Blog 3: Project outcome and personal development
My chosen project for the Better Lives unit was Messaging Fashion. I was excited for this project as it gave me an opportunity to learn about branding and PR, something different to my course Hair and Makeup for Fashion. After being introduced to the theme of social responsibility from the Better Lives lectures, this project allowed me to grasp the understanding of how important the social responsibility of a brand really is.
A brands missions are not only to sell products and services, but to create values that inspire consumers and bring about change. In our sessions we looked at brand values, and how brands use social responsibility to improve brand reputation. Brand touchpoints, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), and a brand personality are all what is needed for a successful, ethical and relatable brand. We further learnt about brands building relationships with media outlets, to ensure the most affective media will deliver the message from the brand. This could be traditional media, although the industry has increasingly learnt to rely on social media as a tool of communication. This has become more apparent than ever during the COVID-19 pandemic. Social media has become vital for brands to communicate to their audience and deliver messages during these unprecedented times.
Our task for the project was to, in groups, create and present our own social responsibility initiative for our given brand. We had to formulate innovative ways to promote our concept to the target audienceof the brand, and also produce a media outcome to relay our brands key message and raise brand awareness.
My groups brand was PATTA, a black owned company and streetwear brand. It started as a small business for friends and family and it developed to a brand who defends the urban culture. PATTA has their own non-profit organisation, with the purpose of helping the growth of young adults through arts and cultural entrepreneurship. We considered the impacts of COVID-19 and how PATTA would respond. We thought of creating a ‘COVID-19 Collection’ where proceeds go to the PATTA Foundation, specifically by supporting underprivileged young people who have lost their jobs due to COVID-19 and giving grants to fund their basic living expenses. This would embody the brands community values and express how a brand like PATTA might actually respond to a pandemic like this. We also considered how we can use Instagram as an outlet for connecting and inspiring PATTA’s audience during this time. Lastly, we created our own press release mock up to be presented on HYPEBEAST, our chosen media partner. This is due to the crossover in target audience and the global reach that HYPEBEAST has.
Overall, what I can take away from this project is understanding the importance of social responsibility of a brand, and the impact a brand can have on making global changes. Not only will this inspire me to consider my own social responsibility when creating projects, but also motivate me to associate with brands that have values that I abide with.