Sunday Night With John: Superficial Branding

Superficial Branding 

John Paul Derryberry 

If I get one more spam email about how to make more money speaking, well I do not know what I would do because I need my email.  I will think long and hard about hating society and how everything boils down to the almighty dollar. Superficial branding has inundated our society. Even in the world of motivational and inspirational speaking, it boils down to how much money speakers can work the system for. I understand the need to receive payment for your services. There are talented storytellers, nudging people toward a better life. There is just something morally off about getting an email telling you how you can become a millionaire speaker by assisting people over the worst moments of their lives. 

Can we all admit that the new term, "branding," is just a fancy form of lying? Companies and individuals are positioning themselves as champions of some sort of culture, cause,  or community, to distract us from the way  they treat their employees, customers, or friends. Finding the truth has become more and more difficult. Our attempt to discover the real reason why people act the way they do towards others has become clouded. We have to sort through expertly crafted videos,  social media campaigns, and countless other materials.  

We are bombarded by religious leaders committing horrific acts of sexual violence. We are inundated with companies refusing to engage in responsible policies for their employees. We witness politicians brand themselves as family people only to watch their line of extra-marital affairs become longer than lines for roller coasters.  At the same time, our leaders and those we are supposed to be following provide poor examples. We are left feeling more empty than before because that's what deceitful actions lead to. They decay us from the inside out.  

The real reason superficial branding is increasing is that we have allowed those we place in high esteem to get off the hook of responsibility. We enable them to skirt responsibility with fancy words and marketing and branding routines that make us feel right at the moment. Their techniques create the false illusion that they have life figured out because they have scrubbed the dirt off the brand.  Strip off the allure when they are interacting with people. Peel back the excellent packaging. And, take a look at what they are really selling. Real life-changing moments are messy. They come filled with confusion, doubt, excitement, connection, and hard truths. The reason why they don't exist more is because you can't brand them into some catchy jingle. We shouldn't buy the inch-deep brand, but rather, the cold, hard truth. Its value will never be superficial.