Photo by Luca Bravo on Unsplash
Being a brand today is hard work. It should be.
People are no longer satisfied by new products or clever branding alone. Consumers are more empowered than ever, using their dollars to vote for brands and companies they believe in. What drives belief and engenders support? Beyond meaningful corporate actions, agreeable mission statements and carefully curated causes, companies need to evince a shared ideology with their intended audience. Much of the effort to present this falls on their communications and tangible brand actions.
With these challenges in mind, brands need to ensure their communication behaviors are aligned with the pursuit of proving their mettle to discerning consumers. First and foremost, businesses need to build a resume of activity that reinforces their brand values and showcases authenticity. Equally important, from a consumer connection standpoint, is to communicate empathy and display a true understanding of your audience. Finally, brands should consider it an obligation to be inclusive with their efforts. This is the conduct consumers will respect and the tenets that will drive brand growth in the years to come.
Demonstrating Authenticity
Describing the findings of a recent consumer sentiment survey, Merkle’s Director of Digital Experience and Brand Strategy Jennifer Wolf stated that “Today’s consumers value authenticity and want to feel heard, so brands must create a delicate balance of enabling relevant personalization and avoiding tactics that seem invasive.” Unfortunately, the report found that “Only 29% of respondents feel that they often see themselves represented in messaging and advertising and 30% have received marketing communication from a brand they found to be offensive.” Speaking more directly to the issues at hand, Uber ANZ’s Head of Marketing Andy Morley says “Brands who don’t live up to the marketing messages they share will be called out for woke washing and lose customers as a result.”
Clearly, brands have work to do to demonstrate their values to consumers. To start, brands should look to better understand where their target audience stands on issues and what actions they look to endorse. In Valassis’ 2020 Consumer Intent Report, it was found that “43% of all consumers say they are more likely to buy products from companies whose values match their own.” Furthermore, the findings showed that a brand’s business practices and ethics are a key factor in building trust and loyalty. These trends were even more pronounced among younger audiences. Brands looking to stick around for the long haul would be wise to bear in mind two old adages as they seek to build authenticity: ‘know your audience’ and ‘actions speak louder than words’.
Projecting Empathy
In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, empathy has become the word of the era. For brands and their behavior, this is no exception. PepsiCo recently conducted a longitudinal study in partnership with research firm Ipsos that found over half of consumers viewed brands using marketing efforts to address the pandemic as an act of empathy. Underscoring the importance of this posture, the survey also found 86% of respondents “agreeing that it's "critical" for brands to show empathy now if they want to grow loyalty.” So, how can brands embrace their inner-empathy? In a recent Forbes article, the Co-Founders of New York agency Oberland posited that the answer lies in brands acting like real people and acknowledging the realities of shoppers’ day-to-day lives and stressors. This is a big shift for many brands who want to maintain evergreen positivity and stay on the sidelines of social issues.
As brands look toward the future, this attitude will need to extend beyond just marketing. A recent study done by Morning Consult has found younger, Generation Z consumers to be particularly fickle when it comes to legacy brands and emphasized the importance of organizations’ actions in shaping their favorability with this group. Specifically, the report states “qualities related to a brand’s stakeholder orientation — ranging from customer-centricity to concern for employees — are especially differentiating in driving Gen Z’s perceptions of and relationships with winning brands.” These findings are a clear indication that brands need to spend time deeply thinking about how their consumers feel and what actions they can take to support not only their needs, but their ideals.
Behaving Inclusively
As with any other form of communication, representation matters. When it comes to marketing and communications, many groups are often misrepresented or presented as stereotypes. African Americans and Women are two notable groups in this regard. Additionally, there is a much bigger gulf to be considered when it comes to broader inclusion of non-traditional body types, gender identities, and other demographic nuances. Whether this is due to various biases, a changing world or some combination of both is hard to say, but brands should work hard to identify these issues and rectify their processes going forward.
Brands will be happy they did so. Recent research fielded by Getty found that inclusive images held stronger appeal for consumers across the board compared with non-inclusive visuals. Moreover, making work inclusive has significant bottom line benefits as well. Google found that 64% of consumers took an action after watching an ad they considered inclusive and that “69% of black respondents were more inclined to purchase from a brand whose advertising positively reflected their race or ethnicity.” To the chagrin of well-intentioned marketers, brands have missed the mark on inclusive representation. If they want to succeed and grow, they can no longer delay in correcting this error.
Enacting the New Rules
Brands like IBM and Sephora among others have already taken bold stances to showcase their core values with significant commitments, but you don’t need a major initiative to get started adjusting your brand’s ethos. Whether you are working as part of a global brand or a smaller start-up, now is the time to interrogate your communications and build up a track record of authentic, empathic, and inclusive work. It can start with efforts as small as giving a second-look to marketing copy and imagery for advertising and go as far as forming new partnerships and taking corporate actions. As long as you are prioritizing these new brand requirements and thoughtfully addressing your consumers, you will be on the right track toward growing sustainable relationships with your audience where they believe your brand values them.
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