(Photo: http://www.celebrationhomesales.com/)
Cultural critic Naomi Klein calls Disney one of the world's most successful super-brands (No Logo, Media Education Foundation,
2003). Not
only does it sell ideas and lifestyles, it also stretches and spreads
its brand across the pop-cultural landscape.
Please answer one of the following questions:
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1 hour ago
What do you think Klein means when she calls Celebration, Florida the achievement of Disney's “brand nirvana”? I think she means that Disney has, with Celebration, created a total immersion of the brand, where consumers experience every part of their life in a way that is connected to the "idea" of Disney. Every aspect of Celebration is planned, which in and of itself is not that unusual, but every aspect in Celebration is planned with the Disney brand in mind. It projects the ideas of safety, wholesomeness, cleanliness, and enjoyment. It seems a bit foolish, because life inevitably is full of messy and dark moments, and if Disney did not want these qualities to be associated with the brand, then they should not have expected for consumers to live in the brand 24-7. The Disney parks work because they are an escape, an "other" that people can go to to get away from it all. Disney defines itself against the "real world" (although lines can blur), but if Disney becomes the reality that people live in all the time, it inevitably becomes tarnished. Better to just have a lower level of engagement in the "real world" via products, and save the total immersion for special occasions.
ReplyDeleteMarisa Seitz
What ideas, values, and lifestyles does Celebration represent? What do you think it would be like to live there?
ReplyDeleteCelebration, Florida represents Disney's idea of America and Americans. Not only is the town totally saturated in the Disney brand, but it represents what Disney feels is the perfect small town. Though like Marisa said, the planned community is not unusual and makes a lot of sense with the building of any new community, however, I agree that it seems to present a bubble engulfed in Disney that is meant to protect it's residents from the true realities of life. An example of this is the fake snow for the holidays. Though it would appear to create the "magical" realms that Disney is so famous for projecting, it seems an attempt to create the idea of what Americans feel the perfect holiday is. It veers from the reality that it is very rare to have snow in Florida, and especially for the holidays. The fact that the town has schools and a university also adds to that sense that the town is in a protective "bubble." It would be interesting to know what types of classes are offered and what types of teachers and professors are employed at these schools. As children grow up here, go to school here, and are immersed in the society of this town, I agree that it seems they may be very hindered and living in a Disney dream world.
I think that at first the idea of living here seems great--perfect town, great for kids and family, safe, clean, etc...However, I get a strong sense that this place would be extremely boring to me. The types of people attracted to living in Celebration all seem to hold the same ideas about Disney. It seems the population is not very diverse, and that many of the people would think the same. I think it would be sad to witness the realities of life seeping in and prying open the bubble--like if a neighbor was convicted of child molestation or someone was hit by a car, or other things that can happen in any town, including Celebration, no matter how perfectly planned it is.
Wendy Knight-Nutty
What ideas, values, and lifestyles does Celebration represent? What do you think it would be like to live there?
ReplyDeleteCelebration, Florida sounds like Disney's version of Pleasantville. It's built to encourage families to spend time together and play in environmentally sound, well-kept parks. It mashes the American Dream with a Disney fairytale.
It has all the makings of being a seemingly perfect little town. Except that people will leave and encounter opposing branding outside their town. And they will realize that to be protected from brands, they are not given any choice but to live surrounded by one, Disney. It sounds like a nice place to live. But choice it important.
Celebration, Florida also represents the idea of running away from the world's problems. Just as we escape into a good book or movie, now there is a town to make the stay away from "reality" longer. A lot longer. But this won't solve anything. It'll only manifest itself in another form within the town. That is not to say the town or the idea is doomed.
I think kids would love growing up there. But like Disneyland, or Disney World, we are not meant to spend our entire lives in a fairytale. Sooner or later we must encounter the rest of the world. Safe turns into sheltered in Celebration, Florida. Only the close-minded and those lacking curiosity and a sense of free will would enjoy living there their entire life.
Ideals are easily ruined by people because we are not ideal, we are not perfect. It's a great idea to encourage family and cooperation and taking care of the environment. I just doubt the ability to uphold all these things to the degree Celebration, Florida is supposed to have.
- Ame Wood
What ideas, values, and lifestyles does Celebration represent? What do you think it would be like to live there?
ReplyDeleteCelebration represents being a simply town with simple values. Basically if you take all the corny lessons out of shows like "Leave It To Beaver" and "The Brady Bunch" then you can list all the values Celebration, FL hopes to achieve. Celebration strives to be a simple town with no violence and lots of trust in all its residents. This trust is that you can have your kids playing outside and not worrying about strangers kidnapping them, or that if you left your house unlocked all day no one would break in. Celebration just wants perfection with no worry of the bad things that do unfortunately happen in day to day life.
If I were to live there I have to admit I think if would be nice. I enjoy small towns where you can walk everywhere and know all your neighbors. It would be nice knowing that you could trust everyone and it would be great if life was simple with no violence or craziness that we consistently see in the news. However for Disney set up a town like that in an unrealistic world it's just creepy. Disney basically is trying to hide the problems of the world outside Celebration and act like everything is perfect. But we all know that rooms don't get cleaned by pushing the dirt under the rug. In the same way the world doesn't become perfect by moving to Celebration and ignoring the violence and reality of the world outside Disney's perfect town. I could not live happily or peacefully living in Celebration by knowing not everything is truly perfect in our world. Celebration might be nice to get away on a vacation, but not a place of permanent residency.
Katherine Harper
What do you think Klein means when she calls Celebration, Florida the achievement of Disney's “brand nirvana”?
ReplyDeleteFor us to understand the analogy that Klein denoted in the film, which claimed Disney as one of the few corporations that had achieved corporate “Nirvana”, one must understand the semantic roots of this thoughtful and surprisingly accurate statement.
Without diverging into the complexity of theological and/or spiritual nomenclature, nirvana can be simply defined as a “transcendent state in which there is neither suffering, desire, nor sense of self.” At first thought, Kline’s comparison seems exaggerated. How can a corporation experience the complexities of human spirituality? The answer, lies within a figurative analysis.
Klein uses the Disney-owned town of Celebration, Florida, as the cornerstone of Disney’s corporate transcendence. With Celebration, Disney achieved a new status of identity within the corporate dogma-- Disney could now be literally habited.
With the Disney amusement parks, the company became three-dimensional; allowing customers to experience the narratives of its products in an immersive environment. However, with the Nirvana cornerstone of Celebration, Disney transcended into a four dimensional corporation. Now people could not only love and buy and feel, but also live in the Disney brand.
- Jose Morales
What do you think Klein means when she calls Celebration, Florida the achievement of Disney's “brand nirvana”?
ReplyDeleteBrand nirvana represents Disney's ability to brand an entire concentration of people, buildings, government, schools, and more. Many people have fallen in love with the concept of Disney and Celebration, FL entails every fairytale-like detail of Disney. To some, including myself, I think the entire concept is ridiculous, however Disney has been able to create this city in which people desire to live because it appears to be the ultimate Disney utopia. Many Celebration residents cannot even afford to live in this lifestyle, which is the cause for many of the repossession of homes within the town.
Klein is also referring to the fact that there are no other brands present within Celebration- there are not fast food restaurants like McDonalds and Burger King, there aren't convenience stores like 7-11 or Sheetz, and there surely aren't advertisements on billboards when you are driving down the road. The city revolves around Disney, and that's the point- to live and breath Disney. Because many people have bought in to this lifestyle, Celebration, FL has been able to achieve "brand nirvana."
Melissa Peale
What do you think Klein means when she calls Celebration, Florida the achievement of Disney's “brand nirvana”?
ReplyDeleteI believe what Klein is referring to is the fact that Celebration is the complete encompassment of everything Disney. Everything within Celebration is Disney and there is no way to really escape it. People are put on wait lists for years in order to even have a chance to live in Celebration. This community that Disney has built is proof that people want to be completely enveloped into the Disney world. I believe when a brand has reached a point where a person wants to completely live within the brand then that is proof that they have reached the "brand nirvana" at it's perfection.
- Josh Stevens
While Disney is most definitely the top of the pack as far as "brand nirvana." I believe it is a concept that other brands have tried to reach. One such company, that I believe has reached similar sorts of brand recognition and lifestyle is the Hershey Candy Company. As a Maryland resident, close to the border of Pennsylvania, Hershey Park was often a popular spot for field trips, concerts and summer excursions for my friends and I.
ReplyDeleteAt the park, Hershey merchandise and paraphernalia abound as visitors are given every opportunity to join the brand with vigor. Some of the rides center around the history and narrative of the All-American Hershey Company, much like those in Celebration, Florida, while others bring that candies to life in order to attract young audiences to the magic that is Hershey. In recent years, the park has also extended to include a luxury hotel and spa, making the location much more of a vacation destination than an ordinary theme park. In advertisements for the park, visitors are urged to make a weekend of their trip, stay at the hotel, take in the sights and buy into the Hershey lifestyle, where chocolate and family values abound.
Obviously, Hershey Park resides on a much smaller scale than the "brand nirvana," created by the Disney Company, but the company has definitely used similar brand recognition. Like Celebration, Florida, Hershey Park shuts out all other brands and creates an artificial world for visitors to take in. The park is designed to draw visitors in not only to spend money during their time there, but to love Hershey products and characters long after they have left, and therefore, creates a nirvana and brand loyalty that only theme park magic can bring.
-Molly Haas
I believe when Klein refers to Celebration as Disney’s brand nirvana she means that they have reached a point where they can own and control everything. At Celebration you will never see another brand because Disney owns Celebration and they would never let another brand in. In addition, with Celebration they control everything even down to when it snows. Celebration, Florida represents the idea of the American dream and apple pie with a “Leave It to Beaver” and “Father Knows Best” lifestyle.
ReplyDeleteI think it would feel weird to live in Celebration because I would feel like I was June Cleaver stuck in a 1950s all American family. However, I think once you got use to living there it would probably become second nature and you probably wouldn’t know anything else. Sometimes it would be good to get away and go back to a more simplistic life style especially when things in your life get hectic. Personally I think I would like the simplistic Celebration lifestyle more if it included horseback riding.
I cannot think of any other company that has achieved brand nirvana like Disney. I would say that MTV is probably close to achieving brand nirvana with the Jersey Shore mentality. People can act out the Jersey Shore mentality but MTV is not at a place where you can physically live a Jersey Shore life.
(Khyre Dean)
ReplyDeleteBrand Nirvana is achieved when a company has incorporated itself into culture so well that it becomes one with it. This status makes the company immune to being seen as a brand, but instead is seen as a lifestyle.
A company other than Disney that has achieved brand nirvana is Mcdonalds. Mikey D's has established itself to be considered as American as the Fourth of July. It has one of the most iconic logos that has transcended American culture, achieving notoriety and recognition all over the world, with locations that span as far as Japan.
Mcdonalds has been so successful by marketing to the a wholesome, family oriented demographic. It does not associate its products with political material, or anything that challenges conservative main stream ideals. Much like Disney, by adhering to 'cookie cutter' America, Mcdonalds is able to appeal to many demographics and markets. Mcdonalds even has special sites on the web that are intended to target niche markets that range from minorities to children.
The Mcdonalds brand has established itself so well that it is almost unavoidable. It is close to impossible to live in city or town that doesn't sport the famous golden arches, a feat of success for the company.
What ideas, values, and lifestyles does Celebration represent? What do you think it would be like to live there?
ReplyDeleteI think Celebration is the perfect representation of a Utopian Community, which is "an ideal community or society possessing highly desirable or perfect qualities." Celebration seems like the perfect town, with the perfect residents, and the perfect buildings. It represents a simple, organized, safe, small town lifestyle that some people may call "perfect". I think it represents that same value and ideas that Disney represents, those of fairy tale, imagination, and beauty. The whole town seems like a fairy tale from the outside. I personally would not enjoy living there because I wouldn't like how small and enclosed it was, I would feel trapped inside a bubble. I don't think there is enough stimulation for people, especially kids growing up there. They wont be exposed to many things that are in the real world, causing them to have a very narrow minded view of the world. I definitely think there are people that would love to live in celebration, I think it most appropriately fits people who have retired and other senior citizens because they usually enjoy a simple life at their older age.
Kristen Hotz
Can you think of any other company that has achieved “brand nirvana”? If so, please explain.
ReplyDeleteThe biggest two companies that come to my mind when thinking of "brand nirvana" are Apple and Starbucks. While these two companies have not quite achieved the brand nirvana of their own planned communities like Disney has, I believe they are well on their way to having similar success as Disney.
Apple has created products that seem to be basic human needs at this point in our society. iPhones, iPads, and iPods clutter the space in almost every office, classroom, airport, coffee shop and living room. There are not only products, but a culture associated. Simplicity, efficiency, and innovation all revolve around the Apple name and those who are devoted followers of the brand. Steve Jobs has not only created a company, but a religion that continues to grow. I think in the very near future we will see Apple products becoming interdependent with everyday life from learning to working to leisure activities.
Starbucks is another company that has not only created products its customers love, but a culture that people live in accordance too. People are dedicated to the brand and will remind dedicated no matter how much money they could save going to 7-11 for coffee or making it at home. Starbucks stores are known to pop up just around the corner from each other, making it almost impossible to avoid them. Their notion of creating the "third place", away from work and the home, makes Starbucks the go to location for meeting or get togethers that no other small coffee shop can replace. The familiarity of walking into a Starbucks, even if you're miles away from home, makes them a refuge in a foreign land that people can depend on to serve their favorite beverage. Between the allure of those Christmas cups and the dependability of your favorite barista to make your coffee perfect every time, Starbucks is quickly achieving brand nirvana.
Even though Apple and Starbucks have not made their own communities yet, I believe they are both well on their way to achieving the same kind of brand nirvana has Disney's Celebration. I can envision Apple creating their own towns that run on entirely only Apple products, homes that use all Apple gadgets, or office parks that are fully stocked with all the Apple gear necessary to do their work. Starbucks as well could become the dominate coffee shop in entire towns, cities, or even states one day, making Starbucks the absolute form of coffee available to the people.
Other companies that I feel achieved Brand Nirvana is Facebook. This company has incorporated an identity that goes far beyond their product lines into the conversations of mainstream society on a daily basis. With over 1 billion users, Facebook has become the norm for the online social interaction at the high school, college and post grad level. It has become so integrated in people's lives by acting as a visual aid into someone's thoughts and feelings. In addition, people discuss many of the Facebook terms in their own conversations in real life to the point where "facebooking" has become an actual verb. It is a second home for many students and young adults who escape the hardships of school and family and converse with their friends on an online level. It has surpassed the wars of all their competitors, giving them an edge on the influence it has on current society.
ReplyDelete-Sarah Hasnain
I think it is interesting to watch companies chase after the idea of "brand nirvana," of attempting to reach this all things to all people idea, especially considering how crippled the traditional monoculture has become in the last few years. Because of this, and considering the way that society is so hyper segmented, it almost becomes across as desperate that companies try so hard to establish this foot hold and become synonymous with something that feels forced. Things very rarely become cool because someone tells you they are.
ReplyDeleteTake modern technology services. People have strong affiliation with platforms like Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr, and a lot of people highly incorporate them into their life. But very few people would define themselves through there use of them. There is proof positive in this with the very real ability of these services to fade and become punchlines like former "it" things like MySpace or Xanga.
A lot of the reasons that companies like Disney, and as mentioned above Starbucks and Apple, have been able to reach this zenith is out of sheer longevity. These brands have been around and firmly established what they mean as cultural touchstones. They are brands as much as they as much as facts of life. In many ways they have earned that loyalty, despite as artificial as a relationship as it seems on the outside looking in.
But trying to brute force and obtain this in an less authentic way makes your company and product seem desperate. It is hard to tell if this is just because of the nature of us as students and media consumers or if it really is this transparant.
Jeff Wade
What ideas, values, and lifestyles does Celebration represent? What do you think it would be like to live there?
ReplyDeleteI think that Celebration represents a completely different world, where it seems as if everything is perfect and nothing bad can happen. I think it was last year in my 301 class we talked about Celebration and there was a murder there. Apparently everyone was just appalled and shocked that such a thing could happen. In the world outside of Celebration, it’s not that we expect murders, but we understand it’s possible. In Celebration, I don’t think the residents ever thought that a murder could occur. I agree with Wendy in that residents of Celebration seem to be in a bubble. I feel like you would see the same types of people over and over again. I don’t think there would be much room for diversity or branching out, which is sad. I think Celebration restricts teenagers that may be growing up there from expressing their individuality. Kids don’t even know what the real world is like. If they ever get out of Celebration, I think they will be in for a surprise.
- Kelsey Fisher
Celebration, Florida is a community meant to act as a utopia. It is a “perfect town” that reminds me of the utopia town in the movie, The Stepford Wives. The town was created to resemble a small town that is a safe community. While it seems innocent to want everything to look perfect, the town seems extremely controlling. Cars and trash have to be put in the back of the house in an alley in order to not disturb the beauty and “perfection” of the homes. It seems as though if one minor detail of your house was off, you would be penalized. The people who live in this town have to go to the town schools, which include elementary school, high school and a university. I feel as though the education would be partially skewed in order to teach citizens the education they feel is necessary. I think the education about Disney would be vastly different. The type of people who choose to live there I think would have similar values, such as family, the importance of appearance, and cultural values. I think they would all agree to the idea that if everything appears to be perfect, their lives will be sufficiently better and they will always be safe. But, I think that nothing is perfect and they are just living under false pretenses.
ReplyDeleteMadison Smith
The city is considered brand nirvana because it is the ultimate goal of every brand. In celebration, Disney essentially holds a monopoly on everything, which would be illegal in most cases. Being a gated community lends them some more freedom in doing this. Although subtle in places, everything the residents of Celebration do and use is connected to disney in some way. Not only does disney not have competition in this community, everyone who lives there accepts disney as being the brand that holds everything. Disney has its set of customers and these customers aren't going to look to other brands to sell what they're looking for. Disney is in control of the market in Celebration, and the consumers aren't supporting competition. This lets the brand own and distribute whatever they want to increase their revenues.
ReplyDeletesteven schmucker
DeleteWhat ideas, values, and lifestyles does Celebration represent? What do you think it would be like to live there?
ReplyDeleteCelebration, Florida represents the idealized, small-town values that Disney envisions being the perfect town. It was deliberately constructed to be the perfect place to live. I, however, would never want to live there for a few reasons. First, it is a very small area which seems very exclusive to the surrounding area. The population of the town is a bit over a third of the population of JMU. Also, the town seems very fake to me. I would never want to be a part of a town that seems so forcefully designed to be the perfect community. It just seems to me that people visit Celebration and ask why every town cannot be like Celebration. The answers to that question are fairly obvious, so if this is supposed to represent a utopian town, then it should be more realistic. If it is supposed to simply be a vacation spot, then it should stick to that image instead of trying to imply that it is a dreamworld where everything is perfect.
-Braden Tanner
Can you think of any other company that has achieved “brand nirvana”? If so, please explain.
ReplyDeleteI think another company/person that has achieved this "brand nirvana" is Jimmy Buffett and the whole Margaritaville craze. Similar to Disney, Margaritaville pushes the idea of escapism. Jimmy Buffett took his image of a sailor/beach bum with a carefree attitude and packaged it into a lifestyle that is available in so many different products sold by Margaritaville, and there are many ways that you can show the rest of the world that you are a true "Parrot Head". There's Jimmy Buffett's music which all reinforces the same thing, relax and get away from the stress of the real world. Most songs have a laid back feel and with the hit song "Five O'Clock Somewhere", a collaboration with Alan Jackson, Jimmy Buffett really created a theme song for escapism. Jimmy Buffett's concerts are enormous events, and I'd be willing to bet more than 50% of the crowd is either wearing some form Margaritville clothing or holding a Landshark (Margaritaville's own beer). Also, playing off of an old Buffett single "Cheeseburger in Paradise" the Margaritaville brand found an opportunity to create a chain of restaurants selling the escapist vibe. Similar to Disney, Margaritville's home is located in Florida, down in Key West, and I would have to imagine the brand dominates the area. If you search Margaritaville (which I can assure you is a not an actual town) in Google Maps, it takes you straight to downtown Key West. I'm sure it'd be interesting to see what the locals of Key West think about Margaritaville transforming there town into a tourist destination.
Mason Alls
Celebration is the realization of Disney's ultimate goal. It not only encompasses all of Disney's values and allows them to create a town the way that they think it should be, but it also cuts people off from the surrounding world by eliminating foreign advertising and brands. Once inside of the town, all influence from other brands is withheld from the citizens and Disney can carry on without having to worry about any outside influences, almost in comparison to China or North Korea. A town such as Celebration not only fosters and enables a close-minded attitutde, but encourages it by allowing people to surround themselves in a fairytale world where everyone else dresses the same way they do and enjoy the same activities they do, rather than having to deal with the diversity of the open world.
ReplyDeleteTim Soule
I was going to say Starbucks as well, is a good example of another brand reaching out to create the best full representation of the brand itself. Starbucks has said itself that it aims to be a part of the community that it is in. Even though it is a very large company with thousands of stores across the country, it still tries to be that local coffee shop.
ReplyDeleteThe company strives to hire local citizens who know the neighborhood, its events, and the people in it. This also goes hand in hand to another goal of theirs, that of knowing their customers. Starbucks wants their workers to know the people that come into the store, usually more than a few times a week. To know their unique coffee order and know them more than just another random costumer. Starbucks has so many stores that the people who go to them are most likely locals who live near by, and since they hire locals as well it creates a community environment where everybody knows each other and runs into neighbors, coworkers and family friends. Though not as far as an actual neighborhood like Celebration, this community feeling is a definite representation of Starbucks and their aim to create the local coffee shop feel.
Jordan Krug
It really is hard to imagine any brand that has reached the saturation point comparable to Disney’s influence in Celebration, Florida. There is so much diversity and competition in our free society that it’s hard for brands to truly impact every aspect of our lives. However, a brand that comes very close is Google. Some of the other examples mentioned of brands that have reached “brand Nirvana,” like Facebook and Apple, are indicative of the “digital age” we now live in. You don’t need to to live in an entire town owned by one company in order for that one company to control every aspect of your life. Today, the internet is so ingrained in our lifestyles that if you control the internet, you control our lives. If you think about it, Google does kind of control the internet. I open my web browser (Google Chrome) and check my email (Gmail) to find a funny video someone sent me to watch (on YouTube). Those three Google products are just the tip of the iceberg. With Google calendar, Google books, Google Docs (now, “Drive”), Google Maps, Picasa, Blogger (yes, this blog is run through Google), and the original Google search, it’s hard to imagine how an internet user could not utilize some aspect of Google everyday. Google’s social networking platform, Google+, never really took off to gain the popularity and influence of Facebook, but if it had, there would be no question that Google is monopolizing the internet. Past the internet, Google has come out with actual hardware pieces such as cell phones and tablets. Now, Google has even released its own personal computer, the “ChromeBook.” These products and services offered by Google are just a handful of their inventory, and they are always coming out with something new. I haven’t even mentioned the criticism Google has received about using web browser “cookies” to target advertisements to individual users or for censoring information overseas. In this regard, Google can almost be seen as a “big brother” figure shaping the information we receive without our knowledge. The Google brand is everywhere, and its trustworthy image and performance has led it to be successful across a wide range of users.
ReplyDeleteWhat do you think Klein means when she calls Celebration, Florida the achievement of Disney's “brand nirvana”?
ReplyDeleteA brand is the identity of your organization, everything that makes up how interested parties interpret your message. It can be a unique and identifiable symbol, association, name or trademark, something that differentiates yours with competing products or services. Or it can be what your neighbor told you about the product that he or she purchased, whether it functioned properly, how effective the customer service was, or how much they enjoy it.
This combination of elements is difficult to track down for any company, yet Disney has done so perfectly in Celebration, Florida. They have reached brand nirvana, like Klein defined, because their town has produced visual consistency, character and style that go beyond their logo. The tone that is communicated to consumers is perfectly Disney. It is clean, fun, and family friendly, exactly the image that Disney strives to embody.
Daniel Benn