branding in a postmodern society - au...

Branding in a Postmodern Society

- Green as a Differentiation Factor

Bachelor Thesis

Marketing and

Management

Communication

5 May 2010

Authors:

Peter Edwards Jørgensen

Martin Hvidberg Yde

Supervisor:

Line Skjødt

Department:

Language and Business communication

Abstract

The motivation for the thesis is the growing green discourse in society. Green is not just a trend, a fad or a

movement; neither is it just a result of the media hype. Jake Grant (2008) calls it the next revolution (after

the Internet). Green has grabbed the general public‟s attention and they have become increasingly critical

and political in their consumer behaviour. This has resulted in corporations spending millions of dollars on

green marketing and the communication of green efforts in general. Many businesses have jumped on the

green bandwagon and the number of green markets, businesses and marketing campaigns is growing. Thus,

green is losing its uniqueness. It is therefore time to question if it is still appropriate to consider green as a

differentiation factor in marketing communication.

As this thesis operates within the field of meaning making in society, the methodological standpoint is

grounded in the notions of social constructivism. The thesis seeks to induce generalisations on the basis of

the theoretical background and the practical example. The theoretical background of the thesis is composed

of two parts. The first part is based on the work of Robert Inglehart on postmodernism, explaining the

societal transition resulting from rising living standards in western society focussing on the creation of

individual identities through consumerism. The second part is focused on Hatch and Schultz notions of

branding, especially corporate branding through corporate identity. The case study of Toyota‟s “aim: zero

emissions” campaign is conducted in order to provide an example and a departure point for further

discussion on the subject. The case study contains a short presentation of Toyota, a brief overview of the

European car market followed by an analysis of the campaign material in two parts. First, a discourse

analysis of a printed part of the campaign, followed by a multimodal analysis of a video clip.

The thesis concludes by presenting evidence indicating that being green might no longer be considered a

differentiation factor in all markets. As an alternative approach to the green discourse, Herzberg‟s two-

factor-theory has been applied to shed light on the situation. This approach, traditionally used within the field

of job motivation, in this case applied to another context - consumer motivation. The background

information, the analysis and the discussion made us conclude that green is changing from a motivational

factor into a hygiene factor in some markets. The main argument for this is that markets become saturated

with green messages and therefore consumers expect corporations to be green. With many companies

communicating a green image, this undermines the green identity‟s ability to differentiate one company from

another. Being green is therefore still important in order to keep consumers interested, but is not enough to

motivate them to purchase. This underlines the importance of fulfilling hygiene factors while simultaneously

creating differentiation factors. However, this entire scenario depends on the specific market as there may

still be markets, where being green is new and unexpected and the first mover advantage can still be

obtained.

Table of Contents

1 Introduction .................................................................................................................................................... 1

1.1 Motivation ............................................................................................................................................... 1

1.2 General Objectives .................................................................................................................................. 2

1.3 Problem Statement ................................................................................................................................... 2

1.4 Delimitations ........................................................................................................................................... 2

1.5 Explanation of Structure .......................................................................................................................... 2

1.6 Source Evaluation .................................................................................................................................... 3

2 Method ............................................................................................................................................................ 4

3 Background..................................................................................................................................................... 5

3.1 Green discourse ....................................................................................................................................... 5

3.1.1 Sub-conclusion ................................................................................................................................. 6

3.2 Postmodernism ........................................................................................................................................ 6

3.2.1 Society‟s development ...................................................................................................................... 7

3.2.2 The changing values of society ........................................................................................................ 7

3.2.6 Postmodern society and market characteristics .............................................................................. 10

3.2.6.1 Fragmentation .......................................................................................................................... 10

3.2.6.2 Openness and tolerance ........................................................................................................... 11

3.2.6.3 Hyperreality and the perpetual present .................................................................................... 11

3.2.6.4 Paradoxical Juxtapositions of Opposites ................................................................................. 12

3.2.6.5 Risk Society ............................................................................................................................. 14

3.2.7 The postmodern Consumer ......................................................................................................... 14

3.2.8 Sub-conclusion ............................................................................................................................... 15

3.3 Branding ................................................................................................................................................ 15

3.3.1 Corporate Branding ........................................................................................................................ 17

3.3.2 Corporate Identity ........................................................................................................................... 19

3.3.3 Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) .......................................................................................... 21

3.3.4 Green vs. Other CSR efforts ........................................................................................................... 22

3.3.5 Corporate environmentalism .......................................................................................................... 23

3.3.6 Corporate credibility ....................................................................................................................... 26

3.3.7 Sub-conclusion ............................................................................................................................... 27

4 Case study ..................................................................................................................................................... 28

4.1 Company overview – Toyota ................................................................................................................ 28

4.2 Market overview – European Automobile market ................................................................................ 28

4.3 Analysis - Aim: zero emissions ............................................................................................................. 29

4.3.1 The aim: zero emissions campaign ................................................................................................. 30

4.3.2 Printed Advertisement .................................................................................................................... 30

4.3.2.1 Visual discourse analysis ............................................................................................................. 30

4.3.2.1.1 Barthes connotators .............................................................................................................. 31

4.3.2.1.2 Krees and Van Leeuwen ....................................................................................................... 31

4.3.2.2 Textual discourse analysis ........................................................................................................... 32

4.3.2.3 Communicative purpose .............................................................................................................. 34

4.3.3 Video Clip ...................................................................................................................................... 34

4.3.3.1 Iedema‟s 3 metafunctions ........................................................................................................ 35

4.3.3.2 Communicative Purpose .......................................................................................................... 37

4.4 Sub-conclusion ...................................................................................................................................... 37

5 Discussion..................................................................................................................................................... 38

5.1 “Aim: zero emissions” in the postmodern society ................................................................................. 38

5.2 Green in general .................................................................................................................................... 39

5.3 The importance of consistency .............................................................................................................. 40

6 Conclusion .................................................................................................................................................... 42

7 Other perspectives ........................................................................................................................................ 43

8 Bibliography ................................................................................................................................................. 44

9 Appendices ................................................................................................................................................... 48

9.1 Aim: zero emissions – printed ......................................................... Fejl! Bogmærke er ikke defineret.

9.2 Aim: zero emissions – video clip ..................................................... Fejl! Bogmærke er ikke defineret.

Number of Characters: 94,686

BA MMC Branding in the Postmodern Society May 2010

BA Thesis 24244 - Green as a Differentiation Factor

Peter Edwards Jørgensen 282903

Martin Hvidberg Yde 282912

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1 Introduction

In the first section of the thesis, the intention is to introduce the reader to the thesis. We will present the

motivation of the thesis followed by our general objectives, problem statement and delimitations. We will go

on to explain the structure and choice of empirical data before our source evaluation.

1.1 Motivation

The environment and conservation of it are at the top of the societal agenda today. Focus has been on

discussing the emission of carbon dioxide (CO2) and the effect it is supposed to have on the climate. In

recent years, the media has bombarded the public on the daily basis with horror stories about our

environmental footprints. We are, according to the media, more or less directly responsible for everything

from melting poles and floods to droughts and tornados – and even the daily extinction of plants and animals.

The UN‟s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) repeatedly emphasises the rising

industrialisation and consumption as the main reasons for these climate changes, a view that is becoming

more and more accepted politically and in the general population. This indicates that more and more people

are realising the consequences of years of unscrupulous consumption.

However, not only does it appear that consumption is changing the world, it is also apparent that

consumption itself has undergone change. In today‟s postmodern society, it has become hard to just buy a

product; instead you are buying a brand and everything that brand represents. As society becomes more and

more individualistic, we no longer identify ourselves according to the social groups we used to belong to.

Hence, we as individuals become responsible for creating our own personality through our actions, including

consumption. Furthermore, rising living standards in western society resulted in the easier fulfilment of basic

needs. Thus, consumption has changed from a necessity that performs a certain function to a tool that creates

personality.

This development in consumer behaviour has not gone unnoticed in the corporate world, where

corporations increasingly focus their marketing efforts on emotional attributes when creating a strong

corporate brand. At present, the favourite emotional attribute to tie to your corporate brand seems to be

environmental friendliness. Thus, from September 2006 to August 2007 nearly £17 million was spent on

advertising containing the words „CO2‟, „carbon‟, „environmental‟, „emissions‟ or „recycle‟ (Pettenger and

Plec 2010: 2). This emphasises the extreme focus on green issues in today‟s society. However, this extreme

focus on being green also raises the question – can being green still be considered a differentiation factor in a

postmodern society?





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1.2 General Objectives

Seen in the light of the current developments in today‟s society described above, it is interesting to discuss

aspects normally taking for granted in order to shed light on this perception. We have therefore chosen to

focus our thesis on the aspect of being green in the corporate world and the effect of this with regard to

branding.

1.3 Problem Statement

Taking the green discourse of postmodern society into account this thesis will address certain aspects of

branding in a postmodern society, using Toyota‟s ”aim: zero emissions” campaign as the starting point for a

discussion of whether green can still be considered a differentiation factor.

1.4 Delimitations

In the process of writing this thesis we came across various issues also relevant and also interesting to

investigate in connection with the issues addressed in the thesis. However, being limited on not only by

number of pages but also with regard to resources we had to limit ourselves.

Marketing experts Hatch and Schultz (2008), used as the theoretical background, points out that

corporate culture plays an important role with regard to the corporate brand. Therefore, to add validity to the

case study of Toyota, a more in depth analysis of the corporate brand of Toyota could have been conducted.

Furthermore, a more extensive market analysis and a broader spectrum of Toyota advertisements would have

provided a more valid example for our discussion. On the other hand, focusing on one campaign gives us the

opportunity for a more in depth analysis of our example. In addition, backing up our market overview by

thorough market analysis gives us a shorter but representative insight into the market.

Moreover, is it necessary to emphasise that societal generalisations in the thesis consistently refer to

what is considered western/industrialised society.

1.5 Explanation of Structure

The thesis starts with a background section including an examination of the green discourse of postmodern

society and recent developments within the field of branding. This background establishes a proper frame of

reference for the rest of the thesis. Next follows a case study of Toyota including a brief presentation of the

corporation, the European market and an analysis of Toyota‟s campaign, “aim: zero emissions”. The purpose

of the case study is to provide a suitable example for further discussion. Finally, a discussion departing from

the case study in connection to the background material will cf. our problem statement consider whether





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green can still be considered a differentiation factor. After the conclusion, we will set our findings in

perspective.

1.6 Source Evaluation

The theoretical background of our section on the green discourse in society is primarily based upon the work

of Renato Orsato (2009), senior researcher of INSEAD.

The works of Baudrillard (2001), Inglehart (1997) and Firat and Schultz (1997) are the foundation for

the section on postmodernism. Baudrillard, a French sociologist, is one of the main figures in

postmodernism. Inglehart is a highly acknowledge political scientist with the University of Michigan. His

work has been translated into more than 15 languages. Fuat A. Firat and Clifford J. Schultz are professors of

marketing at Arizona State University West and Loyola University Chicago respectively.

The section on branding is based on Mary Jo Hatch and Majken Schultz‟s “Taking brand Innitiative”

from 2008. Hatch is a professor emerita of the University of Virginia and Schultz a CBS professor and

partner in the Reputation Institute. Their theories are backed by those of Pickton and Broderick (2005) and

supported in the area of CSR by McElhaney (2008). David Pickton is Head of the marketing department at

the Montfort University. Amanda Broderick is a senior lecturer in marketing and Head of Research in the

Marketing Group at Aston Business School. Kellie McElhaney is the John C. Whitehead distinguished

Faculty Fellow in Corporate Responsibility and Founder and Faculty Director of the Center for Responsible

Business, University of California, Berkeley.

The market overview of the European car market is based on a market industry report from

Datamonitor, found on the Gale database Business and Company Resource Centre. Gale is a world leader in

e-research and an ASB library vouched database. It is further supported by data from the industry‟s own

association‟s (ACEA) industry report from 2009; however it should be noted that this report might be biased

by the interests of the car manufacturers.

Our visual discourse analysis is conducted using the framework of Gunther Kress and Theo van

Leeuwen as presented in their book Reading Images – the grammar of visual design from 2006 supported by

Roland Barthes theories on connotation from his work Image, music, text from 1977. Kress is a professor of

semiotics at the University of London and van Leeuwen is Dean of University of technology, Sydney.

Roland Barthes was a French literary theorist, philosopher, and critic with a large influence on the

development of semiotic theory. Our textual analysis is based on Aristotle‟s work on Ethos, Pathos and

Logos as presented by Kies (2010). The analysis of the video clip has been carried out according to the

theories of Rick Iedema, a Professor of Communication and Associate Dean in the Faculty of Humanities

and Social Sciences at the University of Technology Sydney. These have been further supported on the





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audios by the theories of Theo van Leeuwen‟s (mentioned above) Sound in perspective from 2001. The

primary sources have been supported by various other publications presented in the bibliography. Articles

have when possible been found within the EBSCOhost database, which is the most-used, premium online

information resources for tens of thousands of institutions worldwide, representing millions of end-users.

Herzberg‟s two-factor theory, known from studies of job satisfaction, has been applied in an

untraditional manner in the discussion of consumer satisfaction. According to Maddox (1981):

”Investigators of consumer satisfaction have frequently adapted models and techniques from studies of job

satisfaction.” Hence, the untraditional use of Herzberg is perfectly in line with the norms within the studies

of consumer satisfaction.

2 Method

This thesis is concerned with meaning construction in society, with particular focus on the postmodern world

view. Hence, the logical choice for the scientific method of this thesis is social constructivism. Burr (2001)

argues that, seen from a social constructivist view, “Knowledge is sustained by social processes” (Burr 2001:

4) therefore what we consider reality is not a result of objective facts but merely a subjective opinion

constructed through social processes.

The thesis is communication based and directly analyses communication material to discuss it in a

societal connection. Both communication material and the society in which it operates can be subjectively

interpreted by any receiver. Thus, the overall aim of our thesis is to induce a form of reality from a

subjective standpoint and therefore it moves within the field of social constructivism. As the thesis is

founded on a bottom up principle, where observations and theory are combined to draw general conclusions,

the thesis takes a prevailingly inductive approach. By using an inductive approach, we depart from our

empirical material, the discourse and multimodal analysis, and attempt to legitimise our findings

theoretically. A deductive approach on the other hand would start with theory, which subsequently is tested

in reality (Chalmers 2007: 41-45).

We are as writers and analysers well aware of our social history‟s influence on our construction of

reality. Hence, even as we strive for an objective and critical approach to the issues addressed, we cannot

avoid being affected by our prejudiced understanding. Our readers should therefore be aware that our

conclusions should be seen as our construction of reality, which is based on social constructivist

methodology, including choice of theories and literature.





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3 Background

3.1 Green discourse

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) which state that the earth‟s temperature is changing

and that human activity is of great significance in the climate change (Untied Nations 2010). Moreover, there

is unanimity within the EU that the climate change is a challenge and that EU countries must strive to reduce

co2 and other greenhouse gases by at least 20% by 2020 (European Union 2010).

Human impact on the environment is central to the discussion of the changing climate. In fact, from

1970 to 2004, greenhouse gases from human activities increased 70%. Each individual carries responsibility

for the state of the environment, but it is heavy industries and big corporations that have the greatest impact.

All together, man‟s impact on the environment has grown steadily since global industrialisation (IPCC

2007).

The environmental movement started slowly in the 1970s and has grown simultaneously with the

increasing greenhouse gas emissions and the realisation of their damaging effects. It was the realization that

the way the economy operates is threatening the survival of the earth that spawned initiatives for a greener

economy (Cato 2008: 15). In the beginning, environmental activism was merely run by non-governmental

organisations with Greenpeace as the standard bearer, while businesses, politicians, the media and the

general public did not give the environment more than sporadic attention. However, they all slowly got more

involved. The defining moment seemed to be The United Nations Conference on the Environment and

Development (UNCED) held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 1992, which resulted in environmental issues

obtaining the interest and focus that it had been neglected of (Orsato 2009: xv). In 2006, Al Gore brought

climate change to the masses through his blockbuster documentary film, An Inconvenient Truth

(Climatecrisis 2010). The film, which focuses on the effects of human greenhouse gas emissions and

questions the world‟s climate policy, helped him earn the Nobel Peace Prize the same year (Orsato 2009:

xvi).

Nationally and internationally, environmental policies have changed dramatically to adapt to the IPCC

and to the reports that they have sent out every couple of years. The first report from the IPCC was published

in 1990 and concluded that global warming is caused by the release of greenhouse gases due to human

activity and is growing at an alarming rate. More than two thousand scientists were involved in the making

of the first report and the report is therefore very reputable. The IPCC reports have provided background

information for several international treaties such as the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate

Change (UNFCCC), Conference of the Parties (COP) and the Kyoto protocol (Union of Concerned

Scientists, 2007) (Orsato 2009: 55).

In the business world, green has grown from a niche to a desirable market because of society‟s interest

http://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar4/syr/ar4_syr_spm.pdf

http://www.climatecrisis.net/the-impact.php

http://www.ucsusa.org/global_warming/science_and_impacts/science/ipcc-backgrounder.html





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in the environment and climate change. Corporations show their interest in the environment through green

marketing and from their efforts it is evident that green is a huge business involving a huge span of

advertisers (Pettenger and Plec 2010: 2). The corporations‟ huge interest in bring green is due to the demand

and supply factor in the economy and studies and survey have shown that consumers are interested in

environmentalism. The media also helps to hype environmentalism which has pushed some corporations to

become green and made environmentalism top agenda (Wilson 2008; Cox 2007; xiii).

3.1.1 Sub-conclusion

The popularity of green is similar to the history of the Internet (Grant 2007: 33). In the beginning everybody

was sure that it was just a fad and they and many others never would trust it with personal details and

certainly not credit card and bank details. However, it changed and now many people “get it” and

corporations daily do transactions on the Internet and could not live without. Environmentalism is clearly no

longer just a movement. It has become big business with marketplace estimates ranging from $300 to $500

billion annually. Scientific evidence of climate change has successfully been communicated to the masses,

which has resulted in an understanding of global climate change. Consumers have gradually grown a need

for green, energy efficient products that the companies thus have provided (Estes 2009: 115). Most of the

political world stands united against the climate change and so do corporation. Certainly, one of the reasons

for companies concentrating on green marketing is clearly because of an economic profit in the long term

perspective, but what is the reason for green being the new buzzword and being so popular now?

3.2 Postmodernism

This chapter will explain the concept of postmodernism, how it started and how it is expressed in society.

This will explain how the development of society is intertwined with changes in culture, values and needs.

In order to fully understand the green discourse and its relation to society, it is necessary to understand and

have insight of the society and the market that organisations operate within, as this provides the framework

for organisations‟ behaviour and communication. Today‟s leading scholars agree that society is characterised

by postmodernism. Postmodernism is used in a wide range of disciplines such as literature, art, philosophy,

architecture, history and sociology. It is hard to construct one definition, but there is a general acceptance

among scholars that the term covers a sceptical view of one mutual understanding of the world and only one

truth. Instead, there is an emphasis on individual interpretation, originality and a nuanced view of the world

(Inglehart 1997: 28; Firat and Schultz 1997: 184). Although the disciplines of marketing and consumer

research have been slow to recognize the importance of postmodernism, it is a very useful concept when

investigating the concept of marketing and its relationship to the market (Firat and Schultz 1997: 183).





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Postmodernism forces organisations to conduct their business in a different manner. Traditional

marketing management is put into question and its practitioners will have to reassess their assumptions about

marketing, markets and strategies in order to capture market share (Firat & Schultz 1997: 183). Especially

segmentation and positioning have to be re-thought and modified in order to adapt to a postmodern market.

The reason for this is that postmodernists postulate that all consumers are different and require uniquely

customized service and products and these needs are changing. Due to technological advances, organisations

are now able to provide online opportunities for consumers to design their own unique running shoes,

greeting cards, homes, cars etc. (Amine and Smith 2009: 77).

3.2.1 Society’s development

In the last few decades, society has undergone massive changes in terms of economy, educational level,

needs and the popularity of mass media. According to Yiannis Gabriel and Tim Lang, this has affected

consumer behaviour both in terms of quantity, but especially quality. This development in consumer

behaviour is influenced by historical changes, globalisation and evolving types of production (Gabriel &

Lang 2006: 10-11).

In the beginning of the 20th century, western society was characterised by industrialisation in which

mass production, mechanisation and automation meant better standards of living for the general public. After

the Second World War, consumption exploded and heavy industry experienced a rapid growth; meanwhile,

people working in agriculture decreased. Eventually heavy industry was replaced by the service sector and

knowledge intensive industries which marks the beginning of the postmodern society. This development has

created more opportunities and choices for the consumer, with consumerism used as a channel to

demonstrate life style and identity (Firat and Schultz 1997: 198). However, this endless consumption is now

taking a step back in favour of an increasing focus on the destructive force that the massive consumption

brings (Gabriel and Lang 1996: 7).

3.2.2 The changing values of society

The political scientist, Ronald Inglehart, believes that the culture of a society changes in line with its

historical development and influences its economy, politics, religion and social structures. Not alone is the

economy changing, but also the culture and values within the society (Inglehart 1997: 7, 14). Therefore,

Ronald Inglehart divides the development of a society into different timeframes that each contains different

characteristics such as culture, economy and values. He identifies three different timeframes for the western

society: The traditional, the modern and the postmodern society (Inglehart 1997: 27-28).

Traditional society was characterised by strong family ties, tradition, religion, and engagement in

common local activities. Society was made of local self-sufficient agricultural societies with an economy





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with little or no growth. Work was important as work meant survival as opposed to satisfaction in the

postmodern society. Obedience became an important quality both in relation to work, but also to family life

(Inglehart 1997: 85). Capitalism started in the western world in the 17th- 18

th century and was attractive to

Christians who believed that hard work and salvation were intertwined. This created a perfect breeding

ground for industrialisation (Inglehart 1997: 27).

Traditional society was gradually replaced by a modern society with a growing belief in science because

of the answers it provides to understanding the world and its people. People‟s need for structure creates a

bureaucratic society and structure enables the economy to grow. Growth in the economy motivates people to

work in order to fulfil their economical and materialistic needs that have replaced the religious motivation to

work. Modern society eroded the religious point of view of the traditional society in favour of an increasing

demand for existential security (Inglehart 2007: 36). In each marketing organisation, the product and its

attributes are central. In modernism, economic value is represented by the immediate benefits to the user of

the product. The value of the product is not in the image that it portrays, but almost entirely on the product‟s

functional attributes (Firat and Schultz 1997: 186-187).

The change in conditions of production allowed the economy to grow which allowed the society to

evolve from a traditional to a modern society. With the improving economy, welfare and democratisation, a

postmodern society developed with a solid welfare system because of the economic growth that followed the

Second World War. Politically, society has become very structured and social- and individual welfare is very

high. There is a feeling of security and survival is taken for granted. There has been a dramatic change in

values. Survival, physical needs and economic needs are problems solved by science, while society and its

focus have changed to ensure a high quality of life through satisfying self-fulfilment and with the freedom of

self-expression. This is in contrast to the values of modernism, where the product and its functional attributes

were most important. These values characterise the change into a postmodern society that praises self-

achievement through personal action: career achievements, choosing to buy organic food, and taking

responsibility for the wellbeing of the planet and the environment.





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Table 1:

Type of society Production Economy Values

Traditional Agriculture

Low technology

Zero growth economy Strong family life

The individual a part of the

local community

Belief in religion

Modernism Mass production

Industrialisation

Growth economy Acceptance of authority

Bureaucracy

Materialism

Postmodernism Service sector Welfare society Self actualisation

Individual lifestyle

Postmaterial needs

(Inglehart 1997)

According to Inglehart, postmodern society started to develop after the Second World War and will

become even more accentuated in the years to come with the population‟s growing urge to fulfil their

capitalistic needs.

Abraham Maslow‟s hierarchy of needs model from 1943 can be used to illustrate this shift in paradigm.

Maslow‟s model (figure 1) arranges people‟s different needs according to importance and each individual

must first fulfil the basic needs before he can move upwards. However, it is argued that in a postmodern

society, the basic needs are already supported and taken care of by society and thereby individuals are free to

focus on existential needs (esteem and self-actualisation) which are at the top of the pyramid. When survival

is not the centre of attention, people can focus on becoming better people by evolving personally. This can

for example result in time and energy being spent on buying products from corporations that are green or

socially responsible in other ways. This shift in focus has led to alternative approaches to Maslow‟s,

hierarchy of needs. It is proposed that in today‟s Western society the pyramid should be turned upside down,

making self-actualisation needs the most salient with little focus on physiological needs. Nonetheless, the

principle of first having to fulfil the lowest level before one can work upwards still applies.





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Figure 1:

3.2.6 Postmodern society and market characteristics

The changes in society have affected consumers and businesses. Several researchers have analysed the

consequences and reactions of the paradigm shift from modernism to postmodernism. The two professors

and scientists A. Fuat Firat and Clifford Schultz (1997) have studied postmodernism and its characteristics in

depth, together with the various impacts that postmodernism has on marketing.

3.2.6.1 Fragmentation

Fragmentation refers to the disconnection from one truth, one way of being, one way of thinking. People can

no longer be typecast as being one certain type or belonging to one certain segment. In the postmodern

society, people “assert their existence through the power of the images that they represent” (Firat and

Schultz 1997: 195). They use different images in order to make them appealing in different scenarios and

they can even represent themselves by several different images at the same time and thus create their own

individualised image. This development is clear in the consumers‟ downward tendency to commit to one

style, brand and product. Thus, we see an increasing demand for products and brands that help consumers

project their self-images (Firat and Schultz 1997: 197). This development makes it difficult for companies to

divide the market into segments as everyone has a different perception and therefore creates his or her own

self-image. Words, products and brands do not mean the same thing to everyone. For example the word

luxury has become fragmented. It does not merely have one correct meaning. Luxury for some may mean





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having a part time job, for others having a big family or owning a Mercedes (to be elaborated on in chapter

3.2.6.4.1 on The Semiotics of Paradoxical Juxtapositions of Opposites). This fact complicates marketing

communications. How does the dynamic public wish to perceive itself and how does one create an

unambiguous image?

3.2.6.2 Openness and tolerance

According to modern society, any social reality is independent from a socially constructed one and therefore,

there is only one objective truth. However, postmodernists believe in a subjective truth and that reality is

socially constructed by the people and the community and each belief is as valid as the next. According to

postmodernism, each individual is in focus as she or he creates their own reality. There is a general

acceptance of this and therefore more openness and tolerance for the individual and his or her views and

beliefs.

This is also how marketing organisations should behave in a postmodern society. They must be open

and tolerant, even of non-traditional demands from consumers that may interfere with organisational culture

(Firat and Schultz 1997: 188). However, it is very important to note that even though postmodernism is

critical of modernism, it does not discard the modern thought completely. That would be an oxymoron as

postmodernism is tolerant of multiple views, values and options (Amine & Smith 2009: 72).

3.2.6.3 Hyperreality and the perpetual present

Traditional culture focused on the past, modern culture on the future. The focus in postmodernism is: right

here, right now. This does not mean that postmodernism is stationary, but that people are flexible and open to

different variations of hyperreality. An example of hyperreality is the IMAX Theatre, virtual reality cinema,

at the Grand Canyon where people can really experience the canyon, without the trekking. People can also

experience Disneyland, Hard Rock Cafe and Chinatown districts in major cities in which the consumer will

encounter a reality inside their own reality. Furthermore, some products have an identity that is exciting and

evokes emotion, which compel the consumer to be a part of the company‟s identity and share their mission

by buying their product. Due to sponsorships and general corporate environmentalism, a consumer can now

help the preservation of local wetlands or the Amazone forest simply by purchasing products from one

corporation. By buying these products, they can build their own reality through this image that they portray.

Thanks to technological means and everyday products that portray the consumers‟ identity, these experiences

can be done safely and easily (Amine and Smith 2009: 81). According to Firat and Schultz (1997: 190), “the

postmodern consumer seeks those experiences that can make “present” all or most of the exciting elements

of space/time settings without the difficulties and hardships”. They move back and forth in these different





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realities as they please and actually create their own reality, which for the postmodern consumer is

important.

In relation to this, the French sociologist Jean Baudrillard raises the question of the media‟s influence on

shaping reality. The media frame how the public views the world as they select what and how to

communicate various subjects. The media thus have an immense power on how reality is defined and

Baudrillard believes that the media no longer simply depict reality, but they are reality. Everything is a

product that is valued according to status symbols and connotations to a better way of life. Baudrillard

therefore concludes that “image is everything” as symbols have replaced the real and tangible characteristics

of a product or brand (Baudrillard 2001: 173). The postmodern consumer is defined through these images –

they create their own image through consumption and the experiences derived from it. This allows the

consumer to be in control and change image as they like and become more powerful by connecting to more

successful images. This liberation creates freedom from boredom, monotony and the necessity to conform

(Firat and Schultz 1997: 193).

3.2.6.4 Paradoxical Juxtapositions of Opposites

The concept of paradoxical juxtapositions of opposites refers to the process in which consumers have a range

of different values and beliefs, without any need for consistency, which is a compatible contradiction. An

example of „compatible contradictions‟ is the two cognitive elements: „I know driving a car is harmful for

the environment‟ and „I drive a car‟. There is a psychological inconsistency between the elements, which

creates a feeling of discomfort that the consumer is motivated to reduce. The result of this can be: not taking

action, driving less or driving a more environmentally friendly car. The result and motivation to do this

depends upon the importance and the number of dissonant elements (Solomon et al.2006). Compatible

contradictions challenges the otherwise recognized principle of cognitive consistency which states that

“consumers value harmony among their thoughts, feelings and behaviours, and they are motivated to

maintain uniformity among these elements” (Solomon et. al. 2006: 146). However, compatible contradiction

does coincide very well with the values and beliefs of postmodern society.

In the postmodern society the paradoxical juxtapositions of opposites have also increased the challenge

for marketing organisations in terms of form and style. According to Firat and Schultz (1997: 192) the

postmodern consumer “acquires the product for the image that it represents, and this image is only partially,

if at all, constructed on the basis of a functional need”. This behaviour separates the product from its original

function and shifts focus to the presentation of the products.





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3.2.6.4.1 The Semiotics of Paradoxical Juxtapositions of Opposites

Semiotics is the study of signs and analysis of how they come to stand for something else. This interpretation

defines how we make sense of the world and its signs: icons, indexes and symbols (Solomon et. al. 2006:

56). The American philosopher Charles Sanders Peirce, one of the key figures in semiotics, constructed a

model that included three categories. First, the sign itself called the representamen, then the object (what is

actually being signified), and the interpretant that is the sense made of the sign, which is the idea that the

observer has about the sign according to his schemata (Chandler 2010).

Figure 2:

Source: Chandler 2010

According to Peirce (Chandler 2010), communication is a difficult task to master as the signifier and the

signified have become disconnected and in the end, interpretation depends on the persons schemata. The

product/object is not consistent with the function, nor is the product with the need which means that there is

in some cases a gap between the signifier and the signified. According to Peirce‟s view on semiotics, every

word and sign can be interpreted in different ways as long as it is interpreted as a sign (Chandler 2010).

Products face the same problem. They are able to represent multiple images, all depending on the culture,

individual understanding and the marketing effort.

This compatible contradiction has resulted in disconnectedness of images and products from their

original content and context (Firat and Schultz 1997: 192). The signifiers‟ (the products) value is hard to

understand as they are continually attributed new values and therefore incomprehensible. This results in

reality taking a step back in favour of a symbolic reality, which consists of values and images. This symbolic

reality has become more important for the postmodern consumer as a replacement of the previously

important functional attributes.





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The same is happening for organisations that are experiencing that the consumer‟s attitude to the brand

is more powerful than the consumer‟s attitude to the organisation‟s core business. Big corporations such as

Exxon Mobile seem to exploit this fact (Helman 2009).

3.2.6.5 Risk Society

Historically, the main concerns for a society were diseases and scarcity of food and water. These were threats

that threatened the physical well-being of the society, categorized as „physical needs‟ on the lowest level in

Maslow‟s hierarchy of needs (figure 1). In the modern society, emphasis was on distribution of goods such

as land, property, income and jobs which relates to the needs in the middle of Maslow‟s pyramid. These

needs changed in the postmodern society from a focus on possessions to focus on risks in society, such as

nuclear technology, genetic research, and climate change (Inglehart 1997: 36).

Due to concern with social welfare, western society‟s attention has changed from the daily uncertainty

of survival to thinking about long term problems and ensuring the best quality of life. Focus has shifted from

physiological needs to self actualisation needs. The problems in postmodern society, also referred to as risk

society, are intangible and difficult to grasp because the effects are often not visible through the individual‟s

eyes. However, the media help to make the issues visible and relevant for the local community and the

world. Globalisation and the media have made the problem of climate change a worldwide issue that requires

a solution by many actors, which complicates finding a globally acceptable solution (Inglehart 1997: 37)

(Orsato 2009: 28).

3.2.7 The postmodern Consumer

Consumers are increasingly motivated to buy green products. By buying green products, consumers have

found a way to demonstrate their power through their purchasing behaviour. This is supported by Hank

Stewart, vice-president of strategy at the New York-based environmental advertisement agency Green Team,

stating that today‟s consumers are characterised by being “Awakening consumers [who] are well-informed,

educated, and influential – they blog their opinions, and they „vote with their wallets‟ ” (Pettenger and Plec

2010: 2).

Politically, the public has become increasingly interested in politics and today politics has even moved

into the marketplace and purchasing has become a part of political participation (Inglehart 1997: 308). The

postmodern consumer is a political consumer and their decisions are based on cognitive and affective

processes that reflect their motives, values and buying intentions. However, these decisions do not always

reflect the public‟s opinion on the company, but may be a decision based on international politics. This

involvement is both based on the consumers‟ need to express their co-responsibility for politics e.g.





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environmental sustainability, but also to express and define themselves (Jensen 2005). Therefore, according

to Jensen (2005), it is no longer sufficient to market a lot of products based on their attributes. Now the

consumers demand that companies take a political stand and take responsibility.


The traditional beliefs, needs and ways of living have naturally changed together with changes in society.

Today, in the postmodern world, the individual is in focus and has responsibility for his or her own life and

takes action in order to sustain his or her life on both on an individual and societal level. Long gone is the

devotion to religion, the family‟s coercive power and obedience to work. Now the consumer is in control.

The individual defines him- or herself through individualised consumption and thereby shapes his or her

own reality. This consumption is a product of our cognitive and emotional state and reflects our values and

stances on various subject – e.g. our attitude to the environment. Postmodernism emphasizes that quality

alone is not sufficient to capture the attention and loyalty of the customers. Value, to the postmodern

customer, lies in the connoted value and image that both the product, brand and the corporation signify. The

postmodern consumer is dynamic and goes through several different self-images that he himself creates and

combines according to his schemata. Postmodernism has reframed the business world and makes it difficult

for marketers to create competitive advantages in a consumer market that is dynamic, unpredictable and

unstable.

3.3 Branding

This part of the thesis will account for various aspects of branding, in order to establish a common ground

for the flux concept, with the reader, and leads on to a wider discussion of our problem statement. It gives an

overview of traditional product branding and the development to corporate branding, focussing on

corporate identity, CSR and finally aspects of corporate environmentalism and trust.

The history of branding dates back to the Wild West decades ago, where ranchers physically branded their

cattle in order to distinguish which animals belonged to which ranch. However, centuries before this, the

Romans and Greek used signs (or logos) to differentiate businesses, e.g. the shoemakers shop (who had a

shoe or a boot as his logo) from the butcher (Pickton and Broderick 2005: 243). Back then, branding and

logos were used to differentiate companies and cattle from one another in terms of functional attributes.

To this day, differentiation seems to be the key use of branding; the American Marketing Association

defines Branding as:” A name, term, design, symbol, or any other feature that identifies one seller's good or

service as distinct from those of other seller [...]” (American Marketing Association 2010) The focus is, as in

the Wild West, on identification, thus differentiation. Porter explains the importance of differentiation by





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defining it as one of two options of competitive advantages, the other being low costs. This further explains

the focus on branding from western companies, as low cost advantages often are related to places such as

Asia (Orsato 2009: 26-27). Furthermore, Pickton and Broderick (2005) suggest an important development in

branding in today‟s society as they argue that branding has moved away from just differentiation towards

creating the impression that the differentiated is somewhat better (2005: 243). This view is supported by

Marketing Professor David Aaker, who refrains from defining branding and instead talks about brand equity.

He defines brand equity as: “a set of assets (and liabilities) linked to a brand‟s name and symbol that adds to

(or subtracts from) the value provided by a product or a service to a firm and/or that firms customers.”

Hence, Aaker refers to the word brand in the meaning of a trademark and focuses on brand equity, which in

his definition is the sum of intangibles connected to the trademark (Aaker 1996:7-8). These different

definitions and many others, combined with the fact that critics still question the actual effect of the millions

of pounds spend on branding every year, makes branding a very flux term, constantly changing and open to

debate.

Originally, the main focus area within branding was the differentiation and positioning of products, such

as in the Wild West and ancient Greece. However, as Aaker (1996) suggests above, focus has shifted from

tangible towards more intangible or emotional attributes. According to Pickton and Broderick (2005: 244)

the reason for this is that “So many companies make the same product at roughly the same price that there is

little point in advertising product attributes.” Thus the lack of superior product attributes has forced

companies to find new means to differentiate themselves from competitors. Another factor influencing this

change, Martin Hayward, Director of Consumer Consultancy at the Henley Centre in London, argues could

be our rising living standards: “[...] the simple acquisition of goods is not half as exciting or satisfying as it

used to be, and we are increasingly looking for higher-order needs to be satisfied.” (Pickton and Broderick

2005: 244). Olivero Toscani, Creative Director of Benetton, puts it in other words by saying: “a product is

made out of two things: a percentage of material and a percentage of image. And the part of the product

made out of image is getting bigger.” (Ibid.).This emphasises the fact that the functional attributes are no

longer the most important. Market researcher Douglas Atkin supports this view as he, from a sociological

and psychological point of view, suggests that human alienation drives people to seek likeminded and reject

others – and thereby are customers also attracted to brands with values similar to their own, thus seeking a

sense of belonging (Hatch and Schultz 2008: 22). Hence, indicating that there might have been a shift from

tangible to emotional benefits. This is further supported by the theories of the postmodern society.

If we, as Maddox (1981), draw a connection to behavioural theory, more specifically motivation theory

and Herzberg‟s two-factor theory we suggest similarities in the pattern in consumer‟s motivation to buy

brands and job motivation. Herzberg suggest in his two-factor theory that satisfaction and dissatisfaction are





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two different constructs. The two factors are motivation factors, making us satisfied and motivated, and

hygiene factors keeping us from becoming dissatisfied. It is therefore not the absence of a motivation factor

that makes us dissatisfied but instead the absence of a hygiene factor. Therefore, within the field of branding

today, one could argue that product attributes have become hygiene factors and the emotional attributes are

what actually matter the most and motivate consumers to buy (Brooks 2004: 60-65).

However, according to Pickton and Broderick (2005), this change from functional to emotional benefits

changes the game of branding altogether: „There has been a significant move away from individual line

branding towards corporate branding the last ten years.‟ (Pickton and Broderick 2005: 246). Thus

companies increasingly focus their resources on a strong corporate brand instead of branding every product

line. This change could be closely connected with the change towards emotional benefits. As the main target

of branding has moved from pure differentiation towards also including the aspect of belonging, corporate

brands is a natural development because of its inclusion of the corporate identity as a whole.

3.3.1 Corporate Branding

„A corporate brand is the most important strategic asset a business can have‟

- Hatch & Schultz 2008

The quote above does not leave much doubt as to the importance Hatch and Schultz assign to corporate

branding. However, let us first look at what corporate branding actually is. Mohan Raj and Choudhary (2008:

1) define corporate branding as:‟ Corporate branding can be described as the process of creating, nurturing

and sustaining a mutually rewarding relationship between a company and its internal and external

stakeholders‟. Thus the focus is switched from the customers and consumers to stakeholders, internal as well

as external. Hatch and Schultz (2008) emphasise the key points of difference between branding and

corporate branding in order to define corporate branding:





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Table 2:

Product Branding Corporate Branding

Scope and Scale One product or service or a group

of closely related products.

The entire enterprise, which

includes the corporation and all its

stakeholders.

Origins of brand identity Advertisers‟ imagination,

informed by market research.

The company heritage, the values

and beliefs the members of the

enterprise hold in common.

Target audience Customers. Multiple stakeholders. (includes

employees, managers as well as

customers, investors, NGOs,

partners and politicians)

Responsibility Product brand manager and staff.

Advertising and sales department.

CEO or executive team typically

from marketing, corporate

communication, HR, strategy and

sometimes design and

development departments.

Planning horizon Life of the product. Life of the company

(Hatch and Schultz 2008: 9)

Table 2 illustrates how the key to corporate branding is communication throughout the organisation and its

external environment or, as Hatch and Schultz (2008) put it in short:‟ [...] involving everyone who is

important to the company‟. Thus, the corporate brand opens a world of communication channels that cannot

be used in product branding – the corporate brand allows every touch point of the organisation to become a

communication channel. The corporate brand is integrated into the entire organisation and vice versa,

everything in the organisation becomes a part of the brand from the buildings and logo, to the leadership

style and the stakeholder relationships (Hatch and Schultz 2008: 25-28). The vital point to remember is the

alignment of activities according to values and beliefs. Atkin emphasises this by stating „Symbols work best

when they are a part of meaning systems in which various symbols are connected and support each other‟

(Hatch and Schultz 2008: 27). Thus, what we communicate is reinforced through integration and alignment





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of varying channels.

To sum up, corporate branding is a more extensive and long term attempt to communicate the intangible

assets of the company to the stakeholders. The pivotal point of corporate branding becomes the organisations

beliefs and values or put in another way: the corporate identity.

3.3.2 Corporate Identity

„Identity means the sum of all the ways a company chooses to identify itself to all its publics.‟

- Marguiles 1977 (Pickton and Broderick 2005: 247)

Pickton and Broderick (2005) elaborate:‟ corporate identity is the basis on which an organisation is known

and understood.‟ (Pickton and Broderick 2005: 246). This is further emphasised by Hatch and Schultz (2008:

47) stating that the corporate identity is the foundation of the corporate brand. Furthermore they argue that

the success of a corporate branding effort is directly dependent on a strong corporate identity, which gives

the company the advantage of differentiation and creates a sense of belonging (Hatch and Schultz 2008: 22).

They define corporate identity as a result of the alignment of the corporate- Vision, Culture and Image

(VCI), and the interaction between the corporation and their stakeholders. Introducing the VCI alignment

model (figure 3) Hatch and Schultz (2008) simply state that the corporate identity is established by three

Figure 3

Source: Hatch and Schultz 2008: 11





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things: Strategic vision (where are we going?), Organisational Culture (where do we come from/ what do we

stand for?) and Stakeholder Image (what do people think of/expect from us?). The point of the models is that

the greater alignment or coherence between the three, the stronger the corporate identity and thus the

stronger corporate brand – and conversely will misalignment result in identity confusion and weaker

corporate brands (Hatch and Schultz 2008: 11).

However, the VCI alignment does not do it alone; Pickton and Broderick define the corporate image as:

„the impression created by the corporate identity‟ (Pickton and Broderick 2005: 246-247). Hence, they argue

that the corporate image is created by the stakeholders‟ perception and interpretation of the corporate

identity. This view is further supported by Hatch and Schultz (2008: 51), presenting the organisation identity

dynamics model (Figure 4). The idea behind the model is more or less the same as Pickton and Broderick‟s

above, although focus is on an ongoing conversation between the organisation and its stakeholders

constantly developing the identity.

Figure 4:

Source: Hatch and Schultz 2008

The ellipse on the left side represents what the organisation believes to be their corporate identity; we could

call it the internal corporate identity established by the „V‟ and the „C‟, from the VCI alignment model. The

ellipse to the right represents what Pickton and Broderick (2005) define as corporate image, which is the

stakeholder‟s impression of the organisation, and the „I‟ in figure 3. Finally, through interaction or





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conversation, these two factors create the true identity of the organisation. The point is that through effective

organisation identity conversation, the company listens to its stakeholders (e.g. via research) and responds to

it accordingly. Likewise do stakeholders listen and respond to the companies‟ efforts. A failure of these two

simple theories (VCI and identity dynamics model) will lead to weakened corporate identity. Hatch and

Schultz (2008: 57-58) introduce two typical examples of failure, one being the Narcissistic where the

company fails to listen to their stakeholders and focuses communication on themselves. The other example is

the hyper-adaption trap, where a company tries too hard to adapt to every stakeholder group and thus loses

its organisational culture. Figure 4 is similar to the idea behind Peirce‟s triadic model which examines the

interpretation of signs (figure 2). Just like signs, the perception and understanding of organisations is

debatable and depends on the eye of the beholder. For organisations it is therefore essential to create an

identity that is as clear and unambiguous as possible.

To sum up, branding is about differentiation and creating a sense of belonging. Corporate branding is

about communication with stakeholders in order to establish a corporate identity and through that create

differentiation and belonging. This communication with stakeholders can take various forms, from PR and

advertisement to research and direct sales. However especially important for this paper is the aspect of

corporate social responsibility (CSR).

3.3.3 Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)

"A concept whereby companies integrate social and environmental concerns in their business operations and

in their interaction with their stakeholders on a voluntary basis."

- The European Commission‟s (2010) definition of CSR

As a natural result of the rapid development within the subject, there is little agreement on an actual

definition. CSR consultant McElhaney (2008: 5) defines it as: “a business strategy that is integrated with the

core business objectives and core competencies of the firm and from the outset is designed to create business

value and positive social change, and is embedded in the day-to-day business culture and operations.” In

common for both these and many other definitions is the focus on CSR as a business strategy and integration

into the business operations. Furthermore, the European Commission focuses on voluntary where

McElhaney leaves it implicit and focus on the fact that the efforts should create business value (McElhaney

2008: 5).

As CSR is clearly to be integrated into the business as a strategy, it becomes clear that it will affect all

three factors of the VCI alignment model: the vision and culture as it is to be integrated into the company

and the image as it inevitably will affect the way stakeholders interpret the company in one way or another.





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Hence, CSR becomes an important factor with regard to the corporate identity. This view is supported by

McElhaney (2008: 12) as she argues that CSR can help companies differentiate their brand even in noisy

industries where quality and price are more or less equal. Furthermore, surveys show that CSR is ranked

third on ability to predict reputation of a firm. However, it was also ranked last when it comes to people‟s

knowledge about brands (McElhaney 2008: 34-35). This could indicate not only that CSR is an important

part of companies‟ identity and hence a strong tool in corporate branding, but also that communication on the

subject is scant. The reasons for the scant communication will be addressed later.

The reasons for CSR‟s importance in the postmodern corporate brand are to be found in the shift from

functional to emotional attributes as the more important. CSR merely becomes a tool to express the

company‟s emotional attributes via corporate identity. Furthermore, of course the possibility of an actual

authentic social responsible business exists. Although May et. al. (2007: 16) argues, the corporation “is unfit

as a carrier of social responsibility” as its primary goal and basic foundation of existence is to generate

profit for the shareholders. Thus he argues that corporations are “held captive [...] of the tyranny of the

bottom line”, meaning that spending money on social responsibility is not in the nature of corporations.

However, this leads us back to the bigger discussion of whether branding is worth the effort at all (a

discussion far beyond the scope of this paper).

3.3.4 Green vs. Other CSR efforts

It is especially interesting cf. the thesis statement to examine the green perspective of CSR. In this section, we

will account for the green focus of many CSR efforts and connect them to the green discourse of postmodern

society.

"There isn't a company out there that isn't positioning green marketing in one way or another."

- Pete May (Schwartz 2007)

The quote above indicates the corporate world‟s focus on the environment and the green discourse present in

today‟s society. This view is supported by Wilson (2008) who argues that many companies express their

CSR in exactly the green area. Furthermore, surveys show that being green will continue to be a high priority

in CSR (McElhaney 2008: 171). However, CSR comes with a broad variety of issues for companies to

address from HIV in Africa over local education to immoral beauty ideals, so why go green? Is it not just

much more risky and demanding than for example supporting a local college? The answer might lie in the

increasing green discourse of society. Wilson (2008) states that the general agreement in the scientific world,

that climate change is happening, is what has put it on the top of the news agenda. Hence the increasing

stakeholder interest in being green. Ongkrutraksa (May et.al. 2007: 365) backs up this claim by stating that:





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“Consumers […] are now more concerned about environmental problems than ever”. Thus, the reason for

the increasing focus on green CSR and marketing effort might just be a result of an effective conversation

(cf. figure 4). Hence, the green focus originates from stakeholder demands of what corporations should be

like. Furthermore, there is the logical explanation that the planet we inhabit should be everyone‟s concern

and thus green efforts are interesting to everyone, not just the local population.

3.3.5 Corporate environmentalism

“A business that makes nothing but money is a poor business”

– Henry Ford (Estes 2009: 131)

The green corporations are aware that consumers are in control and have the power of information. They are

aware of climate change and wish to take responsibility in order to take care of the environment. This

behaviour of the consumers is a natural consequence of the postmodern society that they live in (Kotler and

Keller 2006: 56). Information has become easy accessible and consumers use the power of knowledge to

question authorities and corporations. Consumers have become increasingly interested in companies and

their CSR profile. In particular, they have high expectations of their favourite companies (McElhaney 2008:

118).

Corporations must acknowledge their consumers‟ needs and adapt to the change in consumer behaviour.

Because of the increasing importance of environmental sustainability in society, incorporation of

Environmental Management Systems (EMS) has become increasingly popular. This management system

helps businesses address the consumers‟ concerns by being sustainable and providing green products or

services. Companies exploit the green discourse in society in order to give their company a new edge to their

corporate identity and are now able to brand themselves as environmentally friendly businesses. (BSI

Management Systems 2010).

The reason businesses become green is the prospect of a win-win situation. Businesses can meet the

needs of both consumers as well as stakeholders by becoming green, but a certain balance must be

maintained in order for green to satisfy both parties. Figure 5 depicts the scope of environmentalism. The

vertical axis symbolises businesses‟ action towards environmental protection or restoration that in the end

will benefit the general public. Examples of this can be purifying water, neutralising waste and planting

trees. The horizontal axis symbolises private profits, such as cost savings for the firm by purifying and re-

using water or using energy efficient light bulbs. There must be a balance between the two in order to create

a win-win situation. The win-win situation is outlined by the two lines E and B that limit both aspects in





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order to ensure a balance and a higher probability for a positive outcome for both the business and the

general public. If a business decides to work too close to the horizontal line and thus focus on personal gain

with little or no concern for the environment, the business will merely be working towards business as usual.

On the other hand, if they work too close to the vertical line, the business will concentrate too much on

environmental issues and in the process neglect their own agenda of making a profit which the shareholders

will not accept.

Figure 5:

This model (figure 5) is in accordance with an 11-year Harvard University study that found that

“stakeholder-balanced” companies show four times the growth rate and eight times the employment growth

in comparison to companies that were doing business as usual, i.e. only paying attention to shareholders. It is

vital that corporations are able to manage their social, economic and environmental impact on society in

order to maximize their competitive advantage (Adelia 2007: 52).

In today‟s postmodern society, it is still possible to run a successful business in the Western world

without any concern for environmental sustainability (which means that they are close to the vertical line).

However, if environmental concern in society continues growing at the same rate, sooner or later they will

have to face opposition from environmentalists or stricter rules from the government. This change is in fact

already happening. Since 2009, the 1.100 largest businesses in Denmark are required by law to take a





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position on CSR in their annual reports and state their actions - even if there are no CSR actions to report.

This places an indirect pressure on businesses not just to take a position on social responsibility and

communicate this, but also to actually become a socially responsible corporation. It will have a very negative

impact on the company if its stakeholders, who expect the company to be socially responsible, discover that

it is indeed not. The purpose of this is to make the identity of businesses grow and thereby try to improve

national and especially international competitiveness. This new law and its impact are being followed closely

by the other countries in the European Union, who may also apply it (Danish Government Centre for CSR

2010). This new policy is in accordance with the recommendations with (Friedman 2008: 319) who states

that everything a country does to go green will make it stronger, healthier, more secure, more innovative,

more competitive, and more respected.

As mentioned above, there is a consumer pressure for companies to be socially responsible, but there is

also a governmental pressure – not just to be socially responsible, but also to communicate it externally.

However, many companies go beyond what is required of them to demonstrate their commitment to reducing

their impact on the environment. Companies spend money on certifying their Environmental Management

Systems (EMS) according to International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 14001 or become paying

members of other environmental initiatives. Companies within the energy and oil sector are most likely to go

beyond compliance; however, it is noteworthy that they also spend millions of dollars to communicate that

message. This is to ensure that their stakeholders, the media and the consumers see them as leaders in

environmental protection (Orsato 2009: 65). This strategy has indeed worked for some of the companies,

among them Exxon Mobil. In 2009, Exxon Mobil was appointed „Green company of the year‟ by Forbes

Magazine (Forbes 2009). It is ironic that an oil company, whose core business is directly harmful to the

environment can get the credit of being appointed green company of the year. Critics say that companies

within the energy and oil sector make the effort to go beyond compliance to build up goodwill as a result

“companies can weather the storms resulting from their occasional lapses” (McElhaney 2008: 57). Such

companies become more likeable. Authorities and other stakeholders will become favourably disposed

towards them and they might get a “get-out-out-jail-free card” if they come under fire during a crisis.

There is a pressure to become more socially responsible by media, governments, consumers and other

corporations, but it often results in an environmental approach. There are many reasons for this apart from

the branding perspective. One alternative explanation is that it is easy to implement and can reduce

operational costs for the corporation in the long term. A company‟s reduced energy consumption (an

environmental conscious action), will both reduce the company‟s costs and consequently make it become

more competitive in the long term perspective (Orsato 2009: 45).

Furthermore environmentalism is popular because of its universal nature. Climate change is

http://www.csrgov.dk/sw51190.asp





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something that is affecting the whole world and every human being (unlike local poverty or unemployment).

The reason is that the location of emission of greenhouse gasses does not merely affect one particular area,

but the whole world. If the scientists from IPCC are correct, climate change will have an enormous impact

on human life. People‟s lives, not just in terms of quality, but also as a race might be at stake. This is a

universal message that is understood by all people, regardless of religion, race, politics, economics, etc.

Global treaties concerning emission caps are necessary because of the conflicting interests (Stavinst 1997).

3.3.6 Corporate credibility

A vital point for any corporate branding, is the stakeholders‟ trust. The importance of the stakeholders

actually believing what is communicated is logically a pivotal point in the branding process (McElhaney

2008: 28-32). The postmodern society we live in today has resulted in an erosion of trust in businesses. As

consumers and other stakeholder groups become more knowledgeable through the information society we

live in, they simultaneously become more sceptical to any message (Ibid.: 8). Furthermore, with the many

scandals supporting the consumers‟ scepticism, such as the economic fraud scandal of Enron and Exxon

Valdez oil spill, trust in businesses has reached a record low (May et. al. 2007:450). The challenge here is

according to McElhaney (2008: 32) that: “you can‟t buy trust, you can only earn it over a relatively long

time”. She continues by stating that: “unfortunately you can lose trust over an extremely short time”. This

indicates that trust can only be earned through proving worthy of it through time - Hatch and Schultz (2008:

13) argue that their VCI alignment should not only enhance the corporate brand but also the trust in it.

This lack of trust could be the explanation for the scant communication with regard to CSR in today‟s

businesses, mentioned earlier. McElhaney (2008) even argues that companies are scared of publicly

communicating CSR efforts, for the simple reason that it could be misinterpreted and backfire (Ibid: 27-28).

This is why she throughout her book regularly emphasises the importance of consistence and authentic

efforts (Ibid.). This leads us to two terms originated within green marketing but now more or less compatible

with any socially responsible effort – greenwashing and greenhushing. Greenwashing, a paraphrase of the

word whitewash, is hypocrisy – inconsistency between words and actions (May et. al. 2007: 454).

Corporations are being accused and convicted of greenwashing, for instance when exaggerating the

environmental benefits of a product (Wilson 2008). With regard to trust, greenwash is what, to use

McElhaney‟s (2008: 32) words, “[...] lose trust over extremely short time”. However, this is not an easy

game to play as Grande (2008) argues that there are examples of firms with no real green effort who are

interpreted as green, while actual green companies are attacked as greenwashers. Furthermore, there is the

point of view that hypocrisy is a natural step towards responsibility as March (May et. al. 2007: 454) states

that: “a bad person with good intentions can be a person who experiments with the possibility of becoming a





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good person.” Hence, he suggests that greenwashers should not be punished, but encouraged to do even

more. He views greenwash as an experiment, investigating if being green actually will benefit the company.

However, greenwashing is predominantly seen as a negative situation hurting the corporate identity

(Ongkrutrakse 2007; McElhaney 2008: 43)

Greenhushing is on the other hand the result of greenwashing. It is the direct opposite from

greenwashing as it is authentically green companies refraining from communicating their CSR efforts. As

mentioned above, McElhaney (2008: 27-28) explains that companies are refraining from communicating

their CSR, including green, efforts because of the fear of being marked as greenwashers.


To sum up, the primary aim of branding is to differentiate. However, developments in today‟s society have

changed the focus from the products to the entire corporation. Thus due to a more individualistic society,

where the consumer constantly seeks means to complement his identity, corporations have been required to

create and communicate unique emotional attributes to their brands. Simultaneously, as the consumer

becomes more self-aware he becomes more aware of his impact on his surroundings, and requires

responsibility from corporations. Corporations are therefore forced to take part in extensive societal issues –

such as the environmental discourse. Seen from the corporate world this means that marketing has changed,

so that it now includes the entire palette of communication – internal and external. Furthermore, there seems

to be an agreement among theorists that the key to this communication is to gain consumer trust, through

coherence and honesty. In figure 4 it became evident that, in order to adopt a green identity and be

successful, it is necessary to take all stakeholders‟ needs into account. It is not enough to merely satisfy the

consumers, the shareholders also need to be satisfied and a corporation must learn to strike an appropriate

balance. To keep pace with the consumers more and more corporations have adopted green as part of their

corporate identity and try to maintain this balance. Finally, branding today is all about communicating

corporate beliefs and values in order to differentiate the brand and allow the consumer to identify him/herself

with it.





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4 Case study

4.1 Company overview – Toyota

“Toyota has sought harmony between people, society, and the global environment, as well as the sustainable

development of society, through manufacturing.”

- From Toyota Vision & Philosophy

The Toyota Motor Corporation was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda in 1937, in Japan as a subsidiary of the

Toyoda spinning and weaving company. The corporation experienced rapid growth after the Second World

War with almost 40% of the Japanese car market. In 1957, Toyota entered the American market and just six

years later, in 1963, time had come to enter the European market. Since then, Toyota has continued to

expand into a multinational corporation with 75 production facilities in 28 countries and market vehicles in

170 countries. Worldwide, Toyota employs more than 320,000 people, 80,000 of them in Europe. After

record earnings in both 2007 and 2008, Toyota experienced their first ever operating loss since 1938 as they

saw sales fall by 11% in 2009. However, despite the historic bad results Toyota remains the world‟s largest

car manufacturer followed by Europe‟s largest - Volkswagen and former market leader and now bankrupt

General Motors. In Europe however, Toyota is still surpassed by both Ford and PSA Peugeot Citröen. (CNN

2010; Toyota.co.jp 2010; Toyota.eu 2010; DatamonitorEU 2009)

4.2 Market overview – European Automobile market

In this section, we present a short overview of the market in which Toyota‟s “aim: zero emissions” campaign

ran. The overview takes as its point of departure Datamonitor‟s “Europe - automobile market research

2009” and the ACEA‟s (European automobile manufacturers association) industry report from 2009.

Furthermore, we will draw on relevant articles to support the market research.

The European automobile market (from now on European car market) accounts for 26% of the global car

market. This makes it the third largest market within the industry. After years of steady growth, the bubble

burst in 2008 with a CAGR of nearly -6% (datamonitorEU 2009). Now, two years later, the industry is still

struggling to adapt to the impact the global recession has had on the market. With a global CAGR from 2007

to 2008 on a devastating -19%, the car industry in general has been one of the hardest hit industries

worldwide (ACEA 2009-2010: 5; Datamonitor Global 2009). According to Datamonitor, (EU 2009) the

major players on the European market are Volkswagen, PSA Peugoet Citröen and Ford between them having

almost 40% of the market shares. The competitive situation in the market is strongly influenced by a period





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of good years resulting in many market players, followed by a downturn, as strong players fight to keep their

shares in the declining market (DatamonitorEU 2009). On the other hand, rivalry in the industry is reduced to

some extent by the broad nature of the market, from luxury to budget cars. However, Toyota‟s, and many

other larger brands, broad portfolio of cars places them in several segments of the market. The result of this

is a strong focus on brand building and reputation (datamonitorEU 2009). Another important issue,

companies in the European car market have to address, is the increasing laws and regulations concerning

environmental sustainability.

In December 2008, the European Parliament and Council passed the most demanding environmental

legislation the passenger car market has ever faced, see textbox for specifics (ACEA 2009-2010: 16). This

legislation comes as a natural result of the growing concern for the environment in society and especially the

car market where environmental concerns from stakeholders are very strong (datamonitorEU 2009). This

environmental focus together with related legislation combined with the dependency of brands, resulted in a

green wave hitting the market. A scan of corporate websites reveals that all of the three major players plus

major Japanese car manufacturers on the

market (Toyota, Nissan and Honda) are

developing hybrid technology vehicles and

other fuel efficient alternatives to the

traditional combustion engine. Welch et.

al. (2009) even argues that the point of

these greener alternatives are not so much

to sell a lot of them but merely to create an

environmental image around the brand.

This could indicate a green trend in the

market. Reinhardt (2008) supports this

tendency as she states that the buzz-word

of the industry is hybrid. However, she

further argues that this trend is strongly

influenced by the new regulations on the

market.

4.3 Analysis - Aim: zero emissions

In this part of the thesis, we analyse parts of the Toyota campaign “aim: zero emissions”. Taking account of

thesis delimitations we have chosen one printed advertisement and one of the green design videos to create a

Key points in the Regulation for passenger cars • A reduction in average CO2 emissions from new cars to 120 g/km. • Encompassing a 10 gramme reduction to come from complementary measures including greater penetration of biofuels. • A staggered approach to implementation: 65% of new cars will comply with requirements in 2012; 75% in 2013; 80% in 2014 and 100% in 2015. • Eco-innovations will count for up to 7 grammes of manufacturers’ fleet targets. • Super-credits for vehicles emitting less than 50 gCO2/km. • Provisions for niche manufacturers (10,000 to 300,000 units) to achieve fleet average reduction of 25%. • Average new car CO2 emissions should fall to 95 g/km in 2020, following a thorough assessment of this target’s expected overall impact. • Penalties will be imposed on a sliding scale; manufacturers exceeding their target by more than 3 g/km

will pay €95 per excess gramme. Smaller charges

between €5 and €25 for excesses of 1 – 3 g/km. • In 2014, any weight increase in new cars will be studied. Following review, CO2 targets may be adjusted in 2016, to be reviewed every three years. - From ACEA industry report 2009





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picture of the overall campaign message and differentiation point, cf. our problem statement. First, we will

use a discourse analysis to shed light on the printed part; afterwards, we will conduct a multimodal analysis

of the video clip.

4.3.1 The aim: zero emissions campaign

The Toyota campaign “aim: zero emissions” was launched in 2004 and ended in 2007. It was based on

printed- and internet advertisements, but also features “green design” movies sponsored by Toyota. The

movies ran in France, the UK, Germany, Italy, Spain and Russia and were shown on credible TV-channels

such as BBC World, Euronews and National Geographic. The prints and interactive campaign have featured

on several websites that support Toyota‟s credibility, such as iht.com, economist.com, ft.com,

newsweek.com and nationalgeographic.com. The campaign originally contained some 20 different movies

dealing with everything from environmentally friendly football stadiums to environmentally friendly paper

made from rocks, but what they all have in common is that they put focus on the environment and

sustainable living. After the television part of the campaign came to a halt in 2007, all the movies were

featured on Toyota Europe‟s homepage www.toyota.eu for two years until the entire campaign eventually

developed into a corporate blog supported by a YouTube channel. (Toyota Aim zero emissions 2010),

(Abuelsamid 2006).

4.3.2 Printed Advertisement

In this section, we conduct a discourse analysis of the printed advertisement which will be used to assess the

campaign‟s overall contribution to the differentiation of the corporate brand of Toyota. The theoretical

framework used for the visual discourse analysis is Kress and Van Leeuwen‟s Grammar of Visual Design,

from their book from 2006 – “Reading Images”. Furthermore, the theories of Barthes‟ connotators that we

found relevant for the advertisements have been applied. For the textual discourse analysis, we have

primarily applied Aristotle‟s rhetorical appeals.

4.3.2.1 Visual discourse analysis

The advertisement campaign “aim: zero emissions” was established for the European market and the most

featured picture was one of a tree in a glade. The trunk of the tree is composed of 6-7 half naked people. At

the fringe of the glade, there are smaller trees and bushes and in the distant horizon, you can see mountains.

The text part of the advertisement is in the bottom of the picture and in the bottom right corner, the Toyota

logo is printed.

http://iht.com/

http://economist.com/

http://ft.com/

http://nationalgeographic.com/

http://www.toyota.eu/





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4.3.2.1.1 Barthes connotators

Trick effects:

The picture is not a real photograph because it has been digitally edited, which becomes obvious when taking

a closer look at the person at the top of the human trunk, whose arms and legs fade into the treetop. This is

done in order to indicate harmony between man and nature. However, this is done without compromising

Toyota‟s ethos, since it is obvious that it is not a real photograph. The digital editing in this picture is used to

create this abstract picture, not to deceive the receiver (Barthes 1977: 15-31).

Pose:

The pose of the image is very characteristic with six or seven very athletic young people posing as the trunk

of the tree. They are very graceful, almost like ballet dancers, holding and embracing each other. They have

a very serious look on their faces, closed eyes and bowed heads. This results in a dehumanization of the

persons and contributes to the naturalistic fusion of man and nature, which is attractive to the viewer. The

atmosphere encourages the viewer to take the image seriously and realise the importance of the message.

(Ibid.)

Photogenia:

The photogenia in the picture is the light behind the tree; it is a very bright white light, almost like a divine

light, causing a shadow to be cast on the viewer. This could be symbolic and mean that man has sinned

(ecologically). This combined with the very harmonic and serious look of the picture gives biblical

connotations, relating to the tree of knowledge and the downfall of man. Most Europeans are familiar with

the Bible and the story about the tree of knowledge in paradise (Ibid.).

4.3.2.1.2 Krees and Van Leeuwen

The ideational metafunction:

According to Kress and van Leeuwen‟s (2006) theories, as there are no action processes in the image, the

ideational metafunction must be conceptual. As the actors form a tree trunk – their function makes the

structure of the image symbolic. As there are no symbolic attributes, the meaning of the participants

therefore must be established from within the participants, we are dealing with a suggestive process type.

The participants are not interacting, but as mentioned before, they are dehumanized by their pose which

makes them fade in with nature as the trunk of the tree. They are at one with nature and the universe (Kress

and van Leeuwen 2006: 42-114).





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The interpersonal function:

The interpersonal function deals with the relationship between the participants and the viewer. In this

picture, there is no contact between the participants and the viewers. The represented participants are

depicted as objects of contemplation. Therefore, the picture is clearly an offer picture; Toyota is offering the

viewer information and thereby hoping to establish an agreement. This creates a social distance between the

participants and the viewer, which is further emphasised by the impersonal shot of the participants in full

figure. The horizontal perspective of the image is oblique, which creates detachment, but also emphasises the

distance between participants and viewer. The vertical perspective is eye level, which creates equality and

thereby contributes to the feeling of harmony in the picture. The social distance in the image is a result of the

very abstract choice of motive, as the viewer will hardly be able to identify himself with a group of

artistically manipulated people dissolving into a tree. To sum up, the result of the interpersonal function is an

offer from Toyota and a creation of a social distance, which puts the viewer at ease as there is no pressure or

demand. (Kress and van Leeuwen 2006: 114-154).

The Textual Metafunction:

The composition of the advertisement is centred as the main part of the image, the “human” tree functions as

a mediator creating a bridge that divides the picture into an ideal - real composition, where the heading:

“aim: zero emissions” forms the ideal and the bottom text which informs the recipient about Toyota‟s

environmental initiatives is the real part. The most salient part of the advertisement is the tree, which is

natural because it is in the centre of the composition and takes up most of the space. The sunlight behind the

tree increases its salience as it highlights the tree, placing the dark colours of the tree in strong contrast with

the bright sky in the background. The next thing to catch our eye is the slogan of the campaign “aim: zero

emissions” printed in the top left corner. It is salient because it is placed at the top of the page and is in

contrast to the blue sky behind. Then, the Toyota trademark in the bottom right corner becomes salient

because it is written in the traditional red colours of Toyota and there is a dark shade in the bottom of the

picture, which puts it in contrast. The small print at the bottom of the advertisement is the last thing to attract

the readers‟ attention – a good place to leave the viewer as there is a link to the webpage which gives him or

her options to take further action (Kress and van Leeuwen 2006: 154-175).

4.3.2.2 Textual discourse analysis

Rhetorical appeals:

The “aim: zero emissions” campaign‟s purpose is not to sell a product or a service, but to create an image by

delivering the message. One of the main points when creating an image is your credibility or your ethos as

Aristotle refers to it. In this case, there is both situated and invented ethos. The situated ethos is the receivers





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prejudiced opinion of the sender. Over a long period of time, Toyota has built up a strong image as an

environmentally and socially responsible corporation. This contributes to the situated ethos of the

advertisement as Toyota is clearly the sender and the topic is the environment. The invented ethos in the

advertisement is found in the small print at the bottom of the advertisement. Toyota is emphasising its

experience in order to enhance its ethos in the sentence: “We‟ve come a long way since we launched our first

hybrid car 10 years ago”. They are informing the receiver that they have been working on sustainable

solutions for more than ten years and they are furthermore indicating that they are moving forward by using

the phrase: “we‟ve come a long way since...” Another example of invented ethos in the text is where Toyota

informs the receiver that: ”We apply innovative environmental solutions to every aspect of the vehicles life

cycle: from design, manufacture and use, right through to recycling”. This sentence not only emphasise the

invented ethos by showing how much they are doing, but also draws on the pathos appeal as it depicts

passion.

Through pathos, the feelings and emotions of the receiver are enhanced and manipulated. The very first

line in the smaller text clearly applies pathos as the main appeal: “We are committed to preserving the

delicate balance between man and nature.” The strong word: “committed” emphasises to the receiver that

Toyota means this seriously and profoundly and this is not just something they are working on as a sideline.

The choice of words at the end of the sentence:”...delicate balance between man and nature.” also

dramatises the environmental issue. Toyota‟s “goal goes beyond reducing exhaust emissions”, because they

really are passionate about this subject. The next sentence:”We apply innovative environmental solutions to

every aspect of the vehicles life cycle: from design, manufacture and use, right through to recycling”, also

contains some aspects of pathos, mostly due to the structure of the sentence, the colon and listing of the

aspects of the vehicles lifecycle is similar to that of a political speech, direct and flowing. The vehicle has a

life cycle, just like human beings, and a sentimental bond is created between man and machine. So even

though the main appeal of the sentence is ethos, it also includes an emotional appeal.

By choosing to use personal pronouns as “we” and “our”, the advertisement creates a feeling of

community and solidarity as the receiver feels a part of what Toyota is doing and begins to develop an

affinity to both Toyota and their environmentally responsible products. The feelings and desires of the

receiver are touched by pathos.

The last of Aristotle‟s rhetorical appeals is logos, the use of rational and logical appeals, found in the

very last sentences of the text: “It is the only way to reach our ultimate aim: zero emissions”. This backs up

the rest of the text by concluding that there is no other way to do it. Furthermore, it makes perfect logical

sense together with the rest of the text. If the aim is zero emissions, you have to go beyond exhaust emissions

and look at all aspects of the product lifecycle, as Toyota is doing. The goal is therefore to make the receiver





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perceive Toyota as their only choice if their ultimate goal too is zero emissions, or if they want to show the

world, through their choice of car and image, that they care about the environment.

Text image relationship – Barthes‟ anchorage and relay

The “aim: zero emissions” advertisement has its anchorage in the text image relationship as the image itself

does not create a direct link to Toyota and does by itself not create much meaning. The receiver is unable to

interpret the image‟s message without the text. However, with both the text and the picture, the

advertisement makes much more sense. Although the image is rather abstract it makes sense as the text

mentions “the delicate balance between man and nature”. The strong anchorage is emphasised as the

heading and the logo are not enough to make sense of the image – you need the subheading “we are

committed to preserving the delicate balance between man and nature” to complete the strong anchorage.

Neither the visual nor the textual part of this advertisement are very dynamic or strong when standing alone,

but combined they provide a powerful attack on the viewers reality, ethical and rational thinking and finally

their judgement of the advertised brand (Barthes 1977: 32-51).

4.3.2.3 Communicative purpose

The communicative purpose of this advertisement is to present the Toyota Corporation as an

environmentally conscious and responsible corporation, striving to reduce its negative impact on the

environment. It is clear that the purpose is not to sell a specific product but to sell the brand Toyota. There

are no products in the advertisement at all. In fact, you would not even notice that Toyota is a car

manufacturer; actually the world‟s largest, without reading the small print text. Toyota is simply stating a

vision: “aim: zero emissions” and leaves it to the receiver to take it or leave it. It is a pull marketing strategy

as they provide the selected information using imagery, thus leaving it up to the receivers to form their own

opinion and hopefully take action, both with regard to protecting the environment and to purchase an

environmental friendly Toyota.

4.3.3 Video Clip

In this section, we conduct a multimodal analysis of the video clip “green design: Solar Tower” (Toyota

Aim zero emissions 2010). Our analysis is based on Iedema‟s (2001) three metafunctions, which explain

how the representational, orientational and organisational meanings are reinforced by different modes and

submodes. The framework of Theo van Leeuwen‟s “Sound in perspective” (2006)is used to reveal how sound

is used in the film.

The video begins with a 4 second still image (analysed above) and the voiceover reads: “Toyota – are

sponsors of Green Design”. These 4 seconds are consistently used as the beginning of the videos in the





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series. After the Green Design start, there is another still image - a circular warm orange figure, illustrating

the sun, and a text saying: “Green design: Solar tower”. This indicates the start of this particular video. Next,

the actual body of the video shows the viewer the Spanish solar tower through the eyes of the locals,

supported by the narrating voiceover. Finally, the circle ends back at the Green Design still image where the

video started and the voiceover reads: “Green Design – sponsored by Toyota”

4.3.3.1 Iedema’s 3 metafunctions

Representation:

In this section of our analysis, the focus will, according to Iedema (2001) be to uncover the meanings

represented, visually and Auditory, including verbal, music and sound wise.

Visually the video starts by a still image of the printed advertisement (analysed above) in a wide angel, as the

zoom-in narrows the image a bit, a Toyota logo fades in. This gives the still image life and makes it almost

dynamic. The image, as mentioned in the discourse analysis, sets the environmental mood. There are no

associations to the car industry except for the Toyota logo.

There is a shift to another still image, a circular warm orange figure, illustrating the sun, and a text

saying: “Green design: Solar tower” – indicating the start of this specific green design video where the first

shot is identical throughout the entire green design series. This shot further adds to the environmental

discourse with the words “green design”.

Then the actual body of the video begins. The visuals work as a narrative showing us the solar tower –

through the eyes of the locals, supported by the narrating voiceover. The video shows a young boy driving to

the solar tower with his mother. The boy seems interested and curious about the solar tower, he plays with

the mirror in the sun, he acts excited in the car when he sees the tower, just as any young boy would.

Through the relatively short body of the video, the shots change back and forth between the boy and the solar

tower. At the end we see a cup of espresso or coffee is made and we see the boy and his mother in a café.

There is nothing in the video that can be misinterpreted or disturb the viewer; it is a pure “feel good” video

from start to finish. Perhaps the only thing missing is a “dad”, but that may be the role the viewer is supposed

to take. Finally, the circle ends back at the green design still image were the video started.

Auditory:

The main auditory part of the video is the voiceover, which is the dominant part of the audio and the music

only works as support. The lack of diegetic sounds makes the voiceover even more intense. The voiceover

works as a narrative about the solar tower, where it is, how it works, etc. It is done in a calm, comfortable,

deep voice and at a relaxed speed, like the speaker on most documentaries. However, in this case, there is





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also an element of rhythm, as the voiceover‟s pauses are very much in tune with the music, so every time

there is a small pause in the voiceover, a few piano keys are stroked, making a smooth rhythm of music and

voiceover. The music itself is very calm and pleasant instrumental piano music. The only diegetic sound in

the video is the sound of the hot water/steam in the café. Possibly to emphasise the energy used or to

symbolise the steam driven technology behind the design of the solar tower. What is even more interesting in

this case is the relationship between the auditory and visual parts. The voiceover follows the visuals

describing what we see for example the first sentence is:” outside Seville – the Spanish have built a new

golden tower [...]”. At the same time, we first see a city setting (the city of Seville, the voiceover tells us

what we see) then a country road with a solar tower in the background (“outside Seville”+ “golden tower”

again the voiceover tells us what we see). This makes the video work as a very explanatory narrative about

the solar tower. The fact that everything the voiceover tells us is backed up by visuals adds ethos to the video

and heightens its credibly.

To sum up, the representation of this movie is as a green educational movie. Everything in the video is

in a logical progression, informing us about this solar tower. However, the knowledge is merely an offer,

nothing is forced upon us and you never get the feeling of being lectured (Iedema 2001).

Orientation:

The video uses shifting perspectives to involve the viewer. Throughout the body of the video, the perspective

changes from the young boy and his mother to seeing what they see, thus making the viewer an invisible

third person in the video. Hereby, the visuals of a solar tower in southern Spain become a part of the

viewer‟s world, even if he or she lives in an igloo in Greenland. The fact that we see it from a human being‟s

perspective makes us able to identify with it, even more so with a child, as one thing we all have in common

is childhood (Stiegel 2001). The intimacy of the shots of the boy drags the viewer into his world. We move

from observing him playing with his mirror outside to being in the car with him, in an intimate close shot.

The oblique angle from which we see the boy is consistent through the video. This makes it less demanding

and more relaxed. There is no frontal angle showing anyone demanding anything, it is merely offering us

information and a concept of reality that we as viewers can take or leave.

The intimacy in the video is further emphasised through the voiceover, which speaks in a very calm and

relaxing voice. A calm and relaxing voice does according to Van Leeuwen (2006) creates a more intimate

relationship, as it would be unnatural for most of us to approach a total stranger with a whisper. However,

the fact that the viewer is involved visually and that there is no demand makes it perfectly suitable in this

case (Iedema 2001).





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Organisation:

The organisation of the video consists of three parts. The green design parts at the beginning and the end, the

beginning of the actual solar tower video and the actual body of the video. The body of the video is

composed of an educational documentary with no built-up tension, no problem solution logic and not much

drama. Thus the video becomes more monotone, but cosily so. The only hint of drama in the video is created

by the piano music at the very end of the voiceover. 50 seconds into the video, where the voiceover tells us

about the impressive scope of this green design, and the piano music shifts from middle- to the foreground as

the tone changes and becomes deeper and more dramatic for a second (Iedema 2001).

4.3.3.2 Communicative Purpose

Toyota has succeeded in making a video or a series of videos that contributes to their green image (Orsato

2009: 35). The remarkable thing is that the video has absolutely nothing to do with Toyota and yet as

viewers, we are left with a positive feeling about Toyota and the company‟s aims and beliefs. These positive

vibes are created by the video which is easy to watch and comprehend. There is no demand, no drama and no

hardcore facts to consider. You can just relax and let your-self be absorbed entertained by the interesting

information delivered in a smooth tone and at a calm pace. With regard to Peirce‟s model (figure 2), the

product/object that Toyota wishes to sell, is not consistent with the video‟s function and story, which means

that there is a gap between the signifier and the signified. Toyota is presenting us the symbolic reality, which

consists of values and images, rather than directly selling us a product with its various functional attributes.

This is in accordance with the development from product branding to corporate branding.

4.4 Sub-conclusion

To sum up, Toyota‟s goal with this campaign is clearly to present itself to the general public as an

environmentally conscious corporation. The printed advertisements as well as the video create an image of

an environmentally responsible, well informed, globally aware organisation and this is supported by various

points in both the discourse and the multimodal analysis. The environmental responsibility is expressed

already in the subheading of the printed advertisement: “We are committed to preserving the delicate

balance between man and nature.” and in the first shot of the video “Toyota – a sponsors of Green Design”.

Toyota is striving for both credibility and sustainability through its dynamic and responsible attitude towards

protecting the environment and bringing awareness and enlightenment to the public. The visual part of the

“aim: zero emissions” campaign supports this by symbolising the harmony between man and nature and the

video further emphasises it, by functioning as a documentary created to educate the public.

The fact that the picture is an offer picture and carries the ideal – real composition reflects that Toyota is

striving (the real) for sustainability (the ideal) and offers it to the receiver. This presents Toyota as an





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environmentally responsible organisation. A pattern continued in the video where oblique angles are used

consistently.

5 Discussion

In this part of the thesis, the results of our analysis of Toyota‟s “aim: zero emissions” campaign will be

discussed in connection to the theoretical background material. The point of departure for the discussion is

the question of whether green can still be considered a differentiation factor in all markets (cf. our problem

statement).

5.1 “Aim: zero emissions” in the postmodern society

In our analysis, we found that the communicative purpose of Toyota‟s “aim: zero emissions” was to present

Toyota as an environmentally conscious corporation. Hence, it aims to differentiate the corporate identity of

Toyota as a green organisation. However, is it possible for Toyota to use green as a differentiation factor? To

answer this, we first have to consider the specific market.

In our sections on the postmodern society, we revealed that society has changed and so has the market.

Due to an increase in living standards, consumption is no longer focused on functional attributes, but has

become a tool to create an individual‟s identity and image. As people become more individualistic, the

overall identification as part of a group disappears and the individual is forced to create his own identity. The

process of creating an individual identity can, for instance, be done by driving a Toyota Prius, thereby

demonstrating to the world that you care about the environment. This reality has opened the eyes of the

corporate world, which now is shifting attention from product branding to corporate branding. This

evolvement has allowed corporations to create their own corporate identity and thereby makes it easier for

consumers to use brands to reflect their own personality. Thus, the main focus of branding in the postmodern

society is differentiation of corporate brands through emotional attributes. For Toyota, this means that focus

to some extent has shifted from functional attributes, such as the amount of horsepower and reliability, to

softer more flux emotional attributes of the corporate identity. The main reason for this, according to Pickton

and Broderick (2005:244), is as mentioned in the section on branding, similarities in the functional attributes.

Basically, the Toyota car itself cannot do anything a Nissan or VW cannot do too, thus they have to find

other ways to differentiate their brand.

This becomes evident in the case of the “aim: zero emissions” campaign. Our analysis shows that the

communicative purpose of the campaign is to make Toyota stand out as an environmentally friendly

corporation. Hence, the goal is to create or contribute to the identity of the corporate brand in order for





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Toyota consumers to identify themselves as environmentally conscious citizens.

However, as revealed in our section on branding, the focus of any branding effort, product or corporate,

is to differentiate the brand from that of competitors. Therefore, it is not enough for Toyota to create an

identity desirable for consumers; it also has to differentiate its identity from that of its competitors. Therefore

we have to consider the market in which Toyota operates. As revealed in the market overview, there has

clearly been a green trend within the European car market, where the “aim: zero emission” campaign was

launched. We will not judge whether it is due to EU regulations forcing the green discourse upon the

manufacturers or it is an actual result of corporate strategies. However, it would be naive to suggest that the

regulations are the only influencer, as there are no regulations forcing the car manufacturers to communicate

their green efforts to the public – they could in theory just change the technology of their cars and continue

their marketing efforts as if nothing happened (known as greenhushing). One thing is clear though –

European car manufactures are going green. One of the main factors showing this is the extensive investment

in research and development of greener alternatives to the traditional combustion engine. The development

of these sustainable alternatives, Welch et. al. (2009) indicates, might not only be to fulfil requirements but

also to add a green dimension to the corporate identity. Now the question is: Has green become a hygiene

factor in the European car market? Has the inflation of green messages made it impossible for any car

manufacturer to differentiate by being green? The green trend in the European car market could indicate that

Toyota, or any other player in the market, would have a hard time differentiating from competitors entirely

by being green. Earlier, when being green was still new in the car market, no doubt Toyota had a strong

motivation factor by being green. When Toyota launched the Prius in 1997, it was the first mass produced

hybrid vehicle in the world (Toyota.eu 2010) and has since had relatively large success, which to a large

extent was due to first mover advantage. However, as the market evolved and more and more competitors

jumped on the green train, being green may have moved from a motivation factor to a hygiene factor. Green

has become something that the consumers expect from the brands they buy, as most product attributes. Green

might no longer be interpreted as a brands concern for the environment and thereby an emotional attribute.

Instead, it might be seen more as a product attribute of how much the corporation is helping to protect the

environment - for instance, how long does the car run on a gallon of gas - thus green becomes a hygiene

factor. This view is supported by Interbrand chairman Rita Clifton as she states:” Green is [...] increasingly a

hygiene factor.” (Clayton 2002).

5.2 Green in general

The question is now if the example of the European car market shows general tendencies or is a single

exception. As stated in our section on green discourse, there is no doubt that the green wave has hit not only





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the car industry but our society as a whole with extreme force. Environmental responsibility is on the top of

the media‟s agenda; furthermore, laws and regulations force corporations to take a position on the issue.

Some markets are more hooked on green than others but as Pete May (Schwartz 2007) states: "There isn't a

company out there that isn't positioning green marketing in one way or another." This is of course an

extreme statement, without any empirical proof. However, he emphasises the extreme focus the corporate

world has put on exactly this issue and of course there exists corporations that do not position themselves as

green, but his point is – most companies do!

Furthermore, according to Stephen Stokes, vice president of AMR research, the Western World has

become increasingly interested in going green and in sustainable living and says it is only natural that a large

part of the marketplace has taken advantage of this by becoming green and sustainable. However, this also

means that it has become increasingly complicated to differentiate oneself on sustainability efforts (McCrea

2010). But, all this very much depends on the specific market and there are of course also markets where a

green image must still be seen as a motivation factor; markets where being green is still relatively new and

unexpected. An example of this is the mobile phone market, in which few companies have an environmental

product in their product range. The few companies that are in the process of adapting a green image through

their green cell phones add green as an emotional attribute to products where product attributes and

emotional attributes such as design typically have dominated. In industries of this kind, green will still

function as a motivation factor for the consumer, the reason for that being that the market is not saturated

with green companies.

Another example of an industry where being green might have become a hygiene factor is the energy

industry. Due to the market‟s enormous environmental footprints, obviously focus on green alternatives

plays an important role too. Innovative solutions such as wind, solar and water energy have boomed over the

last decades (Cohen 2010: 22). As a result of this boom, more traditional corporations in the energy business,

such as oil and coal producers, have emphasised their involvement in sustainable energy as well. Oil giants

as BP and Royal Dutch Shell have both invested in renewable energy such as wind power and are not afraid

to take advantage of it (Datamonitor – Global Energy). Slogans such as BP‟s “beyond petroleum” and Shell

pledging “don‟t throw anything away – there is no away” indicate the strong environmental focus in the

industry. However, when companies for which renewable energy accounts for a fraction of their operations

can maintain a green image, differentiation by being green undeniably looks hard – even for corporations

with green core business.

5.3 The importance of consistency

This example opens up for another interesting discussion within the field of green branding – is consistency

really necessary? Throughout our literature, the importance of consistency within communication has been





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emphasised. However, through our work on the thesis, we have found scenarios with inconsistencies

between theory and practice. An example of such a scenario is BP being rated ninth in a consumer survey of

the 20 greenest companies (Haliday 2007). The world‟s third largest oil company launches an advertising

campaign, “beyond Petroleum”, and ends up as the ninth greenest company in the mind of the consumers –

where is the consistency in that? Their greenwashing efforts are evidently effective, which is in accordance

with Orsato‟s (2009: 79) statement that a green image is more effective for dirtier companies than cleaner

ones. Of course they would not fool a Greenpeace activist or a truly green consumer but apparently, they

have succeeded in convincing the majority of the participants in the above-mentioned consumer survey.

Furthermore, Haliday (2007) suggests that the rest of the consumers assume that “oil companies are big and

greedy” and that advertising is hype (Haliday 2007) - then there is no point trying to convince them. It is all

a question of success criteria. Certainly if BP wanted to convince the whole world that they are a green

company, then consistency between words and actions would be necessary. On the other hand, if their goal is

to convince as many as possible with their current activities, then consistency might not be the key.

Seen from an oil producer‟s perspective, their effort to position themselves as green might just be a

result of what Hatch and Schultz (2008) refer to as listening (to the market) in the identity dynamics model

(cf. figure 4). Thus the reason BP tries to differentiate itself by being green is because the market demands it.

With the extensive focus on green within the energy sector, how can they avoid it? If they shifted their focus

from the environment to other CSR effort it could (and probably would) be interpreted as an attempt to buy

remission for their environmental footprints. They would risk being accused of neglecting the problem area

most relevant to their activities. This further emphasises that green might be taking the role of a hygiene

factor in some markets as consumers almost demand environmental responsibility.





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6 Conclusion

According to the IPCC, the climate is undeniably changing which will have a negative impact on most of the

world. Therefore the environment has in the last decade positioned itself on top of the political agenda and

has become a hot topic in the media, the business world as well as amongst the general public. The world is

facing enormous challenges because of the climate change and naturally consumers are more concerned

about the environment than ever before (Ongkrutraksa 2007: 365). This growing concern for the

environment should be seen as a natural effect of the high living standards in today‟s society. Today‟s

society is characterised as a postmodern society, encompassing a knowledge society. The postmodern

consumers have easy access to knowledge and thus have immense power. They demonstrate this power by

being more critical towards both the media and the corporate world in general. The consumer‟s urge to use

this power is rooted in the consumers need to self actualise themselves. The explanation for the consumers

self actualisation need is to be found in postmodern society‟s emphasis on individuality, which forces the

individual to create his or her own identity for instance through consumption. The business world has taken

advantage of this development by moving towards more emotional and ethical values when branding. The

reason for this is that the consumers‟ need to identify themselves with the identity of the brands they buy.

In our discussion we found that within the field of branding in a postmodern society, product attributes

have merely become a hygiene factor and motivation factors are moving towards emotional and ethical

attributes. Furthermore, we did not find anything indicating that green can still be considered a

differentiation factor in all markets because more and more companies undertake environmental

responsibilities. On the other hand, the background material combined with the case study on Toyota

signifies that green has indeed become a hygiene factor in some markets. This happens when markets

become saturated by a green discourse, which no longer makes a green identity noticeable. Thus being green

does not differentiate one company from another. Furthermore, we found that this tendency could be due to

the public demanding corporations to take a position with regard to climate change. Hence, the stakeholder

will become dissatisfied if the hygiene factor of being green is not present. This could also be the reason,

why we see examples of corporations with less green core competences trying to position themselves as

green.

This means that despite the fact that green might no longer be a differentiation factor and therefore no

longer have a direct competitive aspect, companies should not refrain from their green practices. Green has

become a hygiene factor and according to Herzberg, the satisfaction of hygiene factors is necessary in order

for stakeholders to stay interested. However, Herzberg emphasises the importance of both hygiene and

motivation factors in order to motivate stakeholders. According to Orsato (2009: 21-22) when markets





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become saturated and green merely has become a hygiene factor the solution is to be innovative and reinvent

oneself through new differentiation factors.

7 Other perspectives

This thesis has been very specific and concentrated on marketing communication within the vast area of

environmentalism, and it merely raises the question of the effectiveness of the enormous amounts of money

corporation‟s world-wide spend on green advertising. Of course, a more extensive empirical study of the

issue would give a more multi-facetted picture of reality. Nevertheless, a reception analysis might not prove

very effective when analysing the effect of being green because questionnaire answers do not always

coincide with actual actions when it comes to ethical behaviour (Krarup and Russell 2005: 98). Nevertheless,

such an analysis could in certain cercumstances add to the validity of the results.

The focus of this thesis is on the marketing communication aspects of being green - however is this

discussion only relevant with regard to environmentalism? Could this be the start of a number of emotional

attributes making the transition from differentiation factors to hygiene factors? Is it possible to imagine that

years from now consumers will demand that corporations contribute, for example, to the development of

third world countries? Or is the green discourse a unique example as it is relevant to all of us, despite our

different values and beliefs?





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9 Appendices

See PDF: Appendices