rebranding

[Jonathan Lighter]

Adding to my discomfort is the association of "rebranding" with Sarah Palin,
whose national debut at the 2008 Republican Convention was described by all
and sundry as her "rollout."

Politicians were once described primarily as principled public servants
(don't laugh). Then they became image-creating celebrities. Now they're
infinitely malleable consumer products.

Feel the quease?

JL




On Wed, Jun 1, 2011 at 5:50 PM, victor steinbok <aardvark66 at gmail.com>wrote:

> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> -----------------------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       victor steinbok <aardvark66 at GMAIL.COM>
> Subject:      Re: rebranding
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> The OED only has the plain meaning that is rather equivalent to the earlier
> ranchers' use:
>
> Marketing. The application of a new brand identity to an existing product
> or
> > service. Also in extended use.
>
>
>
> This is a bit heavy-handed. There is a variation of "rebranding" that
> implies more than mere change of label. It's the change of identity of a
> /company/ in the wake of adverse publicity. The classics:
>
> Archer Daniels Midland --> ADM (following several scandals of chemicals in
> food)
> Kentucky Fried Chicken --> KFC (to avoid the reference to "fried" food)
> Blackwater --> XE (following a number of scandals involving killing of
> Iraqi
> civilians)
> Diebold Election Systems --> Premiere Election Solutions (following a
> prolonged argument and subsequent demand for verifiable paper trail on
> electronic voting machines)
> US Air --> USAirways (following a crash)
> AirTran --> ATA (following a series of crashes and a merger with a
> charter-flight company ATA)
> Southwestern Bell Corporation--> SBC Communications --> AT&T Inc.
> (following
> separate acquisitions of the previously AT&T branded long-distance and
> wireless telephone companies--AT&T Corporation and Cingular Wireless which
> held rights to AT&T Wireless, as well as AT&T Broadband; Cingular had
> previously eliminated the AT&T Wireless brand as it's original owners
> BellSouth AT&T Corp had been successively absorbed into SBC.)
>
> In each case, except the last one, rebranding was an attempt to run away
> from a negative image that had become associated with the original
> corporate
> brand (one could also add Esso --> Exxon). The SBC name change was less an
> admission of a negative image (the company, despite its size, had one of
> the
> lowest customer service ratings of all telecoms), then a result of a belief
> in substantial good will still being associated with the AT&T brand.
>
> The OED examples show examples of products being stripped of one kind of
> label and getting slapped with another. These are not the same thing. And
> the "extend use", such as the one Jon cites, is closer to the changing
> image
> kind of rebranding than merely changing the label on some product (e.g.,
> Cisco's change from Linksys to iPhone brand on some of their internet
> phones
> in an attempt to prevent Apple from claiming the traidmark).
>
> VS-)
>
> On Wed, Jun 1, 2011 at 4:46 PM, Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at gmail.com
> >wrote:
>
> >
> > "Rebranding" was mentioned here in 2005 as it related to dreaming up new
> > municipal slogans.
> >
> > CNN today has been talking at length about Saran Palin's "rebranding,"
> her
> > presumed attempt to "rebrand (herself)," and her "rebranding (bus) tour."
> >
> > It refers to improving one's public image in an obvious and profound way.
> >
> > JL
>
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