This book, written by an industry professional (Chris Malone) teamed up with an esteemed academic (Prof Susan Fiske), provides a reminder of a fundamental lesson in branding: humans are the original brands and faces are the original logos. Having read this book and having learnt much in the 168 pages, I can report that the book takes a broad brush approach to cover many and varied topics related to branding. Effectively, therefore, this book covers much ground, drawing from various business aspects to demonstrate how we relate to people, products and companies.
Reading the first few chapters of this book, I was a little thrown by the colloquial writing style. Two chapters in, I had to take a break and come to terms with this non-academic approach. The broad brush approach takes a few giant leaps, leaving the lead-in argument somewhat wanting. While some points within the argument are loosely connected, the breadth of the argument compensates it to some extent. Therefore, post-processing, I then proceeded to read the remaining five chapters and I am pleased that I did make the effort. While Chapters 1 and 2 were easy to read, the message was clear that the Relationship Renaissance has arrived. The point that most got my attention at the front end of the book was that old-line companies do not listen to the marketplace and continue to advertise, regardless of the declining return. Malone and Fiske argue that those organizations choosing to steer away from the manipulative methods of modern marketing are instead creating shared value and genuine relationships. More specifically, these are the cutting-edge organizations that present themselves as both human and humane. This point reiterates that the effect of conventional marketing is in decline, the market power is shifting to the consumer and the new currency is the warmth and competence inherent within relational interactions.
Chapter 3 introduces the principle of worthy intentions, and this piqued my interest in the story of the Relationship Renaissance and The Human Brand, as presented by Malone and Fiske. Having begun the argument against customer loyalty programs in the first two chapters, Chapter 3 goes further to demonstrate through cases such as Lululemon that community relationships have a far greater effect. More than that necessarily, the point is highlighted that Wall Street does not comprehend the strategic decisions that entail putting people rather than numbers or profit first. Hence, old-line companies are unwilling or maybe even unable to shift towards this Relationship Renaissance. The essence of the approach is a one-on-one dialogue that many times occurs outside the domain of the organizational arena. Mass advertising and price discounts are nowhere to be found in this non-conventional approach, but rather unconditional trust and worthy intentions drive the organizational spirit.
Further to the argument, Chapter 4 announces the price of progress and opens with the case of groupon.com. While the high volume of customer traffic generated by Groupon is undeniable, questions abound. For example, what is the price of progress and how do faceless commercial transactions impact those involved? Malone and Fiske rightly highlight that the Groupon customer is a price-focused deal seeker who can negatively impact the organization. Groupon-induced crowding may, indeed, generate traffic volume, but the increased demand must be met on top of the normal demand. The sheer volume leaves little room for developing relationships and encouraging repeat patronage at standard prices. More than that, the established relationships with regular customers may suffer unintentionally, in amongst the Groupon traffic; hence, the loyalty disconnects. This point is reinforced with the juxtaposition of Amazon and Zappos; the Zappos model of e-commerce is untouchable by Amazon regardless of the pricing and mass economies of Amazon. Zappos is a fully online operation that has a heavy emphasis on customer service to the extent that negates a premium price. In 2006, Amazon launched Endless.com to go head-to-head with Zappos, but the strength of Zappos’ customer relational interactions held strong and in 2009 Amazon acquired Zappos for $1.2billion. Meanwhile, Endless.com ended in 2012. It was nice work by Zappos and great brand story by Malone and Fiske.
Chapter 5 delves into the power of authentic storytelling, with Domino’s presented as the opening case. In contrast to conventional marketing wisdom, Domino’s featured their chief executive officer (CEO) in the ads that launched “Domino’s Pizza Turnaround”. In effect, that year’s advertising expenditure was less but exposure was more. The increased exposure came about due to the honesty and integrity demonstrated personally by the CEO. Stories like this inform us of the market emotionally, and in 2010 Domino’s sales and revenue began to climb. Malone and Fiske quote Domino’s chief marketing office, Russell Weiner as saying, “[B]elieve it or not, the year we launched the new pizza, we spent less money than the prior year […] the work was so powerful […] we were hitting [the airwaves] more” (p. 106). Similarly, the power and effect of negative stories such as with Chick-fil-A, BP and Bank of America, are also profiled. The point made by Malone and Fiske is that stories are powerful because consumers are given the opportunity to connect to The Human Brand.
From there, Chapter 6 further demonstrates the potential value of a corporate crisis. The delicate issues involved with the Toyota recalls, the Johnson & Johnson consumer terrorism event and the ill-fated Apple Maps are gently broached and shown to be moments of truth. The chapter ends with the point that problems are disguised opportunities that are valuable when embraced.
The final chapter ties up the notion of the Relationship Renaissance. Three imperatives are put forward that promote awareness, the value of change and the need to shift priorities. The essence of the story about branding is human connection.
What I admire about this book is the challenges that are highlighted and well-articulated along with the critique of conventional marketing wisdom. In the commercial beginning, all we had was humanity, and now it seems that disruptive technology has taken us for a wild ride; from the mass production era of the Industrial Revolution, through to the mass customization achieved in the Information Age, to arrive full circle once more at a one-on-one interaction argued by Malone and Fiske as The Human Brand.
In conclusion, The Human Brand by Malone and Fiske is an insightful text, written for industry professionals. Reading is a recommended investment for academics, however, given the strong industry focus. While not suitable as a prescribed textbook for a university course, this book may be suitable to be included on a university course reading list. Overall, the book presents a great message, and thanks to Chris and Susan for taking the time to document and inform the community.
About the author
Formally tenured at Griffith University Australia, Sharon is now an Assistant Professor at University of Texas – Pan American. With a research focus on branding, brand consumption and brand culture, Sharon 's research has focused on brands such as Harley-Davidson and James Bond. Her research versatility is demonstrated in the various studies she has successfully completed that have included ethnographic research, visual ethnography, semiotics, phenomenology, phenomenography and hermeneutics. Her work, to date, has been published in Journal of Business Research, Marketing Theory, Psychology & Marketing and others.
