American Apparel invited women and men to submit photos of their butts, which were rated by viewers on a five-point scale. Two winners will be flown out to LA to participate in an American Apparel photo shoot.

The contest stirred up controversy with women’s activist groups who called it demeaning to women. However, this is not the first time American Apparel has created controversy over its advertising tactics. In 2007, billboards in Manhattan were taken down because of the overt sexual imagery.

American Apparel is not the first company to use highly sexual photos to sell their product. Abercrombie & Fitch was strongly criticized for its catalogs that featured semi-nude models. A&F tried to downplay the scandalous content with black and white artsy photography and only allowed individuals 18 and older to purchase the catalogs.

In contrast to A&F, there’s something refreshing about how unconcealed American Apparel is about their brand identity. American Apparel makes no attempt to run from their sexually explicit reputation that has helped the company thrive as a global brand. This speaks to CEO Dov Charney’s dedication to authenticity—even if the messaging is offensive to some. From a marketing standpoint, the contest is right on strategy for American Apparel—whether we like it or not.

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Mike Witham is a blogger at Vitamin IMC and a student in the Masters in Integrated Marketing Communications program at Northwestern University's Medill School. She can be reached at michaelwitham2010@u.northwestern.edu.

Polaroid's romance with Lady Gaga

There’s no shortage of celebrities partnering with corporations, but a new venture between Lady Gaga and Polaroid is one that few would have guessed. On January 6, Polaroid appointed the pop star to become the company’s creative director. Not only will she be the face of the brand but also develop a line of “imaging products” scheduled for release late this year.

Polaroid, which was acquired by a private equity firm in 2008 after filing Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, has had brand image problems for years. Most perceptions of the Polaroid brand fall somewhere between dated and irrelevant. Its products have missed the mark in recent years, fueling continued financial problems.

Undoubtedly Polaroid is hoping that some of Lady Gaga’s trendy cache will rub off on their new product line. Although details of the multi-year agreement are still unknown, Polaroid does intend to leverage Lady Gaga in future marketing campaigns, which includes having a presence at her upcoming tours.

It’s clear Polaroid is betting that Lady Gaga’s next few albums continue to generate the buzz her first two have and that her creative talents are translatable to developing innovative electronics.

The possibility for the partnership to be successful is not out of the question, since Lady Gaga appears to have legitimate creative talent that has already been used to launch a line of headphones. But the bigger issue here is how Polaroid will reconcile its brand heritage and core competencies (instant imaging) with the current fast-paced technological environment. If Polaroid can’t solve this problem, no celebrity – not even Lady Gaga - will be able to dig them out of their brand ditch.

--Mike Witham

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Mike Witham is a blogger at Vitamin IMC and a student in the Masters in Integrated Marketing Communications program at Northwestern University’s Medill School. She has a pet duck, Phil, who does tricks. She can be reached at michaelwitham2010@u.northwestern.edu.

Babies, Puppies and Kittens! Oh My!

People can’t get enough of the economy. Aside from the usual subjects such as the chasm that is the Nation’s growing debt and the unemployment rate, a less obvious socio-cultural affect of the recession is taking place. I’ll give you a hint: it has to do with Pokémon, the Mini-Cooper and animals dressed in outfits.

In recent years, there has been a proliferation of user-generated videos of animals and babies, not to mention miniature versions of popular foods such as the slider and cupcake. In November’s issue of Vanity Fair, Jim Windolf claims that the economic downturn is fueling our fascination with all things small, cute and cuddly.

Sure, cute stuff has always been present and appealing. However, it wasn’t until recently, Windolf argues, that the phenomenon took off on a mass scale of present-day proportions. It’s as if Americans have reverted back to familiar, child-like comforts during a decade that brought us 9/11 and the war in Iraq.

This trend has seeped into advertising, media and product design. Think of the small and rounded body of the SmartCar, the Snuggie, animated movies like “Up” and mascots like the Geico Gecko (a creature that has become more anthropomorphic as the years progress).

However, a small but growing cultural backlash is occurring. The cuteness craze is being mocked and satirized – signs that the “age of cuteness” could be losing traction and, possibly, coming to a close.

The implication for marketing and advertising is this: as professionals, we need to be cognizant of these larger societal trends as they bleed into popular culture and daily life. Doing so will aid in the understanding of consumer motivations and, subsequently, the development of more meaningful communications.

­--Mike Witham