Shopping on line can be easy, simple and save you lots of money. It can also take a lot of your time, frustrate you, and result in unwanted purchases. Now the same can be said for regular high street shopping, but with the vast opportunity presented by the Internet it will pay you to spend a few minutes reading this and understanding how to better optimize your No Logo shopping experience:
1. Compare - without doubt the biggest advantage that the No Logo offers shoppers today is the ability to compare thousands of No Logo at a time. This is a great thing, but not necessarily all the time! Too much can be daunting at times so take advantage of the great comparison sites and where possible let them do the hard work for you.
2. Research - if it has been said it will be on the internet. Ignorance is no longer a justifiable reason for buying the wrong thing. Take the time to research in detail everything that you could possible want to know about
3. Testimonials - don't know anybody that has bought a No Logo? Wrong! If the No Logo is good the internet will let you know. Use the Internet as a friend and get testimonials before you buy.
4. Questions - Got a question about No Logo then search the Forums, FAQ's, Blogs etc. Don't be afraid to ask .....
5. Reputation - Never heard of the company selling No Logo? Don't worry, no reason why you should know every company in the world, but you know someone that does! Use the internet to find out what people are saying about No Logo and build up a picture of their reputation for sales, returns, customer service, delivery etc.
6. Returns - still worried that even after all of the above your No Logo wont be what you want? Check out the returns policy. There is so much competition now that someone, somewhere is bound to offer the terms that you are comfortable with.
7. Feedback - happy with your No Logo then let people know, after all you are depending on others people input in your buying decision, so why not give a little back.
8. Security - check for the yellow padlock on the No Logo site before you buy, and the s after http:/ /i.e. https:// = a secure site
9. Contact - got a question about No Logo, or want to leave a comment then check out the sites contact page. Reputable companies have them and respond.
10. Payment - ready to pay for your No Logo, then use your credit card or PayPal! Be aware of companies that don't accept them, there may be genuine reasons but given the huge amount of choice you have when buying online there is no reason at all not to buy via credit card or PayPal.
{{ Infobox Book| name = No Logo| image = | author = Naomi Klein| genre = [Non-fiction-->
No Logo: Taking Aim at the Brand Bullies is a book by [Canada journalist
Naomi Klein. First published by
Knopf Canada in January 2000, shortly after the World Trade Organization Ministerial Conference protests in Seattle had generated media attention around such issues, it became one of the most influential books about the
anti-globalization movement and an international bestseller.
Focus
The book focuses on branding, and often makes connections with the anti-globalization movement. Throughout the four parts (
No Space,
No Choice,
No Jobs, and
No Logo), Klein writes about issues such as
sweatshops in the Americas and
Asia,
culture jamming,
corporate censorship, and Reclaim the Streets. She pays special attention to the deeds (and alleged misdeeds) of
Nike, Inc., The Gap (clothing retailer), McDonald's Corporation, Royal Dutch Shell, and Microsoft and their lawyers, contractors, and
advertising agency. Many of the ideas in Klein's book derive from the influence of the Situationist International, an art/political group founded in the late 1950s.
However, while globalization would appear to be a recurring theme, the topic itself is rarely addressed, and often indirectly. Klein would go on to discuss globalization in much greater detail in her next book,
Fences and Windows.
Summary
As mentioned, the book is divided into four sections. No Space, No Choice, No Jobs, and No Logo. The first three deal with the negative effects of brand-oriented corporate activity, while the fourth discusses various methods people have taken in order to try and fight back.
No Space
The book starts off by tracing the history of brands. Early examples of brands, which were often used to put a recognisable face on factory produced products, slowly give way to the ideas of selling lifestyles. Then, at some point in the late eighties, there was something of an economic crash, and seemingly overnight, corporations began to seriously rethink their approach to marketing, and began to target the youth demographic, as opposed to the
baby boomers, who had previously been much more valuable.
The book then goes into great detail about how brand names such as Nike, Inc. or
Pepsi expanded beyond the mere products which bore their names, and how these names and logos began to appear everywhere. As this happened, the brand's obsession with the youth market drives them to further associate themselves with whatever the youth consider "cool." Along the way, the brands attempt to have their names associated with everything from movie stars and athletes to grassroots social movements.
The books states that large multinational corporations consider the marketing of a brand name to be more important than the actual manufacture of products; this theme re-occurs in the book and helps explain the shift to production in Third World countries in such industries as clothing, footware, and computer hardware.
Also mentioned in this section are the various ways in which brands have muscled their presence into the school system, and how in doing so, they've pipelined advertisements into the schools, and use their position to gather information about the students.
No Choice
In this section, Klein discusses how brands use their size and clout to limit the number of choices available to the public. Whether it be through
Wal-Mart's colossal status or Starbucks' aggressive invasion of a region, the goal is the same. Each of the major brands wish to become the dominant force in their respective fields. Meanwhile, other corporations, such as
Sony or Disney simply open their own chains of stores, preventing the competition from even putting their products on the shelves.
This section also discusses the way that corporations merge with one another in order to add to their ubiquity. On a more sinister note, it allows greater control over their image. ABC News, for instance, it allegedly under pressure not to air any stories that are overly critical of Disney. Other chains, such as
Wal-Mart often threaten to pull various products off of their shelves, forcing manufacturers and publishers to comply with their demands. This might mean driving down manufacturing costs, or changing the artwork/content of things like magazines or albums, so they might better fit with Wal-Mart's image of family friendliness.
Also discussed is the way that corporations abuse copyright laws in order to silence anyone who might attempt to criticize their brand.
No Jobs
In this section, the book takes a darker tone, and looks at the way in which manufacturing jobs are being moved from local factories to foreign countries, and particularly to places known as export processing zones. Within these zones, working conditions are very dire, and labour laws are all but nonexistent. In more honest times, such places would be called
sweatshops.
The book then shifts back to North America, where the lack of manufacturing jobs has led to an influx of work in the service sector, where most of the jobs are for minimum wage, and offer no benefits. The term
McJob is introduced, defined as a job with low wages, poor hours, no benefits and high levels of stress. Meanwhile, the public is being sold the perception that these jobs are "temporary" employment for students and recent graduates, and therefore need not offer living wages or benefits.
All of this is set against a backdrop of massive profits and wealth being produced within the corporate sector. The result is a new generation of employees who have come to resent the success of the companies they work for. This resentment, along with rising unemployment, labour abuses abroad, disregard for the environment and the ever increasing presence of advertising breeds a new disdain for corporations.
No Logo
The final section of the book discusses various movements that have sprung up during the
nineties, aimed at fighting back against the corporations. These incude Adbusters magazine and the culture jamming movement, as well as
reclaim the streets, and the
McLibel trial. Less radical protests are also discussed, such as the various movements aimed and putting an end to sweatshop labour.
The book concludes by arguing that globalization is not an abstract enemy, but a reality, and one that is, at best, morally indifferent, but can be used in order to organize protests and allow communications between different grassroots movements.
Criticism
No Logo is copyrighted by Klein and was published by a multinational corporation, leaving the author open to charges of hypocrisy. However, there are future plans to put the book under a
copyleft license. Additionally, companies have produced goods with a No Logo logo on them (other than her publications, Klein does not endorse nor profit from these products).
After the book's release, Klein was heavily criticized by the pro-market newspaper
The Economist, leading to a broadcast debate with Klein and the magazine's writers, dubbed "No Logo vs. Pro Logo".
The 2004 book
The Rebel Sell (published as
Nation of Rebels in the United States), was heavily critical of
No Logo, sympathising with Klein's ideals but arguing that the forms of "rebellion" she celebrates are intrinsic to modern capitalism, and thus that their co-optation and branding by corporations is only to be expected.
Some criticised the book for simplifying issues and conflating corporate malfeasance and systemic poverty in the third world with anarchism and identity politics in the first world. However others (and Klein herself) noted that the book, though hardly dispassionate about its subject, is a summary of a varied and diverse movement at one period early in its development, not a single manifesto for change.
Awards
The book won the following awards:
- The 2000 First Book Award from The Guardian
- The 2001 Canadian National Business Book Award
- The 2001 French Prix Médiations" The Nation Author Bios: Naomi Klein". The Nation. Retrieved May 23, 2006.
Editions
Several imprints of
No Logo exist, for example: ISBN 0-676-97130-X (hard cover first edition), ISBN 0-312-20343-8 (hardcover) and ISBN 0-312-27192-1 (paperback). Translations from the original English into several other languages have appeared. The subtitle, "Taking Aim at the Brand Bullies", was dropped in some later editions.
Video
Naomi Klein explains her ideas in the 2003 40-minute video
No Logo - Brands, Globalization & Resistance, directed by
Sut Jhally.
Influence in pop culture
- Members of the English rock group Radiohead have stated that the book was particularly influential to them during the making of their fourth album, Kid A (2000). The band recommended it to fans on their website, and considered calling the album "No Logo" for a time.
- Canadian metal band Inner Surge have also listed Klein's book as an influence on selected tracks from their album Signals Screaming.
References
See also
External links
- Official website
- National Business Book Award - No Logo
{{ Infobox Book| name = No Logo| image = | author =
Naomi Klein| genre = [Non-fiction-->
No Logo: Taking Aim at the Brand Bullies is a book by [Canada journalist Naomi Klein. First published by
Knopf Canada in January 2000, shortly after the World Trade Organization Ministerial Conference protests in Seattle had generated media attention around such issues, it became one of the most influential books about the anti-globalization movement and an international bestseller.
Focus
The book focuses on
branding, and often makes connections with the anti-globalization movement. Throughout the four parts (
No Space,
No Choice,
No Jobs, and
No Logo), Klein writes about issues such as sweatshops in
the Americas and Asia, culture jamming, corporate censorship, and
Reclaim the Streets. She pays special attention to the deeds (and alleged misdeeds) of Nike, Inc.,
The Gap (clothing retailer),
McDonald's Corporation,
Royal Dutch Shell, and Microsoft and their lawyers, contractors, and
advertising agency. Many of the ideas in Klein's book derive from the influence of the
Situationist International, an art/political group founded in the late
1950s.
However, while globalization would appear to be a recurring theme, the topic itself is rarely addressed, and often indirectly. Klein would go on to discuss globalization in much greater detail in her next book,
Fences and Windows.
Summary
As mentioned, the book is divided into four sections. No Space, No Choice, No Jobs, and No Logo. The first three deal with the negative effects of brand-oriented corporate activity, while the fourth discusses various methods people have taken in order to try and fight back.
No Space
The book starts off by tracing the history of brands. Early examples of brands, which were often used to put a recognisable face on factory produced products, slowly give way to the ideas of selling lifestyles. Then, at some point in the late eighties, there was something of an economic crash, and seemingly overnight, corporations began to seriously rethink their approach to marketing, and began to target the youth demographic, as opposed to the baby boomers, who had previously been much more valuable.
The book then goes into great detail about how brand names such as
Nike, Inc. or
Pepsi expanded beyond the mere products which bore their names, and how these names and logos began to appear everywhere. As this happened, the brand's obsession with the youth market drives them to further associate themselves with whatever the youth consider "cool." Along the way, the brands attempt to have their names associated with everything from movie stars and athletes to grassroots social movements.
The books states that large multinational corporations consider the marketing of a brand name to be more important than the actual manufacture of products; this theme re-occurs in the book and helps explain the shift to production in Third World countries in such industries as clothing, footware, and computer hardware.
Also mentioned in this section are the various ways in which brands have muscled their presence into the school system, and how in doing so, they've pipelined advertisements into the schools, and use their position to gather information about the students.
No Choice
In this section, Klein discusses how brands use their size and clout to limit the number of choices available to the public. Whether it be through Wal-Mart's colossal status or
Starbucks' aggressive invasion of a region, the goal is the same. Each of the major brands wish to become the dominant force in their respective fields. Meanwhile, other corporations, such as Sony or Disney simply open their own chains of stores, preventing the competition from even putting their products on the shelves.
This section also discusses the way that corporations merge with one another in order to add to their ubiquity. On a more sinister note, it allows greater control over their image.
ABC News, for instance, it allegedly under pressure not to air any stories that are overly critical of
Disney. Other chains, such as
Wal-Mart often threaten to pull various products off of their shelves, forcing manufacturers and publishers to comply with their demands. This might mean driving down manufacturing costs, or changing the artwork/content of things like magazines or albums, so they might better fit with Wal-Mart's image of family friendliness.
Also discussed is the way that corporations abuse
copyright laws in order to silence anyone who might attempt to criticize their brand.
No Jobs
In this section, the book takes a darker tone, and looks at the way in which manufacturing jobs are being moved from local factories to foreign countries, and particularly to places known as export processing zones. Within these zones, working conditions are very dire, and labour laws are all but nonexistent. In more honest times, such places would be called sweatshops.
The book then shifts back to
North America, where the lack of manufacturing jobs has led to an influx of work in the service sector, where most of the jobs are for minimum wage, and offer no benefits. The term McJob is introduced, defined as a job with low wages, poor hours, no benefits and high levels of stress. Meanwhile, the public is being sold the perception that these jobs are "temporary" employment for students and recent graduates, and therefore need not offer living wages or benefits.
All of this is set against a backdrop of massive profits and wealth being produced within the corporate sector. The result is a new generation of employees who have come to resent the success of the companies they work for. This resentment, along with rising unemployment, labour abuses abroad, disregard for the environment and the ever increasing presence of advertising breeds a new disdain for corporations.
No Logo
The final section of the book discusses various movements that have sprung up during the nineties, aimed at fighting back against the corporations. These incude
Adbusters magazine and the culture jamming movement, as well as reclaim the streets, and the McLibel trial. Less radical protests are also discussed, such as the various movements aimed and putting an end to sweatshop labour.
The book concludes by arguing that globalization is not an abstract enemy, but a reality, and one that is, at best, morally indifferent, but can be used in order to organize protests and allow communications between different grassroots movements.
Criticism
No Logo is copyrighted by Klein and was published by a multinational corporation, leaving the author open to charges of hypocrisy. However, there are future plans to put the book under a copyleft license. Additionally, companies have produced goods with a No Logo logo on them (other than her publications, Klein does not endorse nor profit from these products).
After the book's release, Klein was heavily criticized by the pro-market newspaper
The Economist, leading to a broadcast debate with Klein and the magazine's writers, dubbed "No Logo vs. Pro Logo".
The 2004 book
The Rebel Sell (published as
Nation of Rebels in the United States), was heavily critical of
No Logo, sympathising with Klein's ideals but arguing that the forms of "rebellion" she celebrates are intrinsic to modern capitalism, and thus that their co-optation and branding by corporations is only to be expected.
Some criticised the book for simplifying issues and conflating corporate malfeasance and systemic poverty in the third world with anarchism and
identity politics in the first world. However others (and Klein herself) noted that the book, though hardly dispassionate about its subject, is a summary of a varied and diverse movement at one period early in its development, not a single manifesto for change.
Awards
The book won the following awards:
- The 2000 First Book Award from The Guardian
- The 2001 Canadian National Business Book Award
- The 2001 French Prix Médiations" The Nation Author Bios: Naomi Klein". The Nation. Retrieved May 23, 2006.
Editions
Several imprints of
No Logo exist, for example: ISBN 0-676-97130-X (hard cover first edition), ISBN 0-312-20343-8 (hardcover) and ISBN 0-312-27192-1 (paperback). Translations from the original English into several other languages have appeared. The subtitle, "Taking Aim at the Brand Bullies", was dropped in some later editions.
Video
Naomi Klein explains her ideas in the 2003 40-minute video
No Logo - Brands, Globalization & Resistance, directed by
Sut Jhally.
Influence in pop culture
- Members of the English rock group Radiohead have stated that the book was particularly influential to them during the making of their fourth album, Kid A (2000). The band recommended it to fans on their website, and considered calling the album "No Logo" for a time.
- Canadian metal band Inner Surge have also listed Klein's book as an influence on selected tracks from their album Signals Screaming.
- The book was referenced in Robert Muchamore's CHERUB: The Recruit. It was recommended to James Adams by Brian 'Bungle' Evans, and later by Ewart Asker.
References
See also
External links
- Official website
- National Business Book Award - No Logo
Amazon.co.uk: No Logo: Naomi Klein: Books
Amazon.co.uk: No Logo: Naomi Klein: Books ... RRP: £8.99 : Price: £4.72 & eligible for Free UK delivery on orders over £15 with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions
Amazon.co.uk: No Logo: Naomi Klein: Books
Amazon.co.uk: No Logo: Naomi Klein: Books ... This item is not eligible for Amazon Prime, but millions of other items are.
BBC NEWS | Magazine | 'Oh no' logo
It has received a mauling from the public, but what do branding experts make of the new Olympics 2012 logo?
No Logo | Regionalism | Inside TV
Ian Beaumont on the death of regional ITV ... You know, here I am, thinking that I have seen every kind of stupidity and idiocy that this world has to offer, and then a person or ...
No Logo - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
No Logo: Taking Aim at the Brand Bullies is a book by Canadian journalist Naomi Klein. First published by Knopf Canada in January 2000, shortly after the WTO Ministerial Conference ...
No Logo by Naomi Klein (part I) | Books | guardian.co.uk
The astronomical growth in the wealth and cultural influence of multi-national corporations over the last fifteen years can arguably be traced back to a single, seemingly innocuous ...
No Logo / Naomi Klein - 9780006530404 - Guardian ...
No Logo Naomi Klein RRP: £8.99. Publisher: FLAMINGO. Publcation Date : 15/01/2001 . Paperback. In stock, usually despatched within 24 hours
No Logo
Selection of original swimsuit designs.
New Statesman - No logo
Public art does not have to be grand and bombastic. It is sometimes more effective when it is modest and reflective
No Logo | Naomi Klein
See full tour schedule Canada September 22 - Lethbridge, AB September 23 - Regina, SK September 25 - Wolfville, NS September 26 - Halifax, NS Date TBA - Toronto
