How brands have generated awareness during BLM and social distancing

As the days go by, people are becoming increasingly aware of the injustices that plague society. By supporting the fundamentals of truth and justice, many advocates are creating examples of what the world needs. Sitting in the shadows and being ignorant isn’t acceptable any longer because, as the famous saying goes: If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem.

By participating in social movements, brands have also been able to engage with their audience and build a rapport based on trust and loyalty. Having brands that care about social, political, and ecological issues is a huge advantage. It shows empathy and willingness to make a change, and the fact that it reaches parts of the population that don’t resonate with activism. Customers that believe and support such social causes also feel like purchasing from these brands.

Brands and the Black Lives Matter Movement

People want the brands they engage with to not only have a voice but also to use it. One of the recent injustices, the murder of George Floyd, an African-American who was a victim of unjust police brutality, sparked protests worldwide, which included some very famous brands. Nike released a heart-wrenching video showing its support of the Black Lives Matter movement. Putting aside their competitive differences, even Adidas reposted Nike’s ad showed the importance of this issue.

Viacom, one of America’s leading media conglomerates, halted its program viewing across all its channels like Nickelodeon, MTV, Comedy Central, and CBS Sports for 8 minutes and 46 seconds. The timing is crucial because it is the same amount of time the police officer knelt over George Floyd while pleading for his life. The screen showed a black background with the words ‘I can’t breathe’ displayed over it.

Ben and Jerry’s, without beating around the bush, called out the root behind the problem through their tweet.

Although it may look like a weak attempt at showing their support, Ben and Jerry’s has a history of participating in social movements. It released an ice cream back in 2019 called Justice Remix’d, which they said had an aftertaste of ‘ending structural racism in our broken criminal legal system.’ The proceeds go to a multiracial Civil Rights organization that uses social movements to impact policy change.

Brands are many things. They are an identity for a business, the voice of the company, and an association for a consumer. Their advantages are a hundredfold, and the key benefit of a brand is its ability to reach out to vast masses of the population. Their tweets and posts generate awareness and build trust between them and their customers. By pledging their proceeds to charities and donating to movements, many have done just that.

Brands during the COVID-19 pandemic

Another issue that has dominated the world is the Coronavirus pandemic. Governments are asking their citizens to stay at home and to stay safe. While, sometimes, it inevitably falls on deaf ears, brands have taken it upon themselves to promote this message to the masses. It doesn’t take much to show support for such issues, but the creativity these brands portray is absolute love.

The Ohio Department of Health showed the importance of social distancing using mousetraps and ping pong balls in this ingenious ad:

Similarly, Probalance shows exactly what you should do in a lockdown:

In a dual effort to show their gratitude to the medics that are at the front line while endorsing the reason to stay home, Dove created this heart-wrenching advertisement:

These specimens are examples of how people can trust these brands that are consistently engaged and actively participating in movements. 63% of consumers would opt to show their loyalty to brands that take a stand on current issues. However, awareness need not only be spread through videos that play with our emotions. Logos, too, are an innovative way to do the same.

Here are a few logos that socially distanced their elements in support of this regulation:

McDonald’s

Audi

Mercedes

Mercado Libre (Argentina’s Online Marketplace)

Pizza Hut

Many critics believe that brands are just using this opportunity for their profit. While it’s true that participating companies do get a chance to associate their brand with a purpose, the only other alternative is to stay silent, which is wrong.

Yes, it helps brands generate trust, engage with the population, and even target the youth. But it also helps them use their voice and influence people. Staying silent in the face of injustice shows indifference. People who opt to remain silent and not speak out or participate in movements seem to portray that despite having the money, influence, resources, and opportunities to speak out, they’d instead choose not to help. Frito Lay has elegantly explained how their actions are not for the brands but the people.

Maybe it’s time to take a page from their book and do the same. You may not have the power and authority of a brand, but even the smallest pebbles make a ripple in the pond.

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Originally published at https://thewiseidiot.in on July 11, 2020.