Design. Research. Technology. Experience. Life.
Thoughts and Reflection
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When Simon Anholt wrotes about his briliant ideas to help the developing countries by branding their places and product, I’ve ask myself about one little things that he might missed, the identity of the country. What is the country without its nation and citizent? What is the ingredients of the country? The people, the culture, the lifestyle, the history and the tradition. And to brand this? How? Is it possible, i’ve asked? His words sound easy, but i’m sure it’s not as easy as it sound. The places is a attraction of the country. Yes indeed, but how can this be branded? I would argue it it is imposible, sometimes it does happen, coincidentally not on purpose. But being branded, being label? As what the country want the others to believe?
In one of the paper I have read from brandchannel.com, by Randall Frost (19 April 2004) open up a discussion about the possibilities of branding the countries. Qoute back from the texts from Frost:
“Many think a country, place or region constitutes a brand, and now a few countires are currently working on strategies to spruce up their brand images. In the case of exports, the thinking goes sometimes like this: once a country has become known as an exporter of quality branded goods, the country’s product brands and its place brand will work together to raise expectations overseas. Country branding should then become part of a self-perpetuating cycle: as the country promotes its consumer brands, those brands will promote the country.”
Realistically, the relation between product and places brands is by no means is simple. Does it works? Sometimes? While there may be similiatities between product and country branding, the ideas of a nation as a brand, is a big mistake. (Wally Olins).
In principles product and places is the same. It’s all about identifying, developing and communicationg the parts of the identity that are favourable to some specified target groups. But the analysis of identity and of target groups perceptions, coupled with brand building activities, are much more complex for places that for products. It is much more difficult to obtain a fully intergrated communication mix in place branding. (Magne Supphellen)
I personally like the idea of the self perpetuating cycle or shall i call it the cycle of sustainability. If the country help to promote the product, the elements, the brand and the representation of the product by it self (if it’s successful) automaticlly promotes the country. The product have to hae the elements of the identity that represent the country, to promote the country. Because by knowing the product, people wants to know where the product come from or made from. To make it easier, why not designing the product with the elements of the country identity?
Credit Image from www.matrade.com.my
Sample of Malaysian Products
HIBROSS is a brand of roselle fruit cordial and dried roselle fruits in Malaysia. All products are made from fresh roselle fruits which are processed immediately after harvest. It is 100 per cent natural with no artificial flavouring or colouring. HIBROSS is further fortified with vitamins and minerals for nutrition and has traditional medicinal values. HIBROSS is manufactured by Malaysian Roselle Industries (Trg) Sdn Bhd.
This Malaysian product does have opportunities to extend the market. It would be much more helpful to Malaysia, if this brand have a elements of Malaysia in their packaging, or promotion pack. I think this is a win win game. No one will lose. It’s a cycle of suntainability.
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At the moment, I’m working on a research website. This research aims to identify what is Malaysian Identity. I will also look at the national and cultural identity, lifestyle and malaysian elements or style in product creation. Designing a website is not my area at all. As a communication designers it’s a nightmare for months. I do really hope that this is worth it.
Recently Malaysian goverment is making lots of afford into branding Malaysia. But before that, didn’t they think about the identity? What is the elements of Malaysia that will makes interest to others? How the cultural identity can be identify and be useful in branding Malaysia?
In the brain storming process these are the questions that i’ve asked myself..
What about the identity of Malaysia that we want to project to others?
How designers can assists in developing Malaysian product through their creation or design strategies.
What are the element of identity, that can be apply in the product to represent the country?
I saw this link while i’m browsing around and fine it interesting to relate it in my research. Have a look at this site Petronas Celebrate Merdeka With you!. It have two Ads. It would be nice to get some respond from other Malaysian about this Ads. You can share this Ads with your friends just by sending it by email. And futher more you can share your thought about this Ads.
Here is what I think about it:
I think this Ad is more like a religious Ad. Personally, as this Ad is for Merdeka Day, and as I’m Malaysia, although I’m looking at this Ads from outside of Malaysia, I think this Ads should have more than what this Ad trying to show. Expecially if it’s for Merdeka Day. The day that we all celebrate, all of us, Malay, Chinese, Indian, Sikh, kadazan, Iban, and much more. This is what it should have! All of us in one! One Nation!
What about the multicultural people we have? What about how we survived being Malaysian all this 50 years? The begining the movie just shows only one religion, well, it show Arabic or middle-east people rather than showing Malaysian muslim man, that is not Malaysia! Perhaps because Petronas want to show that in Malaysia, there is only Muslim? What about other races and religion? It can be controversy Ad!
Let me know what you think of this!
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I thought I should write something for Merdeka Day. Ive been waiting for this day. Well then, what is that something? I left Malaysia 3 years ago,
although I do regularly go back to Malaysia to visit families and friends. I know three year is not long, but just for only three year living out of Malaysia and indeed I do came back sometimes, I still saw so many changes. From the time I left until now.
I do love Malaysia, I bet anyone who had experience Malaysia will say the same. What is the things that I adore me most about Malaysia? I think most interesting about Malaysia is our food. We have many different varieties and from different races. Then it kind of mixing together between our different races, then we have the Malaysian authentic food. Thats the best about Malaysia, although there are others interesting things but lets just stop there.
So the things that I really want to write about is not actually about food. Even though it does have connection with what I will touch. What Im more concern is about Malaysian culture. We have changed. So much, we developed, we achieved, we did move a head slowly. But I personally do think most of Malaysian mentality is still 20 years ago. Not everybody, but most of us. I think that were so eager to changed, we kind of forget our own culture heritage and tradition.
What about the lesson and history. Didnt we learn from it? There is a small about of people that try to preserve our culture and heritage. Im sure its not for us; its for the next generation. In the world of globalization, all the information can be at our fingertip. We just need to google. Multi brand flows around Malaysia and every other country. Its hard to repel the globalization attack. But it is harder if we did not try. I think most of Malaysian excepting the idea of being global rather than being local, for multi reason. Perhaps one of it is because we want to be recognize as the same level as the develop countries. Yes we can, not to say we cant. But may be we can pause for a while and think about it. Globalization doesnt mean everything is good. It means we have choice to choose now, if we compare to the olden days. But we also have to choose the right choice. We should not accept everything. We should be more focus on our own heritage and think about how to improve and sustain our cultural heritage.
I realize its not easy, but for the sake of my future generation, Im willing to start now¦
I saw this link while i’m browsing around and fine it interesting to relate it in my research. Have a look at this site Petronas Celebrate Merdeka With you!. It have two Ads. It would be nice to get some respond from other Malaysian about this Ads. You can share this Ads with your friends just by sending it by email. And futher more you can share your thought about this Ads.
Here is what I think about it:
I think this Ad is more like a religious Ad. Personally, as this Ad is for Merdeka Day, and as I’m Malaysia, although I’m looking at this Ads from outside of Malaysia, I think this Ads should have more than what this Ad trying to show. Expecially if it’s for Merdeka Day. The day that we all celebrate, all of us, Malay, Chinese, Indian, Sikh, kadazan, Iban, and much more. This is what it should have! All of us in one! One Nation!
What about the multicultural people we have? What about how we survived being Malaysian all this 50 years? The begining the movie just shows only one religion, well, it show Arabic or middle-east people rather than showing Malaysian muslim man, that is not Malaysia! Perhaps because Petronas want to show that in Malaysia, there is only Muslim? What about other races and religion? It can be controversy Ad!
Let me know what you think of this!
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After my discussion with Dr. Laurene, my supervisor yesterday about my website forum project and ethics application form, the questions belows pop out! There are few questions about Malaysian Identity that interest me, but lets define what I mean with Malaysian Identity. In my research Malaysian Identity that I’m searching for is the element of Malaysian identity that have in Malaysian products. That’s what I mean, not the whole idea of Malaysian Identity! Don’t get confuse with it, as how sometimes I get confuse through researching this subject.
So just to sort of breaking the ice in this topic, here are few interesting questions to think about:
1. What does the term ‘Malaysian Identity’ mean to you?
2. What does the term ‘National Branding’ and ‘National Brand’ mean to you?
3. What do you think is the relationship between national imagery, cultural identity and indiginous products?
How are they similar? How are they different?
4. Do you actively try to creat a ‘Malaysian feel’ in your profesional work?
5. Do you think that national identifiable brands will exist in 2020?
Well let’s start thinking about this! I think I should!
Malaysian slowly promoting Malaysian products around the world. Malaysian product has been known for the quality and cross-cuture base. But did Malaysian product represent Malaysia? Does it have the Malaysian element in it? Just by looking at Malaysian Brand people would think of Malaysia without to know anything about the product or the brand.
Did Malaysian product has it implimentation of culture and identity? When the design team design the whole branding process, did they think about representing the country through this? The process of designing the whole product from the stretch to the end-product, does it have the Malaysian elements in it? Did the design team apply the Malaysian element in the process of creating Malaysian Brand such as Petronas, Proton, Malaysian Airlines (MAS) and others? Here are several of Malaysian National Brand.
Malaysian is quite well-known country, although Malaysian brand is globalising around the world, but it don’t actually represent the Malaysian Cultural and National Identity in it. The process of designing the whole product from the stretch to the end-product, does it have the Malaysian elements in it? Did the designers apply the Malaysian element in designing Malaysian Brand such as Petronas, Proton, Malaysian Airlines (MAS) and others?
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I realise that it’s hard to define the identity, expecially if it’s is an identity that is evolved, constantly change because of three main different culture changes and developing. Well perhaps I could argue that is identity, and evolving is part of creating identity. May be that is why it is so hard to define Malaysian Identity? I’ve been trying to identify what is Malaysian Identity, perhaps we all shares bit and pieces from everybody.
Then from that point, we start to change and mix with each other culture and tradition, then we create our own identity. How about that? May be not, I’m still in the process of finding what is Malaysian Identity, ‘Malaysian Truly Asian?’, but it’s a long process of finding. I will regularly write in this blog about my finding. Till then, I will continue my journey!
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–>‘When Reason is Away, Smiles Will Play’ – Paul Eluard and Benjamin Peret
Recomended reading > cultural probes and the values of uncertainty
I heard about it in March 2006, never heard about it before until Yoko mention about it to me. People use it to investigate certain things or situation that we cannot see visually or reach to, expecially in medical and aerospace study and practise. Then, because it is very intersting to me, as I don’t know anything about it and Yoko make it sounds interesting as well I decided to read more about this things that called ‘Culture Probes’. Then Yoko had a chance to teach cultural in her Master’s class. And I ask Yoko if I can be in her class as to assist her in her teaching and to get to know more about culture probes. Finally i end up in ther class every tuesday afternoon, for three hour class as her assistant and as a participant. I manage to understand what is cultural probes and explore the process of creating and designing the probes (which i the most interesting part for a designer I guess). I designed three probes but i will only upload two, as the other one is still in the working progress.
About Nurul’s “cultural probes’
My subject as a client in this project is a research student, who worked as an Architect in Israel. She’s maried with two kids. She arrived in June, 2006 from Israel to Australia. So pretty much she’s struggling with new places, people, culture,community and I’m sure much more. From our first meeting she told me about her trip to uni from her home. The trip to uni tooks her nearly 1 hour with train. That is all I know about her. Our brief, overall is to understand what is cultural probes by designing the probes. It is base on researching through design. We need to find someone that we don’t really know. So in this project I will try to find out more about my client, the personal interest, hobbies, likes, dislike and ect. I started to strolled around in the city area and other places like Prahan, Sydney Road and even to Camberwell market just to get some ideas about it. Finally I decided not to waste money on anything. I’m not buying anything for my probes. I am going to use or recycle anything that I have and make use of it as a probes.
The perpose of this is anything that can be possible to open up any possibilities. Probes A is a ‘wishing envelopes’. I use an old ‘Big Issues’ magazine as material to design my probes. In the wishing envelope there is a note of wishing, and my client have to write what is her wish about the envelope Issues. The envelope is made from selected pages that i found an interesting article. These envelope is readable, what i mean readable is my client can read the article and then perhaps make the wish, The wish can be an influence from the article or from my client personal memories or experiences. Second probes i called it a ‘paper clip album’. It’s a collection of images that I cut out and mix and match from Melbourne City Council Annual Report 2005. This album is just to triggers an idea for my client to act. Behind every image, there is a sentence and my client have to continue and finish the sentence. That is as for now my probes, others is still in working process.
Probe A “Wishing Envelopes”
Probe B ‘ Paper Clip Album’
Just to define and to understand more what is Cultural Probes;
W.Gaver, A.Boucher, S.Pennington and B.Walker from Royal College of Art in their paper about cultural probes in Cultural Probes and the Value of Uncertainty define cultural probes as a design-led approach to understanding users that stressed empathy and engagement. Probes are collections of evocative tasks meant to elicit inspirational responses from people”not comprehensive information about them, but fragmentary clues about their lives and thoughts. It is been suggested that the approach was valuable in inspiring design ideas for technologies that could enrich peoples lives in new and pleasurable ways.
Gaver,B., Dunne,T. and Pacenti, E wrote in a design journal (Jan-Feb 1999) explaning the cultural probes processes and meaning. “The probes were part of a strategy of pursuing experimental design in a responsive way. They address a common dilemma in developing projects for unfamiliar groups. Understanding the local cultures was necessary so that our designs wouldnt seem irrelevant or arrogant, but we didnt want the groups to constrain our designs unduly by focusing on needs or desires they already understood. We wanted to lead a discussion with the groups toward unexpected ideas, but we didnt want to dominate it “.
This image is taken from: Online Cultural Probes
Books written by Anholt.S, discuss a lot about branding strategies, planning and promotion on how to promote the places/cities and countires. There are two different ways as Anholt (Brand New Justice) propose, one is through product and one is through places. I’m now in the process of understanding what is it all about this place branding. Is it about people, is it about brand, it about the culture and tradition or perhaps is it about the goverment? Let’s first see what brand is….
Lots of things are called brands these days. Department stores are brands, companies and universities are brands, singers and politicians are brands. Even political parties, religions, cities and nation sometimes get described as brands. Most people use the term quite loosely, but waht they usually mean, is that these places, people and organizations have found that their reputation is important to them. They suffer when its negative, and they make profit when its positive, and so they make some attempt to control it. Just like products in a supermarket, the ones with the famous and trusted names are the one that peopl choose first, often going to quite a bit of troble and expense to get hold of them.
And the defination of brand is nothing much than the example that i gave. Brands is just purely, nothing more and nothing less than a name of something that’s on offer to the public. The brand name acts as our short cut to an informed buying decision. The more often we are proved right about our choice, and the more often the product or services lives up to the good name of the company that makes it, the more valuable that name becomes in our eyes and mind.
The same principles apply to places. Whether we’re thinking about going somewhere on holidays, buying a product that’s made in a certain country, applying for job overseas, moving to a new town or play a CDs made by artists from different countries, we rely on our perception of those to make the decision-making process a bit easier, a bit faster, a bit more efficient.
Made in London or Made in Paris. People have known for centuries that a ‘Made in…’ label just as powerful and just as valuable as a ‘Made by…’ label. German engineering, French cuisine, Swedish design and British Class – these are brand values that rub off onto all the products that come from those countris, and they count for a lot.
So when we talk about branding the country or branding the nation, what do we actually mean? Does it mean the product or perhaps building (that made by one of the global brand) that represent the countries, the company that represent the countries or the origin effects y the countries it self? Can it possible to brand the country without the product? What do we actually mean?!!
