"The brands that people wear are a serious business. I remember growing up as a kid in South Central Los Angeles, back in the 1980s, when people were being killed for Jordan sneakers. Branding says a lot about luxury, and about exclusion, and about the choices that manufacturers make, but I think that what society does with it after it's produced is something else."
—Kehinde Wiley, NPR Interview

Introduction

Companies and the branding they do is one of the significant "background" noises that I tend to miss. Aside from sharply satirical games (like Paranoia) and cyberpunk (like Shadowrun), I'm not alone in this. But, marketing is one of the modern forces in the world, and it's everpresent in any real world. Few novels work that in well; greats like Stephanson and Egan do (the first page of Egan's Quarantine has two brands on the first page, listing price and a bolded phrase that is tempting you to click on the page and purchase it, and the book continues this way, letting you know you are in a real world with real products; I highly recommend this book).

"Oh, but I'm running a fantasy game," you say. "There's no marketing in medieval times, aside from that hokey place in Chicago and Las Vegas." Let me tell you about Damascus Steel. This is a process that allowed some smiths to create swords much stronger, much sharper than the typical weapon. The swords had a distinctive wavy pattern on the blade called a damask or damascene, and many of the weapons were etched with the smith's sigil. The Western world was introduced to these weapons through Damascus (hence the name). And while much of the literature is about recreating the ancient technique, you can look at how the Damascus blade created a legend around itself. National Geographic says, "according to legend, the blades can cut a piece of silk in half as it falls to the ground and maintain their edge after cleaving through stone, metal, or even other swords." And according to current research, there were two different ways to create Damascus swords, the Indian and the Persian method. The Persian method was developed because of "the lower local availability of esteemed ores; a centennial experience in forging, acquired on material imported from India, was brought to fruition here" (from Professor Carlo Panseri).

And you're only going to get further when magic is involved. Each big name in D&D is a brand, from Bigby to Leomund. Religions in the polytheistic pantheon of D&D World means that each church has its own branding. "Are you interested in healing? Do you want to serve good? Then join Pelor, the Sun Father!" The conceit of rapid messages in the D&D world plus the link of a common language allows information to spread, and religions to compete.

So, what does a branded world look like? Let's look at a real-life brand. Headings in quotes are from "For God, Country & Coca-Cola" by Mark Pendergrast, one of the most thorough (and entertaining) review of a company I've read in a long time.

"Sell a good product. And if it contains a small dose of an addictive drug or two, all the better."

The above quote is from the second appendix, where he lists thirty marketing lessons learned from the history of Coke. This first lesson tells us what branding isn't. It's not out-and-out lying to the public (usually). You don't need to have the best product to compete, but you need a product that serves some needs. Coca-Cola quenches thirst, it tastes sweet, and it gives people a momentary caffeine high. All these things are what people want. Likewise, when you brand your items and your corporations, you need to have an actual product. Evil Incorporated is not good enough. You need to produce something. Thinking about this some more, it would be interesting if Evil Incorporated did have some incredibly popular brand, and part of bringing down the corporation included poisoning that brand. You'd turn this into one of those urban legends turned real; McDonalds, Wal-Mart, etc. are truly evil, using their corporate might to summon Cthulthu to feast upon their shareholders.

At the same time, while marketing is not lying per se, you may let certain impressions leak through. Coke was thought to cure general mailaise, listlessness, and other ills. Later, it was thought to cure malaria in Africa. And that leads us to the next lessonÖ

"Advertise an image, not a product."

This is #9, and it is ultra-relevant in a game world. Coca-Cola started their advertising with pretty women drinking a coke, being happy. The fact that Coke was part of this is a byproduct ó people bought the dream of what the soda would bring. And the "secret recipe," known only by two people, added a mystique to the brand. As a GM, you can do some of this in your game. Talk about weapons and armor not as tools in of themselves, but what it will bring to the players. Enforce this in-game. "You see the two bodyguards flank your mark. Both of them are wearing the latest models of SimTech Crowdsweepers across their back with the spring bandoleers, and the one to the right focuses on you with InstaKnow Glasses. From the press releases you've read, you know he has all your vitals and history from the quick scan. If he sprung for the upgraded package, he may know a lot more." Now, you don't know anything about SimTech Crowdsweepers or InstaKnow Glasses, but their mere mention of them gives the description some weight. These bodyguards are a force to be reckoned with. And it's not just a "level" thing, like a +3 long sword. Some brands focus on high fashion, while others are more workman. Think Ferrari versus Dodge Wrangler. Both are powerful and expensive modes of transport, but they both are marketed to different customers. People create characters through their stuff. Also note that the image may not reflect reality. Take some of the homeopathic remedies. They have been proven to do nothing, but some people swear by it. It's the image, not the actual product, and you can play upon that in your game. A certain sword may not do extra damage, but you can give the illusion and the image that it does, because it is a brand name.

Be Everywhere. Be Ubiquitous.

Let me start this statement with a quote from the 1995 Coca-Cola Annual Report: "The most understood word, no matter where you go in the world, is OK. The second most understood word is Coke." In "Do Good Design: How Designers Can Change the World". David Berman talks about the advertising reach of Coca-Cola in developing nations, specifically Tanzania and Mozambique. Here, the Coca-Cola company poured in millions of dollars to help the nations deal with the drinkable water shortage. Of course, this included advertising, and the author talked about how the Coca-Cola logo was plastered in schools, on road signs, and in government buildings. Later, Mr. Berman talks about how a typical person can identify maybe 10 plants, but a thousand advertising logos. The best/worst case is when the language itself gets consumed by the product. For an example, feel free to Google it. See what I did there? Side story: I went to a Microsoft conference a few years ago, and the main speaker made it a point of saying, "If you have any questions, feel free to Bing that," half seriously, half mocking the corporate culture. And he even slipped up once, leading to a few chuckles. More seriously, there's a whole slew of stories where companies lost or potentially lost their trademark because their product became so common: Xerox, Kleenex, Velcro, Aspirin, Thermos, etc.

How do you do this in the real world? First is just plain use real life. Advertising is all around us; it's used in commercials and in-product placement and pop-up ads. Especially in a modern game, feel free to include these in your game, just as background fluff. The Transhuman Space campaign setting from GURPS has a whole section on memetics ó the science of how information transfers from one person to another, from one group to another. Tracking down a rouge meme to its source may be the start of an adventure, or a jumping off point to something more sinister. Part of socialization and community is a common culture, which in this day and age includes specific brands. Give people a +1 skill if they try to use brands to blend in or be diplomatic.

"Welcome an arch-rival."

And this is Pendergrast's #10 rule, and it's a good one. "'If Pepsi-Cola didn't exist, I would try to invent it', Roberto Goizueta once said. ... It keeps us, and them, on our toes and keeps us lean. We're magnificent competitors.'" Pendergrast talks about the Cola Wars, fought using advertising dollars and sponsorships. Madonna versus Michael Jackson. The mere fact that the companies fight adds to the publicity, and heightens the press of both parties. And it creates brand loyalty; nothing brings people together like a common enemy, even if that enemy is a different widget. Ask any Mac or PC or Linux user. And if it's good for the competitors, it's great for the game. I'm reminded of the megacorporations of the old Star Frontiers game, where the lean and mean and unethical Streel corporation fought against the overbearing Pan-Galactic Corporation. Ask your players which side they fall on, and it's an instant bonding experience.

Be Agile, but Be Focused.

This was one of the failings of Coca-Cola ó it was slow to change and adapt to a new market. When people were hesitant on having cocaine in their drinks, the Coca-Cola company didn't change their formula. When tastes changed, again Coca-Cola remained strong, and they lost market share to other, smaller companies. But all successful companies diversify and add new components to their culture. Coca-Cola owns not only their Coke brand, but water, juice, and all other sorts of drinks. They also own the vertical market; bottling and distribution. One of the things that Mr. Pendergrast did was find the secret recipe. He asked, "what if I published this, and someone used it to create a Yum-Cola drink to rival Coke?" The response was, "the secret isn't in the formula, it's in the infrastructure around the formula and the marketing around the brand. If someone created a Yum-Cola, they would be creating a more expensive copy of Coke, without the name and the brand. Who would buy it?" It makes sense.

But companies shouldn't be too agile. You don't see Coca-Cola branching out to cars or security. IBM is another company that went from marketing a product to marketing a service, providing consultants. Again, this brings to mind the megacorporations in Star Frontiers, where PGC can supply starships, the crew to run them, and the political, scientific, and technical knowhow to find and exploit explore new planets. Your corporations should have a main brand, and expand based on that brand.

Conclusion

So, I hope this helps add some meat to your world. It's fitting that I do this on a trip to Las Vegas, one of the most branded cities in the world. Next column will be about governments ó different types of ways to rule the world, and ways to add some variety in your game. Until next month.