Purposeful branding isn’t going anywhere

We live in a world filled with emerging trends, booming populations and advanced technologies. And marketers are being forced to evolve and adapt. While advertising will always be entwined into marketing strategy, businesses are increasingly being challenged to permeate greater purpose into their campaigns.

In fact, according to research, 75% of consumers worldwide expect brands to contribute to their well-being and quality of life. The notion of brand purpose is especially important when marketing to millennials, 71% of whom say they prefer brands that drive social and environmental change.

Needless to say, for brands looking to earn customer loyalty, advancing social causes is no longer an option - but a necessity. This begs the question: How do marketers tackle important societal and political issues, such as climate change, women’s rights and job growth, while remaining authentic and relevant to their target audiences?

While there is no clear-cut answer, it's important to note that advertising is no longer a one-way communication. Social media has brought people back into the equation, giving them a voice, access to the brand and ownership of the conversation.

The vital foundation for how brands operate, is a sense of purpose and value. The need for marketers today is to go back to purpose and values.

As an example, Simon Longstaff’s report [Ethics Centre director, who conducted a cultural review of Cricket Australia following the South African ball tampering scandal], claims that it was the loss of direction and purpose that pushed the team off the rails.

The problem is, we need to get real about purpose and values, how we communicate and as marketers, we need to be unwavering on that.

To quote Simon Sinek: “No customer ever loved a company that its employees didn’t love first,” he said. “Usually employees love companies founded in great values, have a strong culture and offer them a sense of purpose. That really creates the tone of voice, from marketing service agent to consultant. It all starts with culture and pulling together to get that consistency."

The only way you rise to that challenge and maintain competitive edge is by creating an empowered enterprise that meets those customers in the way those customers want to be spoken to and communicated with.

The key is understanding people want whole-of-brand experiences. It’s not just a marketing experience. Think about the experience you get when you request service, or walk into a retail store? These are vitally important touch-points and here is where moments matter and marketers are always talking about.

Many organisations have spent millions of dollars on technology to meet this new digital marketing challenge. But it’s simply not enough to just be great at digital marketing – you need an empowered enterprise that brings it all together.

Evoke Emotion

In a lot of cases, the modern consumer isn’t looking for just a product; they’re looking for a connection. They don’t need to be sold; they need to be inspired. How does the brand make you feel? Does it align with their core values and beliefs? As consumers’ priorities continue to evolve, it’s more important than ever for brands to connect with social audiences on a deeper, more personal level.

By unlocking human creativity to evoke emotions, brands are blurring the lines between for-profit and for-good to foster more meaningful relationships with consumers.

In sum, the growing trend of purposeful branding isn’t going anywhere. By using social issues to inform advertising and marketing decisions, brands are solidifying their identities, building trust and setting themselves apart from the competition. Although there are risks involved with brands championing certain causes, when these campaigns are done thoughtfully -- with a careful emphasis on authenticity -- their benefits have the potential to extend beyond the company’s mission to society as a whole.