One Direction Marketing

Speaking of merchandise, let's talk about how One Direction culture has impacted other aspects of society. For instance, let's look at this iPhone case designed to specifically target "Directioners."

There are many implications brought on by this type of marketing. The first being the phrase on the case. "Keep Calm And Love 1D." What is this a reference to? Hmmm...maybe the ever so popular Doctor Who fandom? The phrase "Keep Calm And..." was created in an episode of Doctor Who in which the Doctor encounters Weeping Angels- creatures that can only attack you if you close your eyes. So, the Doctor created the phrase "Keep Calm And Don't Blink" in the process of trying to protect his companions from the creatures. Since then, the phrase has been changed to fit different circumstances. One of which being the One Direction fad. In adopting this phrase, One Direction attracts the attention- not only of those who are already fans of the band- but also those who are fans of Doctor Who. Thus, by a subtle merging of the two fandoms, both Doctor Who and One Direction benefit by the increase in traffic to both fandoms. The second implication of this type of marketing is the most obvious, One Direction is now an adjunct to Apple. This is not a figure of speech. Apple sells One Direction songs through their online program iTunes. Apple also sells One Direction applications for iPhones and iPods through their online App Store. Now, there are iPhone covers for "Directioners" who possess Apple products. This creates pressure on "Directioners" who do not have Apple products. Thus, in the desire to possess One Direction merchandise, "Directioners" also develop a desire to possess Apple products in order to maintain their involvement in the fandom. However, these are simply my assumptions of the data I have been presented with. Disagree with me? Agree with me? Comment below if you'd like and leave me feedback for my next post. Until next time, 1Directioner Post, out.