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Understanding, utilizing the Chinese Dream can bring long-term benefits for Chinese, international brands
For decades the American Dream, with its vision of universal abundance, accessibility for all and unlimited choice has been successfully used to sell just about everything, from cars to sportswear. And not just in America.
Today the Chinese Dream is the new buzzword and it has the potential to be just as thoroughly effective.
To be sure, they are not the same. They both share the aspiration to individual prosperity, success and healthy lifestyle. Both promise that everybody can achieve these dreams.
The Chinese Dream adds a new dimension, the ideal of national renewal and success. In it the growth of each individual contributes to the growth of Chinese society as a whole and to the progress of the country. This in turn, will increase the prosperity of everybody and their sense of belonging and pride in China and its dream.
Fully understanding and utilizing the Chinese Dream is not just a necessity but also an advantage for both Chinese and international brands. By helping the Chinese consumers fulfill these dreams, brands can accomplish the branding dream.
It is important for Chinese brands because they themselves are an integral part of the Chinese Dream with over two-thirds of Chinese expecting them to become iconic global brands. The underlying desire is not just about manifesting the rising power of China, but also demonstrating a new brand image of China: cooler, sexier and more desirable. Much like Coca Cola, Apple and IBM helped spread the American Dream around the world.
International brands regard the Chinese market as a gold mine, but one of the biggest challenges for them is to build cultural relevance with consumers. The Chinese Dream unifies 1.4 billion individuals' hopes and endeavors, and if international brands can tap into it and help people realize their dreams, they will be regarded as allies rather than foreigners.
So how can we effectively incorporate the Chinese Dream into a brand strategy?
First, we should avoid incorporating it by simply adding the words 'Chinese Dream' into a brand slogan. It becomes empty propaganda that doesn't help a brand resonate with its consumers. Instead, the whole spirit of the "Chinese Dream" and its insights should be understood.
Secondly, long before the government had promoted the "Chinese Dream" slogan, the Chinese had already dreamed of China shining on the world stage. To them, national pride is fundamentally personal pride.
Third, apart from the national dream, there are also personal dreams, about health, happiness and good life with family. Although there are obstacles such as pollution, food safety people are still optimistic about tomorrow. According to a WPP research report, 44 percent of Chinese believe that in just 10 years China can become one of the most ideal places in the world to live.
Both international and Chinese brands need to understand these fundamental facts and use them in separate and unique ways when establishing their brand strategies.
For Chinese brands, to ignite a sense of national pride can be a powerful way to communicate the Chinese Dream.
Chinese brands should amplify any national, cultural insights that can bring the nation together. The Olympics was a great example of using this national pride. The key is to capture the insights from ongoing events and turn the challenges into opportunities, like, responding to worry over food safety by letting Chinese fall in love with Chinese food again. The idea is to reach deep into people's minds and touch their heart rather than just using big empty words.
The shift from "Made in China" to "Created in China" is an important part of the Chinese Dream. Chinese brands have caught up with international standards of quality, but still lack the creativity and innovation necessary to propel them further. A global pioneer or innovator will be widely appreciated by the Chinese consumers, as it ignites a sense of national pride.
For international brands, the focus lies mostly in fully understanding the Chinese Dream and what it means from the point of view of the Chinese and not from an outsider looking in.
International brands should not try to change Chinese consumers' behavior, but should instead build on their culture and customs. For example, a successful international fast-food brand has benefited by customizing to suit the Chinese diet and food habits. Attitudes should be the same toward the Chinese Dream. We should not create new dreams for the Chinese but instead try and understand their real dreams and help fulfill them.
While Chinese brands can celebrate national pride, international brands can bridge the gap between the national dream and the individuals' dreams. They can encourage consumers to dream bigger and help them to overcome personal obstacles.
A great example of this was executed by a sports brand during the 2012 Olympics. Instead of celebrating the greatness of the country or its athletes, it celebrated the greatness of every ordinary person, which resulted in incredible success.
All in all, both international and Chinese brands that want to ride the wave of the Chinese Dream must first understand the deep, underlying feelings and expectations and find a way to help Chinese realize them. Ultimately, in doing so, they will also realize their own brand's dream.
The author is associate planning director of JWT Shanghai, a unit of the US-based marketing communications brand JWT.
(China Daily European Weekly 05/16/2014 page11)
