Some context for the controversy surrounding Pepsi's endorsement deal with Beyonce, and notes on the shifting cultural frame. Also, some initial thoughts on how brands have to proceed in the future to avoid these blind side hits.

1. Cultural Icebergs:
Pepsi, Beyonce and the Shifting Cultural Frame
January 28, 2013
Rob Fields
robfields.com
@robfields

2. The seas of popular culture
are full of icebergs that
can be deadly for brands.

3. First,
what is
Culture?

4. Values
Attitudes
Arts Conventions
what is
Culture?
Behavior
Beliefs
Social practices
Human knowledge
Technology

5. Culture is context.
Through it, we make sense
of the times we live in.

6. Culture is why. . .
+
. . . sparked a backlash

7. Food & health
advocates were
NOT happy

8. The pushback spread. . .

9. but it didn’t come out of
nowhere

10. 40+ years of growing awareness

11. Meanwhile. . .
36% of adults &
17% of kids*
obese
in the U.S. are
*CDC/NCHS report, January 2012 http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db82.pdf

12. If obesity rates continue on their current track,
by 2030 the loss of economic productivity
could be as high as
$580B annually*
* 2012 Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, F Is For Fat: How Obesity Threatens
America’s Future http://bldlv.us/V0NGuL

13. Michelle Obama’s initiative
to combat childhood obesity
Beyonce is a high-profile supporter

14. Bey did an official
video for the effort,
“Move Your Body”
Michelle even learned
the steps

15. So this is the story of two brands
who did a $50 million deal
without fully grasping. . .

16. . . . how much the cultural frame
has shifted.

17. What’s next?

18. Brands and consumers
Human Knowledge
Attitudes
Values
exist within
Arts
Beliefs
Behavior Social Practices
Technology
the context of culture

19. As well, like light going
through any media. . .
Communication angle
of incidence
Culture
Conventions
Behavior
Human Knowledge
Attitudes
Values
Social Practices
Beliefs
Communication angle Messages aimed here. . . .
of refraction
. . .often end up here. The
. . .culture changes how reason? Refraction via
messaging is received the medium of culture!
& understood.

20. Consumers are not separate from culture
Human Knowledge
Attitudes
Values
Arts
Beliefs
Social Practices
Behavior
Technology

21. Neither are celebrities.
Human Knowledge
Attitudes
Values
Arts
Beliefs
Social Practices
Behavior
Technology

22. What’s needed is a new approach
that better integrates culture,
brands & consumer insights

23. Until then,
brands attempting to navigate culture
should get used to
hitting icebergs.

24. About the author
Rob Fields is a cultural curator and an
award-winning marketer, who focuses on the
intersection of culture, business and
marketing. Find out more about him at:
• robfields.com
• Follow him on Twitter: @robfields