This episode explores why values are foundational to any brand experience and how they shape visions worth pursuing.

HOMEWORK:

Worksheet for Episode 3

RESOURCES:

BLM Protest images by Jess Koehler

Hope and History by Vincent Harding

Cliodynamics (articles for further digging): 

https://www.techtimes.com/articles/191925/20170111/historian-predicts-collapse-of-civilization-in-the-2020s-due-to-political-turmoil.htm

https://www.wired.com/2013/04/cliodynamics-peter-turchin/

https://www.inverse.com/article/23750-cliodynamics-america-cycle-of-violence-donald-trump 

TRANSCRIPT: 

Welcome to Rebranding America, a series that explores the question: who would America be if it actually became who it said it was? We’ll be exploring this idea through the lens of marketing and branding. I have dedicated the last twenty years of my life to the study of brands, how they’re made, why we feel so strongly about them and what gives them the power to shape culture by influencing how we behave. In the past decade, I have guided nearly 200 brands through a process that gives them language to define what they stand for.

Here is what I’ve learned:

A brand is the promise of an experience. And the brand promise is defined through a set of values which are then given language that inform how anyone interacting with the brand behaves.

In the first episode I laid the groundwork of what makes a good marketing campaign successful. As I dove into the process of marketing, I made it clear that a tag line is often created when trying to make a brand promise more shareable/digestible to its intended audience. I explored that, while Declaration of Independence paints a picture of our ideals or values, The American Dream is the best tag line we’ve had to get people to buy into an experience that reflects our collective aspirations. In episode 2, we began the rebrand process with gathering data. Collecting facts about past actions minimizes our risk of repeating behavior that doesn’t match our values and helps us understand more about how large the gap is between what we say and what we do. 

Today, we begin to bridge that gap by diving into how each one of us individually has a voice in pursuing a better America. 

Because from a branding standpoint – values create a vision worth pursuing. Before holding America accountable, we must first hold ourselves accountable. 

Since brands are built by people, it’s almost always the case that the problems they solve and the experiences they create are born out of compromised values or values not actualized. That’s where opportunity exists: How can I make this better? What’s missing in what currently exists that leaves out a whole segment of the market? 

Our values as a nation are a response to an experience the founding fathers had with Europe. When you choose words like equality, liberty and justice, you’re singing the song of someone who has experienced a life where those ideals weren’t true so you set out to create an experience that makes this more possible. 

Excellent start. That’s a story that has relatable human experience written all over it. 

The next step is to determine where to focus those values so you can create an impact. What exact problem are we solving by presenting the American Dream as the answer? So the founding father’s choose a vision statement to make sure everything they build has a purpose: to create a democratic society of the people, by the people, for the people. Solid. That makes sense when you’re coming from the control of a monarchy.

What we’re looking for in this step in the process is whether or not the brand operates in a way that delivers on its promise to build a democracy of, by and for the people through an experience that fosters equality, liberty and justice for all. 

What we’ve seen in America is that about every 50 years, there’s an uprising so significant, it moves the nation closer to these ideals. The last major movement of our time that served to hold leaders accountable to the values and vision of this nation was the Black-led movement that launched what we know as the Civil Rights Movement. This movement was so powerful, it also paved the way for the Women’s Liberation Movement. As historian, Vincent Harding, states, “Indeed, these are the models of women and men who were not satisfied with the transformation of their own lives, the breaking of their own fears, but saw their own renewal as a call to participate in the rebuilding of their people and their nation – and in that process they found even more powerful sources of personal renewal than they dreamed.”

There is a form of scientific research called cliodynamics that studies the patterns of societies and their rise and fall. In fact, there is an article in WIRED magazine from 2013 that predicts civil unrest in the form of violence, rioting and domestic terrorism in 2020. Two other articles in separate publications predict the same outcomes. The point is, change comes in waves and the pattern used to bring about this change is unrest and uprising. 

Here we are, 50 years later, experiencing another call to act as though we mean what we say when we declare that we’re a nation built of the people, by the people,  for the people, through an experience that fosters equality, liberty and justice for all. We’re asking for the American Dream.

This disconnect between what we say and how we behave is rooted in a misalignment of values. We decided that compromising who we said we wanted to be allowed us a chance for connection, which was safer or more profitable than owning the deeply held convictions that make us come alive.  Add to that, the vision that was birthed out of these values has been lost in an attempt to stay relevant with the rapidly changing landscape and constant barrage of rhetoric and campaigns.

The reason people stay at organizations, even when they aren’t functioning in their values, is because of the potential they see peaking through the rubble. 

And that’s where Americans come in. Pause this to grab a pen and paper or download the worksheet available in the show notes. 

What are those glimmers of American potential that keep us here, believing in the soul of what we could be? 

Are we feeding those glimmers or letting them fade away in America? And is that what we want America to be?  

We can’t jump at any and every opportunity that comes our way and blame everyone but ourselves when the values we weren’t even clear about are compromised. That ends today. We’re experiencing on a global scale how unproductive that is and it’s literally killing us.  We say we are the richest nation in the world, yet can’t mobilize to get our health care professionals the gear they need to fight a pandemic level virus when there is plenty of money for riot gear to attack civilians as they voice their concerns. We say we care about justice and equality, yet watch law enforcement repeatedly murder black men and women for often no reason at all when white men are peacefully apprehended after committing murders. We say we care about liberty yet continue to hear how words keeps even our elected female officials in patriarchal prisons while immigrants are stripped from their families. 

If we want to uncover the possibilities and hope that lay beneath the rubble, we have to take responsibility. If you’re wondering whether or not you want to be responsible, here’s how you can tell: Are you an American? This is the home that you have, and it is up to you to make it livable.

Discover what matters most to you. Start where every great brands starts: identify a problem that keeps you up at night and start digging. What patterns do you notice? Where to you find yourself consistently angry? What breaks your heart? This will point to your personal values. If you have trouble with finding the right words to describe what matters most to you, type in “Personal Values” into a Google search and start scanning. Then pick two. 

Once you have them written down, define them in your own language. These values inform a message about who you are and how you want to be known, no matter what role you play. It also helps you make educated decisions and keep yourself out of situations that aren’t a good fit.

Without realizing it, most of us are compromising our values in our careers, friendships and certainly in our quest to achieve the latest version of the American Dream. You can see how an entire nation Full of people who unknowingly compromise their values can continue to  veer off track. 

We are, after all, of the people and by the people. This is going to require a commitment to stay engaged. 

Since we’re talking about Rebranding America, you may be wondering if your values have to be the same as America’s. No. You do not have to choose equality, liberty or justice as your top values. What you will find, however, is that your values could enhance the way people around you engage in the values of our nation. I know you’re probably wondering about all the “crazies” on either side of the respective isle from you. What about them?! Right now, I need you to stay focused on doing your own work. If you already know your values and have definitions for them, write a vision statement for your life. Sounds weird, but it’ll help you stay in your lane and create an incredible amount impact over time because you won’t be spreading yourself so thin. It also helps build credibility because people will come to expect your engagement in certain areas.  If you’ve done both of these things, it’s time to take inventory. Is there anything in your life that is misaligned with your values? What led to you compromising what matters most to you? Is it impacting your ability to show up in a way that makes clear what you value most through your behavior? All of these questions are in the worksheet in the show notes.