How brands can harness the power of the cultural frame

Thoughts-

A cultural frame is a powerful tool for understanding consumer behaviour. Recognising the subtle yet profound ways perspectives are shaped can help brands cut through the noise. Zach Edwards explains.

 

In the wise words of author and cultural translator Dr Marcus Collins, the cultural frame is our way of translating the world.

It’s a collection of the things that influence us and shape our perceptions, behaviours and beliefs. It’s the lens we look at everything through – even when we don’t realise it.

There’s only one way for marketers to understand it if they want to harness it – to experience it first-hand.

I once heard a strategy director at a large agency tell a room full of budding marketers that getting out of the office and into the real world was unnecessary. I’ve never disagreed more.

The only way to understand the cultural frame of our audience is to be in their world and consume what they consume. So where to start?

 

 

Family + peers

Think back to when you were in school. The clothes you wore, the type of pencil case you had, the food you bought at the canteen…

The decisions you made were based on what your friends, classmates or idols were doing. This doesn’t change as we get older.

Whether it’s about being cool, being noticed, fitting in or being included, we’re influenced by the people around us.

Remember when Prime energy drink took over Australian primary schools? The brand hardly had to market its product – they just relied on school kids to demand it because everyone else.

 

Authority figures, celebrities + influencers

It’s become fashionable to consider ourselves immune to the draw and sway of online celebrities, but is that really true?

Recent data says 69 per cent of consumers trust product recommendations from influencers, and 39 per cent of Aussies are more likely to purchase products if an influencer promotes them.

That’s a lot of power in the hands of people we don’t personally know, but it goes to show people in positions of high esteem and authority are deemed trustworthy and therefore shape how we see things around us.

 

News + traditional media

Who said traditional news was dead? While the number of people reading physical papers might be declining, the influence the media has on our perceptions of the world is arguably stronger than ever.

In the wake of the Boston Marathon bombing in 2013, a group of researchers studied the impact of news on people’s mental health. They found people who consumed six hours of news about the tragedy had higher levels of distress than people who were there or who had a personal connection to a victim.

With that in mind, marketers ignore the impact of the media on their audience at their peril.

 

Fringe society + niche groups

You’re at a party. There’s a DJ and a dancefloor, but it hasn’t taken off yet. Off to the side, one or two people start to boogie. Slowly but surely, more people join in. As the dancing contingent grows, they migrate to the centre of the dancefloor. Soon, everyone is sending it in the middle of the room.

This is kind of like how trends work: the people who start dancing on the outside are the niche groups, the subcultures, the trailblazers.

Skateboarders were a niche group in the ‘50s. Now skating dominates and shapes fashion, music, media, news and, ultimately, culture.

Hip-hop too – which is now the most popular genre of music – started in small Black communities. Today we have rappers as Creative Directors at the world’s most prestigious fashion houses.

In both cases, what started as fringe has overtaken the mainstream.

It pays to look at groups on the outer – something that might seem small could have an astronomical impact on culture in the future.

 

Advertising + fashion

Advertising still plays a huge role in shaping how people see the world.

Ever heard of Earth Hour? Fifteen years ago, an advertising agency launched it to teach people in Sydney about the impacts of climate change. Now, it’s a global phenomenon.

The ads we’re exposed to every day, like the clothes we see on people around us, shape how we view the world. They both play on herd mentality – informing the masses about what’s trendy, what’s cool, what’s right or wrong.

For hundreds of years, fashion has been used to communicate messages about class and identity. If you’re rocking baggy khaki trousers and an Arc’teryx jacket, you’re probably a climber. Or you live in the inner west. Vintage or thrifted clothes say you care about sustainability and ethics. RM Williams boots tell me you’re a ‘consultant’ who supports the Demons or the Roosters.

Whatever we wear, we do it to tell people around us what they should think of us.

 

 

 

When you break it down like this, it’s impossible to deny we’re all guided, pushed and pulled by a range of sources.

As marketers, we often overestimate the influence we have. We think advertising or content alone will move the needle and resonate with audiences.

If we want people to move, to care, to remember, we need to look at the entire frame our audiences are influenced by.

Some of these we can’t directly influence, but we still need to be aware and empathetic to the messages coming from these sources – all of which combined, shape beliefs and identity.

 

 

This piece was inspired by our quarterly zine, the Left Field Report.
Get in touch at [email protected] if you’d like a copy of the full report.