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Accessibility statement
Brands shape what organisations mean, how people relate to them and how they influence society. This module takes you from the foundations of brand strategy, identity, equity and relationships to cultural meaning, power, digital transformation and global brand management. Along the way, you’ll critically examine contemporary issues, including AI, sustainability, activism and inclusive branding. Through case studies, practitioner insights and applied activities, you’ll learn to analyse brand evidence, evaluate communication and develop responsible, evidence-informed branding responses. By the end, you’ll have the strategic, digital and creative skills to support further study and a career in marketing, brand management and communications.
Your study is organised into three blocks:

Block 1, Foundations of Branding and Brand Management
The module begins by exploring why brands matter and how they create value for organisations, consumers and society. You’ll learn how brands work as meaning systems that organisations and audiences create together, and how brands, products and organisations differ from one another. You’ll then study brand strategy and equity, positioning, segmentation, identity, image and reputation. You’ll also look at brand relationships and stakeholder responses, including engagement, trust, loyalty, brand failures and crisis management. Alongside this, you’ll examine how qualitative and quantitative research, metrics and dashboards support brand decisions, and consider digital brand strategy across touchpoints, content, user experience, influencers, communities, personalisation and algorithmic visibility.
Block 2: Brands in Society
In block 2, you’ll investigate branding as a cultural and historical practice, using semiotics to explore how brands create meaning through signs, stories, myths and ideology. You’ll also consider how branding shapes identity and subjectivity, and how market, institutional and platform power affects representation and consumer experience. The block then examines brand work inside organisations and across agencies and networks, including emotional labour, surveillance and the changing role of AI. The block also widens the lens to global brand strategy, where you’ll analyse how brands operate in contexts shaped by sustainability, inequality, trust, transparency and legitimacy.
Block 3: Brands in Context
This final block brings the previous two together. You’ll critically examine brand purpose, activism, and social impact, weighing questions of authenticity, tokenism, backlash, and the role brands play in social change. You’ll then turn to inclusive branding, looking at representation, intersectionality, the experiences of marginalised consumers and the systemic inequality that shapes them. The block also considers brand communities, consumer tribes, and place branding, examining how physical and digital spaces shape brand meaning.
Throughout the module, you’ll work with case studies, practitioner insights, online discussions and applied activities, all of which will help you connect the theory you’ve learnt with contemporary practice.
There are no formal entry requirements for this module. As this is an OU level 3 module, you’ll need the study skills and subject knowledge normally developed through study at OU levels 1 and 2, or equivalent experience.
You’ll benefit from prior study of marketing or business at OU levels 1 and 2, for example, An introduction to business and management (B100) (now discontinued), Marketing essentials (B128), Understanding customers (B206) or Shaping business opportunities (B207), or from equivalent professional experience.

Before the module starts, it may help to review basic marketing strategy, consumer behaviour and academic referencing.
You’ll get help and support from an assigned tutor throughout your module.
They’ll help by:
Online tutorials run throughout the module. While they’re not compulsory, we strongly encourage you to participate. Where possible, we’ll make recordings available.
Course work includes:
You’ll have access to a module website, which includes:
The OU strives to make all aspects of study accessible to everyone, and this Accessibility Statement outlines what studying B323 involves. You should use this information to inform your study preparations and any discussions with us about how we can meet your needs.
To find out more about what kind of support and adjustments might be available, contact us or visit our Disability support website.
Brands, branding and society starts once a year – in October.
This page describes the module that will start in October 2027.
We expect it to start for the last time in October 2034.
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