Supportive Strategy

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Over the past century, Russia has experienced numerous wars, radical social experiments and natural disasters. And, although its citizens enjoyed a relatively stable 13-year socioeconomic period at the start of the millennium, 2014 witnessed a series of negative events that have had a significant impact on the social mood.

Unsurprisingly – in the face of the Crimea annexation and the ensuing economic sanctions from the West, the collapse of the rouble and the subsequent halving of real incomes, the decrease in oil prices and the wars in Ukraine and Syria – anxiety levels among the public rose steadily between 2010 and 2017. Currently, 65% describe the situation as ‘tense’ or ‘critical’.

A three-year study of consumer-facing advertising, carried out by Simpson Carpenter’s Russian cultural insight partner LocalTalk, shows how local and international brands have tapped into this climate of social anxiety. We can identify the dominant frameworks in which brands communicate messages of safety – both directly and indirectly – helping consumers build personal strategies to cope with the current Russian culture of anxiety and uncertainty. 

Three dominant cultural narratives have emerged: a literal interpretation of protection in the form of protective borders, or products that offer strength or help even in a physical sense; codes using visual cues that decrease consumer anxiety more subtly through associations with nature, trusted traditions, or smart technology; a deeper interpretation of the understanding of safety through codes using signifiers of comfort, care, support of the community and control over personal choices, security via relationships and personal responsibility.

Protection

A ‘Protective Barrier’ code speaks about preventing a problem and is commonly brought to life through visual cues of safety such as shields, protecting circles, walls, shell, thick and hard substances. It is primarily used for products that serve ‘against’ something – such as medical remedies, cleaning products, information security – and the product itself is sometimes portrayed as a barrier hiding its owners from the dangers of the outside world.

Another code that expresses this literal interpretation is ‘The Hero’, shown via concepts such as: the ‘real man’ – big, physically strong, usually quite serious, someone to protect consumers; the ‘magic helper’ – a popular superhero or animated character with the product acting as a magic helper; the ‘strong animal’ – brought to life through lions, tigers, bears, and horses using powerful action sequences – as brands associate themselves with animalistic power and energy, which passes to consumers who are usually portrayed as handlers.

Nature, technology and trusted traditions 

Calming nature, idyllic green fields and blue sky are widely used in marketing communication in food and personal care categories, as an antidote to perceived dangers of man-made inventions, notably chemical poisoning. Emphasising the product’s origins or its natural ingredients, it is mainly used to target female consumers, with women portrayed as classically tender, fragile and beautiful.

Concepts detailing smart technology or the authority of science give a rational perception of the world, where brands offer security through faith in a better, smarter future by drawing on imagery and metaphors, such as metallic colours, smooth surfaces, formulas, figures and charts, micro-elements, scientists and experts.

Symbols of national traditions, in culture and branding, have become more evident in recent years. Codes illustrating this theme vary from references to Old Slavic traditions of living in harmony with nature, to the brave souls and beautiful people of the old USSR. They tend to be illustrated through historical elements, a documentary style or national symbols such as birch. 

Relationships and supportive community

In Russia’s collectivist culture, people expect support from family and friends rather than from state or government. This is primarily expressed through two codes: the ‘supportive community’ code sees brands taking the role of a friend or support network. Ikea, for example, shows a group of strangers at a new year party being welcomed by the hosts who invite them to ‘make yourself at home!’ This code is represented by visual cues of holding hands, parties, relaxed poses, smiles, helpful actions and words such as ‘always here’ or ‘one of us’.

The ‘tender care’ code conveys a soft and caring form of protection, which in Russian culture usually comes from women. Brands using this code present women as the central characters, as experienced consumers and caregivers for those around them.

The research clearly demonstrates that brands are tailoring their communications to identify with Russian consumers living in a climate of social anxiety. 

With a prevailing global mood of uncertainty and anxiety, brands closer to home may well take the same approach as a starting point for a way to tap into a need for protection through codes that resonate and reassure.

John Murphy is a cultural insight consultant at Simpson Carpenter