New ways of branding
Marketing as it was 20 years ago is completely different today and part of that is because of the relationship between brands and consumers. Brands used to hold all the power and the communication was a monologue, it was a one-way direction. Brands promised the world but If the customer didn’t like something about the brand, their products or the way they went about their business, well, that was just too bad. But today’s rules have changed. Communication is a dialogue, is back and forth between the consumer and the brand and on average and you need at least 7 or 8 touchpoints for your audience to register brand.
With the current social exposure, no brand anywhere is safe anymore, and some took heavy beatings. Smart brands have quickly learned and are forced to consider what the public wants with special concerns to what is ethical or what is not. More and more brands began to take an interest in hashtags, and social media groups to better understand the conversations their customers were having. With a better understanding of what their customers wanted, brands started taking positions and addressing some of the social concerns of their customers which gave rise to today’s purpose-driven brands.
The importance of adding a Why to your brand
Brands adopting purpose didn’t come naturally. According to Simon Sinek’s speech in 2009, in business today it doesn’t matter what you do, it matters why you do it. The most successful brands around the globe started with why. Apple believes in thinking differently, Nike believes is all impossible until it’s done. All these brands were born with a greater purpose from very early stages.
Sinek’s theory uses “The golden circle” to describe how brands communicate: WHAT: Every organization on the planet knows what they do, these are products they sell or services they provide. HOW: Some organizations know how they do it. These are the things that make them special or set them apart from the competition. WHY: Very few organizations know WHY they want to do what they do. Why is not about making money, that is a result. WHY is a purpose, cause or belief. This is the very reason why your organization exists.
Top 6 reasons why you should include higher purpose missions?
The benefits and potential of an effective higher-purpose strategy are limitless. But with higher responsibility comes higher accountability. These high stakes come with higher responsibility and with it, more accountability and risk. A wrong strategy or any sensitive mistakes might lead to a bad reputation. There are a few factors to consider: Authenticity, timing, execution and context. Any efforts when doing claiming commitment require actions that must be tangible, measurable and reportable. Finding your higher purpose is the easy part, facts and consequences are another thing.
Let’s get a bit closer to the main benefits of including a higher-purpose bet in your Ocean lifestyle brand.
1. Charisma
Rally those who believe the same as your brand. In a few words, energy excites but charisma inspires. A good brand connects with people at an emotional level, they feel good when they buy from you. In your customer’s minds, is not for what the product does, is why what the was built for. Products with a clear sense of WHY give people a way to tell the outside world who they are and what do they believe. This transaction is happening in the limbic brain, right in the core of people’s minds.
2. Balance
High purpose goals bring BALANCE. In nature, when something disappears, it gets replaced by something else as a way of maintaining a balance. When your brand has a clear purpose of what they believe, it follows the same natural course of action and pretty much everything aligns together.
3. Clarity, discipline and consistency
Having a higher purpose of mission will help you stay focused and correct mistakes when things go fuzzy. Is very easy to get carried away from your original idea in the middle of the brand’s creation. When your brand has a strong belief, clarity comes along and helps you to correct the steering wheel to the right course.
4. Loyalty
Increase trust, loyalty and engagement. A strong identity of what your company believes increases confidence and nurture.
Engage loyalty. The difference between a brand that sells plain material and another one that sells ideas is that people buy from you because they believe in you. Loyal customers will support you in good and bad times. In addition, high engagement rates due to strong beliefs also promote referrals.
5. Motivation
A clear higher purpose provides clarity and mission for your staff. It tells how to act and how to meet the organization’s goals in everyday operations.
6. Reputation
A company that defines its role in society is better perceived by its stakeholders and moreover young people, the consumers of tomorrow.
What does your brand believe in? Does it have a why?
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