Advice to Dr. Rapaille as he begins his search for archetypes in Québec City

A follow-up on my previous post about Québec City’s decision to hire Clotaire Rapaille to build its brand.

Québec City’s newspaper Le Soleil reports that Dr. Clotaire Rapaille arrives in town today to begin his branding initiative using his unique approach – which is well document in his book The Culture Code. According to the paper, he will receive $250,000 for this assignment lasting ten weeks – plus another $25,000 for incentives for 330 focus group participants, plus travel and accommodation.

It’s the talk of the town in Québec City. The mayor has had to defend his decision to hire this outsider from the moment it was announced. Le Soleil covers it all including the stormy debate among the city council and the mayor’s visible irritation. The mayor even brought his consultant’s book into the debate yesterday and implored his opponents to read it.

Unsolicited advice:

Dr. Rapaille, forget the formal research – it’s going to be biased anyway given the debate raging about your legitimacy as an expert who can guide Québec City’s destiny.

Here’s an archetype – free of charge: CHAUVINISM

Chauvinism is an exaggerated, bellicose patriotism and a blind belief in national superiority and glory. By extension it has come to include an extreme and unreasoning partisanship on behalf of any group to which one belongs, especially when the partisanship includes malice and hatred towards a rival group.

Try building a brand with that one. Good luck. Bonne chance.

Comments

[Eric Blais]

I have received positive and negative comments about this post - mostly in French and via email rather than via this blog. Here is, in French, my response to clear any misunderstanding:

Je n’ai rien contre le Dr. Rapaille et sa méthode de travail. Au contraire, j’ai eu l’opportunité de travailler à un projet il y a quinze ans qui a énormement bénéficié de ses découvertes pour notre client Quaker à l’époque.

Ce qui me dérange, c’est ceux qui s’opposent à ce qu’il ait obtenu ce mandat parce qu’il n’est pas d’ici.

Ceci dit, je ne traite pas tous les Québécois de chauvins. Pas plus que Jacques Bouchard l’a fait quand il a identifié le chauvinisme comme une des 36 cordes sensibles.

[Allison at HATCH Research]

Rapaille is such a hack. Is he still wearing his Michael Jackson inspired military jackets?