The Business of a Brand

Two weeks ago, I had the pleasure of attending the MultiChoice Media Content Showcase, Joburg Film Festival and Discop Africa 2019 expo at the Sandton Convention Centre.

As production houses from across Africa made their way to the centre, media, film enthusiasts, writers, directors and aspiring film-makers had the opportunity to speak to some of the continent’s greatest minds and gain insight into various facets of the industry.

Discop Africa is a prestigious event where advertising and information agencies, design studios and mass media in Africa gather to share and exchange knowledge.

Masterclasses were held and I fortunately caught one of the more interesting ones. African Animation Network head of communications and producer Garland-Waide Bradford spoke on the value of copyright, branding and building a community as a content creator.

With an extensive CV ranging from corporate work in public relations to media and producing factual television, Bradford is able to understand how to integrate creative choices with market requirements in turning content into brands. Consequently, he is a sought-after speaker and educator on these platforms.

“I have a Swiss army knife set of skills. I have been able to create media strategies in developing markets. This includes executing various tasks in the creation, production, broadcast and media administrative sectors of the media pipeline,” he says.

Bradford started his talk by touching on the topic of copyright. Stipulating that new technologies have altered the nature of publishing and exhibition, he pointed out that copyright has two categories, with the traditional essence being set out at the Berne Convention. The second – creative commons and copyleft – are set out by various CC licences which came about as a method for creators and creatives making use of online platforms to circumnavigate the restrictive copyright laws of the early internet age.

“If you are in copyright, you are in sales,” he says. “Intellectual property, like property, has the ability of generating wealth.”

He also looks at the business side of intellectual property (IP) as fundamental to building a sustainable creative industry. This includes looking at the avenues through which IP can be exploited. This all leads to building a brand, brand extension and growing an organic audience and community.

“Branding is about building a community through activities you go into. If you want your community to buy into your products, you have to make sure you are building something that will be beneficial to them.”

He cites the way director George Lucas was able to make money from merchandise relating to the ‘Star Wars’ franchise through periods when there were no new films in development. He also pointed to how Lucas targeted teenage boys and has been able to build a community around them.

Brand extension is made up of products and services built on the foundation of the original brand that support that brand.

Bradford mentions that merchandising has been a way for content creators to generate an income outside original copyright, however, the nature of the business has changed as sourcing locally has become a key component in the value chain. “Manage your licences and be clear about what will foster a relationship with your audience.”

He also explains that the way in which film-makers or writers produce their brand extensions has an impact on the community. “People who are fans build a relationship with content,” he says, mentioning Quentin Tarantino’s loyal, niche fan base.

He says networking is also fundamental in building a community and having relationships with the right people is important when pitching content ideas.

“Where do you find your audience? Understand the psychology of your audience.” Like all other businesses, content creators should stress-test their business strategies and iron out kinks quickly in order to grow as a business and brand, he adds.

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