Brands on a Mission
Can Purpose Drive Profit? And Should It?
Do companies owe their consumers anything beyond the products and services they offer? Should businesses ever set their focus to maximize anything other than profit?
More than ever, these are questions that business owners are struggling with, and even being pushed by their customers to address. Why is this? Because Milton Friedman’s definition of capitalism, which has wielded a huge influence over US economists since the Reagan presidency, is beginning to break its promises. From climate change alone, we can see that our current economic paradigm is literally unsustainable, and as income inequality continues to bloom like suffocating, invasive algae, the public has just about had enough.
This has led businesses to begin committing to grander purposes, shifting the way they do business to build relationships with consumers along the lines of their personal, political, and social values, rather than simple transactions. While some companies have shown a willingness to truly engage with this reimagining of traditional economic systems, others have used the guise of a higher purpose to continue their dastardly ways, fooling consumers in the process.
Purpose pushing, as we’re calling it, is when companies insert themselves into larger social or political conversations, as a means of drawing attention to their brand. Far more often than not, this approach is akin to slapping a coat of purpose-colored paint over their brand, instead of working to build authentic connections with potential customers. Most companies, at the end of the day, are selling products that won’t make waves on these global levels, and that’s completely fine. By providing people what they need, companies can be satisfied that they’ve done a good job. In the long term, purpose pushing has the opposite effect than what is intended, ultimately devaluing purpose.
Are We Devaluing Purpose?
Businesses need to realize when they’re doing more harm than good. Sure, a campaign that utilizes the inspirational appeal of Brazilian environmentalists who are working to save jaguars in the Amazon from poachers might make for incredible content, but is it appropriate if your company sells toothpaste? Probably not. This is an example of where good intentions have the opposite effect of what was intended.
For many consumers, seeing a business shoehorn an important issue into an unrelated brand or campaign causes them to become more cynical about other, more legitimate causes. This is precisely what we’re talking about when we say ‘devaluing purpose.’ It’s like making a huge withdrawal from a bank account full of money you didn’t earn, at the expense of the people who worked hard for it. In order to prevent this from happening, and to prevent consumer cynicism towards campaigns generally, companies need to learn how to balance justice and business.
Balancing Justice and Business
First off, let’s make one point clear: it’s very easy to get caught up in the enthusiasm of social movements and global trends. Beyond their career, everyone has a conscience, political preferences, and a stake in making the world a better place. So it’s not that you shouldn’t care about these things, or get involved in the causes you care about, but it’s important to recognize when a campaign is seizing the reins of a movement or trend for its own ends, and devaluing purpose in the process.
In order to develop a purpose that best supports social and political movements, where appropriate, we need to balance our senses of justice and business. Supporting these movements means being an ally for those who need it, and not being seen as an invader into a space that activists have taken years to establish. In most cases, this means that businesses need to help separate their marketing from their giving back, in order to preserve the integrity of both.
Change is Inevitable. Progress is a Choice.
Brands are agents of change, through and through, and this means that businesses have a role to play in our society’s progress. However, this should not be done through the kind of heavy-handed purpose pushing we’ve outlined here. A great example of how this is done is through the ‘Mars Compass,’ the Mars corporation’s outlet for social change and progress. Instead of one-off campaigns that hijack social trends, the Mars Compass is a long term commitment to pairing the company’s many brands with movements that make sense, and building authentic communities, like Skittles’ annual ‘Donate the Rainbow’ campaign for Pride, rather than ‘purpose-washing’ their campaigns, devaluing purpose, and increasing consumer cynicism.
If we are going to continue to promote the value of business owners and their companies, we need to recognize the importance of respecting purpose, and not overusing it to signal company virtues. The long term goal is to create corporations that are the foundation of a thriving, sustainable 21st-century economy. By committing to this, we can create a world where businesses are agents of change that choose progress over popularity contests.
Thanks for reading. Yours, Marc Posch
Opus Creative Group, Los Angeles — with partners in Munich and Paris — offers the combined expertise and firepower of a well-calibrated team of experts, and with it a broad spectrum of creative services, from Brand Consulting to Brand Development and Digital Branding. With 20+ years of experience in the tech and manufacturing sectors, we help our clients define their brand story, and we help them achieve success.
Feel free to contact me if you want to learn more about us or discuss a new project. A 30-minute consultation is always free, coffee included.
Contact +1.213.446.7986. Or visit OpusCreativeGroup.com Thank you.
Out in print now: “The Million Dollar Brand — Building A Million Dollar Brand For The Information Economy. A Step-by-Step Manual.” By Marc Posch, Creative Director, and Brand Consultant. To order click here
