In the English language, there are words which are distinguished from each other in meaning, by slight shades of differences. Consequently, either they end up being used as replacements for each other or being used erroneously. The other day, while having my afternoon tea in office, I witnessed an argument between my two creative directors. The reason for the quarrel was how do brands become cult and iconic and whether there lies a marked separation to differentiate the two set of brands. Also, do both these categories harbor different brands or have few brands in common? Well, my mind wandered from their debate into its own while trying to figure out the tale of Cult Brands and Iconic Brands.
What is a Cult Brand and what is an Iconic Brand? Merely saying that any popular brand which is not a cult brand is an iconic brand only leaves the other person looming in dark for answers. Below I have attempted to present my understanding and learning about the two types of brands to lend some clarity on the topic.
Whether the brand is a cult/iconic brand it must definitely stand the test of time. Both these statuses demand a brand to stand for values beyond functionality and must be rooted in popular culture and find a place in people’s lives over a long period of time.
Let us have a look at the two categories:
Cult Brands
The word “Cult” originated from Latin word “Cultus” meaning worship or religious practice. However, the contemporary meaning of “Cult” in the context of brands has evolved from its origin quite a bit, being defined as the brands that dare to be different and celebrate that difference, and therefore possess the power of the loyalist, who come together on a common ground for the common values and ideologies.
Cult brands are more evolved to just talk about functionality, or the benefits of the category rather they connotate human value systems, like upholding truth, honesty, simplicity, perfection and goodness. They intelligently tap into innate reserves of human consciousness.
“Star Trek” became a cult by being a crusader of human rights, by juxtaposing humans and aliens, war and peace, racism and space born humanitarians, all in an adventure story of planets and space. Volkswagen” achieves with Beetle, all with utter common sense and Harley with its irreverence sense of fantasy and adventure. Apple does this with its childlike simplicity and perfection, producing magical joy to the end user.
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Iconic Brands
A purist definition of “Icon” means an image; a representation of a sanctified personage; an important and enduring symbol; an object of great attention and devotion.
Iconic Brands transcend from product benefits, to become a part of people’s lives and of their popular culture. They also have the ability to tap into collective desires and anxieties of people. For instance, Rolex taps into the desire to be successful, Coca Cola taps into the emotion of happiness, Marlboro into the need of freedom, Lego into the need of imagination for children.
Therefore, the brands endure as long as the human needs exist, and over a period of time they become synonymous with the values to become “Objects of desire or devotion”. McDonald’s, Nike, BMW Mini and Vespa are a few other brands that can be called as “iconic”.
Our very own country has a long list of cult and iconic brands such as, Tata, Godrej, Raymond’s, Wills, Thums Up, Sachin Tendulkar, Royal Enfield etc. While debates will go on and on about these two and the two words might still be used interchangeably, more focus should be laid on how to make brands as cult or iconic.
(The author is National Creative Director, Leo Burnett)