Muse: Inspiring Ideas for the Creative Small Business Owner

Underdog Marketing: Could it work for you?

Marketers can use underdog narratives to positively affect consumers' perceptions of and purchase of brands. Underdog narratives are often delivered to consumers through the rhetorical device of a brand biography, an unfolding story that chronicles the brand's origins, life experiences, and evolution over time in a selectively constructed story that highlights the companies' humble beginnings, hopes and dreams, and noble struggles against adversaries.

The common themes that link these brands' underdog biographies are

1.a disadvantaged position in the marketplace versus a "top dog," a well-endowed competitor with superior resources or market dominance, and
2.tremendous passion and determination to succeed despite the odds.
The underdog's external environment is largely negative: Underdogs start from a disadvantaged position and hit obstacles along the way, making it a more difficult struggle for them than for others. In competition with others that have more resources, underdogs feel the odds are against them.

The underdog's internal characteristics are largely positive: Underdogs show perseverance in the face of adversity and are resilient even when they fail, staying focused on their end goal. Their determination forces them to pick themselves up after they lose to try to win again. They defy others' expectations that they will fail. They are more passionate than others about their goals, which serve a central role in defining the meaning of their lives, and they remain hopeful about achieving them, even when faced with obstacles.


Try writing your brand's narrative biography as an underdog. How does that feel? Proud or humble? Inspired or discouraged? Interesting or boring? Please give us feedback!