One of the main particularities of the 21st century trade is online branding. This brand management functions through various Web technologies. Online branding ideas can be attributed to a wide audience in the shortest terms. The branding itself is used by certain techniques and methods that allow bringing to the customer the designed brand and not only to form in his mind the image of the brand’s product, but also to assist him in perceived functional and emotional elements of this product. In this context, online branding helps clients hasten the choices of a product and decision on its purchase. In the course of such work often occurs a conflict of personal and professional interests, which causes a collapse in the workflow. In this essay we examine two examples of conflict of interest in the field of online branding, analyze the problem from within and offer some approaches to solve these problems. A conflict of interest itself is a situation in which the personal interest of an individual can affect the decision-making process and, thus, cause damage to the professional interests of the society or company being an employer of this employee. The problem of conflict of interest is relevant nowadays for both ordinary business, and for online branding. The first example that we examine in our essay is online brand C.O.I. (Conflict of Interests) NYC. Originally, the brand was considered as a kind of parody of the well-known clothing brands. The first collection presented only T-shirts with simple and uncomplicated prints that were just in fashion. Despite the fact, that the brand’s authors were unknown (they called themselves as The Secret Agents), and the brand was not particularly promoted, it became quite popular in New York, not only among ordinary citizens, but also among celebrities. This kind of secrecy has played into the hands of developers, by warming up interest of the new and weird brand. The Secret Agents shared their beliefs in the interview, where they have explained that the secrecy is not some kind of PR stunt, but belief of the teammates of brand. The authors are ardent supporters of the concept of authentic self. According to their point of view, the secrecy simply allowed doing their jobs as agents. It gave them an ability to observe what was out and to know what to pick during different warehouse raids. The secrecy of C.O.I. only added the mystery and excitement to their brand. It also highlights the way we want our products to look, not like something designed but rather something that is found, seized, and repurposed. This made defining brand’s authentic self difficult, especially when the term gets thrown around by social media sources as a mean to present the authenticity positively online. The worse thing is being yourself is portrayed in the media as being a flapjaw, a silly stereotype of an person, or an outsider with a queer wardrobe and an addiction to hysteria. But authenticity it’s not about expressing all kinds of opinions all the time, but the knowledge of what those opinions really are (Chernikoff, 2016).
Unfortunately, not all customers understand the nature of brand authors’ motivation of privacy. Nowadays, the company is actively fighting the stereotype of a brand-parody. The presentation of the brand was a kind of experiment, not a parody, according to the Secret Agents. Now the creators are faced with a dilemma: to open their personalities or not to save the brand. If they disclose their identity, it can have a dual effect, firstly, it can reduce the interest and intrigue of the customers, and secondly, it contradicts the ideas of the creators. At the same time, many buyers require the disclosure of cards to brand could become self-sufficient and to be perceived seriously. The way out of this predicament can be an alternative solution to the problem. The brand should expand its line of clothing and instead of just displaying a new line of T-Shirts, it should make also jackets, mesh tops, snapbacks, longsleeve T-shirts, as well as different unisex pieces (Welty, 2013). Such a solution will exclude the disclosure of the individual of the creators and will expand the customer base of the brand.
The second brand that we examine is the White T-Shirt CO. The brand founder is Penny Jones, the conservationist and the member of many eco-clubs. Her main objective, for many years, was to create the perfect t-shirt made of organic cotton without any impurities. Initially, the aim was to create different kinds of classic cut of T-shirts, like Long and Short Sleeve Scoops, Round Neck T-Shirts, V Neck T-Shirts and other in white color. Jones wanted to avoid dyeing her products in unnatural colors, but to expand her brand, she had to add to the standard white color another three colors (grey marl, black and navy). Her vision of the concept of an authentic self is that each person must manifest himself without assistance, thus, he does not need a fussy uncomfortable and of a poor quality clothing (The Ernest journal, 2016). The best way to express themselves, it is to show real, by highlighting the individual beauty with simple and at the same time elegant things. All products of this brand, without exception, are made from the organic raw materials. In 2010, John and her company were faced with a huge problem, her organic yarn supplier has closed and she refused to continue making T-Shirts on an inferior fabric. Faced with this problem, Jones had a choice, either to stop the production or to move production to another factory, where the products will be made not from organic raw materials, but out from the ordinary, that is completely contradicts the original concept of the brand. As a result, Penny Jones chose an alternative solution to the problem, she had suspended the process of production for an unknown term, while that time she was engaged in the development of new concepts for the brand (it was then, that the idea of additional coloring came about). At the same time, she forged ties with Danish partners, thanks to which her production was resumed in 2014. Now the brand develops actively and it is quite successful, thus, Penny Jones was able to successfully beat her personal situation of conflict of interests and the interests of her companies (The Womens Room, 2014). In conclusion, it should be said that the problem of personal and professional conflict is not new today. Many companies, including online branding are faced each day with all new challenges. There is no universal remedy to cope the problem, each case is unique, but there is proper solution for each case that the developers will have to find themselves.
References
Chernikoff, L. (2016). “The ‘Secret Agents’ Behind Cult T-Shirt Line Conflict Of Interest Reveal Their Latest Collection”. Fashionista.com. Retrieved 2 April 2016, from http://fashionista.com/2013/01/the-secret-agents-behind-cult-t-shirt-line-conflict-of-interest-reveal-their-latest-collection
Welty, M. (2013). “Conflict of Interest Goes Beyond Designer Parody T-Shirts at NYFW”. Complex.com. Retrieved 2 April 2016, from http://www.complex.com/style/2013/09/conflict-of-interest-nyfw-show
The Ernest journal (2016). “The White T-Shirt Co”. Ernest journal. Retrieved 2 April 2016, from http://www.ernestjournal.co.uk/the-white-t-shirt-co/
The Womens Room (2014). “At Last! The perfect T shirt from The White T-Shirt Co”. Thewomensroomblog.com. Retrieved 2 April 2016, from http://www.thewomensroomblog.com/2014/06/05/the-perfect-t-shirt-from-the-white-t-shirt-co-at-last/
