The Virgin brand ranked as a Civil Branding ‘advocate’ in our latest survey (just below ‘hero’ status). Nationwide is also a Civil Branding ‘advocate’, The Co-operative is a ‘hero’, and we think that Virgin having a presence on the high street, as perhaps Virgin Bank, would present some great Civil Branding narratives.

There’s room for Virgin attitude on the high street. The scenario of Northern Rock metamorphosing into Virgin Bank looks quite pleasing and even symbolic of closing the loop on economic recovery given Northern Rock’s role. This symbol of recovery would play nicely to the Virgin narrative of ‘people’s hero in the pursuit of industry change’. It would also play to the ‘inclusive’ dimension of Civil Branding, bringing people in society together.

So what sort of brand communications would we like to see from Virgin Bank? In an earlier post about the Virgin brand we talked about how Virgin manages to sustain rebel status whilst being socially inclusive. So the ‘inclusive’ dimension is already in the bag. Having a topic that is seen as worth discussing by society (our ‘important’ metric) in the brand communication strategy, expressed in a way that starts meaningful conversations (our ‘influential’ metric) would provide all the essential ingredients of a socially-progressive campaign.

The M&S 125 year celebratory ad talks about how M&S has changed the way we do things: the way we eat, the way we dress, the way we treat our planet. People or companies that achieve progress have done so by getting a critical mass of people behind them. How do they get people behind them? Through effective communication of ideas and beliefs.

We have been speaking a little more about being a role model lately. The Co-operative has done it with their ‘Good for Everyone‘ campaign and Nationwide has done it by reminding people of their ethical heritage. Perhaps it is the new focus on ethics brought on by the financial crisis that is prompting brands well regarded in society to remind us about their progressive and ethical heritage.

M&S is ranked as a hero in the Civil Branding Index, which indicates that it is a leader in promoting progressive ideas toward a more civil society, and has a licence to demonstrate their heritage to society. As people are pointing out, this M&S ad is not dissimilar to the recent Sainsbury’s 140 year celebration. In the Civil Branding Index, Sainsbury’s is doing well, ranking as an advocate, but not yet a hero.

The Co-operative have recently launched their group image campaign entitled ‘Good for everyone’. This slogan ties up the individual business units within the group that share the same sense of being good with money, food etc.

The new ad for the group communicates how The Co-op has taken an ethical stance as the foundation of its business since the beginning and that this humanitarian vision has not changed. The message is that sharing the benefits of the business is good for society. The movie below is a ‘behind the scenes’  look at the making of the new ad with commentary from the marketing heads at The Co-op.

The ad narrative communicates how The Co-op is a good corporate citizen and a positive role model for other businesses. The brand message, an egalitarian-focused narrative, also comes out in the end and helps tie everything together, stating “When the benefits are passed around, it’s good for everyone”.

Actively promoting how good a role model your company is, is a rather rare position for any company to be able to take. The Co-op has a unique opportunity to exploit the current climate in order to reinforce the relevance of taking ethical decisions in business and how ethical decisions will point us to a better future.

The use of Bob Dylan’s ‘Blowin’ in the Wind’ underlines the activist idea that The Co-op is about changing things for the better. The combination of founding a brand based on society’s needs, following through with policies that stay true to these principles and then creating an experience that reinforces them, has made The Co-op a Civil Branding ‘hero’ in our index. Other ‘heroes’ include Boots, Dove and M&S.

The Dove Campaign for Real Beauty began in 2004 and has created an unforeseen level of interest and sales by playing on our homogeneous and often superficial notions of beauty. Since launch, Dove has been active in advertising, with a website that promotes self esteem in young women, research into body image, the Dove ‘Self Esteem Fund‘ and the hugely effective viral movies like ‘Evolution‘.

The Dove Evolution video is rumoured to have received more eyeballs than a Super Bowl ad so it was only logical to follow up this massively successful viral with another. The sequel, named ‘Onslaught’, is a montage of clips depicting the ridiculous and harmful nature of beauty industry narratives that are broadcast to young women.

Greenpeace responded with a spoof video of their own depicting rain forest depletion resulting from the supply of Palm Oil for Dove products. Independent film maker Rye Clifton also responded with his video mash up of AXE spots that makes public the connection between the Dove and AXE brands under Unilever ownership.

Original Dove ‘Onslaught’ video

Greenpeace parody

AXE mash up from director Rye Clifton

Dissent and controversy are the main themes of an activist approach to political and social change. The original ‘Onslaught’ video certainly adopts an activist approach clearly aimed at separating Dove from ‘the rest’ of the (overtly image conscious) beauty industry.  The parody responses are clearly intended to depict Dove as hypocritical on two fronts.

Taking an activist approach seems to be a difficult position for brands to maintain. Benetton, the Italian clothing retailer, found themselves in the same difficult territory back in the late 1990s. Their approach to advertising began as poking fun at at hypocrisy using images of race, religion and sexuality. But the approach evolved into a more serious and directed form of criticism on several more issues like capital punishment, refugees and the AIDS epidemic.

The Campaign for Real Beauty has made a tremendous impact on the social issues raised and on the business at Unilever, so it is unlikely that these responses will make much of a difference toward the overall positioning. But it does raise some interesting questions like:

1. Are activist approaches a slippery slope?

2. Is an activist position a credible role for any brand?

3. Do we need to take an activist approach in order to raise important social issues?

There are examples of brands that have adopted an activist position successfully. However, the examples that come to mind like the Body Shop and the Co-op Bank have an ethical promise at the very heart of their company. Ultimately, Dove has a purely functional benefit (¼ moisturising cream) as its core proposition and is making a bold transition into a deeper sphere of meaning. I believe they are real leaders in the promotion of important ideas and I am sure management at Dove and Unilever will want to continue along this path in the future.