Ren Xuehan, Co Founder Of Genyuan Consulting: Reconstructing Brand With Chinese Cultural Symbols

At the 2020 China brand value management forum held on December 20, Ren Xuehan, co-founder and managing director of Genyuan consulting, said in his speech that "domestic products, national tide and national style" represent three different forces and are transforming our times with Chinese cultural symbols.

Ren Xuehan said that among the hot cross-border games of Guochao domestic products or Chinese culture in the past two years, which are Changhong and which are wanghong, and what are the differences between wanghong and Changhong? If we dig into the reasons behind them, their success must be a systematic success. One of the conclusions is that we should still use Chinese culture to provide brand.

Metaphor in the digital age

In the 20th century, the discourse structure of Foucault's era, the whole communication is a metaphor of tree, which has a center, a systematic hierarchy and a very clear hierarchy. You see the advertisement of brushing your head in the elevator. It uses this metaphor. A strong light hits your head. Through constant repetition and channel control, you can form a connection. This is the so-called wavy mechanism.

But the communication mechanism in the digital age is quite different. Digitization leads to the loss of control of the whole channel, which presents a tuberous transmission mechanism. Tuber like transmission mechanism is an open system without structure, and all the stems are equal and decentralized. However, all tubers communicate with each other. Once a certain tuber changes, it will affect the source of the tuber in the past.

This is much like the current mechanism of mutual communication and guidance. In turn, different signals in small situations will affect the definition of brand itself.

Ren Xuehan then asked: so, does the core definition of brand become important or not? In fact, it will become more important. The metaphor of tuber means asexual reproduction in different soils, that is, the extension and replication of genes. Genes must be kept pure, otherwise the whole transmission chain will break.

If the connection between potato chips is transformed into a dialogue between people and brands, it will constitute a "cultural strategic innovation model". Ren Xuehan believes that in the digital era, combining the power of soil and culture to build the brand of enterprises and products, there are three different structures from inside to outsourcing

The first level is a kind of "ideology", which is a kind of cultural truth that already exists in the people's hearts. It does not need to be penetrated by external emotions like a strong light. In fact, it is similar to the collective unconsciousness under the cultural accumulation.

The second level is a myth, an educational story. It is continuously written on different occasions and interpreted from different angles, so that others can better understand the ideology you represent and what the cultural truth you represent.

The third layer is the cultural code, which is some expression elements of culture.

An excellent brand, a brand that has been constantly passed on, must continuously express the above three levels of discourse from the inside to the outside, and its logical chain is clear and complete.

Ren Xuehan cited Nike as an example. Its emphasis on personal fighting spirit has continuously absorbed the power of culture in the vast field of myth. It has been expressed and strengthened day by day for 30 years. It has crossed the age, gender, rich and poor, and even racial differences, even if it leads to controversy.

National tide and national style

Ren Xuehan uses the national tide and national style to respond to the three-tier metaphorical structure in the digital age.

National trend, people often think of clothing, shoes, accessories, fashion fields. In the wave after wave of trends, there are finally Chinese original design on the world stage, with different styles to give young people more choices. 2018, known as the first year of the national tide, is a wave in the field of consumption. There are also factors behind the population structure change, that is, generation Z of 275 million people after 1995.

National style is a revival of culture and cultural creation. Oriental aesthetic culture is not only integrated into the innovation of product system, but also related to our lifestyle in a sense.

Ren Xuehan compared Li Ziqi with Li Ning. The two of them, one more like the representative of the national tide, the other more like the representative of the national style.

There is a huge difference in the average playing amount of the two. One video playback volume may be only a few hundred, while the other is always at a high level. Comprehensive analysis of all kinds of data, Li Ziqi's heat is far more than all the media and businesses give her. What cultural symbols and means of cultural innovation are used to achieve such a completely different phenomenon?

Li Ning's mythological connotation is very interesting. Li Ning is a representative of China's reform and opening up. When everything is booming and re enters the stage of history, a champion stands there, which is a kind of mood of the times. Li Ning clothing shows in New York in 2018. In a world dominated by the west, it gains China's confidence and pride with Chinese language. But Li Ning's communication in the past two years began to lose focus. Whether the trend it represents will last longer needs to be observed.

Why is Li Ziqi so hot? Ren Xuehan said that it is highly unified from the inside to the outside, from ideology to myth, to cultural code. Her ideology is about idyllic yearning, mythological meaning is a kind of secluded culture, and the cultural code is the delicious food and beautiful scenery of China. Why do people abroad like it? Li Ziqi uses a kind of Chinese culture to relieve the pressure of modern people, which is needed both at home and abroad. Standing on the mood of the times, he responded to the global common anxiety with Chinese culture.

This generation of young people are experiencing a so-called two-way tearing. There is a contradiction in many individuals, half of them are ma Yun and half of them are nebulae, which leads to the relationship between success and Buddhism; more and more young people are not willing to communicate with you offline, they are only willing to send you a message online, the relationship between the collective and the individual; in the case of more complex geopolitical economy, the service of national identity and world citizens; in the era of mobile Internet, the convenience of science and technology and people The relationship between literature and feelings.

All consumers are not only consumers, but also producers. Brand is not only consumer culture, but also reshapes culture in the process of communication and interaction with market environment and users. In the brand building, how to use a brand new Chinese culture and Chinese language to convey the Chinese spirit in the community of human destiny and shape the image of China, so as to deepen the Chinese culture continuously is the mission of the brand and the topic of the times.

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