Wednesday 12 December 2018

Study Task 5- Planning and Structuring an Essay

Suggested Research Question:

  • How much impact does the aesthetic of the brand design have on the business' well doing/popularity?
  • To what extent does aesthetic impact a brands identity/branding
  • Focus specifically on product branding

What is the problem? Why is it important or interesting?
  • Poor branding/design will impact on the business
  • Price point- if it looks expensive, are people more likely to buy it? but sometimes the cheaper brands end up being better quality
  • The brands quality (e.g. skin care product) could be amazing but if the design is poor, the public will choose a better design aesthetic brand over it that probably wont be as good
  • The importance of aesthetic for branding
  • Dupes

Which Academic sources will you reference?

Case Studies:
  • Focus on beauty products as it is wide spread and it is personal to the purchaser, however everything is about opinion too. Quality of it VS design
  • Does quality relate to how durable it is, how well it works etc
  • Comparison! e.g. apple vs android or Glossier vs too faced for beauty product case study:

Comparison: Apple vs Android

Beauty product branding: Too Faced 

Beauty product branding: Glossier- very minimal
compared to Too Faced, does this reflect on the quality?

Essay Map/Critical Argument:
  • The areas of aesthetics- simplicity vs busy
  • What is aesthetics and branding- intro to how they both link and the importance of it
  • The aims of a brand and how its communicated through the design aesthetic
  • Quality vs design/aesthetic
  • How well it works...but this could also be down to opinion- how certain products work on different people etc
  • Does a cheaper brand need to have a tackier or more expensive aesthetic???

Study Task 4- Identities and Consumption

What is meant by multiple identities?

A person with a number of identities would be classed as having multiple identities, the number of identities someone has depends on the amount of different social situations they often see themselves in. don't even have to be set in real life, it can even be online.

How are identities formed?

By knowing who you are, it allows people to answer questions and theories as to where they fit in to something. The way in which we see ourselves is influenced by our individual experiences which creates our unique identity. Identities start very early on in life and develop all throughout as human identities are constantly moulded and influenced by everyone around us.

What is social categorisation?

Social categorisation is is the process of categorising applying to people and/or as shaped by interactions with people. People tend to categorise others in relation to themselves so that they can easily find similarities and differences between themselves, however this process can lead to depersonalising yourself as well as others.

What is social comparison?

Social comparison is similar to social categorisation as they both start with yourself. However, social comparison is more about opinion, its about how you learn about yourself through comparing yourself with others. This has a lot to do with self-esteem.

What is social identity theory?

An individuals identity which has stem from the groups to which they belong, where they feel that they 'fit in'. It can also link to how they want to be seen by others, not necessarily who they actually are.

What is an example of strong brand identification?

An example of strong brand identification is being able to recognise a brand instantly, usually by a simplistic and eye catching design/specific design element. Brands can be turned into symbols, the symbols can often be constructed through continuous social activities.

What are the negative effects on body image?

This stems from social comparison, there are instances where this consumption can be detrimental to who we are. Media messages has a lot to do with physical appearance being important, suggesting that body image is a part of our identities. The pressure to become 'picture perfect' comes from a very young age, when we start comparing ourselves to others.

What is self-discrepancy theory?

Self-discrepancy theory links to why people become unhappy with their physical appearance. This theory suggest that individuals have three types of self-schema; actual self (the way people are at the present point in time, ideal self (the self we aspire to be) and ought self (the way we think we should be)