Brand Identity Paradoxes for Biculturals

Bicultural consumers, such as Hispanic-Americans and Asian-Americans, may experience contradictions in their identities and values, with the two cultures pulling them in opposing directions. Noting these paradoxes, researchers at University of Illinois and University of Minnesota hypothesized that brands incorporating contradictions in identities or values in their meanings—“paradox brands”—would carry extra appeal for bicultural consumers.
     The explanation is that navigating the contradictions in daily life develops within biculturals a cognitive flexibility which leads them to find engrossing the opposing perspectives embodied within the paradox brand identity. Examples from the researchers include Land Rover, carrying associations of both ruggedness and sophistication, and Burberry, identified as traditional, yet trendy. In one of the studies, the researchers used descriptors rugged, outdoorsy, glamorous, and charming to characterize the brand they intended as paradoxical. In another study, they used trendy, up-to-date, traditional, classic.
     The findings from the set of studies supported the hypothesis that biculturals on the whole engage more with paradox than with non-paradox brands. Supporting the researchers’ explanation for the effect, when monocultural participants were assigned a task to increase cognitive flexibility, they then became more receptive to paradox brands.
     These findings are especially useful for two related reasons. First, the researchers note that about one-third of the U.S. population is composed of bicultural consumers, and that segment is growing rapidly. To be successful, marketers will need to find a competitive advantage for appealing to these shoppers. Paradox brands allow that.
     Second, bicultural consumers aren’t all the same. The cultural contradictions encountered by Hispanic-Americans differ from those encountered by Asian-Americans. Then there are broad differences among individuals within each of those demographics. Both personalized marketing and sensitivity to the particular cultural background increase marketing success. But use of paradox brand identities, which appeal broadly across distinctions among biculturals, allows more efficient marketing.
     Other research has associated cognitive flexibility with playful creativity. It’s possible, then, that bicultural consumers will be especially drawn to creative ads, which University of Cologne studies say exhibit: 

• Originality. How different is the ad from other ads about similar consumption choices? 
• Flexibility. To what degree does the ad shift from one idea to another? 
• Elaboration. In the ad, how many different details are presented at the same time? 
• Synthesis. How well does the ad conceptually join together divergent ideas and details? 
• Artistic value. How well does the ad use words, images, and colors to produce aesthetic pleasure?

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