The dangers of charismatic brands

Just as people can be charismatic and achieve charismatic followership, so can products and brands. Achieving a charismatic brand has some clear advantages, but as a strategic choice, it can be very dangerous due to the volatile nature of charismatic followership.

A charismatic brand is defined as a product or brand of which buyers/followers see no substitute. This has something to do with followership, and becoming the only possible choice for the customers.

True loyalty is created when you have ambassadors who act like firm believers of the fact that your product is the only solution to their problem, need or desire. For instance; mac users would never go buy a Microsoft product, and Coca-Cola believers would never cheat and go buy a Pepsi.

Moreover, maximum followership to the charismatic persona is best created in times of need, anger and frustration toward e.g. the established mechanisms that govern the society or community in question. Good examples here are personas such as Donald Trump, Adolf Hitler and Jesus (the revolutionary, not God’s son) or “disruptive” brands like Google, Amazon or Tesla.

Charisma is leadership and change

The charismatic persona (or brand) offers change, a new solution and creates a