Brand New China: Advertising, Media, and Commercial Culture - Softcover

In Brand New China, Jing Wang uses Chinese advertising as an optic through which to scrutinize this tension between Eastern and Western approaches to the market...Her book is a thoroughly enjoyable and well-written tour d'horizon of branding and advertising strategy. -- John Feffer The Nation 20080218 Brand New China uses the methodology and perspectives of cultural analysis to produce a detailed study of branding and advertising in China...The book is original, well researched and based on a wide-ranging appreciation of both popular and literary Chinese culture. -- Delia Davin Times Higher Education Supplement 20080313 Brand New China blurs the line between storytelling and statistical analysis, making for an interesting, complex read...Think of Freakonomics crossed with your freshman year anthropology textbook crossed with a business meeting--no-nonsense, analytical, and frequently surprising...Wang brings China forth as an individualistic consumer culture that may shock Western readers with both its idiosyncrasies and parallels to Western markets. She offers insight on what is today an immensely important piece of the international puzzle, and cleverly pulls together the psychological and traditional elements of commercial culture to create a well-rounded, illuminating read. -- Rachel Smucker popmatters.com 20080305 This book is not only important to professionals and scholars with an interest in China--Brand New China will be a valuable resource for anyone interested in the future of advertising. -- Christina Spurgeon International Journal of Advertising 20090306

One part riveting account of fieldwork and one part rigorous academic study, Brand New China offers a unique perspective on the advertising and marketing culture of China. Jing Wang's experiences in the disparate worlds of Beijing advertising agencies and the U.S. academy allow her to share a unique perspective on China during its accelerated reintegration into the global market system. Brand New China offers a detailed, penetrating, and up-to-date portrayal of branding and advertising in contemporary China. Wang takes us inside an advertising agency to show the influence of American branding theories and models. She also examines the impact of new media practices on Chinese advertising, deliberates on the convergence of grassroots creative culture and viral marketing strategies, samples successful advertising campaigns, provides practical insights about Chinese consumer segments, and offers methodological reflections on pop culture and advertising research. This book unveils a "brand new" China that is under the sway of the ideology of global partnership while struggling not to become a mirror image of the United States. Wang takes on the task of showing where Western thinking works in China, where it does not, and, perhaps most important, where it creates opportunities for cross-fertilization. Thanks to its combination of engaging vignettes from the advertising world and thorough research that contextualizes these vignettes, Brand New China will be of interest to industry participants, students of popular culture, and the general reading public interested in learning about a rapidly transforming Chinese society.