The 4Bs to maximise your brand's positive impact

In today’s volatile world, the role of business in transforming society is more crucial than ever before. The context in which brands are operating legally, socially and ecologically is increasingly complex to navigate. And whilst consumers and employees are demanding brands step up and take a stand, it is also an opportunity for brands to create real positive impact.

Shifting from simply selling products to serving society and making a difference in the world will differentiate your brand from its competitors and give it new opportunities to innovate, grow and thrive.

So how can brands ensure that they are maximising the impact that they make?

The 4B Brand Model

For your brand to maximise its impact in the world, it should be Big, Bold, Brave and Beloved.

1.?? Being BIG means that your brand is leading the way for others to follow.

It is not about trying to solve all the world’s problems or to serve everyone. Quite the contrary. Your brand should have a purpose that contributes in a unique way to solving one of the world’s biggest challenges. ?

Tony’s Chocaloney’s is a great example of a BIG purpose: it was founded with the purpose to make all chocolate 100% slave free.

Tony’s disrupted industry supply chains that are dominated by a group of chocolate giants that profit from keeping prices as low as possible. This creates a poverty trap for farmers, leading to illegal child labor and modern slavery.

Instead, Tony’s has made their supply chain fully transparent, investing in long-term partnerships with farmer cooperatives and helping them professionalise. They pay cocoa farmers a higher price and invest in agricultural knowledge and training to help improve productivity on the farms. What makes their purpose BIG is that they actively seek partners who are interested in applying their model, aiming to impact and move the entire industry out of child slavery.

2.???? Being BOLD means that your brand is challenging the norms of the industry.

It is only by innovating beyond the existing paradigms that brands will catalyze new conversations that shift consumption habits and evolve society.?

A great example of a BOLD purpose is iD Genève, an innovative watch brand that is not afraid to break the codes of the luxury industry by using recycled materials.

The luxury watch industry remains locked behind codes that require the extraction and processing of non-regenerative raw materials. These are often energy intensive activities involving large scale interventions in ecosystems and result in air, soil and water pollution. Within this context, iD Genève’s purpose is to shift consumers’ perception of recycled materials and put the luxury industry at the centre of the ecological transition.?

3.?? Being BRAVE means that your brand lives up to what it stands for.

Purpose without action is not a true purpose. Your brand must own what it believes in by speaking up, even if it means (and it will!) upsetting those who are not part of its tribe.

Patagonia is the embodiment of a BRAVE purpose-led brand. Every action and communication aims to forward ist purpose of saving our home planet. The brand communicates mostly on its activism to support or denounce issues that are core to its purpose. From suing former US president Donald Trump, to pulling its distribution and advertising over values misalignment and actively supporting legislation such as The Nature Restoration law, Patagonia is never afraid to stand firmly in its beliefs and share them with the world.

4.?? Being BELOVED means that your brand rallies a tribe and makes them the hero of the story.

Having a purpose that aims to “save the world” is a great start, but no innovation, no matter how breakthrough, will make a difference without an emotional connection with the right community.?

Connecting with your tribe is therefore not about what your brand offers (the products, services & benefits) but about why your brand does what it does (its purpose).

And even more importantly, it is about making your clients the heroes of the story.

The real impact comes from helping your clients make the difference that they want to make in the world. This will drive connection, trust, and love for your brand whilst engaging others behind its purpose.

With its Real Beauty campaign, Dove challenged the norms of the beauty industry, which were affecting women’s mental health, by showing real women of all shapes and sizes. In its more recent campaigns, such as The Cost of Beauty, which focus on the dangers of social media, Dove invites their clients to take action and sign a petition to pass the Kids Online Safety act. It signs off with the very inclusive tagline, "Let's Change Beauty", implying that it is together that we will make an impact.

Big, Bold, Brave and Beloved

So there you have it, positive impact is about the 4Bs: BIG, BOLD, BRAVE and BELOVED.

Your brand will grow, you will make a difference in consumers’ lives and positively impact the world.

In my book, I call that a win-win-win!

So what are you waiting for?

Is your brand ready to step up and transform the world?

?Whenever you are ready to take your brand to the next level, here are three ways I can support you.

1.???? Sign up to The Butterfly Movements community and get your free copy of our purpose guide.

Join other purpose-led founders and pioneers and get weekly inspiration, access to articles, videos shorts and masterclasses as well as a free guide to help you articulate your brand purpose: https://thebutterflymovements.mn.co/

2.???? Get yourself on the waitlist for the first cohort of the “Build Your Positive Impact Brand” online course.

This 5-week online course will help you define your brand purpose, ideal clients, positioning, and communication strategy to set you apart from the competition.

Contact me to get on the waitlist at: [email protected]

3.???? Break through to your brand’s next level of impact by signing up for one of our brand strategy packages.

-?????? Brand positioning package: articulate your brand purpose and develop your brand positioning to set it apart from the competition.

-?????? Brand story package: express your unique brand story to rally the right clients and investors.

-?????? Marketing strategy package: define your ideal clients, brand offering and strategy to grow your brand’s reach and impact.

Find out more here: https://thebutterflymovements.com/services/

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