El proceso de negociación del significado y de las prácticas en el aula

Two distinct aspects feature as part of a branded entertainment narrative’s requisite to embody brand identity: brand identity as communicated in a specific branded entertainment property such as a TV series or game, and the notion that the brand identity in the entertainment property should align with the brand’s overarching narrative, i.e. the image of the brand for credibility’s sake. Brand identity as communicated in a specific branded entertainment property is addressed first.

The objective of a brand identity model is to create a differential from other brands, to symbolise value and meaning in a social context, and ultimately to provide a platform from which durable brand-consumer relationships are built over the long term (Kohli & Thakor, 1997 and Alreck & Settle, 1999 cited by Andersson & Otterheim, 2003: 11). David Aaker developed a brand identity planning model (Aaker, 1996: 78) mainly consisting of four dimensions:

(i) The brand as a product, meaning its product or service associations, attributes and quality-value equation, among other.

(ii) The brand as an organisation, meaning its attribute associations for instance its values, culture and philosophies, among other.

(iii) The brand as a person, meaning its personality. This perspective could strengthen the brand by creating self-expressive benefits that become a vehicle by which consumers can express their own personality and this aids the relationship with the consumer (Aaker, 1996).

(iv) The brand as a symbol, meaning anything that can express the brand like its visual imagery, metaphors and heritage. These symbols could assist to create cohesion and structure to its identity and this enables easier recognition and recall (Aaker, 1996).

Aaker (2002: 7-8) said that brands that employ an identity-based focus can actively build their customer-based brand equity. One could perhaps argue that it would be ideal for a brand to feature these dimensions in its entirety because it could influence consumers’ judgements and feelings towards the brand in a more holistic way. In some instances, like BMW’s The Hire, the product stepped into the prime position, whereas for the Dove Real Beauty Sketches campaign the company values were dramatised. However, it seems that of Aaker’s four identity dimensions, narrative inherently allows a brand more than anything the opportunity to share its personality (Gilbar, 2010 and Tuttle, 2012). Some authors suggest that the brand should feature in the background of an entertainment piece or be more subtle (Craig-Lees &

Scott, 2008: 4), while others argue that bringing the brand into the lead of the story i.e.

ingraining the brand identity in a meaningful or authentic way into the narrative and even driving the narrative would maximise its potential for resonance (Lunenfield, 2009 and Olenski, 2015).

Continuing from this, a general practice principle is for the idea of the brand narrative to feature around the brand’s essence (Gilbar, 2010) or core promise in a memorable way (Lusensky, 2010: 5-6). Brand essence is inevitably true to the author’s (or the brand’s) identity and to ultimately stand for something, all of the mentioned being inherent to authenticity author’s identity and world view (Gubrium & Holstein, 1998: 178; Beverland et al., 2008; Carroll &

Wheaton, 2009: 1). An understanding of the mentioned expressed through the branded entertainment’s narrative could establish an assimilation between the target audience and the brand leading to resonance (Martínez-Jerez, 2004; Marsden, 2015; Rabe, 2016) and inevitably driving a sense of trust (Marie, 2012: 5 and Kopoulos, 2016).

Narrative means to “make known” from the Latin word: narratus (Berger, 1997: 6), i.e. brands making their identity known. Fisher (1989: 109) referred to elements of brand identity, such as character, culture, history and biography being part of a brand’s narrative philosophy on influencing decision-making. Being true to one’s character, culture, history and biography for instance comprise one’s authenticity (Burr, 1995) and would therefore influence a target

audience’s decision making to engage with a brand or partake in community activity, both being elements of resonance (Keller, 2001: 8).

Lunenfield (2009) said that the brand or the product ought to play an integral role in moving the story forward and he reasoned that your brand should be tied to the hero in the narrative in some “meaningful or authentic” way, else your brand will be considered just “background noise”. Lunenfied also stated that the content must be entertaining, informative, interesting and useful to the target audience whether a brand is present in the entertainment property or not. It is of importance to identify the brand’s core promise, values and personality that the brand owner wants to associate with the brand, keeping in mind that the story is not the brand’s biography (i.e. a history lesson), and should be memorable and easy to share (Lusensky, 2010: 5-6).

Chatman (1978) referred to the term satellites in narrative, providing texture to brand associations and attributes to position the brand in the viewer’s mind. One could argue that such associations and attributes could only be judged against what the brand communicates to be true to itself, i.e. being authentic in an attempt to establish the projected associations and attributes for what the audience believe it to be true as per the identity argument of authenticity. In making full use of establishing the brand’s authority of the entertainment property and making a convincing case for its brand associations and attributes in consistent application thereof, a sense of trust can be established with the target audience (Marie, 2012:

5 and Kopoulos, 2016). Trust, again, is a vital ingredient in the establishment of brand resonance (Keller, 2001: 8 and Ha et al., 2010: 916). Narrative that is authentic, creative and inspirational, in line with the brand’s identity, especially in terms of content marketing, can ensure a longer lasting brand-target audience relationship (Clerck, 2014) and is therefore strategic.

The second aspect: brand identity in the entertainment property to align with the brand’s overarching narrative, deserves attention. Only when brands can verify their projected identity in their actions will they be considered as authentic (Yankelovich, 2010:1). Brand narrative is the story of the ideas, experiences and values that represent the tangible, authentic depth and integrity of the brand's relationship with its consumer (Campbell & Simpson-Bint, 2010). Brand

narrative is also a summation of the past, present and future expectations of a brand and a platform for creating, involving and sustaining customer engagement (Dahlén et al., 2010: 6).

One could, for simplicity’s sake, say that brand narrative, or the overarching brand narrative (Dahlén et al., 2010: 383), is the image that a target audience buys into that should align with the brand identity expressed in the narrative of a branded entertainment property. The brand’s overarching narrative and the narrative in a branded entertainment property or campaign should not be confused. There is, however, a relationship between these two concepts as a branded entertainment property does not stand alone as it could and would be judged by a target audience in relation to that audience’s prior perception, emotional take or experience of that brand. If this prior perception, emotional take or experience is in misalignment with the branded entertainment narrative, the communication would be deemed as inauthentic and could harm the brand’s credibility (Kantor, 2011: 15).

If alignment between the overarching brand narrative and what the branded entertainment narrative is communicating is intact, the latter can leverage the former. Brand narratives can be seen as “interlocking story arcs” that assist in changing the emotional, symbolic and social connections between a brand and its consumer (Smith, 2011: 32). It seems that brand narrative has a strong foothold in the emotional experience space. As branded entertainment mainly aims to connect with a target audience emotionally in order to achieve resonance (Williams, 2013), the overarching brand narrative is of even more relevance to establish the branded entertainment narrative as authentic (Braam, 2012: 12, citing Nandan: 2005 and Ghodeswar, 2008).

Visconti (2010: 234) stated that ongoing dialogue between customers and companies ought to commence where the company, in this engagement, would only partially control the narrative whilst welcoming a co-creation and co-construction dynamic. He cited Berthon, Holbrook, Hulbert and Pitt (2007) in referring to brand managers upholding a “multilogue” with its consumers (and all stakeholders one could infer). He added Diamond, Sherry, Muñiz, McGarth, Kozinets and Borghini (2009) in saying that brand managers should also attend to and leverage a “symphony” of new and old brand meanings in this co-creation with the customer. These kinds of brand narratives could inspire and provide content to construct a target audience-related, authentic brand narrative. Some branded entertainment efforts are

even unscripted, yet the narratives of these unscripted entertainment properties would be created with sensitivity to or even dictated by the overarching brand narrative.

From the discussion on the narrative of branded entertainment to embody the brand’s identity in order to underpin a sense of authenticity, it is clear that not only should a brand, in line with the ownership principle argument, communicate its identity in the entertainment property, but should also align the narrative with the overarching brand narrative to establish a sense of credibility and trust. Credibility and trust are a direct result of brand communication experienced as authentic (Hayden, 2015). Brand credibility and trust are vital to achieve brand resonance (Keller, 2001: 8, 11 and 15).