The Power of Logo - revised

Abstract People like to be part of a certain group, it gives us advantages like protection. Groups have multiple characteristics and all of them are represented by a logo. The logo controls power and access and is governed by an institution. We should be aware of what this means for us as an individual.

What is the power of logo? Throughout mankind's history people have formed groups and alliances to identify themselves. And this sounds logical, because in order to survive the ancient human had to know its friends and enemies. The formation of a group serves multiple advantages. For instance, a group is able to work together on a specific task for example the hunt for food or is able to protect itself better from enemies outside just because its has more eyes and ears than one individual alone. Members of a group can benefit from the resources within the group and the output it is producing. Because of that a member of a group is more likely to survive than the sole individual. So to form or join a group was essential for the ancient human in order to survive. This way of surviving didn't change in modern humans. Today we are part of more groups than before. Not only does everybody carries a nationality, we are also part of several other groups both national and local.

There are many characteristics to identify a group. For example we can look at its behavior as a whole, the use of language, its tools or the physical appearances of the people belonging to the group. What is maybe the most important characteristic of a group is the ideology it stands for and carries out. Ideology is a way of looking, thinking, and behaving. It is something we are part of, maybe born in and can’t escape it without force. In The Pervert’s Guide to Ideology Zizek exemplifies this by showing a scene of the movie They Live (1988) where the main character John Nada finds a pair of glasses which shows the real message behind ideology when put on. When the glasses are on, nice looking advertisements turn into messages of authority Nada is obeying to. We are all part of certain groups and we all act to them. Groups can differ from each other in size, for example the globalisation of the group, and impact. Nevertheless each group tries to act as an entity with its own and hopefully unique characteristics.

In the video ‘Logorama (2009; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cgrHFEVJY4w) we see a perfect example of a characteristic of groups. The video is an animation of logo’s of institutions and companies. The logo’s, which are a facade of the ideology they are presenting, are everwhere. For example, instead of seeing neutral butterflies flying in the air, we see in Logorama butterflies which we all know from Windows MSN. The video is about a villain (Ronald McDonald), cops (Michelin) and the chase after each other. While watching the video I recognized a large amount of logos. I know them because I have purchased products of them or I know them because I have encountered them somewhere. To make people identify with a institution and its logo a relationship needs to be created. The creation of this need, this relationship lies often in childhood as is seen in ‘The men who made us spend’ by Jacques Peretti. Zizek explains this in The Pervert’s Guide to Ideology by giving an example of Coca Cola. We drink Coca Cola because of its assumed extra qualities it gives us and not solely because we are thirsty. Coca Cola gives us a nice feeling, it sparks us and we are part of the society Coca Cola depicts in its advertisements. The same counts for the famous Kinder Egg. The present inside is the reason we buy these eggs. Because of the present we value the chocolate itself as being more tasty over others.

Sometimes a logo is stronger than the ideology of an institution. People recognize the logo engage with it or its products, but don’t realise where they engage with. The true ideology is sometimes hidden behind the facade of a logo and institutions can make advantages out of this. Another example given by Zizek is Starbucks, which according to him openly says it is more expensive with their coffees than others. The reason why Starbucks is a bit more expensive is because a percentage of the profit goes to charity. By that Starbucks is giving us a opportunity to pay of our guilt of having more than others. By buying a coffee at Starbucks we are not only enjoying the a coffee, we also make the world a little better. This gives us a good feeling and we continue to look for that feeling. Because of that we ignore the truth. Zizek says that freedom hurts. There is a curtain which enables us to see the truth. People consume their products part out of need, but mostly because they want to identify with the company. They forget that instead of this product there are other products of similar or better quality which are even cheaper. Of course credits go to the advertisement department of these companies. Apparently there advertisements are so strong that it makes people dull and ignorant. The power of their logo is to strong to oppose. This is especially highlighted in the triptych 'The men who made us spend'. In these episodes Jacques Peretti investigates the mechanisms of consumerism and the people who try and shape the public's appetites. In the first episode we see how an industry is changing the market purposely. This is called planned obsolescence and means that a certain design is deliberately altered in a certain way to gain more profit. The example which is shown in the episode is that of a lightbulb. The original lightbulb had a lifespan that surpass the lifespan of a modern lightbulb. But in order to make more profit the industry came with an idea and a design that made the lifespan of the light bulb less long. By doing so consumers had to buy more light bulbs per year and by that the industry would make more profits. Here you see that the industry create a need to spend more to maintain the same condition. Contrary to this we see in the episode a desire to have the latest Iphone 5S. An endless line of people is awaiting the moment that Apple opens its doors. Here you see people purchasing a new phone even though they don't need a new phone. In fact consumers can't give a good answer on the question of what the difference is between the Iphone5 and the Iphone 5S. In this example you see that a company (or a logo) has so much power that consumers want to buy its product even though the old one is still in good condition. The company transformed us into slaves of their products.

In Renzo Martens 'Enjoy Poverty' the power of logo is explained by its accessibility to resources and the market. People who don't have the logo or are not a member of the group can't apply for the same resources. Members of the institution decide who to help and who not. In the documentary there is a scene where 'Doctors Without Borders' leave a certain area for another while there is still a high demand for help. Martens tries to investigate why the institution leaves but is left without answers. 'Doctors Without Borders' says on its website that it treats people where the need is greatest. So why is it leaving the area? And why does an infographic in the documentary shows that 'Doctors Without Borders' is only present in certain areas where there is actually less demand for help? This again shows that an institution uses its power to control a system not thinking of its patients or consumers. This is in line of the light bulb example described earlier.

Martens tries to teach the local community to commercialize poverty. Poverty is a commodity and instead of trying to escape poverty and seek for a better life, the local community should embrace its faith and utilise it. To do so Martens teaches local photographers what kind of pictures are profitable in the West. Before the local photographers were aiming for the local market, making pictures of weddings. But martens explains them that picture of weddings wouldn't sell in the West and that they have a better chance if they would take photos of poverty and misery. Martens tries to create access for these local photographers at 'Doctors Without Borders', but they are denied because they don't have a press card and don't belong to a certain group. The people who are poor, stay poor.

Conclusion: To be part of a group for whatever reason and to carry a logo is a way for us to identify ourselves. It gives us a good and safe feeling to people around you who think and behave the way you do. There are many advantages to be part of a group or to carry a logo. Nevertheless it implies danger as well. The power of logo is on one hand capable of evoking an action from a crowd. It controls the behavior of people and makes you spend even when there is no need. On the other hand the power of logo decides who to help and who not. Power of logo means control and access. We should be aware of what this means for us as an individual.