Branding

Branding

A brand is not the same as a product. In terms of coursework the product is a soap opera however the brand would be EastEnders, Emmerdale, Coronation Street or Neighbours which are all different soaps and each have their own separate image. Neither of these soaps have a similar brand identity.

Branding is an essential part of promoting a specific product. There is a need for different brands came about as a result of mass production. Nomi Klein, No logo said "….Competitive branding became a necessity of the machine age-within a context of manufactured sameness, image-based difference had to be manufactured along with the product."

Branding is all about creating an image that people can easily link to a certain product that will draw in consumers over and over again. In terms of soap operas this would be people linking the theme tune and setting to the soap.

According to mudvalley.com here are 8 elements that come together and create a brand identity.

1. Brand Essence - What a brand means in a sentence.
2. Brand Slogan - Often a catchphrase linked to the logo.
3. Brand Personality - What kind of character does the brand have? These humanise the brand and make it easier to relate to.
4. Brand Values - What does the brand stand for/against?
5. Brand Appearances - What does the brand look/sound like?
6. Brand Heritage - What tradition does it have?
7.  Emotional Benefits - What feelings does it offer the consumer?
8.  Hard benefits - Is it cheaper/better? What real benefits does the brand offer to the buyer?

The brand identity of Coronation Street is quite clear through the way it shows terraced houses, the corner shop and the pub. You can tell at a glance that the soap will be about family life and focus primarily on the working class. The theme tune also suggests working class and it is played by a brass band which tells us that it is set in the North of England. All of this suggests that the soap would be aimed at an older audience as it deals with every day real life family issues.

The brand identity of Emmerdale instantly gets across the message that it is all about village life due to the mise en scene showing plenty of greenery. It is clear to the audience that Emmerdale is set in a rural area through the landrover that is being driven, which is generally used on farms, in the mise en scene. The stone buildings are also connotate that it is set in a rural area. Since Emmerdale is set in a rural area everyone in the village will know each other and what is going on in each other’s lives as they are a tight knit community.

The brand identity of EastEnders is very simplistic. It shows a bird’s eye view of the East End of London which connotates city life and the working class. It is well known that London is known for a high crime rate in some areas so another connotation of the logo is that there will be crime present to a certain degree but not to the extent of central London.  

The brand identity of Hollyoaks is that it is youthful. The logo connotates that it is for both girls and boys through the use of the signs used to represent each gender and how half of Hollyoaks is written in pink (which connotates femininity) and the other half is written in blue (which connotes masculinity).

We want our brand identity to be similar to that of Hollyoaks as we are aiming it towards a similar target audience. Our trailer is going to be fun and youthful as we are taking our inspiration from Jeremy Kyle and Jerry Springer which are especially popular with the younger generation. Hollyoaks also tackle controversial issues and in our trailer we are tackling the issues of homosexuality and teenage pregnancy. At the moment Emmerdale is tackling homosexuality with the stoyline concering Aaron and Jackson; Hollyoaks is also tackling homosexuality with the storyline concerning Ste and Brendan; Coronation Street is tackling homosexuality with the storyline concerning Sian and Sophie; and EastEnders is tackling the issue of homosexuality with the storyline of Syed and Christian (made controverial because Syed is a muslim). It is for this reason, that it is current and popular, that we began to consider homosexuality as our main storyline. 

Shannon