The branding of a quality liquor as a symbolic effort toward bringing China forward culturally: A comparative study of Wuliangye and Absolut Vodka
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Ming Cheung,
Ming Cheung is a senior lecturer at the University of Adelaide 〈ming.cheung@adelaide.edu.au〉. Her research interests include visual communication, advertising, digital marketing, and interaction design. Her publications include “When mind, heart, and hands meet: Communication design and designers” (2011); “Creativity in advertising design education: An experimental study” (2011); “Factors affecting the design of electronic direct mail messages: Implications for professional communicators” (2011); and “Design thinking in healthcare: Innovative product development through the iNPD Process” (2012).
Abstract
Liquor consumption involves drinking, socializing, and networking. This article compares two alcoholic beverages, namely, Wuliangye from China and Absolut Vodka from Sweden, with the aim of identifying the means by which the Chinese brand can better succeed in its internationalizing efforts. The article first reviews theories of high- versus low-context cultures as well as cultural branding. Through analysis of the graphic and packaging designs of the two liquor brands, it then examines the impact of their cultural branding strategies on the creation of their iconic identities. The Chinese brand expresses the idea of competition with Europe or the United States in the production of quality liquor through the creation of a strong brand identity in the global marketplace, which is realized in its new slogan – “Wuliangye for China, for the World.” Against this backdrop, the article explores the extent to which the production and branding of quality Chinese liquor can be perceived as a symbolic effort toward bringing China forward culturally. It concludes with a discussion of the findings' implications for branding specialists and communication designers.
About the author
Ming Cheung is a senior lecturer at the University of Adelaide 〈ming.cheung@adelaide.edu.au〉. Her research interests include visual communication, advertising, digital marketing, and interaction design. Her publications include “When mind, heart, and hands meet: Communication design and designers” (2011); “Creativity in advertising design education: An experimental study” (2011); “Factors affecting the design of electronic direct mail messages: Implications for professional communicators” (2011); and “Design thinking in healthcare: Innovative product development through the iNPD Process” (2012).
©[2012] by Walter de Gruyter Berlin Boston
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- Urban morphogenesis
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- Vision science: An empirical basis for Roentgen semiotics
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- Text semiotics: Between philology and hermeneutics – from the document to the work
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