Cultural Branding: What It Is and Why Most Brands Get It Wrong

For the last decade, “culture” has been one of the most overused, under-explained words in marketing. And we’re pretty sick of it.

Every year, another wave of brands announces they are “tapping into culture,” “shaping culture,” or “building cultural movements.” And yet, when you look closer, many of these campaigns speak about culture rather than from it. They reference cultural icons, borrow cultural narratives, use symbols from communities, and join Social movements without ever asking who actually shaped that culture in the first place.

The result is predictable. Cultural branding becomes aesthetic rather than accountable. Extractive rather than inclusive. And in a world defined by global brands, cultural differences and increasingly diverse audiences, this is the quickest route to becoming irrelevant.

Cultural branding will absolutely be the differentiator for successful brands now and for years to come. But it only works when it is built with integrity, lived experience and genuine inclusion. Anything less is simply traditional branding dressed up as culture.

This is the shift brand leaders, founders, and marketing teams can no longer afford to ignore.

‍

Culture is not a trend

Culture is not a vibe, a trend list, a marketing strategy or a social media moment. Culture is people. It is histories, identities, humour, language, tension, symbolism, pride and pain. It is the way individuals and communities navigate the world. It is the core values that shape how people connect.

And people are not brand assets.

Many companies still reference certain communities without serving them first. For example, targeting Black African/Americans during Black History Month without supporting them, leveraging the LGBTQIA+ community during pride or connecting with diaspora communities without fully understanding their diverse lived experience.

Brands often attempt to capture consumers through campaigns built on borrowed narratives rather than meaningful understanding. But cultural branding requires relationship. And relationship requires accountability, representation and investment.

This is why so many cultural branding attempts fall flat. It is not that culture is too complex. It is that brands try to speak to cultures they don’t respect, serve or include.

‍

Holt’s cultural branding theory and why it needs updating

Cultural branding remains one of the most powerful tools available to modern companies. Holt’s work on cultural branding showed how Harley Davidson, Coca-Cola and Nike became iconic brands by embedding themselves within cultural tensions. His theory explains how narratives transform products into symbols and how brands become cultural icons when they address contradictions within society.

But we are not living in Holt’s world anymore.

We now operate within a global marketplace shaped by:

• hyperconnected consumers
  
• rapidly shifting cultural events
  
• multicultural identities
  
• continuously evolving target audiences
  
• new technologies
  
• polarised social issues
  
  

Culture moves faster. People have more visibility and more voice. And global brands are expected to understand cultural knowledge, cultural change and the nuances that shape identity across global markets.

This is why cultural branding needs a new model. It must evolve from theoretical storytelling to lived experience-led strategy. It must be grounded in the realities of people, not the assumptions of boardrooms. And it must take cultural integrity seriously.

‍

The IAF* Cultural Branding Framework

A lived experience-led approach to modern cultural branding

At I Am Female*, we believe that cultural branding must be built, not borrowed. It must be co-created, not extracted. And it must be shaped by the people whose cultures you are representing.

There are lots of theories out there on how to do this right, but we wanted to give you a sneak peek into our own framework. It’s structured, yes, but it also is built on a completely human-first approach that helps brands move from intention to impact. It is designed for companies that want to build absolute trust, deepen brand loyalty and create brand strategies aligned with the world we live in today.

The framework has five core pillars.

‍

1. Integrity and internal culture alignment

Cultural branding begins inside the business. “Internal Culture” is not some weird thing in the air existing around us. It is the everyday behaviours that determine who is heard, who leads and who gets to shape brand strategy. If the internal environment lacks diversity, equity or psychological safety, then the external cultural branding will never feel credible.

Consumers can read the truth of a brand faster than ever before. They know when a marketing strategy does not align with a brand’s values. They know when a campaign looks inclusive, but the business behind it is not.

Internal culture is the foundation of cultural branding. If it is misaligned, everything that follows is unstable.

‍

2. Diverse talent

This cannot be optional.

Too many brands try to understand entire cultures by asking one queer colleague, one Black team member, or one person of a specific background to speak on behalf of millions. This is not inclusion. It is disrespectful. And it produces shallow work.

Cultural branding requires real cultural insight. This means:

• hiring diverse creatives, strategists and cultural researchers
  
• paying them fairly
  
• giving them influence at the beginning, not at the end
  
• avoiding tokenism
  
• building teams around cultural direction, not around convenience
• Ensuring internal psychological safety.
  
  

Hiring and paying diverse talent is not a gesture. It is a non-negotiable requirement for any company that wants to create authentic cultural branding.

Whenever we work with businesses, we curate bespoke teams aligned with the cultural needs of the brief. This protects brand integrity, ensures deeper cultural insights and strengthens customer experience.

‍

3. Cultural research with accountability

Most brands confuse cultural research with trend watching or Market research. But trends capture what is visible, not what is lived. Cultural Research requires depth. It requires historical understanding, knowledge of social issues, and a sensitivity to the way cultural symbols and narratives shift over time.

Accountable cultural research asks questions like:

• What does this narrative mean for this culture in this moment?
  
• What tensions or contradictions shape identity for this target audience?
  
• What cultural events or social movements influence how consumers think?
  
• What are the cultural differences that matter in this instance?
  
• Who should be consulted and compensated for their insight?
  
  

Technology adds a new layer. AI now influences product design, Content creation and marketing strategy. But AI can only reflect its dataset. When datasets underrepresent communities, AI amplifies bias.

Leaders must audit their AI tools. They must understand where cultural blind spots exist. And they must use technology as a support, not a substitute for lived experience.

AI can help. But it cannot lead.

‍

4. Ethical storytelling and narrative building

Narratives shape how consumers see themselves and the world. They influence the emotional connection between brands and audiences. They can empower or erase. They can uplift or reduce cultures to stereotypes.

Ethical storytelling asks:

• Who benefits from this narrative
  
• Whose voice is centred
  
• Whose voices are missing?
  
• Who approved the story?
  
• Who gets paid
  
• Why this story matters now
  
  

It avoids romanticising cultural icons. It avoids flattening the richness of culture into symbols. And it requires brands to hold themselves to ethical standards even when it is not convenient.

Narratives must carry respect.

‍

5. Continuous cultural action and accountability

Brands can’t just speak on culture, even if it is authentically built. They must take action. Asking how we serve the cultures we are marketing to, or speaking on is the key conversation that should never end. It’s a part of the cultural branding ecosystem and needs to be reviewed regularly.

Brands also have to adapt in other ways. Culture evolves every day. Identities shift. Global markets influence perception. Social media amplifies cultural change in real time. Cultural accountability is a long-term commitment, not a one-time campaign, and it means taking action.

Brands that succeed in cultural branding practice:

• ongoing listening
  
• reinvestment into the communities they speak to
  
• willingness to adapt
  
• transparency
  
• humility
  
• responsibility when things go wrong
  
  

This is how brands become trusted and eventually become icons.

Brands doing cultural branding well

Several brands demonstrate what cultural integrity looks like in practice.

Ben and Jerry’s consistently invests in the communities they reference rather than simply using social issues as marketing content.

Patagonia operationalises a values-led business model. Their products and services reflect the Culture they advocate for.

TALA uses cultural insights about sustainability to shape transparent and honest brand narratives that resonate with modern consumers.

These examples show that cultural branding succeeds when companies lead with cultural knowledge and commit to long-term accountability.

‍

The impact of technology and AI on cultural branding

Technology has reshaped the relationship between brands and culture. Social media can propel a cultural moment into a global conversation within hours. Influencers shape how consumers behave. Technology informs everything from brand strategy to customer experience.

But with this comes risk. AI bias can distort cultural insights. Algorithms can flatten nuance. And businesses can mistake visibility for understanding.

The future requires a human-centred approach to technology. Cultural branding must be guided by people with lived experience, not by automated systems.

We will link to our AI in Marketing article here for leaders who want to explore this more deeply.

‍

The future of cultural branding

Looking ahead, cultural branding will define the next generation of successful brands, global brands and start-ups. The brands that win will be the ones who build inclusive teams, create ethical narratives, respect cultural differences, understand global markets and use brand strategy as a way to honour real people.

Cultural branding is not a trend. It is a long-term responsibility.

Brands become icons when they respect culture, not when they extract from it.

‍

Cultural branding leadership starts now

If you are a founder, CMO or brand leader, here is your clear directive.

Ask yourself:

How diverse and safe is our internal Culture?
Who is shaping our ideas?
Whose lived experience are we including?
How are we managing bias in our AI tools and datasets?
How are we connecting our brand’s values to our actions?

When you commit to cultural branding with integrity, consumers will not just buy your products or services. They will believe in your brand. They will advocate for you. They will identify with what you stand for. And that is the future of brand strength.

Got you thinking? Let’s chat about how we can make your brand stand out for the future (you know you want to…).

‍